§ MR. AUGUSTINE ROCHETo ask the Postmaster-General what arrangements, if any, have been made in the Cork Post Office to surcharge insufficiently prepaid outward American correspondence; is he aware that on the 5th and 8th instant exceptionally heavy mails were despatched from the Cork office to the United States without any effort whatever being made to surcharge the same, hereby entailing a considerable loss of revenue to the United States, and, in view of the fact that the Cork Post Office is now the despatching office for United States correspondence from the South of Ireland, will he consider the advisability of creating extra appointments to deal satisfactorily with this work; will he say on whose authority postmen are employed on overtime in sorting outward American correspondence; and will he have the practice discontinued.
(Answered by Mr. Sydney Buxton.) Outward American correspondence is examined daily at Cork by a sorting clerk and telegraphist, and insufficiently prepaid items are surcharged by him. I am assured that sufficient staff is provided for the satisfactory performance of the duty. The employment of postmen in connection with the disposal of newspapers for America does not infringe any existing regulation.