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the additional Services that offer and that are of
vital importance for the Colony's commerce. Even China, until recently so backyard, now possesses stations which transmit at a speed that the Hong King Station cannot cope with; Java, French Indo China and Siam have
radio telegraphic and telephonic communication with
Europe, and Shanghai will very shortly be linked by
radio telephone with Europe and America.
Either
the Merger Company or the Government must proceed
forthwith to remedy the situation and put an adequate
development programme in hand to keep abreast of the
urgent and daily growing requirements of the times.
Much valuable time has already been lost.
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I am not unaware of the difficulties presented
by the Chinese Government's attitude towards the
Cable Companies and I cannot surmise how far that
attitude will be maintained when the Herger Company
takes over the Hong Kong Government's Wireless Services.
Up to the present however it has been frankly hostile
and quite recently manifested itself by forcibly
closing down the Amoy Cable Office and transferring
the traffic to wireless, Had the Hong Kong Wireless Station been unable to handle tho traffic with Amoy
in this instance, the mercantile community of the
Colony would have suffered severely.
4.
It is scarcely necessary to add that important
revenue considerations are also at stake in any
unreasonable delay in the development of the Colony's
Radio Services; though I regard the expansion of this
4