The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1917-03-29
Government Supervision Com
municatiOns in Event of War.
Pay Stations Will Be Watched,
Topeka Officials Hear.
WIRE Men WILL NOT BE CALLED
Their Services Needed at Home
and Not in Trenches.
Record of Every Telegram and
Long Distance Call.

-ation-wide telephone and tele-
graph censorship may be established
in event of actual warfare with Ger
many. Government supervision of & Il
public utilities is now being considere
and will doubtless be established as
sc OH as a declaration of war is made.
according to reports received in To-
peka.
In event of the adoption of the mes
sage censorship trained inspectors VIII
be provided the government and a
close supervision made of all telephone
communications and telegraph mes
sages. One of the plans now under
ship over all telephone pay stations.
Reports in Topeka today indicated
that the plan had been outlined to of
ficers of the Southwestern Bell Tele-
phone company in Kansas. They will
probably arrange for enforcement of
the censorship as soon as hostilities
are opened.
Plans for government inspection or
all telephone and telegraph messages
in event of war is just one of the plans
sad to be contemplated by the gov
eminent. 1t is probable that employees
of the large telephone and telegraph
companies may be asked net to enlist
for active military service. This re-
quest will be based on the fact that the
giant communication companies will
virtually place their trained forces at
the hands of the war department both
for the censorship of messages and for
prompt transmission of all government
messages.
All Men Needed.
at woulh be Impossible to, marshal
a force of men who could handle re-
sponsible work which will fall on the
tele graph and telephone companies in
event of war" said one man in touch
with plans being worked out for gov
eminent protection. THE only men
and women who can handle the work
are the men and women who nave
for years been associated with these
companies and know every detail of
their work In case of war. I actually
believe these men and women will in
some degree be enlisted in government
service and placed under government
supervision. Because of the responsible
ity falling on the transportation COM
panies. there is every reason to believe
that the employees will be asked to
remain at their posts and not to enlist
for active army service"
Home Guard Companies.
Carrying out the further plans for
general protection, announcement was
made in Topeka this week that home
guards would aid in the protection of
property of all public service corpora
tions. At a very early date formal
organization will be made of home
guard companies in Kansas. The men
who do not go to the front will pro-
tect public buildings and physical
plants of public service concerns. Now
virtual announcement is made of plans
for a censorship over the telephone
and telegraph by an army of trained
men and .-omen.
Uncer the new plan a careful record
would be made of every telegram Of
fered for transmission. The giant tele-
phone companies will doubtless be
called upon to recorl every call. A
rigid supervision will be maintained
over all messages from public pay
stations. In gathering the thousands
of little threads of information which
may be of untold value in national
crisis. the big public service corpora
ton will doubtless offer the govern
ment control over and direction of the
men and women in HUNDREDS of oper-
ati n1a