The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1911-03-28
THAT is ONE YEARS ESTIMATE
OF CONVERSATIONS BY TElo-
PHONE AS HAPPENING.
OVER 100000 MILES WIRE
At Little over Two Cents Con-
versation According to Report OF
President Theodore N. Var OF
American Tel. and Tel Co.

in seven thousand million conversa- |
tions during the year over the twelve
million miles OF wire of the American
Telephone and Telegraph company, at
an average cost of a little over 2
cents a conversation, is brought out
in the report OF President Theodore
n. Vail, just issued. The work OF
providing telephone facilities for the
American public through the Bell sys-
| TEN has been carried forward with
such zeal and energy that there Is
now one Bell telephone station to each
sixteen of the total population of the
United States.
In discussion OF the popular belief
that large corporate combinations are
supposed to be owned or wholly con
trolled by some one man or some few
men, President Vail states that these
are made up OF thousands and tens
of thousands of silent partners or
shareholders who are the real own
ers.
The report points out that the num-
ber OF shareholders of the American
Telephone and Telegraph company,
on December 81, 1910, was 40,3S1, an
increase in the year of 4,55S. "ol
these, 40,0S7 held less than 1000
L
shares each, 266 held from 1000 to-
5000 shares and 2S held 5000 shares
each. The total holdings in blocks
Of 5000 or more We're less than 10 per
cent of the total stock; less than s
per cent OF the stock was in hands o,
brokers, and the majority of stock
! holders are women"
Corporate organization and comb
nation" the report states, ARE the
necessary and logical solution Of the
problem of caring for the wonderful
development which has been going on
all over the world, and particularly
| in this country, in the recent past.
"The large capital requirements
necessary to conduct business on mod
ern lines. place modern Industrial
enterprises either beyond the finan-
cial ability OF any one individual, or
| far beyond the amount that any one
individual wishes to have in any one
venture"
Touching on the question of public
control of public utilities, the report
expresses the belief that public con
troll or regulation of public service
corporations has come and come to
stay.
Control or regulation exercised
through such a body has many advan-
tages over that exercised through reg
ular legislative bodies or committees.
The permanent commission will be a
Quasi-judlcial body. 1t should be made
up of members whose duty it will be,
and who will have the desire, the time
and the opportunity to familiarize
themselves with the questions com
|
after thorough investigation and be
governed by the equities of each case.
1t would in time establish a course
of practice and precedent for the guild
ance OF all concerned.
Experience also has demonstrated
that this supervision should stop at
control and regulation and not
manage, operate nor dictate what
the management of operation should
be beyond the requirements of the
greatest efficiency and economy.
Such control and regulation can
and should stop all abuses of capital
ization of eXtortion or of oyer-charges
of unreasonable division of profits.
II there is to be state control and
regulation, there should also be state
! rotection-protection to a corpora
! ton striving to serve the whole com
munity (some part of whose service
from aggressive competition which
covers only that part which IS pror'
table.
Government control should protect
the investor as well as the public. II
should insure to the public good serv-
ice and fair rates. It should also in
sure fair returns to the investor.
! Through a wise and judicious control
and regulation all the advantages
without any OF the disadvantages OF
state ownership can be secured. and
state ownership doomed
Dwelling on the relation between
the telephone system and the tele-
graph system, growing out of the con
tractural relations OF the American
Telephone and Telegraph company
the Western Union Telegraph COM