The evening world., 1913-11-15
HOW PHONE TRUST
HAS HELD Up CITY
IN 10.YEAR FIGHT
Ret1n Wire Conduit Mon.
opoly and Millions Profit
by Laws Delays.
NEW REFEREE NAMED.
And Suit Which Has Cost
City 100000 Must Be
Gone Over Again.
NEW REFEREE NAMED.

8OfDOy00
day 10 succeed Eugene Phiibin, re-
slsned. - . referee In the suit of the
cry OF New York against the Consoli-
eassd Telegraph and Electrical Sub.
Wv Company and the Empire City
subway Company. Limited. The board
q referees now consists Of Hamilton
oosI. Adrian II. LArkin and GEORGE
Gordon Battle.
Tne case Is OF Importance because n
st1kes at the monopoly Of the streets
1of underground wires held by the New
York Edison Company and the New
York Telephone Company. 1t was be-
gun Oct. %. 1908. and now has been
psndins for ten years. Il has cost the
CITY Sl0o.Oo 10 date and has never pro-
gressed beyond the referee stage. II
has cost the companies involved posi-.
oily an equal amount. but this sum 10
small compared to the great profits &C.
cruing to them through maintenance Of
thstr monopoly.
70 bs able to hold these fran.
eAisss for $4,000 . year through
ta1s policy OF laws delays 10 cheap
for the corpos ations.
There is hope that IL no more referees
resign and the lawyers for the defense
are not so impolite as to interpose some
entirely new objections. the referees
may be able to make a report some
time within the next year. Then their
report will have to go before the courts.
First Supreme Court Justice will pass
upon 1t. Next In order IL an appeal to
the Appellate Division and next to the
Court Of Appeals. II after this pro.
csdure the decision should be distaste.
full to the companies. there Is possibly
an appeal TO the United States Courts.
where years might be consumed In
reaching the Supreme Court in WASH
ington. So there are bright prospects
OF At least several years more OF lii.
cation ahead. and In the meantime the
streets are held as before.
BUT THE WORST - YET TO
COME.
But this II not all. The original suit
was against the companies. Consoli-
dated and Empire City. In the referee
hearings 80 far only the first company's
Affairs were taken under consideration.
While 1t 10 understood that the Empire
CITY case would rest practically on the
oeciAion In the Consolidated, yet there
70 no certainty that the New York Tele-
phone Company. which owns the EN-.
pire City Company. might not insist on
starting all over again and consuming
a. many more years AZ possible.
On the city's side. the suit absorbed
the attention of Assistant Corporation
Counsel W. H. Burr for Ave years and
his assistant. II. p. Walker, for an
other Ave years. 1t has had the I'M
divided attention Of William Hartman
Black. specially designated assistant to
the Corporation Counsel. at $3.50 Q year
for three years. 1t has had $1,000 worth
OF chartered accouniants' work: 10000
OF time from the Commissioners OF Ac-
counts Office and lons string OF
minor expenses. The defendant COM
pany. likewise. has been put to similar
expense In the end the loser will have
to bear an additional enormous burden
Of referee and court costs.
This case Is Of paramount I'm.
poytancs, because ON IL rests tas
franchises OF the New York Tsls.
phone Company and the New York
1dison Company to use the streets
for their underground wires in
Manhattan and the Dronx. There
10 directly involved an accounting
for several million dollars OF &C.
eumulatsd payments alleged to be
due the city and what 10 Of greater
concern to the companies. rsvsrsion
Of the underground conduit fran
chise to the city.
The Consolidated Company's fran
ohiss dates back to 1856. about the time
Mayor Hugh J. Grant started chopping
down telegraph poles along Broadway.
The telephone company took the initia-
tive, organized the Consolidated and
began laying wires underground II
was experimental and costly work at
arst, unQuestionably a period Of slow
development up to the perfected lead
cables Of to-day. An exclusive franchise
was granted on condition that the COM
psay pay 70 the city all net profits over
10 per cent. on the capital invested.
The profits have never exceed.
"a 10 per cent, and that 10 what
the suit 10 about. the city alleging
that by padding construction costs
end Juggling books, the company
-