Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1883-04-18
VOL. XII.
Telephone Riches.

| tue paElloS lHleIeSleu llltJ ue uOeS HOt
wish to have his name given. "The tele.
phone industry said he, sis growing like
Jonah's gourd. Within the past month
have been over nearly the whole of the
union, and find the use of telephones in
creasing so largely that the manufacturers
are unable to supply the demand. With.
in the last six weeks | have taken orders
for our factory alone for G 600 telephone
bells and shall sell 10000 more during the
next month. The demand for the coming
spring promises to be the largest ever
known in the history of the telephone. We
have orders enough now on hand to keep
us busy for two years, and we are increas-
ing our capacity every year. There are
five other Bell telephone factories in the
country, and they are all dong we'll
SIS there much money in telephonesp'
l asked.
"Well, should say so,'' was the reply.
81 don't kno.s of any business that pays
better. Telephone companies usually
make IL dividend of 10 per cent the first
year, Notwithstanding the cost OF laying
wires and putting in the instruments.
After this the expense is comparatively
small and the receipts proportionately
greater.
NEARLY every man who has been large
~ Interested IN teiePhohes, ne conVihueo,
mas become wealtmy: Al oi 'he oiislnai
company OF Inc Dell ihVenlloh' WIN per-
maps Il slngie exception are now inlliion.
ARES neli ri,hse!l ohiy eoson yoaiS aso
was poor hnsl,snnan llvinS IN ne"
liaven' oonh'' anu eApeiitnen'ins e in .eie
glaPpS. ne ilao cone iloln nns lahu d
lew years oe,olG. Che uay whlie eAPeti-
lhehling On oupleA tLness'ses ne lounu ne
couia 'a,h oVer the WIRES anu ne concelV-
Gu 'ne luea oi lls instrument anu We gaVe
LI, tnG A'ss oAn'p..,ou ..a u u ~ " n e Go,ioso
nall' peiole tlle sluoelils, oul lilsI az
.empl "as no. suotoss ~ Will i;,, "olA
anu We ulsil'sseu 'ho "uuieuoo WIN 'ie
III nPio'sion IVA. tno eAPol iuionI was a i'il-
cio anu VIC "oio oouPio Vi visionary
iooiS. we trie' ~ ~ aSa,n' ho"eVet' It"
aays Iater' III tne New maven opera house,
ana succeeded SO wei lhat the beil com,
Pahy was orsahiZeu at once. established
the nrst company using the instrument.
geo. COY, lhe Srealesl eleclrlcian IN the
United States to day, and myself were In
partnership. Our first exchange had
eight wires, running 10 the houses of
friends all over the city. No one thought
of using it for business then. We had no
bells, but used electric buttons like those
for calling servants in hotels. Its success
created great excitement in New Haven,
and we soon had 20 subscribers and had to
put up IL more wires. We next made
board OF 100 wires. So far it had been
used entirely for social chatting and for
the curiosity of the thing, but soon busi-
ness men saw the advantages of the inven-
tion, and, subscribers came in faster than
we could put up the wires. 1t soon spread
to other cities Boston, Lowell, Albany,
Troy, and finally Chicago, adopting it.
After this exchanges sprang up 80 rapidly
all over the country that it was Impossi-
BILE to keep track of them, and from that
time on the new business was success.
AT present there are more telephones in
New York than in any other city in the
world, and the number has been increased
at the rate of 20 a day for the last year.
Boston, Chicago, Baltimore, Cleveland
and Cincinnati are now putting in over GO
telephones month, and Nashville is in
creasing its subscribers at the rate of two
per day. villages are establishing ex-
changes' anu' the Ilme Will come When
most OF lhe houses VIII DC connected py
telephone. Inc business IS belng pusned
IN Europe as well as IN America put 1or-
elgners are SO SLOW 10 take up new thlngs
mat there IS not now one telephone IN En-
gland TO l0o IN America. In france the
telephone Is used by some OF the larger
business houses, but as convenience Tor
the people IL IS almost unknown. In other
european couhtrles IL IS much the same.
ne people cont seem TO understand the
value OF the invention and take hold OF 1t
as the Americans DO"
"What does 1t cost man to have
telephone!
"hates are different IN different places,
ranging from W to S2O a month. When
Coy ana myself started the tlrst exchange,
we charged SlS year. In New York each
subscriber WITHIN nan mile OF the
exchange, pays SO month, and IN Boston
ana Baltimore from Sl0o to S220 year.
what is Mr.. Bell estimated to be worth,
nowP | asked.
"At least S6,OOO,OUO. His income is
very large, and grows every year with
The business. He is dark complex
loned man, between 80 and 40 years OF
age. lie talks with an English accent At
temptS are now being made to break down
his patents, but 1t Is question whether
they succeed"
"Iell me something about other men
who have made money in telephones.
cit would take all night" was the reply.
'Neally every man whu has handled them
nas made money One of the most notable
instances is that of Thomas Watson, they
Did gray haired mechanic who used TO help ,
Bell in his experiments. He had little .
shop in New Haven and made electrical +
Instruments. Ball would give him an idea
If what he wanted, and the two would :