, 1888-02-10
ANOTHER VIEW OF IT.
Government Control of the
Telegraph.
Col. Jones Speaks in Support
of the Present System
Before the American Publishers
Association.
Favors the Present system

INDIANAPOLIS, Feb. 9.-The following
is the abstract of Col. G. H. Jones speech
before the American National Publishers
Association:
Government control of the telegraph
was the topic assigned to Col. G. N.Jones
Of the Jacksonville Ella Times Union,
and he discussed it in a carefully prepared
paper. He began by saying that he pro-
posed to deal with the subject in a practi-
cal way for the reason that he regarded it
very practical. The strongest argument
in behalf of a government telegraph sys.
TEN, and the one that is most relied upon
is that it would be cheaper, and most Of
the advocates of government control seem
to think the argument is closed when this
assertion is made. The speaker, however,
felt constrained to say that the experience
of this and other countries with govern
ment work furnished no reason for believ-
ing that exceptional c%heapness would be a
feature of it.
The characteristic feature of all work
done by the government, the speaker said,
is cumbrousness and costliness. When
ever the government wants work done at
a reasonable price that work is let out by
contract. The government might
make lower rates for telegraphing than
would be made by any corporation, be
aus the latter must make expenses and
pay for betterments and improvements or
It's place in the business world will soon
be vacant. The government, if it SO
chooses, can fix a rate less than cost and
make up the deficit by taxation, and this
is precisely what would be done by the
United States government, If the expert.
ence of other countries having a govern
ment telegraph system is any criterion.
The speaker said: In 1887 over Al
600, 900 messages were handled by the
Western Union Telegraph company and
these were sent by less than 1000, 0OO
people. The.whole of that telegraphing
in the United States is done by less than
= per cent of the population. These fig,
uIcs make it plain that to cheaper tele,
graph by reducing the rates below cost
and making up the deficit by taxation
means to tax % per cent of the people
who never use the telegraph for the ben
eft of stock brokers, spectators, gam
blers, pool men, bucket shop proprietors
and sporting men generally, who send 81
per cent of the messages. The men who
send these messages make no complaint of
the cost, because it comes in as a part of
the legitimate and necessary expenses of
their business. The only considerable
body of men asking for a reduction Of
telegraph tolls are the Knights of Labor,
not one in a hundred of whom ever use
the telegraph. These misguided people
are simply asking the government to tax
them for the benefit of a class of people
toward whom they are so i%rreconcilable
and hostile hat membership in their or
ganization is prohibited them.
The speaker her considered the subject
from the point of view Of a practical
newspaper man, and in conclusion said
government control Of the telegraph would
put into the hands of the politicians a
deadly weapon against the press, which
they would be constantly tempted to use
is too indisputably true to be denied.
Public confidence in the trustworthy char
acter of news is perhaps the chief element
of its value. Anything that would tend
to impair that confidence would by so
much impair the commercial value of the
news. Speaking for myself, as a vendor
of news, | say unqualifcdly that [ want
no news that has been subjected to even
the suspicious of government supervision
or partisan espionage"