them both ways, which they will do until October 24, inclusive, that being date of last sailing from San Francisco. Shall former rates via Brindisi be restored? H. G. PEARSON, Postmaster. POST-OFFICE DEPARTMENT, OFFICE OF FOREIGN MAILS, POSTMASTER, New York: August 14, 1885. Ascertain at once if Pacific Mail intends to carry mails for Australia by the next steamer. Superintendent Foreign Mails, Post-Office Department, Washington, D. C.: Secretary of company out of the city; to return Monday. No one authorized to give required information. The advertised date of September sailing is per City of Sydney on 26th; and verbal tender of yesterday distinctly covered all dispatches up to October 24, inclusive. H. G. PEARSON, Postmaster. PACIFIC MAIL STEAMSHIP COMPANY, TRANSPORTATION OF BRITISH CLOSED MAILS. SIR Referring to the inclosed copy of letter of even date to the postmaster at New York, we have to ask that you will cause us to be informed by the proper officer of the Department how the Pacific Mail Steamship Company has been paid for the conveyance of closed mails received at San Francisco from England for Hong-Kong, China, Yokobama, Japan, and Honolulu, and conveyed from San Francisco to des tination by the steamers of this company. We understand the United States Government receives payment from England for the conveyance of the mails in question as follows: Territorial transit, New York to San Francisco, 6 francs per kilogram for letters and 2 francs per kilogram for papers. Sea transit, San Francisco to Hong-Kong, Yokohama, and Honolulu, 5 francs per kilogram for letters and 50 centimes per kilogram for papers. This company has been carrying the said mails since the entry of the countries into the Postal Union, and as we suppose the British Government has paid the United States Government for the sea transit of these mails, we are desirous of being informed in what account our steamers have received compensation. It, as we have reason to suppose, no pay has been allowed us for the service rendered, we have to ask that you will cause the proper credits and prompt settlement to be made for the carriage by our steamers of these closed mails. Respectfully, Hon. Wм. F. VILAS, Postmaster-General, Washington, D. C. W. H. LANE, Secretary. NEW YORK, N. Y., August 12, 1885. DEAR SIR: In reply to the verbal inquiry made by you this a. m. through your general superintendent, Mr. Riblett, I am desired by the President to say that our decision not to receive mails for Japan and China from the United States Post-Office Superintendent remains unchanged. We cannot, therefore, receive the closed British mails which Mr. Riblett informs me you desire to forward by the steamship City of Rio de Janerio from San Francisco 18th instant. We do not hesitate to send you the above advice, for the reason that we notice through the newspapers that the Postmaster-General has made satisfactory arrangements for the expeditious forwarding of all Japan and China mails. In this connection I may add that we cannot find that we have received any compensation whatsoever for the carriage of these British closed mails for years past. We are therefore to-day inclosing copy of this letter to the Department with the request that this matter be investigated, and that we shall be credited with our share of the mail pay which we understand the United States Government has received from the British Government for the transportation of these closed mails. Respectfully, W. H. LANE, Secretary. POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT, OFFICE OF FOREIGN MAILS, POSTMASTER, New York: August 14, 1885. Wire Pacific Mail's tender for Australian mails-for place on September schedule. NICHOLAS M. BELL, Superintendent Foreign Mails. WASHINGTON, D. C., August 15, 1885. SIR Referring to paragraph 2 of my letter No. 68906, of the 30th ultimo, I have the honor to inform you that the direct mail service from San Francisco to Australia has been resumed, and that mails for New Zealand, the Australian colonies, and correspondence for the Fiji and Samoan Islands will be dispatched from San Francisco direct per the steamer Zealandia, to sail thence on the 29th instant, and that until further notice all correspondence for the destinations above named will be dispatched from San Francisco direct, unless specially addressed to be forwarded via Brindisi. You will please cause the third paragraph of General Order No. 204, in the Daily Bulletin of the 31st ultimo, to be modified accordingly, and give notice thereof in the next issue of the Daily Bulletin. I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, NICHOLAS M. BELL, Superintendent Foreign Mails. JNO. JAMESON, Esq., THE WESTERN UNION TELEGRAPH COMPANY, NICHOLAS M. BELL, Superintendent Foreign Mails, Washington, D. C.: Secretary Pacific Mail Company writes this afternoon denying that his verbal statement on Friday was a tender, but says that it was decided by them last month that their contract with colonies required them to accept all mails tendered to them at San Francisco. H. G. PEARSON, Postmuster. [The United States and Brazil Mail Steamship Company, office of the secretary and treasurer.] NEW YORK, October 7, 1885. DEAR SIR: Your favor of the 5th instant to hand, and in reply I would say that the company has advertised two dates of sailing in November, viz: Advance, November 4, 1 p. m., from New York; November 7, 7 p. m., from Newport News, Va.; Finance, November 28, from New York, at 1 p. m.; from Newport News, December 1, at 7 p. m. Any change in above dates will be advertised and notice of change sent to your office. Information in this relation is furnished without prejudice to any claim this company may have for compensation as set forth in previous correspondence with the Department. Advance