MOTION FOR PAPERS. (Hansard, 15 March 1872)

§ MR. BAILLIE COCHRANE

, in rising to call attention to the necessity of increased Postal Communication with the Australian Colonies, said, the right hon. Gentleman the Postmaster General, in a letter addressed to him (Mr. B. Cochrane) during last year, had admitted that cheap, expeditious, and frequent postal communication between the mother country and the colonies was one of the best means of binding them together. That was so indeed, and considering how widely the 73 feeling prevailed—more especially in the Australian Colonies, the subject of his Motion—that the mother country was anxious to disconnect herself from her colonies, every effort should he made to increase this means of keeping up the connection. As far back as 1848, the question of postal communication with Australia by the Cape of Good Hope was brought forward; but it was subsequently put out of view, in consequence of the inauguration of the Overland Route by Lieutenant Waghorn. He believed that the population of Victoria was 30 times greater now than it was 30 years ago, and that the populations of the other colonies had increased in the same proportion; and that within the last six years there had been an increase of 58 per cent in the letters sent out to the Australian colonies; not only that, but from some statistics he had gathered on the subject, he found that although we, with our vast colonial interests, sacrificed only £331,000 in the shape of subsidies for a cheap colonial postal tariff, France, with her comparatively slight colonial connection, sacrificed £700,000 for that purpose. To show with what justice the demand for increased postal subsidies by England was made, he would tell the House what were the respective amounts of tonnage which last year passed through the Suez Canal. For the year 1871 the British tonnage passing through the Canal amounted to 547,000 tons; the French, 92,000; the Austrian, 43,000; and the Italian, 29,000—that was to say, eight-tenths of the tonnage passing through the Canal was British, while the postal subsidies paid by the British Government was one-half that of the French and one-half that of the Italian. With respect to the respective commercial position of France and England, he found that in 1870 the imports of France reached 150,000,000, and the exports 130,000,000, while the commercial marine amounted to 1,540,000 tons. The English imports for the same year amounted to 296,000,000, the exports 189,000,000, and the commercial marine reached a total of 5,559,000 tons. Notwithstanding this, while we were not giving subsidies to one-half the extent France gave, our Government refused to make any payment towards developing postal communication with the East, by the Cape; 74 in fact, the Government were unwilling to give any subsidy whenever it was possible to refuse it. He had received letters from several influential gentlemen in the Australian Colonies stating that the colonies were prepared to put upon the line at once a fleet of steamers that would make the journey between England and Australia in 40 days, charging first-class passengers at the rate of £50, second-class at the rate of £30, and third-class passengers at the rate of £11. The establishment of such a line of steamers would have the effect of bringing the Australian Colonies into a communication with the mother country as cheap as that which now existed in relation to Canada, and that, he contended, was a most desirable thing to do. To show the feasibility of the proposed shortening of the communication, a friend had recently communicated to him, on the authority of Mr. Elder, late of the firm of Messrs. Elder, shipbuilders, Glasgow, that ships could be put on which would run the distance in 30 days. There were two classes of emigrants who wanted to get to Australia, but were debarred by considerations of expense. One was the younger sons of gentlemen, and the other third-class passengers. These classes it was highly desirable to assist in their endeavour to better their condition by emigration to the colonies. Another consideration worthy of the attention of the Government, who had withdrawn its troops from the colonies, was that in such a line of steamers as his Australian correspondent suggested they would have ready at hand, in case of necessity, a splendid fleet of transport ships. That being so, he (Mr. B. Cochrane) trusted the right hon. Gentleman would have no hesitation in acting up to the spirit of the letter which he (Mr. B. Cochrane) had referred to at the commencement of his speech, and in which the right hon. Gentleman had said— Cheap, expeditious, and frequent postal communication is the strongest and surest means to bind together the colonies and the mother country. All the Australian Colonies asked was, he believed, something like £70,000 a-year as a postal subsidy, and he thought that was not too much for them to expect from the Government. Under all the circumstances, he thought the 75 improvement of our postal communication with the Australian Colonies a most desirable object, and one well worthy the attention of Her Majesty's Government.

