The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1902-01-24

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and the business community most direct
ly interested has manifested through the
American Asiatic Association, and the
New York Chamber of Commerce, it's en-
tire satisfaction with the terms which
were suggested by the committee and
have been agreed to by the company. All
this has been brought about without
asking either guarantee Or subsidy, and
simply In reliance on the business which
VIII follow the growth of American In
fiuence on the Pacific Ocean
The Commercial Pacific Gable Com
pany was Incorporated under the laws
OF the State of New York on Septem-
to lay and operate a submarine cable
from California to the Philippine Islands,
by way of Hawaii. The present author
lied capital stock Is s.. 100000, being the
amount necessary for the manufacture
and laying of the first section of the ca
ble-that from San Francisco to Homo
lulu. Mr.. George G.. Ward, who is vice
president and general manager of both
the Commercial Pacific Cable Company
and the Commercial Cable Company,
confirms the statement made by himself
gone time ago that the contract for the
first section of the cable has actually
been let, and now adds further that a
partial payment has been made thereon;
that this section of the cable will be in
operation by November ], 1862, and that
the company intends to have the COM
pIete cable in operation from San Fran
cisco to Manila within two years there
after. The Commercial Pacific Cable
Company has been organized by the Off
GERS and stockholders of the Commercial
Cable Company. which owns four sub
marine cables between the United States
and Europe. and owns also the exten-
sive land line telegraph system, known
as the Postal Telegraph.
All through their history. the CONNER
cial Gable Company and the Postal Tei-
egraph Company have been the foes OF
monopoly and the pioneers of reduced
rates It was due TO the former COM
pany that the rates for transatlantic
messages were reduced from so cents to
25 cents per word. The same company
brought about n reduction In cable rates
to the West Indian Islands of from 80
to co per cent-the reduction in the case
of Porto Rico being from sLe1 to 70 cents
per word. 1t was due to the Postal Tel
egraph Company that rates between the
United States and Mexico Were reduced
one-half and that permanent reductions,
averaging 80 per cent, Were made In tel
egraph rates in every State of the Union.
The announcement of the intention of the
Commercial Cable Company of Cuba to
lay a competing cable insured sweeping
reduction of rates from 81 a message OF
ten words from New York to Havana, to
$50. Prior to the Incorporation of the
Commercial Cable Company in Septem-
Der. 1901, the rate for telegraDhic and
cable messages from New York to the
Philippine Islands was $2.35 per word,
In November this rate was reduced by
the European cable companies TO I-66
per word. The simple announcement of
the intention of the Commercial Cable
Company to lay a Pacific cable has thus
effected n saving on commercial mes
sages of GO cents per word. When its
cable is in operation the Commercial Ca
BILE Company intends to charge but 81
per word from San Francisco to the
Philippines and China, involving a saw
ing on the former rate of S1.35 per word
n very substantial gain to all American
merchants doing business in the Far
East.
on this record. the Commercial Pa
cific Cable Company feels that 1t has a
right to demand from Congress the fair
treatment 1t will surely receive from the
people of the United States. The COM
pany is perfectly willing TO meet COM
petition on an equal footing. but If the
resources of the government were lent
to any other private Pacific enterprise,
or used in the establishment of a gov
ernment cable to parallel another cable
entirely constructed by private capital |
IL Is felt that such action would be not
only a wanton waste OF public money,
but a piece OF gross injustice TO a COM
pany proceeding in confident reliance in
the good faith of the United States to /
carry out the most important caDIe work !
yet undertaken in the history of the |,
world.