_Statement showing the Average of Receipts, reduced to Dollars,
and the Average of Messages._
┌─────┬────────────────┬─────────────────────────────┬───────────┐
│ │ │ │ Number of │
│ │ │ │Inhabitants│
│DATE.│ Gross Receipts.│ Number of Messages. │ averaging │
│ │ │ │ to each │
│ │ │ │ Station. │
├─────┼───────┬────────┼──────────────┬──────────────┼───────────┤
│ │Average│ │ │ │ │
│ │ per │Average │ │ Average for │ │
│ │Mile of│ per │ Average per │ each 1,000 │ │
│ │ Line, │Station,│ Station. │ inhabitants. │ │
│ │ in │in Gold.│ │ │ │
│ │ Gold. │ │ │ │ │
├─────┼───────┼────────┼───────┬──────┼───────┬──────┼───────────┤
│ │ │ │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.