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combined form. It was introduced at the telegraph-offices at the four centres on the Ist April, 1928, and at all other offices in charge of a departmental officer on the Ist June, 1928. With the abolition of the work of addressing envelopes it is anticipated that there will be an appreciable reduction in the working-expenses of the Telegraph Branch. There will also be a reduction of the liability of error through the removal of the need for transcribing addresses. SHIPPING MOVEMENTS : TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION. For many years it has been the practice of my Department to telegraph free of charge from office to office the times of arrival and departure of steamers in order that the information might be made available to the travelling public and those interested in the working of ships. In earlier days the work added but little to the telegraph traffic, but nowadays, with the big increase in shipping, it constitutes somewhat of a burden. For a short time, commencing on the 6th October, 1927, the system was abolished, but in view of representations made regarding the great inconvenience occasioned it was reintroduced from the 17th November, 1927. SUMMER TIME ACT, 1927. By the Summer Time Act, 1927, the time for general purposes in New Zealand was advanced at 2 a.m. on the 6th November, 1927, to one hour in advance of New Zealand standard time, which is 11 hours 30 minutes in advance of Greenwich mean time. Ordinary time was resumed at 2 a.m. on the 4th March, 1928. The change to summer time and. reversion to standard time was carried out in my Department without a hitch. The clocks were altered at the stipulated times, and work proceeded without any interruption. The operation of summer time had the effect of placing New Zealand time 12| hours ahead of Greenwich time and 2\ hours ahead of eastern Australian time. Users of the cable service were thus obliged to make provision for a difference of one hour as distinct from ordinary New Zealand time. In the case of broadcasting reception, the transmissions from Australian stations were received in New Zealand one hour later than under standard time. TELEPHONE-EX CHANGE SERVICE. Canvass for Additional Subscribers. As a means of increasing the revenue and of utilizing all telephone equipment and plant to the full, it was decided that wherever switchboard and cable accommodation was available, efforts should be made by personal canvass by departmental officers to secure additional telephone-exchange subscribers. The campaign has been pursued by means of circulars and personal representations, and most encouraging results have already been achieved. The campaign is still in progress, and it is believed that it will result in the number of telephone subscribers in the Dominion being substantially increased. Telephone-exchange Revenue. it is with gratification that I am able to announce that the telephone-exchange revenue for the year exceeded £1,000,000. The telephone-exchange system now ranks as one of the Department's greatest revenue-producers, as well as one of the foremost of New Zealand's public utilities. Inaugurated in. 1881 with fifty-three subscribers, the telephone-exchange system developed steadily until 1922, when the number of subscribers totalled 88,000 and the revenue £533,000. Since then there has been a phenomenal increase both in subscribers and in revenue. The number of connections is now nearly 140,000. Notwithstanding the more or less unfavourable financial conditions which existed last year, the results of the year's operations were very satisfactory, the new subscribers totalling over 12,000, a figure which has been surpassed in but two previous years. There are now ten telephones for every hundred of population, and this proportion is bettered only by the United States of America, and Canada.