Test Reports.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20366, 25 July 1934, Page 6

Test Reports.

Big Relay Job

High Speed Service to Australia. H ow the Postmaster-General’s Department in Melbourne arranged for the relaying almost instantaneously to Press and radio services throughout Australia of a telegraphic ball-to-ball description of the Tests is explained by a writer in the “ Melbourne Herald.” Every night during each Test 8000 miles of trunk line channels are engaged at the one time. Melbourne is the nerve centre of this high-speed service to the Commonwealth. The planning behind this work, which brings the story of runs made and wickets taken to all the capital cities within one and a half minutes of the actual play, is a landmark in the history of communications. Lightning Delivery Some time before the 1934 Tests began a number of Australian Press and radio authorities, including both national and “B ” class radio stations, formed a cooperative group to obtain a ball-to-ball descriptive service by cable from England. The problem before the postal authorities then was to arrange both for instant distribution of the messages, and for simultaneous delivery, irrespective of the distance of the members of the scheme from the cable office’in Melbourne. An expert telegraphist was placed in the cable office in Melbourne for the first, second and third Tests As messages arrived, they were re-transmitted to the chief telegraph offices in Melbourne. Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. Ilobart received its news from the Melbourne telegraph office. A similar arrangement was adopted for the fourth Test. Telephone Network. From each capital city headquarters, private telephone lines were installed for each subscriber to the scheme. The arrangements were such that it was possible to put the news on the air almost simultaneously from all the participating radio stations in Australia. A second group of radio stations, using a separate cable service, were supplied with a similar scheme in four States. By the use of trunk telephone lines, groups of stations in several States were interconnected, so that the one description could be broadcast simultaneously. In the National hook-up, ten stations were thus linked. They were 2BL Sydney, 2NC Newcastle, 2CO Corowa, 3AR Rockhampton, SCL Adelaide, SCK Crystal Brook, 6WF Perth and 7ZL Hobart. These stations used about 4300 miles of trunk line channels Arrangements involving the employment of many specialists have been instituted to prevent failure at any point in the serAt all the important “ repeater ” points on the various inter-State routes, officers of the department remained on duty throughout the night’s service.