Year: 1879

Washington Special (Jan. 19) to Chicago


Times


The passage of the bill introduced by Sem
ator Jones to authorize railroad companies
to construct and maintain telegraph lines is
being urged with great deal of vigor. The
people interested seem confident that the bill
will pass this session. They claim that they
have secured the support of some of the
leading Senators, and that leading members
of both parties in the House whom they have
consulted, are in favor of it.


The bill provides that any railroad COM
pany now organized or which may hereafter
be organized under the laws of any State
owning or operating any railroad, shall have
the right to construct and maintain lines of
telegraph along its road, and to connect and
use the same in connection with other lines
of telegraph, SO as to form a continuous line
for the transmission of intelligence. The
bill prohibits any telegraph company from
constructing, maintaining, or operat-
ing a line of telegraph over and
along any railroad, except under a
grant from the railroad operating the same
or by virtue of an appropriation therefor
under the laws of the State having jurisdic-
ton thereof. No right which any telegraph
company may thus have acquired shall be
construed to exclude the right of any other
telegraph company to acquire similar right.
This bill is evidently in the interest of the
railroads as against the Western Union Tele-
graph company, the purpose being to break
up that monopoly. The friends of the bill
claim that many of the principal railroad
companies of the country have now invested
| large aggregate amount in telegraph lines
absolutely essential to the conduct of their
own business, and maintain them at large
annual outlay in money. Much of the COM
mercial business of the country passes over
these lines, the receipts for which inure
mainly to the benefit of tho Western Union
Telegraph company. They say that SO long
as the control of main or trunk roads was
subdivided and held by several distinct and
independent railroad organizations, railway
companies were compelled to submit to such
terms as the Western Union Telegraph COM
pany or it's predecessors dictated for
all facilities beyond the lines
| of their own routes, and frequently
for needed facilities on their lines. In 1866 a
combination of capitalists was formed to Or
ganize telegraph system for the United
States in opposition to the Western Union
and coextensive with it. Application was
made to Congress for charter, under the
title Of the National Telegraph company.
The Western Union, realizing the conse-
quences to itself should the charter be grant
ed, caused it to be modified into general
law, and the bill was thus passed. The Law
was really of advantage to the Western
Union. A decision was subsequently made
by the supreme court to the effect that the
transmission of intelligence is the funda
mental theory of the postofhce department
and that every means that can be found tt
facilitate such communication is within tht
special power of Congress. The use of tht
telegraph line, in the meaning of the decis
ion, was one Of those means, and should b,
entirely unrestricted by legislation of any
State or claims of any corporation existing
under State law. The bill is intended Il
carry out the terms of the decision.