The Hickman courier., 1874-02-28
Tele graph.
From the New York Daily Graphic

From the New York Daily Graphic.
Mr.. Orton. in his rec mt review of the
renort of tbe postmaster general upon
a Governmental telegraph, makes three
points: ,,
/. That The plan for postal telegraph
has been rejected by congress.
2. That the government telegraphs
abroad have been O constant drain upon
the public treasury. ,,
3. 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 MIR. Cress-
well who favors purely governmental
system, with lines purchased, owned,
and operated by the postoffice depart
ment. This plan has never been ap-
proved bv any committee of congress.
The other is the postal telegraph sys-
tenn advocated by Mr.. Hubbard. This
prnnas.sto have telegraphic, like other
= fdence. received and distrib-
- ffIrough the postoffice, and trans
mIrCsd by telegraph between postal
telegraE .ses, by parties running and
operating .Te lines, under contract with
the poSs & u department, at rates fixed
by conss s.6-about 49, per cent. less
: 80 - S2w charged. hagAlIh2 Tbs 2lSH R1s was
,ssfaT = ia congress. n Two dif-
ferent seseons favorable reports accom-
panied by oills have been made in the
senate. The committee on oppropria-
tions In the house, instead of ignoring
the matter, as intimated by Mr.. Orton,
made q report in its favor, one year ago.
! The bill was not reached in the house,
| and, therefore, was not acted upon.
! Mr.. Orton says the telegraph has beer
| 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 fol
/ the stockholders of a private corpora
ton, but to make them so low that they
barely pay the expenses. With this enc
in view, frequent reductions IN rate!
have been made, with the knowledge
! that after year or two the iAcreaset
! business would more than coIlpensatt
for any loss sustained at first. In Bel
gium and Switzerland the telegraph
has paid, not only all operating expen
ses, but the cost of construction. Th,
latest statistics for the European statei
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 a part of the oper
ating expenses, although he excludes
them when computing the expenses o
| his own business. Mr.. Orton says the
rates here are &c as low as the averag,
rates in European countries" and tina
the rates here are fifty cents. His re
port for the year ended the Both o
June last, published in October, shows
that the average rate paid by the public
for telegraphic messages for the yea
was slxty-seven cents. 1t has beer
somewhat reduced since then. and i
now about sixty. Mr.. OrtOn include
the dead d-heads with the paid message es
and so makes the average appear con
siderably less than it really is. Th'
annual number of messages transmit
ted in Europe. by the latest returns w
have, were 80, 400, coo. The gross re
ceipts were S19, ,2S8. .462, which gives tn
average rate at thirty-six cents. TIL
rates for inland messages average twen
ty-nine cents one-half the rates charges
by the Western Union telegraph com
pany.
The use of the telegraph, in proper
ton to population, is greater abroa'
than with us, and is increasing il
Great Britain, Switzerland aud Belgiun
,N--' A-'t iAtt.ff AsstIst= OLnGr IiieITlea-