In 1860 the U.S. Congress arranged among the telegraph companies a competition to create a national line. The winner was Western Union. In the 80's of Nineteenth century, Western Union was repeatedly tried capture by the railroad tycoon Jay Gould. He worked with Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the first phone. The size of the commission fee for the transfer is charged according to the Western Union tariffs and depends on the amount of money sent. Sibley, the founder of Western Union, did not build a new telegraph lines, and persuaded the other players to join. American Telegraph Company, however, still had to buy it.