Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1871.djvu/706

 6;o

11NDIA.

The construction of railways, besides fostering trade and cpm- merce, has produced social and moral effects indicated, to some extent, by a vastly increased postal intercourse. In the fiscal year 1859-60, there were 850 post offices and receiving houses in British India, and the number of letters and newspapers sent through them was 47,788,105, and in 1859-60 the number of post offices had risen to 3,710, and the letters and newspapers to 74,664,817. The following table gives the number of offices and receiving houses, together with the total revenue and expenditure of the post office in each of the ten fiscal years 1860 to 1869 : —

Tears ended

and receiving houses

Total revenue

Total expenditure

Number

£

£

[I860 ....

850

661,505

480,637

_

1861

914

608,524

519,805.

'£

1862

984

402,135

481,328

<<

1863

1,142

425.528

481,196

o

1864

1.293

459.882

502,671

co

1865

1,421

362.333

426,456

1^1866

2,070

406,466

433,304

S| f 1867

2,558

496,439

466,642

g ■{ 1868

3.159

659,679

548.439

S 1 1869

3,710

707.792

693,316

The following table shows the total number of letters and news- papers sent through the post offices in each presidency or province during the fiscal years 1867 to 1869 : —

Presidency or Province

Years (ended 31st March)

1867

1868

1869

Number

Number

Number

of covers

of covers

of covers

Bengal

11,950.962

13.822.252

15.236,422

Madras .....

9,598.559

10*829,753

11,917,657

Bombav .....

12,516,454

15.1(35,672

17,123,690

North- West Provinces

14.227,435

15.652,848

16,986.561

Punjab and Scinde.

8,496,235

10,001.172

10,631,585

Central Provinces.

1,632.352

1,991 j 175

2,142.100

British Burma h Total

460,819

515,593

626.796

58,882,816

67,978 365

74,664,817

Tn the fiscal year L'859-60, the mails travelled over 39,338 miles, of which total 32,765 miles was done by boats and 'runners;' 5,861 miles by carts and on horseback; and only 712 miles by railways. Ten years after, in the fiscal year 186S-69, the mails-