PACIFIC CABLE BOARD.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20310, 19 January 1928, Page 5

PACIFIC CABLE BOARD.

ANNUAL REPORT 12,000,000 CABLED WORDS A YEAR. (From Our Own Correspondent.) LONDON, December 14. The annual report of the Pacific Cable Board says that the receipts of the year exceeded the ordinary working expenses by £178,284. After taking account of the annuity of £77,544 payable to the National Debt Commissioners in respect of interest and repayment of capital, a surplus of £100,739 remained. The whole of this surplus has been devoted to the reserve and renewal fund in compliance with the provisions of the Pacific Cable Act 1927 The traffic receipts (£467,063) exceeded those of the previous year by £13,467. This increase was due in part to the greater volume of traffic, but was mainly accounted for by the circumstances that, owing to a carry over from the preyear, payments received during the year under review from one of the connecting administrations in adjustment of traffic exchanges covered 13 months. The expenditure (excluding the contribution to the reserve and renewal fund) was higher by £21,030 than that of the preceding year. RESERVE AND RENEWAL FUND. The total assets of the reserve and renewal fund on March 31, 1927, amounted to £356,119, and consisted of securities which cost £109,769 (the market value of which on March 31, 1927, was £103,858), a cash balance of £77,619 (which, so far as not expended, has since been invested), and stock cable to the value of £168,731. NEW SECTIONS.

The manufacture of the cable for the Bamfield-Fanning Island section was finished on August 28, 1926, and the C.S. Dominia left London on September 10, 1926, with 3625 miles of cable on board. She landed the shore end at Bamfield on October 27, 1926, and proceeded to pay out towards Fanning Island, completing the work on November 20, 1926. The section was laid practically without a hitch.

The manufacture of the cable for the Fanning Island-Suva section was completed on September 1, 1926, and the C.S. Faraday sailed from London on September 11, '1926. She landed the shore end at Fanning Islanß on November 1, 1926, and paid out towards Suva, Fiji, where she completed the work on November 20, 1926. THE BOARD. Colonel the Hon. Sir James Allen, G.C.M.G., K.C.8., retired from the office of High Commissioner for the Dominion of New Zealand in July, 1926, and thereupon to the regret of his colleagues ceased to be a member of the board. Sir James Allen had been a member since August, 1920, and throughout his membership was constant in his attendance and gave valuable assistance to the board. He was warmly esteemed by ail his colleagues. The vacancy caused by the retirement of Sir James Allen was filled by the appointment of Sir James Parr, K.C.M.G. With a view to stimulating the board’s New Zealand business it was decided to employ a business manager in New Zealand, whose principal duties would be to keep’ in personal touch with cablers in that Dominion. By the courtesy of the New Zealand Government the board was enabled to appoint to the new position Mr A. T. Markman, who was Secretary to the New Zealand Post and Telegraph Department, and had rendered many years of distinguished service to that department. Mr Markman transferred from the service of the New Zealand Post Office to that of the board in November, 1926. The Postmaster-general has kindly provided the requisite office accommodation in the General Post Office at Wellington. TRAFFIC. During the year more than 12,000,000 words of international traffic (i.e., traffic other than local messages between Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands) were transmitted across the board’s system. This was approximately 120.000 words above the total of the pre- 1 vious year, and established a further record. The ordinary, or full rate, international traffic showed a falling off of approximately 100,000 words, the loss being attributed to the attraction of the cheaper services. Week-end telegrams were less by approximately 130,000 words, the decrease being due to the re-introduction by the rival route of this service which had for many years past been available only by the board’s route. There was an increase of approximately 40,000 words in Government traffic, 230,000 words in deferred ordinary, 60,000 words in press, and 50,000 words in deferred press, while the daily letter telegrams showed a reduction of approximately 40,000 words. In addition to the above traffic, approximately 3,700,000 paying words were carried between Australia and New Zealand, and between those dominions and the Pacific Islands. This was approximately 250,000 words in excess of the number handled during the previous year. The ordinary local traffic was less by 90.000 words than that of the previous year, whilst night letter telegrams showed an increase of 270,000 words and press traffic an increase of 76,000 words.