Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1902-02-20
The Farmers Mutual Telephone.

1t was my good fortune to spend tive
months last fall in Henry county, Hi
nois, where very successful Farmers
Mutual Telephone Is operated.
-Four years ago this system was no
10 existence, and now forty-eight diff
ferent lines, with from eight to fifteer
telephones on lire, run into cen
trail at Geneseo. The farmers living
on the borders of the county have ever
extended their wires to their neighbors
living across in other counties, so that
now the total length of all their sys
tenn covers, perhaps, two hundred
miles. While visiting at the farm
house of friend, I could go to the
phone and talk thirty miles away, and
with out toll.
The two most desirable features of q
mutual phone are the cheapness, and
the possibility OF spreading out the
system over large area, connecting
allItogether, and having the use of all
without toll at any place. That is
what is needed in this county, andl /
think it is the only kind that will
readily secure the hearty support OF
both the farmers and town people.
cannot possibly see why any one
would pay fifteen or twenty dollars a
year, simply for the rent of a phone,
pay it year after year, and then pay q
twenty cent toll every time he used
any line of the same telephone system,
beyond his own immediate line; when
he can with the farmers Mutual
System, FOR the small sum of twenty
five dollars, have his own phone put in,
then have no farther expense except
two dollars or so a year for switch
charges, and small amount for keep
ing the line in repair.
OF course it will take little time to
get the cooperation of the people
throughout the county to extend the
lines, get centrals established in the
towns, and the system in good work
ing order, but as soon as the plan and
small cost of this Mutual System" is
thoroughly understood, it will be the
phone that every one wants.
Quite large number of people in
and about Extra are anxious for this
telephone system, but the first thing
to be done is to get line from Audi
bon to Extra. Business men are heart
lily tired of paying that 20 cent toll
every time they send a message to Au-
dubon. One business man says his
telephones and connections with out
side lines cost him 800 year.
In Adams county this state, sue
cessful system of Farmers Mutual
Telephones is operated in connection
with the Corning Telephone Co. The
cost of each phone there is not to ex-
coed %. % per year after the phone is
in.
Information from there concerning
telephones is as follows: 1t takes 100
pounds of No. IL wire, 25 poles to the
mile, with brackets and insulators at
2 cents each or cents for each post.
Cedar poles cost IS cents each, or
about $4,000 mile for poles and
brackets wire cost $500 mile, making
cost Of $500 per mile, besides the
cost of the telephone. The Strombery
phones are $1,000 each with a rebate
Of s1.00. They further said that the
Hooker system" here would be oblig-
ed to give service on their lines, to any
other telephone system, at not to ex-
coed s3.OOa year; that is-if con-
nection was made at their central office.
"The farmers as a class were slow
to take at first, but after they saw the
benefits, they nearly all wanted 'phon-
es; and soon found that what they con-
sidered a luxury seemed necessity
after using short time"
The Audubon County Farmers
Mutual, in order to put in phone
for any one person at their price, of
s25 90, must of course have more than
one phone to the mile; as the cost of
the poles and wires, without the tele-
homes is $25.0O mile. But by the
use of little energy, and by talking
up the subject, it seems as though any
persons desiring line can secure
sufficient number to get their line.