The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-01-14
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editorial Opinions Of the Leading Journals
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THE WESTERN UNION MONOPOLY
AND THE TELEGRAPH STRIKERS.
from che NJ I. Herald
Notwithstanding reports to the contrary, it
lppears that the strike among the telegraph
perators is not at all at an end. Late infor-
ation from the West, including Pittsburg,
hicago and ST. Louis and from the South
nd Southwest, including Memphis, Louis
lille, New Orleans, Texas, and other points,
to the effect that the strike still continues,
With no prospect of surrender or compro-
mise. In Philadelphia it is affirmed that the
strike is not so near an end as previously
stated in some quarters" Philadelphia
paper says the strike 'not only con-
tinues, but grows stronger every day"
IN New York the strikers remain firm, with
no indications of surrendering, their vacan-
cies being imperfectly supplied by women
and 'pirates incompetent operators, who
have been dismissed for incompetency or for
improper practices. The situation here may
be comprehended at glance by reading the
following despatch from the superintendent
of the Western Union Company in this city:
To oil Onlces in the City
Refuse business for all points south OF Richmond
j. y. HINoHMAN, Superintendent.
This is conclusive evidence that the trouble
south of Richmond still exists, and no doubt
the same may be said in regard to other
points-a matter which the company, of
course does not care to have ventilated. 1t
is important here to state that the labor
unions in this city unanimously sustain the
strikers, and have already voted them sup
plies Of the sinews of strikes as we'll as of war
TO enable them to hold out 1t is expected
that the same action will be taken by the
labor unions throughout the country, and in
she end 1t may be found that the telegraph
operators progressive movement of to-day
will assume a degree of Importance which
will mako itself both felt and respected
Now, what is the cause of all this commo-
hon and all this disruption in one of the most
Important elements of our business and social
relations? 1t may be explained in few
words. 1t is the result Of the grasping ra-
pacity and unbridled tyranny of one of the
most gigantic monopolies that ever over
shadowed enterprise in the civilized world
the Western Union Telegraph Company.
Let us for q moment look at the extent of
Ehis ponderous machine-a machine moved
and manipulated by the hands of few greedy
capitalists and millionaires. From the official
records we find that of the 4014 public tele-
graph offices in the United States the Western
Union numbers 1869, and all the rest, in
cluding the Franklin, Atlantic and Pacific,
Pacific and Atlantic, and Bankers and Brokers
lines, the balance, or only five hundred and
forty-five offices. The number of miles of
line in active use is as follows:-Western
Union Company, $1,000; all the others, in
Dluding connections IL, 500, giving the
Western Union the enormous preponderance
of "a, 500 miles of telegraph wire in operation
in the United States. And, not content with
this huge Titan-like monopoly, it is now
shuffling around the lobbies of Congress, in
the committee-rooms, in the cosy private
quarters of members, for new deal with its
already stocked cards for another little game
of exclusive telegraph privileges even to the
absorption of all the Atlantic cables reaching
our shores. In short, having checkered the
territory of the United States with it's tele-
graph poles and wires, it now seeks to girdle
Che earth with its galvanic withes.
We ask, in all earnestness, is it not time
Congress interposed its authority to check
the growth of this mammoth monopoly? We
have seen that it does not hesitate to throw
into confusion the entire business of the
country by an obstinate adhesion to an arbi-
trary determination to reduce the salaries of
few poorly paid operators If it does not
stop to do these arbitrary things in its present
wealth of money and influence, what may we
not expect when its powers shall be still fur
ther augmented, when it locks not only the
land, but oceans within its embrace Our
readers have remarked that great care has
been taken by the company to keep the Wash
Sngton offices well supplied with operators
pending the present difficulties This dodge
is transparent. 1t is to impress members of
Congress with the idea that its affairs are not
in disorder, that it is not tyrannical to its
employees that its usefulness to the commu-
nifty is not impaired, and that everything con-
nected with its internal machinery is moving
like clockwork. We admonish members of
Congress to keep their eyes open, and not
allow themselves to be hoodwinked by this
or any other subterfuge of the company S
lobbyists in Washington or elsewhere. We
urge them to go straight forward in the work
of establishing cheap and comprehensive
postal telegraph system under the direction
of the Government, thereby relieving the
people of exorbitant telegraph tolls and
worthy class of the community from the op
preston of a tyrannical and unscTupulou'
monopoly. Meanwhile, everything now
seems to indicate, the strikers movement viii
continue to progress, and eventually, we re
peat, make itself both felt and respected.
UNIVERSITY REF
From the N, Y. Tribune.
4