Postmaster responsible for cancelled order payments.

Lists to be

sent and received before payment.

Remittances

to cover

balance deficit.

Through"

of United

52. The Postmaster will not pay the amount of a cancelled order to the remitter until he has received advice that the original has not been already paid by the offices of exchange, and he is personally responsible for the amount if this precaution is neglected.

53. The advices of the Money Orders payable outside the Protectorate must be entered on lists and forwarded by the Postmaster to the chief Money Order Office of the country in which they are payable. These lists must be numbered consecutively (commencing with No. 1 in each year), and by the following mail a duplicate list must be forwarded. No orders will be paid until similar advices are received from the chief office of the country issuing an order.

54. Remittances to cover the balance of the amount due for the orders must accompany each list, and, in the case of those remitted to the General Post Office, London, will be addressed to the Cashier, advices being despatched separately to the Chief Examiner, General Post Office. Remittances to England will be in the form of an order on the Crown Agents; to the West African Colonies in the form of a Treasury Certificate.

55. The advices of Money Orders payable in foreign countries orders advice through England will be advised of the list for the London Office in red ink at the end of the ordinary list, and the full address of the payee must appear.

Kingdom.

Transactions monthly by Postmaster.

Misuse of

money order system.

Postmaster to

56. At the end of every month the Postmaster will prepare and forward to the Comptroller of the Money Order Office, London, a list of the Money Orders issued in Northern Nigeria on the United Kingdom, for which authority has been received from the London Office to effect repayment to the remitters and a list of orders (endorsing the relative advices) issued in the United Kingdom on Northern Nigeria, which have not been paid within the twelve months after the month of issue, and have therefore become forfeited to the country of issue. When there are no transactions to report "Nil" lists will be sent; similar advices will be received from London.

57.. Should it appear that Money Orders are used by mercantile men or others, either in the United Kingdom or in Northern Nigeria, for the transmission of large sums of money, the British Post Office, or the Post Office of Northern Nigeria, as the case may be, may consider the propriety of increasing the commission, and of even wholly suspending for a time the issue of Money Orders.

58. It is the duty of the Postmaster to send any additional transmit new rules which may at any time be brought into operation in Northern Nigeria to the Postmaster-General, London, without delay.

rules to

London.

MISCELLANEOUS.

59. In addition to the books to be kept by all departments, the Books. following departmental books will be kept at each Post Office:

(a.) Parcels Post Book, showing the consecutive number of the
way bill received with the parcel, date of receipt,
name of consignee, duty recoverable, number of way
bill by which despatched, date of despatch, place to
which sent, amount collected and paid into Treasury with
date.

(b.) Registered Letter Book, showing all registered letters
received and despatched, with date and all particulars.
(c.) Address Book, for persons leaving the Protectorate, with a
column showing what they wish done with newspapers.
(d) Stamp Dealers Book; (c.) and (d.) will be kept at the
General Post Office only.

Lokoja.

60. The Officer Commanding Troops at Lokoja will detail a Carrying fatigue party to carry the incoming and outgoing mails to and from mails at the Post Office and the wharf, but all postal messengers will be employed on this work, and the party asked for will be as small as possible.

61. Registered letters addressed to "The Postmaster, Northern Stampdealers' Nigeria," will be opened in presence of a member of the postal cheques. staff, and if they contain cheques or notes, etc., from dealers, the amount will at once be entered in the cash book and initialled by the witness.

Postmaster

62 The Postmaster-General is in charge of all Post Offices and Respective their staff in the Protectorate. The maintenance staff are under duties of the Director of Public Works. Postal Office stores (and the votes and Director making provisions for them) are, therefore, in charge of the Post- of Public master; maintenance stores and material, of the Director of Public Works. Works.

63. All way bills, receipts for registered letters, etc., will be Files. filed in numerical order, and classified in respect of the office from which they emanated.

with mails.

64. If a postal officer on receipt of a mail bag finds that the Interference seal has been broken or tampered with, he will place the matter in the hands of the police, and will report the circumstances to the

Postmaster.

65. A "Letter Bill," on which will appear particulars of each Letter and registered letter despatched, will be enclosed in each mail. A parcel bills. "Parcel Bill" will also be enclosed, on which will appear particulars of the parcels despatched. These bills will be sent

Postal clerks to pay in surplus cash.

Receipts to

whether there are any registered letters or parcels despatched or not. They must be carefully filed by the Receiving Officer, so that they may be produced at any time.

