F.—l

traffic on the Ist March. The following extract referring to the cable interruption, and to the new cable to Eoebuck Bay, is from the Eastern Extension Telegraph Company's report for 1888: — . . . "No interruptions of a serious nature occurred until the 30th June, when both the Java-Australian cables were suddenly and simultaneously interrupted in deep water about 220 miles from Banjoewangi. The company's s.s. " Becorder " was immediately despatched from Singapore to effect repairs, and special steamers were chartered by the company and the South Australian Government to carry telegrams between Java and Australia during the interruption. At first some difficulty was experienced by the s.s. "Eecorder," owing to the prevalence of bad weather and the ends of the cables being deeply buried; but communication was successfully restored on the 18th July, and the second cable was also repaired on the 6th August, when it was found that the interruptions had been caused by volcanic action. In consequence of the serious inconvenience to the telegraphing community occasioned by the unfortunate interruptions above referred to, and in order to avert a recurrence as far as possible, your directors immediately decided to lay an additional cable from Banjoewangi to Western Australia, to connect with the land-lines of that colony, avoiding, as far as practicable, the volcanic region. This line will give the colonies the advantage of a third cable to Java and an alternative land system, via Perth and Eucla, to the existing overland line between Port Darwin and Adelaide." While dealing with cable matters it will not be out of place to give particulars of New Zealand's outward cable business for 1888, which was as under:—

■ —a total of 20,995 messages, of the value of £37,787 4s. Id., of which the cable company received £14,298 Is. Bd. for telegraphing the messages from Wakapuaka to La Perouse. The figures for the inward cable-work are not available, but it may be assumed that the volume of business was at least equal to that from New Zealand. The company would therefore have received about £29,000 in respect of the New Zealand-Australian cable for the year. The following table and return give the number of offices and officers of all classes on the 31st December last.

III

Ordii iary. Press. Destination. No. of Messages. Value. No. of Messages. Value. International (beyond Australia) Victoria South Australia ... New South Wales Queensland Tasmania Western Australia 3,973 6,773 706 7,135 825 660 67 £ s. cl. 25,230 6 11 4,850 13 7 520 17 5 5,010 2 7 633 11 2 494 8 2 57 14 8 21 144 £ s. a. 127 16.10 55 13 1 691 805 "l9 8 Total .... 20,139 36,797 14 &■ 856 989 9 7

o o o g I © O Com Po Offli ntry ist ces. o 0) O £ a © o Q 'o H Q CD § o M H s EH Cle: and P Cad :rks Postal lets. Oper! (inchi Cadi itors iding sts). CO -t 3 li Leti carr: triers. CD* O ?:' o CO Telei Mes Be graph isage sys. PoBtal Districts. o » W o la u <D 'CO ■is, CD © IS t>) O a o H J? a s o © o a 1 0 E-l Si Auckland Thames Gisborne Napier New Plymouth Wanganui .. • Wellington Blenheim Nelson Westport G-reymouth Hokitika Gliristohurch Timaru Oamaru Dunedin Invercargill 37 10 1 19 6 12 21 6 10 5 4 3 47 15 10 34 20 160 23 20 30 11 14 55 15 25 16 19 28 107 29 7 84 67 58 5 4 9 3 9 15 3 8 7 4 4 5 1 1 2 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 13 '2 3 38 1 12 2 8 44 4 5 25 5 4 23 4 11 88 33 11 4 8 2 26 5 8 2G 7 5 5 5 5 11 1 2 46 9 1 19 4 10 22 5 9 4 3 2 48 16 9 34 19 16 2 1 3 2 3 10 2 2 1 2 1 15 2 2 14 2 3 1 1 1 2 2 i 2 1 14 4 3 6 3 5 32 2 5 2 3 2 15 3 3 14 3 8 3 2 2 7 11 2 2 1 4 'i 2 3 34 5 2 33 8 '3 2 4 29 8 1 4 1 1 1 1 1 1 13 1 2 6 1 *6 3 2 1 1 2 2 IS 2 1 12 6 6 4 3 1 Total on 31st Dec, 1888 .. i 1 260 710 175 12 12 33 201 2 240 54 260 80 23 14 119 78