The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1893-08-06

the telephone are combined in one de-
partment, known as Che Reichs- POstan:,
or as you would call it. the postal depart
ment. DR.. Won Stephan is at its head, and
since 1876 his strong personality has
been bent to this one end, that in the mat
ter of REORGANIZATION the people
shall have perfect service at the mini
mum of cost. His success has been won
derful and his work is the admiration of
the world. His theory Is that effective
service at low rates multiplies business
HIS slogan was Reduce the tariff.
"How Go your tolls compare with the
rates in this country?" was asked.
very much lower. The charge for a
1O-word message to anv part Of the empire
is 80 pfennige. or 12h cents of your
money"
Irrespective of distance?"
Yes. Ii is the same for miles as for
500"
What are the telephone tolls?"
twenty-five cents for five minutes
conversation. We do not take distance
into account You can talk from Berlin
to Hamburg at the same rate as to the
nearest station. We charge Individual
subscribers $50 marks about $3.50 year
for the use of the telephone and there is
no charge for switches"
rs there deficit or surplus at those
rates?'
'Oh, handsome surplus every year,
which is turned into the general treasury.
Lest you may think the charges by your
private corporations are too high as COM
pared with ours. L ought in justice to say
that we operate much of our mail, tele-
graph and telephone system conformity.
In small places one man acts as postal
clerk, telegraph operator and telephone
manager. When we added the tele phone
service we did not incur in many places
additional cost for buildings. employees
and incidental expenses. But. as l said
before. the people Of the interior are bet
ter served than Americans. We provide
freaarms. calls for physicians. weather
for emergencies"
'Do you still string wires on poles ?"
Indeed not. We abolished overhead
wires long ago, not only in cities Tut
| throughout the empire. We employ un.
| dergr0und cables, containing seven hard
copper wires, constructed like submarine
cables and encased in iron pipes like gas
mains. Germany is one gigantic spider
web of underground cables. Main lines
radiate from Berlin to the outermost edges
of the country, and these radiating lines
are joined together at regular Intervals.
Spider web exactly describes the system.
1t is DR.. Won Stephan's chef d'nuvre.
With this network under the earth no
meteorological disturbance, however Sc.
we're, can interfere with the perfect work
ing of the wires from Berlin to any part
Of the realm. No invading army could
cut the wires unless 1t dug trenches over
the face Of the empire.
Occasionally we string wires on poles
in the country, but we use two poles,
strongly braced. to support the crossarms,
much like the bents of a bridge, and we
put up porcelain Dsulators, which proven,
the escape of the electric current. II
seems to me that in this country your poles
are too flimsy and your glass insuators
imperfect"
"Do you think Government control OF
the telegraph and telephone applicable to
the United States ?"
why not? This system is success In
Europe under every form of government
| You must come to it sooner or later. The
people demand the best facilities for inter.
commun ication at the minimum Of cost
and these cannot be secured from private
corporations. but only from the Govern.
ment Itself, and it matters little whether
such Government be monarchial or demo
cratic"
| DR.. Hofmeister Will stay In San Fran
cisco few DAYS and then 60 TO Chicago
where he will attend the Worlds Tele-
graph Congress. which is to convene or
| August %.