PROTECTION OF CARRIERS. mittee, it should be the Committee on Mr. IRVING moved the second read- Railways. ing of the Bill for the more effectual pro-with the hon. member for South Bruce Sir JOHN MACDONALD agreed tection of carriers by land, and for the regulation of traffic throughout the Domin 1 Hon. J. H. CAMERON (Cardwell) said it was a question how far the Civil Law in the different Provinces might be affected by this Bill, and he thought, considering the great amount of important business continually before the Committee on Railways and the Committee on Banking and Commerce, that neither of them. would be able to do entire justice to this subject. Questions as to jurisdiction would necessarily spring up in connection with it, and the question of local jurisdiction he considered to be one of those requiring the most careful consideration and delicate handling. Hon. Mr. MACKENZIE said that personally he had the strongest objection to some provisions of the Bill, and he thought it should go to a sub-committee, the members of which should be very carefully selected. There were some provisions in the Bill similar to those of other Acts passed in the Federal Parliament, and the principle had, to some extent, been acknowledged; but it was also evident that it involved matters which might conflict with the jurisdiction of the Local Governments. The Government had given the Bill some consideration, and while there were propositions in it which might not be objected to, there were others of a very different kind. Hon. J. H. CAMERON suggested the propriety of letting the matter stand in the meantime until the Government had arranged for Special Committee to consider it. Hon. Mr. BLAKE said he thought a Sub-Committee of either the Committee on Railways or the Committee on Banking and Commerce, would be the proper body to which to refer it. Hon. Mr. MACKENZIE said if the Bill were referred to any standing comMr. Irving. with regard to the propriety of submitting the matter to a Sub-Committee; and also with the Premier that the Committee best fitted to deal with it was the Railway Committee. Mr. WILKES said the Bill had been spoken of as if it largely or entirely affected railways, when the fact was that it should be considered as affecting commerce. Every clause of it was in the interest of railways and against trade. He was distinctly opposed to the legislation proposed, and hoped, if the Bill were referred to the Railway Committee, that it would be placed in the hands of a SubCommittee qualified to deal with it. The Bill was then read a second time and was referred to the Standing Committee on Railways, Canals and Telegraphs. RAILWAY RETURNS. On the motion of Mr. IRVING, the Bill to extend and amend the law requiring Railway Companies to furnish returns of their capital, traffic and working expenditure, was diture, was read a second time, and referred to the Standing Committee on Railways, Canals and Telegraphs. PRECEDENCE ΤΟ GOVERNMENT MEASURES. Hon. Mr. MACKENZIE moved that during the remainder of the Session Government measures shall have precedence on Thursday, on the Orders of the Day.— Carried. POSTAL SERVICE AMENDMENT BILL. Hon. D. A. MACDONALD rose to move the second reading of the Bill to amend the Act for the regulation of the postal service. In doing so, he said that at the first reading he proposed that the explanations should be made in the second reading. The first clause merely extended the meaning of the term "Post Letters," which would signify, when used throughout the Act, any letters delivered through the post or deposited in any Post Office, drop letters included. The second clause was merely a verbal amendment of the ninth section of the Act and also a verbal amendment of the fourth sub-section of the tenth section. With regard to the sixth sub- | such person, firm, partnership or company, of section of the tenth section he proposed the following addition: "Cause to be prepared and distributed postage and registration stamps necessary for the pre-payment of postages and registration charges under this Act; also stamped envelopes for the like purpose, and post cards and stamped post bands or wrappers for newspapers or other mailable articles not being post letters." This is by regulation in the meantime, and he desired that it should have a place in the Act. He proposed to amend the fourteenth section by giving greater powers to the Deputy Inspectors, which would enable them, when necessary, to perform the duties which at present could only be performed by Inspectors. The duties of Inspectors were daily becoming heavier, and the result had been that some of the offices were not inspected for years. He therefore proposed to add to that section the following: "And it shall be the duty of such Post Office Inspectors and Assistant Post Office Inspectors, under such instructions as may from time to time be given to them by the Postmaster General, to superintend the performance of the mail service, taking care that, as far as the state of the roads and other circumstances will permit, the stipulations of all contracts for the convey ance of the mail are strictly complied with by the contractors. To instruct new Pastmasters in their duties; to keep the Postmasters to their duty in rendering their accounts and paying over their balances; to inspect every Post Office