THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. TUESDAY, MAY 29, 1906.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8151, 29 May 1906, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. TUESDAY, MAY 29, 1906.

In New Zealand we throw all manner of difficulties in the way of the utilisation of the water power of the country by private companies. In India . they manage these things differently. A company has been formed, wish a capital of £2,000,000 to construct a hydro-eleotrio power installation in Oashmir by harnessing the Jehlam Kiver. The prospectus states that the available power is practically unlimited, and will be utilised to supply the current for an eleotrio railway 200 miles in length to connect Abbotabad with Srinagar; to propel a large fleet of powerful eleotrio dredgers,which will be employed in safeguarding Oashmir against disastrous floods, and in re-

claiming valuable rioe-produoing traots of land from the marshes; to supply the motive power for numerous proposed faotories, and thus serve to oonvert Oasbmir inco the Lancashire of India; to impart new energy to the great silk iudustries of the province; to supply power for local tramways and light railways, arsenals, workshops, foundries and mines, and provide the current and eleotrio lighting and tor driving punkahs in the big military cantonments of Nornern India. The price of eleotrio power will be lobs than half that of steam power, The initial supply will be equivalent to 80,00U-h.p. The scheme, when oarried out, will be the biggest of its kind in the world.

Arrangements are being made in Victoria to bring into use in the telegraph service the swift automatic system of transmitter machines known as the Wheatstoue-Gill. The Wheatstone instrument is 1 one by which the perfect "sending" of messages can bo obtained at very quick sreed by means of the Morse code perforated in tape. Hitherto the perforations have been made by hand, whioh was a slow prooess, and results were thereby minimised. The Gill instrument is, however, an adaptation of something like a typewriter for the purpose. The tape is then put through an automatic transmitter, and the dotß and dashes are recorded by the receiving instruments at the other end of the wire iu ink, on a tape, from which the telegram is copied. The Postal Department has purchased several sets, and trials will be made over the main inter-State lines shortly. In connection with new telegraph facilities, Mr Donald Murray, who is attached to the British G.P.O, staff, has perfected an instrument to turn out messages at the end of a wire in print; but the central Postal Department has been advised that it is beyond Australian at present owing to the high cost.

A letter to the Manchester Guardian, of February 27th last, signed "Zealander," writes a correspondent to a country newspaper, severely criticises the scheme to send navvies from England to New Zealand. The concluding paragraph is more than interesting—'"Let me say a word on the coet of living. To qaote a paragraph—'Married men will receive every consideration; the cost of I living is, if anything, oheaper than lin England.' Now, this is what I call a terrible statement. Why, even New Zealand mutton, sold in Enaland at 4d to 6d, is sold in New Zealand at 6d to 8d; but everything besides has to be imported, with an average duty of 33 %. per cent, tariff upon it, and 10 per cent. Oascoms duty. When you remember merohants' profits have to be put upon the total ooet of ai tides, they are never retailed at lesß than 60 l>er cent, higher than in freetrade England. How dare anyone make such a statement 1 call it playing upon an ignorance having 15,000 miles of sea to intensify it."