for collecting, conveying or distributing letters within that province,might be regu lated on the same footing as that above proposed for other collectorates. Post of Native chiefs. 63. The question of dealing with the posts of native chiefs must next come under consideration. The principal posts now maintained by native princes, are as follow : First. From Hydrabad to Boorhanpoor, Indore, Kotah, Jeypore and Delhi. This post only traverses the British territories in passing from Rewarree to Delhi, 50 miles. This post belongs to His Highness the Nizam. Secondly. From Gwalior to Delhi, to Poonah, and also to Allahabad, viâ Jaloun, Calpee and Futtipore. These three posts are the property of Maha Rajab Scindiah. The post from Gwalior to Allahabad is of recent establishment, since the Baiza Bhye resided at Allahabad. Thirdly. From Lucknow the posts are far more numerous, than either from Gwalior or Hydrabad, and traverse also to a far larger extent than the British province. 1st, From Lucknow to Delhi, via Nanamow, Furruckabad, Mynpoorie, Agra, Muttra, Kosee and Horul, with branches to Etawah from Mynpoorie, and from Muttra to Jeypore. 2nd. From Lucknow to Allahabad. 3rd. From Lucknow to Benares. 4th. From Lucknow to Banda via Cawnpore. 5th. From Lucknow to Moradabad via Saharunpore, Barreilly and Rampore. 64. There can be but little doubt that these two last mentioned posts, viz, those of the King of Oude and Maharajah Scindiah, are injurious to our revenue; and unless state reasons, with which I am unacquainted, should render their maintenance indispensable, I would recommend they may be put down. It occurs to me that this measure might be most delicately arranged, upon the plea of relieving those states from the maintenance of unnecessary and expensive establishments; because, as the British Government must keep up posts on the lines in question, the despatches of their respective Highnesses, might well be conveyed by our establishments, Government allowing such dispatches, bond fide on the service of their Highnesses, and either addressed by some authorized agent to the minister, or bearing the minister's seal, to pass free of postage. 65. Should the foregoing proposition not meet with the concurrence of the Right Honourable the Governor-General, I would then suggest the expediency of notifying to the Powers indicated, that although the British Government will not interfere with their posts, so long as they confine their despatches exclusively to the concerns of State, yet that such posts cannot be permitted to be directly or indirectly the channel for communications between Mahajuns and others residing within the British territories: that any deviation from the letter and spirit of this stipulation, will render it incumbent on Government to put down such posts, and to subject the offending parties to the penalties enacted by Section 5, of the Post Office Act. 66. It may, perhaps, be supposed, that the great increase of native letters will create a corresponding increase of charge, for establishments to receive and deliver letters and for runners to convey the mail. That some encrease may be necessary, is true, but by no means to the extent that might be supposed. Such encrease would only be requisite for some few of the middle class of offices, at which, perhaps, an extra writer or peon may eventually be applied for. The large offices would not, I believe, require increase beyond what I have recently proposed to the Post Master General to render them now efficient; while the writers at smaller offices would but find themselves in full work, in lieu of being half the day idle. On the grand trunk route, and possibly on an occasional by-road, an extra runner per stage might be required; but on many cross roads the loads are now so light, that it would be hardly possible to overload the runner with native correspondente; for a single man can easily convey 1,200 half-tola letters, and if any thing like that increase of correspondence occurred on any road, the increased postage would far more than cover any necessary increase of charge. 600 native letters would not weigh as much as 100 newspapers. 67. In order to gain the fullest effect to the proposed reduction of postage, should such be honoured with the approval of Government, I would suggest that several thousand copies of the proclamation, schedule, &c., be lithographed in the native languages and circulated throughout the Empire for general information. This may readily be effected, and at very inconsiderable cost, by circulating from the several points, where Lithographic Presses exist, viz., the Presidencies, Agra, Delhi, &c.; and copies might thus be readily furnished for every large town throughout the country, by means of the several Thasildaree establishments. 