Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1913-08-21

telephone properties in the northwest
as well as the pending Interstate Com
merce Commission Telephone invest
CATION, have caused many inquiries.
Without taking up anything going to
the merits Of these proceedings, it. has
seemed to us proper TO state generally
what has been our policy and purpose
in the conduct of our business.
We have found or thought that We
had, that our interests were best served
when the public interests were best
served; and we believe that such sue
cess as We have had has been because
our business has been conducted ON these
lines.
We believe that our company has an
interest as vital as that Of the public
in the proper Administrations of the prob
lens Of electrical inter communication
h success and prosperity Of our com
pany depend upon a solution Of these
problems which shall be sound from both
the standpoint Of The company and the
public which il serves.
Following our W best judgment, ana
plementcd by the best Obtainablc advice,
we have cndeavOrcd to DO what would
best serve the public interest; wherever
possible our plarf have been disclosed
to the public in advance. and what has
been done in carrying them out has
been along ordinary buSin s. lines. with
the implied, and generally, with thc eX
pressed approval, authorization or con-
sent of the municipal and state author
tiles directly interested. Our effort has
been not ONLY to obey the law. but ~
avoid everything which might even have
the appearance of an attempt ut evasion
Our business methods and policy. and
practically all of the details rs 20 lh'
transaction Of Our business, are matters
Of common knowledge and are, and lpf
many wears have been, well known 70
the government. We Will Willingly fuf
nish the government any additional IN
formation which is in our posses
sion or under our control, ana
will cordially cooperate with 1t III On
tanning such further information ~ y
NAV require. Every possible assistance
will be given by us to the courts ~ their
enor, 10 determine whether our policy
is or has been inimi"al to the public ~
forest. We desire that anything wrong
he corrected: we will voluntarily rec
tifv any wrong that may be pointed out
70 rs: and. 50 far as it may be deter
mined that our policy or any act under
if i against the public interest. we Will
I'll .nnf,pu, IN eUrh lGtpTtnIIl-
ton.
We believe that if each Of our cNchang
cs were made an Independent unit AhN
if each connecting line were put under
n separate control, the effect upon ING
telephone service of the country WoulG
he ! condition so int0lcrablc that tine
nubIic would refuse to submit to it anG
v.sl5 Immediately require such phNsi
cal connection and common control q
these various units as would alldl4a
mate them into Il single system. IhNSl
cal connection i'm the case OF telephone
or telegraph does not mean transfer 81
messages from one line to the ether. Ii
means such a connection as Will permit
one person 10 have the actual possession
of the particular line If communication
from one end Of it 10 the other and thIS
can only be given efficiently by exchange
systems and connecting lines under z
common control; and this is what the
Bell System is.
In this c%onna"ti0n, and for general IN
formation. we Will rcStatc the policy
which controlled th2 building up of the
Bell system, and our belief as ta what
! telephone should br, am what arc Afr
relations to the public.
We believe in and were the first 10 aa-
vocate state or government control ana
regulation Of puhlic utilities; that TINS
control or regulation should bc hN per
mancnt quaSiiudicial bodies. acting nj
fer thorough investigation and govern
cd bv the equities Of each case; and That
This control or regulation beyond rc
o~uiring the greatest efficiency ana e'oh
omv. should not interfere with manage
ment or operation. We believe that these
bodies. if they are to be permanent Of
fectiye and Of public IS" mn should ht
thoroughly representative; they should
be of such character and should so con
duct their Investigations and dclhtra-
tons as to command such respect from
both the public and the corporations
that both will without question accept
their conclusions.
We believe that the public woultI in
this way get al the advantages and
avoid al the manifest disadvantages Of
public ownership.
We believe that centcrs of business and