Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1890-03-01
the urgency deficiency bin for printing
J 800 additional sets Of the new map Of the
Chickamauga battlefield
TALKING TeLEGRAphY.
DIR. Green Enlightening the Government
ny telegraph 20 the Dlspaich.l

| Western Union Telegraph Company. Post
| master General WanaInaker, with his as
sistant. Acknowledgement Tyner. Gardiner
! Hubbard, and representatives Of different
| telegraph companies were present. Dr.
| Green began bis remarks by discussing the
merits and dement's of the European
governmental telegraph systems. He SAID
| that while IN instances their charges were
| lower than those IN the United States they
were conducted 40 a loss. He presented u
| table showing that the domestic compa-
MES had 1900 stations and handles over
! C0O0.0W messages annually. "a against
5000 stations and $4,000 900 messages IN
! The rest If the world. They had more than
| half ~ the entire mileage OF the world. The
/ Western Union controlled ten olcvenths Of
| this business. Its stock was held by $3.50
| persons IN the United States. and 14l Of
them were females.
| Dr. Green believed that the United States
/ Government had no business with the man
agement of the telegraph. IL could not
| manage u as cheaply; IL could not do il
! better, and none Of the senders uf teie-
/ grams had asked II. IL was proposed TO
/ make the rate one half Of tie cost Of send
| ing messages. and the deficiency would
| haro 10 he made mp by the 81, 0OO. 600 peO-
/ pie who did not use the telegraph. Their
! ccllts of the New York Office Of the West
/ cru Union included S70O,0 600 annually from
! pool-rooms and sporting places. A large
! class of tclegraph-uscrs were stock hrOkors
! and spectators. We're those the people
| who were 60 bc prOtcctedY We're those the
! people in whose interest the people were
/ 20 ho taxedI II the Government wanted
/ % 60 into the telegraph business II should
/ buy lines outright. IL should not seek to
I fix losing rates upon the existing cOmpa-
! mics. That would not be fair 10 the 800
! 50 Oc khOidtrs Of tho Western IniOn. The
.
/ lines rs were now IN existence 10 do the
| business. Here was scheme presented TO
/ go tO4f7 post Offices whore there was free de-
/ livery. and where there were abundant tel
I cgrsph facilities. This was the way the
/ Postmastcr-Gcncral proposed 10 supply the
/ Moods Of $500 900 people. This was the
/ entering wedge of the movement 10 break
/ down the present companies and establish
| % complete Government telegraph, and
against that be protested.
! Or. Green then made a comparison be
/ tween the American and English telegraph
| system. and maintained that orr rates
/ were iu reality (taking into account the
| free addresses and the signatures and the
/ enormous area of territory cOVercd) much
! lower than the English low rates. And
/ vet lt was proposed 10 reduce these rates
arbitrarily stlll lower. it would require
! II .Slj miles OF wire 20 supply single con-
uoctiou to Az places comprised within the
J J. ostma-tcT-Geucral's plan, and 10 do the
business practically would require al Ie1st
B 10000 miles OF wire. At press contract
rates the rental Of this wire would be-
| @1.C00.OJ0 Whoever undertook To do tele-
glph business over tins system would do
! -, ~ loss. IN this country there were more
/ telegraph Offices than pOSt-Ofiiccs; IN the
/ older part If this country 1t was % per
/ cent greater, md yet Great Britain owned
/ both the telegraph aud pOst-oihccs. DID
fhat look as IF the Western Union was not
| keeping abreast If the times? In North
! Carolina the Western Union had telegraph
[ offices that did not pay 70 ccuts day ln
! gross receipts. At the AZ place named lr
Observation-Disclosures plan as telegraph
I .ifoes the Government owned but Jos
/ pY.t-ofiico buildings. 81 was becoming @
/ -rav. question "a, to whether II now pfont-
/ t,l fl. western mon tO continue ITS con-
F turs with the railroad compamcs
/ Originally they were sources Of great reye
/ luc. But now the railroad business WA
increasing 10 such AN extent that II was
/ doubtful If tine telegraph company, which
I handled their business free, did not lose
/ lv the agreement. The Chairman asked
/ h0v much of their business the " cstcrn
/ lH.Ou did in the irco-dcliyrTY Wlrcsf
! ir. Green replied that about 20 per cent
/ would cover 10. That business was more
! largely speculative than the remainder of
/ the,r business, as it would include the
/ Great money centres Of the country.
