Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-08-13
LoNe-DIsrANcE TELEPHONY.
The er>ss Help n Has Proved 10 he I'm An
business.

Bu<tnese.
From the Electrical Engineer
surprising feature Of long-distance tele-
phony Is the remarkable amount Of business.
mat can be crowded into very short CONVEX
sation. Ths fact that the communication oh
tanned Is In actual conversation at irs, hand
between the persons most dirccty interested in
the matter under discussion ID what renders the
telephone so far superior to the telegraph Tor
very many purposes. Question and answer are
exchanged immediately without the annoying
DELAYS incident 90 photographic dispatches.
Propositions can be made and commented ON,
modified or rejected. in g manner quite impo.-
sible BY telegraph; in fact all the advantages %
personal interview are obtained withor. he
expenditure Of time and trouble involved in a
journey. Numerous Instances could be given
of the number Of business questions that can
be disposed % In q single talk over the wires
within the minimum time Of Eve minutes.
Probably the best on record j. that where
two business men. one in New York and one in
Boston, discussed and settled four entirely dis
tinct affairs in one minute and a half Two %
the matters dealt with involved large sums %
money. but the men were able 10 Law their
heads together, hguratively speaking. well.
although literally they were far apart. that
u took them but few seconds IN each case 20
decide on what should be done. II can readily
be imagined how many kilograms would have
been required TO do the same amount of bust
ness. leaving entirely aside the question Of time
which is so often OF first importance. Every
dae cases occur where the long distance tele-
phone enables business 20 be done that the
telegraph cannot aid. and where the only alter
native would be n long and expensive Journey.
For instance. not long ago New York man
was notified that his draft a honse in = town
FAR M in the interior Of the state had been al
lowed 10 go TO protest. and in order 60 protect
his interests he was on the point OF under taking
journey that would have Kept him away from
his Office for three DAYS. when a friend advised
hlm 20 telephone 60 the bank that held has draft.
he did so immediately. The bank Informed
INN OF the state OF affairs and recommended .
LAWYER In the town To lake the job in hand. He
had an Interview by telephone with the lawyer
and gave him instructions to proceed. and the
same afternoon the lawyer reported that be had
got out an attachment and that the draft would
be fully covered. The time spent b. the New
York man the affair might have been an
hour. and the total expense was for three
conversations, one with the bank and two with
the LAWYER. as against an absence from town OF
two or three days and travelling expenses
amounting TO $40 or $50
The actual saving of time and money il by
no means the only recommendation in favor %
long-dlstance telephone communication Ofteni
renders possible the transaction Of business
which could be done in no other way aud many
time a hve-minute conversation PAYS for itself
a thousand fold. To manufacturers having
their head Offices in New York, branches in
other cities and towns and factories somewhere
In the country the service has become p-acti-
cally indispensable: the ueriodical daily talks
between the chief Of the firm and the manager
of the factory or branch Office place all their
affairs so thoroughly in touch with each other
that no manufacturing concern that has once
adapted the service to its needs would he with
out ii for single day were the cost twice what
1t is. Bankers, brokers and lawyers form
another large class Of patrons. hui IL WINS among
the manufacturers that the long-distance tele-
phone first caught on" and they have steadily
availed Themselves Of il from the time Of its e.
Enlistment a. a commercial means Of commu-
nication-