Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1916-12-26
GOVERNMENT OUGHT
To CONTROL PHONES
IN CAPITAL
''ParceI Post Davy" Advo-
Gates Ownership of Lines of
Telephone System Through
out District of Columbia
BY rREDER1CK III. KERRY.

WASHINGTON, ID. c., Dec. 3.-At
The seat of government, where its most
Important executive, military and other
governmental correspondence takes
place, the government ought to be III
complete control of it's communicating
SYSTEM" said Representative David }.
Lewis today Parcel Post Davy" has
Just introduced a bill authorizing the
postofice department to take over and
extend the telephone system of the Dis
trict of Columbia.
Besides the administrative advan-
tages of having the telephone system OF
The seat of government under govern
mental control" continued Lewis, "the
government is now the largest patron
of the telephone here, paying about
500, 600 a year for telephone rentals.
Washington is an ideal place to test
claims made by postal authorities that
they can improve, cheaper and extend
the telephone service"
The annual report of the postmaster
general, submitted a week ago to the
president, renews the earnest recon-
menda ton made in previous reports that
the entire telephone-telegraph system Of
the United States be taken over by the
postofice department.
ON COST OF LIVING.
Lewis is the author of bill to post
alize the wire services of the country,
and he believes that taking over the
District of Columbia system would en-.
able the postofflce department to demon
strate the efficiency with which the gov
eminent could run such service.
Lewis proposal has a direct bearing
on the cost of living problem.
For experimental purposes" he said,
"I have fixed in the bill 2. low night
ra tie for the use of farmers and con-
sumers, within the first parcel post zone
about Washington, permitting direc,
dealing in farm products.
1.-The night rate is 1 cent for each
ten miles of distance, plus / cent initial
charge. and is available only for food
transactions
During the dav, from 9 in the norm
ing to p. m, this rate is doubled; nalf
rates for added time. Low as this rate
may seem, il is, in fact, somewhat higher
for fifty miles than the telephone rates
prevailing in Europe.
RATES COULD BE LOWER.
'vsil. of the Bell Telephone COM
pany, has declared they could give
rates more or less equal to those in
Europe, and make a profit, too but
that the American people do not want
thAm-- 1t remains to be seen whether he
Is right.
whether so or not, the wires are
nearly ldle a1ter business nours, ana at
night, when the housewife and the farm
er are at home, they might we'll use
these idle wires to facilitate buying and
selling their food supplies through the
parcel post" a
At present, of course, toll rates out or
Washington under private ownership of
the wires are prohibitive for this kind
of business.
Washington rates are extremely
high" continued Lewis. "The average
charge for each local call in Washington
is about 1-2 cents. This is more than
four times the average charge per call
with the independent companies in
Pittsburg Indianapolis, Kansas City,
Louisville, Fort Wayne and Buffalo. The
telephone user in these cities pays 81
cents for 100 local calls, which in
Washington cost an average to he user
of S421"