Morning journal and courier., 1889-03-22
SOUTHERN N. E. TELERHONE co. Annual Meeting of the Stockholders Putting the Wires Underground- An Advance of Telephone Rates.

Annual Meeting of the Stockholders Putting she Wires Underground- An Advance of Telephone Rates. At the meeting of the stockholders of the Southern New England Telephone company yesterday afternoon, the proposed new amendment to the charter providing for un- derground wires was unanimously adopted. It will now have to be acted upon by the legislature.
 About twenty stockholders, representing 6, 9,197 shares, were at .he meeting. President
 Morris F. Tyler presided. The amendment
 as adopted, and which is to be submitted to
 the legislature, is:
 Resolved by this Assembly: Section 1.
 The Southern New England Telephone com
 pany, a corporation organized under an act of the General Assembly of Connecticut (ap-
 proved April 19, 1S82), is hereby authorized to lay and maintain it's wires and conduits for its wires in, through and under any pub lie street and highway in any city, borough or town in which said company tain, it's telephones and wires, and it may construct and maintain manholes and ventilating shafts in connection with such conduits, provided such wires, conduits,
 manholes and shafts are so constructed that
 when completed they will not interfere with
 the ordinary use of such streets and highways by the public, and provided that in the con-
 struction of such conduits and the laying of
 such wires no gas or water pipes and no sew
 CTS shall be removed or changed in such man.
 ner as to interfere with the uses for which such pipes and sewers have been laid.
 Sec. 2. Whenever said company shall
 enter upon or open any street or highway
 under the provisions of the foregoing section, it shall conform to such regulations of the common council of any city, tho warden and burgesses of any borough, or the selectmen or other authorities of any town, as they may prescribe concerning the opening of streets for the purpose of laying pipes, wires, or sewers therein; and when the work of laying such wires and conduits has been completed in any town, borough, or city, 1t shall be the duty of said company to restore the streets or high ways in which such wires and conduits have been laid to ss good condition as they were when said streets were SO opened for said purposes, by said company, to the satis- faction of the authorities thereof"
 THE REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS stated that not far from $200, ,000 had been expended for repairs after the great blizzard year ago. Much had been expended also for the new building on Court street, long distance circuits, improved transmitters and general better service. Because of this no dividends were D aid. The American Bell company had agreed to pay ,0O0 to half equalize matters. MT. Tyler said that divi- dends at per cent. would probably begin year from this coming April. An advance in rates of from 40 to 60 per cent. would be made.
 The gross earnings of the company in 1888 were $266, 900 and will probably be $500, 1000 this year. Last year the running expenses were $1S0, ,949, leaving $75, ,000 for improve ments or dividends. Last year the improve ments cost about $45, 900 and it is thought that fully $60, 900 will be necessary this year. This with the Bell compsny's contribution would amount to $83, 900 for the new build- ing and proposed changes, underground sys- tems, new and improved switchboards and better service. The local switch board was made for 500 subscribers and new one has been ordered for ], 200 subscribers, the pres ent number.