RADIO COURTESIES AT SEA

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 80, Issue 254, 26 October 1937, Page 3

RADIO COURTESIES AT SEA

“A Soft Answer .

A Belgian ship an the Channel was trying" to contact a sister ship nearly out of range, writes Oscar E. Millard in Passing Show, London. The signals of the distant ship were faint and were being constantly jammed by another ship close to the Belgian vessel. Fo> some reason the Belgian operatoi thought the interfering signals came Irom the nearby British coast station. After several vain attempts to receive the message which the distant vessel wished to communicate, the exasperated Belgian operator called the British coast station and tapped out the blunt command: “Shut up, bloddy English man! ” Now the coast operator had not trans mitted a word for at least half an hour, and he felt much as a point-duty policeman would feel if someone deli berately knocked off his helmet. Temporarily speechless with indignation, and not knowing off-hand the number of the regulation that requires operators to speak like little gentlemen, he merely acknowledged the insulting mes sage and made no comment. The effect could not have been greater if he had transmitted a threat

to report the Belgian, as he was en« titled to do. For the Belgian, on hearing the coast station’s signals, realised at once by their difference in strength from those which were causing the interference, that he had made a bad mistake, insulting a British station without the slightest cause, lie immediately became apologetic. “Monsieur,” he. signalled. “I make a mistake. Is it excused.” The coast operator Ignored him. After a pause the Belgian repeated! “Monsieur I am sorry, T make a mistake. Please say if it is excised.’’ Still the coast station remained silent, and a third time the ship’s operator apologised: “Monsieur, I am very, very sorry. It was a mistake. Pleas* say it is forgiven.’’ You could almost see the tears in his eyes, and finally the station operator, who had a sense of humour, emerged from his indignant silence. Affectin" to misunderstand the reason for the apology, he replied: “Don’t worry, son. The correct spelling '.s with two O’s mid only one D, but I understood