A RETROGRADE STEP.

Taranaki Daily News, 17 February 1933, Page 6

A RETROGRADE STEP.

One of the difficulties in international co-operation was demonstrated at the International Telegraph Conference held at Madrid last September. The decisions of that conference, some of them of very great importance, were arrived at by a combination between Germany, Italy and the smaller countries who were represented at the conference. Under its rules each member of the conference has one vote irrespective of its importance. Decisions were reached at Madrid despite the opposition of Great Britain, the United States and leading European countries. They were outvoted by countries from which a far smaller amount of international telegraph traffic is derived and must now accept a policy which in many respects is highly retrograde. The conference has decided to heavily increase charges for cablegrams. At present ten-letter code combinations are permitted to count as one word. In future this will be limited to five-letter codes, and the price for these will be 60 per cent, of the rate for ten-letter words. Technical objections to the ten-letter code were given as the reason for its abolition, but it seems fairly evident that the real reason was an endeavour to raise prices to the public. This view is confirmed by a further decision of the conference to withdraw altogether the week-end cablegram. Its elimination will mean that the cheapest cable service from New Zealand to England will be over 13s. instead of Bs. 4d. It was admitted by the telegraph authorities in England that the week-end service had been justified, and that a growth in social communications might arrest the enormous falling away in commercial traffic. Under the new international convention the use of the telegraphs for social purposes is sure to diminish, while the added charges are likely to make the loss in commercial traffic greater than ever. In New Zealand experience has shown that to cheapen telegraphic rates was the better method of increasing revenue, and it seems probable that the same would have applied to oversea communications.