The sun., 1919-07-23
AMERICAN SYSTEM
OF CABLES URGED
Foreign Trade Council Makes
Effort to Improve Service
Across Pacific.

o. X. Davis, secretary of the National
Foreign Trade Council, announces that
the council has embarked upon a deter
provement of American facilities for
cable and wireless communication across
the Pacific Ocean. This is the first step
In carrying out the recommendation of
vention. held at Chicago recently, which
declared strongly in favor of the estab-
lishment Of American systems Of cable
and wireless communication with for
eign nations as essential to the success
OF American foreign trade.
The council has appointed a special
committee on foreign communications
which Is taking up the subject energetic
ally with view to securing prompt and
effective action. This committee Is COM
posed of z. L. Thomas, president United
States Steel Products Company; Howard
L. Cole. director Standard Oil Company
of New York; r. p. Tinsley, vice-presi-
dent American international Corpora
ton: NJ. A. Oudin, vice-president Inter
national General Electric Company; r
II. Patchln. manager foreign trade de-
partment w. r. Grace & Co.; Frederick
]. Roster, former president San Francis.
| co Chamber of Commerce, and William
Pigott, president American Car and
Foundry Company Of Seattle.
The final declaration OF the sixth Ma.
| tional Foreign Trade Convention called
| for the establishment of American sys-
TENS OF cable and wireless as a national
trade policy and pointed out that 1.-THE
| world trade for which We are prepared
| through increased productive capacity
| and for which We are preparing through
the new merchant marine can be
| handled only If we have adequate Amer
| lean facilities for telegraphic communi'
cation to all foreign countries"
The convention recommended that thi,
| national trade policy should be carried
| into effect first in those places where
| present service has proved utterly in
adequate. as in the case Of the single
cable that forms the only direct com
munication between the United Statel
and the Orient Even before the out
break of the European war that CABLE
wJs overburdened with governmental
| and commercial business, so that com
| mercial messages frequently were sub
| ject to material delay.
| The huge increase Of business. botf
commercial and governmental, brough
by the war literally swamped the cabl,
at frequent intervals, so that there hav,
| been occasions when commercial mes
sages were subject to a delay of eigh
days or more. Moreover, that cable Il
/ old and out OF repair and subject to FIRE
quent interruption through breakages
some of these interruptions having beer
| several weeks in duration.
Representatives OF the Canlo com
pany have commended that with the res
toration of peace and the resumption o
the use of codes. including private codes
there would be such a reduction in tn,
volume of business that the single ex
| listing line could render adequate ser
vice. Concerns doing business in tn
Far East have found, however, that thi
is not the case, and that messages ar,
| still subject to vexatious and injurious
delay. Instances have already beei
| submitted to the National Foreigl
Trade Councils committee where re
plies to cables to the Orient quoting
prices good for ten days have not beel
received within that period.
The ratification OF peace is bound T.
/; bring about a restoration Of the fas
cable service from Europe to the Orient
and American business men feel that tn
continuation OF the present inadequate
service across the Pacific subjects then
to an intolerable handicap.
An informal preliminary meeting o
the National Foreign Trade Council
committee. held at India House. devel
oped a strong feeling that in case eff
fective means are not taken by the exist
ing cable concerns to improve communi
cation facilities across the Pacific, Wig
orous effort should be made for the con
| afrilctiOn OF a new cable,