The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1896-11-25
TO BUILD CABLE
Opinion Of Superintendent Wilson
Of Vancouver.
COMPLETED IN EIGHTEEN MONTHS
Believes it Will Land Here
if Government Wishes.
COMPLETED IN EIGHTEEN MONTHS
No Subsidy Wanted-Just Few
ConCessions-Es Have
Been Furnished.

James Wilson, Superintendent of the
Pacific Division of the Canadian Pa
cific Telegraph Company, is on a visit
to Honolulu, and was seen yesterday
regarding the possibilities of a cable
line between Vancouver and Australia
being built Mr.. Wilson spoke assur-
ingly of the matter, and feels positive
that within a year the construction of
the line will begin.
'.You have seen the dispatches an
nouncing the meeting of the Cable
Congress in London. To me that is
assurance enough that the line will be
built and it remains for the Govern
ment here to say whether or not there
shall be a landing made here. The
plan proposed is to have one line from
New Zealand and another from some
point in Australia. These lines will
run to Fanning's Island, one of them
touching probably at Suva first. From
Fanning's the lines will merge into one
and continue to Vancouver, connect
ing there with the Canadian Pacific
transcontinental line.
1.-The men interested in building the
British Pacific cable have gone to the
extent of inviting estimates for the
construction, submerging and main
tenance of the line, and have found
that the cost is considerably less than
the estimate given by Sanford Elem
ing. You will understand that as yet
there is no company; conference has
been held by men interested in the
construction of a cable across the Pa
cific, and as an outcome of this con-
ference it is probable an organization
to be known as the Pacific Gable Com
pany, will be formed One unsettled
ance of it-a cable company or the
?"
Would the cable company you speak
of be one in which Sir Audley Coote
is interested?''
mot at all. Mr.. Coote's company is
a French organization, and would not
be considered in this. Nor would any
of the Atlantic cable companies be in
terested. The Pacific Gable Company
would be an entirely different organi-
zatiOn. AS to the maintenance, it is
possible that it would be controlled by
the Government; as the telegraph lines
in Great Britain and Australia are. In
Canada and British Columbia we are
independent. The Canadian Pacific
controls those in British Columbia,
and its lines extend from the Atlantic
to the Pacific, but in Eastern Canada
there are two other lines"
Would there be any American capt.
tai in this new company" was asked
Mr.. Wilson.
THAT cannot say, but L fancy not;
there is an abundance of loose capital
in Great Britain and Canada, so that
it is hardly possible that any outside
capital will be offered or required"
do you believe, Mr. Wilson, that if
the Hawaiian Government would offer
a concession, with certain privileges,
but without subsidy, the projectors of
this British Pacific cable scheme would
be willing to land on these islands,"
while not authorized to state it as
a fact, I have not the slightest doubt
that the company will land the cable
here. 1 have heard it said since my
arrival here that in case the line runs
direct to Vancouver from Fanning's
Island, local company will build from
Honolulu to that point. This would be
a foolish waste of money, for the rea-
son that the transmission of a message
from Honolulu to the United States
in that way would cost double; the
route to Fanning's Island and from
there back to Vancouver. 1t is calcu-