X. INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS.
still represented by sites, recently bought and not yet built on, or buildings,
not yet ready or not wholly taken into use.
Private Telephone Companies.
Mention has already been made (cf. above) of the origin of these companies
in Sweden and how the greater number of them afterwards passed
into the possession of the State. It now remains to give a short account
of the largest and most important of the private companies still existing,
i. e., those in Stockholm.
The private telephone lines of Stockholm and the surrounding district
are at present in the hands of the Stockholm Telephone Company, Ltd
which, on January 1, 1908, purchased the Swedish telephone lines of
the two then existing and co-operating telephone companies — the Stockholm
General Telephone Company, Ltd and the Stockholm Bell Telephone
Company, Ltd.
The Bell Company was established in 1880, chiefly with American capital, and
at first, employed only American material. Its charges, however, were so high
(160 kronor for “the city within the bridges”; 240—280 kronor in the rest ol
Stockholm) that the general public could not make any great use of this new means
of communication. Bepresentations were therefore made urging a lowering of the
tariff and, when no attention was paid to this demand, there was formed in
1883, on the initiative of E . T. Cedergren, G. E., — whose services in connection
with the development of the telephone-system of Sweden are deserving
of the very greatest praise the Stockholm General Telephone Company
whose object was stated to be “to establish and carry on telephone-commu-
nication within Stockholm and with other districts, on terms as low as the]
security . of the financial position of the company would permit”. The tariff
of the new company for subscribers having sole right to a wire was fixed atj
100 kronor for the whole of Stockholm, but other, lower rates of subscription
were soon introduced. Both the companies"-mentioned continued to
exist and extend their operations until the year 1885, when Stockholm possessed,
not only relatively but also absolutely, the greatest number of tel,ephone-
subscribers of any city in the world. After the date mentioned, the number
of subscribers to the Bell Company diminished more and more, and, at the!
close of the “eighties”, the majority of its shares were purchased by the General j
Company, and, in 1892, the wires of the Bell Company were reserved-for
the home-telephone service alone.
The General Telephone Company grew rapidly, not only within the capital
but also in the country districts in the immediate neighbourhood of Stockholm.
In addition to this, a telephone service was established at Soder-
hamn and Jonkoping, and long-distance lines connected the capital with Norr-
koping. The Company also entertained the idea of erecting long-distance; lineSj
to Gothenburg in order to place the lines of private telephone companies!
there in connection with Stockholm, but the application for the concession, |
which was made in 1888, was refused by the Government. The steadily increasing
difficulties that were raised against the work of the Company in Stock-1
holm soon made it desirable for a definite agreement to be made regarding
the territory within which the Company should enjoy an indisputed right to carry
on its business. Consequently, after negotiations with the Board of the -State;
Telegraphs, an agreement was drawn up which, later on, was approved by
PRIVATE TELEPHOHE COMPANIES. 657
the Government, and, in accordance with which, the Company was granted the
right to retain all its existing telephone wires within a district extending to 70
km in every direction from Stortorget (the centre of Stockholm), and to erect
new lines within this territory. The. condition on which this agreement was
drawn up was that the Company should, at the same time, sell to the Telegraph
Service all its lines outside the above-mentioned district.
By an agreement made with the Board of the State Telegraphs, there was
established in 1891 co-operation between the lines of the State Telephones
and- those of the private . companies, whereby all subscribers in the capital
enjoyed the use of extensive local lines and of extensive telephone-connections
with provincial districts. This co-operation came to an end in 1903.
In 1902 and 1906, proposals were made by the State Telegraph and Telephone
Departments to purchase the telephone lines of the General Company
but, on each occasion, the • Bill was thrown out by the Riksdag. Neither
did a proposal made in 1904, to divide the field of operations between the
State Telephones and the General Company, gain the approval of the Riksdag,
so that it has not been found possible to find any solution of the co-operation
problem. Since the cessation of co-operation, however, th e . lines of the private
company have increased at a constantly increasing rate.
■* * *
In 1899, it came to the knowledge of the General Telephone Company that
the | Russian State intended to issue invitations for an international competition
respecting telephone-coneessions in the five Russian cities of Petrograd, Moscow,
Rigap and Odessa. After an investigation made by Mr Cedergren at these places
had;, shown that there was a great field of work for the telephone-traffic in
Russia, there were established two Swedish telephone companies: the Swedish-
Danish-Russian Telephone ■ Company, Ltd, and the Cedergren Telephone Company,
Ltd, in both of which the General Telephone Company was the principal
shareholder, and which sent in tenders for the proposed Russian plants.
The result was th a t the Swedish-Danish-Russian Telephone Company obtained
the concession in Moscow and the Cedergren Telephone Company that in
Warsaw. New and first-class telephone plants have since been established in
these cities and have obtained large numbers of subscribers. Before the Swedish
Companies began their work in Russia, the American Bell Company had
enjoyed telephone-coneessions in these cities, but, after having been founded
20 years, the number of its subscribers was not more than 3 058 in Moscow,
and 2 331 in Warsaw. On January 1, 1913, i. e., after 12 years of activity, the
number of subscribers to the Swedish-Russian Companies’ lines was 43 347
and 28 935 respectively.
In combination with L. M. Ericsson & Co., the General Telephone Company,
has also established a - telephone service in the city of Mexico and its
suburbs. On January 1, 1913, this combined company had 9 202 subscribers.
In proportion as the business of the General Telephone Company increased there
arose a growing difficulty in obtaining a clear view of the working of the various
divisions and, especially, in distinguishing the economic results of the Stockholm
lines from the other business of the Company. On January 1, 1908, was formed
the Stockholm Telephone Company, Ltd, which, as was mentioned above, took
over the lines of. the General Telephone Company and of the Bell Telephone
Company in Stockholm and the surrounding districts. The General Telephone
Company is the principal shareholder in the Stockholm Telephone Company.
During the whole of their existence the private telephone companies
of Stockholm have endeavoured to extend the use of the telephone among