The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-09-13
LONDON TELEPHONE SERVICE
Through Delays, Old Instruments
and Ignorance, the Worst in
the World.

Brooklyn Eagle.
If some enterprising American would
only come over to England to reform the
telephone service of London he would
earn the everlasting gratitude Of suffer-
ing community and at the same time en-
rich himself beyond all imagination We
4fe the nmartyrs of the most abominable
z8iephons slavery in the world. Woe be
to the man who is so short-sighted as to
delude himself into the belief that he is
benefiting himself by adopting the use of
the telephone. 1t means that ever after
ward, SO long as he maintains it, his
spare time goes to the winds. his temper
follows suit and his life become a burden
to himself and his friends. The first
thing that happens after you have APP
piled to the company for telephone is a
delay of from three to ten months before
the instrument is finally placed in your
house or office. The reason for this is
given that the company claims that it is
impossible 70 obtlin rights of way over
roofs and gardens.
The obliging British househ olde- loves
nothing better than to find anything that
fence. ana so when the telephone COM
pany comes along and asks him if it may
string little wire over mis- ground he
promptly protests against the invasion
of his sacred rights and refuses. The
idea of having wire run across his roof
or over his back yard is too preposterous
for words. Finally. having by hook or
crook managed TO secure wire from the
ceeds to install the instrument in your
house. II you know nothing of telephones
and most people here do not-the conf
pany will impose upon your Ignorance by
providing you with a set that must have
done duty somewhere in the wilds of
Missouri twenty years ago and which not
even Fiji Islander would now care to
use If you object to this secondhand
sort of thing you will be provided with
more modern instrument provided you
agree to pay extra for the convenience
in order to reimburse the company for its
outlay in furnishing you what 1t ought
to be compelled to give. in the first in
stance.
Then after another unnecessary delay
OF a month or so the connection Is made
and your troubles begin. You can never
get the number you have rung for. IL
you want to talk with your mother-in-
law in Hampstead. for instance. the OBJ
ligipg young woman at the exchange
promptly puts you into communication
with a tannery somewhere down in Dept
ford. If you are in great hurry and
ring for messenger you Will ma That
by the time you could nave walked 10
your objective point and returned you
will have a reply from the exchange that
the messenger office telephone does not
answer or that the junction line Is busy.
Never. by any possibility OF chance' 90
you get prompt connection. People grow
gray haired while waiting at the tnstru-
ment with the receiver glued to their
ears. You write to the management and
protest vigorously against the imposition
and in return they send beautifully
printed form that the matter will he at
tended to. and that is the end of it,
Nowhere in Europe is there such ri
diculous system and nowhere else except
in London where we put up with omni-
buses and foot warmers and other ahom-
nations would such state of AFFAIRS be
allowed to continue. In Paris and Berlin
the telephone systems are ansolutely per
root I talk with Paris every evening
over the telephone by medium of the post
office wires / am put through to the
French capital quicker than II | wanted
who is on nv own exchange. hear cv
ery word distinctly that comes from
France and yet have seldom had real,
~ satisfactory conversation on local
,eInnhonc win not some telephone
Yerkes come over and relieve Us from
this misery: