Virginian-pilot. (Norfolk, Va.) 1898-1911, 1900-10-24

At special meeting of the Commit
tee on Telephones at 5 O'Clock yester-
day afternoon there were present the
following members: Messrs. j. q. Til
ton. chairman; Oberndorfer. Pannili.
kiernan and Bcaman.
There were present also the repre-
sentatives of the Southern Bell Tele-
phone and telegraph Company, Messrs.
Crews, Wilson and Wilcox. and City
Attorney Taylor, and n number of citi
zens. interested in the telephone queS-
ton, including Messrs. Goode & Tay-
lor attorneys, representing the Viz
ginian- Pilot.
The meeting was an adjourned meet
ing from that held two weeks ago, at
which the Bell Telephone Company
agreed to have u representative of the
company here to-day. who could eX-
plain the rates and give other specific
information in regard to the company.
y communication from Mr. &. f..
Bonney. of the Southern States Tcle-
phone Company, was received, as fol-
lows:
SOUTHERN STATES ABSENT.
Norfolk, Oct %, 1900.
Mr.. r. e. Steed, Clerk of the City
Councils, Norfolk. Va.
Dear Sir: 1 have just been advised
by the secretary and treasurer of our
company that it will be impossible for
any of the officers OF our company to
be present at the meeting of the Tele-
phone Committee of the City Councils
on the $50 instant. as indicated in your
letter TO me of the 18th. Very truly
yours,
C. +. BONNEY, Manager.
QUESTIONS IGNORED.
The questions that had. been arranged
for the Southern Bell Telephone and
FOL 4, VI,
withdrawn and then ignored.
They were never referred to after
wards. The attorney and manager of
the Southern Bell Telephone and Tele-
graph Company talked about every
thing else except the expenses and
profits of the company, and the reasons
for increasing the rates.
Mr.. Pannill said that there should
be an open meeting. The questions
propounded should be withdrawn, Sc
opinion. The questions promised con-
fidence. Will not agree TO ask any
questions confidentially.
Mr.. Wilcox introduced Charles II.
Wilson. general manager, of New York.
TO make a statement why the telephone
rates We're raised.
MIR. CHAS. III. WILSON.
In answer to questions propounded
by Mr.. Tilton, chairman of the com
mittcc, Mr.. Wilson said that he was
the general manager of the Southern
Bell Telephone Company, and had been
with the company for going on four
years. The reason for the advance in
business rates for telephones was in
Stigated in my Office, and was for the
purpose OF providing sufficient revenue
to operate the business in Norfolk.
The business has been operated here
at loss and we have adopted the
same schedule of rates in Norfolk as
are in force in her places of the same
class. namely, Savannah, Ga. Charles
ton. S. c., Augusta. Ga. Mobile. Ala.
Macon. Ga, and other places OF the
same class for the same kind of SER
vice. or substantially the same service.
The trend of the telephone business
everywhere is to adopt Il system of
rates for service. having an elastic
schedule and charging for the service
so that the small user Of The -telephnnn-
can have telephone, and the larger
user will pay rate commensurate
with the value of the service in COM
parison with the small user.
RATES ANALYZED.
Our ordinance specified that we
won't charge less than they do here:
we do not think they charge twenty
five dollars for the same class OF SER
vice.
/ do not know that we made the
first cut in the price of residence
phones; it was before | was connect
ed with the company. My understand
ing is that they have been charging
just as little as we have.
Now. so far as our twelve dollar rate
is concerned. we do not understand
that that does undercut that rate. be-
cause they do not furnish that class
of service, and we have put that rate
in Norfolk on account of the compe-
tition here. We are using that in n
great many places in exchanges in our
territory. I do not admit that we will
lose anything on the twelve dollar rate.
l expect to put twelve or fifteen on Il
line. and ] will get one hundred and
twenty dollars out of that line. or any
one of those lines. They are only used
occasionally.
KITCHEN SERVICE.
This is the most misunderstood thing
| ever saw in my life. That scheme
originated in San Francisco. They call
it Kitchen service" and they have
used it there for five or six years,
and it began by putting up telephones
in stables. and kitchens and places like
that for ordering stuff. Now it is be-
ing pretty generally used all over the
country, and in places where we get
enough people in one locality who want
that service we are willing to supply
that kind of service.
That has become very popular: ]
think in Atlanta we have maybe.
thirty-one hundred subscribers sta
tions. and perhaps one hundred Of
those here.
HOT COMPETITION.
We have red-hot competition in At
lanta. made statement before the