The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1906-2016, 1913-09-18

Inc suit brought by the United
States questioning the purchase Of
certain telephone properties IN the
northwest as well as the pending In
lterstate Commerce Commission tele-
phone investigation have caused many
Inquiries. without taking up any
thing going to the merits of these
proceedings, il has seemed to rs
proper 10 state generally what has
been our policy and purpose in the
conduct Of our business.
/ We have found, or thought that We
had, that our interests we're best ssry-
ed when the public interests we .
best served, and we believe that slth
success as we have had has been be
cause our business has been eohduc
ed On these lines.
We believe that our company has an
interest as vital as that Of the public
in the proper administration of tho
problems of electrical inteF-co6.mupi
cation. The success and prosperity cf
our company depends upon a solution
.of these problems which shall be-
sound from both the standpoint OF
the company and the public which e
serves.
Following our own best judgment
supplemented by the best obtainable
advice, we have endeayored 10 de-
what would best serve the public In
terest; Wherever possible our plans
have been disclosed to the pubic IN
advance and what has been done IL
carrying them out has been along or
binary business lines, with the fmpI
ed afg generally, with the expressed
approval, authorization or consent o.
tho. niS9icipal and state authorities
&c interested Our effort has
IA obey the law, but
which might even
se IN ca Of an attempt AZ
aston
bur BusiifS methods and policy
practically All Of the details as
a. be transaction OF our business,
matters Of common knowledge
are,s aud foaA many years haze
Been, wen known ~ the governmes
We win willingly furnish the govern
ment any additional information which
is in our possession or under our con
troll, and viii cordially cooperate
with it ID obtaining such further infor /
nation a. i may require Every
possible assistance will be given by
Is 10 courts in their effort to deter
mine whether our policy is or has
been inimical to the public interest
We desire that anything wrong be
corrected, we win voluntarily rectify
Bay wrong that may be pointed out /
% us; and so far as 1t may be dc +
termined that our policy or any act
Under it is against the public inter
est, we win promptly conform to such +
We believe that If each Of our ex
changes we're made an independm; .
unit and If each eonencting linz we're
put under a separate control, the Of !
fact upon the telephone service Of
the country would be Il condition SO,
intolerable that the public would re
ffse to submit to 1t and would I'M !
mediataly require such physical cen.
nection and common control of these /
sarlous units as would amalgamate
them into single system. Physical (
connection in the case OF telephone
or telegraph does not mean transfer
Of messages from one line to ths
ether. II means such a connections as Il
viii permit one person to have the /
actual possession of the particular
line Of communication from ono 0nd I
Of ii TO the other and this can only
&c given efficiently by exchange sys
toms and connecting lines under a |
common control; and that is what
&c Bell System i
In the connection, and for : enera. /
information, we viii relate the policy |
which controlled the building up Of
the Bell System, and our belief as to
what telephone system should be
and what are its relations to the pub
lie
We believe in and were first to
advocate state or government control
and regulation or public utilities
that this control or regulation should
be by permanent quasi-iudicial bodies
acting after thorough investigation
and governed by the equities CT
each case; and that this control or
regulation, beyond requiring the great
est efficiency and economy should nos
interfere with management or opera
ton, We believe shat these bodies
If they are TO be permantnt, effective
aud of public benefit, should be thoro
ughIy Representatives they should be
of such character and should 50 con
duct their Investigations and delibeF
atoms as to command such respeci
from both the public and the corpora
tons that both will without question