§ MR. CULLINAN (Tipperary, S.)I beg to ask the Postmaster-General whether he is now in a position to state what steps, if any, have been taken to secure a more regular arrival of the Irish mails in Dublin; and whether he can give any assurance that the inconvenience caused by the missing of connections will not be repeated in future.
§ MR. AUSTEN CHAMBERLAINThe occasional late arrival of the English mails in Dublin is sometimes due to unavoidable causes, such as unfavourable weather or accidents on the railway, but sometimes it is caused by the heavy traffic. When the number of passengers for Ireland is larger than usual, it is frequently necessary to run the night mail train to Holyhead in two portions, and as the first portion can be started little, if at all, before the appointed time, the second portion must be late in arrival at Holyhead. The railway company have been urged to make arrangements for reducing to a minimum the delay thus caused, but it is feared that some delay is unavoidable. In regard to the failure 129 of connection in Ireland, I am considering whether any modification can advantageously be made in the arrangements for sending on the mails from Dublin to the South of Ireland; but I have not yet come to any decision in the matter.
§ MR. CULLINANThe London and North-Western Railway Company is receiving a huge subsidy for carrying mails, and it ought to be called upon to give better accommodation for passenger traffic.