Evening star., 1899-02-04
Government Bonds.
THE TELEPHONE IN LONDON.
Its Use in That Great Capital is Very
Limited.
From Electricity.

From Electricity.
Several rather sensational articles havs
lately appeared in England condemning
the manner in which the city of London Is
lighted, and claiming. moreover, that Il is
the darkest capital in Europe Whether
this IS so or not We leave our technical
contemporaries on the other side to de-
eide. as several of them were apparently
eager to pick UP tho gauntlet thrown
down. What, however, is more surpris-
ing to US, and no doubt will bs to our
leaders, is that the police department of
London does not make use Of the tele-
phone. According to one OF our English
contemporaries. there is not a police sta
ton in the whole Of that great metropolis
equipped with an instrument that has be-
come almost as common and as neces-
sary in New York city as the electric
light. The absence Of the phone in one Of
th9 most, If not the most, important
branches of the city's service is due. so IT
is alleged, not to any fault of the local
telephone company but rather to an unu-
sual conservatism exhibited by the au-
thorities, who have repeatedly declined to
avail themselves Of the privilege In this
respect the authorities of London are an
parenuy showing the same spirit which
prompted many Of the banking houses to
decline to have telephone installed on
their premises, on the ground that lit was
not quite respectable"
How the police departman in q city such
as LONDON can get along without some
speedy method Of communication, such as
only the telephone can supply. is incom-
prehenslble TO the ordinary mortal on this
Slde or the Atlantic. In New York cfty
IN the event of childs becoming lost or a
person disappearing, every police station In
the department is notified to that effect bv
telephone in less than half an hour from
the time the news is received We should
Ike to know how this sending ont Of a
general alarm and description is accom-
pllshed in London. Possibly a dozen mes
sehgers are despatched to make the rounds
OF al lhe stauons, or the telegraph is made
use OF. AS contrast to the methods adort-
eu IN London, II may come as a surprise
70 some OF our English readers to learn
Snat curing civil and military parades in
New York city booths are erected along
tne route the procession will follow IN on
able the chief of police at headu,lartars
TO be constantly kept Informed as to the
whereabouts of tbs parade or told OF any
uhusual disturbance The fire dsDartrnent
oL bohdon, IN contrast TO the police de-
partment, has telephones in ali the fire
houses, Dut the arran cement is such thar
Whsh a ilre call is sent by telephone il is
opllged TO pass through several exchanges
entailing considerable loss of valuable tiToa
This Objectionable feature could he over
come by an expenditure of $50 a war for
each station, but small as the cost would
pc II is apparently considered by the an
lhorltles willful eXtravaganc and matters
are iett as they are. In New York arranga-
mehts nave recently been completed for
dttachihg telephones to every lamnpost
having the ordinary signal box. so tbat
Cpmmuhlcatlon may be established betJyaan
the locdUon OF the fire and headouarters