from time to time, to see that it is properly kept, and that the Postmasters and their assistants perfectly understand their instructions and perform their duty well in every particular; to inquire into complaints or suspected cases of misconduct or mismanagement in respect of such duty; and also into complaints of the miscarriage or loss of letters or other mail matter; and generally to do all and whatsoever they are from time to time instructed or required by the Postmaster General to do for the service of the Post Office Department. It was his intention that every office within the limits of each division should henceforward be inspected every year, and that the condition of the books and accounts should be regularly reported upon. The sixth section was proposed as a subsection of the 18th, Section of the old act, and was as follows : "The Postmaster General, upon evidence satisfactory to him, that any person, firm, partnership or company, in Canada or elsewhere, is engaged in conducting any scheme or device for obtaining remittances through the Post Office by means of false or fraudulent pretences, representations of promises of any kind, may forbid the payment by any Postmaster to any Hon. D. A. Macdonald any Postal Money Order drawn in his or their non-delivery to its address." "On all letters transmitted by post for any distance within Canada. except in cases herein otherwise specially provided for, there shall be charged and paid one uniform rate of three cents per half ounce weight, any fraction of a half ounce being chargeable as a half ounce; and such postage rate of three cents shall be pre-paid by postage stamp or stamps at the time of posting the letter, otherwise such letter shall not be forwarded by post." The result of the reduction in the rates on letters to the United States would involve in the meantime a direct loss to the revenue of $60,000, but he thought the accommodation to the public would more than compensate for the loss. Hon. Mr. POPE asked what could be done in the case of a letter having a threecent stamp but weighing over half an ounce. Hon. Mr. MACDONALD said in such a case it would be the duty of the Postmaster General to return the letter to the sender, and not send it to its destination. The 8th Section amended the 20th Section of the Act by inserting the words " per half ounce in weight" after the words. one cent" in the third line of the said section. This was to provide that drop letters should be paid according to weight. Section 9 repealed Sections 22, 23, 24 and 25 of the old Act, as under the proposed provision requiring prepayment of newspapers, they were unnecessary, and substituted the following: "The rate of postage on newspapers and periodical publications printed and published in Canada, and issued not less frequently than once a month from a known office of publication or news agency, and addressed and posted by and from the same to regular subscribers or news agents, shall be one cent for each pound weight, or any fraction of a pound weight, to be prepaid by postage stamps or otherwise, as the Postmaster General may from time to time direct; and such newspapers and periodicals shall be put into packages and delivered into the post office, and the postage rate thereon prepaid by the sender thereof, under such regulations as the Postmaster General may from time to time direct." was now by regulations, and he wished it placed in the Statute :— a "Newspapers and periodicals weighing less than one ounce each may be posted singly at postage rate of half a cent each, which must be in all cases prepaid by postage stamp affixed to each." The twenty-sixth section of the old Act is amended to make it read as follows :— "On all newspapers and periodicals posted in Canada, except in the cases hereinbefore expressly provided for, and on books, pamphlets, occasional publications, printed circulars, prices current, hand-bills, book and newspaper manuscripts, printers' proof sheets, whether corrected or not; maps, prints, drawings, engravings, lithographs. photographs when not on glass or printed or written ; in cases containing glass, sheet music, whether partly printed or written, such as deeds, insurdocuments wholly or ance policies, militia and school returns, or other documents of like nature; packages of seeds, cuttings, bulbous roots, scions or grafts, patterns or samples of goods or merchandise, the rate of postage shall be one cent for each four ounces, or fraction of four ounces. tion intended to serve the purpose of a letter be sent or enclosed in any such newspaper or other package or thing mentioned in this or the next preceding section, and that the same be sent wise so put up as to admit of inspection by the in covers open at the ends or sides, or otherofficers of the Post Office to ensure compliance with this provision, and the postage rate shall be prepaid by postage stamp or stamped post articles as are mentioned in this section are bands or wrappers, in all cases when any such posted in Canada.” "Provided that no letter other communica The proposed rate was one cent a pound. In order to show how small the tax small the tax really was he had selected a few newspapers and ascertained how many of them it took to make a pound, as follows:London Advertiser, Ottawa Free Press, Ottawa Citizen, and Montreal Witness, each abont 15 