The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1904-10-29
INTERNATIONAL
CABLE Is LAID
REPORTS OF CUSTOMS "HOLD-
UP" ENTIRELY UNFOUNDED
Work In Charge of English Experts.
Two Important European Cables
Long In Successful Use--Guests OF
Company on Gable Ship.

The laying of the great interna-
tional telephone cable across Canal
de Haro, San Juan and Harney chan
nels, Rosario strait and Hales pass
age was completed this week and
every section was tested to the en-
tire satisfaction of the representa-
tives of the telephone company and
the manufacturers. The cable was
entered here Friday morning of last
week on board the American steam
freighter Rapid Transit, in command
of Capt. Nelson. There was not the
slightest foundation for the reports
published in Bellingham and Seattle
papers that the cable steamer was
''held up" by the customs authorities
at Port Townsend and that the COM
pany was seriously considering the
question of abandoning the line
through this county, upon which
many thousands of dollars had been
expended, and laying the cable en-
tirely in British waters, on account
of the ''exhorbitant duty" demanded
by the u. S. customs officers, AS q
matter of fact the cable steamer did
not 90 to Port Townsend at all but
came here direct from Vancouver
and the question of changing the
route after the arrival of the cable
at Vancouver was never for a mo-
ment considered, nor has there at
any time been any disagreement be-
tween the telephone company and
the customs officials relative to the
matter of duty or any other matters
in connection with the entry and lay
ing of the cable. On the contrary
the representatives of the company,
President Farrell, Vice-President
Tregent and Superintendent Kent,
express the highest appreciation of
the courtesies extended to them and
the assistance rendered them by the
customs and revenue officers. In
stead of the duty which they were
required to pay being largely in ex-
cess of their estimate it was about
1000 less than they expected it
would be when they determined to
build the line this way.
The laying of the cable was in
charge of Mr.. Theophilus Smith, per-
sonal representative of W. I. Hen
ley, of London, at whose works the
cable was manufactured; With him
were four Of .h sempany's employees
who have had long experience in
cable work. Mr.. Smith is considered
one of the best posted men in cable
construction and laying in the world.
He is very quiet and unassuming and
cool and collected in any emergency
arising in connection with his work.
He has laid many hundreds of miles of
cables in European, American and
West Indian waters and while here
received cablegram directing him
to 60 to Nassau, the Chief port of the
Bahama islands, to repair cable be-
tween there and Jupiter inlet, on the
coast of Florida.
Mr.. Smith says that submarine
telephone communication in Europe,
for considerable distances, is no longer
an experiment. For number OF
years large cable has been in use
across the southern part of the
North sea on the line connecting
London, Antwerp and Brussels. The
cable is 471 miles long and gives per-
feet satisfaction. On account of it's
length it is much more heavily arm
ored than the one just laid here, but
a cable approximately the same size,
having the same size cores, has long
been in use across the turbulent Eng
lish channel, between Dover and Ca
lais, on the through line between
London and Paris. This cable is
about nineteen miles long and handles
an enormous amount of business. The
total length of the international
company's cables is about thirteen
miles and the longest section is little
over six miles. The work of connect
ING the cable ends with the terminal