§ MR. MONSELL

said, he entirely agreed with his hon. Friend, and he believed he had expressed the opinion last year, that quick and cheap communication with the colonies was the very best way to bind them to the mother country. The object and desire he had, therefore, in connection with that opinion, was to discover what would be the cheapest and best means; but he was afraid he could not agree with his hon. Friend in the view he took of that portion of the question. Before he went further into the discussion, he must-protest against the comparison drawn between the subsidies given by this country and the subsidies given by Prance, for the French Government considered such means the best end attainable for developing their navy and instructing their seamen. But dismissing that consideration, it was for his hon. Friend to carry out the comparison, and to show that the manner in which the French conducted their postal business was better, and that it afforded cheaper and more rapid means of communication than the English service did; but he (Mr. Monsell) denied it, and most strenuously maintained that, notwithstanding the high and protective subsidies given by the French Government, our mail packets were much superior to those employed in the French service. With respect to the amount of subsidy paid by the Post Office, he must remind his hon. Friend that very recently a Committee of that House had protested against the enormous postal subsidies paid, and suggested that the Post Office should, as far as possible, take advantage of the existing commercial mediums of communication. With regard to the question of emigration, his hon. Friend would possibly not expect him to go into that question now; but he would just say with reference to it that if the colonies themselves would more diligently assist in carrying on the system of Government emigration, they would find it one of the most paying concerns they could engage in. But they did not appear to think so. The colony of Victoria, which had been carrying on a system of emigration for some years, had determined to withdraw from it. 76 The colony had spent considerable sums in the enterprize, and of the money last voted a small portion remained; but when that was expended it did not intend to spend any more. His hon. Friend was wrong in supposing that the number of letters to and from Australia was increasing, the truth being that the number was not greater now than it was five or six years ago, although the population was much more numerous now than then. He should be very glad indeed if he could get the Treasury to agree to a fortnightly instead of a monthly service; but if that should be resolved upon, the question would still remain—which would be the best route to be adopted? A Colonial Conference was held last year, at which representatives from Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania, and Queensland attended, and they adopted a resolution in favour of an alternative fortnightly communication—the route to be one fortnight by Suez, and the other fortnight by San Francisco. A difference of opinion arose, and ultimately the whole thing fell through, and before it was further proceeded with it would be necessary for the colonies to agree upon naming what would be the best route for all. For some weeks in the year the railway communication between San Francisco and New York was impeded by heavy falls of snow, a fact which was decisive against that being considered the best route. The question then lay between the Suez and Cape routes, and with regard to them he would call the attention of the House to the relative distances. From Melbourne to London, viâ Suez and Brindisi, was 10,655 miles; by the Cape it was 11,542. But that was not the whole question. It must be remembered that from London to Brindisi, a distance of 1,494 miles, with the exception of the short passage from England to France, the journey was made by rail in two and a-half days, instead of five or six days, which would be occupied in reaching the same point by sea. Therefore, it was perfectly obvious—adopting his hon. Friend's principle that the point to be aimed at was rapid communication—that the Brindisi and Suez route was the best. That being so, another point had to be considered. His hon. Friend was probably aware that the Government of Queensland had entered into a contract in conjunction 77 with the Dutch Government for a line of steamers between Queensland and Moreton Bay, proceeding by Batavia to Singapore. The question, therefore, arose whether the route should not alternate between Singapore and Suez; but the distance was very much against the Torres Straits' route, the distance by that route being 12,351 miles, or there about. Therefore, taking the only view which it was possible from his official position for him to take—namely, rapidity of postal communication—he thought the most satisfactory mode would be to have a direct fortnightly communication with Melbourne and Sydney by way of the Suez Canal. The matter was under the consideration of Her Majesty's Government, and when a formal decision had been arrived at he would communicate the result to his hon. Friend.