Year: 1873

1
eTsn You vere correct would the eIpedency Of
taking the telegraph, the value OF the property, or
rates charged for Its be affected thereby
suppose farmer had planted twenty years ago thou
| pended nothing on them since except 10 harvest the
fS r 81 s bs 5
at cost or the fruit at price which would be fair In
| terest on the cost OF the treesf


The value OF anything that is for sale s that sum which
they will give for 1t who desire to buy. But in consider
ing the expedency OF having the telegraph In the Unit
ed States operated by the Government the question of
the value OF existing telegraph properties does not not
the right to buy and that the mode OF ascerainng the
price TO be paid is fixed by law and agreement.


IL be true, you state that the present telegraph
system is practically monopoly does not this fact
prove that your impressions concerning the profitable
to establish it, are erroneousi The stock and bonded
capital OF two railway companies, whose united roads
The statement of this fact shows the difficulty Of
opening competing railway route between those cities.
But whether the cost OF all the telegraph properly 10 '
United States is 40 per cenum OF the market price OF
the Western Union Telegraph stock" or Is 10 or 70 tes
that sum- II would not be difficult 10 raise sne Ito nou
requisite to duplicate every mile OF telegraph we now
in operation, could be made TO appear probable ne
the business would pay. The failure or competing leIe
graph companies to make profits during the ias5 eve M
years not sentiment but sope seTGs the stockholders
OF such companies In your own city. .,. .,a al to
causes viii continue to produce like results II is highly
probable shall do so hereafter WIN put Iew e&cep-
simply the securing property yielding no profit TO s
owners for less sum than was expended 70 create IT,
cnpsncted "a it not reasonable TO suppose that II we
absorb them at profit to their owners they would be
the express purpose OF selling out to us
until our capacity TO buy was exhaustedf


The secret OF what you call the monopoly" OF the
Western Union is open when you look at II from
the standpoint Of fact IL is not the exclusive posses
sion OF essential patents the difficulty OF raising the
persons skilled the scientific and practical depart
| ments of the business. The reasons are:


First The Western Union Company has fairly met the
wants Of the public who have occasion TO use the tee
graph and does its work better than It's competitor
| IN. mo Of
mainly for labor and increases IN ratO nearly equa 10
| the increase OF the volume.


ThirdlV: The annual deterioration OF the plant by
natural decay equal TO about eight per centum OF the
cost, and this must be earned in excess OF expenses
| before dividends can be paid.


You ask" How long would Postmaster General re-
main in office II found dealing harshly unfairly with
the press 20 In reply permit 20 call attention TO an
incident American history On the 10th Of july 1888,
made orebIe the posofce and carried Off pack
ages books and papers and burned them soon AFTER at
OF the OF the rights OF individuals was distinctly
sanctioned, and committee OF t%enty-31ne on, was & ap
| head of which Ex-senator Robert Y Hayne. Amos
Kendall was then ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS M Under date
Aug g. 1885, he addressed letter TO the Postmaster at
| Charleston, from which quote the following: I've
owe an oelgaon 10 te laTs & d o @ ep re oe TO TO naT se
verted destroy the latter Is patriotism to disregard
Goaverneur, Postmaster at NewYork, the sub
ject quote the following from that letter - nave
hesitation in saying that am deferred from giving
an order 10 exclude the whole series OF abolition PuD
cations from the Southern mails only by want OF legal
| II L
| as you have done"


How long after the perpetraton of this outrage thus
publicly and officially approved did Amos kenuall ana
his subOrdnates remain in office ~ And how long Is
IL since another requested the opn-
the Attorney General or the United states as 20
the right of the former break the seals upon matter
passing through the mails for the alleged purpose OF
ascerainng the laws being viOatedI Not many
snce Sir Frank ScudamOre was charged Dy the
English press with suppressing dispatch giving an
account a strike among the telegraph operators on
the Government lines. The charge admitted, but
the sought TO be Justified as remember by
the plea the dispatch contained exaggerated state
ment which 1t not for the public interest TO permit
to be published.


In all the principal cities OF the country the telegraph
is available hour OF every day and night from tine
be Ginning the end of the year. yet III the same cities,
in evenings Sundays and all legal holidays, the
postoces are closed except for hour two and de-
livery by carriers suspended HOW long would the pub
lie submit such exclusion from the telegrapht You
will saw perhaps, this would be changed If the Govern
ment had the telegraph connected with the postal
service To which l should answer: why does not the
POstOce Department evidence OF an appreciation
of the wants OF the public and OF disposition to make
provision supplying them, BEFORE undertaking new
service requiring far ygant attention than that
which IL performs with Only tOlerable success


have thus, much greater length tnan expected at
the commencement OF this communication, endeavored
TO reply the principal points OF yours Your expert
ence Journalist, and the facility you have acquired
by long practice in rapidly arranging your views In
logical than offset the convenience stem
ographer affords me- whose duties mainly eXecu-
tive almost every department OF business
in every State. II have not succeeded In producing "a
radical change OF your notions On the SUBJECT trust
that the statements herein made VIII, at least, afford
some justification for the tenacy with which still hold
TO my own. Hoping that opportunity for further
canvass question in the social manner suggest
may be presented, am my dear sir, very truly
yours, WILLIAM okIoS'