The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1874-02-27
Telegraph.
From the New York Daily Graphic


Mr.. Orion, In his recent review of the
report of the postmaster general upon
a governmental telegraph, makes three
points
l. That The plan for postal telegraph
has been rejected by congress.
2. That the government telegraphs
abroad have been a constant drain upon
the public treasury.
8. That the rates here are but little
higher than abroad, while the telegraph
is as freely used here as there.
Two propositions for the transmits
sion of correspondence have been pre-
sented to congress one by Mr.. Cress-
well who favors purely governmental
system, with lines purchased, owned,
and operated by the pOstotfice depart
ment. This plan has never been ap-
proved by any committee of congress.
The other is the postal telegraph sys-
tenn advocated by Mr.. Hubbard. This
proposes to have telegraphic, like other
correspondence, received and distrlb-
uted through the postofice, and trans
mitted by telegraph between postal
telegraph Offices, by parties running and
operating the lines, under contract with
the postoffiea department, at rates fixed
by congress-about 49, per cent. less
first recommended by Postmaster Gen
I'eral Randall to congress. In two diff
| ferent sessions favorable reports accom-
panied by bills have been made in the
| senate. The committee on 9pprOpria-
tons in the house, instead of ignoring
| the matter, as intimated by Mr.. Orton,
made a report in its favor, one year ago.
| The bill was not reached in the house,
and, therefore, was not acted upon.
Mr.. Orion says the telegraph has been
| a constant loss to the European states,
forgetting that abroad the sole object
| of the governments is not to make the
rates high enough to realize profits for
the stockholders of a private corpora
ton, but to make them so low that they
barely pay the expenses. With this end
| in view, frequent reductions in rates
| have been made, with the knowledge
! that after a year or two the increased
business would more than compensate
| for any loss sustained at first. In Bel
GUM and Switzerland the telegraph
has paid, not only all operating expen-
ses, but the cost of construction. The
latest statistics for the European states
show that the receipts a little exceed
| the operating expenses.
Mr.. Orion arrives at a different re-
suit by including the cost of construc-
ton of new lines as part of the oper-
ating expenses, although he excludes
them when computing the expenses of
his own business. Mr.. Orion says the
rates here are " as low as the average
rates in European countries" and that
the rates here are fifty cents. His re-
port for the year ended the Both oil
June last, published in October, shows
that the average rate paid by the public
for telegraphic messages for the yeal
was sixty-seven cents. It has been
somewhat reduced since then. and is
now about sixty. Mr.. Orion includes
the dead-heads with the paid messac es
and so makes the average appear con
siderably less than it really is. The
annual number of messages transmit
ted in Europe, by the latest returns We
have, were 50, 400, 600. The gross re
ceipts were $40, 288, 1852, which gives tht
average rate at thirty-six cents. Tht
rates for inland messages average TWEEN
ty-nine cents, one-half the rates charged
by the Western Union telegraph com
pany.
The use of the telegraph, in propor
ton to population, is greater abroat
than with us, and is increasing il
Great Britain, Switzerland and Belgium
much more rapidly than here, where i
does not keep pace with other business