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The scheme of connecting Canada and Australia by a hne of steamers and by a submarine telegraph cable was prominently brought forward at the Colonial Conference of 1887. Part of the scheme has since been realized and the line of steamers is practically established ; but with the Pacific cable less progress has been made, although the Colonial CJoverninents interested have left no stone unturned to promote the laying of this connecting link between the eastern and western extremities of the British Empire. At the conference in 1887 there was no diversity of opinion as to the high importance of the project, but the experts, who were invited by the Imperial Government to place their great knowledge of submarine telegraphy at the service of the conference, threw doubts on the prac- ticability of such a cable. Their adverse opinion was based mainly on the want of a proper survey of the route, and on the extraordinary depth of water which they believed to exist in the Pacific Ocean. To these technical difficulties a financial objection has lately been added by a letter addressed by Sir John Pender to the Marquis of Ripon in which he conclusively showed that the existing connections were amply sufficient for all purposes, and that the proposed Pacific cable would involve the investors in an annual loss of ;^ 120,0*0 in which a sum of ^^7 2,000 representing 4% on the capital outlay is however included. This letter was written as a sort of protest againsl the resolution passed by the Postal Conference at Wellington (N.Z.) that a Pacific cable should be subsidized by the various Colonial Governments inter- ested, the United Kingdom being asked to join in the guarantee. Although Sir John Pender's position, as chairman of the existing company, detracts from the weight his words would carry if he were not X 2 so directly interested to prevent the establishment of a rival route, yet his vast experience in submarine telegraphy was duly acknowledged in the comments which his letter provoked. With regard to the technical difficulties raised in 1887, it may not be out of place to consider that the necessity for a close survey of a cable route arises principally from the requirements of the engineer lay- ing the cable who has to know at every moment the exact depth of water into which the cable passes. The brake-power with which the cable is held back and by which the percentage of slack is rejpilated, has to be adjusted according to the depth of water in order to ensure an even distribution of the slack along the whole route of the cable. Such a distribution prevents ac- cidents, economises cable and facilitates repairs, hence the usual prac- tice is to lay cables only on routes where very frequent soundings have been taken ; and in 1887 the experts consulted by the Imperial Govern- ment were not satisfied that the Pacific Ocean was sufficiently well ex- plored for this purpose. During the last seven years the work of survey has steadily pro- gressed, and at present it may be asserted that the route proposed at the Wellington Conference passes nowhere through water more than 3,500 fms. deep. On the Admiralty chart. No. 780, corrected to November 1892, the route from North Cape (N.Z.) to Suva (Fiji Islands) shows 2,594 tms. as the greatest depth. Between Suva and Samoa no very great depth is met with, and from Suva, or Apia, to the Phcenix Islands, the greatest depth is 3,312 fms. The same chart shows 3,020 fms. as a maximum on part of the route from the Phoenix Islands to Honolulu ; this route is continued on Admiralty chart No. 782, corrected to June, 1890, where a depth of 3,448 fms. is shown. A continuation of the soundings can be seen on the same chart, or better on Admiralty chart No. 787, which is corrected to March, 1894, and gives 3,252 fms. as the greatest depth between Honolulu and San Francisco. These routes do not coincide exactly with the Wel- lington route, but they, together with a number of other soundings shown on the charts, bear out the general features of the bed of the Pacific Ocean, shown by Mr. John James Wild, member of the civilian 8 scientific staff of H.M.S. "Challenger," in his eusay on the depth, temperature, and currents of the ocean, entitled " Thalassa." This work appeared in London (Marcus Ward & Co.) in 1877. If the adjustment of the brake-power depended entirely on the know- ledge acquired by soundings taken previously on the selected route of the cable, grave doubts might still exist whether the laying of the Pacific cable could be proceeded with without further information being obtained by carefully taking soundings over the exact route. Fortu- nately means have been devised to indicate to the brakesman continu- ously the percentage of slack with which the cable is payed out, and thus it is possible to lay a cable over a route of which only the general features are known. This contrivance has been used with perfect success in the laying of six Atlantic cables, so that there is no doubt as to its performance realizing its theoretical advantages. The depth of water met with in the Atlantic reaches 3,000 fms. in several places where the cables have been laid, so that there is no doubt about the possibility of laying cable in 3»5oo fms., or even more. To be sure it will be necessary to select a type of cable which combines great strength with light weight, but there is no difficulty in this either, as it has been possible to construct cables for the Atlantic which will carry 7,000 fms. of their own length before they break. It may, therefore, be taken for granted that any technical obstacles which were apprehended in 1887 have noiv been overcome, and that the cable can be laid as soon as the financial question has been settled. In order to ascertain clearly what the probable financial position of the cable would be, a complete scheme has been worked out for a route consisting of the sections : — I. Ahaipara Bay (N.Z.) to Suva (Fiji Islands). Suva (Fiji) to Canton, or IMary (Phoenix Islands). Canton (Phoenix) to Necker Island Necker Island to Vancouver, B.C., of which the details are appended. As capital, the sum of ;^2,ooo,ooo has been assumed to cover the cost of the cable, of two repairing steamers, of about 1,800 tons each, of buildings, instruments, and to furnish 9 working capital of about 2. 