§ MR. HOGAN (Tipperary, Mid.)I beg to ask the Postmaster General whether he has observed a cable message from Vancouver, announcing the arrival of the Miowera, the pioneer steamship of the new service from Australia to Canada, subsidised by the Canadian and New South Wales Governments; whether he is aware that the Miowera has brought a mail from Australia to England made up by the Sydney and Brisbane Postal Authorities; whether he has noticed that the Miowera accomplished the voyage from Brisbane, her last Australian port of call, to Vancouver in 19 days, being two days in advance of her advertised time of arrival; and whether, in view of the foregoing, and having regard to the fact that the steamers engaged in this new service connect with the Canadian Pacific Railway, and therefore offer exceptional advantages as a postal route, passing through no foreign territory, between Great Britain and Australia, he will consider the advisability of utilising this new service for Imperial postal purposes when opportunity offers?
§ THE POSTMASTER GENERAL (Mr. A. MORLEY, Nottingham, E.)I have seen statements in the Press of the arrival at Vancouver of the vessel named in the question; but I have received no official information as to the despatch of mails from Australia for England by that steamer. According to the newspaper announcements, whatever mails may have been despatched for England on the occasion referred to have been sent from Canada to New York, and are to arrive in the German steamer Victoria Augusta. I am fully alive to the advantage of the Canadian Pacific route as a possible route through British Dominions between this country and some of her Eastern Dependencies, and shall watch with interest the development of the new service.