SUBMARINE CABLE.

Evening Star, Volume VIII, Issue 2233, 4 July 1870, Page 2

SUBMARINE CABLE.

Amongst the parliamentary papers to h&fid is one containing the correspondence on the subject of the establishment of telegraphic communication between Australia and New Zealand. ISO far back as 1867, Mr W.iT, Henley, of London, addressed an offer to the Colonial Agent at Home to connect 'this Colony with Australia by means of a submarine electric cable, on tbe following terms: —I. As soon as the cable should have been laid, and worked, electrically for one ihoutji, the Colonial Government should guarantee a, net revenue from it of 6 per cent—i.e., shohl'd it from any cause not'earn so much, th© Government should make up the difference. 2, If by any cause the cable should be in* jnred or get out of working order, so that messages could not bo transmitted, the 6 per cent, guarantee. to, cease;. but .the Government should pay a guarantee of 3 per cent, during the time it might remain out of order —the company laying the cable to use every endeavor to repair tbe damage; but if unable to do so within a time mutually agreed upop, the 3 per cent, guarantee and all responsibilities of-the Government to cease. A concession of the exclusive right to land cables for forty or fifty years, with three years to complete the work, were askedfor. It was then estimated that the distance would be 1200 nautical miles, and the cost fromL2lo to L 220 per mile. That offer was never submitted, for reasons stated, and on the arrival of our Commissioners in England, Mr Henley reopened the matter. The following letters show its present position : “London, 25th March, 1870. “ Sr a.—We have the homr to transmit to you herewith a letter We have received from Mr Henley of the Telegraph Construction Company, offering to make a submarine cable between Australia aqd New Zealand. Wfi should have to recommend this proposal at once, but an offer of a similar kind will in all probability he made to us to-morrow (though too late for the mail) by the French Transatlantic Cable Company, one of whose directors, Lord William Hay, has Just written to us to make an appointment with some influential gentlemen on the subject. “ Wo shall acquaint you by telegram if any substantive oiler is made by the latter Company.” “ F. D. Bele. “I. E. Featherston.” 4 ‘ London, 25th March, I “ Gentlemen, —The enclosed letter, addressed to you by Mr Henley, on the subject of a submarine cable between New Zealand and Australia, has just been sent to me. At his request, I beg to direct your attention to it. “ Mr Henley refers, I observe, to a letter be wrote to mo in 1867, and encloses ypu a copy of it. Tbe letter in question was never submitted to the Government, the guarantee in it being, in my opinion, so objectionable and fatal a condition to his proposal, that I did not trouble them with it; but as Mr Henley who, you will remember, constructed and at his own risk submerged the Cook’s Strait Cable, now offers to take steps to insure no efficient cable being laid between New Zealand and Australia, provided only an exclusive concession for twenty-one yeqrg is granted to him, you may perhaps see lit t<? transmit his offer to the Government by to: night’s mail. “ Mr Henley also makes i\ forcnce to the Tasmanian Cable. As you may like to see the conditions and terms granted by the Tasmanian Government, I enclose a copy of the contract, “John Morrison.” ; Loudon, 24th March, 1870. Gentlemen, — With reference to my letter of the 25rh October, 1867, addressed to Mr J. Morrison, in wdiich I undertook, under P'.q-taiii conditions, to establish telegraphia communication between New Zealand and Australia, I now' beg to re-open tbe subject. “ As I mentioned in that letter, the most certain way of obtaining the desired object would be by the Government granting me an exclusive concession for landing cables between New Zealand and Australia for the term of forty years, accompanied by a guarantee of 6 per cent, interest on the capital embarked in the- scheme during the time the cable remained in w'orkiug order ; blit as I am informed that the Government o£ * New Zealand will not grant such a guarantee (although there is a precedent in the Tasmanian Government having done so, and it having resulte I in their having an efficient cable working to Australia). I will undertake, if you can obtain mo the exclusive concessions above mentioned for the term of tweuty-ono years, to take suoh steps as will insure the laying of an efficient cable between

New Zealand and Australia within two and a half years of such concession. Details as to tariff, &c., could be mutually arranged. “ I may further add that, in the event of the concession being granted to me my connection with the Telegraph Construction and Maintenance Company justifies me in stating that I should have their cordial assistance co-operation in carrying out the arrangements for the line, and I should have no objection, should you wish it, to the concession being granted in our joint names. “W. T. Henlev.”

Under date June 2. the Colonial Secretary forwarded to the Commissioners the subjoined memorandum from the Commissioner of Telegraphs. Mr Gisborne suggests that as a good deal of attention is being directed at Home to ocean cables, calling for competitive tenders might do better. He also states that before final ratification it will be necessary to refer the agreement to the Colony to be brought before the Assembly, as that body might prefer giving a guarantee or money payment to a twenty-one year-.’ concession. “ The connection must be with New South Wales or Victoria, on no account, with Tasmania, aa we should have to depend on a second cable between that island and the mainland. The connection on the New Zealand side must be with a part of the country where the telegraph is erected or about to be erected. It would be better that the connection should be with cither some part of the Middle Island, or with a point in the North Island entirely free from the reach of Native disturbances. Near. Wellington would be best, as for the Government business, which is heavy, we should be relieved from using bur own cable. There must be a purchasing clause, aa favorable as can be arranged. There must be provision to meet the case of one cable being found insufficient for the work : either the contractor must construct additional cables, if required, or the monoply, should -not prevent; the Government doing so. Much importance is to be attached to the determination of the tariff. We have reduced the rates of land telegrams to a uniform rate of one shilling. I believe'that low rates will pay the concessionaire best ; bat we must not lose sight of this, that perhaps to force us into some change of agreement, he may adopt prohibitive rates. I can lay down no absolute proviso without risk of embarrassing the Commissioners. I can only say that I attach the utmost importance to any power they can obtain for determining the tariff from time to time ; that I think it should never exceed one Shilling per word; and that it should be reducible from time to time, as the net receipts leave a surplus after paying an agreed p°r centagc on the capital, inclusive of interest., The' Commissioners must insist on stringent regulations respecting the order of transmitting messages. A private company (if for. instance [war broke out) might reap immense results from a monopoly of the line. We-have to look forward twenty-one years. “ I have not referred to the cla s of cable, U nit of time for laying it; but in both respects there should he definite agreement,: of the nature of which the Commissioners should take the , best advice, My Lemon suggests that the class of cable should be at least equal to the last English Atlantic Cable. ’

V These are the conditions which strike me after hurried consideration. No doubt there are others to be home in mind, and the Commissioners should be careful to take the best advice, and study the conditions of other analogous arrangements.”