Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-08-06
TELEGRAPH TOLLS TOO HIGH.


TELEGRAPH TOLLS TOO HIGH.
The Postmaster Generals Sharp Reply
to President Green.
BIO TELEGRAPH COMPANIES HAVE BEEN BEN.
EFrrrEp BIZ CONGRESSIONAL LEGISLATION, But
WHETHER THEY HAVE or NOT RATES ON Gov
xRNMENT MESSAGES MUST BE REDUCED.
The protests made by President Green OF
the Western Union telegraph company against
the new rate for government kilograms, pro-
posed by Postmaster General Wanamaker, has
elected from the latter q vigorous reioinder,
which is dated August 2. At the outset Mr..
wanamaker questions the truth Of the state
ment o; President Green that the privileges
and benefits derived by his company through
the acts of Congress are purely imaginary, and
the companion assertion that the company has
never taken stone or stick OF timber, or ap-
propriated foot Of land belonging to the gov
ernment." Mr.. Wanamaker states that it is An
undeniable fact that the telegraph companies
in accepting the act of 1866 and the supple
mentary &C is consider ed that they were gain
ing special and actual benefits.
FREE USE OF THE HIGHWAYS BIZ TELEGRAPH
COMPANIES.
Under these grounds, he says, the telegraph
companies have claimed to use without COM
pensation all the highways Of the country and
also the streets of tho cities and towns. The
courts have sustained this claim. Therefore
the Postmaster General concludes that instead
OF the telegraph companies now occupying
foot OF public land, as President Green asserts.
they are. in fact, occupying many thousands OF
| miles OF post roads and are privileged to oc-
cupy all the highways in the United States.
Mr.. Wanamakcr concludes that it is not neces-
sary 20 speak of other substantial benefits
which the telegraph companies have received
| from the government as those already men
| toned established the truth of his assertion.
In view of these benefits the Postmaster Gen.
erai concludes that the government expected
and is entitled to receive not simply low rates
| to others but even a lower special rate.
| As TO THE POWERS OF THE POSTMASTER GENERAL
to fix the rate, Mr.. wanamaker says that the
act of Congress, at least, imposes on that off,
cial the duty to name the rate and maintain it
until in court of inquiry the rate has been
shown to be unjust.
Taking up next President Green's "qualified
statement that no corporations have received a
rate equal to the proposed government rate Of
one mill word" Mr.. Wanamaker says that the
claim made tina.
THE PRESS ASSOCIATIONS
are not corporations is hardly justified by the
| ton. 'You will not deny" continues MIR.
Wanamaker, "that some of the press associa-
| lions get their news reports for a mill word
| to each newspaper, and in one association the
rate is even lower than that. do not critisize
the press rate; it is not too low. 1t would be
better, in my judgment, for the public, the
| press and the telegraph companies if it were
still lower. As to the Associated Press, there
| is force in your statement that it is q whole
sale rate, as 1t were, for the same dispatch sent
| over the same wire at the same time to several
| customers, but it is not true that the rates
given to some portions of the press effectively
| contradict your own statement that for mes
| sages transmitted to a single address the
I government is our only customer enjoying re-
duced rates. By this l presume you mean
| that the government has the lowest rate given
| to any single customer, its lowest rate being
one cent word for day messages and three
fourths OF q cent for night messages, but this
charge is made not only upon the message
| itself, but upon the address and signature as
well, SO that for ten words in message and
| ten words in the address and signature the
above rate is, in fact, two cents per word in
| the daytime and one and half cents per word
at night.
TIVE THAN HIGH RATES.
"1s it not true that the large papers Of New
York, Chicago and other large cities have
half-cent rate for their special dispatches in
| daytime and fourth of a cent at night, or a
rate one-half lower than the government has
| been granted? Is it not true, also, that this
patronage from the enterprising press is the
| most profitable that you have, and that it
would, in fact, give you still more profit if made
| lower? Reduced rates bring increased bust
ness and enlarged profit. Your own testimony
before committees of Congress at various times
has been steadily to the effect that every time
your company has reduced prices it has gained
increased income. This accords with my own
view, that constantly decreasing rate, where
there are large numbers of customers, will
both better serve the public and better profit
| any business. l believe that the new rate pro-
posed for the government would not materially
alter the amount of cash received by you,
while the government would be enabled to
| greatly quicken and vitalize the transaction Of
its business in all departments"
| RATES TO RAILROADS.
| Mr.. Wanamaker further contends that Presi-
dent Green admits that certain railroads or
transportation companies are given shalt COM
| mercial rates." As only the words in the mes
sage In such kilograms and not those in the
| address are counted, Mr.. Wanamaker concludes
| that it makes this half rate to such companies
| at least as low as the government rate, and in
| some instances lower. For instance" he adds,
"a government message from Washington to
New York, containing twenty words in the
message and ten words in the address and sig
| nature. would be charged at 80 cents. which is
ucdIly per cent more tnan the transportation
companies would pay for the same message"
THE COST OF TELEGRAPH SERVICE.
As to President Green's statement that no
message can be carried and delivered by a tele-
graph company for less than 20 cents without
the service being done at a loss, Mr. Wanna
maker says that the cost of Geographic service
appears to be difficult thing to establish def
nitely and that perhaps. in establishing gov
| eminent rate this subject may be best referred
| to commission to ascertain the facts. I'm one
Of your letters" continues Mr.. Wanamaker,
''you put the average cost of message to the
company in receiving, carrying and delivering
! at % 2-10 cents. In this cost do you not in
clude large sums paid for rentals of leased
lines, SOME of which are not now in use, but
only valuable to you in removing competition,
rights of way on railroads and on other ac-
counts which are obviously chargeable to capt.
tai account and not to operating expenses?
THE GOVERNMENT RATES HAVE BEEN TOO HIGH
'Within the past five years." says Mr.. Wanna
maker, ''the public rate has fallen is per cent
and the cost of transmission about per cent,
but within that period there has been no re-
duction whatever in the government rates.
Taking all these facts into account believe
that the government has been paying for its
Geographic service more than any other ems