The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-01-03
TELEPHONES AT WAR
New Company That Proposes to
Reduce Rates.
OLD COMPANY'S PLANS
WILL FIGHT ANY FRANCHISE
PERMITTING POLES.

the subject of another telephone COM
PAM for Salt Lake and the other i'm
portant cities of Utah is again being agi-
tated- The local promoter of the enter
prise is Attorney Elmer B. Jones He
states that the new company will be
called the Utah Home Telephone COM
pany and that most of the capital for the
undertake. viii come from Chicago. No
names of local men who are, to become
interested win be given out by Mr. Jones
at this time, although he states that
there viii be a number of local capital
lists IN the new company. He argues that
Socd telephone services viii be furnished
AT . very much reduced price from that
prevailing at this time.
VIII Fight Franchise.
The officers of the, Rocky Mountain
y alarmed over the threatened oDDosi-
ton- At The same time they announce
tnat they viii fight the granting by this
c-tN OF any franchise to any new COM
pany except Tor underground wires.
Both Mr.. Wallace. the president. and
9lr, Murray, the general superintendent.
would have ali the wires in the paved
c-@t--2- OF Salt Lake under ground be
IOre the close of the present year and be
-e--1- 10 remove all their poles from the
streets, Not only that, but all the wires
t.@'.- the business center to the Oregon
short Line and the Rio Graude Western
depots would be buried before the year
was out Good progress has already
Deen made in this direction. and the
I-OChy AIOuhtalh company holdS that any
new company coming in at this time
SHOULD be put on the same footing They
Will fight any franchise that does not
recognize this condition.
Telephone improvements.
President Wallace yesterday placed or
derS with eastern manufacturers for 200
~! pounds OF copper wire, TO be used in
this years work This wire costs, laid
down here in Salt Lake, % cents per
pound, $4,000 for the consignment.
The company has also plans prepared
for its new building, to be erected on the
lot Just north of and adjOurning the
present building. This will be an exact
cou@terpart OF the present building and
Will make when completed one of the
hgndSoEest structures in the city This
addition viii cost %25.C0o- The company
claims to have now $4,000 worth of real
estate and improvements in this city.
Two Systems a Nuisance.
On the subject of having two telephone
systems running in the same city Mr..
wallace was very emphatic 1t has
been demonstrated to be a nuisance
Lot. a week ago. They have two Sys-
- there and they are very tired of il
and ready to quit. Every store or office
or institution of any kind that has much
telephoning to do is compelled to have
two telephones, one of each system, and
no one who has never tried II can i'm
a@tne the confusion and troubles that
makes. What would "a man gain if he
got his telephone service for half the
D~-co # he were compelled to put in two
telephones Of different systems instead
of ons?
not the remedy. If the people of Salt
Lake think that they are suffering from
extortion in their telephone tolls they
should compel the present, company to
reduce their rates. They should have a
committee appointed from the city COun-
ell. the chamber of commerce, or some
other institution qualified TO speak for
the people OF the city and make a thor
Ough investigation of the matter before
taking any other step. The books of this
company are open to the inspection of
any responsible man or committee, and
If L IS demonstrated that our rates are
higher than they should be they will be
cut down"