Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 1886-1927, 1906-04-13
TELEPHONE MONOPOLY
WANTS THE EARTH
Pacific States Telephone Co.
Opposed to Farmers Organiz-
ing Telephone Company.

Owing to the determined opposition
of the Pacific States Telephone Com
pany the effort to secure rural tele-
phone service for all sections of Jose.
phine county with free switching
with Grants Pass and between the
various independent lines is likely to
be killed off for the present. This
movement though will be but post
poned for complete telephone system
for Joseph inc county with no switch
ing charges is surs to come aud in the
near future too. The Pacific States
Telephone Company, which is a
branch Of the great Bell Telephone
Company. has at present complete
monopoly of Josephine county and a
perpetual franchise in Grants Pass,
for which they have not paid dollar
nor do they pay to the city per cent
of their gross income for the right to
use the streets as do most of the indie.
pendent companies now getting fran
ch ises. This monopoly enables them
to charge Grants Pass subscribers
81. 25. 81. 80 and 81 per month for tele-
phones, whereas in towns and cities
where they come in competition with
Independent companies the Bell COM
psnies make the rate as low as 81 a
month.
There are two reasons for the Pacific
States Telephone Company opposing
the formation of independent tele-
phone companies in Josephine county.
One is that they want to retain all
their pay stations that are profitable
and these embrace the Merlin aud all
the north and west sections of the
county and those in the Illinois Val
ley and at Wilderville. The line up
Applegate has not been profitable as
Mr.. Oium, their local manager has
stated, and as the poles are about de-
cayed they are anxious to lease it to
settlers of that Valley. They are
anxious to get in rural lines in the
vicinity of Grants Pass that can be
built by the farmers as a neighbor-
ho'd undertaking and not by an or.
gauized company. When Grants Pass
gets a strong commercial club and the
farmers are we'll organized through
the grange then will it be possible
to secure a complete telephone system
for Josephine county and this neces-
sity of modern business and home life
can be had at reasonable price and
free from switching charges
The meeting at the Leg school house
last Saturday evening to consider the
matter of organizing telephone com.
pany for the west and north part of
the county was we'll attended but no
definite action was taken. Another
meeting though will be held this
Saturday evening to further consider
the proposition. At the meeting Sat
urday evening, Mr.. Meserve, Of the
Courier, presented the proposition of
organizing a company and of securing
through these companies complete
telephone system for the entire county
and free switching for all lines. Mr..
Oium, county manager for the Pacific
States Company, opposed the formation
of company alleging that it was an
unnecessary trouble TO the farmers and
that it was only scheme OF Mr.. Me.
serves to enable him to make few
hundred dollars. He said he would
help the farmers TO put up their lines
and would sign up individual con.
trac ts with them for telephones. G.
II. Durham, who had bern the attor-
ney for the farmers in the oraniza-
tion Of the Applegate Valley Tele-
phone Company, was present. but a.
the attorney for the Pacific States
Company and advised the farmers not
to organize a company, but just to club
together and string wire to town
and that Mr.. Oium would install their
telephones for them. Fred Eisman,
Hugh DeArmond aud J. W. Mcconnell
each mace short talks, but no decision
was arrived at and the meeting ad.
journed to meet again this Saturday
A meeting will be h Id this Saturday
afternoon at Merlin to consider the
organization of telephone company
for that secion Of tthe county.