The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1918-12-22
No,r Pobui
Pensacola Journal

Editor Pensacola Journal
City.
Dear Sir:
When We recall the fact Few
years ago. the public was cfamoring
fer government control OF the tele-
graph. 1t seems strange that at this
moment when the postmaster genera
is making every effort for thu people
TO own and operate the telegraph ana
telephone systems Of the country.
there seems to be no united effort eaa
to assist him . In this great undertak-
Ing. It may Dc that business inter-
ests suffered on the wires during the
w2r, but whatever these delays or an
noymce, / think can show later On
aby taking Local offices for an example
! they were entirely H1lavosEaDie and
would have occurred un6er any mar
agement Tho short telegraph line
between Pensacola ana tho navy yard
| in normal Or peane time usually show.
cd TRANSMISSION OF from thirty r.
forty messages per day Now and dur
| ing the war the numbers run from
three hundred to four hundred mess
ages daily ana It is facti easily prov
en- this tremendous increase prevailed
on the entire telegraph and telephone
circuits Of t0e country, which were
nomina1ly under government control
From the foregoing it is evident the
government has not had q fair test
in handling the wires, and II you will
bear with me q little l VIII try to
/ show soma Of the things that might
be done if the government owned and
had fall control OF wires and all Inn
proved apparatus MI. Vail the
president OF the American Bell Tele-
M e
is the great telephone company after
alll has informed the postmaster gen
eral that the telephone wires can be
| used In multiplex telephony and tel
egraphy at the same moment without
interference and Mr.. Van is correct
Duplex q single telegraph wire and
you have two wires instead Of one
Quadruplex tins wire and you hava
four wires instead OF one. Al this Is
but a matter Of instrumental arrange
ment.
longer necessary to have shelves upon
shelves or cumbersome Tunstghtfy
glass jars, containing blue vitroil. zino
and coppers, but meat and compaca
motor generator or current rectl1lef.
serviced by the local electric light
company gives a uniform and great
er amount of current at third the
cost Of the old blue stone junk Pill.
of my day.
We come now to the operating de-
partment. In the days OF Old tfG
operator copied the telegram With
pen, and if he were a good penmm
the customer could read it, otherwise
he had to be a good guesser. To-Day
the operators print them neatly on
the typewriter at forty five and fifty
words a minute and there are many
young experts IN the larger Offices
that accomplish the astounding feat
of handling one hundred messages per
hour.
Having looked into this matter Oh
fundamentally multiplying the Ca
pacity Of wires and also the skill and
speed OF those operating those wires,
let us see what a single wire might
earn for the government at say one
cent a word, with operators al the
keys capable of handling but thirty
words q minute. IN enc hour It would
earn $500. In eight hours. $t4AO-.
and in twenty-feur hours worked con-
stantly as it should be with such d
cheap toll rate as must then prevail,
1882. co. Deducting % per cent, wnicn
is large for delays. repairs, current
and operating expenses on said WIRE
for the twenty-ror hours. we nave
net profit OF s324o0. Why, reg
ular bonanza, hear yau ssay No! but
second Alaska purchase for Uncle
Sam. Should the government take
over the wires, it seems to me at the
low rates that must then prevail the
patrons should pay for their entire
message; that is, the address ana Sig
nature, the government only trans
hitting free the number Of words, the
the only thing that concerns the gov
ernment's record. Free and service
messages should be barred and receiv-
ing clerks held strictly responsible Tor
obscure and incorrect checking TO
avoid the delays on the wires Iele-
graph and telephone companies OH
ces in public buildings will save IlSnt'
rent ana fuel, state. county ana city
franchise, licenses and other Sa1es
cease. Sktned operators, aocount
ants and clerks should be paso ac-
cordfng to ability. and nome employed
who are not worth four, six ana eieht
dollars per day. They are as rue
today educated and uick-witted peo-
ME and can earn for their employers
more money day in and day out than
any other elias OF expert workers III
the world.
I notice the postmaster general uses
in his contention the decision OF the
United States supreme court Pensa-
cola Telegraph company VS. western
Union Telegraph company, handed
down many years ago. l was an op-
orator for the Pensacola TeleSrapn
company when this decision gave
it's death blow, and it would appear
now the same decision VIII gave uis
neople cheap telegraphy and plenty
OF