The evening times., 1896-11-27

More than $50 900 official police mes
| sages were sent, received and recorded in
the telephone room at police headquarters
| during the fiscal year ended June 80, 1896.
! The number of messages was, in actual
| figures, los ,632, or an average of 1921
| and fraction per month, 44o per day, or
| about 8 for every hour of each OF the 365
days in the year.
These messages were of every dcscrip-
| ton, conveying information of losses or
| discoveries, of thcfts, of suicides, of lost
children, lost dogs, suspicious characters
| abroad, and of divers other subjects upon
| which many people desired either to re-
ceive or communicate details. "Headquar-
| ters" comes ringing over the phone at
| every hour in the day, or night, and there
| is some one on hand to return immediate
| response. The operator must have all the
| qualities of an Information bureau and the
| patience OF job.
A sample of the record kept is about as
follows. Deserted from the army at Key
West Florida, barracks, John Eyanson,
of Company A, First Artillery; twenty-one
years Old, i've Ieet eight inches tall ruddy
com pie xion, brown eyes, dark brown hair;
weight, - pounds; scar from burn ON left
side of cheek
Another Is: Thomas Charles, of Com
pany A, First Artillery, thrty-two years
Old, five feet four inches tall, fair COM
plexion, blue eyes, dark brown hair; weight,
/ so pounds: has tattoo girl in tights on
right fore arm and tattoo sailor and anchor
on left fore arm
REPEATER TO EACH.
This Information must be accurately re-
peated to each of the nine precincts, and
the 20. k returned, but mcanwhil ethe
tinkle of the bell is going fast and furious
and Headquarters must respond probably
IA dozen times Before the completion Of th.
rounds on the message quoted.
a lady, name not necessary to be stated,
has lost by theft ''one gold ring with ruby
set, surrounded with eight diamonds; one
gold ring with five pearls inset, one gold
ring with plain diamond set, one gold ring
with two rubies, and one stick pin set with
four dark eneralds and four diamODds.'
As before, this must be transmitted Just
as delivered to the nine precincts. II may
be remarked, incidentally, that the details
in each of the foregoing cases are placed
in possession OF every patro,inan in the
District as early as practicable after they
are reported to the lieutenants.
Imagine the reception of eighteen, or
even 4 dozen, of such messages for every
hour in each twenty-fOur, besides thc many
calls turned in, and one can have some idea
OF the magnitude of the work performed
by the operator, for there is never more
than one on duty at time.
A tally was kept for u single day, from
$50 n. III. on one date to the same hour ON
the succeeding morning, which showed
there were ,O0s of such calls during that
period. besides 525 official messages. Ii
is evident from this record that the cen
tral'' of the hello service is not in il
with the headquarters operator.
SALARIES Go DOWN.
The business has increased very much in
the past dozen years, and, by some process
not explained, the pay OF the operators took
u drop. The compensation was $50 a
month when the total of the official mes
sages numbered annually but 81, 2Sl
which was but little more than half the
number on nrecord for last year.
Superintendent Miles has several times
recommended to the Commissioners, and
the suggestion has been approved. that the
salary attached to the position be raised
from 5000 to $72O per year, but the mo-
tiun fell by the wa aysiie. either at the
Treasury pruning station or in the District
committee room ut the Capitol.
1t is understood the effort is to be re-
newed at the coming session of Congress.
There al, but three operators employed in
the 'phoue room whose payis involved. and
the aggregate increase in the appropriation
for salaries would be added to by only
SI2O per annum gross, paltry sum TO the
government, il is asserted, but of great
consequence to those who are now receiving
what's alleged 10 be barely enough to pay
rentand buy pins.
on one occasion, when the recommended
ton for an increase found its way to the
Capitol, Senator Voorhees, made q speech
asking that the amount to each be raised
to 5000 per annum. He said 1t was a
shame that men should be asked to per-
form 81 eXacting a service of so much
importance for the meager compensation
allowed.
In the annual report for the current year,
Supt. Miles has suggested that two addi-
tional operators be provided, in order taat
in the busiest hours or the day two men
may lie employed. further suggestion
has also been advanced that several wires
now connected with the headquarters shall
be detached, and thus lessen the labor.
Supt Miles has made no recommendation
of that chara cter, SO far as is known, but it
is believed he would approve it. He re-
ferred this morning to his previous efforts
in behalf of the operators, and said the
matter would be again brought before Con-
Sress this winter.
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