Show 1 I i Rural Telephones e s May a y yet Get et Federal Loans I Bill Would Provide For Private Expansion By WALTER ALTER v SHEAD snEAD Washington Correspondent WASHINGTON D. D C. C The C. The Party Line long the butt of jibes and ridicule may be on its way out if a abill abill abill bill intended to provide or improve telephone service in rural areas becomes law under the new congress Considerable interest has been aroused in the measure introduced by Senator Lister Hill D D. D Ala which would provide for a special fund of million dollars and create a federal agency to be known as the Rural Telephone adminis adminis- ThiS inis administration would administer administer administer ad ad- minister the law and the fund with authority to make loans to telephone telephone telephone tele tele- phone companies or to individuals corporations states municipalities utility districts or to profit non-profit cooperative cooperative co co- cooperative co- co operative associations also to the Rural Electrification administration for the purpose of financing the construction construction construction con con- reha rehabilitation bili ta tion modernization tion and operation of telephone systems systems systems exchange lines or other facilities facilities facilities ties for furnishing telephone service to persons in rural areas who are not receiving adequate service The I measure also provides for improvement improvement improve improve- ment or betterment of existing service service service ice to persons in these areas Senator Hill as a result of considerable considerable con con- study on the rural tele tele L I a cm phone problem asserted that in 1920 almost 2 2 million farm homes had telephones and that by 1940 this this' number had decreased to about 1 million a decrease of about 40 per cent Rates for farm telephone service service service ice ice have increased from about to an average of at the present present present pres pres- ent time He also pointed out that 75 per cent of the nations nation's farms numbering still do not have telephone service Some smaller telephone companies in the na nation tion would bethe be bethe bethe the chief beneficiaries under the billas bill billas billas as borrowers from the fund to modernize modernize modernize mod mod- their plants rebuild existing lines lutes and construct new ones Loans would be made on a self-liquidating self basis at an interest rate of 1 13 per percent percent percent cent with 35 years in which to repay repay repay re re- pay the principal |