89

A.—4,

machine, and are then sent to the stations. The Stationmasters send back receipts, through the Traffic Auditor, to the Commissioner. A complete ticket ledger is kept in the Traffic Audit, in which each Stationmaster is debited with the tickets sent to him, and is credited with his issues, the balances on hand being shown. Not less than a month's supply is required to be kept on each station, but no rule appears to be in force as to the maximum limit. This seems to be left to the discretion of the Statiomnaster, nor could any such limit be applied, unless the requisitions were checked by the Traffic Auditor before supplies of tickets were issued. Invoices of tickets sent out are kept in the Commissioner's office, but no account of the sales on the stations is recorded, except in the Traffic Audit Office. Half-tickets for children are issued by cutting out of the whole ticket a triangular piece on which are printed two numbers indicating the from and to stations. These triangular tickets are sent to the Audit, and are there checked against the collected tickets to which they belong Stocks of excursion train tickets are kept on stations where they are likely to be required. Monthly tickets are signed and issused by Stationmasters, quarterly, halfyearly, and yearly tickets are signed by the Commissioner, and are sent to the stations for issue, and an account is kept against the Stationmaster Season and school tickets are issued as usual, but, by a recent regulation, children attending public schools travel free by second class; if by first class they have to pay the usual fares. Books of flag-station and excess-fare tickets are issued to Stationmasters, and by them to guards, who write the duplicate ticket by means of carbon paper The guard accounts to the Stationmaster from whom he received the book. The Stationmaster initials the duplicate ticket as his receipt for the money, and the guard sends the books so receipted to the Traffic Auditor, where they are checked against the collected tickets. Elag-station tickets run only to the next ticket station. On stations where the average sales of any class of tickets are less than five & month, books of " blank-paper tickets," with the name of the issuing station only printed, are issued to the Stationmaster, who fills in the name of the to station, and at the same time fills in the butt in the book. The tickets collected are checked against the butts in the used books, which are sent to the Audit. The check is obviously imperfect, but, as the issues are very small, it is deemed sufficient. Tickets are never collected by guards, but at country stations at the gates, or, where there are no gates, by the porter as the passengers leave the train. In through journeys they are collected at the last station before the terminus, except on suburban lines on up trains, where they are collected at the gates at Sydney. All collected tickets are sent to the Audit, where they are sorted and checked: about 5 per cent, are uncollected. A neat metal ticket, silver for the first-class, bronze for the second, is used on the suburban lines for season tickets. They are something larger than a shilling, and suitable to be worn on a watch-chain by persons using them daily. These medals are stamped at the Mint. The milling indicates the period for which the ticket is available, being complete for a year's ticket, and half-round and a quarterround for the half and quarter year On the reverse is engraved the owner's name, and under it the month in-which it expires, as -i- 0 . On the reverse is engraved the distinguishing letter of the station between which and Sydney it is in force. The expense of engraving, however, renders the issue unprofitable. Entrance fees to racecourses, &c, are sometimes included in the price of the tickets, and are paid over by the Stationmaster to the Stewards of the racecourse or other authorities , but the receipt and disbursement are included in the station accounts. 12—A. 4.