THE PACIFIC CABLE SCHEME.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume VIII, Issue 2373, 14 August 1886, Page 1 (Supplement)

THE PACIFIC CABLE SCHEME.

Sir Alexander Stuart, late. Premier of, and Mr Randolph Want, "solicitor to, the] Government of New South Wales who are now in' this country upon business connectnd with their scheme for laying a cable across the Pacific from America to Australia, have received, as I mon f ioned in my last letter, a good deal of encouragement from the Canadian Government, but matters have not progressed since then. An element, however, which id working in their) favor is the competition'between the Atlantic cable

companies. The - Ma'ckaYrßennett Gable Company refused charge of 2s 6d per 'word,: the other companies,' 5 maintained, v l , and announocd a tariff of Is' lOd per word. The other companies therefore determined to drive the: Mackay-Bennett Company out of the field, and reduced their charges to 6d per .word The Mackay-Bennett has met this stroke by.reduoing their charges to Is per word; and there for the; present the matter rests, This quarrel has an indirect interest to Australasia, because it is on account ot.the keeness of the competition between itself and its rivals' that one of these companies has indicated to Sir A. Stuart that it would be prepared to conclude a' permanent contract with his company to' take messages for : Australia from England to America or Canada at a tariff of.6d per word. The Canadian authorities on- their, part have, promised to concede at 2Jd rate across bife Dominion..; If this can be efl'ected, Sir' A,: Stuart hopes to promise a rate' of three or four shillings a word to. Australasia, and possibly a shilling tariff for the Press. Howwill Mr Penderand the Eastern Telegraph ' Companies like j this V Otago Daily