The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1889-11-14
MARKED BELOW COST.
Gould Refuses to Accept Wanna
makers Cut Rates.
EXPENSE or TELEGRApHINe.
II Necessary the western Union WIN Re-
fase Messages and Appeal 20
the Courts.


spondsncs IS made pubic to-day:
.sNgw YcRK. nov. Il.
Hon. John wansnakeF. FostmasEer-ee General
| Washington city--noer Ssr. have your favo
OF October 50. inclosing your ozicial order o
| the same date. purportfng 30 fix the rates 20
| government telegraph servies for the fiscal year
The order has had eli the careful and deIiberas'
consideration thai ali ofsg3ai document FROM
sach high scarce IL entitled 70 receive, ans
after such full consideration the execEuye com
Enittoe Of the board Of directors hss expzs -
itself unanimously in q preamble and resolu
tons. copy OF which inelose 70 you herewith
From the rates fixed Lass gear, which vert
not Eenuneratives your present order mskes a.
average reduction of traction over 20 per Cent
on messages transmitted less than 100 miles
which embrace the larger number Of the gov
crnments messages. The redneiissa is 50 pei
cent, and On trAnscontinens8l messages the re
duction is from % 20 cents each sn the MIN
tmnm messages. or % per cent On the sigma
service Of tho war department.. commonly
known rs the weather reports. the reduction is
one-sixth, or something over l6 per cent
The sta erent upon which YOU presume
that no question can arise As to the sairnegs oil
these reductions IL that The reduced rates
hereby determined are practically the szne a
these upon which one OF the divisions or dc
partmenEs OF your company as well as one Of itz
principal competitors, transacted business for
public generally for considerable
time. The fact that the Mutual
Union Telegraph Company, small
organization belonging 80 this company, did fog
time meet the Baltimore & Ohio telegraph
Company In sending messages short distances
and between q very few points at 10 cents is no
evidence that no loss OF money wss involved.
II yen proposed a rate Of 10 cents between all
points less than 100 miles distant from each
other, the Baltimore a Ohio telegraph system
would have been sold out by the Baltimore a
Ohio Railroad Company as bad investment
long before twas sold, and that rate would have
reduced the earnings OF the Western Union Tele
graph Company below its actual expenses In
that important department Of our business ii
the entire message business OF this com pany for
the fiscal year just clnsed had been sent al the
rates stated in your circular, our total receipts
from that source would hare been about $780,
ooo less than the actual cost
% MS Of transmission of that business. II the
messages sent by the governments were equal In
number for the several distances, the rate
named IN your circular wenld average fifteen
cents for the minimum message Of ten boay
WORDS, estimating free for address aud sigma
ture, but as very much the greater number
would be sent disiauess under 400 m les and at
the lowest established rate Il is probable that an
average Of fifteen cents would allow for two or
three additional body words in each message
II the whole Of the Sales, 2s5 messages sent
age CT ID cents, the aggregate revenue Tor trans
nsfsssssg messages would have been S. Ile.2 as %
Oar total expenses were SiA565. 5i26i After de-
Quoting from the expenses the amount paid
other lines, the refunds and uncollected items.
the rental and operative cost OF our Atlantic
and Cuba cables, the cost OF maintaining leased
lines and the rental for aud expenses Of the Gold
Gold 4 Stock and Commercial News department,
there are still left rs expenditures strictly per
tanning to the handling Of messages. 81, u.s.
56i.12 which the entire revenue az the rates you
name would lack over si,ocg,0o0 Of paying.
Even II the government messages were much
longer than the estimate. and should yield,
which is scarcely possible, an aversre of 20 cents
each. AND al our business were done at that
rate. there would sin be q deficit OF about 81.
O00.000 in this department OF our service. Com
modore Vanderbilt once met the attack of n
competing line OF steamers By establishing
passenger rate Of 10 cents between New York
and Albany. Nobody supposed that 10 cents
was renunerstive rate for 80 long passage
brt the move proved effective because II enabled
the commodore TO buy the competing line with
out paying speculative price for il Such a
course Is sometimes entsilsd by circumstances
on the company.