If a registered letter or parcel is missing, and the officer who should receive the bill on which such postal packet would be advised fails to produce such bill, he will be held responsible for the missing article.

66. As soon as practicable after the receipt of the up mail, the postal clerk in charge at each outstation will prepare his surplus cash for payment to the postal officer. The various amounts will be entered on the back of the receipt in the spaces provided, and the total will be entered in words in the body of the receipt.

67. The receipts will be prepared in duplicate and a signature to forwarded. obtained on each. The original will be forwarded by the next mail to the General Post Office, Lokoja, and the duplicate retained for reference. These duplicate receipts will be carefully filed in date order, so that they may be produced when required.

Obligation to report mistakes.

Stamp stock and accounts.

Receipt of

stamps.

Change for stamps.

68. Any irregularities in his cash accounts will be at once reported by the postal clerk in charge to the Postmaster through the local postal officer.

69. Only cash received in exchange for stamps will be placed in the stamp drawer; the value of the stock (stamps and cash) in this drawer will therefore never vary. The value of the stamp book must not be changed without the sanction of the Postmaster. Before placing a fresh supply of stamps in his drawer, the officer will withdraw cash, equivalent to the value of the stamps, and pay it into the treasury.

Current receipts and issues of stamps will not appear in the cash book, but, of course, money paid into revenue from time to time on account of postal receipts will so appear. The postal clerk in charge will be held responsible that he does not run short of stamps of any particular denomination.

70. When stamps are received from the General Post Office they will be accompanied by a form giving particulars of the stamps despatched. The receiving officer will, in the presence of a second officer (if two or more officers are employed at the station), check the stamps to see whether the correct amount is enclosed, and any discrepancy will be reported at once (by telegram where possible; if not, by letter marked "urgent "). The form, when checked, will be signed, amended if necessary, and returned by first post to Lokoja.

71. The postal department is not compelled to give “change to the purchasers of stamps, but Postal Clerks are directed to do so whenever possible, and when no inconvenience to the public service will result.

72. Each parcel, on which custom dues are to be collected, Customs must be entered in the Customs ledger in the following manner:- ledger. The parcels for delivery must be entered on the left hand side. The total amount as stated on the front of the bill will be entered on the right hand side (top line), and underneath will appear. particulars of the parcels (advised on the bill) that are forwarded to other stations or returned undeliverable. A copy of the entries made for each mail will be sent to the Postmaster by the return mail. Forms for this purpose are supplied. The Customs ledger will be ruled in the same manner as these forms.

73. When an unpaid or insufficiently prepaid inland postal Charges on packet is posted at any office the packet will be taxed "double letters, etc. the deficiency" and a "charge" docket will be prepared. The top portion of the docket will be forwarded with the postal packet (pinned to the letter bill), the other portion will be sent by the next mail to the Postmaster, Lokoja. The total number of dockets sent by each mail will be entered on the letter bill.

When the delivering officer collects the charge he will affix postage stamps to the value of the charge to the docket and forward it to the Postmaster at once.

When a letter is refused, or proves undeliverable for any reason, the docket must be sent to the Returned Letter Office, Lokoja.

74. All regulations made under the Post Office Proclamation, Revocation 1900, at present in force, shall, as from the date of the publication of existing of the regulations herein before set forth, be and are hereby regulations. cancelled and repealed.

ARMS AND AMMUNITION (EXPORTATION).
PROCLAMATION No. 19 OF 1900.

Short title.

Goods

order of the

High Commissioner.

A PROCLAMATION to enable the High Commissioner to prohibit the exportation of Arms, Ammunition and certain other articles. [1st September, 1900.

BE IT ENACTED by the High Commissioner of Northern Nigeria as follows:

1. This Proclamation may be cited as the "Arms and Ammunition (Exportation) Proclamation, 1900."

2. The following goods may by order of the High Commissioner prohibited by be prohibited either to be exported or carried coastwise: Arms, Ammunition and Gunpowder, Military and Naval stores, and any articles which the High Commissioner shall judge capable of being converted into or made useful in increasing the quantity of Military or Naval stores, and if any goods so prohibited shall be exported beyond the limits of the Protectorate, or carried coastwise, or be waterborne to be so exported or carried, they shall be forfeited.

Prohibition may be limited.

3. It shall be lawful for the High Commissioner to limit any order under the preceding section by providing that the prohibition shall extend only to goods to be exported to a country to be specified in the order or carried coastwise for the purpose of exportation to that country.