COLONEL HERBERTsaid, he wished to call the attention of the First Lord of the Admiralty to an official announcement, which had been issued by the Post-Office authorities, in reference to the rate of postage of letters for officers of the Baltic fleet, and to ask whether the Government would agree, when the mails were conveyed in Her Majesty's ships of war, commissioned as such, that the letters should be charged the English rate of postage only?
§ SIR JAMES GRAHAMsaid, he had thought it right to bring the announcement to which the hon. and gallant Officer had 1070 referred under the consideration of the Board of Admiralty, who had immediately addressed the Postmaster General upon the subject, and had intimated their opinion that the rate of postage proposed, and especially upon letters for officers, were very high. He had to-day received an answer from the Postmaster General, to the effect that the notification was in strict conformity with the existing postage regulations; that he, as Postmaster General, had no power of altering those regulations or of remitting any portion of the charge, but that this power was confined exclusively to the Lords of the Treasury. In consequence of this answer, a remonstrance from the Board of Admiralty had been sent to the Treasury, and he entertained a confident expectation that this would lead to a very great reduction of the charge.