The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-07-30
8URLESON PLANS
FOR TAKING OVER
WIRES JULY 81
9s Closeted for Three
Hours With His Com
mittee Of Three.
OWNERS SEE SEC.
Theodore N. Vail, With
Vice-Presidents. Come
to Capital Without
Usual Pomp.
OWNERS SEE SEC.

Murn today OF fosulast'' ga
Busleson. the postofiice department. nf
gan to gear itself to take over the
Telephone and telegraph companies at
midnight July 81
pur,eson was cioseted for three
ro,,rs with his wire committee First
asxtstart postmaster-Gene Rooms
>sorritor Lamar and David j Lewis
BEFORE them came President Thee.
sora \ Wall. Of the American Heil
sreIenhone company. "@nd two OF his
vice presidents,
U-here in the old DAYS they were
wont to arrive IN Washington In reEHi
state TO give their orders to subfn's-
awe erislators or TO rehuke rude Gu
rious investigating committees. TO-DAY
they came more meekly to get their
orders"
Before Thursday President Carlton.
ri tho western Union. whose defiance
81 the United states ard the orders OF
,he national war la hor board, forced
the president to seize the wire lines.
will make the hegira here accom-
wanted nv his vice presidents and the
iexecuttve officers Of the Postal Tele-
rrarh company. And there Will ne
many OF the officers OF the indepeud-
ent telephone companies VINO WIZ
come in. their hands across their
,-nouthx. hiding their smiles at the dis
co-4forture of the great telephone ana
ss,erraph haronS OF the Rel and West
ern Union.
They are indeed strange DAYS in the
,wSre business ard in the reorEaniZa-
kion lahor's voice is being hoard~~the
tvoica OF that same labor which was
harished into outer darkness by KING
st-srltor Mem beers Of the Telegraph
,~rs. union, who are experienced opera
T. 4y3 wiz
have the opportunity of advising the
government in its new departure
Continue i'm once.
To he sure. the present administra-
Ktve officials of the companies will he
~ontinued in Office by the postoffice de-
-partment at least temporarily,
The railroad administration when IT
Hook over the operations OF the rail-
roads. continued their former execu-
hives in charge for the time, But IT
soon became evident that some OF
Yhem were not serving the people OF
hhe United states In the positions. and
now there are many strange faces In
the private Offices OF the railroads. be
hind desks labeled president" and
general manager" Truculent wire
snonarchs. grown fat from their past
easy living. may meet the same ex-
periences.
rer-generals wire committee will look
nowards economies Solicitor Lamar
spent the late afternoon with financial
experts looking over statements OF
telephone companies whose f'nal
figures showed In red Ink. against may
score columns of neat black figures.
There will be no. radical readtust-
ments mt the start" said member OF
the committee I'VE look on our
u Frs M
win make no radical departures until
hwe and out thoroughly Just where the
companies are, not only geographical
". but also financially and in an OPP
Grating way"
But there will be a demand from
radicals all over the country that the
xovernment try out the more i'm
portant of the many hundred inven-
lions controlled by the big telephone
and telegraph companies. which
might speed their service or reduce
,fts cost, but which have been thrown
into the limbo Of discard because their
installation would make Of their equip
ment, valued at many millions Of dol
lars. a heap OF Junk.
For many years the big companies
have bought up so far as possible all
new patents affecting telephones and
telegraphs, and held them off the mar
was cheaper to operate II, the old
way with the old equipment and let
the public pay the high rate than re-
souip and reduce rates on the basis
OF cheaper service which would re-
Sult
There are number of patents issued
from the patent ONCE for high-speed
telegraph systems, some sending from
500 TO 400 words a minute and print
ing them. These have been available
for = number of years. but II is only
recently that the companies have al
lowed them to operate over their wires.
The attitude Of the companies on
new inventions and improvements is
shown by tho classic example Of Gill;
land, who worked for the Bell people
back in the SOS. Gilliland invented
the raagnito machine by which you
could ring your call by a handle on
the side Of your phone. Before that
YOU had pushed button and the ring
!, Ing had been done through q battery.
vhose radius was small. The COM
many took Gilliland's invention, and
decided TO manufacture II. When they
80 the prsliminary work. GillilAAd
n 80 1hsc.