The railway distance from Florence to Rome will be lessened some thirty miles by the opening early next year of the line _viâ_ Orvietto. It will also, of course, lessen to the same extent the journey between Florence and Naples, but in some years hence the railway between Southern and Northern Italy, avoiding Florence altogether, will be shortened by 93 miles, that is, when two unfinished portions of line along the west coast of Italy, one between Genoa and Spezzia 57 miles, and the other, the portion of the line between Civita Vecchia and Leghorn, nearest to the former, 36 miles, are completed. The works required upon these lines will be extremely heavy and extremely costly. How the money is to be found for them passes even conjecture, at the time of our present writing. “_Vede Napoli e mori._” We have seen her; we obey the injunction, and we depart in peace with but one word on dying lips, FINIS. APPENDIX, No. 1. REPORT BY MR. EDWARD PAGE, INSPECTOR-GENERAL OF MAILS, ON SOME POINTS CONNECTED WITH THE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT AND RAILWAY COMPANIES. (_See page_ 85.) GENERAL POST OFFICE, _29th February, 1856_. SIR, In the First Annual Report of the Postmaster-General, presented to Parliament last year, it is stated by Lord Canning as one of the reasons for instituting such a report, that “many misapprehensions arise from an imperfect knowledge of matters which might, without any inconvenience, be placed before the public.” That such misapprehensions do exist as to several matters connected with the railway branch of the Post Office Service has lately been exemplified in an address by Mr. Robert Stephenson, M.P., on his election as President of the Institution of Civil Engineers. In that address Mr. Stephenson (no doubt without any intention whatever to mislead) puts forward, in effect, the following statements, which I believe to be inaccurate:— 1st. That the scheme of penny postage, to the extent to which it has so far been developed, would have been impracticable, or, if practicable, unremunerative, but for the facilities afforded by railways for conveying bulk. 2nd. That railway companies, instead of being liberally treated by the Post Office, are called upon to perform the service of that department at a rate of remuneration which affords little or no profit. 3rd. That the Post Office has lately entered into a competition which is injurious to railway companies, by conveying books and other parcels at very reduced rates.