68. I have one or two remarks yet to offer on the native dâk system, which I find I have omitted. The postage being so light, all attempts to evade it were unnecessary. It was not worth the sender's while to put two letters under one cover, which would only have caused himself trouble, while it entailed delay to the receiver; and it must be remembered that all letters were sent bearing and were therefore paid for by the receiver. When the postage was so light, the mahajuns invariably wrote a separate answer to every separate letter, a plan no less essential to regularity of detail than to correctness of record. They forwarded the larger hoondies by our posts; they sent letters of advice and smaller hoondies by their own posts. When the profit of a hoondy, as is often the case, does not exceed 4 annas, the mahajun can afford 2 pice or an anna for postage; but our present rate of 3 annas per 100 miles would swallow two-thirds, and the 4 annas for 150 miles would take the entire profit ; and the trade in small hoondies is almost at an end. The mahajuns now cannot answer their letters as formerly, but must wait till 4 or 5 letters are ready, which, being enclosed in one cover, are then despatched at once. The system brings to Government but little revenue, and is decidedly mischievous as respects commerce. "It is injurious and annoying," remarked to me a respectable merchant at Mirzapore," to ourselves, our gomashtahs and our constituents." 69. With the rates proposed in the schedules annexed, this grievance would be removed, and merchants would again write, as they did formerly, a separate answer to every separate letter received. 70. As all the mails by mahajuns dâks were sent in an open bag, the letters for villages on the road were delivered by the runners, as they went along, and at villages off the road, they were sent by one of the men at the nearest stage. But letters were in this manner not unfrequently either destroyed or lost, and the system detained the general transit of the post. This portion of the native dâk system could not be satisfactorily applied to the Government post. 71. In respect to newspaper postage, I am not prepared at this moment to propose reduction. I should certainly be glad to see the anna scale extended to 100 miles instead of stopping at 20 miles, because I think such reduction would be but equitable; but the matter is of far less pressing moment than the reduction of letter or bangy postage: and it may, therefore, well wait the period I have proposed for reconsidering the general subject, viz. 18 months hence, when the propos ed proclamation would come to be embodied into the law of the land. 72. I must now offer a few remarks on the bangy postage. The objections I have offered to the existing excessive rates of letter postage, apply with equal force to those of bangy postage, which rates were calculated on the same scale, viz., single bangy being treble letter postage. These rates act in many cases, as a complete bar to employment. The natives were in the habit of allowing packets of all weights, up to 80 tolas, to go by their posts, at the same charge as letters. I fear it will never be practicable to adapt into our posts, this portion of the mahajunee dâk system; but we may improve greatly on our present system, by adopting rates more proportioned, to the benefit to be derived by the receiver, and to the cost at which the work is actually performed by Government, than have yet obtained. Hundreds and hundreds of packets would be sent by the bangy, if the rates were but more reasonable, and an improved system of management introduced. This latter point demands a special report, which I have not now leisure to furnish. It shall be completed shortly. In respect to rates of postage, it will be observed, by reference to the present scale appended to Act XVII. 1837, that it is framed on the erroneous principle, of charging the highest postage for the shortest distances, where the advantage of the bangy over the cossid is smallest, and where, consequently, the inducement for employing such bangy is least. No comparison can be held between the greater gain, at 1,000, than at 50 miles. At the latter, a cossid would overtake the bangy within 12 hours; while at 1,000 miles, he would not reach in less than 40 days after the bangy. Yet for 1000 miles, the charge is 42 annas, and for 50 miles, only 1-20th that distance, the postage is 6 annas or 1-7th the first named charge. It seems to me essential, that the bangy rates should be such, that while, on the one hand, they afford Government a fair remunerating profit for work performed, on the other, they shall not exceed what the public will readily pay for the convenience of such conveyance. If any other system prevails, the bangy will never be employed to its full available extent, and Government will accordingly be a loser by its own greediness in grasping at more than it is fairly entitled to. 73. The cost of conveyance being the same, whether for the first or the last hundred miles, it seems reasonable that, when the charge for the first 100 has been fairly settled, that charge should be regularly encreased for each successive hundred, пр to the maximum distance of 1400 miles. 74. The first point, therefore, is to ascertain the cost at which Government maintains its bangy establishment. 