to the pound; Walkerton Telescope, 12; Bruce Reporter, 13; Ingersoll Chronicle and Woodstock Times, each 10; Montreal Bien Public, 16; Toronto Daily Globe, 8; Daily Mail, Montreal Gazette and Herald, each 9; Halifax Citizen, 14; St. John Telegraph, 12; and Hamilton Times, 11. The way in which Postmasters would deal with newspapers sent from the office of publication would be to weigh all the papers brought to the office together, whether they were addressed to one or more offices, and charge one cent a pound for the whole. There would be no separate weighing of papers sent to different Post "And when any letter or other mailable Offices. The Department expected to lose matter is posted in Canada without pre-payment, by this change $40,000, so that by this or insufficiently prepaid, in any case in which and the other changes there would be a loss to pre-payment is by this Act made obligatory, the the revenue of $100,000, but he was satis-eturn it, when practicable, to the sender. Postmaster-General may detain the same, and fied that in a short time the increased Section 30 of the Act is amended by matter that would be sent through the striking out all the words after the word Post Office would make up this loss. At "delivered" in the sixth line thereof, and present a large number of newspapers were sent by express, but after our proposed Section 28 of the Act is amended by inserting the following instead thereof, as part of the said Section : Bearing unpaid postage, as shall also the exact value in current coin as respects postage stamps, registration stamps, stamped envelopes or post cards, post bands or wrappers, pur chased from any Postmaster, and the exact | United States," when they occur in the amount of postage payable to any letter carrier said Section. This Section was in accordon any letter or mailable matter delivered by •him.' ance with the Convention recently entered into with the United States, by which we agreed to carry their mail matter over the Great Western Railway from one part of would cost us $11,000. In return for this the United States to the other, which would cost us $11,000. In return for this the Americans were to carry our mails through their territory to British Columbia, Manitoba and the Lower Provinces, which would cost us about $28,000, so that in this respect a very satisfactory arrange The Department would issue post bands or wrappers, ready stamped, with a one cent stamp, which would be sold at the rate of four for five cents, barely enough to cover the cost of the paper and the stamp. Section 36 of the act is amended by striking out all the words after the word "city" in the seventh line of the said Section, and inserting the following instead thereof, as part of the said Sec tion : "And such system of free delivery when established in any city shall be subject to such regulations as the Postmaster General shall from time to time see fit to make." The third Sub-section of the thirty-eighth Section of the said Act is amended by striking out all the words after "Commons," in the third line, and inserting instead thereof the words "and books belonging to the Library of Parliament at Ottawa may be sent from the same to any member of either House, or from any such member addressed to the Librarian, during the recess of Parliament, and free of postage in either case. At present only about one thousand dollars perannum was received from this source, and as it involved a great deal of trouble it was thought best to do away with it entirely. The fifth sub-section of the said section was also amended by adding at the end thereof the words, "and members of the Legislature of any one of the Provinces of the Dominion may in like manner send by mail free of postage all papers printed by order of such Legislature. amended by striking out all the words in the first and second lines thereof, and inserting in their place the words, "petitions and addresses to the Legislature of any of the Provinces of the Dominion." The seventh sub-section of the said section is The 40th section is amended By substituting the words "three cents" for the words "five cents," in the seventh line thereof, and by inserting after the words "Ieturning the same,” in the eighth line thereof. the words less, in the case of insufficiently pre-paid letters or other mailable matter posted in Canada, such amount of postage as may have been prepaid on the same.” This was reducing the charge on letters returned to the sender from five to three cents. Section 41 of the act is repealed, as it would no longer be necess try to advertise dead letters, they being returned to the senders. Section 42 being a Section 42 being a useless amendment. The forty-fourth Section of the Act is amended by striking out the words "at the expense of the said Hon. Mr. Macdonald, ment had been made. "No postmaster shall, under any pretence whatsoever, have or receive or retain for himself any greater or other allowance or emolument of any kind than the amount of his salary and allowance as fixed by law, or by the Postmaster General." By the fiftieth section there were some verbal amendments. The fifty-first section was amended by striking out the words one or more of the newspapers published in or nearest to the county or counties where the contract is to be performed," and inserting in their place the words "such newspaper or newspapers as the Postmaster General shall direct in each case, and by public notices put up in the principal post offices concerned in such contract." The sixty-eighth section was amended by striking the words "three dollars," out of the fourth line, and inserting in their place the words " one dollar." This change was made to meet depositors who are very numerous. The seventy-sixth section was amended by striking out the fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, twelfth and fourteenth subsections thereof, and by inserting at the end of the the fifteenth Sub-section thereof, the words, "showing how such dead letters have been disposed of." The department desired to discontinue the publication of certain portions of the Annual Report, and the sections relating thereto were struck out of the act. that connection he desired to state that too many details were published in the general report. Folios 202 to 262 were occupied with a report of contracts made for the transportation of mails in Canada during In the year, stating in each case its date and A new section (numbered thirty in amendintended duration, the name of the con- ment with) was introduced to enable govtractor, the routes embraced in the con- ernment to obtain better security from tract, with the length of each, the time the employers of the Department in the of arrival and departure at the end of interest of the public who might require each route, the mode of transportation to furnish bonds from guarrantee societies: contracted for, and the price stipulated to or others, for the due discharge of their be paid by the Department. By omitting duties. The expense which would be inthat statement the annual report of the volved by the adoption of the bill Department would be reduced one-third, was $150,000. That was exclusive and so far as its usefulness was concerned, of free delivery of letters in nine cities of he could not conceive why it should the Dominion, Halifax, St. John, Quebec, be printed. In the United States Montreal, Kingston, Ottawa, Hamilton, the Post Office Department had abolished London and Toronto, which would cost its publication in its report. Any member $45,000. The increase in the number of who desired could always see at the Pub- drop or city letters distributed at Montreal lic Departments the contracts awarded. since the adoption of the free delivery The list of Post Offices established in Can-system had been ten fold, and he expected ada, during the year, he also proposed to strike out of the annual report; it was of little or no use to the public, and its omission would effect a considerable saving. He also proposed to omit Report No. 14, which was a copy from the records of all offers made for carrying the mails upon contracts advertised for public competition in the Dominion. If the House would agree to also strike this out, they would save a large sum, which was every year increasing, The twelfth, fifteenth and sixteenth sub-sections of the seventyseventh section were verbally amended. Further provision is made for offences which are to be included as misdemeanours under the seventy-seventh section of the act, among these being the posting of immoral publications, pictures, &c. The sub-section was as follows: "To post for transmission or delivery by or through the post any obscene or immoral book, pamphlet, picture, print, engraving, lithograph, photograph or other publication, matter or thing of an indecent, immoral, seditious, disloyal, to realize a very large sum from the He Mr. CURRIER said it was to be regretted, since the Postmaster General had made so many improvements and reforms in his Department, that he was taking a backward step in one particular The—namely, in charging more than one cent for "drop" or local letters. The increased charge, he thought, would be a very great inconvenience, and there would be but very little increase of revenue to the Department arising therefrom. Hon. members who represented city constituencies knew how large was the number of 'drop' letters passing through the respective city Post-Offices, containing accounts for money due and remittances in payment, which, if the proposed increase were carried into effect, would not be sent by post at all. The benefit to be derived by the Department, he thought, was by no means a compensation for the inconvenience it would cause the public. scurrilous or libellous character, or any letter upon the outside or envelope of which, or any post card or post band or wrapper upon which, there are words, devices, matters or things of the character aforesaid, shall be a misdemeanThe eighty-first section of the said act is hereby amended by inserting immediately before the word "such" in the fourth line thereof, the words "or if any person uses or attempts to use for the purpose of transmission by or or. through the post, any post card or stamped envelope or stamped post band or wrapper, which has been before used for a like purpose, -and by inserting after the word "used" in the seventh line of the said section, the words "and the post card or stamped envelope stamped post band or wrapper so used more than once. " Hon. Mr. Macdonald. Mr. OLIVER said it would have been better if the Postmaster General had consolidated the whole Post Office law. It was a most difficult thing for people in |