Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1900-03-13
$4,000
Subscribed to the Stock of the Ma
tional Telephone Company by Five
Wheeling Men.

The ordinance of the National Tele-
phone Company now before Council
will come up for final action before
that body tonight. The Company's
representative announces that some
modlhcatlons in the ordinance, which
have been prepared by the Company's
counsel, will be presented in the form
of amendments by friends of the ordi-
nance in Council, and the amendments
proposed include an amendment fixing
the maximum rate for telephones at
$500 for business places and S24.OO
TOR residences; an amendment prohib-
lting any combination with the Bell
Telephone Company under penalty OF
FORGETTING the Companys franchise as
well as its property; and an amend
ment requiring the National Telephone
Company to enter into bond in the
sum of 100000, with the condition
that it will construct and put in oper-
alton telephone system in accord
ance with the provisions of the ordi-
nance. These amendments are to be
offered at the instance of the Company
itself for the purpose of making the
ordinance more satisfactory, and OF
giving satisfactory guarantee of its
entire good faith. The bond to be
given is the bond of first-class Sc
curity Company, The Fidelity & De-
post Company, of Maryland, which
means that if it's ordinance becomes
a law, Wheeling will have new tel
ephone system, or will recover $685.
100000 on the bond.
Being asked by a Register reporter
why the Company voluntarily proposed
such bond, the Company's represen-
tative said: 1--WE offer and propose to
give this bond because we mean bust
ness, and as we fully intend to con-
struct and put in operation the tele-
phone system contemplated, the bond
can't hurt us, and for the further
reason, that we believe there are a
number of applications for similar
franchises from parties who do not
mean business, and we can't believe it
possible that the Council would reject
our ordinance with such a guarantee
of good faith, and let it go to any
other parties without a like guaran-
tee; in other words, our idea is, that
this will close the door against any
applicants who want to get a telephone
IL ohShAoO III euC dIpOSS III
it. There are numerous parties who
would be willing and anxious to take
franchise from the City and who
will go even SO far as to give the City
a small bonus if they can get fran
chiso, intending to afterwards
sell the franchise to the highest bid
der, but our experience has been, that
those who want to speculate in fran
chises of this kind are never willing
to put up a bond as guarantee of
their good faith. Our reason for pro-
posing the amendment against COM
bination with the Bell is, that there
has been more or less rumors to the
effect that some of the applications
made, are inspired by the Bell Tele-
phone Company itself, and it is well
known that the policy of this Company
has been to destroy competition by
combination with its competitors; our
company is an independent company
and intends to compete with the Bell
in Wheeling and in many other cities
| where there are independent compan-
les, particularly in Pittsburg. where
the independent company is also own
ed by Baltimore parties, therefore we
are proposing this proposition prohib-
iting combination, IN order to guaran-
tee to the people Of Wheeling perma-