The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1888-03-29
DR. NORYIN GREEN
Insists that the Western Union is not a
Giant Monopoly.

DIR. NORVIN GREEN
Insists that the Western Union Is not
Giant Monopoly.
WASHINGTON, D. c., March 2S.-Dr
Norvin Green, President of the West
ern Union Telegraph Company, address
ed the Senate Committee on Inter State
Commerce this morning on the spoonel
inter state telegraph bill. He said
he did not appear to. oppose fair
and reasonable enactment Tor the regu'
lation Of the telegraph, If the telegraph
was commerce in the constitutional
sense, and the Supreme Court had de-
cided that its business is commerce,
then there could be no question OF the
power OF Congress to enact such law,
such US that proposed. Ordinarily his
company would desire to be let alone,
but under the circumstances it was NOT
averse to such an enactment as proposed,
with certain Objectionable features
stricken out. He was led to this conclu-
sion by the fact that his company owns
and operates four.ffths, perhaps seven
eighths, OF all OF the telegraphs in the
United States, and is, therefore, an ap-
parent monopoly, while in point OF fact
it has no exclusive franchise-no legal
privileges that anybody else cannot get.
The elementary patents have expired,
and except rs to some improved methods,
anybody might build and operate a tele:
graph. But the telegraphs had drifted
into u combination not from the grasp
ing efforts OF any one man or set OF men,
but from the necessitous laws OF trade.
The rates had been cheapened and the
business greatly improved in Its facilities
and in promptness OF services.
It was fact that in 1865, the old lines
were pretty heavily capitalized. The
company had to give sum equal to its
capital stock for patents and that dupli-
Gated the stock Of the property. Since
that date the water had been squeezed
out Of the stock in divers ways. There
were gross popular errors as to the cost
ofmaintaining the property, andhe refer
red to the destruction OF telegraph poles
and wires by the recent blizzard TO show
that it cost something to maintain tele.
graph system. The persons who said
that the Government could send mes
sages for ten cents and make the line
self.sustaining knew nothing about the
business. 1t was utterly impossible.
He believed that the United States
property couldnot be duplicated for its
cost.
Senator Cullom-Do you mean to say
that your property cost eighty millions
OF dollars?
DR.. Green-Yes, mean to say that it
could not bo reproduced for that sum.
There was another popular error rs to
the sanctity oftelegrams. The idea that
any one man had access to messages
passing over the Western Union wires
was too absurd to discuss. Another
popular error was that this great prop
erty was controlled by one man. The
actual fact about it was this: The thirty
directors OF the company hold less than
S27 900 900 OF the stock, leaving nearly
$6O,O0O 1000 in the hands oi sundry par
ties. The largest holding OF any one
man was little over $50, 100000. The
voting power outside Of the property
was larger than the voting power inside
OF the property, and the action taken by
tho company was not always in accord
ance with the wishes OF the largest
stockholders. -,
Coming to what he described as the
Objectionable feature OF the bill report.
ed by the PostofIice Committee, he first
took UP the arbitrary section relating to
the handling OF messages according tC
| time of their receipt. He said that in
the smaller offices that rule could easily
be observed, but 1t was not so in the
larger Offices like New York, with ], SOC
wires. One operator might work faster
than another and it would be almost i'm
possible to exactly distribute the mes
sages and keep themin their precise order
Therefore he believed the section shonlt
be qualified by theadditioH of the words
GAS near US possible" The general
scope OF the section forbidding discrimi
nation in forwarding messages also sutii
cientlycovered the case, without the spe
cific requirement. As to the long ant
short line clause, he said, in answer to
question, that no higher tariff was charg
ed between points on the line from New
York to Omaha than between the termi
nal side. The second section OF the bill
gave the Interstate commerce commits
sion the right to say what charges wer6
unreasonable, II would amountto con
flscation OF the compRny's lines. He
would substitute the word "exorbitant
for unreasonable" Thelong and shor
line clause should also be modified BY
the insertion Of the qualifying wordi
'1under like circumstances" He die
not make any protest against the section
rs II was so framed as not to interfere
with the present system, because 1t pro
vided that the messages must be sent IL
the same direction and over the SAINT
lines. ---f