The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1892-01-12

SApCClCo 1OIShU IICSu Jill LIN Wv
farmer would be saved a needless trip
of his wagon over bad roads. News
OfapprOaching frOsts could be prOmptly
distributed through the country DIS
tricts and many a valuable crop saved.
These may seem homely purposes to
jewellers in cities, but they would de
prive country life of some of it's draw
backs and be a boon to a portion Of
our population who claim that they
bear their full share of the burdens of
government and receive less than their
share of its benefits. 1t comes, too, at
a time when they r disposed oaSsert
and maintain their right to be better
considered in a distribution Of the ad
vantages Of governmental favor. For
this service, it might well be provided
that for telephone messages within the
county Or for a distance of less than
fifty miles, the charge would be only
two cents. A system similar to this
now prevails III Austria and some other
countries. The postmaster could very
easily keep his accounts either by the
use of stamps or by a nickle-in-the
slot, attached to the instrument 1t
the telephone is not now adopted by the
government some gigantic corporation,
some vast syndicate, will be sure to
utilize it and when hereafter govern
ment shall be forced to take it up for
the public service, Congress will be
waved off as trespassing upon private
and vested rights, as is already the
case with the telegraph.
The use of the telephone would de
prive of validity the only arguments of
any weight which have been used
against the adoption of the telegraph
by the postOftice. These arguments
are:
I. That the telegraph would be used
by 5000. 600 OF people. and that the
other 81, ZOO, 600 would have to pay for
it. Aside from the fact that the tele-
graph here, as in England and else
where, when used by the p~ostoffice and
placed at a moderate uniform rate
would a q profit, we have the al
ditiOnal fact that by the adoption of
the telephone at country ~pOstOffices
the rural masses would be users of the
new agency Of inter communication as
we'll rs the business men Of the cities.
2. 1t is urged that the number of en-
plOEeFs of the government would be
vastly increased. This argument, too,
loses its force, if it has any, by the ad-
ditiOn Of the telephone. For all dis
taGCHS under two hundred miles the
telephone can be used and the present
pOStmaStFrS can of course use them
\ IA" tricgf aph centres, one or two
for each State, could be established.
to which al lOug-aiatance messages
would be SEN 30 be there dispatched
by telegraph. At these centres there
would be a staff, more or less large, of
OF operators. but the civil service rules
would apply IS they already do 10 the
same pO6roffices The annual Increase
in the number IF p0stmasters and post
Office employees bv reason of the in
creased service is about 5000. For the
reasons above given it may be doubled
if the addition Of the telegraph and
telephone to the pOstOffice will add
more than the present natural increase
of one year. Besides. this increase
will be at centres and will be altogether
of civil. service a~ppOntGes and non
partisan.
5. The argument as to the expense of
delivering messages would also be
destroyed by the use Of telephones,
since in country districts the message
would simply go to the postOfice, and
in towns and their suburbs the univer-
salty Of private telephones which viii
come into general Use on the expiration
Of the telephone patent, would make it
easy to deliver messages; besides, gov
eminent could and would have numer-
GUS telephone sub pOstoffceS in every
place of size.
The Western Union and its champions
always adroItly couple opposition to
governmental ownership of the tele
graph with its ownership of railroads
This Is to avail themselves of the strong
opposition and the fOrceful reasons
which can be given against the latter
measure. But the two measures have
nothing whatever in common. Gov
eminent ownership Of telegraphg and
telephones is within the constitutional
provision and does not concern the ex-
tension of governmental authority to
new subject matter, but it is the simple
adoption of proper facilities for the
postal service commensurate with the
progress of invention. No argument
can be used against it which would not
be equally valid against the admins
tration of the pOstoffice itself by the
government. Yet we may we'll believe
that if the mail were handled by the
same monopoly it would not be as salts
f~actOrily done as at present and post
age would be as high as telegraphlng is
now.
Whatever the dement's or merits of
the cry raised in some quarters for
government ownership of railroads, it
has no connection with this matter. If
railroads were used solely for the pur-
pose of transmit ing mail matter, the
case would be parallel and the govern
ment could take charge of them under
the power to establish post roa6s. But
railroads r used mostly for the con
veyance of passengers and freights,
which is foreign to the purposes Of the
pO~stOficP, and to the extent that they
can be used for mail purpose govern
ment does take charge of them and as
serts It's exclusive right. If railroads
it must be on some other ground than
as post roads, for in that capacity they