TELEGRAPH BUSINESS.

Taranaki Daily News, 7 January 1916, Page 3

TELEGRAPH BUSINESS.

NEW CHARGES AND THE REVENUE By Telegraph.—Press Association. Christclnirch, Jan. 5. Sir Joseph Ward, Minister of Finance, who arrived from the south to-night, said that on his return to Wellington he would issue a statement re the finances of the Dominion to the end of December. As an indication of the manner in which the increased charges on telegrams ail'ectcd the revenue, Sir Joseph Ward gave the following comparative figure's:— Ordinary telegrams—November, 19.14, 451,527; November, 1915, 455,035. All telegrams—November, 1914, 503,50(i; November, 1915, 827,202. Tlie increased revenue from ordinary telegrams in November last was £35(>7, and on all telegrams £5124. The gross revenue in November, 1914, was £3(1,172 and in November, 1915, £41,475. The net revenue was £20,504 in November 1914, and £31,028 in November, 1915. The Press messages sent in November, 1914, totalled 39,059, and in November. 1915, 20,025, a decrease of 13,034. The increased revenue in November was £143 which indicated that the newspapers, naturally, and rightly as he thought, had not availed themselves of the wires to the same extent as prior to the increased rates. He was disposed to think that the increased rates under the various (loadings in the Telegraph Department could not make the Department self-sup-porting, and he would be agreeably surprised if the Department was able to provide revenue for the expenditure necessary. They would have to wait a few months before the actual position was known.