LINK OF EMPIRE

Evening Post, Volume CII, Issue 151, 23 December 1921, Page 8

LINK OF EMPIRE

t T-TE URGENCY OF WIRE- -: LESS -DEVELOPMENT THE POST OFFICE "ADVENTURE" ;• WHAT THE-E.P-U 'ASKS FOR. , ' ,T. (rr.osi ox; o-.vk corr—pomdint.) - LONDON, 27th October. '■■ At. the annual meeting of the Empire Evens Union this week, Mr. Robert Donald trenchantly'criticised the British ■Government and the British Pest Office intheir'attifnde towards Imperial wireless telegraphy., ". 7, In the absence of Lord Burnham, Mr. Donald took the chair at a very full meeting of newspaper proprietors, and he made very complimentary and appreciative reference to the president of the union, who is at present presiding over the third International Labour Conference, at Geneva. Lord Bui _—_,_ he ifoid,' possessed a- well-balanced mind, ripe judgment, knowledge of inter-n-tionai affairs, and wide human sympathies, all of which fitted him aclrnir_t!v for presiding over a gathering oWorld statesmen met to consider matters | anecting the conditions of labour and the well are of the people -n all countries. •;Mr. Donald referred to the efforts of the union to secure cheaper End better means of communication within the Em-ph-e fo.- the benefit of the public and j tho press. The results of their action | had not yet matured, but the counc:. would not slacken its efforts in nromotH<r reforms. The Imperial Conference lejt one important question, to which the vnior. had devoted much attention, in a w'crse position than before—that of wireless. If-things-remained as they were, there would- be no, Imperial wireless chain. There might be two or more disjointed systems, but no one co-ordinated, unified scheme, under one control, linking together all parts of the Empire, and p.ddimr to our means for distributing news. The Imperial 'Conference came to no definite decision on wireless. Mr Chiu-chiil, as Minister for the Colonies and chairman of the Imperial Communications Committee, took up the subject, and. hoped to nut through .s scheme on a"bi<r scale. The question- passed on to tlie Cabinet, which found escape from a decision by the usual process of appointing a committee. The committee produced such a narrow and niggardly proposal that Mr. Churchill, who liked to be bold and adventurous, abandoned the child of his adootiom- Wireless had now drifted back tq.';the. Post,' Office: Mr. Hughes had declared .fqr free action, by Australia, so dissatisfied was he with the delay in evolving... an- all-Empire schemer He wao also distrustful of. the capacity of the Post Office to handle a chain which would reach, Australia within a _ reasonable period, or would work when it got there. The South African Government found itself unable to devote mortev to wireless for several years. New Zealand , nrest come into the Pacific sphere with Australia; Canada would have its own system working in co-operation with England. Two years ago the Indian Government stated officially that it did not want the Post Office plans, but wanted direct communication with England. :; POST; OFFICE" ADVENTURE.;:^. -The Imperial'; ch^in, sis they, had un«2e/»3tood it, was therefore-gone: It was true that the first station in the chain, ! that at Leafield, oxf6rdshire,.'wa- opan- \ ed several months ago, and, the' Second s.t» Cairo—both begun in 1913—was supposed -to -be, ready -at- the-end ot the year. The designs for other" stations in the Imperial chain ■ were not .yet,.complete. The Post Office had demonstrated by its experience at Leafield that the equipment of the station Was not up to date, and that it had the capacity of disturbing, interrupting, or jamming communications from other wireless stations, due to the irregularity of the wave lengths it used. The Post Office' adventure in wireless was costing a lot cf money. What the Empire Press Union had asked for was an Empire wireless system, built quickly and .?