The evening times., 1898-12-19
FIGHTING THE BELL
TELEPHONE SYSTEM
LOWER PRICES AT MANY POINTS
Rates Continue High at New York and
Reductions at inter-.
mediate Points.

Washington-Reducti at Inter.
mediate Points.
New York, Dec. 19.-AH around New
York city a telephone war is raging
There is now competition In most of the
smaller cities within a radius of seventy
five miles. The Bell monopoly. wherever
this competition has arisen, has been driv-
en- from its high rates, and now New
York, Philadelphia and the New England
cities are practically the only places of
Importance that are subjected to extor-
tionate rates. 4-t
New York is ripe for competition If it
up by the Bell monopoly, and that COM
petition will come whether relief is af-
forded by a low rate telephone bill at AL
bany this winter or not. In Boston the
initiative has been taken by the board of
aldermen in granting a franchise to a
rival corpora tion. In Washington, D. c.,
Congress has decided 10 act and is now
considering bill which cuts the Bell rate
from SIS to $50 per annum and provides
for the sale of a new franchise if the Bell
does not accept the reduction within thirty
days
But New York still lags, and the largest
user pays $40 year, and the smallest
user 10 cents, under the measured rate
fraud system or 90 l-3 per cent more than
is charged at pay stations
j. +. keelyn, of the Western Telephone
Construction Company, yesterday gave
out these facts concerning the telephone
war in the neighborhood of New York:
There Is now competition by means of
exchanges Independent of the Bell in all
the towns of Importance between New
YORK and Washington, excepting New
Brunswick and Philadelphia. Work is un-
der way on independent exchanges in all
the cities between New York and Boston.
and including Boston. If a foothold could
be got in New York city the Bell company
would be forced first TO reduce rates: Sec
ond, to furnish phones free. and third TO
go out of business
Let me tell you the experience In New
Jersey. There are independent exchanges
In Jersey City. Newark. Paterson. Pas
sale, Elizabeth. Bound Brook and Tren-
ION. Further south there are indepeudant
exchanges In Chester West Chester and
ooatesfllle, Pa, and in Wilmington. Del.
But l will speak of New Jersey first
In Elizabeth the Bell company when
the independent exchange was started
had 229 telephones. It has 800 now and
the independent company has 400 Before
competition came the Bell company
charged 500. The new company charged
SD Tor business and s25 for residences
The Bell fell TO s2l for business and sIS
for residence, but it is actually furnishing
telephones free 10 persons who have or
dered them out. The Bell is practically
driven out of Elizabeth
In Newark the Bell Company had
800 telephones, and charged sl20 a year.
A new company was started but made
the mistake of putting in too cheap a
plant The plant has been rebuilt. and
2.@)o telephones are in operation while ar
rangements are being made for ., 100 more.
The new company charges SIS for an un-
limited service. and the Bell came down
to $40. Soon the Bell will have nothing
OF real value in Newark but its long dis
tance connection.
'The independent exchanges in Paterson
and Passaic will soon be connected with
Newark There are 600 independent tele-
phones in Operation in Jersey City and
900 in Trenton.
Chester. Pa, furnishes a good exam
pie of what can be done. Chester is a
suburb of Philadelphia. The Bell COM
pany has Do telephones. and charged $50
per year. After one year the new COM
pany has 800 telephones in operation,
>
dences, has paid dividends regularly. and
its stock is 25 per cent above par. The
Bell company is giving service away in
Chester.
within the next two or three years
I look to see the long distance business in
the East revoutioniZed. Long distance
lines will be run everywhere. The public
has no idea of the profit of public pay sta
tions in the city of New York, where the
bulk of messages are 10 cents each.
There are now LOCO pay stations in the
city, and the average income is $1,000 a
day, or about 100000 a year.
'sThe receipts at the Imperial Hotel pay
station are $50 day. or $2l, 900 a year. The
receipts in the Astoria are-about $50 day
and at the Fifth Avenue about the same.
Even the Astor House pay station has an
income of 500 day.
Persons are incredulous when / tell
them there are 5000 independent tele-
phone exchanges in the United States. but
that is the truth IL