The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1894-10-27

| San Francisco, Cal, Oct. 26.-Sand-
ford Fleming, commissioner from the
Canadian government to Hawaii in
the interest of a proposed Canadian
Australian cable, arrived here on the
steamer Alameda today. In an inter
view he spoke freely of his mission to
the Pacific islands, whittier he was &C
companied by w. H. Mercer, of the
Colonial office in London.
| Mr.. Fleming declared that there was
nothing secret about their mission.
The governments of Canada and Aus
tralia, he said, have resolved to lay a
Pacific cable. There are d number of
! islands in possession of Great Britain
| between Australia and Canada, across
which the cable might be stretched as
stepping stones across the ocean. He
mentioned the Solomon, Gilbert and
Fiji groups, and North Fork and Fan
ming islands. With stations at these
points there would be no absolute nee
essity for landing the cable on islands
which are not British. However, the
projectors of the enterprise appreciate
the business considerations, which
make it essential that any Pacific ca
bic shall touch all the islands of Sa-
moa and Hawaii Samoa it is proposed
to reach by short branch from Fiji
and it would be possible to connect
Hawaii by branch from the nearest
midocean station at flaming island, a
British possession, which, however, is
over eight hundred miles distant from
Honolulu.
To avoid this long waste of cable it
was deemed necessary to obtain a
route nearer the Hawaiian group To
secure the necessary concessions from
Hawaii was the mission of Messrs.
Fleming and Mercer to the islands
Concerning the measure of their sue
cess. Mr.. Fleming said:
IF the Hawaiian government evinced
any desire to meet rs we were in
structed to open negotiations and to
point out how and on what terms the
Hawaiian people could secure the ad-
vantages of a telegraph service. After
a number of interviews with the prin-
cipal officials of the Hawaiian govern
ment. a cordial understanding was
reached, and before our departure we
left with them a memorandum of
agreement, the terms of which we are
prepared to recommend to those
whom we represent. We did not
ask them to cede any island or any
portion of Hawaiian territory to us.
What we did ask was that they should
lease to us. Bird or Necker or some
other uninhabited island outside the
main group, probably three or four
hundred miles from Honolulu to be
used as a telegraph mid-ocean station
only. From there a branch line would
be run to Honolulu. We asked for no
exclusive rights for Geographic connec-
lions, but we proposed, if given a salts
factory lease of one of these islands
and a subsidy of $4,000 per annum. for
fifteen years, to establish and maintain
connection with the nearest cable sta
ton on the American coast, our charges
from Honolulu to be one shilling a
word for ordinary messages, nine pence
six pence for press messages. The ar
rangement is, of course, subject to the
approval of all the governments con-
cerned. and I may mention that the
United States has something to say in
the matter. BY the terms of Hawaii's
treaty of reciprocity with the United
States Hawaii is forbidden TO grant to
any other power any lease of or lien
upon any portion of territory. 1t is
quite understood that the first step of
the Hawaiian government will be to ap-
peal to Washington for assent to grant
the privileges which we ask. No diff
Guilty is anticipated"
II is understood that Messrs. Fleming
and Mercer will proceed to Washington
to urge their cause. That their investi-
cations were made by authority of the
British government there is no doubt.
At Honolulu, H. NJ. S. Hyacinth was