NINEPENNY CABLES.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 545, 28 June 1909, Page 5

NINEPENNY CABLES.

NEW PRESS WORD RATE. A REDUCTION OF THREEPENCE. STATE-OWNED LINES. HBOM BRITAIN TO CANADA AND SOUTH AJTRIOA. • (By Tolcffraph.-Pross ABBoolaUon.-Oeiiyrisht.) • (Hoc. Juno 27, 5 p.m.) London, Juno 26. Tho Imperial Press Conference resumed its > sittings to-day, Mr. A. IS. Lawson (cdit6r of the "Madras Mail") presiding. Tho Canadian delegates proposed a resolution favouring a. Stale-owned system of electric communication between India (P England) and Canada to Vancouver, thuß completing a Stato oorvico betwocn England and Vancouver. , Mr. Geo. Fenwick (editor of tbo "Otago Daily Times") strongly supiwrtcd,the proposal. He claimed that tho Pacific cablo was, already a groat bucccss, but would never bo a complete success till State ownership waa established to England. Tho proposal Vras also supported by Mr. Grcsley Lukin (editor of tho "Evening Post," 'Wellington), Mr, M. Cohcu (editor of tho "Duiiedin Star"), tic Hon. T. Fink (director of tbo "Molbourno Herald"), and Mr. Thos. Tcmporley (Bathurst, New South Wales). _ ' Somo of tho Australian, delegates qucs- , tioned tho propriety of Stato competition unless existing interests ncro fairly treated.,, Tho motion was carried, and a similar resolution was adopted with relation to South Afnca. MARCONI ON AN EMPIRE SERVICE. ' WIRELESS REDUCTIONS. , ' HOW THE THREEPENCE IS MADE UP. (Rcc, Juno 27, 5.5 p.m.) London, Juno 26. Tho Conforenco appointed a Standing Committee and a deputation to urgo on tho Pnmo Minister, Mr, Asquith, a general reduction of cablo lates. Another resolution advocated tho establishment of wholess stations cost and south of Britain. Another tcsolution dealt with a grie\anoo of tho newspapers of India—u hoso cable rates are as high as those of New Zealand —and of Ceylon, whoso rates aro a halfpenny more. ~ , , ' It was announced ,that the Pacific Cablo Board had decided to reduce, their proportion of tho coßt of prtis 'cablegrams by half —that is, to 2jd. a word—and that Now , Zealand would rcduco its proportion by a halfpenny a word, thuß making,an immediate reduction in press cablo rates from England to New Zealand from Is, to Od. a word.

It is expected that the Commonwealth n ill lower its land charge by a halfpenny a word, - which' would reduce, the word-iato of Australian press messages via tho Pacific to' ' aid.

,It h also expected that if the Atlautio cablo companies and the Canadian land ' lines will mako a reduction, thoso reductions will also bo devoted to Jowoiirig press , rates. '

Mr. Marconi said* he nns most confident in'his belief that by August ho would .bo nbla t&'fransmit 16,000 uordii daily from I;ro- , land to Canada and to _ solid pi ess messages abrosl tho Atlantic for 2jd. a \vord, and possibly 2d., against the pjcsontj.fid. IJo had every hopo that his system .would embraco tho whole of the Empire. Already ho had undertaken an installation from Italy to Argentina. If it was successful, ho hoped to instal a service from England to Capo Colony and from Capo Colony tq Canada. LINKING-UP VIA INDIA. 1 CHAIN OF STATIONS, "THE TIMES 1 *! GIVES FIGURES AS TO ~' ',* COST. ( * LESS THAN A MILLION.. 1 \'Reo. Juno 27, S'p.m.) i London, June 26, In a special articlo, "The Times" suggest* an Imperial wireless telography sorvico. It is pointed out that Marconi's Canadian transAtlantic wireless servico has* transmitted 300,000 words, most of which wore coded, and will probably transmit fivo million words dunng coming year, Tho present averago speed is twenty-four wordß per minute, and it is liKoly to be increased to skly.woids per miuuto. * '

. l i iliv'ponncctio!i';ffiili | ; > \ !r.wirplc , ss;;';;KrncoV.''to : thatV'-'. stations bo established at Malta', ; Alexandria, \■' • ' Aden, Bombay, Colombo/ Singapore! Perth, ■'.:.■■ Adelaide,-. Sydney,? and \VollinEton'. ; ■ Each '■' Btation" would hiiro a' rango of 2000 miles, would cost;£50,000; to. establish; arid would•■/:■; cost' for /upkeep .£IO,OOO 'a year;, .'i :' -'vH'-'-'V \ If the' British and tho Colonial, Govern- , : me'nts would equip fifteen such stations—at> '' a total .capital ! . cost, • oaloulatbd ■'. on'' tlib £55,000 ibasis,. of; £8215,000—and would offer 'i. a subsidy..of. ? annually,; . (that : is, : - fifteen stations-at'£lo,6ooiciieh)," an Imperial '.■'; pcnny-a-w6rd .wireless '.;sorvica :- would ,bo ' . ■,' possible.- ' :';.;.;;)::' ';' l^,': '':' ■ , A •",'■ If each' station handled 15,000 words dally, ' '... : it'would bo possible to makoa -profit'upon a ;'■ ■ complete-: Imperial;, system -j of twonty-four ';•;,:' stations. ->;,;'' f _-- ;J Y--':-/,- i v.- '''%?.-.' Y,f;'-':.tEVERVT^ "WIBELESSV ' .The, Press. Conference is dealing with threa'■> things whieli,must be kept distinct!.;; ■;■;:.':

