The sun., 1918-11-30
HOTELS TO IGNORE
s CENT PHONE ORDER
Burleson Has No Power to En-
force Reduction, Is Con-
tcntiOn Made.
RATE RULE UP TO STATE
Action of Postmaster Eagerly
Awaited in First Clash
Over Authority.

Postmaster-G General Burleson's order
that all telephone charges in this city
should take the uniform rate Of five
cents for a call, effective December 1,
will be ignored by the Hotel Associa-
ton OF New York city. The asso-
ton, which includes in its membership
almost all of tho hotels of the metro
politan district, has been advised by
counsel that the Postmaster. General is
| without legal power to enforce his rul-
ing.
When the telephone company put in
the many booths and pay stations now
| in use the local call charge was fixed
&c fivo cents, The hotels continued to
charge ten cents for each local call.
Mr.. Burleson's order prohibited the
making of any charge in excess OF the
regular rate charged by the company
for like service.
Basis of Rates Here.
Charles ]. Campbell of the legal firm
OF Campbell & Boland, representing
! the association, said last night the
power to fix such rates was q part of
| the police power of the State, and that
the Postmaster-G General took over tele-
! phone direction by virtue of a resolu-
ton of the Congress, which expressly
excerpts from his Jurisdiction the ex-
ercise of any of the States police
powers. This exception, in the opinion
of the lawyer, precluded the Postmas-
tor (-sNs, -. -isrl.t a.
Mr.. Campbell said that the rela-
tionship of the Postmaster General to
the telephone subscribers of New
York was. in effect. identically that of
the telephone company itself, and that
Mr.. Burleson, for the Government. had
taken over the service subject to such
existing contracts with respect to
rates that obtained when he took
charge.
lie insisted that Mr.. Burleson was
merely an administrative officer, with
Vut judicial power, and that he is as
much personally liable for an illegal
act as would be the Sheriff of New
| York county in the event that he made
an Illegal levy.
Counsel's contention is that the
power to fix rates for telephone SER
vice in this State is vested exclusively
in the Public Service Commission. He
said the order was issued without CIV
ing the hotel men a chance to be heard
in defence of the existing rate and
! that there had been no suggestion
! from Washington OF a willingness to
suspend the order until such a hearing
could be ordered.
Cost to Hotels shown.
The hotel plea is that the telephone
company's charge for rental, switch
| boards, extension lines and the like, to-
| gether with the cost OF accountants
and other employees who handle the
hotel business. justifies the 10 cent
price. Mr.. Campbell said that where
the company installed public pay sta
| tons no charge was made for the
equipment for which the hotels were
| required TO pay regular rental. He
added that the company paid a COM
! mission Of from 10 TO 20 per cent. on
| business done in the public pay sta
lions for the privilege of installing
I its equipment.
/ No intimation came last night as TO
what would happen when the hotel
/ folk proceed with their telephone
! charges after December ]. The action
I OF the Postnaaster-Genera on the issue
wiz be watched with great interest
| because it will be the first time that
| the Government has ever faced the en-
/ forcement of an order OF this char
acter.