75. On the roads in Bengal, where establishments are most efficient, stages are at 6 miles each. On these roads, therefore, the cost for 2 men per stage, at 16 stages per hundred miles, are rupees 128 per month, or about rupees 4-4 per day. On many roads, this cost is but 96 rupees, or rupees 3-3 per day; while on some, it does not exceed 72 rupees, or 2-4 per day. Now each man can carry parcels up to 1,200 tolas weight, on which the existing postage would be rupees 13-8 for the load of each man, or rupees 27 for two men, for what costs Government, as above shown, only from rupees 4-4 to rupees 2-4, the cost being the same for each successive hundred miles, while postage somewhat diminishes. The cost and rate from 100 miles to 1000 are shewn in the annexed table. 76. I now proceed to explain the rate I propose, which is 3 annas per single weight of 50 tolas, for each successive hundred miles up to a maximum of 1,400. This rate will tend to very extensive employment of the bangy, and be attended with the best results to all parties-to the public who pay, and to the Government who will realize a large revenue; for the proposed rate will yield a clear profit exceeding 100 per cent., and that profit will be the same, whether the establishment remain at 2 men per stage, or by increasing employment should be doubled, trebled, quadrupled, or increased indeed to any extent. A full load will realize rupees 9. The cost, as above shown, will never exceed rupees 4-4, and very frequently not exceed rupees 3-3. 77. In respect to books, &c., sent by bangy in open covers, I have followed out the same equitable principle already in force, in respect to those articles, by allowing them to be transmitted at lower rates than single bangy parcels, of 50 tolas each. It will be observed, that this causes no loss to Government, because a full load of such books, weighing 20 or 40 tolas respectively, would realize in the aggregate, at the proposed rates, as large or very nearly as large a revenue, as would be obtained by an equal weight of single bangy parcels. The advantage to the public, from cheap rates encouraging the transmission of books, will be material; andthe gain to Government by such increased transmission will be equally great. 78. If some such reductions, as those above recommended for the bangy, be not effected, I'am well assured that the public will not longer submit to the present exorbitant charge, but will set themselves right, by establishing a bangy of their own. I have well ascertained that such may be effected, between Calcutta and the principal stations in Upper India, at rates far below those above proposed, and still yield a handsome remunerating profit to the individual or Joint Stock Company establishing such bangy post. Should this be established, it would be vain to hope that individuals would longer employ the Government bangy—and a material loss of revenue would be the immediate result A timely reduction of Government rates, to an equitable standard, like that proposed in the annexed schedules, would, I trust, render private competition unnecessary, and preserve to Government, its present lucrative monopoly. 79. My observations on the interior management of the bangy, as also on the dâk-bearer department, will be furnished hereafter at the earliest practicable date. Those labours are 80. I have now done-but must not close this report, without apologizing for the incomplete state in which it is drawn up. Written as it has been, against time, in order that it might reach the Governor General before leaving Delhi, I fear it but imperfectly conveys the information I desired to afford. I have no time to correct it now. But if it suffices to convey to the mind of the Governor General, some portion of the earnestness I feel, respecting the necessity for reducing postage, to rates more suited to the wants and means of the people; if it has pointed out, as, I trust it has, the evils of the existing system-its impolitic effect as respects revenue, its injurious effects on the country; and still more if it should succeed in inducing the Government of India to correct those evils, in the only way they can be radically cured-I shall not have laboured in vain. now fast tending to a close. In six weeks more, I shall have left a service, in which the best years of my life have been passed, and shall thenceforth seek in a commercial bureau, the means of future subsistence, and eventual retirement to my native land. I have therefore no personal interest whatever in the measures proposed-but should they, fortunately, be honoured with the approval of His Lordship in Council, and be brought into effect throughout India,-I shall resign my employment, with the proud conviction, that I have been of some use to this country and that the last act of my connection with the public service, will bring blessings from all parties on the head of this Government. I have only here to repeat my conviction, that the reductions in postage rates herein recommended, will yield at least as large, if not even a larger revenue, than is now realized, and that they will produce the most unqualified good to all classes of this vast empire. I have the honour to be, Sir, your most obedient Servant, 、 |