An interesting article on the importance of observing the postal regulations in relation to packets to Great Britain!
Gympie Times and Mary River Mining Gazette, Saturday 26 November 1898, page 3
Postal Irregularities
A difficulty has arisen at the Brisbane General Post Office in connection with packets containing Christmas cards and other articles addressed to the United Kingdom. It has been the practice hitherto, with a view to minimising public inconvenience, when such packets have been irregularly posted through non-compliance with the regulations as to fully opening the covers at the ends, to treat them as insufficiently stamped letters, and send them on to their destination. The English office, however, has objected to this course as being contrary to the regulations of the Postal Union, and have returned the packets so treated to Queensland and the other Australasian colonies. It follows consequently that unless the regulations with respect to packets are strictly observed, they cannot be forwarded to Great Britain or countries within the scope of the Postal Union. As there is generally no indication of the name or the address of the sender of these packets, they can only accumulate in the dead letter office, causing much heartburn to affectionate senders and great disappointment to expectant addressees. In order to obviate inconvenience as much as possible, instructions are being issued to the officer in charge of the dead letter office to open the covers sufficiently to meet the requirements of the regulations and to send them on to their destination. Attention having thus been drawn to the matter, it is to be hoped that senders' will comply with the regulation, as the postal officials do not intend to continue to do the work for the senders which the latter ought to do themselves. TELEGRAPH
