Omaha daily bee., 1895-11-17

which has outlined the following scheme: I'm
consideration OF the justness Of allowing the
public to pay for its telephone service. and
In order to place all holders Of public tele-
phones on common basis. the telephone
company has also agreed that upon the adop-
ton by our association Of the proposed plan
II VIII at once inaugurate the policy Of re-
quiring that all public telephones shall be OF
the automatic kind" The plan proposed is
that subscribers are to guarantee $3.50 per
quarter within the fiat rate district. Toll In
excess Of $3.50 and not exceeding $50 per
quarter is to be retained by the company.
Toll In excess Of $50 per quarter is to be
divided equally between the subscriber and
the company. In mileage districts proper
tionate amounts. determined by distance.
are to be determined and divided as
above indicated. The strongest objections
against the scheme have come from the ply
sicians. who ere opposed to 1t as one man. as
they nave heretofore been allowed the free
use Of drug store telephones Some OF the
druggists seem to think that their trade will
be injured by establishing an automatic pay
service. They say that the telephone is one
OF tho greatest advertisements the druggist
can have and il people have to pay for the
telephone, they will not be likely to buy any
thing else.
INNOVATIONS IN MEXICo
Gasoline engines are now being much used
in Mexico In conjunction with small dyna-
mos for the generation of electric currents
lot uuhestlc Ishtlng or power plants. The
manufacturer who put up the first gasoline
engine in the City of Mexico. which was
before President Diaz had given the ready
reyolutionists of Mexico to understand that
they must go out Of the business, and took
care that they did, tells of queer taste OF
the ways of the country that he had within
a day or two after his arrival The engine
had been started. and after he had carefully
drilled the Mexican engineer in the handling
of 1t he went to his room for few hours
hn oil rnl
his Bunsen burner to go out, and the tube
to grow cold. Presently there was a terrific
explosion, and as the piston had left the
cylinder head the charges were shot out
OF the exhaust with the rapidity and noise
of company of artillery shooting by squads
In moment that part of the town was
aroused and the people focked to the build
ing. Down the street galoped a troop of
Rurales, the crack cavalrymen of Mexico
looking for the revolution the authorities
were sure had broken out. The matter was
explained satisfactorily to the captain. but
the disappointment Of the soldiers could only
be appeased by drinks all around. The
engineer says that the shock of the ex-
plosion was nothing to what he felt next day
when he was presented with the bill for
pulque.
NOVEL USE OF A SEARCHLIGHT.
novel use has been found for the cleo
trio searchight in connection with a strike
and riot in Lancashire, England. The man
termined to keep his mill going, and he
promptly secured new hands and set them
to work. At the same time he wired to
firm in Manchester to fix a ship canal"
searchlght on a prominent part of the fac
tory building, with the idea of preventing
the strikers from maliciously setting fire to
the temporary sheds erected for the pro-
lection of the new hands An hour after
the receipt of the order the plant was run
ming on the top of the works, and during
the continuance of the strike 1t was used
nightly, in conjunction with the police force
established in the works to scour the sur
rounding country and to illuminate the vari-
Gus parts where pickets were placed. 1t was
found so effective that large number of
temporary police were dispensed with
A TELEPHONE WAR
A big telephone war is on in Milwaukee
Ten days ago circular letter sent to
many of the leading business firms i'm the
city asking them to attend a meeting for
the purpose of arranging for concerted ac-
ton among users Of telephones against the
exorbitant rates charged by the Wisconsin
Telephone company. The letter was signed
by Frank M. Hoyt. w. H. Timln. E. II.
Elliott, E. H. Bottum, Hugh Ryan. W. d.
Vandyke, L. W. Halsey, Paul d. Carpenter
and Francis Bloodgood. jr.
The meeting was held and resulted in the
formation of an organization with president,
vice president, secretary and treasurer. The
articles of organization provide for an ex-
ecutive committee or hve to be appointed by
the president. 1t Is further provided that
the organization shall be completed as soon
as there are $50 signers to the articles. The
signatures Of nearly fifty Of the prominent
business and professional firms of the city
were affixed at the meeting.
For several weeks there have been many
protests on the part of leading business men
over change in the methods Of the Wis
consin Telephone company, by which the
calls Of each telephone subscriber are lin
tied to three day, or 1000 a year, and
against the charge of cents for each call
The company recently lowered the price of
telephones from 800 to S75 a year. but now
charges for each call in excess of 1000 year
which brings the cost of telephones up to
much higher pOint than before