City Telephone Calls To Australia By New Cable

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29871, 11 July 1962, Page 14

City Telephone Calls To Australia By New Cable

“Telephone Australia, it’s easy now,” says the Post Office in support of the new trans-Tasman telephone cable, part of the new Commonwealth submarine cable project, which came into operation this week. From Christchurch yesterday afternoon four callers found that it was easy.

“It was very clear,” said the Mayor (Mr G. Manning) after he had talked with the Lord Mayor of Sydney (Aiderman H. F. Jensen). The calls were made from the office of the Chief Postmaster (Mr C. J. C. Simpson) who lodged four calls in sequence through the international exchange in Auckland, where the operator dialled the Australian numbers. Within a minute Mr Manning was talking to Sydney’s Lord Mayor. exchanging greetings on “an historic occasion."

“Good afternoon, my Lord Mayor." said Mr Manning in the first official ChristchurchSydney call on the new system. “It is very nice to hear your voice after the contacts we have had through correspondence. “Yes. you've just expressed my views." Mr Manning said after Aiderman Jensen had conveyed Sydney’s greetings Mr Manning got in firs: with an invitation to Aiderman Jensen to come to New Zealand. particularly the South Island and Christchurch.

“This new service strengthens the unity of our countries which have a common destiny in the Pacific, and this link will give us a chance of knowing one another better.” Mr Manning said He thanked the Lord Mayor for the hospitality shown to young New Zealanders visiting Australia

Mr G. Burns, the editor of the “Christchurch Star." made the next call to Melbourne, where he spoke to the acting-editor of the “Melbourne Herald." Mr L. Giles, and to Mr J. P. Kennedy, a former Christchurch journalist, on the newspaper’s staff. Mr Burns was able to praise Christchurch's weather when he heard that Melbourne had a temperature of only 34 degrees on Monday. Mr A. R. Cant, the editor of “The Press.” talked with Mr B. L. Hewitt, another former Christchurch journalist now New Zealand Press Association ’ liaison editor with the Australian Associated Press in Melbourne. He mentioned that the new link was interesting the Australian newspapers, as "The Press” had had two “before and after” calls.

On Friday the “Brisbane Courier-Mail” telephoned “The Press.” and on Monday. Mr K. O’Donaghue called again to discuss the day’s news with the chief reporter (Mr J. M Caffin) —a pay rise for some teachers and severe frosts in Christchurch; a poor whaling season and a stabbing in Queensland —and to see how the service had improved Mr F J. A. Fox. associate editor of “The Press” had calls from Mr R. Coleman, of the “Melbourne Herald” to check the clarity of the old and new systems They agreed that conversation's over the new cable were as clear as on local calls. Tlie last of the official calls yesterday was from Mr P. Tt Mac Shane. president of the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce, to Mr G. M. Hastie. president of the Sydney chamber

“We must concern ourselves with getting much closer together, for we have •he same sort of problems.” Mr Hastie said. "Now we can call one another more often.”