4- The working expenses are divided into : — a. General management /I 5,000 b. Staff and office expenses at stations. . . . 24,000 c Repair and maintenance of cables .... 90,000 Total annual outlay — ;^ 119,000 a. The first item explains itself. b. Of the second item, the details will be found in the appendix. c. The cost of the repair and of the maintenance of the cable is the most difficult to estimate and the expenditure is naturally divided into a fixed and a variable part. The fixed expenses consist first, in maintaining the two steamers in efficient working order ; this is amply covered by the allowance of ;;^ioo per month |)er steamer, and secondly, in the wages of crew, victualing and other running expenses, these are certain not to exceed jQzo per day {tcx steamer. It is not likely that each steamer will have to go to sea, on the average, more than two months every year, or that more than 200 miles of cable will be used up during that time. Still these maximum figures are used in the estimate and bring up the tutal annual cost of the actual repairs and of the mainte- nance of the steamers to ^90,000 or to over ;;^i2 per naut. milt: of cable laid. That this is a safe estimate may be gathered from the fact that it is usual to calculate jQ6 per naut. mile to cover this expend- iture, ^ad that one at least of the Atlantic companies is able to keep^ its 6,000 miles of cable in efficient working order for about jQ^ per naut. mile. The most important factor in determining the cost of repairs is without doubt the quality of the cable laid, and no greater mistake can be committed than to cut down capital expenditure in an undertaking of the importance and of the magnitude as the Pacific cable undoubt- edly is. It should also be noticed that Sir John Pender in his letter to the Marquis of Ripon estimates the repairing expenses at ;;^35,ooo or at the low figure ;^4 15s. per nautical mile per annum. This figure he may, however, have taken from previous estimates of expenditure pub- Ushed by the advocates of the scheme as they give the same figures. The real uncertainty of the financial prospects of the Pacific cable is, howe ver, encountered when the probable income is estimated. In respect to this point, Sir John Pender's opinion is manifestly un- fair as he allows not more than one half oi the existing traffic to pass over the new cables at extravagantly low rates ; although it is ({uite likely that this would be all the traffic obtainable during the first year. Mr. Sandford Fleming, the indefatigable promoter of the Pacific cable, appears to have taken the fairest view of the question, when he estiuiates that the expenses will exceed the earnings during the first few years, but that a cheap tariff and expeditious working will soon attract the public and convert the cable into a profitable investment. From Sir John Pender's letter it apiiears that the Australian traffic of the existing company is worth £209,628 nett for 1,306,716 words, or 3s. 2jd. per word. If the Pacific cable earned half this amount during the 6rst year, it would pay, in all probability, the working expenses of that year with an ample margin, as it is not likely that any heavy repairs would become necessary during that time. There are, however, too many factors left uncertain when the pro- bable traffic of the Pacific cable is compared with the existing traffic over another route and under totilly different circumstances. Sir John Pender has, for instance, quite ignored that at present the intercourse between America and Austrahsia does not give rise to frequent tele- grams, but when the interests served by the cables are taken into care, tul consideration, and the great possibilities of commerce between Ame- rica and Australasia are appreciated at their propet value, small doubt can exist about the Pacific cable earning as much money per naut. mile of its lengths as the average of the existing submarine cables. As long ago as the 2nd April, 1887, the Pall Mall Gazette pub. lishcd an article on submarine cables by Mr. Henniker Heaton from which the following interesting figures are taken : — At that time 26 submarine cable companies were in existence, possessing 100,000 naut. miles of cable, laid with an expenditure of ;^35,ooo,ooo capital. These cables earned (irxluding subsidies) j£i,- 173, 692 per annum, enabling the companies to pay from 1 to 14^% dividends. In addition the reserve and sinking fund of all the com* panics amounted to ;,^3,4oo,ooo. From Mr. Heaton's figures it follows that the capital outlay per '^^Mr ^ysK ^i m f9ir: 'wrilWMiFiiWflMffOTyT fe»4w#ti«M| |' i «il'WiiiM r ii i ii i i Miiii w »ii h i i ilii ( i iiii i '' i ii i .. ii i ! ih kh i h. i-jKnii 6 nautical mile of submarine cable is, on the average, ^350 and the annual revenue is ^31 15s. per naut. mile. According to Mr. Heaton, the capital outlay of the Eastern Tele- graph Co was ^299 per naut. mile, and their income, at that time, jC'iS per naut, mile [tcr annum. The Eastern Extension Co. had to lay out ^265 per naut. mile, and was earning j£i^ los. per naut. mile per annum. If the capital outlay for the Pacific cable be taken to be jC^iooo,- 000 and its length from Ahaipara Bay (N. Z.) to Vancouver (B. C.) as 7,340 naut. miles, the cost per naut. mile wilt be about ^273, On the other hand, earning ;;^3o per mile, the annual income from the cable would amount to just over ;^ 2 20,000. 