Competing companies are often formed, not
for business profits, bat 10 force US 20 bay them
out or 10 retire from the field. When such q
competition occurs il Is a transient one, and not
q
seize upon one euch feature, and so far as your
ONCE As an umpire may control, 70 make that
the basis Of a rate 20 be charged on government
business, seems 90 as NOS judicial. bat vindic-
tive II is this view you have taken which we
especially regret Ne may seem TO deserve
repgehensIcn, but the statute under which yon
are working is Judicial and not penal The
award made annually By your predecessors has
sometimes subjected as 10 injustice. but we
could aseribe to erroneous Judgment the fixing
OF rate designed to reFnunerate as for fhe
service, bat which In fact imposed q loss upon
us We have borne the loss IN such cases with
out Complaint. even 70 The wish Of the depart
menfs 10 have the messages sent by them not
confined % the dehnit on CT the statute, but 90
inclnde all their private business.
ssgrpon the present occasion q course Is par
sned towards rs which We consider SO unjust
and 50 well calculated 70 operate nreiadiciaIiy
10 oar general telegraph business that We feel
compelled 60 enter oar earnest protest sKsinst
It, The further course you suggest 81 board
Of arbitration. Is within what We have always
preferred. We have stood ready always 10 sap
ply 70 the incumbent 81 yaHr utiice the fullest
opportunity for searcn into the cost OF the tsle-
graph business ani % accept freely hts In
partial Judgment III you prefer 20 delegate that
Judgment 10 q board composed SIS yal
suggest leaving the rates for this yesT % he
governed by that result va SHALL be glad 20 meet
H. Respecting the personal interviews referred
20 In your letter. regret that there wss mis-
understanding as 70 any positive engagement
10 meet axasn after oar last conference when
We separated ron asked ii yoH should see me
axsin I answered thar ! did not know Of any
good that could come OF o further conference.
but Il found time liz the forenoon OF Me- next
day wcsIa make you short call. TIE next
morning had some business a. car telegraph
Office and on returning % my hotel I learned
going ous IL had t.aeG the least insimxtfon
tia yon inten6ed 70 cad ON me shoald GER
tafnIy have awaited your arrival.
Il have the homer 70 remain. very respectfully
ycers- NeEvfs saEgs,
President Western Union Telegraph Co"
Following Is the resolalieu adopted BY the ex-
erarsye COMMITTEES Novemher6;
"wHKEKAs. GA TIE 18th Gay Of Juas, fsss the
postmaster general Of he Unites states 0fneiaiiy
nnn0upce5 70 telegraph companies that under
flsss provisions OF the act ca Jniy =. 1876. shey
woaid be repaired 70 tFsaannis The stficisI naes.
sages Of fhe Enited STATES for s0m pensss5au Of
one mil Tor each word without FegRr9 10 dis
txnee. q price which coul1 ia no ease he sad 10
compensate the service; sid.
sWHxxKAs, On the Alsh ef October 1885, The
rastEr SISTER general by pu1aic circular set for h
rates A established unaer the provisions Of sid
act, whseA rates are also matsralsy bel0w the
necessary eess 10 this eoaafAnv ard otkers 81
transmitting the messages u TIE Unitea states.
ana.
awnExxax. Tsa roEaptuy Is oalsscl % con.
szeY tEe enf0EernaRnt 81 sk10 rates ~ 4 eonEnca-
ton % SIS property - tbas extent, ana Il adxse
thst tae skTtos-s Injustice uades szsd scs t.
remedial 81 saw
'Reolssz, That this company VIII trAasrais a.
Aeresasere VIII 1as priority sns 1llsEesee, al
ae3exskzns aesween tie several departments q
ia zogagnzsas an1 fhszs af4eees asaE AEenzk