The Chairman said that it was proposed
/ t0 Il. tle operators out OF tho tWo-ceut
/ charge for the postage stamp: be wOnld
! bike 90 know what the operating cost was.
Ir. Green replied that close estimate
/ placed 10 at three cents per message; IN
/ ra4e. of long hstancc messages 1t ran Upto
/ nine cents. The average compensation OF
I mtclaes operators was &7J per month.
/ The Chairman wished to know how the
/ ", t..- suggested by the Po-tma-tor-G General
/ compared with the present rates.
/ Dr. Green replied that generally they
/ were two titths lower. In the case Of LONE
| distance messages they were one hall
/ lower. The average message was twenty
/ one words, including addresses and sigma
! lures. IL WAS preferable TO continue inc
/ system If free addresses 10 insure accurate
/ delivery. Under the English system, where
] The address WAS charged tor, the addresses
were crampcd and messages frequently
| failed I'm delivery. To the broad question
n4 to how the Iostmastcr4 GENERALS plan
| apu,.rci 10 him as q buSlucsS proposition,
} Dr. Green sm1 tlat OF course IL could be
/ carried ont, but the business could not be
/ done by the Government or by "a corpora
| ton M profit, and somebody would nave
/ 10 make up the deficiency.
! Representative Cram wished 70 know
why, If the bin was impractcablc, Dr.
| Green and the President of the Postal Iele-
! graph Company both appear here to con-
/ tend against %!
Dr. Green replied that il WAS n serious
matter for them. They did not wish to be
| placed in competition with the United
/ States Treasury. The Government could
aiOrd 10 bear the loss.
! MIR. Grain: But the bill don't provide
/ for that.
pr. Green: 1t will have to provide for
| that. Nou VIII hc asked for AZ appropria-
tom within "a year.
Mr.. Grain remarked that if no company
/ would contract with the Government the
/ bin could 10 them no harm.
The Chairman at this point interviewed 20
say that DR.. Green did not appear nj bis
own instance. bat at the request OF the
committee. But the Doctor, continuing
! his reply 10 Ar. Grams query, said; Why
l.it that the British Government, having
/ had ~ telegraph system for twelve or fit
! teen wears. paving operators hall our saia-
ries with the system placed IN an open
| country in "a small area thickly populated,
! ostiug about one fourth OF the cost OIL our
/ system 20 maintain why was II that that
! Goycrnmont ind resisted the attempt TO
/ lower the shilling ratey And why had the
/ postmagter-GeutIal. after resisting the at
| tempt for year and a half, finally agreed
/ 20 only a slight reduction? IL was because
/ the receipts OF the system lacked SloV'OOl
/ of paving interest on the cost of the plant
/ al per cent.
Mr.. Anderson, referring to the Postmas-
! ter-Csencral's bin said that II did not con-
/ template the payment Of large salaries to
/ officers.
Dr. Green dryly responded that If he
! wanted q do telegraph business he wonlt
| hive 10 pav somebody TO look after II, and
nav them well too. After ALL what mat
| tered itY A salary of $4,000 per annum
amounted 70 a charge Of about one tenth
/ Of cent per message on the Western
/ Unions business. II the P0stmasttT-uehe ne
/ rers rates wore adopted by the Western
/ Mon It's receipts would fall Just three mil
! lion dollars below the expenditures every
AT this point the committe adjourned to
meet Tomorrow. when DIR. Green VIII con-
/ tinue his statement.
| oil NuCIEn CORTH