‘Royal Mail Coaches took passengers in ten or eleven hours
to Kandy or Galla from Colombo, and an ordinary Mail Coach from Colombo to
Negombo in three hours. The fare to Kandy or Galle was '£2'. 10. 0, and to
Negombo12 Shillings. A single horse Mail Coach ran botween Kurunagala to and Ambepussa, charging 15 shillings' for each passenger. English mails-were
brought to Galle by steamers which arrived twice in each month. The postage on
letters was a penny per half ounce, and on newspapers a half
penny. No limit of weight is set for newspapers, and obviously no limit was
needed, as none of them was as large as our newspapers are now. lt is
interesting to note that even in 1859, the Inland Tappal rates of postage were
extended to India. But it took 18 days for a letter to reach Calcutta, 15 days
to Bombay, and 7 days for Madras. A letter to England via Southampton cost sixpence per half ounce; via
Marseilles 9d. per quarter ounce, and a shilling per half ounce. There. was
Telegraph communication between Ceylon and India. The Inland charges were
according to distances, two shillings for a " single distance." A
single distance was taken as 100 miles or any distance less’,
http://thedutchburgherunion.org/journals/vol_21_%2060/JDBU%20Vol%2024%20No%201%20-%201934(1).pdf
