NEW CABLE ROUTE.

Hokitika Guardian, 18 August 1917, Page 4

NEW CABLE ROUTE.

WELLINGTON TO SYDNEY

An announcement - of importance was made to a Wellington “ Post ” reporter by the'New Zealand representative of the Eastern Extension Telegraph Company. For months past there has been’ great activity on botli sides of the Tasman in connection with the trmsferenceof the Eastern Extension Company’s two cables from La Perouse (New South Wales) to Sydney, and the New Zealand end from Wakapuaka (Nelson) to Wellington. Gangs of men have been busy for mouths laying an underground land line from the General Post Office in Wellington to the new ,l shore end " hut on the sea-coast, to which the “ Waka ” end of the cables will be joined up as soon as the necessary preparations have been completed. A suite of rooms on the top floor of Nathan’s Buildings has been fitted up with the necessary receiving and transmitting apparatus, and two “tubes” running under the street connect up with the General Post Office. The Company’s officials in Sydney have been just as busy as those on this side. The cable station at La Perouse, the “Waka” of New South Wales, has been done away with, and a receiving and transmitting station established right in the very heart of Sydney. The Eastern Extension Company’s representative informed the reporter that it is hoped to establish direct communication between the two centres about the end of the month. This move will be of the utmost importance to the people of New Zealand. It will mean virtually that the heart of Wellington is in direct communication by means of submarine cable with the heart of Sydney. By the old method, a cablegram for Australia handed in at the General Post Office, Wellington, would lie forwarded to Wakapuaka. “Waka” in turn would transmit it to La Perouse, and the I message would then be transmitted to Sydney—the whole involvingthree distinct transmissions. When the cable is joined up to Wellington, two of these will be done away with, and all retransmission of the message will be thus obviated. The removal has involved a very large expenditure —how much it is not permissible to mention—but the entire cost is exceedingly high. All the expense has been shouldered by the Eastern Extension Company. All cablegrams for transmission by the new route will have to be marked “via Eastern,” and will, of course, be received as usual at the General Post Office, telegraph counter, where they will be shot over to Nathan’s Building by means of the “ tube.”

As Wellington is the centre of all the North and South Island trunk telegraph lines, it will he merely a matter of seconds for a man in any part of the Dominion to have his message telegraphed to Wellington and then dispatched to Sydney. The “ Waka ” staff will be brought over to Wellington about the end of the month in order to take over the new cable station. One advantage of the transference of the cableend to Wellington is that the pre- i sent branch cable line from Wakapuaka to Wellington will be practically free for ordinary telegraph messages, although,’ of course, South Island cablegrams will have to be sent by it, In . addition to the transference of the cable-ends, 1 one of the Company’s vessels has been over the whole of the existing cable. All those portions which were in the slightest degree worn have been replaced, and the entire cable is now quite as gopd as when it was laid down.