The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1907-03-16
The Cumberland Telephone COm-
panY's Plea in Self.Defense.

i
ton Hello Trouble at Monroe. which
is here reproduced in order that the
response elected from the general man
ager of the corporation subjected to
severe criticism in the article may be
more fully understood and the merits
of the defense better judged by imme-
diate comparison with the terms of the
arraignment:
There is good deal of rivalry between the
Home and Cumberland telephone companies at
Monroe. and the local newspapers seem to have
taken sides in the scrimmage. the Star lining
up with tbs Cumberland concern and the News
championing the cause of the home Institution.
After reviewing the circumstances attending
the Organization of the local company and
citing the beneficial influence it has exerted in
keeping down rates and preventing abuses that
are SO common to public service monopolies,
the News pays its respects to the Cumberland
/ in this vigorous fashion:
| The. Cumberland Telephone Company is the
| most greedy, grasping and avarlcious cor
poration in the state of Louisiana. The Lou
isiana RailroadC commission has declared that
| it gives more annoyance and trouble than all
/ the other corporations in the state combined.
The history of its operations in the city of New
Orleans is one OF infamous monopoly and Ok.
tortion and in the smaller cities and towns of
the state lie only of less degree because of the
| limitations of its opportunities More money
has 6een saved the people Of Monroe 6y keep.
bounds than they have lost or ever will lose by
denying it any privileges that it is within the
pale OF the law to deny.
To this scathing denunciation Cen
eral Manager Leland Hume makes the
following reply:
MEMPHIS, TENN. March 8, 1907.
EDITOR CHIEF, Donaldsonville, La:
Dear Sir-We are in receipt of your edition of
recent date containing editorial entitled
Hello Trouble at Monroe and we note that
you Copy an e1tr ct from an editorial of
the Monroe News, which undertakes to deal
with the Cumberland Telephone and Tele-
graph Company in strong terms. We simply
have to say in reply that we are conducting
legitimate business. This is one of the few
corporations that I have any personal; in
innate knowledge concerning that Is operat-
ing on stock and bond basis which securities
represent only actual money invested By the
stockholders in the system-in other words, we
do not pay interest or dividends on any watared
stock or bonds. Therefore our rates are fixed
at prices that only return reasonable in.
terest to the stockholders on the money that
they have invested in the business. During
the company's history Of twenty-four years, il
has paid an average annual dividend of about
6A per cent. Surely. this is not very much of
reward for those who have risked their
money in the enterprise. 1t has paid them
fair price; it has conducted its business along
conservative lines; its management invites at
all times most thorough investigation of its
afF air hn
has right to an intimate knowledge of its
operations. As to whether or not the situation
at Monroe is satisfactory to the people we need
not express an opinion. We simply have to
say that this company has the bulk of the
patronage at Monroe, and it is charging for its
service in that city just the same amount
exactly as it would charge were it the only
company in the field. The absence OF the other
company would not change our treatment of
our customers in any particular or respect.
Therefore, the question as TO whether or not
the presence of the other company, and the
amount paid to it each month By the people of
Monroe, is burden or thing that is calcu.
lated to work to the interest of the city, is a
matter for others to answer
Yours truly LELAND HUME,
General Manager.
In the interest OF fair play and free
discussion The Chief is glad to give
space to Mr.. Hume's letter and to &C.
cord his defense OF the Cumberland
corporation the same publicity and
circulation that were given to the crit
icism which he essays to answer.
Whether the reply can be considered
satisfactorily responsive to the in
dictment ITO borrow legal phrase
is question that the general manager
may or may not have considered and
may or may not care to discuss.
Concerning local conditions at Mon
roe we have no knowledge save that
CLEANED from the press of that city and
Mr.. Hume's letter, and We leave that
part OF the subject for discussion and
decision by those familiar with il. It |
may be suggested, however, that the
general managers statement would |
have possessed more interest for and |
received greater consideration from
the public at large and particularly |
from the patrons of his company if it /
had included an explanation OF the ne
cessity for charging so much higher
rates for telephone service at some
places than at others, and why COR
poration conducted on the legitimate,
judicious and ingenious policy claimed
for the Cumberland by Mr.. Hume
should have become amenable to the
official accusation that it gives the Lou
isiana Railroad Commission "more
annoyance and trouble than all the
other corpor atoms in the state COM
bined."
The River Ferry Question Settled.