| OCR Text |
Show Manli, July 8- After considerable considera-ble warfare between the local independent inde-pendent telephone company and the Mountain Telephone and Telegraph company a peace pact has been signed sign-ed and at a meeting of the general telephone committee here last night a resolution was adopted lo discontinue discon-tinue further efforts oil the part of the people of this section for the establishment es-tablishment of an independent county coun-ty system in Sanpete. A working agreement has been entered into with the Mountain States company and conditions have again resumed the normal. When, the contract between the local lo-cal telephone company and the Mountain Moun-tain States company expired about a month ago it was found that a new agreement could not be reached. The Mountain States pople charged that the local company had no right to insist on maintaining its trunking charge of 10 cents for every message coming over the Bell lines. At the expiration of a thirty days' notice the Bell company severed its connections miti, mo in ilnnn don f- local c.omnanv. established three toll stations in the i city and began preparations for the 1 opening of a local exchange and en- 1 tering the district in comptilion with the Manti company. The people were aroused over the matter and a gen nil telephone committee com-mittee was appointed in Manti with the view of sounding out the people of the county as to the advisability of forming a county telephone system. sys-tem. This committee, consisting of K. D. Sorenson, J. M. Knighton, E. D. Anderson and C. L. Pritchett, reported report-ed last night that from "Ihe sentiment senti-ment which seems to prevail in the county, we think it advisable and roc-' ommend that the idea of a county toll system be discontinued." Jos. Judd, chairman of the general committee, has advised the mayors of the several towns of the action of the committee, and in a letter to C. Willardson, mayoi oi! Ephraim, says-"This says-"This committee reports that it is-unlikely is-unlikely anything w i : I be done at either Ephraim or Mt. Pleasant in the near future in the way of building build-ing independent telephone plants and Li at the sentiment seems to prevail :r. the county that the idea of a toll :---stem other thai, that now in use b discontinued. Salt Lake officials of the Mountain States Telephone and Telegraph company com-pany have said in reference to the mailer that the trunking charge of 10 cents was charged by the Manti company for transferring calls coming com-ing into the independent exchange over the Bell lines and held it was unjust. The Bell system, they said, was subjected to considerable criticism crit-icism for this charge, although it was not responsible for it, nor did it profit from the added expense, the entire charge going to the Manti company. The Mountain States Telephone and Telegraph company contended that the subesrihers through their monthly o annual rentals paid for all service to and from their homes to the local exchange ex-change board and that the trunking charge of 10 cents, for outgoing and incoming toll messages over the Bell system was an illegal tarriff. When the old contract entered into in-to between the old Rocky Mountain Bell telephone company and the Manti Man-ti company, which run for five years, expired more than a year ago, a new contract was drawn but the Bell company insisted on the elimination of the cents trunking charge feature. This arrangement continued for one year, when the Manti company, It was said, insisted on the re-establishment of the trunking charge. Jt was hinted that the change had reduced re-duced the Manti company's dividends about 50 per cent. Salt Lake officials ray the Bell system did not block the plans of the Manti people for an independent county system, but did offer to sell or to lease to the. independent company, compa-ny, should it be organised, all its equipment, including lines within the boundarls of Sajipete county, and . to make a connection with the system sys-tem at any point tliev designated. The Bell systen officials deny that they were planning to force the Manti company out of business, an1 assert that they offered every assistance assis-tance for the fori ling of a county toll system, as they we.-s operating In the district at a loss, but were com-pelcd com-pelcd to continue there, as their subscribers sub-scribers in other section-! of the state demanded the service. They also asserted as-serted they looked for better returns with the future development of the country. |
