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PACIFIC CABLE COMMITTEE :
for a cable to extend entirely across the Pacific. This course makes it possible to throw open the bidding, as the Bill reported in the Senate proposes, whereas under the old grant there could be no competition, so far as Hawaii is concerned, as she had given to a single It is true that she may protit company the exclusive privileges of landing on her shores. more largely in the end by the Senate Bill, but it should be remembered that the Spalding Company offered attractive agreements for inter-island communication. "The advantage of extending the cable clear across the Pacific is obvious; for whereas Hawaii has a small population and a limited trade, Japan and China offer far greater prospects of returns on the cost of laying the wire. As so large a part of the work would be accomplished in opening the route between San Francisco and Honolulu, it is far better to arrange at the ontset for a complete trans-Pacific cable, even though the latter goes beyond what is concerned with the prospective annexation of Hawaii, and although the route thence to Japan has not been surveyed so carefully as that which extends eastward to our shores."
PAPERS.
Sir DONALD SMITH to Sir WILLIAM VAN HORNE.
London, November 23rd, 1896.
Is Canadian Pacific under any agreement with any Atlantic Cable Company, or any line on American Continent not passing through British territory, with respect to unrouted telegrams which would prevent Canadian Pacific hereafter coming to an agreement with associated Imperial Dominion Australian Governments to send unrouted telegrams to and from Australia and England via Pacific cable by a specified route?
No. 11.
Put in by Mr. Finch.
STATEMENT showing the EXISTING TRAFFIC BETWEEN EUROPE (including the AMERICAN CON- TINENT) and AUSTRALASIA, during the year ended 31st March 1896, and its division between the interested Parties.
Number of Words.
Divisible as follows:
Year.
Total Value.
Ordinary.
Govern- meat.
Press.
Total.
Indo- Eastern
European Telegraph
Telegraph Company. Company.
Iudo- European Telegraph India.
Depart.
Eastern
Extension Telegraph Company.
ment
Sir WILLIAM VAN HORNE to Sir DONALD SMITH.
Montreal, November 24th, 1896. We have contract Commercial Cable give them unrouted business, but our connexion is at Censo and business does not touch any but British territory except in crossing through Maine. If that is objectionable connexion can be made via Intercolonial Railway not touching American territory. Australian Governments can route business originating their lines, and we free to forward as routed by any cable, but connexion all cables except Commercial, controlled by Western Union Telegraph Company.
Sir DONALD SMITH to Sir WILLIAM VAN HORNE.
London, November 25th, 1896.
If your contract with Commercial Cable for unrouted messages for a specified term, when does it terminate?
Ꭵ
1895-96
Words.
1,716,355
Words.
Words. Words.
39,821 158,077 1,914,253
£
849,488
£
93,181
£
18,770
£
8.517
£
£
25,341 209,679
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Sir WILLIAM VAN HORNE to Sir DONALD SNITA.
Montreal, November 26th, 1896.
Contract Commercial Cable has five years to run, but do not think we could afford to commit ourselves to anything so as to prevent its extension of time.
No. 13.
Reference:→→→
C.O. 885
6
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
H h 3
No. 12.
Put in by Sir Donald Smith.
TELEGRAMS EXCHANGED BETWEEN SIR DONALD SMITH AND SIR WILLIAM VAN
HORNE.
Sir DONALD SMITH to Sir WILLIAM VAN HORNE,
London, November 19th, 1896. Pacific cable. Question has arisen of connexion entirely on and through British points from Halifax. Could all cables from England for Australia go entirely through British territory from Halifax to Vancouver? Would one shilling per word be accepted from Vancouver to England as proportion through rate? Would messages be sent as might be desired by any Atlantic cable? Could Hosmer come at short notice if desired?
Sir WILLIAM VAN HORNE to Sir DONALD SMITH.
Montreal, November 19th, 1896.
As to all questions your cable, yes; but Hosmer does not see how he can be useful until after general questions settled.
Extract from a Letter from Sir William Van Horne to Sir Donald Smith, dated Montreal, 8th December 1896. Put in by Sir Donald Smith.
As I have cabled you, the translation of
my
the 27th, is not correct. It should have a cable of November 26th. enclosed with your note of
-
"Contract Commercial Cable has five years to run, but do not think we could afford to commit
ourselves to anything to prevent its extension."
I am quite alive to the reasons which prompted your question in this regard, but the Com- mercial Cable connexion
is an exceedingly valuable one to us, and the only one which is quite independent of the Western Union Telegraph Company
As to the routing of business, I may say that in the case of business originating in Europe we, We would take it from whatever cable might of course, would have no control over the matter.
bring it. So that as regards business to Australia, our exclusive arrangement for unrouted business with the Commercial Cable Company would have no bearing. But as to business going the other way, if the Australian Governments, controlling as they do their own telegraph system, desire to route the business by any particular Atlantic cable, there is nothing to prevent this being done, I do not see therefore why our for we are quite free to send such business as it may be routed. arrangement with the Commercial Cable Company can have any particular bearing upon the Australian question.
As I have already explained in my answers to your inquiries by cable, our own wires connect with the Commercial Cable at Canso. At present our connexion is made across the State of Maine, but if it should be necessary for the Australian Cable scheme, we could easily arrange for a wire from Quebec to Moncton on the Inter-Colonial Railway, so that United States territory would not be touched anywhere. Practically we do not touch the State of Maine now, because, for the cable business, a through wire is used, and nobody in the State of Maine can know what is passing over it
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PACIFIC CABLE COMMITTEE:
No. 14.