Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1889-07-30
TELEGRAPH TOLLS.
The Western Unions Protest Against
the Government Rate OF One Mill.
1t Claims that the Order is Virtual Confscation
of the Property, and that Tolls
Should be Increased.

| menC messages, giving the history anu
objects of the act of 1866, and the actions
heretofore taken under 1t. The rate in
| force for the past five years has not been
uniform rate of 1 cent per word, as
many papers have assumed, but increas-
ing on scale of distance above a thousand
miles with a minimum of 20 cents per
message, maximum of 212 cents per
word. The telegraph companies hold,
and are so legally advised, that the
language of the. act does not give the
postmaster general absolute power to fix
any rate he may deem fit. That power
is qualified by constitutional restrictions.
In article 8 is the language:
"Nor shall private property be taken
for public use without just, eompeusa-
ton. -
The power depends, therefore, on the
question, is l mill per word just COM
pensation?
THE PROTEST.
Hon. John Wanamaker, Postmaster General.
DEAR Shuttle G5, Revised Statutes,
embracing the acts OF July "a, 1866, and
of June 10, 1872, was the outgroWth of
the first efforts to induce congress to es-
tablish a government telegraph. A
scheme was pressed before a committee
of congress 20 incorporate a new tele-
graph company by the general govern
ment with which the government should
contract to transmit kilograms al a price
to be agreed upon, the government re-
ceiving and delivering the messages and
Abeing the only party known to the
patrons of the telegraph. This scheme
was justified on the ground that the gov
eminent had ne right to take existing
Il
on terms acceptable to the companies
that owned them, and the scheme was
objected to by the telegraph companies
then existing on the ground thatt e gov
eminent entering upon the telegraph
business at rates that would not
pay expenses would destroy existing tele-
graph properties, 1t resulted in a COM
promise between the telegraph cOmpa-
MES and the committee of congress, of
which believe the lamented Gar
field was chairman, giving to the tele-
graph companies certain franchises and
privileges and to the government certain
advantages and privileges. including
priority of service, at rates TO be annually
fixed by the ostmaster-general, and
what was deemed at the time of the most
Importance to the government, the right
to take existing telegraph properties of the
companies who accepted the provisions OF
the act at an appraised value, to be as
ceTtained by arbitratOrs, as described
in section 5267. This comprO-
mise agreement was enacted into
law, subject to formal acceptance
by the telegraph companies and their ac-
ceptance filed with the government, rem
dered 1t to all intents and purposes a
compact between the government and
the telegraph companies, the operation
OF which was intended TO be that the
government should have the right tOstake
all telegraph properties, and that if it
should elect TO establish a government
telegraph it should take existing tele
graph properties on terms to be ascer-
tanned as the law directs. This section,
52G7, Revised Statutes of 1873, ammo
tated as being enacted June 10,
1872, giving the government the right
to take telegraph properties, is in
substance the same language az the
proviso at the close OF section 3, of
the original act of July "a, 1866,
and, therefore, q part of the comp act
accepted by the Western Union tele-
graph company in June of 1867.
The fixing Of rates by the postmaster
general-This does not appear to have
been considered an imperative duty on
the postmaster general, for no action
seems to have been taken by that officer
in the direction of fixing rates
until July l, 1871, when the
necessity for it was alleged TO have
arisen by reason of the complicated
character of the service in transmitting
the signal weather reports. A confer
ence with the telegraph companies was
invited by Postmaster Cresswell,
through Capt. Howgate, the acting head
of the signal service, and discussion of
the subject was had it Washington,
President VIM. Orton, representing the
Western Union telegraph company, and
Dostmaster-g general, having the assist
ance of Assistant Attorney General
Whiting and the head of the signal
bureau, and the rates were fixed salts
factOrily to the telegraph companies They
were not annually revised until some
years later, and in almost every instance
the telegraph companies were consulted
as to what they could afford to do the !
service for. In two instances POstmas- |
ter General Jewell and Postmaster Gen |
eral James, at the instance of the tele- |
graph companies, recalled and modified |
their orders after they had been officially |!
proclaimed. The language OF the act |
that messages between the several de- |
paTtments of the government 'Shall |
have priority over all other business, at |
such rates as the pOstmasteT-g6neT |
shall annually fix may be construed rs !
contemplating the fixing of higher rate |
than is paid by other patrons, because of |
such priority in transmission over all |
other business. Certainly it never con-
templated comforting the power to fix the |
rates below the actual cost of the service.
Such action is nothing short of cOnfisca-
ton and appropriation of the property |
ana services of employees ''to the use of
the government without just COM /
pensatiou therefor - The rate as last
fixed, 20 cents for twenty words,
or less for q distance of 1000 miles or
less, and lie for each additional word and
I-I0c per word for each additional 100
miles or fraction thereof, is for distances
of about one thousand miles Gas between
Washington and New York and st. Louis
or Chicago scarcely one-haif the rate
paid by the public on current messages
for distances of 500 miles and under. 1t
is about three-fourths of the COM
mercial rate. Our gross receipts
for the last fiscal year, as
shown by the annual report, were
SO, Ill, lG+ 10, and the current working
were Sl4 GAO ,592 Is. leaving the
profits S., 900 ,57l "a, out of which $780,
258. 80 was paid for interest and sinking