The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1904-08-20
CABLE TELEPHONE
Is ASSURED
SAN JUAN ROUTE Is DEFINITELY
DECIDED UPON
Locating Surveyors Now in the Field.
Poles tontracted For-where the
Cables Wili BE Laid-Locations OF
Pay stations.

The disadvantages under which
San Juan county has hitherto la
bored by reason Of its lack of modern
telephone facilities, essential to place
the larger islands of the county in
quick touch with eacl other and with
the great arteries Of communication
reaching to all the worlds great cen
ters of trade and commerce, will soon
be removed. The ISLANDER is able
to announce definitely that the con
struction Of the in terna tional cable
telephone line to connect Victoria
Bellingham and Vancouver via this
county has not only been decided up
on, but that work has already com
menced, engineers being out now To-
eating the line from Marietta, near
Bellingham, where it will connect
with the Pacific States Telephone
and Telegraph Company's system
(the SunseO. Supt. Kent was in Sc
attic this week purchasing tents,
tools and supplies for the construc-
tion force. Thirty to thirty-fve men
will be employed, They will be paid
% cents an hour and will work ten
hours q day and ID. 80 week will be
charged for board and lodging.
Preference will be given to good
workers in this county who apply
Immediately to Foreman J. M. Bate
man, now at Bellingbam or Marietta
Many hundreds of poles have been
contracted for on the Fraser river.
They will be towed here and distribu
ted from here along the route of the
land line across San Juan, Shaw,
Orcas and Lummi islands and the
Lummi reservation. The cable is
expected to reach Vancouver from
England by October |. The first
section will be laid from Gordon head,
Vancouver island, across Canal de
Haro to Andrews bay, San Juan
island. The next section will run
from the Point Caution military re-
serve, adjoining Friday Harbor,
across San Juan channel to the first
cove southeast Of Point George,
Shaw island; the third section will
cross the parrowest part of Harvey
channel from the Hudson place to a
point little east of Orcas landing;
the fourth section will run from Point
Lawrence, Orcas island, across Ro-
sario strait to Lummi island and the
fifth will cross Hales pass to the
Lummi reservation. Men will be sent
from England to superintend the lay
ing of the cable
No instruments will be rented by
the company, either for inter-island
communication or through business.
There will be pay station here, one
on Shaw island and one at East
Sound and testing stations near the
cable terminal points at Point Law
renee and Andrews bay. The rates
of toll for service between island
points and Victoria and Bellingham
and for inter island communication
have not been fixed, but they will be
materially less than the through rate
between Victoria and Bellingham,
which will be 80 cents for one min
utes conversation. The company
hopes to have the system completed
and in successful operation before
the first of November, 1t is said
that the line will be one of the most
complete and expensive in the world
for the distance covered. 1t will be
of incalculable value to this county
and it is to be hoped that the conl'
pany will experience no difficulty IN
obtaining right-of-way across the
military reserves and such private
premises as it may be necessary F
advisable to cross.