- erated efficiently! -Their chief concern | v"as to see the thing done. (Cheers.) In the meantime the state of wireless was about as unsatisfactory as it could be. Lord Northcliffe, during his world tour, •was giving attention to Empire communications of all kinds, and would use his influence to promote them, including wireless. Wherever Lord Northcliffe went he was a friend of the press. He looked after the interests nf the press as a whole,--without overlooking the interests' of Bis" own newspapers. They might almost regard him as a delegate at large from the Empire Press Union. ; (Cheers.) He had received warm-hearted Welcomes from members and, branches in Australia and New Zealand, wno organised banquets in his honour. It was to be expected that his visit would brjng in new members, and they might look forward to the Times cf Fiji joining the union. (Laughter.) THE POSITION OF NEW ZEALAND. ;In an article published that morning, Lord Northcliffe referred to the scantiness of the-English news which reached that most English of all Dominions, New Zealand, and pointed to a danger which its inadequacy might cause. Supplies of news from America would not have that standard of accuracy which the New Zealand Press sought to maintain; and, moreover, would not help to keep a British atmosphere. That was one aefinite example of what wa lost for want of wireless. (Cheers.) The chief event in the history of the Empire Press Union last yeai was, of course, the Imperial Presa Conference in Canada. Next year they hoped anoflier press gathering wouid take place, which Would have a still wider outlook and would bring into cloner community ail newspapers which used the English language. The Anglo-American Press Conference, 3Ugg.est.ed by. Lord Burnham, would not be a conference to discubs politics or deal with public questions. It would be a meeting of.pressmeii to disc-85 press affairs. But by meeting together the men who controlled newspapers wo: Ibe better able to interpret the world problem* which affected the «wo great branches of the English-speaking race, and thereby supplement the decision which all- hoped would be: reached by the momentous Conference at Washington, leading to a better understanding between Great Eriain and America., and ensuring the peace of the world. (Cheers.). CABLE DELAYS AND DISADVAN- ;,; TAGES. Mr. J. ,E. Wrioiacott (India), referred to the, grea-trdisadvantage which accrued to the Empire through cable delays. During the war, he said, it sometimes took fourteen days to get a cable .from Delh:" to London, and even now it frequently took forr days. They were told the delay was due to the abnormal conditions, but they had heard this for six or seven ycarr, and thorn ceemed to be a clanger that the abnormal v/ould become the normal. , Mr. J. 0. .Fairfax '(Australia) said their ..great ..difficulty'w&3 that, the needs of coTniriurucaticn-had not yet been met. He considered wireless of extreme im-^; portance. It had been demonstrated over and over aga:Ti...iri; A_si.-ij.lia. th^t, messages could he received diroct-from Eurooe at any hour-; of the day cr night. He hoped""tliefa..r—g^ii';_e,Vo—e , opportunity of widening tiie rphere in Australia, and 01 bringing in as members

