§ MR. PARNELLasked the Postmaster General, Whether his attention has been called to the fact that the accelerated mail train arrives in Cork daily at 12.10 p.m., and that on arrival a delay of half-an-hour takes place in the sorting 264 of the letters carried by it; whether he is aware that replies to these must be posted by 1.20, or with an extra stamp by 1.30; and, whether it is possible to expedite the sorting of the letters in the Post Office at Cork; and, if not, whether, in view of the short time afforded to the people of that city for answering their correspondence, he will consider the advisability of sorting the letters en route from Dublin, having them ready for delivery upon their arrival?
§ MR. SHAW LEFEVREI am fully alive to the importance of expediting as far as possible the delivery of letters at Cork after the arrival of the day mail from Dublin, seeing how short an interval it has been possible to allow for preparation of replies for the up-day mail. Inquiries are now being made whether it would be possible to effect some further sortation of the letters en route; but I am assured that it would not be possible, under any plan, so to arrange the letters in the travelling post-office as to have them ready for delivery to the postmen on the arrival of the train. The letters are arranged ac-according to streets in the travelling office; but it is the postmen alone in Cork who can arrange them in the actual order of delivery, and this necessitates letters being taken to the Post Office.