Imperial Valley press., 1913-10-21
For the People To
Own Telegraphs

(By Congressman Clyde H. Tavenner)
Washington, Oct 21.-Some time
during the coming winter there will
be introduced in the house bill pro-
viding for government ownership of
the telegraph and probably the telc-
phone lines of the country. There
have been many such bills in the past,
but the distinguishing feature of this
bill will be that it will have the back
ing Of President Woodrow Wilson and
it will be enacted into law. The bill
will probably bear the name of John
A. Moon, of Tennessee, chairman of
the house committee on postoffice and
post roads.
The wire companies are at last gen.
timely alarmed. The stock of the
American Telegraph and Telephone
Company-the Bell and Western Union
Syndicate-has dropped several points
within the past three weeks And in
the newspapers are beginning to ap-
pear mysterious "dispatches" from
European countries telling about the
failure" of government telegraphs
there.
These purported newspaper cable
grams are the surest indication that
the wire companies believe govern
ment ownership is imminent; that the
fight for government telegraphs be-
gun by Postmaster General Wanna
maker, away back in 1890, and urged
by almost every postmaster general
since, is about to be victorious. The
companies press agents are getting
busy. Outside of America more than
95 per cent of the worlds telegraphs
are in government hands, and the
United States seems to be about to do
the scientific thing--to link the tele-
graph and probably the telephone with
the postoffice system.
1t is tremendous undertaking for
the government. The telegraph lines
of the country have a capitalization of
about $200,0OO,0O0 The combined
capitalization of all the telephone lines
of the country is over $900,000,000.
The problem then will be how to ac-
quire these properties without undue
tax cost to the people or without plum
ging the country into expensive debt,
but to make the service virtually pay
for itself.
The problem has already begun to
attract the thought of the most stu
dious men in congress. David j. Lewis,
the Maryland congressman, whose
studies of the express companies made
the present parcel post law the en-
lightened measure that it is, is now
devoting all his time to the study Of
telegraphs and telephones.
In the case of the express compan-
les, Mr. Lewis has an unanswerable
argument He shows that the ex-
press companies are parasites alb
sorbing business rightfully belonging
to- the railroads and postoffice. More
over, he demonstrated that the eX
press companies are an utter failure
in trying to serve the entire popula
ton. since they do not attempt to
reach the rural districts.
on the telegraph companies own
figures, they claim to have but $4,000
offices. The government has $1,000
postoffices, reaching the entire popu
lation The slogan will be, "a tele-
graph instrument in every postoffice."
Whether this ideal can be reached or
whether government telegraph mes
sages can be carried for a cent a
word, as many advocates believe, are
matters that will require further
study 1t is remarkable that there is
no adequate data on telegraph or tel
ephone systems in the governments
possession.
But the individual Investigators are
turning up new facts every day, and
in further articles | will give some
of the results of this study, showing
the shortcomings of the American
telegraph and telephone services, the
good results of government ownership
in Europe, and how Uncle Same can
bring these invaluable means of COM
munication within the instant reach of
every person in the United States.