Australia - Colonial: 1861-1900.
Cable rates with the Eastern Companies.

From the late 1870s to 1900, the newspapers were constantly reporting breakdowns in negotiations between the various Australian Colonial governments and also the New Zealand government.

A long and detailed argument mainly by Charles Todd in February 1874 was reported in the Supplement to the South Australian Register of 28 February 1874. The Supplement carried lengthy news from England which had been carried to the Colonies on the R.M.S. Bangalore. It was clear that Eastern was making a very good profit from the Australian cable even at that early stage.

Some of the more important issues concerning the rates to Federation were:

May 1888: Specifically related to Press Telegrams:

May 1890: the proposal of the Company to reduce the rate for ordinary messages to 5s per word, Government messages to 4s 5d and press messages to 1s 2d provided that the Adelaide charges are reduced 25 percent and that Australia guarantees half the possible loss which is estimated at £110,000.

Sept. 1890: SUBMARINE CABLE SUBSIDY. The Imperial Government have finally refused to subsidise the Eastern Extension Telegraph Company against possible loss in the event of a reduction in the existing submarine cable charges upon messages to Australia and the East.

Sept. 1892: The implementation of the agreed new rates for the Eastern Extension and Australian Telegraph Company was deferred from 1 October to 1 November due to technical reasons.

In April 1894, the Economist described the Eastern Extension rates as "exorbitant".

The tariff had been reduced in 1899 and it was intended to reduce the rate on Anglo-Australian rates by 6d per word in January 1901. with further 6d decreases in January 1902 and in 1903 if revenue was maintained.

Post-Federation.

3 January 1902: The rates levied by the Eastern Extension Telegraph. Company upon telegrams to Europe were reduced from January 1 in accordance with the Cape cable agreement made between that company and the contracting states — South Australia, New South Wales, Western Australia and Tasmania — to 3s. per word on ordinary, 2s. on Government, and 1s. on press messages. The rates for telegrams between the Australian contracting states and South Africa were reduced to 1s. 9d. a word, conditionally up on the contracting states accepting the transit and terminal rates as given in table C of the Adelaide and New South Wales agreement. In that case the rates will be 2s. 2d. per word from South Australia and >Western Australia, 2s. 3d. from New South Wales and 2s. 6d. from Tasmania.

The Telegraph Construction and Maintenance Company's steamer Scotia is expected at Fremantle towards the end of January, where she will be joined by Mr. J. C. D. Jones, electrician-in-chief at Singapore of the Eastern Extension Telegraph Company and will then prcceed to lay the final link of the Cape-Australia cable— from Fremantle to the Grange. Communication between this latter point and Adelaide will be made by means of an underground cable, the laying of which is already about half completed. A cable depot and wharf are in course of construction at Port Adelaide, where one of the- Extension Company's repairing steamers will be permanently stationed. To meet the requirements of its thus considerably augmented cable system, the Extension Company has ordered two new cable repairing steamers, and these are now being built. The operating staff for the Adelaide office will shortly arrive, and it is hoped that the Perth-Adelaide cable will be open for traffic about the middle of February.

May 1902: Consequent upon the Eastern Extension Telegraph Company charging a uniform rate for cable messages to the old world from any part of the Commonwealth, the Postmaster-General has agreed to substitute a federal terminal rate of 5d a word for the differing charges formerly made by the states.

Adelaide Advertiser
21 July 1909

THE PROPOSED REDUCTION. Melbourne, July 20."The consummation of the proposed reduction of cable rates for press messages between Australia and Great Britain and vice versa from 1s to 9d. per word is now awaiting certain action by the Pacific Cable Board. If that board answers promptly, Sir John Quick's offer to reduce the Australian land charges for press messages from 2d. to 1d., the reduced rates will operate from August 1.

The Minister said this evening "Since it became known that the Commonwealth proposed to reduce the terminal charges on the Pacific cable press messages from 2d. to 1d., the Eastern Extension Telegraph Company has sent in a letter saying that the company intends to reduce its rate to 9d. word from August 1 next subject to the Commonwealth Government making a pro-rata reduction in their charges. The company asks what reduction the Commonwealth Government are prepared to make. We have not, however, yet received any reply to our offer to the Pacific Cable Board already referred to. Probably the board will have to readjust the scheme it prepared providing for 9d. a word press messages. As that scheme was based on our reducing our terminal charges to a halfpenny, instead of 1d. per word. Pending an answer from the Pacific cable management, we cannot reply to the Eastern Extension Company. Whatever concessions, however, are granted to one cable will be extended to the other."

April 1903: The Government cable rate from the Commonwealth to Great Britain over the Eastern Extension Company's cables is now 1s 7½d per word. The Postmaster-General has been advised that the company has now extended the same concession to Fiji, New Caledonia and Norfolk Island. The Government rate from these islands will therefore be 1s 7½d a word for the future plus the local charges.

8 December 1916: CHRISTMAS CABLES TO SOLDIERS

The following concession has been granted by The Eastern Extension Cable Coy. with regard to cablegrams sent to members of Australian expeditionary forces containing season's greetings, etc.: The address and signature of such cablegram shall only be counted and charged for. The charges for such cablegrams shall be 2d per word. This concession will operate from 14th to 30th December inclusive.

August 1923: "Commencing 1st September, Eastern Extension Telegraph Coy and Pacific Cable Board propose too introduce a plain language letter service with Great Britain acceptable any day except Sunday with normal delivery after 48 hours. The charge is one fourth of the ordinary rate with a minimum charge for 20 words. The prefix Q.L.T. is chargeable as one word".

 

Both the Pacific Cable Board and the Eastern Extension reduced their rates as from January 1927. The rates from England and from Canada to Australia were reduced on the same scale.