The citizen., 1914-01-09
GOVERNMENT OWNERSHIP
OF THE TELEGRAPH AND
TELEPHONES

The apparent leaning of the President
to the pur hasr Of the teleera} h aud tel
ephone lines is very serious and danger
Gus proposition 1t SEEMS to be the re-
suit Of the idea or impression that be-
cause the post,l teIc4r ph aud the parcels
delivery has been an apparent success,
that the taking over by the government
of the telephones and telegraph systems
will be success also
In the first place it is not yet proved
that the postoilice department as whole
is a success
Not only is it not proved that the gov
ernment mail service IS success but up
to this time it is not only not a success,
but it has not proved satisfactory to the
people.
The postoifice department up to this
time has not been run except at def
cheney. aud even at that it has not been
satisfactory. In addition to its being
unsatisfactory it is au extremely expen-
sive service. Besides all this all sorts of
watching and spying is resorted to con-
duct it even with an annual deficiency.
1t can t be success, until it pays its
yswn my. and a the postage is reduced
10 cost 10 the public.
Tie parcels post has not ben in oper-
alton long enough to demonstrate its
efieiency. Much has vet to be done to
indicate its entire efficiency. 1t charges
are still much too high and much of its
red tape must be eliminated before we
can predicate that it is entirely satisfac-
tory.
But even conceding that the parcels
post is perfect for the sake of the argu-
ment. it ny no means follows that the
government should buy and own the tel
esraph and telephone systems The
ownership of telegraphs and telephones
will cost according to estimates nine hun
dred millions which is more than third
O. the Civil War debt. This is a sum
too great for this nation to afford un
der present conditions of the peoplc'
1t costs over billion year now to pay
the running expenses of the government
and it will be indefensible to increase ex-
penses upon the people. The only safe
government is government out of debt.
The only free people is nation which
owes no money
But great as this objection it is by no !
means the most serious objection. 1t is
a step toward the Capitalization of power |
lp the control Of the federal government
70 which the people Of this nation are
forever hosiIe- The only safe } is in
'triesly usaintaini8g the limitatations on !
a. powers Of thE general government. !
The federsl contfel of telegraph and tel
phone systems would be an enormous
hing. 1t would require millions of en-
loyes with unnumbered details in their
Management. The doors to graft would
, thrown wide open to countless en-
Dyes in every hole and corner of the
public, and it would require an army
secret service men and spies to watch
e employees.
And this is not all, it will be an iDva- ,
n and dangerous invasion of the
hts and the liberty of the citizens. d
We have had men in the White
use who have been the mere instru-
nts in the hands of INSCRIPTIONS and .
lgerous men who controlled them. J 4
INT had his Chandler, Mckinley his G.
rk Hanna-and Roosevelt, well, he h
dangerous enough without any one
ind him. Hessspent seven millions
,pies and secret service men to watch 81
Spy on the members of Congress and y, a.
n men who stood in the way Of his II
onal ambition Suppose we had such tr u
again and the government con y