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THE HONGKONG GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 3RD NOVEMBER, 1883.
GOVERNMENT NOTIFICATION.-No. 355.
845
The following report of the inspection of the Agencies of the Hongkong General Post Office by the Assistant Postmaster General, is published for general information.
By Command,
Colonial Secretary's Office, Hongkong, 3rd November, 1883.
W. H. MARSH,
Colonial Secretary.
GENERAL POST OFFICE, HONGKONG, October 20th, 1883.
SIR, I have the honour to report that I returned yesterday from a tour of Inspection of the Agencies of this Office on the Coast of China.
2. During this tour I visited the Post Offices at the Ports of Shanghai, Hankow, Ningpo, Foochow, Amoy and Swatow.
3. At each Port I called on the Consul, the Commissioner of Customs, and the Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce, with a view to ascertaining, whether the postal arrangements were satisfactory or not, and I am happy to report that the present arrangements are giving satisfaction to the commu- nities concerned.
4. At Shanghai I had an opportunity of observing the treatment of an incoming as well as an outgoing Mail; everything worked smoothly and regularly. I found the postal property in capital order, with the exception of the Mail Cart, the bottom of which was rotten. I accordingly directed the Postmaster to have it repaired. The cost of the repairs will be about $22. Besides our own Office at this Port, there are five other Offices, viz. :-French, American, Japanese, Local, and Customs. The number of home letters, &c., going through the first is increasing, owing to the fact that the postal rates are just half our own. The Local Office is a great convenience to the public and is much used. For 30 taels per annum any firm may transmit an unlimited quantity of correspondence.
5. During the tea season at Hankow a large amount of correspondence is sent on board the tea steamers, and taken by the Captains to Suez and there posted. If by some means we could arrange that this correspondence should pass through our office it would add considerably to our Postal Revenue. 6. At Foochow the community are still very anxious to have direct communication with Hongkong, but this question has already been dealt with by you. The Community at this port at present suffer a considerable inconvenience which might be easily removed. The Homeward Mails are closed at 3.30. P.M., as the only means of conveying them to the Steamer at Pagoda Anchorage is by Messrs. JARDINE, MATHESON & Co.'s launch, which leaves Foochow at 4 o'clock. I therefore suggest the expenditure of $1 per Mail in Sampan hire, as the Mail might then be closed at any hour, to the great convenience of the Community.
7. The double Office system at Amoy is working well. It is, however, a great pity that the Imperial Post Office will not allow an Assistant, as to work both Offices satisfactorily one is absolutely necessary. I would strongly recommend that this Agency be supplied with a four-oared gig in place of the present dingy. It frequently happens that a steamer slows down about three miles outside Amoy simply to drop the Mails, and in rough weather the dingy is absolutely unsafe; in point of fact the Agent almost always uses the Consular gig on these occasions.
8. The new Office at Swatow is much appreciated by the Community there, as Mails are now closed only half an hour before the departure of the Steamer.
9. The only Offices possessing Safes are the Shanghai and Amoy Offices. I think it would be advisable to supply each Agency with a small one for the safe keeping of Stamps, Registered Letters, Cash, &c.
10. I took the opportunity whilst at Amoy and Swatow of thanking Messrs. ELLES & Co., and Messrs. BUTTERFIELD & SWIRE for allowing us to use their Offices for postal purposes.
11. The foreign communities at the Ports I visited, complain of the inconvenience of the present system of issuing Money Orders from the Offices in Hongkong and Shanghai alone. They would regard as a great boon any arrangements which would enable them to obtain Money Orders at the Postal Agencies of their own Ports, as they would thus save much time and trouble.
12. Before concluding my report, I must put on record my sincere thanks to H. B. M. Consuls at the various ports I visited for their kind assistance in helping me to execute my work.
I have the honour to be,
Sir,
Your obedient Servant,
The Honourable ALFRED LISTER,
Postmaster General,
HONGKONG.
ARTHUR K. TRAVERS,
Assistant Postmaster General.
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