igo TiMEHRI. 



to Essequebo, who delivered the letters for a fee of two 

 schelHngs (26 cents). Correspondence for Europe was to 

 be delivered to the Postmaster, who charged half a schel- 

 ling for each letter,and the sender might demand areceipt. 

 It was also agreed by the Court at the same time, that a 

 mail should be despatched to Berbice every two months. 



After the restoration of the Colonies to the Dutch in 

 1784, the Post Office was abolished, and the old system 

 of receiving letters at the Secretary's Office restored. 

 During the following years, up to 1796, the inhabitants 

 suffered greatly from the want of regular communication 

 with the mother country. In 1791 it was resolved by 

 the Court of Policy that a subsidy be paid to provide a 

 Mail Service to Berbice and Surinam. During the war 

 with France between 1793-5, the mails were received 

 and sent by way of Barbados, and a vessel was chartered 

 by the colony as a Packet boat, but when the Batavian 

 Republic was established, all communication with the 

 British Colonies was cut off. On one occasion an 

 American vessel was engaged to carry the Mails to and 

 from St. Eustatius, as it was unsafe to send them under 

 other than neutral flags. 



In 1793 the first attempt was made to establish a 

 local postal delivery by an Attorney-at-Law named 

 J. C. De La Coste. This gentleman established the 

 first Printing Office, and published the pioneer news- 

 paper of Demerara on the ist of November 1793; 

 Every subscriber to this paper was entitled to the privi- 

 lege of having his letters carried free of charge, while 

 other persons had to pay ten stivers for each letter. 

 The messengers left Stabroek every Sunday morning 

 and Wednesday afternoon, returning two days after- 



