The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-02-19
Cooper and Weatherly Have Correspondence on Sub
 ject of Official Action
COOPER TELLS OF
 COMPLAINTS TO HIM
Weatherly Replies That He Is Com piling Necessary Data to Submit Case Formally to State
 Commission

A petition complaining of alleged unrea- sonable rates and determinations on the part of the Southern Bell Telephone com pany in Birmingham is to be filed with the Alabama public service commission within the next few days
 This fact became known yesterday through an interchange of correspond ence between B. H. Cooper. member of the public service commission. and James Weatherly, city commissioner. MT. Coop CT wrote Commissioner Weatherly asking if any steps were being taken looking to- ward an investigation of the subject by the public service commission, and in response to the letter of Mir Cooper, Commissioner Weatherly informed him that the data was being compiled and would be filed within the next few days. In his letter to Commissioner Wealth erly, MT. Cooper stated that a condition of unrest existed here regarding the services and charges of the Bell Tele- phone company, relating back to the time when the Bell company was consolidated with the Peoples company. Citizens of Birmingham, knowing that MT. Cooper was a member of the public service com mission, were constantly inquiring of him regarding the matter he informed MT. Weatherly. Unless the city commission contemplated taking the necessary steps to call the matter formally to the atten- tion of the public service commission, Mir Cooper wrote the city commissioner that he would be constrained to get some private citizen to take that action.
 ENLARGED POWERS
 The announcement from Commissioner Weatherly that he will file the complaint within the next few days will be re- ceived with considerable interest in Bir- mingham. It will be recalled that the recent act of the legislature creating the public service commission, gave it con trol not only over the railroads, but also over all telegraph and telephone com panies within the state, and certain powers over all other public service cor porations.
 The correspondence between Commits sioner Cooper of the public service com mission and City Commissioner Weather Iy follows:
 Birmingham, February IS, 1916. Hon. James Weatherly City Commis- sioner in Charge of Public Service, Bir- mingham, Ala.
 Dear Sir: There exists in Birmingham a condition of unrest concerning the serv- ice and charge of the Bell Telephone com pany which dates back to the consolida- ton of the Bell with the Peoples Tele- phone company.
 '.Citizens who know that I am a mem Der of the Alabama public service com mission are constantly inquiring or me personally in regard to these rates and charges but no formal complaint has been filed with the commission.
 .'Without attempting to express an opin- ion as to the reasonableness or unrea- condolences of the charges and service of the Bell Telephone company in Bir- .-.. s,aIr hot iCid r1- tion into the matter should be made by the body charged by law with such du- ties Consequently would suggest that the city commission of Birmingham file the necessary petition to bring this mat ter officially before the Alabama public service commission.
 'fUnless the city commission takes some action in regard to the matter here re- ferred to, I feel it my duty to secure the cooperation of some citizen of the city of Birmingham looking toward the filing of petition to the end stated
 q would like to hear from you in re- gard to what the Alabama public serv- ice commission may expect Yours very truly, B. u. COOPER,
 Associate Commissioner"
 "Birmingham February IS, 1916 Hon. B. H. Cooper, Associate Commis-
 sioner Alabama Public Service Com mission, Montgomery, Ala.
 Dear Sir: Your letter of this date to and, and for the past 60 days I have zen gathering data as preliminary to ling petition on behalf of the subscrib- ei's of the Southern Bell Telephone and T elegraph company of this city complain ipg of unreasonable rates and discrimina- bn. The necessary petition to this end
 i'll be filed with you in the next few tvs, in time to be presented to your immission at it's regular meeting in
 arch. Respectfully.
 JAMES WEATHERLY."