TELEGRAPHIC REPORT.

Evening Star, Volume VIII, Issue 2290, 8 September 1870, Page 2

TELEGRAPHIC REPORT.

We have received the sixth annual report of the Telegraph Department of Now Zealand. It is well arranged in its divisioi 8 of the details, ajad .contains a great deal c f interesting and suggestive information respecting the extension of lines during the past year, the lines in course of contraction, and their maintenance and repairs, as well as more miscellaneous matter. In a financial point of view the report, shows the efforts that are being made to educate the colonists into a true appreciation of the telegraph and its uses. The number of telegrams despatched during the June quarter under the shilling tariff shows an increase of 22,565 over those during the previous quarter under the 2a 6d tariff, whilst the cadi receipts show a decrease of LIOI I7s 6d, By this arrangement the Government have lost LIOO in revenue, and the work of the operators has been doubled, consequently the public has been largely behcfitte l. The immediate effect of the reduction was to record during first month an jiiorcase os 1333 users ofthe-telegraph'over tne : previous period, while the telegrams of all' codes during the year have been increased by 29,256. Of course this mipcofitablenets cannot long continue as telegraphy and the colony advanc 5. How largely the telegraph made Ute of for the purposes of Government is shown in tu6 fact.l;bat while the total cash receipts of the liuesiu-both islands were L1724S lg H thorp ,was yet worjc done to the vfldue qi L2047Q 4q. following paragraph sets off in an approxi; mate manner the F°oeipts and-expenses “ The total cash revenue of the line from the Bluff to Napier, including the Patca line, amounts to L 16799 18s Id; the total value of business done during the' same period being L2B/233 2s 6d After deducting the cost of maintenance of stalious;(,lnl4,74s 12s 8d) and of maintenance and reconstruction of lines ( I 12,392 13s sd), this leaves a balance of L 1094 16s oil to the credit of this portion ■of the line. Treated in the same way, the Auckland Hni shows a profit of 1.2162 la 3d, hut on deducting L 1094 16s 5d due to Ihe other line, the department is debited with onlv L 1067 4s Kiel ; but as L6OOO of the sum spent on Soir hern lines might be charged to construction the actual profits ought to be something like LSO OO. It ia easy to note that the telegraphic money order system bids fair to become useful ; but it has not been in operation for a sufficient time to warrant the expression of a definite opinion. The most unsatisfactory part of the report is that which refers to tho Cork’s Strait cable. This cable, laid by Mr Henley and costing the Colony L 29.864, contuns three conductors, of which two are in good working order, and one ia in the words of the report, “not so good as could be wished” —but in plain English, “ useless,” The table of tests at the end, of the report, if reliable, which wc presume they arc intended to be, proves such to be the case, and ■previous annual - reports -have said, the same thing,. Thus it would appear the contractor received a large sum for a work imperfectly finished, and one-third of which is useless. And yet we learn it is the intention of the Government to get the same firm to lay down a cable.with Australia.;

The following paragraph, shows the heavyoutlay that is necessary in bitter to keep the lines in repair FrioOi Invercargill to Balclntha the poles have been lowered, new ones put' in were necessary * and. the route altered iti places.’ Thia'Setftibn wifi, probably not require new for tvyo or.tnree years, bufc'n'one of the'fmles'recently fo%cred can be expected to last thap three years frorij present tiine.” It' Imght also bfe'tMcepfced as evidence of . the necessity of using poles of a more durable nature than even totara. The Provincial Government : bfi Otago evidently thought iron,poles preferable,,, as we see by the report that in taking overtrom that Government the lipe i.rpmj.o To.kppjairiro to Queenstown, there were amongst the new material 1120 iron poles; 1 ' : The total-purchase ■ money the invoice price of the poles, with charges added, is down, atJLdSllTi 18s 10d. Owing to the iuacceswbje feature of part of the dia-

tance between Picton and Havelock, which requires reconstruction, the experiment of losing built totara poles will be,tried. They will cost but 13s-each, and are so light that they may be nsed where the ordinary poles couldnot. Owing to the floods in theWairau river, it has been found necessary to secure the line by driving an iron tribe pole 20 feet into the shingle bed of the river. The total average cost per mile throughout all the line is but L 8 9s lid. Perhaps a better commentary could not be made on the efficiency of the general management than by taking the words of the report itself, which says that only six complaints have been made during the yearthree of late deliver}’, one breach of confidence; one of wrongly taking down, and one failure in delivering a message. That there should have been'so feu is a wonder. Appended to the report is a memorandum from the Postmaster-General to bis Kxcellency, with tho view of ascertaining what facilities can he afforded for the receipt and transmission of telegrams between this Colony, Great Biitnin, and other countries. Tim means suggested is a reciprocal exchange of stamps, so that telegrams to or from either country should he paid for in the stamps of the country whore they shall ho sent from.