some of those available under the new constitution; but in the meantime they were trying to strengthen the section, so as to give support to the anion in London.

Sir Stanley Reed (India) oaid that when he left India it seemed as if he were coming to England to bo plunged into the midst of r, bloody Communistic revolution. So alarming were the telegrams received over there that a large number of passages were cancelled in the middle of April for fear of the conditions in England. (Laughter.) When he got hero people asked him what wa3 happening in India. On both sides of this great Empire there was a dangerous and continuing ignorance of the actual condition cf affairs, and that could only be corrected by a rapid improvement in the means of communication, and even more by tha quickening and cheapening of those means. The cables alone could never provide a ccmpleta solution. This could only ba dene by another method, which would carry at a very cheap rate what they might call cecondckss telegraphic matter. He was convinced they needed an Imperial wireless chain, but to consider the matter was to be' filled with despair. Nothing had been done by the authorities, and nothing was likely to be done. In India they had converted their Government to a complete belief in the importance and practicability cf wireless, but their Government would not be content with a second-class service. It insisted upon a station, which it was prepared to-day to equip and work, having direct com: j munication with the United Kingdom; and it would not put up a station which ! was so inferior that there had to be an intermediate station between it and this country. They were up against the iron-clad attitude of tho Post Office, which in-isted on „ second-class service and a second-class system, which could not go beyond Cairo. This dead' wall cf obstruction wa3 standing in London, in the very heart of the Empire, and it was preventing the completion of t>" wireless chain. Unless this system oi Imperial communication was immediat"ly and rapidly improved, T.-r>"don slo"d in danger of being dispossessed of its position as the Imperial news centre. He could imagine nothing more disastrous to the progressive growth cf the whole Empire. (Cheers.) Sir Campbell Stuart hoped the members cf Parliament present bn.d listened jrith great care to what Sir Stanley had said. INTERCHANGE OF NEWSPAPER STAFFS. Lord Apsley, chairman of the ;ommittee appointed by the Empire Press' Union to deal with proposals for the interchange of members of staffg of British and Dominion newspapers, said they had not been able to do much in the development cf the scheme, for the reason that the times and conditions were not altogether propitious. For many newspapers in this country the past year had been a lean year, and newspaper proprietors and managers fwere rather unwilling to start new schemes involving expenditure which was not absolutely essential to present, needs. When people had to pay a super-tax of lis in the £1 on an income which, perhaps, they did not get, it was rather a had time to put up new schemes for spending more money: But when- things-got better he believed the scheme for'the interchange of staffs between Home and Dominion newspapers j would develop and be 'put on a sound j working basis. „! The Chairman, referring to the travelling scholarship scheme, said they were suffering from the general lack of "money, but he was in hopes of securing a scholarship another year from the Canadian Institute in the United States, and of getting some assistance from the Imperial Research Department. llie Chairman proposed,, and Mr. Fairfax seconded, the re-election of Lord Burnham as president, and this was unanimously agreed to. The Chairman, in calling on Sir Robert Bruce to propose the re-election of Lord Northcliffe as honorary treasurer, observed that his Lordship's services to the union could not be measured by the number of his attendances. He had been I a generous supporter, and had done everything the union had asked. Lord Northcliffe must be doing in the British Empire just how admirable work for that .union. They could not have a more influential treasurer. Sir R. Bruce said they regarded Lord Northcliffe as one of the greatest members of their profession. Those who were ill Fleet-street in the oid days would remomber how much working journalists owed to him for his efforts to raise their status and increase their salaries. Sir Frame Newnes seconded the election, , which was agreed to.

There were 'present at the meeting :— Lord Apsley (Morning Post); Sir Campbell Stuart (Glasgow Herald); Sir Roderick Jones * (Renter's; Sir Frank Newnes (George Newnes, Ltd.); Sir John Sandes (Sydney Daily Telegraph) ; Sir Stanley Reed (Time 3of India); Sir Harry Brittain, M.P., MissA. E. Evans (New Zealand Associated Press); Messrs. L. J. Brient (West Australian) ; Valentine Knapp (The Newspaper Society); W. Maxwell (Aberdeei. Journal); J. P. Collins (Cape Times); P. H. Cockman, J. C. Fairfax (Sydney Morning Herald); E. Preston (Adelaide Register); T. T. Champion (Canadian Associated Press); T. S. Townend (Melbourne Argus); W. Lefroy (Canada); N. K. Kerney (Argus South African newspapers) ;J. H. Infield (Sussex Daily News) jJ. E. Woolacott (India); H. A. Woodcock, W. P. Forbes (Central News); Neville A Pearson, George G. Armstrong (Daily News); T. Feilden (Empire Ma_); H. C. Robbins (Press Association) ; P. Hurd, M.P. (Montreal Star); F. Crosbie Roles, and H. E." Turner ATTITUDE IN THE COMMONS. Members of the House of Commons, who; take.a special interest in Imperial developments endorse the complaints made at .the/meeting concerning .the delay .in establishing better cable and wireless,comm_nica-tions. With the view , ot ascertaining the present position in connection- with the Imperial wireless scheme of the British Post Office, Mr. Percy Hurd is to ask the Secretary for the Colonies what is the attitude on the subject of the several Dominions, particularly Australia,- South Africa, and Canada. It is understood (said a M.P.) that in : the case of Australia Mr. Hu?hes has declined, on behalf of the Commonwealth, to join in the scheme at all. The Government of South Africa has expressed its readiness to co-operate with the British Post Office authorities in the re-establishment of the Windhoek station, but the Canadian Government would appear to be moving in the -matter er.tirely on its ov/n account. It is known that Mr. Churchill is fully alive to the essential importance of a great improvement in the means of communication between the various parts of the Empire, and it _ hoped that his influence'will be used to overcome tho present difficulties.