Norwich bulletin., 1913-08-28
MUTUAL RELATIONS AND INTERESTS
 oF TIE BELL SYSTEM AND TIE PUBLIC

l the greatest number; that the inter
 dependence of the telephone service
 and the value of complete and uni-
 versal ntercommunication justly and
 require some services partly at the expense of the whole for the benefit
 of the whole
 We believe that this highest com mercial value can only be attained by one system under one common control and that it cannot be given by inde- pendent systems unless they are oper- ated under agreements which result in
 one common control and one common
 interest, in effect making them / a 1 single system.
 l We believe that rates should be so 1 adjusted as to afford the company sufficient revenue to pay such wages
 and compensation as will secure the 1 most efficient service; to maintain the very highest and most advanced stand ards of plant and apparatus, to carry
 on such scientific and experimental re- search and inventions as to apparatus
 and methods as te insure the highest | standards, and to carry to reserve and
 depreciation such amounts as will en- 1 able the company at any time to re- 1 place old plant and old methods with
 new plant and new methods as fast as 1 they may be developed and found to be te the advantage of the service. 1 We believe that in addition, such fair l charges should be paid upon the in-
 vestment in plant as will enable the company at any time to obtain money
 necessary to provide the plant re- ] quired to meet the continuing demands
 of the public; and in order that waste and duplication of effort may be
 avoided and uniformity of purpese i and common control be enforced, that
 there should be a centralized general administration in close communication 1 with and having general authority | over the whole on matters common to
 all or matters of general policy. | We believe that any surplus beyond
 that necessary to equaIize dividends i on a fair basis should be used by the company for the benefit of the public
 and should be inalienable for any 1 other purpose, and should be either in i vested in revenue earning plant until necessary to substitute plant which i may become inadequate or obsolete 1 or SIiOulQ De used to make the S6rVlC0 1 cheaper or betterN
 We believe that under proper gov 1 ernmenta1 control and regulation the ! profits from promotion or operation | allowed to be distributed should not l be so large as to warrant or tempt complete duplication of plant and or 1 ganization, with it's duplication of it's capital charges and it's organization, I operating, maintenance and deprecia- ] tion expenses; and we do not believe | that utilities giving at fair rates an 1 efficient and sufficiently comprehensive
 universal service should be subject to 1 limited competition, not giving such service. Competition which ignores the 1 obligation to furnish a complete and 1 com prehenSiVe service is not compe- | tition, is not for the benefit of the
 public in that it does not reach the ] whole public interested
 i If, therefore compete duplication, l with it's dual exchange connection and l dual bills for service, is a prerequisite | to complete competition, governm ent 1 control and regulation cannot go hand i in hand with competition.
 i We believe that the record of the 1 Bell System will be accepted by the i public as fully in accord with these l declarations. Consistent adherence to i this policy has given the public of the i United States the best, most compre- ] hensive and cheapest telephone service l in the world and made the Bell stand
 ards the standards of all nations.
 To remove any possible excuse for misapprehension on account of the many misleading statements which l have been circulated as to the alleged
 unnecessary and overcapitaliZation ! and excessive charges of the Bell Sys- 1 tenn, the following statistics are given. 1 Except where stated, the figures are | for the Bell System; that is the l A pPjP3n TPlanhnna TaIacrTn nlolo l and it's Associated Companies l The entire Bell System on June 30, | 1913, had outstanding in the hands of | the public obligations (i. e., notes, 1 open accounts, bonds and shares) to i the par value of $776. .000,00O.
 ] The book value of the total tangible | assets, which is considerably less than their replacement value amounted to S960,6o0.0 .060. Many appraisals of property included in these assets have
 been made, and most of them under 1 the direction of public authorities. In
 no case has the value as it stands on
 the books failed to be sustained and
 in most cases it has been very largely i exceeded.
 The total dividends and interest 1 paid during the year 1912 amounted
 to only 6.19o on the average of it's
 outstanding obligations, and to less than 5go on the average value of it's ! assets
 The actual cash which has been paid into the treasury of the American | Telephone and Telegraph Company on account of the capital obligations now outstanding amounts to $22 2,00O, ,000
 more than the par of such outstand- ing obligations
 The Associated Companies collected
 from the public and paid back in taxes over $10,000,000 during the year | 1912
 The steadily increasing necessities
 of the public not only for additional but. for new telephone service can only
 De met by new construction, involv =
 ing capital outlay. To meet these de-
 mands during the six and one half
 years from 1907 to June 1913, inclu-
 slve, the increase in telephone plant
 was as follows: Toll line wire in-
 creased from 1,460,000 miles to 2,242,-
 g00 miles; exchange wire increased
 from 6,000,000 miles to 13,00O, 900 :;
 the number of exchange stations in,
 creased from 2t73o, 900 to 5l2O0, 900; {;
 the number of stations of independent
 companies connected with the Bell
 System increased from S43,00O to B.
 620,O00. The number of independent
 companies connected with the Bell
 System IS about 25,000. The number
 or employees in the Bell System, not
 Including the employees of connected
 companies, on December 31, 1912. was
 141, ,000
 During this same period the number
 or shareholders of the American Tele-
 phone and Telegraph Company, not in
 ciudlng either the associated or con-
 nected companies. increased from IT,
 poo to about b4.000. About 47, 06n
 snareholdsrs hold less than 100 shares l ot3sf 7s5ks ,sS14