Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Thursdoy, November 21,1946 THE CLINTON CHRONICLE Page Eleven „ . ■ -< - — —’ —t—T7 NOBODY'S BUSINESS By GEE McGEE QUOTABLES FROM NOTABLES What Leadtrt Say . Winters, In 'Test Ti FLOOR SANDING - FINISHING LET US MAKE YOUR FLOORS NEW AGAIN LATEST MACHINES PROMPT SERVICE HOME SERVICE CO. Phone 290-J H. L. BOYD TOM BOBO B. C. FERGUSON ^ CREDITORS' NOTICE 1 to timber' Laurens Grand Jurors :ert'otf'wili p"ease make payment*like- Wont Forking Rights bjook> oms ^ I Jurors are' HUGH A. JOHNSON. n* rights in: : GEORGE W. COPELAND. | WANTED! SEWING MACHINE OPERATORS Apply— HALLMARK MFG. CO. Davidson St, Clinton, S. C. STOCKS — BONDS — REAL ESTATE Let Us Analyze Your Insurance Needs Telephone 121 tor side-plurlry and underwent a op- £ pe.-ation. she is reported to be about chance, rr, is being, treated at home lor ather-lctics feel. room and board with the larrygitis, tooX at the ground; he can't stralght- juia "I would like to tell you why Imreased Rates on Telephones are Necessary” ie coughs something b benn sent to the seeker-terry of war. masiaf and wltfaBso feed aiuTbed holsum moore, rfd, corry-spondent. $102^80 Loaned To County Veterans Columbia, Nov. 22. — A total of *102,880 has been placed In circula tion in Laurens country through vet erans loans, the Veterans Adminls- T'a.njt, more than ever before, South Carolina noeds ade- ciuatc, dependable, telephone aorvioe, aodKIa out purpooe to provide It. We m» naer fmaiiMep more eerrlce to Southi Carolinian then ataea other time in oar history. Both local, and lone-distance calls have reached an all tin*hiefoufor thi* stats, and,more and mra paople want telephones. Since the first of 'the year, we have installed 23,000 new telephones. But we still have 16,000 orders on hand. Our atudy of thestate's growth indldstsb that the.de- mand for more service from present a» well-as new cus tomers will continue to inoreaso. Although the cost of everything.we do to provide service keeps going up, your telephone rater generally are at low today ae they were 25 years ago. Because of this, the amount of money we ar» paying dut.is.increasi8g l fiater. than the amount we are taking, in, despite, a record volume of busi ness. Since 1940, the costs of providing service In South Carolina have climbed 154 per cent, while revenues have increased only 108.per cent Total payroll costa have increased 286 per cent since 1940. Wage rates in South .Carolina have been raised dur ing the past 18 months by, $1,510,000, on. an annbal basis. This was in keeping-,with national .policies and trends and to assure, through competent personnel, the provision of an adequate service. We now have 2,500 Southern Bell people providing service to South Carolinians. Wages accbunt for about two-thirds of our operating coats. The cost of erecting..telephone buildings is up 76 to 100 per c>nL The cost of providing telephone facilities is up 45 to 60 per cent,, and telephone materials 16 to 25 per cent The rapid advance of costs in comparison with revenues has caused our rate of earnings to go down. In 1940, the Company was earning 6.73 per centbn Uie amount of money invested in the state. Today our earning rate ia only 129 ia cent This rate reflects the.latest , wage increases and does not include any pewsibk tax-refunds that may be avail able this year only on 1944 federal income < taxes. Southern Bell'* tamingt are today the let&it in hietory. Improved earnings are essentia) in order: To meet the day to day cost of providing service to present customers. To raise new money on favorable terms for additional facilities to improve ser vice to present customers and expand it. These are the reasons we have asked authority to raise rate* for local service and to charge 5 cents more on most long distance calls within the state. The requested rate increase will not produce all the added revenue that current costa indicate is needed but will af ford immediate relief. Whether the requested rites will prove sufficient wlllbe determined by operating experience under tha new ratca. The increased income under the new rates would amount to only 9Vt per cent of our total South Carolina revenues. In face of the continuously rising costs of providing service, this is moderate. We must go ahead with a huge expansion program and we are preparing to spend about $21,000,000 in the next five yean on construction work to improve and expand tele phone service in South Carolina. We must proceed with this construction work, despite high; costs, in order to meet demands for service. South Carolina is now in a period of its greatest growth and expansion, a growth that will bring the state more prosperity than it has ever known. Good and effective tele phone service is essential to this progress and the Telephone Company must be in a position to supply it. We believe, therefore, that our request for increased rates is sound and in the public interest. CaTCUaas Manager ' SOUTHERN BELL TELEPHONE-AND TELEGRAPH COMPANY /-f INCORPORATED ' ' 0 NO BUSINESS CAN GIVE ADEQUATE SERVICE WITHOUT ADEQUATE EARN