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No. 93.—" Proposal that Australasian Telegraph Administrations undertake for a fee the 'coding' of International Messages, as is now done by Reuters Agency." We are of opinion that the time is not yet ripe for the consideration of this question. Nos. 94, 95, 96, and 97. —" Adoption of Uniform Charges and Regulations wdth respect to International Code Addresses." — "Surnames as Code Addresses." —"Code Addresses." — "Code Addresses, registration of." We recommend that the fee for registration of code addresses be 10*. 6a". for the year, or 2s. 6d. for one month, for each address registered. We also recommend that the attention of the Australasian Administrations be drawn to the Resolution passed at the Conference at Sydney in November, 1896, with the request that it be complied with in future. The following is the Resolution referred to : —" (1.) That code addresses be not adopted intercolonially, except in the case of Tasmania and New Zealand, which for this purpose are international. (2.) That in connection with International Messages, code surnames be not accepted." Nos. 98, 99, 100.—"Telegraph Regulations."—" Telephone Regulations."—"Private Telephone Line." No report. We advise that these questions be taken up later on if time permits. No. 101. —"Free transmissions of Telegrams on Postal Service over New Zealand and Bass Straits Cables." We recommend that this matter be dealt with departmentally. No. 103. —" Regulations regarding Uniforms of Letter Carriers and Messengers." We recommend that this matter be dealt with departmentally. No. 104.—" Holidays, Christmas and Good Friday." We recommend that this matter be dealt with departmentally. No. 105. — Free transmission of instructions respecting delivery of Telegrams." We recommend that office instructions, such as "By post," "Porterage paid" or "guaranteed," be charged for, the same as " Reply paid."
The following is our Report on additional matters remitted to us by the Honorable the Ministers : — No. 39. —" Ratification of Washington Congress, and consideration of the various Conventions entered into at Washington but not signed by the Australasian Delegate." We see no objection to the ratification by the Australasian Administrations of the Postal Union Convention as agreed to at Washington. The most important question, so far as Australasia is concerned, is the reduction of the territorial and sea transits ; but we find that these reductions will, if anything, be in our favour, especially as, owing to the new arrangements in connection with the P. & 0. and Orient contracts, the transit rates payable by non-contracting countries and colonies will, instead of being retained by Great Britain in one direction and the Colonies in the other, be placed to the credit of the subsidy, and the balance divided between Great Britain and the Colonies in the proportion of to Great Britain and A-|- to the Colonies. With reference to the subsidiary Treaties referred to in the Hon. Mr. Duffy's Motion, time has not permitted of a careful examination of the untranslated Book of Proceedings recently received from Washington, but we understand that these Treaties do not materially, if at all, affect the Australasian Colonies. With regard to the optional provisions of the Washington Principal Convention, we report as follows : — 1. Article 6. —The registration fee is fixed at "25 centimes, (2|r/.) at most," but, under Article 2 of the Final Protocol, "it is agreed that the States outside Europe are authorised to maintain the maximum at 50 centimes (sa')." Under these circumstances the Colonies need not alter their present charge for registration, which is 3a\ and we advise a cordingly.
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