New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1875-02-25

A Western Union outrage.
"Yoar last general" said Black Hawk:
referring to General Harrison, understood
Indian lighting" 1t is . question whether
all Of The friends Of free news and cheap
telegraphy in and put of Congress under
stand the style of warfare peculiar to Presi-
dent OrtOn and the Western Union Com
pany. There are men who do. In sharp
contest general who uses 'all the means
that God and nature put in his power" has
very great advantage over an opponent
that proceeds according to the principles Of
recognized rules Of war, and in the contest
now waging in Congress- over the postal
telegraph bill the victory will not be won
until the last vote is counted and the re-
sult is declared.
Everything that may tend to put the
friends of the bill on the alert is of import
ance. On Wednesday the Daily Graphic
published an account of the feeling against
the great monopoly that prevails in the
commercial exchanges and generally
among the merchants in this city. The
moral support which knowledge Of the in
dignation which thus found expression will
not be without effect upon those Congress
men who are vet wavering under the
menances of the Associated Press dictator.
ALI who have had business disputes
or rivalries with Mr.. Orten are OF one
opinion as to the nature of the opposition
to be expected from him.
Mr.. John G. Smith, superintendent Of the
Merchants Exchange News and Maritime
Association, was visited in his Pearl street
Office yesterday, and related some interest
ing experiences that are just now very per-
tinent.
"Our contract was made originally with
the old American Telegraph Company, to
which the Western Union succeeded. 1t
was made in 1862 and bound the company
to supply us news from Sandy Hook for
$1,000 q year. In addition to the money
compensation, we were also to give them
Office room and other convenlences. For
many years this contract was complied
with according to its spirit and letter. Mr..
Orton at length became president of the
Weetern Union. A method of turning an
honest penny was found by selling Sandy
Hook news to merchants directly from the
Western Union Office by means of messen-
gers, and at length, too. the Gold and Stock
Company was formed for the distribution
to customers Of mercantile intelligence.
Almost from the first, after these methods
of making money were discovered, we be-
gan to suffer-"
Ibid Mr.. Orton refuse to send the news
called for by your contractP
would come from Sandy Hook to us in
these words: Sandy Hook, 8 A. M.-Bark
off the Hook passing in What kind of
information was that to bulletin for the
members of our association! You will
naturally ask what we did. What could
we do more than make protestsl The West
ern Union Company had the only line to
What did President Orton do!"
He didn't do anything. We had better
success with his agents, tawhom we applied
first. They were for l0Hg time personally
polite, though they never afforded us any
proper relief. Finally they began to deny
US even common civility, and in this hard
case we appealed to President Orton him
self. He never deigned to pay any attention
to our communication. At length, growing
tired Of waiting, we resolved to help our
selves, and proposed to build harbOr tele
graph line for our own use."
"What did Mr.. OrtOn do when he heard
of this"
"Well. then he answered our letter. Yvu
understand we were news exchange whose
or customers replosented q very
extensive business interest. Mr.. Orton
chose to assure us in his reply that .'any
failure to reply to q customer Of the com.
pany in this city, in view of the thousands
OF such customers, was not to be deemed q
"Was the letter apolOgetic in tone!"
"Oh! no; this was only digniied be-
ginning. In the last paragraph Mr.. Orton
raised the slogan of war. His letter con-
cluded as follows, after sustaining the action
OF his subOrdinates (reading from circular
letter lying on his desk):
I'VE never intentionally make war upon
tha business of others, and we never know
ngly run away from any war that is made
upon ours. We accept the issue you tender
rs of competing line to Sandy Hook, and
hafnro this 1oftor ohouu 7 oho1 hox
directed our superintendent to remove our
wires from your office, and to treat you in
future as the enemy to us you announce
Yourself to be-"
did you announce yourself as an enemy
% the Western Unionl''
'NO-o.O," said Mr.. Smith smiling and pro-
onging the vowel, az if he were amused at
he absurdity of Mr.. Orton's position; "all |
said was to complain that he was not |
company could not afford to keep regular |
elegraph Office in these rooms, considering
hat he had nearly thousand patrons
arge shipping merchants and under
contemplate, and l think so
till. But his idea that / had announced
myself his enemy could have grown only
rom his construction of my announcement
hat we were to build a telegraph line for
ur own use."
This, then, was your last transaction
nth Mr.. OrtonY'
"Well yes; but it was not exactly his last
with us. The wires were taken
rom our Office, according to Mr. Ortons
rder, on the twenty-ninth of August, 1874.
We then made contract with the Gold
nd Stock Telegraph Company at their
wn figures to supply us with market re.
orts and other informotion interesting to
lerchants. This contract with the subOr
mate association lasted until about the
lneteenth of August, and then down came
[r. OrtOn's broadax on that"
Did the action of President OrtOn in |
lifting Oft the Sandy Hook wires cripple
ou ~
"NO; not much. We were fortunately
Die to make use of government wire.
hlch, together with those of the Atlantic
ID Pacific company, answered out pur.
,ses until our own was completed
TO MIR. Orton's mind every man who com.
ANS OF grievance, or who proposes to
"a rival business, announces him
II as his enemy. The system of terrorism,
wever, which such method of carrying
business was calculated to inspire has
ssed away, and the natural mercantile
position to an 0verrated and high priced
OnOpoly ls giving unexpected strength to
e cause Of cheap telegraphv throughout {
country.-New York Graphic. IL
Colorph0bia In New Orleans
young man of dark complexion was
mitted to the senior class of boys in the
w Orleans High School, recently. and
mediately twenty out of the twenty-five
the class left the school. These truant
nth had learned that the new aspirant for
owledge was a negro, and that was an
Lightly they could not bear. Thev had
en- nursed by negro women in infancy. r
had patted the black cheeks of their b
rses with their chubby white hands. and +
ZEN them all OF child's love; thew had .
IN supported in luxurious ease by the
.or OF black hands, and ministered to in d