The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1886-02-24

mont.
(Fi0n the Nsw York. Worid.)
The figures given in an article con-
c%erning the American Bell Telephone
Company, published by tho New
York WO,id sumo days ago, related
only to the business of the parent cor
poratiop. There are sub-compan e.
by these that The actual telephone
aeryice of the country is performed,
aud 1t is through them that the people
pay the enormous tax now extortcd
BY that service.
The parent company, MS stated, is a
Massachusetts corporation with the
central Office at No. So, Milk Street,
Boston, with am authorized capital of
$4,000, 900. TT is is the great cou-
trolling and absorbing head OF a vast
system that extends out to every CITY,
town and considerable village. gath
ering in every year u gross income
almost as great as that of the Western
Union Telegraph Company. tn"
authorized capital of the parent COM
pany isno index of its wealth and
future aspirations, and il is only kept
at $4,000, 600 because of a refusal of
the Legislature of Massachusetts 10
grant the company's application fer
al increase TO $50, U0U, 900. The parent
company II the suD-cu,npanics arc
really one stupcnduus concern, the
profitableness. of which probably cx-
ceedS thatSofany considerable property
knownsto this age OF profitable ven
lures.
AS soon as the piacticability and
usefulness of The telephone had been
established there was Il great rush in
all directions to secure territory and
form su~b-Companics. These sub
companies have since been Target,
consolidated, and in May, 1885, there
were thirty-six in existence III the
sway owe the city OF New York Is
known as the Metropolitan Telephone
II Telegraph Conn any, which itself
has iour snb-COmpanirs Or sub licenses
The Domestic Telegraph and Tclc-
phone Company, of New York and
New Jersey Telephone Company, the
Westminster Telephone Company and
the Staten Island Telephone Company.
In the thirtv-six sub-uompanics refer.
red to above no account Is taken Of
the sub licenses. In New York the
Metropolitan. stands for all, and the
dealings OF the parent company arc
with ii solely.
The parent COMPANY has All interest
in all the t~hirty:six sub-cu,npauieS OF
the United States. The aggregate
capital of these sub companies amount
ed to $53 900 Quo OH the 3i>t day OF
March, 1885. If we ada - that tie
$40, 900 100 authorized capital of the
parent company 1t makes "a grand
total of $G3 100000. Ii the parent
company were to be- granted the aidi-
tional 500, OO0, 900 of authorized CAPT
tai stock they have asked for, the
grand to,aI would fact up SS3, 600, eco,
which is $3,OC0,O 900 more dim the
capital stock If tie Western Union
Telegraph, Company. Without a
check ut some sort it will soon reach
that and even still grea,er proportions
II GRASP OF THE PARENT COMPANY.
The interest of the parent company
in the various sub-companies is very
large ranging all the way from 33 10
81 per cent. On tho 3lst Of March,
1855, its holdings in the various com
pailies amounted in round numbers to
100000 shares, the value OF which
was estimated at 1928 ,000, coo, 81 that,
of the aggregate &53 600, 900 Of stock
held by all the sub. companies com
bined, the parent company held almost
half. Its holdings in the Metropolitan
Telephone Company of this city
amount to 5000 shares, its holdings in
the New England Telephone and Ic!,.-
graph Company to 81, loo shares, and
its holdings in the Central Union Tel"-
ghonc Company TO about twcnty-fonr
thousand shares. These shares i'm sub
companies were obtaincdin two ways;
one by so-called purchase, the other by
franchise, the latter term meaning
simply q gift for the right to exist,
while the purchases made arc no more
than certain transfer of properties
upon which there may be placed a tic-
titions value. Ga the 3lst OF March
1885, the par value of the shares OBJ
tanned bv franc;sC amounted to ID, 500.-
But telephone stock is rarely to be
estimated on the basis of n par valua-
ton. 'fhe present conpany's stock
has sold as high as 250 and is now
worth about 500. The stock of nearly
all the s~ubcompanics is worth equally
as much; Very little Of it is on the
market at all, it being too valuable for
speculation purposes.
EAL OF THE SUB-CONPANIES.
The combined wealth of the sub
companies may be ascertained, at least
approximately, by calculations based
OH the last report of the parent com
pany, issued TO it's stockholders March
32st, 1885, Ii is there stated that the
average number of exchange cnnncc-
lions I'm the United States was 697, 966
per day, or 25I,267, 760 per year. An
exchange connection is what is com
monty designated q call. Elsewhere
the reporl states that the Subscribers
pay from three. cents to five cents per
connection. Suppose we fix the aver.
age cnarge atfour'cents perconnection.
Mu!ti,dy The nnInber of connections u
year, 35l.297, 795 by four cemts, we
ohtsina grand toiaIof 10000, 40 40,
which is u iair estimate Of the gross
income. This is 6 er cent. OF ab"ni
$l75,O00,000. Making a reasonable
rsducti0nifor expenses, IL ia not prob
III Ala "