The log cabin Democrat., 1913-08-26
SEEK TO PREVENT
PHONE RATE RAISE
APPEAL TO CITY COUNCIL
THAT BODY WILL BE ASKED TO
TAKE STEPS TO STOP Rem
TAI INCREASE.

clty council will be asked by a number
OF subscribers to take steps to pre-
vent the Southwestern Telephone G.
Telegraph Co. from raising the rental
rates as was recently announced bv
the company, from 50 to rs cents on
each phone. The new rates, unless
some means is found to prevent, will
be put into effect on Sept. /.
Secretary G. l.. Bahner of the
Board of Trade states that an in
/ formal protest on behalf of the board
was made to the company some weeks
ago, but the officials declared the rates
were not unreasonable and not higher
than those in effect in other towns of
the same population and same number
of telephones. A promise was made,
Secretary Banner states, to furnish
the Board of Trade with a list of
! those places with the rates charged.
but this data has not yet been sup
J piled.
/ 1t is the opinion of some attorneys
that the city council has the right to
g, fix maximum charges for telephone
service, although the franchise under
which the Southwestern company is
operating in Conway places no limit
upon the rates. Others hold the opin-
hot ~ ,nl,@
fix reasonable charge for telephone
service, and that this function has
been favorably passed upon in the
supreme court. Whether by ordi-
nance or by proceedings in the courts,
it SENS reasonably certain that a
strong effort will be made to prevent
the increased rates from being put
into effect next Monday.
/ Referring to the matter one of the
aldermen said to the Log Cabin Dem
ocrat today that he would be glad to
get an expression from the subscribe
ers as to whether they desired the
council to take the initiative in the
effort to prevent the increased rates.
81 believe those who signed the pc
tition agreeing to an increased rate
thought of it from only an individ-
ual standpoint, that so cents per
month extra is but a small matter
But from the standpoint of the whole
a. ,tc
over 400 phones would mean taking
an extra 81 400 per year out of Con-
way. This represents the income at
8 per cent on 100000 and is matter
large enough to command the atten-
! ton of the council"
Shortly after purchasing the local
system at cost of $4,000 the tele
phone company circulated petitions to
their subscribers promising upon their
part to rebuild the entire system and
put in on metallic circuit, at cost
of $4,000, provided that they were
permitted to increase the rates on res
idence phones from $3.50 to $500 per
month and on business phones from
$500 to $2.75. The lines having been
entirely rebuilt, but there are still
many complaints of por service, and
the company announced about 10 days
ago that the higher rates will be put
| into effect on Sept. |. Representa-
tives of the company declare that
only about a dozen phones were lost
by the raise and that this number was
made up in new phones, but this is
F, denied by those contesting the raise,
who declare that large proportion
of the subscribers have refused to
sign contracts and that many who
signed did so under protest.
! The franchise of the Southwestern
company is not an exclusive one, and
J it is said that if no relief can be OBJ
tained through the council or courts
/; against the increased rates, a local
company will be formed and install
an exchange. This was done at