A General Plan for a Mail Communication by Steam, Between Great Britain and the Eastern and Western Parts of the WorldMacQueen, James
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A General Plan for a Mail Communication by Steam, Between Great Britain and the Eastern and Western Parts of the World
MacQueen, James
Mail steamers -- Great Britain; Postal service -- Great Britain -- Colonies
As regards the Harbour-charges, in the British Colonies, these may be
given up, or reduced to a small sum for the trouble which the Custom
Houses may be put to; and in foreign ports it should be arranged by
compacts with the respective governments, that the port dues should be
reduced to a small sum, for two reasons,--because the vessels carry
the mails, and because they are on that account restricted to a small
portion of the whole cargo, which they could otherwise take. The
charges might be made proportionate: there could not be much
difficulty in arranging these points. In some of the minor ports
(foreign), the steamers would not even come to anchor.
WEST INDIES.--INTERNAL POST OFFICES.
The internal communications in the West Indies by post are very
inefficient, even where they exist, but in most colonies these are
altogether wanting.
Communication in the West Indies on business, and in the affairs of
public and private life, is principally carried on by correspondence;
and from the particular circumstances of these colonies, more so in
proportion than in other countries.
The way in which this extensive and general communication is carried
on is by letter sent by servants or hired messengers. These servants
or messengers take days in a particular service, according to the
distance. The latter mode is particularly expensive. The other, the
most general, is scarcely less so, except that from the construction
of West Indian society, there was beforetime felt no immediate outlay
for the service required.
Important supplies are required upon an estate for various purposes.
This is of very frequent occurrence. A special messenger from that
estate must be despatched with a letter ordering the same, to a (p. 055)
distance of twenty or thirty miles, or more. Two or three days'
labour are lost, an expense of 4_s._ or 5_s._ incurred, while 1_s._
for letters by post, if there was a post, would accomplish the object.
This is merely one point brought forward in proof of the necessity of
internal post conveyances in the British West Indian colonies, as in
this country, out of the multitudes that could be adduced for a
similar purpose.
The state of society in the West Indies is now on the eve of being
completely changed, and assimilated to the society in this country;
and consequently the duty of the Government of this country ought to
bestow on the population of the colonies the same facilities of
communication which the population of the mother country enjoy.
When the Negro apprenticeship comes to an end, either partially or
totally, the expense to estates and individuals for servants or
messengers to carry the correspondence absolutely necessary, will be
exceedingly great, and a most serious burden; and yet it must be
borne,--or otherwise, without internal post communications, neither
cultivation nor commerce can be carried on.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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