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Show HEADQUARTERS OF BELL IHENIIER Rumors which have been prevalent for some time with reference to the acquiring of the Rocky ilountain Bell Telephone company properties by the Colorado Telephone company are confirmed con-firmed by tho action of the board of directors of the former company at Its meeting hold recently. A few days ago the Colorado company com-pany merged with Its associate company com-pany to the south the TrI-State Telephone Tele-phone and Telegraph company, which has heretofore operated in southern Now Mexico and eastern Arizona The merged companies were rechristened tho Mountain States Telephone and Telegraph company and the capital stock increased to $50,000,000; and the first act of the new company Is tho acquiring of thf Rocky Mountain Bell properties by purchase. The official announcement of tho rensous for the combination, as furnished fur-nished at the headquarters of the Mountain States company at Denver, is as follows: "To those who are familiar with the financial and operating methods of the American Telephone and Telegraph company, the combining of the properties prop-erties of the Colorado Telephone com pany, the Rocky Mountain Bell Tele-phono Tele-phono companv and the Trl-State Telephone Tele-phone and Telegraph company will be no surprise. All licensee Bell Telephone companies com-panies are free from stock-jobbing methods aud all additions to plant are made with funds realized from the sale of their securities and not from their earnings. More than this, securities are not sold in excess of the actual amount invested In the business so no element of water Is permitted to enter into such financing. Recently the Colorado Colo-rado Telephone company reached the limit of Its capitalization, so that a recapitalization re-capitalization became necessary to it The Tri-Sfate Telephone ond Telegraph Tele-graph company was similarly situated, and the Rocky Mountain Bell Telephone Tele-phone company has for years felt the need of an entire reorganization What, then, more natural than to form a merger of the properties to be capitalized capi-talized on a conservative basis and at figures which will insure reasonable returns to Investors and equitable rates to the public "The new corporation is capitalized at $50,000,000, but less than half this amount will be Issued against the properties and an actual excess of physical property will be maintained over the amount of stock Issued Thero will be no preferred stock and no bonds, and no attempt will be made to pay dividends In excess of what the public might consider reasonable and honest. The financial policy Is merely a continuation of that pursued by President Field of the Colorado Telo-phono Telo-phono company for so many years. The latter company has long been known for Us conservative financing and broad jKilicy of making extensions, not only as demanded by the growth or the country, but In anticipation and advance of such growth. "President Field will continue at the head of the Mountain States Telephone Tele-phone and Telegraph company, which will llrt fiirfVwtf r.fnnrAl i r rnllAmn "President, E. B. Field: vice-president and treasurer. Edw. B Field, Jr.: secretary, J. E, McDonald: general auditor, au-ditor, Roderick Reid; general man ager, E. M Burgess. "Somo knowledge of the Rocky Mountain Bell company may prove timely It has been generally conceded con-ceded to have been lacking In financial strength for a number of years, and therefore was unable to provide extensions exten-sions by the sale of its treasury stock. An extremely optimistic management built exchanges and toll lines considerably consid-erably In excess of a dividend earning capacity, and since .dividends which would attract sufficient funds to provide pro-vide additions and bettorments were not forthcoming, the company has been forced to borrow the money needed, need-ed, for Its growth, and the only market for stock has been In the neighborhood of Blxty cents on the dollar. "The debt has reached a figure something like six and a half mill'ons of dollars, but It is understood that in assuming this debt the Mountain Stales Telephone and Telegraph company com-pany expects to fund it In stock at a considerably lower figure By doing this, and in purchasing the property from tho stockholders at an equitable value, it would seem that the Mountain Moun-tain States Telephone and Telegraph company will hae no difficulty In making this portion of Us property earn dividends equal to those heretofore hereto-fore enjoyed bj the stockholders of the Colorado Telephone company and tho Tri-Sta.tc Telephone and Tele-granh Tele-granh company. "Several prominent stockholders in the Rocky Mountain Bell Telephone company have expressed themselves favorably on the terms of the sale. Said one of them- 'Better to -have a sixty-dollar investment naying a steady Income than a hundred-dollar investment whose greatest earning capacity ca-pacity merel allowed it to pay interest inter-est on Its debts.' " oo |