St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1913-07-23
PRESS COMMENT

The commission which has been
investigating the telephone situation
in Vermont has made it's report,
which is printed in full elsewhere,
together with the letter from Gov
ernor Fletcher submitting that re-
port to the public service commits
sion.
Stated in the briefest possible
form the report finds that, in addi-
ton to faulty fnanciering and man
agement, telephone rates have been
excessive and recommends a re-
ductiOn of 20 per cent. in all toll
rates and a substantial lowering of
rates for subscribers. The COM
mission also recommends such or
ders by the public service commits
sion as shall prevent any increase in
in rates, tolls or charges and any
limitation of free zone territory in
the future without the consent of
/ the public service commission.
In failing to furnish important
information, facts and figures, the
telephone company made an evident
misplay, which forced the adoption
of a reversal of a course sometime
pursued. AS a result of Governor
Fletcher's suggestion, instead of the
people of Vermont being put to the
expense of showing that the tele-
phone company is in the wrong, the
telephone company will probably be
forced to choose between the &C
ceptance of an order from the public
service commission reducing rates
as outlined and collecting higher
rates through litigation that will
throw upon them the burden of
proving they have right to do what
they have been doing. In other
words the burden is likely to be
thrown on the telephone company
instead of on the people.
In view of certain telephone con-
cessions granted to selectmen in
some instances and various devel-
opments outlined in the report, it
is not expected the telephone COM
pany will care to make fight in
court of equity or in the Supreme
Court OF Vermont whereas a plea
of interstate communication would
bring the whole matter before the
interstate commerce commission.
When this investigation was be-
gun there was a disposition in some
directions to insist that politics fig
ured in the case. Those who had
knowledge of the details knew
better than this, and some of those
who at first held this position are
now ready to admit that lower tele-
phone rates and service without dis
elimination will eventually be the
outcome in Vermont.
If the case had followed the usual
course, it might had been dragged
! along in the court for years with
out any relief for the public, but if
the public service % commission
carries out the suggestion of Gov
ernor Fletcher and the recommend
alton of the commission of inves-
tigatHon, it will be up to the tele-
phone people to comply at once or
start a fight which sooner or later
will jnvolve all other New England
states as we'll as Vermont, and
eventually carry the whole controv-
ersy into the jurisdiction of the
public service commission.
This would precipitate inquiries
the country over regarding discrim-
mating contracts and other matters
and result in giving Vermont some
concessions it does not enjoy as
| compared with other states. In
any event therefore the people of
| Vermont are fairly certain to derive
great benefit from the Investigation
of our telephone service Burling-
ton Free Fress.
The Telephone Report.
The New England Telephone &
! Telegraph Company is monopoly
in Vermont and its rates are TOO
high.
That is the gist of the report of
Governor FIetcher's special investi-
gators, E A Cook of Lyndonville
and w. A. Graham of Bellows Falls.
The report is printed in full else
where in this paper, and we need
not quote from it here.
AS to the charge that the tele-
phone service is monopoly, the
fact must as matter of
course occur to every think
ing man that the telephone is
necessarily a monopoly Were a
competing company to enter the
field the cost of the subscribers is at
once doubled in the rental of instru-
ments, because to use the service
satisfactorily each telephone user
must have two instruments, and to
the increased money cost is to be
added no end of trouble, confusion
and annoyance entailed by two
systems and two sets of subscribers.
The nearer the telephone system of
the state approaches a monopoly,
the better and more satisfactory is
its service; and as matter of fact
practically the only complaint in this
direction that we hear in Burlington
is of the increased expense and gen
eral inconvenience where the New
England system and the local sys-
TENS come in touch.
And while the big system is un-