Los Angeles daily herald., 1890-03-01
POSTAL TELEGRAPHY.
DR.. Green's Opposition to
the Scheme.
HE SAYS 1T WON'T WORK.
The Western Union Doesn't Relish
the Idea of Having Uncle Sam
for Opposition.

WASHINGTON, February 28.-A numbel
of persons interested in postal telegraphy
assembled in the room of the House
postoffice committee this morning to lis
ten to DR.. Norvin Green, president of the
Western Union Company. Postmaster
General Wanamaker, with Assistant At
torney Generals Tyner, Gardner, Hub
bard, and representatives of different
telegraph companies we're present. DR..
Green began his remarks by discussing
the merits and demerits of European
Government telegraph systems. He said
while in certain instances their charges
were lower than those in the United
States, they were conducted at a loss.
He presented a table showing that the
domestic companies had 18 900 stations
and handled over 10000. 600 messages
annually, against SO, 1000 stations and
LA, ,000, 900 messages in the rest of the
world. The Western Union controlled
ten-elevenths of this business. Western
Union stock was held by $3.50 persons in
the United States, 1,14l of them
females.
DIR. Green believed the United States
Government had no business with the
management of the telegraph service; it
could not manage it as cheaply; it could
not do it better, and none of the senders
of kilograms had asked it. 1t was pro-
posed to make rate of half of the cost
of sending messages, and the deficiency
would have to be made up by the 81 ,000,
600 people who did not use the tele-
graph. The receipts of the New York
office of the Western Union, included
$700,0 annually from poolrooms and
sporting places. A large class of tele-
graph users were Stockholders and spec
ulators. Were those the people who
were to be protected? Were those the
people in whose interests the people
were to be taxed?
If the Government wants to 90 into
the telegraph business it should buy the
lines outright. 1t should not seek to fix
losing rates for existing companies; that
would not be fair to the $500 stock
holders of the Western Union. The
Government would need twice as many
lines as were now in existence to do the
business. Here was a scheme presented
to 60 to 447 postofices where there was
free delivery and where there were
abundant telegraph facilities. This was
the way the Postmaster. General pro-
people. This was the entering wedge of
a movement to break down the present
companies and establish q complete Gov
ernment telegraph, and against that he
protested.
DR.. Green then made a comparison be-
tween the American and English tele.
graph systems, and maintained that our
rates were in reality Gazing into account
free addresses and signatures and the
enormous area of territory covered) much
lower than the English low rates. Yet
it was proposed to reduce these rates ar
bitrarily still lower. 1t would require
81, 1875 miles Of wire to supply single
connection to the 447 places comprised
within the Postmaster Generals plan,
and to do the business practically would
require at least 100000 miles of wire. At
the rate CT press contracts the rental of
this wire would be So 100000. Whoever
undertook to do telegraph business over
this system would do it at loss.
In this country there were more tele.
graph Offices than postoffices; in the
older part OF the country the number OF
the former was SO per cent. greater, and
yet Great Britain owned both the tele-
graph and postoffices. Did that look as
il the Western Union was not keeping
abreast OF the times? Iu North Carolina
the Western Union had telegraph Offices
that did not pay 25 cents in gross re-
oceipts. At the 447 places named in the
Postmaster Generals plan as postal
telegraph Offices, the Government owned
but 104 postoffice buildings. 1t was be-
coming grave question as to whether
it now profited the Western Union to
continue it's contracts with the railroad
companies. Originally they were sources
OF great revenue, but now the railroad
business was increasing to such an ex-
tent that it WAS doubtful if the telegraph
companies (Which handled their business
free) did not lose by the agreement.
The chairman asked how much of their
business the Western Union did in the
free delivery cities.
DIR. Green replied that about 80 per
cent. would cover it; that the business
was more largely speculative than the
remainder of their business, as it would
include the great money centers of the
country.
The chairman said that it was pro.
posed to pay the operators out OF the two
cent charge for the postage stamp. He
would like to know what the operating
cost was.
DIR. Green replied that close estimate
placed it at 3 cents per message; in cases
of long distance messages it ran up to
8 cents. The average compensation OF
frst-clsss operators was $75 per month.
The chairman wished to know how the
rates suggested by the Postmaster Cen
eral compared with the present rates.
DR.. Green replied that generally they
were two-ffths lower. In the case ot
long-distance messages they were one
half lower. The average message was
twenty-one words, Including the addresses
and signatures. 1t was preferable to con-
tinue the system OF free addresses to in
sure accurate delivery. Under the En-
glish system, where the addresses we're
charged for, the addresses were cramped
and the messages frequently failed in
delivery.
To the broad question as to how the Post
master Generals plan appeared to him,
as a business proposition, DR.. Green said
that of course it could be carried out,
but the business could not be done by
the Government or a corporation at a
profit, and somebody would have to
make up deficiency.
Representative Grain wished to know
why, if the bill was impracticable, DR..
Green and the representative OF the
Postal Telegraph Company both appeared
here to contend against it.
DR.. Green replied that it was serious
matter for them. They did not wish to