The evening times., 1896-05-14
Mr.. DELANEY 'SlRGUM{NT
In Favor of a Government Postal
Telegraph System.
BEFORE SENATE COMMITTEE
He Declared That Present Opposition
Against the Plan Is Utterly Falla-
ciOus With Respect to the POSSIBLE
tiles of Teiegraphy-Thc Speed Now
Maintained Over Wires.

Mr.. Patrick b. Delaney's argument be-
fore the Senate Committee on Postoffices
yesterday, in favor of a government postal
telegraph system, was full OF interesting
facts regarding the growth OF the busi-
ness. He said in part:
Whatever force or legitimacy the pres
ent arguments against postal telegrapES
may have had twenty years ago, they are
utterly failacious with respect to the pos
sbilities OF the state of the art today.
AT that time the telephone was struggling
desperately for a fOOthold. The quad
ruplex system had not much more than
half the efficiency that it has today.
"hultiplex teegraphy, whereby SIX Morse
circuits are obtained over single wire,
was not thought OF. The English Wheat
stone system uf machine transmission was
a poor affair in its own country, and was
not in use here at all. Copper wires,
which have increased speed over - per
cent, had never been tried Operators
salaries are about 40 per cent lower, and
the necessities for postal teleGraphy have
grown in scope and imperativeBess con-
currently with the increase OF population
and the desire for quicker faci.ities.
Twenty years ago the highest average Of
TRANSMISSION over Il single wire was by the
quadrupIex system, about H,ty words per
minute, the telephone was unly thought OF
for local use over distances o: a few miles.
Now II Is practicable To telegraph 1900
words minute betwe Sew Iork aud
Washington, aud 600 words per minute
between New York and Chicago, while
the telephone carries speech l 800 miles.
A PRACTICAL VIEW OF IT.
"Mr. Chairman, the question OF coustitu-
liz
liucal aspect OF the underta king, the OBJ
jeCtions ON the grounds OF centIanzation
and paternalism have all been considered,
discussed and passed upon by many Of the
foremost men OF the nation, and their CON
Clusions have been cited in connection with
the subject in and out of Congress ever since
the beginning OF teegraphy, over fifty years
ago.
statistics of all kinds have been placed
upon record and are before the committee
III connection with this bill. 1t would there
fore be useless for me TO deal with these
matters. assume that what the committee
want to hear are such facts as | can give
founded Oh practical knowledge ana ex-
pcricnce, bearing upon the pract!Cability
OF cheaper telcgrapby.
In this undertaking am met al he very
outset by 4 difficulty which would gladly
avoid II possible. II may be said that as an
inventor liberal allowance must be made for
anyciaIm thati may make eforlmprovernents
in telcgrdphiC speeds. l can only say that
If fmystatemeDtsa are notalready sufficiently
substantlated by actual results obtained
over regular lines, and by demonstrations
over experimental circuits, in the presence
Of able experts. II Will be an easy matter
to support my claim by further demonstra-
ton.
In view OF what has alread been done,
however. do not think that any telegraph
electrician Will dissent from these PROPOSE
tions.
SENDING 900 WORDS A MINUTE.
with machine transmission and chemical
recording, by the method referred to, over
copper wire weighing $50 pounds TO the
mile, and with an ordinary current power,
such as is used for quadruplex working,
900 words per minute can Toe plainly rts
corded over distance OF ! 600 miles. or
say from New York TO Chicago, and over
such a line 2,5OO words per minute can 10
plainly recorded from New York 10 WASH
ington, and bet ween other points through
out the country in the same ratio, according
to distance.
Last October, over an actual line having
but $50 pounds of copper wire to the mile,
Philadelphia to Harrisburg and return, 2l6
miles, $40 words per minute were plainly
recorded In dots and dashes, the current
used being but l20 volts. This trial was
conducted in the presence Of a board OF well
known electrical experts.
With this system : 900 words per min
ute have been recorded over an expert
mental line. This would be an impractical
BILE speed for regular work. as the trans
mittIng tape must pass through the ma
chine at the rate OF % feet per second,
or impulses recorded at the rate of 2,500
per second; but it goes To show the possi-
bilities of the latest development iu ma
chine telegraphy.'
Mr.. Delaney gave careful statement
OF he cost Of building aud operating
copper wire line from New Yorkto Chicago,
aUI showed, at the rate OF l = cents per
message OF fifty words, allowing twenty
words for address and signature. the profit
on 16, i5l messages n day would be $780,
679 a year. This allows employees So to
$3.50 for eight hours work.
There are he continued, "about 4O,-
600 letters per day exchanged between
New York and Chicago, and about 5000
kilograms. exclusive of press 0ispa tChes, and
large amount of telephoning. Communi-
ations of all kinds would doubtless average
go 400 day.
Ir 8 reasonable to estimate that the low
-.--g. . cents for fifty words in the body
H- % .r-srge would secure more than one
quarter 60. re traffic, and should the busi-
ness rN York and Chicago alone fall
rt'a" -.- Cgt4 ity of = f"-' system on
rva wia-. ru. Hcss .sies-r. 4 to New
Eo.s and tli. -u g. 1e uaii,i to points
...aEt. Y- & hs.'rfss .u Da often from
.aru Jai,s wo..G sure all the
I-g rtat ths EiIe= ould carry.
T. IERS WY NOT TEL LEGRAMs?
Ttl'rIa., .Hpoas - of postal
amy Ha.t rau'tGttt thst it would
rr1a.r Tor G., LgT -fgWesf % engage in
..ag-Cp- iu opposition 10 Existing lines
J. which private 0tr.t-i s. yested No
auit BE- fHunG s1 cnE @, ms, steam
Loo fs ,s-i horse are ,"l1f.a..t lively slow,
.ae .vlTnE. companies El ing eXclu-
atFa use ct electricity i"f ,Irying mes
-l E'f have frpn g- ru .,s, rom these,
tgf II n wd-e possible - un electric
moll trains frfu New York t' Chicago in
fNe iUiilI r. would iuu ne ia-' graph COM
phnles have as tUucb -iEat % complain of
such service .sS they no." ave to pro.
,'s. EAihst pasLaA fele srEg And should
the government ~ -Hrsci.lt ice restrict
ne MAIL service ftf pres al steam time
Of over twenty ''uss 70 to protect
NE 'clcErapt -1raf;r h their Ut
tyfIg Unnecessary ht-- 10 a.. Are not the
mails actually C3.riCii now ~ electricity
over number OF rGill', . ys nd trolley lines,
HUt ulT 10 large c!iiCs?l
'.'lt Is rELf tharfAei government should
use cIrrclt'as the maSIve nower to carry
lctTCT5, why not Use fHo current to carry
the essence uf The ieJteIs7 Does the differ
cnCe Ic between the Eager pIlp and the
click OF the Souuder, aa Jriginal manu-
SCRIPT, aud the lyCurieSl dot md dash, or
trc spoken word 10y tciephcne? If the