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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Reference :-
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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-
COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
3 December 1896.]
Chairman-continued.
Mr. CORK.
likely to increase?--Yes, it is constantly in- creasing.
3124. To what do you attribute that ?-Well, I may give you our own experience as to the in- In 1891 the reduction from 9s. 6d. a word
crease.
to 48. 11d. took place; to 43. d. until it was raised to 4s. 11d. to Sydney. I am now comparing the amount of business at 9s. 6d. and 4s. 11d.; 9x, 6d. before 1891, and 4s. 11d. for the six months ended the 30th November 1896. The increase in the number of messages has been 63 per cent, in our own experience.
3125. In your business?—Yes.
Sir Soul Samuel.
3126. That is your own business?-Of course I am merely speaking of any own experience.
Chairman.
3127. May I take it that the business of your bank in the same period has increased 63 per cent. ?—No, it has not.
3128. Then is what has to be inferred this: that there is a greater tendency for the same business to use a greater amount of telegraphic
You communication than formerly —Quite so. see it very frequently happens that people wish to telegraph small sums of money to relatives on the other side, or on this side, who are in need of a little money; they want to send out 107., 207, 30, 40%, or 501, as the case may be, and they would do that if the message could be sent for 1 or 21., but if it costs them 5. they would not think of doing it. That is where the increase comes in. A merchant who has to telegraph his thousands, of course, pays whatever the rate is.
3129. Now you may take it from me, as a fact, that last year, 1895, leaving West Australia out of account altogether, in which there was a special boom, the telegraphic business done with Australia was 20 per cent. over the previous year; how would you account for that?—I should account for it in this way, that the cable is being more and more used for commercial transactions; every year it is becoming more used;
the merchants in Australia depend entirely now on the cable for their remittances. The use of bills is much discarded, and traders trust to the cable for their remittances; even the best houses do that.
3130. And that tendency is increasing?—That tendency is increasing day by day.
3131. In fact, for the transaction of commerce the cable is replacing the post-It is replacing bills; bills of exchange.
3132. Which had to be forwarded by post- Which had to be forwarded by post and involved a double stamp duty.
3133. Are you able to state at all as to the general opinion of commercial men dealing with Australia as to the necessity for more cable accommodation, or are you only able to speak of your own personal opinion?At present there is no grievance felt on the part of commercial then. I cau speak most highly of the Eastern Telegraph Company; I have no complaint to make against
Chairman----continued.
3 December 1896.]
Continued.
them; they have done their work very well indcel during the whole of the time the cable has been laid, a quarter of a century now; we have been constantly remitting money through them, and there has not been a single case of the Bank having sustained any loss through incorrect trans- mission by the cable, so that I am bound to speak very highly of the Eastern Company. They have done their work well. Of course they make mis- takes, but they never make such mistakes us have led us to any loss; we have not lost a penny, and we have transmitted millions.
L
3134. Would it be possible to lay another cable without seriously damaging them? Well, that is almost beyond my power to speak of. think another cable would increase the business very much, and possibly the dividends of the Eastern Company might still be maintained.
3135. You think, as a positive opinion, that it is quite possible that the development of Austra- lian telegraphic business might be such as to allow two cables to live?—Yes. Of course there is the experiment of laying 7,000 miles of cable. I am unable to speak on that point,
Mr. Murray.
3136. Though you are satisfied with the service of the Eastern Company, it appears from your evidence that it is deteriorating in point of speed? -It is undoubtedly.
3137. Do you find that that is a view that is generally taken - Well, I do not know whether the other men have gone into it at all; the other bankers, I have no doubt, would show the same result if they made a statistical table, as I have done.
3138. But it is a matter of complaint on your part, I suppose, is it not? Of course, the time lost when we are in bed does not affect us very much.
3139. For all practical purposes it is very much the same?-For all practical purposes it is very much the same, excepting that we fequently get messages now in the afternoon when we ought to get them the first thing in the morning.
It is very essential for commercial purposes that men should have their messages the first thing in the morning. If they have to pay large amounts it is absolutely necessary, and it is very inconvenient to traders when the messages do not come in until three or four o'clock possibly to meet engagements on the same day.
3140. Have you any idea what the cause of the increasing delay is?-No; none whatever. The manipulators are better men than they were, I can and the machinery is better than it was. only attribute the delay to the increase of busi- ness; the line is blocked.
3141. The op nion of the Eastern Company is that they could do considerably more business than they do.--Very likely.
3142. I suppose they mean with satisfaction to the public? It would not be with satisfaction to the public if we are to get the messages in the afternoon instead of at 10 o'clock in the morning.
Mr. CORK.
Sir Saul Samuel. 3143. Mr. Cork, you say that you get the messages frequently in the afternoon instead of early in the morning?—Yes.
3144. But may that not have arisen from the fact that the messages have not been sent from Sydney earlier in the day -Later in the day. No, it is not so. I have got the time of the messages sent from Sydney; they are all in good time, very frequently one o'clock in the day.
3145. But you do not know where the delay occurred?—No.
3146. It may have been on the land lincs possibly?—It may have been on the land lines.
[Continued.
Sir Sant Samuel-continued. 3147. How do you make out that it takes five hours for the transmission of a message from Sydney to London?—I will show you a message sent from Sydney at 4.25 in the afternoon. The corresponding time in London is 6.25; the mes- sage is received at 3.50 in the afternoon, so that message has taken nine hours 25 minutes in transmission. My experience is that we get our message during the morning. That used to be the rule.
3148. Well, I think it is so now, as far as my experience goes. I have given actual facts; they are taken from the messages themselves.
The Witness withdrew.
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