The proposed union of the telegraph and postal systems / Statement of the Western Union Telegraph Company

by Western Union Telegraph Company

Statement showing the Gross Receipts.
Date.	Inland.	International.	Transit.	Total.
	Francs.	Francs.	Francs.	Francs.
1852				88,674
1853				265,536
1854				280,845
1855				265,939
1856				359,579
1857				407,011
1858				413,926
1859				506,006
1860	142,344	232,877	149,969	527,743
1861	171,225	237,748	158,558	588,532
1862	176,643	280,449	147,952	605,044
1863	211,063	277,266	124,033	612,368
1864	282,591	307,956	198,850	789,399
1865	345,289	340,103	180,247	865,640
1866	408,634	369,900	183,680	962,214
1867	480,887	444,245	149,082	1,074,214

TABLE H.

Statement showing the Receipts and Expenditure of Telegraphs.
Date.	Receipts.	Expenditures.	Loss.	Profits.
	Francs.	Francs.	Francs.	Francs.
1851	88,674	309,116	220,431.39
1852	165,973	102,947		63,025.88
1853	265,536	170,735		94,800.85
1854	280,845	139,795		141,050.61
1855	265,939	161,500		104,439.67
1856	359,579	202,599		156,980.11
1857	407,011	283,171		123,840.23
1858	413,926	293,891		120,035.19
1859	506,006	375,343		130,662.75
1860	527,743	403,500		124,243.73
1861	588,532	408,261		180,271.33
1862	605,044	515,800		89,241.86
1863	612,363	653,280	41,417.19
1864	789,399	670,424		118,974.83
1865	865,640	948,516	22,876.20
1866	962,214	1,217,496	255,282.00
1867	1,074,214	1,128,703	54,489.00

TABLE I.

Statement showing the Average of Receipts, reduced to Dollars, and the Average of Messages.
Date.	Gross Receipts.		Number of Messages.				Number of Inhabitants averaging to each Station.
	Average per Mile of Line, in Gold.	Average per Station, in Gold.	Average per Station.		Average for each 1,000 inhabitants.
			Inland.	Total.	Inland.	Total.
1851
1852
1853
1854
1855
1856
1857
1858					11	24
1859					15	34
1860					18	40
1861					22	48
1862	$103.08	$616.37	537	1,488	23	52	23,980
1863	74.50	586.00	749	1,651	41	78	17,857
1864	85.06	563.85	901	1,951	56	100	16,071
1865	86.56	563.94	1,084	2,195	74	130	14,658
1866	87.89	540.00	1,945	3,168	150	217	12,690
1867	91.70	666.40	2,191	3,450

The telegrams of Belgium are of three distinct sorts,—internal, international, and transit. The system differs essentially from that of the United States, inasmuch as the principal business of the Belgian telegraph is to transmit messages from one country to another, whilst the principal business of the American telegraph is the conveyance of internal messages. The only international messages transmitted on the lines in the United States are those sent to Europe by the Atlantic cable, to Cuba by the Cuban cable, and to the various stations in the Dominion of Canada.

One of the arguments used in favor of the assumption of telegraphs by government is, that in its hands the telegraph is more largely accessible to the people, and more freely used. The facts are as follows, giving Belgium the benefit of the increase of messages shown by the last reduction of her tariff.

BELGIUM.

Population, 5,000,000; messages, 692,536. Ratio, one message to each seventh person.

GREAT BRITAIN.