The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1907-07-30
ALL RED" LINZ
ACROSS PACIFIC
BRITISH GOVERNMENT MAY AS
SYST STEAMSHIP LINES TO THE
ORIENT AND AUSTRALIA.

LONDON, July Lord Strathcona.
interviewed on Saturday, discussed
with enthusiasm the Alfred route
from Great Britain via Canada to Aus
tralia and New Zealand.
The Canadian High Commissioner
is full of ardor for the new scheme:
hopeful of it's early realization, conf
dent of its success and of the immense
benefits it will bring to the British
Empire.
As outlined by Lord Strathcona, the
first part of the scheme is a twenty
four or twenty-five knot service of
steamers between Liverpool and Hall
fax-shortening the voyage. across the
Atlantic by two days or more. The
distance from Liverpool to Halifax is
2,459 nautical miles. The distance
would be covered by rs knot boats in
about four days Lord Strathcona
said that for a 20-knot service four
boats would be required, whereas three
boats would be sufficient with a speed
of % knots. Three twenty-five knot
boats would not cost much more to
build than four twenty-knot boats. The
idea is that there should be a weekly
service. A twenty-five knot boat,
supposing it left Great Britain on a
Saturday, would arrive in Halifax on
the following Wednesday, and would
be able to start on the return voyage
by the following Saturday.
Lord Strathcona is a convinced be-
lever in the value of the scheme as
a bond of empire. "In this enter
prise" he said, there is no question
of preference in the usual acceptation
of the term. 1t will be no one-sided
project, but will prove mutually bene-
fetal to the colonies and to the mother
country. 1t will bring the mother
country into closer alliance with the
colonies, make them nearer neignbors,
and better known to each other, and
therefore warmer friends. To go from
London to the Pacific in eight days
would have been looked upon as a
dream ten years ago. By accelerating
the speed on sea and land, as suggest
ed. it can now be realized This
scheme will make Halifax, which has
one of the finest harbors in the world
the chief port of entry for express SER
vices between the Old World and the
North American continent. This will
be good for Canada, and of the great
oct OBJ TO- -
Mother Country.
1T is said that the route to Hall
fax would not be safe in winter be-
cause of the fogs off Cape Race
"The best answer to that is that for
at least one-half of it's existence the
Cunard Company used the Liverpool
and Halifax route with perfect safety.
AS to Halifax itself it possesses the
finest and safest harbor in the world,
with the possible exception of Sydney,
New South Wales"
AS Lord Strathcona explained ira
velers and mails by this route could
be landed and delivered in New York
one full working day before they could
reach there by steamer direct. Not
only so, but they could reach Chicago
and other points in the West and
Northwest much sooner relatively. AS
to the direct journey through Caanda,
the journey from Halifax to Vancou-
yer could be covered by express trains
under the best possible conditions of
tn, Oh 9, III,
distance between Halifax and Montreal
-75S miles-would be covered at the
rate of fifty-five or sixty miles an
hour.
Lord Strathcona considers that his
new empire route will not be confined
to a passenger and freight service. The
charges for freight will not be such
as to prevent a goods traffic of the
lighter and also of the more costly
classifications. 1t will enormously ia
cilitate the interchange of British COM
MERGE with Canada, and will also
bring the Orient nearer to Great Brit
ain. Yokohama will be brought with
in about eighteen days of London;
Britain's commercial interests in Jap
an and China will greatly benefit, and
the British position will be immense
ly strengthened for the severe fight
which is coming for the possession of
Eastern markets. The new service will
provide splendid alternative route to
the East If, for instance, it were ne
cessary to move troops quickly to In
dia, the way through Canada under
the new conditions would be of the
utmost strategical value.
Lord Strathcona is equally interest
ed in the Pacific part of the scheme, in
regard to which Canada is also pre-
pared to contribute her proportion.
New Zealand and Australia both well
come the ALFRED route, but they want
at least 2O-knot boats on the Pacific,
which would shorten the journey by
about three days and half as be-
tween Vancouver and Australia, and
by about eight days as between Lon