The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-05-07

Were Beginning to Do Business,
but Their Rivals WouIdn't Allow
the Transmission of Messages
Using Messenger Service VIII
Run Temporary Wire Down
Town.
While the several commercial bodies,
| the city council and officials have been
hghting for the passage of q franchise
| for the American Telephone and Tele-
graph company which would give the
city long distance telephone connections,
the Mississippi Valley Telephone company
has solved the problem
This company which was granted a
franchise for a local telephone system in
March, 1898. expects to be ready for
business In local way within month
| or six weeks, but on Wednesday next it
will be ready to offer to the citizens of
St Paul and the business men long dis
lance connections with over 100 cities and
| towns in Northern Wisconsin and also
with cities in this state
| The Mississippi Valley company has
completed arrangements with the Inter
state Telegraph and Telephone company
and the subscribers of the local company
| will be given the benefit of the connec-
| lions now operated by the company as
well as others to be put In during the
| season. In order that the business men
OF st. Faul may be given chance at
| the cities and towns now connected by
| the Interstate company the Mississippi
Valley company will open an exchange in
the Phoenix building, at Seventh and
Cedar streets not later than Wednesday
| morning.
AS matter Of fact the business men
of st. Paul avail themselves of the op-
portunity to talk direct to the cities and
towns In Northern Wisconsin and this
state at the present time If the North
western Telephone company would allow
| It but
! OBJECTION IS MADE
to this plan by the Northwestern com
| pany.
| A. L. PreSson, representing the Inter-
state company, was In St. Paul yester-
DAY and In discussing the matter said the
| company had for the past two days been
| giving the business men of st. Paul long
distance telephone connection with the
cities and towns In which his company
| operated. This had been done by bring
Ing line from Hudson to q store at
sixth and Maria avenue. Here an op-
orator was employed and as the pro-
! pr1etor Of the store had q Northwestern
company.s telephone, or pay station. it
| was an easy matter to receive a COM
mun1cation of the line of the Interstate
company and then have the operator
drop nickel in the Northwestern COM
| pany's telephone box and repeat the mes
sage to the person for whom it was in.
tended.
A number Of the business houses Mr..
Presson said, had received orders for
| goods in this way during Thursday and
Friday. but the Northwestern people had
in some way learned of the arrangement
and stopped the business by threatening
to take the telephone which they owned
out of the store.
Mr.. Presson said he could not under
stand why the North western company
should object, as the telephone was put
In on the pay station plan and the pro-
| prtetor of the store, r. D. Reiners, guar
anteed the company ST so per month and
divided equally with it on all money over
tnat sum which was put in the cash box
| during the month The operator en-
| ployed by the Interstatesy company had
dropped nickel In the slot each time
message was repeated to persons In
st. Paul, but this did not suit the North
western people and the plan had been
| abandoned
Gustave Willius Jr, engineer for the
Mississippi Valley company, explained
that the discrimination by the Northwest
ern company against the long distance
company would not bother them long as
temporary line would be put in tween
the present terminus at Sixth a..d Maria
avenue and by Wednesday an Office would
De opened In the Phoenix building, where
1t would be possible to secure copnec-
| tlOn with the t9t{OnS bo re r.
interstate company The Mississippi VAL
ley lines would have been completed IN
the easern part Of the city had the Sixth
Sixth street bridge been open.
| If we cannot get connection or are not
allowed to use the local telephones of the
Northwestern company to repeat the mes
sages to ST. Paul business men," said
MIR. Willius. then we will employ CORPS
of messengers and see that the messages
sent to business men and persons IN this
city are delivered Immediately.
| 1T appears to me-" continued Mr. VIII
Illus. that with all the talk made by the
commercial bodies and business men as
to the necessity and desirability Of long
distance telephone connection that It is
not fair for the Northwestern company
to discriminate against the business In
terests Of the city even If they did against
the Mississippi Valley company.
1T Will however, only be a very short
LILO WllSH slllC MISSISSIPPI alley COM
pany will be ready for local business and
then we can give our patrons the benefit
Of nearly $50 cities and towns which are
not reached by tho Northwestern lines"
Speaking Of the work being done by the
Mississippi Valley company to install its
exchange, Mr.. Willius said a force of loo
men was at work on the conduits and
stringing wires and in about two months
the exchange would be open and doing
business. The board to be used in the
exchange had been constructed and was
now en- route to st. Paul, and by July at
least 1000 phones would be in operation.
| Under the ordinance the maximum rates
will be S4S per year for business tele-
phones within two miles Of the postoffice
and for residence telephones within the
same limit. 500 per year. For each half
mile beyond this limit Is cents per months
additional will be charged for each
phone.
TOWNS THAT IT TOUCHES
The cities and towns which can be
reached by the new long distance ex-
change in Wisconsin are as follows:
Arkansaw, Altoona, Augusta, Alma,
Ashland, Bayfield, Baldwin, Barker, Bar
ronette, Bessemer, Brule, Boyd, Bloomer,
Blair, Cameron Caryville, Cadott, Cedar
Falls, Cartwright, Chetek Colfax, Com
stock. Clam Lake. Cumberland, Chippewa
Falls, Deer Park, DEBORAH, Prairie,
Downing, townsville. Drummond, Dunn
Irfl1 TO,,,,.