The Cairo bulletin., 1913-12-20
SENATE POSTAL
MEMBERS favor
j. 5. OWNERSHIP
OF WIRE LINES
Board Will Later Be Called Upon TO
Pass on Recommendation of
Burleson
SECRETARY OF STATE IS
SILENT ON PROPOSITION
Vice. President Carlton of the w. U.
Tel Co., Says Uncle Sam Not
Prepared for Job. r

Washington, Dec. l9---The propo.
sltion looking to government owner
ship and control of the telegraph and
telephone lines of the country is ap-
proved by influential members of the
Senate Committee on Postoffice and
Postroads, before whom the recon-
mendations of the Postmaster Gen
eral will be referred to action.
Among expressions gathered today
were The following:
SENATOR MARTIN OF NEW JER-
SEY--l have been in favor of this
plan for many years. | advocated 1t
on the stump and in letters to news
papers. 1t is desirable from every
point of view This government
should absolutely control all means
of communication between the people
of the United States. favor it al
SO from an esthetis point OF view
We are spending millions OF d. liars
annually for good roads, planting
trees along highways and in the
streets Of our towns and villages that
add to their beauty and to the COM
fort Of the people The private
monopolies that how control the
wires that ramify the entire country
destroy or damage these trees and
perform acts of vandalism wherever
they go If these natural decorations
happen to interfere with their wires.
SENATOR LANE Of Oregon-l
favor public ownership of these two
great public utilities if we do no.
have to pay too much for them.
fairly appraised and with all the
watefed stock squeezed out, it would
be good thing for the government:
and the people.
SENATOR Chiffon of West Vir-
ginia-lf the government can obtain
the wires of both these corporations
at fair valuation and be fairly delt
with, | would be favorable to the TAX
ing over Of both the telegraph and
the telephone and give the people the
benefit of the reduced cost that surely
would follow. .Ofseeurse, there would
have to be a thorough valuation OF
all the properties and the interests Of
both the government and the pres
ent owners considered.
SENATOR KENYON of Iowa
Public ownership of the telegraph
and telephone companies would meet
with my approval. Properly safe
guarded, the transaction would be
beneficial to our people. We would
have 20 see to it carefully that the
government obtained the real and not
the ticticious value of what 1t bought.
1t would be a good thing
SENATOR BRISTOW of Kansas =
favor the general principles. The
only ching that would make me
hesitate is the fact that under the ad
ministration of the last two Post
master Generals the postoffice has
been political machine If by leg
islation we can create and enforce IN
the postal department a genuine civil
service like they have in England, |
government ownership would be a |
bIaccip,v 70 tho oo,,ptr,.
REPRESENTATIVE CARY of Wis |
consin.--I have been urging govern
ment ownership OF telephone and |
telegraph lines for several years. |
approve the report of the Postmas-
ter General in this particular.
REPRESENTATIVE LEWIS of |
Maryland favor government own |
ership and operation of the telephone
lines of the country.
REPRESENTATIVE GILL;
CUUDY of Maine-The people in nv
section of the country look with ap-
proyal on the plan of government
ownership of telegraph and telephone
systems. think that < would be |
good thing for the country and for |
the Postoffice Department.
REPRESENTATIVE ROBERTS of |
Massashusetts-I look with distrust
in too much government paternalism. |
and ii may be that the time is not
here for government ownership OF the
telephone and telegraph systems of |
the country. Certainly those advo-
eating such government ownership