The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1888-06-27
The Ox.Team Telegraph.

A word of personal explanation may no
be out of place just now.
The editor of the Lo,Cndesuiue Advertiser
instructed US to print the presentment OF the
grand jury and the replies of the officers.
The presentment was published RS directed.
We notified Mr.. Baker that the type of the
replies of the officers had been distributed,
and asked for instructions. To this letter, he
replied as follows:
SENECA, S. C.,June q, 1888.
DEAR Mr.. wilson, received your letter
about the officials replies. told you when
was down there l wanted them set up.
Please set them up this next issue, and put In
r. E. Hills. and Grand Jurors piece. too.
Will see you next week. leave Tonight lot
Ashevile. In haste, j. NJ. BAKER.
AS the time was approaching to make up
the forms of the advertiser, and as we had in
the meantime received other matter in refer.
ence to the same subject, we thought he would
like to make the record complete and to put
his paper on fair and impartial basis, SO we
sent him the following telegram, which was
delivered at the Abbeville Office at 3:05 o'clock
Monday evening. 1t was received at Hodges
ut $40 o'clock, and forwarded from there at
3:22 o'clock:
ABBEvILLE, June 25, 1888.
To J. NJ. BAKER: Lowndesville:
Do you want all communications ana
newspapers comment in Advertiser?
"HUGH WILSON"
The form was made up Monday night. The
edition OF the Advertiser was struck off early
Tuesday morning, when the following tcle-
gram was received:
LowNDEsvILLE. S. c., June 25, 1883.
HUGH WILsON.-Only the replies OF the o.
1cers to the report. j. NJ. BAKER.v.
This telegram was received at Hodges al
9:31 a. m. 1t came to AbbeVille at 1888 q. m.
and was delivered at the Press and Banner OF.
flee at 9:49-on the Tuesday morning June &C.
che advertiser being at that time printed
and ready TO be sent to the depot.
Now, a word as to the telegraph system as
managed hereabout By telegraph line
Lowndesvllle' is some sixty miles distant
from Abbeyille. Can anybody give reason
why 1t takes eighteen hours to get message
from Lowndesville to Abbeville? Besides
taking money from the citizen to deliver
messages when they are out OF date, such de-
lays are Injurious to the business interests o.
the customers of the line. These delays by
the telegraph company have become source
of great annoyance to tho people. and the
question should be settled one way or the
other whether the company have the right tc
take our money for service which they do moi
render in any reasonable length Of time
Lowndesville by the public highway is about
eighteen miles from Abbeville. A good OK
team could have started for Lowndesville at
the time our telegram was sent, and could
have returned before the answer was rcceiv.
ed.
Does the telegraph company employ care
less or inefficient operatives, or do they con.
duct business on q principle by which they
can systematically take the money of their
customers without rendering a valid ser.
vice?
1t affords us pleasure to state that the re.
cords Of the offices at Abbeville and at Hodges
are clear, and that the operators at these
points discharged their duty promptly, but
for all that the telegraph company failed to
do what was fairly and reasonably expected
of them-and they took our money all the
same. The company has received the price
of two kilograms which by their own neglect
or carelessness were entirely worthless to the
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