Omaha daily bee., 1902-12-07

OeIleNe that it wi,
be a complete success. Our govern
ment is taking in the railroads. w,
have already three Of the five principa
lines and we shall in time acquire the re.
mainder. We do not want to make meme,
out Of the railroads., nor by them to in.
crease the government revenues. We arc
operating them for the good of the people.
The earnings will be applied to improving
the service, extending the lines and to
chcapcning transportation. This we are now
doing, and we can continue to do so and at
the same time make such profit that the
whole cost of the roads and the interest
upon the debt will be paid back within
sixty years, and the roads then belong to
the government free of inCumbrance.''
President Zemp told me something as to
the extent of the roads. There are now
about $500 miles of rails and 200 miles of
tramways. One of the queer propositions
in regard to the lines is to run them bv
electricity. AS now constituted the roads
require $1,000 horse power. and it is Csti-
mated that double that power will be
needed for a high-tension alternating cleo
trio current system.
The engineers have ALREADY figured upon
it, and they find that there are twentv-one
waterfalls in the Alps already used for
electrical generation, which can produce
5000 horse power. The engineers estimate
that it would take $50, OOO, 900 to apply this
power to the railroads. and hat in addition
II could run numerous factories.
At present Switzerland is operating its
roads with coal brought in from England
and the continent. It is thus entirely de-
pendent upon outside countries. and if its
foreign coal supply was cut off its rail
rDaHg would gtpn Tho p,ottor ig q, ,,,, L.,
portant one, and I understand some Of the
parties interested have applied to the gov
eminent for the right to build an electric
standard gauge railway twelve miles long
for experimental purposes. THIS will prob
ably be granted, and, IL a success. it NAV
lie that the waterfalls OF the Alps aill haul
the trains up and down the sides of the
mountains.
Switzerland finds that /. pays the govern
ment to own the telephones and telagrauhs.
President Temp told me that they were
operated without difficulty, and that the
government administration Of them had
proved satisfactory. The telephones nero
are connected with the Postomce depart
ment, and almost every postonlce Is a tela-
graph office as we'll. The country is small
but it has 31S central stations and more
than $4,000 miles OF wire. In 1900 there
were more than %, 600, 600 conversations
and the telephone receipts were more than
double those Of the telegraph. amounting to
1900 coo. This is so Notwithstanding the
telephone rates are among the lowest OF the
world. For certain distances It costs YOU
less than a cent a message. This is the
charge in towns and cities. You can have
a telephone in your house or business place
Tor fror1 $40 to $50 a year, aud you can send
"a long-distance message to any part Of
Switzerland for 10 cents.
The telegraphs are equally cheap. A
message costs you 6 cents as a ground tax.
and in addition only 1 cent for every two
words; that is, a message of ten words TO
any part of Switzerland costs II cents, a
message of twenty words 16 cents and Of
fifty words 81 cents. 1t costs only . cents
a word to telegraph from here to Germany
or France in addition to the 10 cents,
which is the ground tax charge for the for
eign service.
Telephones have been used in Switzerland
Ter more than twenty years. The Bell tel
ephone was the first instituted, but after
that the Swiss began to make telephones
OF their own. The government took charge
OF the service in 1856. buying the instru-
ments and wires OF the private companies.
The usual number OF calls now allowed is
500 to each subscriber, and all beyond that
are charged for at the rate Of l cent each.