§ CAPTAIN DONELAN (Cork, E.)I beg to ask the Postmaster-General whether he is aware that for some time past no sorters have been placed either upon the trains which convey the White Star American mails from Queenstown to Dublin or upon the Dublin and Holyhead steam packets, and that consequently large quantities of letters destined for various English centres frequently reach the London Post Office unsorted, thus entailing considerable delay in delivery and unfairly handicapping the Queenstown route; and whether arrangements will be made with a view to secure that all letters which may be landed at Queenstown unsorted shall be sorted before reaching London.
§ MR. SYDNEY BUXTONArrangements were made in 1905 for correspondence brought from America by the White Star Packets to be sorted at sea instead of after arrival at Queenstown. Considerable advantage as regards the amount of sorting done has been gained by the change; and indeed in ordinary circumstances the sorters on board the packets are usually able to complete their work. At specially busy times such as Christmas the correspondence is too heavy to be completely sorted in any travelling post office; but even at such times the present arrangement gives much better results than that previously in force.
§ CAPTAIN DONELANThen am I to understand it is not proposed to make any alteration in the present travelling mail service between Dublin and Queenstown? Will sorters still be carried on the train?
§ MR. SYDNEY BUXTONMost of the sorting is now done on board ship and there is not therefore so much necessary to be done on the train. I do not 1450 understand there will be any alterations other than are due to that fact.