'I'his figure will naturally not be reached during the first two or three years, but it is even under the average of the earnings of all sub- marine cables seven years ago, and since that time telegraphic corres- pondence has continued to increase rapidly. One of the Atlantic com|)anies, for instance, earned on the average during the last three years more than ^50 per mile. If the share of the Pacific cable is 2s. per word, it only wants 2,200,000 words per annum to realise this income, and the cable com- munication, which can be established for ;^2,ooo,ooo, would be capable of transmitting 15 words per minute on the Recorder. This corresponds to over 7,000,000 words per annum, but the speed of sending messages through the cable can practically be doubled by i^Uroducing duplex working when the traffic requires it. It is, therefore, not extravagant to assume thai '~ regular working there will be a surplus of ^101,000 per annum. This would be utilized for paying 3 per cent, on the capital outlay and placing the rest to the credit of a sinking fund. As the cost of repairs includes replacing on the average 200 miles of rnble per year, the whole of the cable will be renewed in about 37 years. If the cable is manufactured with the best materials and with proper care, it may be assumed that it can only be destroyed by local influences or by extraordinary occurrences, for it is proved beyond doubt that a cable fr^e from ^lectricj^l faults wiU Q0( d^t^rior^t^. A very striking example of the durability of cables was the Ending of some parts of the original gutta percha covered conductor, laid without any further protection between Dover and Calais. Although this wire had been in the sea for over 35 years when it was picked up by the s.s. " Monarch " (the General Post Office telegraph steamer) it looked like new, and no deterioration could be detected. Generally speaking all those submarine cable companies have succeeded who have laid their cables or a strictly commercial basis, by expending their capital for nothing but legitimate purposes; it is, there- fore, to be anticipated that the. example can be followed in establish- ing telegraphic communication between Canada and Australia and that the Pacific cable will prove to be a good investment nite of adverse opinions. The time required for completing the work provided that the two repairing steamers are assisting in carrving the san )Ut would ht about three years, if no serious accidents delay the undertaking. For an uoUitional outlay of ^^30,000 a second !...gi cable steamer coui ' he employed and the time of completing th^ cable shortened to two years after commencing the manufacture. ALEXANDER SIEMENS. Ottawa, 9th, July, 1894. ^mm^^^^ APPENDIX. BUILDINGS AND INSTRUMENTS. Morton's Buildings. Sets of Instruments. B.C.C. No. 2. 1 J , , , No. 795. Recorder. Testing. Vancouver 1 Necker Island Canton Island Suva 1 Ahaipara 1 ( ■ " ■■ S 4 4 2 2 % 8 8 8 8 Totals 8 12 14 5 3 Cable Houses B.C.C. No. 2 8 Sets Fittings for do 12 Houses No. 795 12 Outfits for same .. @ . ..@ £800 200 1,000 500 400 240 £900 600 12,000 6,000 14 Sets Recorders complete 5 Sets Testing Instruments, with extra spares. Transport and Erection 5,600 1,200 8,700 £30.000 No land is included, nor the erection of buildings on Necker and Canton, unless in the opinion of our Engineer-in-charge the buildings can be erected by our own staff without delaying operations. mmmi ■lillMi it 10 STAFF REQUIRED FOR STATIONS AND OFFICE EXPENSES. -•••- Vancouver (B.C.) 1 Superintendent 4 Clerks @f200 2 Messengers @ 50 4 Boys @ 80 Taxe9, Ground Rent, Renewals and Repairs Stationery, Insurance, Advertising Sundries Unf orseen Per annum. £400 800 100 120 200 200 200 £2,000 Necker and Canton Islands. (Each.) 1 Superintendent 8 Clerks @ £600. 3 Messengers @ 100. Rations £1 per week per head Sundries Unforseen £000 4,000 300 ■600 500 2 X £6,000 12,000 Suva (Fui) and Ahaipaba (N.Z.) (Each). 1 Superintendent 8 Clerks @ £400 3 Messengers @ 80. . . Rations £1 per week per head Sundries Unforseen Total annual cost of Staff and Office Expenses £600 3,200 240 600 460 2 X £5,000 10,000 £24,000 11 REPAIR AND MAINTENANCE OF CABLES. ■ •*• Two Repairing Steamers Of about 1 ,800 tons each, fitted complete ® £100,000 £200,000 ANNUAL Cost :— (a) Fixed Expenses. Repair of Huil and Macliinery @ £1,200 £2,400 Wages of Crew, Victualling and other running Expenses— 3 x 365 days @ 20 14,600 (b) Variable Expenses. 2 Months at Sea. each Steamer — For Ropes and other Stores, extra pay, &c. @ £125 per da; 16,000 100 Naut. Miles Cable, @ £200 per Naut. MUe 20,000 100 *• •• " @ 360 " " 86,000 Sundries 3,000 £90,000 The Variable Expenses (b) are usually estimated at £6 per Naut. Mile» which would, in this case, amount to about £45,000. One Steamer to be stationed at Vancouver, 6.C., and the other Steamer to be stationed at Suva (Fiji Islands). i>iniiiii«r>fH"iiiiii>iii ' ^. 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