, 1877-03-14

uTalC at once passed 10 Tie SeCOHu DISCUS"
sion, The Council agreed. Mr.. LAMB as
Chairman of the Committee, said that the
Report itself exhibited pretty clearly the
opinion which had Influenced the Commit
tee in laying their Report before the homo
rable Council. He was averse to the pay
ing of money where there could not be
any actual return, but the Committee had
arrived at the knowledge that the contln-
uation Of Geographic communication with
this island and other parts Of the world
depended entirely on conccdlng the right
20 the Company OF increasing their tarlH
of rates. He was not willing to detaln
this Council with any lengthy remarks and
would therefore recommend the Report
for adoption.-Mr. TITLEY said that he :
had been favourable to the appointment
OF a Committee to consider this question.
But now with all due difference to his hon
durable colleagues who had rendered their
report, he must say that he was impress"
ed with The idea tina they had, whilst re-
commenting the Draft allowing the Com
pany to increase their rates by over 90 per
cent, and while the colony is paying a sub
sidy Of 5000. they had neglected TO for
ward what he thought q very essential point,
that is, to exact from the Company more
news from Denmark, as he would suppose
1t necessary, from the fact OF st. Thomas
being a Danish colony and as much interest
ed in having news from the Mother country
as undoubtedly are the English colonies
in having news from England. He had
often thought that the Company IN this
matter had shown an indifference it should
be the duty Of the Council TO have this
corrected and he would say that
this was a suitable moment to do 80.
The CHAIRMAN said that he for one
would be exceedingly happy if the Com
pany would add to their daily Bulletin a
little Danish news. He could not how
ever agree with the honorable last
speaker that it was an essential point, or
was of so much concern to the communl-
ty at large. Mr.. TITLEY replied that the
public ought in some manner to receive
an additional benefit for the concession
about to be made to the Company and ha
would therefore recommend that 1t be in
the direction Just suggested by him.-Mr.
LAMB said that the pubic were supplied
with Danish news whenever there were
any. 1t had not been so long since ha
read in the newspapers here the acco9oa
of the death of one or two Danish celia
brities the next day after the occurrence.
He would add that, to see that it was not
the public Treasury which had to pay tor
the increase was Just what the Committee
had looked after. There was no question
as to an additional public outlay, for it
was private parties who would have to
bear the burthen. He had had the
opportunity Of consulting sOme Of the
principal persons who are using the wires
for business and they had gone SO far as to
say that they would prefer Tor the rates to
be doubled rather than that they should be
deprived of the use Of the telegraph
Besides this he would say that in most
Instances the telegraph business done by
the merchants here was not their own,
but they acted as simple agents tor trans
mission. and so far the actual increase
would affect very little the pockets Of peo-
Pile here.-The GOVERNOR observed that
the position of the Company was not sin
gular, so far as regards St. Thomas, but
it was common to all the islands ; Just
what the Company were asking in this
island they were also asking i'll oil others
where their lines touched. To attach any
conditions to the present concession pro
nosed for them wOnld he tn overthrow the