The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-07-22
TRACE 1T TO THE PHONE.
Talking lover Wires Reacts Upon
Many Lines of Business.

Talking lover Wires Reacts Upon
Many Lines of Business.
How Easy Talking Over Long Distances
Has Taken the Profits Away From
Railroads, Hotels, and Telegraph
Companies-Say Advancing Science Is
In Part Responsible for the Depression
From Which They Arc Now Suffering.
(Chicago Tribune.)
The vaguely expressed but so.called
hard times is not alone accountable for
the lax ty of business that for the last
three years has weighed upon various
commercial lines all over the country.
There are prominent men in several lines
OF business life in Chicago today who
trace large part of the business depress-
Ion in their particular branches to adj
vanc1ng science-that advance of science
which is embodied in the long distance
telephone.
Prominent officials of railway and tel e.
graph companies, as we'll as palace car
corporations and hotel proprietors, say
there is no doubt of the truth of the as
sertion that the present long distance tele-
phone service is of great disadvantage
and injury to them. There are many in
actually point out incidents in which the
telephone has caused them loss of trade.
OF leading official of one of the largest
corporations in Chicago was asked the
other day the familiar question:
"How is business with you nowadays9"
well it is pretty bad,' was the re-.
Spouse.
what is 1.-THE same old story of hard
| times?"
''No; it is the long distance telephone, !"
was the reply. EDO you mean to sayl the
telephone is actually hurting your bust
ness?''
That is just what I mean. The tele-
phone is actually having an astringent
effect upon travel. There can be nc
question about it, I am confident it has
worked injury to every railroad, palace
car company, and hotel in Chicago, and
moreover it is probably taking away much
business from telegraph companies,
| Only two or three officials of promi-
hence were to be found who were inclined
to view the matter in a conservative light
and who thought that in the long run the
telephone service was of little or no dis
advantage to their lines of business.
Most of the General Passenger Agents
and higher officials of the railroads have
been worrying over the matter more or
less for long time, but since it is a prob
lem which affects competing roads in the
same degree 1t does not cause the trouble
which it perhaps otherwise would.
SAVES TIME AND MONEY.
It can cause little wonder that if man
can save the time and expense of trip
to New York by spending five minutes
and SO at long-distance telephone he
| will choose the latter 1t would require
two or three days and an expenditure of
almost 500 in railroad fare and hotel bills
for man to make business trip to New
York fl ON Chicago and back again By
the use Of the telephone instead of his
trip he can save $50 or 800 and the two or
| three days time. This, in a nutshell,
explains what has hurt the trade of the
railroads, palace car companies, and tele-
graph lines. 1t is simple question of
the economy of time and money, and in
these days this economy question cuts
large and impol tant figure A number
of the most prominent railway, telegraph,
and palace car magnates and officials and
leading hotel keepers express themselves
freely on the question.
There can be no doubt that the long
distance telephone has been the cause Of
the loss of much business to the railroads
of the country, especially of the middle
West and East, % said Benjamin Thomas,
President Of the Chicago and Western In
diana and Chairman of the General Man
ayers association. Nowadays people
reduce everything in the nature of bust
ness to the cold, hard lines of necessity
and economy, and if man can save time
and his money by telephoning from his
home to the people with whom he wishes
to communicate, why, you can wager
that he is going to use the telephone every
time it is going to suit his purpose just
as well az would trip to the point with
which lie wishes to communicate. All the
railroads in Chicago. at least all those
running to large Eastern cities, would
probably tell you exactly the same story
| that the telephone has invaded the do
main heretofore occupied solely by the
railroad. 1t may be little bit hard on
the railways, but as far as I can see there
is no way to stop the encroachment of the
telephone"
AFFECTS PALACE CAR COM
PANIES.
~ think there is little question that
the long distance telephone is hurting the
railroads and hotels,' said VicePresi-