Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-12-10


telephones on his desk, is the question
which Salt Lake has undertaken to
work out for Itself.
Should this city, like others, find from
It's experience that two telephones are
an unnecessary burden. and that COM
petition cannot reduce rates without
reducing the value of the service, added
expense must still be carried for the
two plants have been installed and
there Is no reason 10 believe that either
company VIII cease doing business
While the introduction Of the several
telephone systems Is lrreyucable there
Is a great mistake which the business
men may make II they do not consider
the question fairly and broadly When
they begin to feel the burden OF two
telephones It Is natural for telephone
users to call for an arbitrary reduction
OF rates, hoping TO get two telephones
at the price OF one II this could be
done It would be the worst possible
thing for the business men OF Salt
Lake, because It would mean lin
itlng Of the number Of telephones con-
nected with either system, ana conse-
Quently "a restriction of The opportunl-
~ for profit 10 the user and every con-
ncction is an opportunity for profit
Take the case Of the Rocky Mountain
Bell Telephone company, which al
though II has the lowest minimum rate,
has the highest maximum rate, Its
schedule may be susceptible to some re-
arrangement In detail but In the main,
Its plan Of rates Is the result Of the
combined experience OF the Bell COM
panles during the last Is or 30 years.
They have discovered that by the fair
est possible distribution of the cost Of
telephone service IN proportion to It's
usp by the subscriber. more people viii
be induced to put IN telephones ana
the value Of the telephone service
thereby increased
The Bell companies have carried tele-
phone facilities within reach Of 5O,OOO,-
600 Of the American people and are
spending 100000 OF new money
month 10 reach the rest Of the popula-
ton.
IL would Ne possible for the Rocky
Mountain Bell company to charge one
Nat rate for an subscribers, but that
would mean that the smaller users
would pay for their own service ana a
large share Of the service of the big
users The small users who could not,
or would not, stand this injustice would
drop out. and instead Of public utl-
lty, Salt Lake would have n limited
utility, which onlv the comparatively
rich could enjoy The small users hav-
Ing learned the value Of the telephone
would not submit to this deprivation
but would naturally induce thlrd
telephone company 20 begin operation
ON plan that would place telephone
facilities within their reach. This third
company would be confronted with the
same problem neither n limited rate or
a limited list " subscribers
This paralyzing condition need not
h. feared aH II Ia reasonably certain
that the Hell company viii not abandon
a plan which has given Salt Lake 1000
telephones an actual use, and mas lnaue
IL possible for one person IN every Ten
TO become a subscriber
The telephone business Is peculiar IN
two points, namely that an increased
number Of customers means Increased
expense for the service given each
customer and an increased value-or
the service 10 each customer The
business OF All the Bell companies II
being developed along those lines with
the assistance Of the American Tele-
phone and Telegraph company which
il more commonly known as the Bell
long distance company. This is tho
company which has strung nearly q
million OF miles Of copper wire Tor
long distance talk, and which IL now
building the FIRST telephone line across
the plains to connect the Rocky Noun
tain region with the central west ana
this parent company, as II Is called, Is
a majority owner I'm The 30 odd local
companies which make up the Bell
system. This long distance company
maintains a force of over 1850 Of the
best engineers IN this country, who are
constantly trying TO improve the APP
paratus, the construction and the SER
vice OF the Bell companies.
The Rocky Mountain Bell company
calls upon the long distance company
freely Tor any engineering assistance
q needs Just "a Il calls on II Tor money
needed for improvements and extern
slons. The long distance company
also has q large force OF expert ac-
countants. whose services are avail
able to the local companies without
expense
Through the factories Of the West