(a) State-owned cables throughout tho Empire. (b) Seduction of cablo rates (particularly | press ratos) on existing linos, that is— ; ,on the State-owned Paoific Cablo and ' on tho prwato companies' line. ' (c) A new wireless scivice (press and oidim ary) throughout tho Empire There is a tendency to use (a) and (c) as I lovers to promoto (b). As to (a), the present State-owned cable is that oeross the Pacific, inimnpod by tho IVj/io Cable Board, the cost ot w Inch is borne bj tho several Governments in the following pmnor. lionsi-Unitcd ' Kingdom, fi\o-oightoonths; Canada, five-cightecnths; Australia, one-third now Zealand, one-ninth. The TW Conf«ronco , would like toi supplement the Pacific Cable-bv SUte-owncd lines across Canada and the At. Innric, linking it np with Britain. \Uo thoy hayo adopted, it would seim,' the for a State-owned cablo from Biitain to South Africa. As to (b), according to the announcement at the Conference, the*o is to be an immediate \ reduction of threcpencq per wort! in the cost of press cablegrams from Britain to New Jionand; that is, tho rate will be ledocod from Is. to 9d. a word. It would seem that tho Pnoiuo Cablo charge is contributing 2ld to ' this threepenny coneej.sion, and the New Zea. land charge is contributing tho rcm.iimnu id There may bo a further reduction if tho ow h. ! era ofUio pxistlng private lines ocicki Canada 1 and the Atlantio make concessions A leniis. sion or reduttion of any tax or charge on hum cablegrams moans removal of a tax on know, ledge. ' In (a), a now 6phore of unbounded nossiblli. ties is ontorod on, Jhat of wireless tolcci.iphy Xhe l argumont horo is intensified bv the mesonoo of anunknown factor, for wiicless MeJfrtpaj, Bbk* has noonrnplmhod much, may

«Sg7»—' - accomplish SS2& more. Tho 6eheme of an Empire wireless eorvico sot forth by "The Times" captivates the imagination, and will derivo much. support bom patriotio'lmperialism. It recalls the schcmo talked of some years ago 'to link up the Empire by way of tho ; Pnoiflc, Canada, and tho Atlantic. ' Speed and Cost of Wireless. , With regard- to speed, "ono of the managers of tho Atlantic cahlo companies', claimed eomo time ago that "our best cable sands 100 words a minute." But 6inoo then wo havo had It on tho authority of tho chief olectrical en- , gincor of tho Commonwealth (Mr. Hcakoth), as reported in an Australian paper, that 24 words : a nramto is 'tho highest rato at which long-distance cabling can bo done at present." As compared with 1 this, "Tho Times" states \ that tho present average speed of tho Marconi trarsrAtlantio wireless servico is 21 words a minute, and "it is likely to be increased to 60." iAs to cost, an official of the Marconi Company, referring to tho trans-Atlantic wireless charges of sd. a word on ordinary wires and 2jd. for press, remarked: "Why can wo reduce tho rata to sd. a word pins land charges? Ono reason is that where i : one ■ limited cablo .'system costs ' J81,000,000, a wireless system, practically unlimited, will cost, only, £100,000.-" , ' i lln to-day's cablegram Mr. Marconi is re-' ported as forecasting a redaction of tho press word-rate across tho Atlantic from sa. te ' , 2Jd- This probably refers to the ordinary rate, as it was announced at the inception of this wireless service ; that the rate;for'.ordinary matter would bo Sd. a word and for press matter 21d- * .Mr;- Marconi's '■■ trans-Attantw wireless sorrieo *, operates between Clrfden (Ireland) and Glace Bay (Nova Scotia), a distance of about 2500 < mues. Globs-Encircling Line's. Under Sir Sandford Fleming's schema, as reported' on by hirh in 1906, the capital required to establish .a globe-encircling Imperial telegraph eysfom was' estimated at .£5,000,000, a sum which did not include tho Pacific cable—which ' was* .regarded • as a section of tho whole Imperial system— bnt included a national cable across the Atlantic, and a nationalised land lrho through', Canada! These, ■ together with tho lPacino cable, would connect London with Australasia by a continuous lino of telegraphy directly under State control. '' . . 'Tho estimate includod ,iG1,750,000i for Empiro cables in the Indian Ocean, as the means of connecting India and.South Africa with Australia and the Pacific 'cable, and .£2,250,000 for' ' cables in the Atlantic for tho' purpose of i connecting South. Africa with England ,via the West Indies and' thoßennudas, thus completing , the' girdle. Tho "electriobond of Empire'.',has been summarised in the following four divisions: (1) Prom the United Kingdom;to tho Pacific, embracing a .cable across .the Atlantic .and land lines through Canada. . ' (2) A cable across thee Padfio from Canada to New Zealand and Australia, with land lines ;through 'Australia! to the Indian Ocean. (3) 'A cable from Australia across the Indian Ocean to South Africa, with a branch from (Jocos Island to India. (4) A cable from Capo Town to tho United Kragaom via Ascension, the West Indies, and , -tho Bermudas, with a branch to Canada.