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II.
APPENDIX: CORRESPONDENCE.
No. 1.
MEMORANDUM BY SIR G. H. MURRAY,
1
In the third clause of the reference the Committee are directed to consider "the steps which should be taken to secure that all messages between this country and Australasia should be sent solely through British territory, or through cables owned and worked by British companies."
There is some ambiguity in the latter part of this sentence, as Sir Julian Salomons pointed out at the last meeting of the Committee. But I had myself read the passage as if the words “when on land were inserted after " British territory," and "when under
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sea after "British companies.”
This seems to be the most reasonable interpretation to put upon the language used; and I think that the Committee may assume that the real object of this portion of the reference is to ensure that the wires over which the messages to atul from Australasia are to pass will be (a) on British territory whenever they cross the land, or (b) in cables owned and worked by British companies whenever they cross the sea,
Dealing first with the submarine cables between this country and America, there are practically two routes available—(i.) that owned by the Anglo-American Telegraph Company and the Direct United States Cable Company, both of which are British companies; and (ii) that owned by the Commercial Cable Company. The latter company, though its shares are largely held in British hands, is not, strictly speaking, a British company, as it is not registered in this country. It is, I believe, constituted according to the laws of the United States,
The cables of the wo British companies would, therefore, alone appear to comply with the conditions laid down in the reference to the Committee.
As regards the transit from the Atlantic seaboard to Vancouver, all three companies are unler agreement with certain companies owning land lines across the American Continent, and are bound to hand over to the latter for onward transmission all messages received through their cables.
The effect of these agreements is as follows:-
(1.) Messages passing through the cables of the Anglo-American Company reach the American Continent at Sydney (Cape Breton), and messages passing through the cable of the Direct United States Company at Halifax. In either case they are then handel over to the Western Union Telegraph Company, which is an American company. By this company they are forwarded to New York, and thence through the United States, viâ Chicago, to Seattle, in Washington territory, from, which place there are routes both by submarine cables and land lines to Vancouver or Victoria.
In this case almost the whole of the land transit is effected by an American company and over American territory.
(2.) The cables of the Commercial Cable Company are landed at Canso, in Nova Scotia, and messages received there are handed over to the Canadian Pacific Railway Company, which forwards them over its own system, vi Montreal, to Vancouver. But the Canadian Pacific Railway runs for about 200 miles through the State of Maine, and is, therefore, not wholly British territory The Company have, however, expressed their readiness to make arrangements for the transmission of through messages without crossing United States territory.
On
While the effect of the agreements entered into between these several companies is as above stated, a special arrangement has been made by the British cable companies for dealing with British Government telegrams, so as to avoid the transit across United States territory.
Telegrams received at Sydney (Cape Breton) are transmitted to Montreal over a line belonging to Canadian companies which follows the Inter-Colonial Railway, and is on Canadian territory throughout. The portion of the line in Nova Scotia is worked by the Western Union Telegraph Company, and the remainder by the Great North-Western Telegraph Company of Canada. The wire used for through traffic between Sydney and Montreal is worked at the Montreal end by operators of the Anglo-American Telegraph Company.
Telegrams received at lalijaz are transmitted to Montreal also over a line belonging to Canadian companies and on Canadian territory throughout. It is worked partly by the Great North-Western Telegraph Company of Canala, and partly by the Western Union Telegraph Company,
At Montreal both classes of telegrams are handed over to the Canadian Pacific Railway Company for transmission to Vancouver.
The two British companies have expressed their readiness to make similar arrange- nents for all telegrams intended to pass over the Pacific cable, and to provide that all the employés of the Western Union Telegraph Company through whose hands the messages may pass shall be British subjects. If a formal agreement to this effect were entered into the course recommended in the reference to the Committee would be secured so far as telegrams from this country to Australasia are concerned.
The Canadian Pacific Railway Company have also telegraphic connection by their own lines with both Sydney and Halifax.
To effect a corresponding arrangement as regards telegrams in the other direction it would be necessary that the Canadian Pacific Railway should undertake to forward all telegrams received by it at Montreal to Sydney or Halifax for transmission to Europe by the cables of the British companies, instead of to Canso for transmission by the Commercial Cable Company as at present.
It will, of course, be understood that in both cases the arrangement applies only to unronted" telegrams-i.e., those in which the sender has given no special directions as to the route to be adopted. It is presumed that all parties to the arrangement will agree to respect any such special directions if given.
January 3, 1900.
No. 2.
G. H. MURRAY.
¿
Statement showing the telegraphic traffic between Europe and Australasia.
Period.
No, of Words.
2,282,929
Value.
་
1895-6 (to 31 March)
1806-7
1914.233
349.488
424,520
1897-8
1898-9
2.005,653
365,884
1833,931
332.823
1 April 1899–30 September 1899, (6 months).
1,088,508
196,976
No. 3.
The HYDROGRAPHER to the ADMIRALTY to MR. MERCER.
DEAR MR. MERCER,
Hydrographic Department, Admiralty,
London, S.W., December 19, 1899.
Wiru reference to your letter of the 16th instant, I have but little to add to, or modify in, my evidence before the Pacific Cable Committee in 1896, except that Her - Majesty's Surveying Ships have since completed a preliminary line of soundings between
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