Hutchinson gazette., 1900-10-04
GOVERNMENT TELEGRAPH.


Under the caption probable Tel
egraph Consolidation" the Kansas
City Star snys;
According to the statement of Rus
sell Sage--a large stockholder in the
Western Union Telegraph company
there has been informal talk of the
consolidation between that company
and its chief competitor, the Postal,
hut no definite propositions have been
made, Rumors Of this sort have nj
ways preceded former consultations,
and II Is not impossible that within
a few months the great telegraph and
telephone companies may be united,
as predicted by the Electrical Review.
These institutions have attained their
present size by series Of consollda-
tions. II would not be strange II this
policy should continue.
"A combination of the three largest
Telegraph dnd telephone companies
would form n corporation of enor-
nous size. Last year the Western I'M
ion controlled more than 100000 miles
of land wire and had $4,000 Offices.
IL sent Gl,250,OOO messages, for which
IL was paid $2l,OOO,O0O On capital
stock Of about $lO0,OO0,0OO il declared
a five per cent. dividend 1t has been
in existence nearly 80 years. The Pos
tal company, It's young rival, with n
capital stock Of $l5,OO0,OOO, controls
10000 miles Of wire and handles 49,
100000 messages annually II paid
dividend Of eight per cent. last year.
The American Telephone and Tele-
graph company which includes the
BELL company, owns 09S,000 miles of
exchange wire and Is capitalized at
Si00,000,O0O. The Bell company's Ia
test dividend was Is per cent.
"The consolidation Of these compa-
mics would mean the placing of 1885,
900 miles Of wire under one manage
ment The length of telegraph wire
alone in the combination would be
twice as great as the combined lines
OF Germany and France. The consol-
idnted capital stock, II IL should not
be further watered, would be nearly
S21500O,OOO.
"a consolidation would doubtless re-
duce the expenses of operation. Prnc-
tically ms many telegraph operators
would be needed as at present, but
the services Of some OF the other en-
ployes could be dispensed with. There
is always danger that monopoly
will cause higher charges TO the pub
lie and less efficient service. This
would he the apprehension which
most people would feel II the consoli-
dation should become fact. The
combined companies would be able to
give better and cheaper service than
at present. The question is, would
they do II without government inter
derence?"
II the rumored consolidation ia
really perfected, It will create huge
trust which will virtually be a mo-
nopoly, In private hands, OF public
function, for the telegrnphic service
of the nation is, in fact, component
part of the postal service, There is
already In force United States law
giving congress the power to con-
demn the telegraph system for public
use and operate II as u government
monopoly, And when the time ar
y Eives, as arrive It will, for this action
TO be taken, II will be better and
easier to deal with one consolidated
concern, than with two independent
systems. Then we shall have one more
''good trust" For there can be such
a thing as n good trust, as the follow
ing from the Stars campaign forum
will explain:
"Are there any good trusts? II 80,
name some.--J. A. Vath,
Yes, the post office, The difference
between II and the trusts we are OPP
posing is that all the people are inside
this trust and get the benefit out of
it. In most other cases, however, but
a few stockholders are inside and mo-
nopolize the benefit while levying trib-
ute upon the rest of the community
willie 4 Abbntt -