Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-01-21
WASHINGTON NEWS.
Debate on the Proposed
Postal Telegraph.
NORVIN GREEN'S ARGUMENTS.
Discussion in the House on the
ThOebe-Carlisle Election
Contest.
Associated Press Dispatches to the HERALD


WASHINGTON, January 20.-Senato
Sawyer, Chairman of the Senate
Postoffice Committee, called his Com
mittee to order this morning, and DR.
Norvin Green, President of the West
ern Union. addressed the Committe,
in opposition to the Government tele
graph.
He devoted himself first, though
BRIEFLY, to constitutional questions te
which the measure gives rise. He
Court to the effect that telegraph
business is in itself commerce. He
touched upon this constitutional
point, he said, merely because he did
not wish the committee to under.
stand the company waived it. He
claimed that no people on earth en-
joyed as perfect a system of telegraph
as the Americans.
Green then compared the telegraph
system Of England and the United
States, and asserted that the long
distance rates af the Western Union
were cheaper than any other long
distance rate in the world. He said
that the Western Union enjoyed no
exclusive franchises nor leg slative
grants, and that the field was open to
anybody who might choose to enter
it. He said that the rates would be
reduced during the present year.
THE EINANNIAJ pncrVrnN
He said that the Western Union
had to pay from $780, 900 to $500, 900 a
year for mistakes. If the Govern
ment did run the telegraph system it
must take the existing lines, as no
private enterprise could run against
the National Treasury setting cut to
do business for nothing. He stated
that the property of the Western
Union could not possibly be duplicated
to-day for it's capitalization. 1t was the
popular belief that the company's
system was owned by one man, where
as over 10000 people in all were inter
ested in the property. The million
aires of the country have less than
three-eighths Of the stock. am told,"
continued DR.. Green, "that petit
tion bearing half million signatures
is to be sent to this committee in favor
of Government system. They come
by command or imbued with spite
against one man with whom Powder
ly had quarrel. Not one in hun
dred Of the signers used the telegraph.
yet they were asking to be taxed for
the benefit of rich brokers, bankers
Nd f, nr hot
he had prepared petition and re-
monstrated to Congress and would
not longer detain the committee.
HUBBARD's VIEWS.
Gardner Hubbard then addressed
the committee in favor of Dawes
Postal Telegraph bill. 1t was his
opinion that of the $50, 900 900 capital
stock of the Western Union about
$S,0O0,000 or $l0,000,0 900 had been
paid in cash by the stockholders and
probably as much more by the stock
holders of the telegraph companies
absorbed by the Western Union, and
that the rest had been taken from the
public in the shape of telegraph tolls.
Three-eighths of this capital was
held by the directors of the company,
and they therefore had virtually a
monopoly, since it would be utterly
impossible at any stockholders meet
ing to balance the controlling OF the
stock held by the directors them
selves.
DR.. Green corrected the statement
and said that at, the stockholders
meeting+ three-fourths of the capital
stock had frequently been repre-
sented.
Hubbard said that in this country
there was practically no competition,
and there could ne none, for it was a
business that could be managed more
easily by one company than num-
Der, but the question arose whether
the government could not manage the
system more cheaply than the West
ern Union, and whether the latter
could not manage it itself more
cheaply than it does. This question
should be answered in the affirma-