811.7441 Amateur/2
The Ambassador in Great Britain (Bingham) to the Secretary of State
No. 709
London, May 16,
1934.
[Received May 25.]
Sir: I have the honor to refer to the
Department’s instruction No. 206 of January 19, 1934,17 directing me to enquire whether the
British Government would be willing to make an agreement by an
exchange of notes with the United States Government to permit the
international exchange of radio messages by amateur stations on
behalf of third parties.
A note in the sense of the Department’s instruction under reference
was at once addressed to the Foreign Office, and I am now in receipt
of a reply, a copy of which is enclosed herewith, stating that His
Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom does not see its way
clear to enter into such an arrangement. The note adds that the
Foreign Office will communicate with the Embassy further in due
course with regard to the attitude of His Majesty’s Governments in
[Page 777] Australia and New
Zealand, and the Government of India, to this proposal.
The Embassy will not fail to inform the Department of anything which
it may receive in this relation.
Respectfully yours,
For the Ambassador:
Ray Atherton
Counselor of Embassy
[Enclosure]
The British Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs (Simon) to the
American Ambassador (Bingham)
No. W4111/118/50
London, 14 May,
1934.
Your Excellency: With reference to Mr.
Atherton’s Note No. 331 of the 17th February last regarding the
licensing of third party messages by amateur wireless
transmitting stations under the International Radiocommunication
Convention of Madrid, 1932, I have the honour to lay before Your
Excellency the following observations.
- 2.
- Before a license for an amateur transmitting station in
this country is issued, the owner is required to produce
satisfactory evidence that the station is to be used for the
purpose of pursuing experiments of scientific value; and it
is only for this object that the station is authorised. In
view of the congested state of the ether it is considered
important that all unnecessary wireless signalling should be
avoided. Moreover it is undesirable that those companies
which conduct regular cable or wireless services with other
countries should be exposed to loss of revenue by the use of
amateur stations for messages of third parties.
- 3.
- His Majesty’s Government feel that it would be extremely
difficult to say whether any private message sent by an
amateur for a third party (for example, a birthday greeting,
or a message concerning a birth, marriage or death) would or
would not “normally be sent by any existing means of
electrical communication.” It would be difficult and
expensive to keep any effective check on transmission, and
there would be a strong temptation to amateurs to transmit
on behalf of interested persons messages or important items
of commercial information, prices, sporting results, or
other news.
- 4.
- It was for these reasons that the Madrid Conference
inserted in the international regulations the provision:
“Il est absolument interdit aux titulaires des
stations d’amateur de transmettre des communications
internationales émanant de tierces personnes.”
- 5.
- His Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom while
anxious to afford all necessary facilities for genuine
experimental wireless work, [Page 778] regret that they must adhere to the view
that this provision is sound, and that so far as amateur
wireless stations in this country are concerned, they do not
see their way to enter into an arrangement such as that
suggested by the United States Government.
- 6.
- I shall have the honour to address you further in due
course with regard to the attitude of His Majesty’s
Governments in Australia and New Zealand, and of the
Government of India to this proposal.19
I have [etc.]
(For the Secretary of State)
P. Leigh-Smith
