The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-06-29
POSTAL CABLES SCOOP.
Adding to It's Lines ut Western
Unions Expense.

AdainE 20 Its Lines at Western
Unions Expense.
An agreement has been made be-
tween the Postal Telegraph-Cabl
Company and the Pennsylvania Rail-
road Company. under which the Pos
tai company acquires the exclusive
right to transact commercial tele-
graph business on the lines belonging
to the railroad system east of Pitts
burg and Erie, Pa, and to string
wires on the railroad cOmpany's poles
and rights of-way. The agreement is
expected TO take effect July l, and
the transfer of offices to the Postal
companies win be made as rapidly ms
possible after that date. 1t is under
stood that similar agreements, COW
ering the remainder of the railroad
company's system, viii be put in force
as soon as the existing contracts with
the Western Union Company expire.
The agreement will add to the Postal
system all offices and the telegraph
lines on 4,745 miles of railroad in
populous and important section of the
country. This is the most important
and far-reaching deal ever made by
an opposition telegraph company. 1t
not only takes away from the western
Union and gives to the Postal large
revenue from commercial telegraph
business but incidentally will put the
Western Union Company to heavy eX-
pense in removing its pole lines from
the railroad rights of way and rebuild
ing its lines in other locations.
Although this is perhaps the most
serious blow that the one time mon
cpoly has ever received" said Mama
ger Hughes of the Postal Cable Com
p&ny lit is not the only recent one.
The Postal Telegraph and Commercial
Gable Companys victory in connection
with the Pacific cables, in which fight
the Western Union Company is said to
have expended large sums of money,
involves the loss to the Western Union
of very considerable future revenue.
Even the Cuban cable fight, although
nominally victory for the Western
Union, really resulted in loss to them
because it compelled a heavy reduction
of rates"
1.-The Postal Telegraph and CONNER
cial Cable Companies comparative re-
cent connection with the new German
cables and also with the Halifax and
Rermudas and direct West India ca
bles have resulted in diverting very
considerable business from the older
company" said Mr.. Hughes. THE
will also result in large increase of the
Postal Company's business. The Postal
has within the past two years made
substantial gains in various other di-
rections, notably in the acquiring of
branch offices in all the principal hotels
of the country. The company has re-
Gently opened offices in every important
hotel on the st. Lawrence river and
has made numerous connections with
railroads, particularly with roads ex-
tending into the newly developed
copper and coal producing territory
in the South and Southwest. 1t has
also won numerous condemnation suits
in various states, thus establishing it's
right to construct its lines upon rail-
road rights of way and uying the
most valuable exclusive feature of
Western Union Railroad contracts. 1t
has also within the past few years Sc
cured lonP-t term leases in the most de-
sirable locations in the larger cities of
the country, and has completely re-
fitted its offices in those cities with new
and improved apparatus, and is expend-
ing over 100000 per year in the rapid
extension of its lir.es in all directions"