The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1899-04-28
TELEPHONE HEARING
Held by Committee on Ordinances Last
Night.

Held by Committee Oh Ordinances Last
Night.
Another hearing on the petition of the
Massachusetts Telegraph and Telephone
company for franchise to do business
in New Haven was given by the COM
mittee on ordinances last night. 1t was
held in the aldermanic chamber, and
besides the representatives of the new
telephone company and the Southern
New England there were quite a large
number of interested citizens present
A practical test of the telephone pro-
posed to be used in the city by the new
company was made by members of the
new company One instrument was
placed in the aldermen's chamber and
a second in an adjoining room. George
F. Reisinger of Philadelphia, represent
ing the company manufacturing the
new telephone, spoke through the in
strument in the adjoining room to the
members of the committee. Mr.. Refs
inger afterwards returned to the COM
1nittee and explained at length the pro-
posed system He said, in response to
a question by Mr.. Aling, that the trans
1nitter was patented and that applica-
ton had been made for a patent on the
receiver. He knew of no public ex-
change where the new telephone was
used
q. S. Holbrook, president of the new
company, appeared before the commit
tee. File is a resident of Cambridge,
Mass. He was for some years vice pres
ident of I'll. Andrews & Co., furniture
manufacturers of Chicago, but is now
retired. He was a resident of New Ha-
ven from 1871 to 1876. He has an hon
orary degree Of master of arts from
Yale. He said that there were about
three thousand Independent telephone
exchanges in the United States. He
said that in Stoughton, Mass, there
were only seventeen Bell telephones,
while there We're one hundred and fifty
independent phones. This difference
was by reason of the difference in price,
the independent costing only about one
half as much as the Bell. He was una
BILE to approximate the number of indie
pendent subscribers in the United
States. He said that the Bell Telephone
companys claim to have reduced the
price of their phones was really not so.
He gave instances where the rates for
measured service had been increased
and not diminished as claimed. Where
independent telephony has come in it
has had tendency to reduce the rates
charged by the old company. AS re-
CARDS the number of subscribers which |
had been secured, Mr.. Holbrook said
that over two thousand subscribers had |
been secured and that new ones were
being secured every day Two engineers |
are at work and contracts for the sub |
ways, poles, wires and other necessaries |
were being closed as rapidly as posi-
BILE. He said the progress being made
was entirely satisfactory to the stock
holders of the new company. The esti-
mate for two thousand phones, four
thousand conduit system, with the best
metallic circuit, ETC., made by an engi-
neer who has looked over the ground in
New Haven, was 1925 per phone. 1t is
also estimated that the cost of the en-
tire plant in the city would be about |
$3.50, 00O
At this point the question arose as to |
whether the papers presented by the pc
titioners were formal, and much dis
cussion was provoked in an effort to ex-
plain the same The question was
whether the Boston and New York Tel
ephone company of Connecticut which
has not yet received it's charter from
the legislature and which proposes to
assign its rights to the Massachusetts,
Telegraph and Telephone company,
Massachusetts corporation, had right
to a franchise in New Haven before re-
ceiving its charter from the Connecti-
cut legislature, or whether, in other
words, a Massachusetts corporation
with a Massachusetts charter, as mat
ter of right and not of interstate comfy,
can come into Connecticut and trans
act business, whether Connecticut de-
sires it or not
After elaborate arguments by Mr..
Seymour for the petitioners and Mr.. AL
ling for the Southern New England Tel
ephone company, the committee retired
to consider the questions The COM
mittee decided not to hear any testl-
rnony on the Boston and New York
Telephone company of Connecticut and
not to consider that matter at ALL
Adjournment until wednesday night
was taken.