and Finance will call at the following ports after leaving Newport News: St. Thomas, Danish West Indies; Barbadoes, British West Indies; Para, Maranham, Pernambuco, Bahia, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Yours, very respectfully, J. M. LACHLAN, JR., Secretary. H. G. PEARSON, Esq., Postmaster, New York. PACIFIC MAIL STEAMSHIP COMPANY, DEAR SIR: In reply to your favor of the 5th of October, in which you desire information that will enable the honorable Postmaster-General to determine the names of the steamships entitled to carry the United States mails during the month of November next, we respectfully beg to state that as we have no arrangements with the Post-Office Department for the carriage of outward mails on our steamers, we can see no present necessity for submitting the list of our departures in November in order to permit the Postmaster-General to determine which of our steamers may be entitled to carry the United States mails. We shall during that month, as heretofore, receive from the PostOffice Department outward bound mails to such countries whose postal contract with our company oblige this company to carry such outward mails. Washington, D. C., March 3, 1862. GENTLEMEN: I have received formal notice from Cornelius Vanderbilt, controlling the steamship line to Aspinwall, that he will not take the South Pacific or any other mails after the 21st instant. This is an attempt to coerce Congress to contract with him on his own terms for carrying these mails. I called the attention of Congress to the coercive system exercised by the railroad companies upon the Government in my annual report. I trust suitable measures will be adopted before adjournment to maintain the public interests in that behalf. But this steamboat coercion requires immediate attention. Unless something is done at once the vast mercantile interests will be seriously affected. My own opinion is that this and every other line of steamers leaving our ports should be required to take mails to their ports of destination upon such terms as are now or may hereafter be allowed by Congress as the condition of their clearance. It is not pretended that the compensation now given is not sufficient for the service rendered. No private person pays them for any kind of transportation at the rate paid by the Government for mail matter. We give all and more than we make out of it, and no persons are so much benefited incidentally as the owners of the ships, for the bulk of the correspondence relates to the trade carried on by their vessels. Yours, respectfully, Messrs. COLLAMAR and COLFAX, M. BLAIR, Postmaster-General. Chairmen, &c., Senate and House of Representatives. EXHIBIT F. LEASE OF MARINI HALL. This indenture, made the 1st day of August, A. D. 1885, by and between Louis G. Marini, of Washington, District of Columbia, party of the first part, and the United States of America, acting in this behalf by William F. Vilas, Postmaster-General of said United States, party of the second part, witnesseth that, Whereas, under the provisions of an act of Congress entitled "An act making appropriations for the legislative, executive, and judicial expenses of the Government for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1886, and for other purposes", approved March 3, 1885, appropriation was made for, and the rent of additional buildings for the purposes hereinafter mentioned was duly authorized; and Whereas, on the 16th day of May, A. D. 1885, the Postmaster General duly advertised in newspapers in the City of Washington for sealed proposals for the leasing to the United States of additional building or buildings, for the use of the Money-Order Service; and Whereas said party of the first part, among others, duly submitted proposals, which were duly accepted, and are on file in the Post-Office Department, and referred to herein, offering to lease to the party of the second part, upon terms, covenants, conditions, and for the purposes hereinafter set forth, the premises hereinafter described: Now, therefore, the said party of the first part, in consideration of the rents and covenants herein contained on the part of the party of the second part, to be paid, kept, and performed, has granted, demised, leased, and let unto the party of the second part all the following described real estate and premises, to wit: The premises situated in the city of Washington, in said District of Columbia, known as "Marini Hall," number 914 E street N. W., being the building located on the west side lot number nineteen (19), block number three hundred and seventy-eight (378), having a frontage on E street, and a uniform width of forty feet, and running thence south 187 feet and 1 inches to a thirty-foot alley (except a parcel 13 feet wide and 20 feet long on the southeast corner of said premises), for the use of the money order office of the Post-Office Department, and of the money order division of the office of the Auditor of the Treasury for the Post-Office Department, for the term and upon the conditions and stipulations following, to wit: The term of this lease to begin on the 1st day of August, A. D. 1885, and to extend until the first day of July, A. D. 1886; but the party of the second part may elect and exercise the option to extend the term of this lease from year to year, beginning on the first day of July of each year, for a period of not to exceed nine years additional, and upon the exercise of such option by the Postmaster-General to extend the same, this lease shall (without further writings) be deemed extended the then ensuing year upon the same terms, conditions, and covenants as are herein made applicable during the said first year or specified term of the same, unless the same be hereafter modified or changed by mutual consent. |
