CO129-525-12 Transfer of Government wireless services to imperial and international communications Ltd 20-3-1930 - 7-1-1931 — Page 45

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GENERAL POST OFFICE, LONDON, E.C.1.

27 May 1930.

Dear Mr. Hibberdine,

In reply to your letter of the 22nd instant, I write to

confirm the statement that the British Post Office is willing

to co-operate with the Communications Company in working a

telephone service to Singapore and Hong Kong.

So that there may be no misunderstanding I should like

to repeat in writing what I said on the 13th instant about the

introduction of new wireless telephone channels. In the early

days of this development the Post Office is of the opinion that

the most desirable arrangement is to have a few good direct

channels and to make each end of such channels a switching point

for more distant services. Thus, if a service were started with

Hong Kong we could extend that service at this end to practically

the whole of Europe and if necessary to North and South America.

At the Hong Kong end we should welcome extension to Canton,

Shanghai, and other extreme Eastern places as you may be able to

arrange. In the early stages Hong Kong might give us access to

Japan if your Company found it possible to establish such a link

and the Japanese Administration were agreeable.

I wish to emphasise this point of view because we believe

it is the only way of affording a satisfactory public service

without incurring serious loss. A policy of maintaining a large

number of direct services for which there would be little demand

would in our opinion stifle rather than encourage development.

We are prepared to work with you to Hong Kong on this

understanding. As regards Singapore we have reason to believe

that the Java-Holland and the France-Cochin China links have

created a desire in the Federated Malay States for a telephone

link