Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1914-03-18
TELEPHONE ORDER ISSUED |
Company Will Appeal.
CONTINUED FROM PAGE EIGHT

auctions proposed by the majority OF
the commission would practically
wipe out all Of this net revenue.
Although the commission admits in
its opinion that the company is en-
titled to earn at least 6 percent, it
undertakes, to establish, by the order
OF the majority, set of rates under
which it would be impossible to earn
even percent, provided the company
continued to maintain it's plant and
the quality Of its service.
The majority opinion seeks to justi-
fly these apparently contradictory con-
illusions by arbitrarily reducing the
value Of the company's property, as
shown by the uncontradicted evidence
in the case, to a figure far below it's
actual COST and far below what it
would cost to replace it in it's present
condition. It then proceeds to arbi-
trarily reduce, on paper, various &C
tual costs of maintaining the plant
and furnishing the service by making
various assumptions as to values and
costs which are not only not based
On any evidence presented at the
hearing, but which are distinctly con-
trary to the uncontradicted evidence
in the case.
The majority of the commission
then present a compilation of figures
based on these various assumptions
which they argue justifies the reduc-
lions suggested and which, they
argue, shows how the company might
this
cal investment. By carrying these
assumptions still further and by arbi-
trarily, on paper, reducing the value
OF the companys property by so per-
cent instead Of by rs percent, it
would obviously be possible to justi-
fly, On paper, still more liberal re-
ductiOn in the rates.
Unfortunately for the company,
however, upon whom rests the re-
sponsibility Of furnishing the service,
these assumptions do not help very
much in the actual conduct of the
business. If an article costs a dollar
it costs dollar, and it's value is not
changed by an arbitrary assumption,
On paper, that it costs SO cents; and
the fact remains that if the rate
schedule as proposed by the majority
CT the commission had been in effect
during the year ending June 80, 1913.
the company would have been left
without any margin Of profit whatever
over and above the expense of fur
nishing service in the state Of Yer
mont.
Under these circumstances there
seem to be four possible courses open
to the company:
Ito acquiesce in the majority de-
cision OF the commission and under
take to have the loss on it's Vermont
business carried by the telephone US
ing public Of the other states. We
do not believe that this is fair to the
other states, nor do we believe that
the people Of Vermont would wish to
have their telephone service upon
any such basis. Furthermore, under
this proposition the company would
be furnishing certain grades of SER
vice in Vermont at lower rates than
the company would be charging for
the same grades OF service furnished
under similar conditions in other
states. The company knows of no
way in which it could Justify any such
discrimination
2-If, on the other hand, the COM
pany should adopt for similar grades
of service in similar communities in
the other states, the reductions sug-
gested by the majority Of the COM
mission, the aggregate loss in the COM
pany's revenue would more than wipe
out the small margin now resulting
from the total business of the COM
pany. This margin is already so
small as to be a source of serious con-
Germ and has already resulted in a
temporary postponement of certain
improvements in equipment and ex-
tensions of the plant.
3-The third course open to the
| company would be to acquiesce in the
! majority decision Of the commission
and undertake to reduce the expense
OF furnishing service in the state OF
Vermont to a point commensurate
with the revenue collected in the
state. This would not only mean a
permanent postponement of all i'm
| service, but it would result in an i'm
pair1ent in the present service which
| would affect not only the telephone
using public IN Vermont but those in
other states who have occasion to use
:he toll service to and from that
state. This course of procedure the
I company uuca = - desired
by the people in the state of vermont,
nor can we believe that it would in
any way be in the general public in
terest.
1.-The only other alternative, as
the officers of the company see it, is
to appeal to the courts for a hearing
On the merits. Under Vie established
rules Of court procedure an oppor-
tunity will be offered to have the is
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