El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-02-03

. 4
satisfactory charges made By. the tele-
! graph companies led to a nationwide
I propaganda in favor Of their control
by the government Gladstone, VINO
was then the head Of the ministry,
D yielded to the demand, with the result
| that the government acquired the tele-
graph properties Of the country There
( followed a 40 per cent or more reduc-
ton in the charges and a 100 per cent
| Increase OF business.
Cheap in Australia.
One gets an interesting comparison
Of government owned telegraphs in
Australia and the United States Aus
tralia has some $4,000 miles of tele-
/ graph, with 5000 telegraph offices, or
one for every 1900 people. The mes
sage rate IS u cents for 10 words IN
l town and suburban service, is cents
within the state and "A cents through
out the entire federation. The average
inhabitant OF Australia sends two ana
One-half messages year The area OF
the United States is approximately the
same as that OF Australia We have a
telegraph office for every 5000 inhab-
itants and we send about one message
a year for each inhabitant-, Our aver
age rate for Geographic service Il sew
eral times higher than that obtaining
IN Australia.
Think It Would Lower Rates.
It IS the contention OF those who
advocate the government ownership OF
the telegraph that II would result in
much lower rates, and that this If turn
would vastly increase the telegraph
business Of the country and make II a
popular method Of quick cOmmun1ca-
ton Tor social intercourse as well as
for business transactions. 1t is claimed
that BY substituting automatic trans
hitting and receiving tnstrum entS the
capacity Of heavy trunk lines could pc
forced up to from 1900 to 5b,UOU
words an hour. The telegraph COM
panies in the main still stick to the
assertion land the operators saw that
this gives them capacity enough TO take
care Of all the business coming their
way. It is ccntended by the advO-
Gates OF government ownership that oy
the installation OF mechanical sending
and receiving devices the government
could reduce rates, perhaps even TO une
point Of cutting them in half All Of
which is denied By the companies
Growth Of the Present Systems.
The expansion OF the telegraph Dusl-
ness Of the United states from the
pioneer line between Baltimore and
Washington, costing $4,000. and falling
to pay even a third Of the cost OF oD-
Grafton into a gigantic industry with
assets amounting to more than three
hundred million dollars, and making
money so fast that IN a single year one
company created q surplus OF over two
million dollars. after interest and dfvi-
dend charges had been met. constitutes :
one Of the most remarkable chapters Z
in American progress
Yet with all this expansion OF lines 7
and growth OF business the rates 7
charged are higher today than they
were IN 1876 In those days, 2 mes Z
sage Of 10 words from Washington to /
Baltimore, cost 10 cents a message
OF 80 words cost 20 cents; a message
OF 100 words cost So cents Today q b
message of 10 words costs % cents
a message OF 30 words IS cents, ana 4
a message OF 100 words S2.O5 The
average cost per message in the United Il
states today. among the commercial ,
Telegraph companies, is approximately
a cents. It was estimated in 1872 that p
a message OF p words could be handled &
to any part Of the United States for
- cents. The average message in the I
Shlteu states today IS said TO be abOug
The subject OF the telegraph was
first brought to the attention Of con-
Representatives passed a resolution in .
structing the secretary OF the treasury .
to report on the prOpriety Of establish
ing system OF telegraphs- In 1913, I
congress passed an appropriation
measure, making available $4,000 for
the construction OF a line from Wash
ington TO Baltimore. and $4,000 for its
maintenance during the first year OF
Its operation BY a clause in the post
Ornce appropriation bill in 1915 the
telegraph was placed under the control
OF the postmaster general where il
remained until March IL 1S47 In
1876. Cave Johnson, then postmaster
general, announced to congress that
ne was convinced that the telegraph
was a financial failure. He said that
while it was highly desirable that il
should be kept under government con-
tr9i ne dlG not believe any rates OF
tolls could be fixed which would serve
10 make the revenue of operating the
telegraph equal the expenditures He
reported that during a year and q half
Of operation, the revenues amounted
TO S2.S12-5S. while the expenditures
amounted TO S9.9O6.66. OF more han
four times the income. A portion OF
lnlS consisted OF the annual salary OF
s.. 900 paid TO professor S. F. B. Morse
the inventor OF the telegraph. which
was not fairly chargeable to ordinary
operating expenses
The Vail-ROEers Deal.
In the latter part OF 1916. postmaster
general johnson decided that it would
be the part Of wisdom for the post
office department to get rid of the
burden Of carrying the postal teIe-
graph Therefore. he made q deal with I
Alfred Vail and Henry l. Rogers. pro-
riding that II they would assume the ,
hem the entire income Of the line until
he following March. They accepted
he proposition. and thereafter con-
sEesS would make no further apprO-
lriations for the operation OF the line !
sometime later professor Morse and his
associates were able to raise $4,000 I
With which they built a line from I
Philadelphia TO New York. It viii be
een from this that the line between ]
ne latter cities cost s166 a mile while
ne line between Washington and (
When the matter of the telegraph {
vas first brought up in congress, il g
vas deemed a question hardly worthy I
u serious consideration. When the a
proposed appropriation Of $4,000 for O
he building of the line between Balti- a
more and Washington was pending, C
ONE one offered an amendment that
ne-half OF the sum asked for should
'e devoted to experiments in mes
lerism- This amendmeut was declared
~ the presiding officer to be wholly
ermane TO the subject. Some years
alter professor Morse and his associates
greed 10 sell the patent rights Of the
elegraph to the government for $780,
10; Congress refused to entertain
uch a proposition, although 25 years
alter 1t granted a subsidy of 100000 81
one telegraph company v
WanamalSer Favored Control. q
One or the principal arguments ad-
anced IN favor Of the government
Wnership Of the telegraph is the fact
nat at present only very small per +
ehlage OF the people OF the country
van! themselves OF the means OF com ii
lunlcat-on IL affords. In 1892, post y
ldster general Wanamaker came out a
excessively in favor of some method 81
Z ansnnH HnHa