The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1872-01-05
Postal TeIegraphy.

:
the United States filed, each for 5tself,
written agreements in the Posto8ee De-
partment, binding themselves respect
lively to sell out and transfer their proper
ty and business to government ifcalied
upon to do so at the end of stipulated
period. That period expires next July.
The prise 10 be paid for the prop erty and
franchises of the company selected, or Of
all the companies, Is to he fixed by FIVE
commissioners, two to he selected by the
Postmaster General, two by the company
or companies interested, and the fifth to
| be chosen by the four thus appointed
their report aud decision to be submitted
to Congress fer final action. The imme-
date occasion of the extraordinary pros
! ceeding Of citizens entering into these
peculiar stipulati0ns with their Govern
ment was the passage of an act by Con-
gress, in 1866, "TO aid in the construc.
ton Of telegraph lines" etc, the act be-
ing especially framed for the Southern
lines. Its passage was obtained By sew
eral telegraph companies, promir EFT
among which was the Western Union,
on their represe stations that great dan.
gers and difficulties beset them in the
prosecution and extension of their bust
ness in the South In return for its aid
and protection, Congress required the
above written stipulatiOns from each and
every company which should avail itself
thereof One OF the companies which
thus placed itself under contract to sell
out when required was the Western
Union, which has practically monopo>
liked the telegraph business of the United
States, its share of the whole volume of
business transacted on all the wires of
the country being upward of ninety per
cent
But The act of &c was the proximate
effect Of conviction which had forced
itself upon the minds of the thinking men
of the couatry, that much needed res
form in the American system of tele-
graphy was imperatively- necessary. It
was an exceptional fact that American
shrewdness and enterprise bad for once
slept in an important interest, and had
allowed Ms to be distanred sham efully by
every government whether monarchial
or republican, in Europe aud a STA. This
unwonted dereliction OF Brother Jona-
than was all the more conspicuous, from
the fact that the interest in question was
more general, aad involved Us personally
in heavier tax under our system than
was the case in any other country in the
world. And stranger still, it was to
America. to one of ourselves, that the
world is indebted for this unparalleled
invention, in the practical application of
which all the rest Of the world had so
greatly surpassed us.
1t is estimated by the best authorities
after due investigation of statistics, that
in proportion to our population the tele-
graph is used more than four times as
much IN this country rs in Europe Last
year there were, probably, about fifteen
million messages sent over the various
wires, exclusive of press dispatches and
railroad matter. On the whole continent
of Europe, it seems. on the other hand,
that there were only about 20,G00,000;
while France alone has larger popula-
ton, and Russia a population about fifty
per cent larger This astonishing com
parisOn presents in the strongest colors
the realtiVe importance of this interest
to our people, for one single nation has
maintained this close proximity to all
the aggregate nationalities Of Europe,
while contendiRg with the incon7enieRces
of aninferioF system, and relatively enor-
nous charges.
In France the cost of q message of
twenty words, to any part of the empire,
Is twenty cents; in Belgium and Switzer-
land, ten cents IN Prussia, twelve and
half to thirty~seven and a half cents; in
Great Britain, twenty-five cents. In
Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, etc, the
rates are similar In all there Is promise
of reduction, for in sll but Norway there
Is yearly profit earned, even at these
rates.
For example, the last report which we
have seen from the British department
v,raJsoEo1 l.
for twenty words, any distance Such
are the Inconsistencies and irregularities
of the American system that no ia av-
erage can be deduced; for, with signal
absurdIty and gross Injustice, the tariff
has been so constructed that the rates of
the Western Union, etc, vary IN each of
the four divisions In the Eastern clus~
ter of cities, with New York as the Gems
ter, the rate Is the lowest. In the South
ern division it is the highest Thus the
poorer division is oppressed not only With
higher pro rata charges, but also with the
necessary disadvantage of having greater
distances. But, it may be said, the East
eFn division does such an immense bust
ness But, we answer, the Eastern di>
vision has pTOpOrtionate ability to pay.
In the Southern division given message
costs fully four times as much, in average,
a6 In the Eastern division From New
Orleans message of twenty words to
Rev \ ork costs FIVE dollars; from Louis
vile, one dollar and fifty cents. This
message would cost, at the average of the
above European rates, twenty cents The
rates in Europe called transit rates, that
is, between or across different countries,
are much higher; but we would not have
that difficulty to contend with here, as
no State could tax a message in transitu,
Mo- is the saving of this enormous
margin to thespeople the only advantage
realized from the foreign system. Strin-
gent regulations are rigidlY enforced,
securing secrecy as to the subject matter
OF dispatches; pun stuality in transmission
and delivery; a faithful adherence to the
role Of first come fret served; the use
of stamps and stamped Paper instead Of
money; the use Of boxes for the receipt
of dispatches, conveniently distributed
as in our postal service; regulations by
which on paying q moderate charge at
the sending Office a messenger IS EN-
ployed at the receiving Office, when made
necessary by distance, to hasten TO deliver
the telegram, either on foot or on horses
back; regulations for employing the post
either for sending dispatch to or re-
ceising it from a telegraph Office when
the sender Or receiver is at distance; the
incorporation of the money order system,
by which money could be sent from Lou
isyille to San Francisco in ten minutes,
and at triAing expense; and last, but not
least ofthe innumerable advantages, the