New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-01-19
LOCAL MISCELLANY.
Trf.rcRAPH CONGRATULATIONS.

oRTAIts OF fRK PRELIMINARY AGREEMENT BILL
KEPT SECRET
An attempt vas made yesterday to obtain copy
Of the preliminary agreement maze S,,t hs
effernit was unsuccessful DR.. NOrvin Green, pes
ident Of the Weetern Union. said with greet EN-;
eiirsrs 81 The American Union declared that their
fhroats we're abso utely parched for information IN
regard to the proposed union OF the lnes rRiBuNE
reporter called at the Office Of Jay Could and WDen
4he usriaI reply was returned that Mr. Gould was
600 busy to see any one, sent to him the ioio"ine
suggestion:
Che preliminary agreements between tex telegraph con-.
porter with . copys
la 4 few minutes the reply was made that Mr..
Gould had not seen the agreement
Meetings of the directors of the three companies
viii be held today to apProSe y spe he panies
Eo 9on6t Of SSe favorable action of the boards e
entertained 1t is expected that ful particulars VIII
Issif sde by the boards Presldsns Green Of the
Western Union Company, has expressed DIS VIII IL
ingness personally to make known the agreement as
soon as the directors have ratified it, Dr. Green
said Yesterday that. the statement recently made
by him Ind not fully shown the condition OF the
Western Uaion Company; that o large amount Of
money expended in permanent improvements mao
been charged to the current expenses oYthe CON- 1
pany He cited as an instance OF this the reDulId,
ing Of the trunk lines 70 Boston. rSano shs
which would support twenty, four wires na1 De cen
susf;tfed for those capable OF sustaining only ten
wires Moreover the lines had been supplied with
,adIuplex instruments. and the enttre cost OF the
Improvement had been charged to current OK.
penses. Dr. Green estimated that the amount
which had been thus insidiously expended on the
splant" Of the company, would be from $SOO,0OO
TO 300 600 year. In this respect the previous
statement, published in The TRIBUNE Sunday had
fallen short of tho actual truth.
Referring to the proposed laying Of Two new AT
lantIc cables in the interest of the American union
Telegraph Company. DR.. Green remarked that ne
right to subscribe to one-haH OF the stock OF the
new cable company had been reserved to the stock:
holders of the American Union. 1t renamed OF
course. for the cOnsOli lated company to say
whether it would use the privilege but he had I'M
derstood from Mr.. Gould that the cables would De
laid anyway and that If the consolidated company
was unwilling to take the stock, Mr. Gould would
engage 10 have 1t taken up by his friends
Baron de Cambonrg, the representative at New
York of the French Cable Company. said yesterday
that he knew nothing of the reported pooling ar
rangement between the cable companies. Whether
such an agreement had been made, and II made
whether Its terms bad been correctly reported, ne
knew nothing. The arrangen ents had been made
in Europe if at ALL and he officially had no knowl-
reason 10 doubt that some agreement had been
reached, he replied with an expressive snrug OF he
shoulders that he knew nothing---a fact which the
reporter readily accepted.
George G.. Ward, superintendent OF the Direct
United States Cable Company confessed that ne
knew nothing more of the reported agreement.
He had not been informed of the completion OF the
The cable companies. II it suited the homo office
TO inform him of the conditions OF the reported
agreement he knew no reasons why they should be
withheld from the public.