Evening journal., 1914-06-13
SATURDAY JUNE l3. 1914
TELEPHONES AND GOVERNMENT OwNERsHIP.

TELEPHONES AND GOVERNMENT OWNERSHIP.
THE Wilmington Chamber Of Commerce has put IT.
self on record and with good cause, against
ernment ownership and operation Of the telephone
lines IN the United II realizes that this coun
try has under private ownership the largest best
and most efficient telephone system in the world and
there is nothing OF the sort earth that even
approximates it in those qualities Nor is the Chamber
that inefcienoy and ma-administration have
the dominating characteristics OF the telephone
service in practically all those countries in which pub
lie ownership prevails Even where the telephone has
not been made a political paything instead Of public
utility under government ownership and operation,
asperatingly slow and inadequate service, disregard of
public demand in the matter OF making extensions
and in many instances exorbitant charges, have fea
tured the telephone situation In addition many gov
arnment telephone systems administered with such
slight regard for sound business principles that they
show deficits the end Of each fiscal year and the
people at large compelled to make the short
ages by direct or indirect taxation In other words,
persons who do not the telephone and those who
outside the covered by the system taxed
to maintain it for the Of others favoraby sit
uated and perhaps better able to pay.
In this connection we find the following in the Wall
Street Journal, which should be read dispassionatey
by all Americans who place estimate the
economic value Of efficient telephone service and
who are disposed be led astray by the glittering
sophstry government ownership advocates and prop
second supvsrss-
naIl street en- idea that government ownership
Fifth street is feet efficient and the public adyan
street at the nations have overburdened their
Fourth and Jefferson a sufficiently palpable example OF
uaed partly IN New Is not necessarily progress The
" IN Wilmington IS selling telegraph service under
road lc-thN from atho use that facility, and Is max
not
1t has established what is nearly the
worst telephone service in the world with an invest
ment which commits it automatically TO the policy Of
parayzng all competitive improvements. The French
people viii never buy another railroad for public
ownership lhey nave had thelr bitter lesson Not
merely is the service incomparably than that
under private ownership The taxpayer pays for the
results of msmanagement the service is beneath
tempt while the official class OF government servants
created is positive and dangerous menace to popular
liberty
When two American railroad officials choose our
leading saffron newspaper to express their conviction
that government ownership Of railroads in this
try is coming. this newspaper really wonders such
chieken-hearted towards worth fighting for There
IS something so essentially un-American about lying
down before You are hit
Under private ownership with government regula-
ton this country gets the best cheapest most eAh.
cient and expedous railway service in the world The
Interstate Commerce Commission has become ex
pert and useful body, quite equal protecting an
ns in our rights. Is it seriously asserted that ther,
Is no remedy for grievances largely imaginary, thar
70 convert our railway system into something resem
bling on scale many times magnihed the least EN-
cient and most papaby dishonest post office syston
earth?
TO the unthinking public one railroad presiden
looks very much like another, ana iobber IN bank
rupt railroads looks as big ats James d Hill or M
president Of the Pennsylvania. Our railroads an
their countless stock and bond holders must adopt
different attitude from this. There is no such eneC
tive defense ais vigorous counter attack. There ar
constitutional remedies which honest industry nee
not fear but the crooked politician dare not face
When a railroad president asserts that public owl
ershp is the only solution he proves Just one thin
He has outived his usefulness in his job
Start the fashion Of calling government owne
ship" by its right name-=Spolitical ownership" an
substitute let the politicians own the railroads" f,
LET the people the railroads" The taxpayer h
constitutional right TO know what he is getting
There is valid why nation that has
peint Of efficiency and cheapness the best teephol
system the world should think seriously Of discard
It to obtain government-owned and operated sy
tenn OF the European or South American type with Il
attendant evil Of having the system onicered an
manned by politicians and political workers who's
tenure would be measured not by teephonis eficien,
but By political favor