The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1903-03-21
AT THE TELEPHONE.

4He telephone mas Deen accepted
without hesitation by the younger
generation, but it has suggested un-
easy questions to older persons who
have not been accustomed to it all
their lives. Nowadays the apartment
hotel has the telephone in the bed
room, and the same is true of many
private houses. Thus it comes about
that young men and women, or OIL
der ones, for that matter, talk to one
another under very informal circum-
stances. Only the older generations
seems to be shocked thereat.
One question asked is this: Should
young woman who has justed STEP
ped out of bed talk to young man
who has called her up from his rooms
Such questions feeze the more con-
servative persons who have not from
youth been accustomed to the infor-
NAL swiftness of the telephone.
Sometimes they are shocked by the
eamiliar use of the telephone, and
here are families in which the tele-
| Ihone is relegated to the lower part
o. the house. There only a servant
oisome person fully clothed can an
sver.
There are men and women who re-
fus to accept dinner invitations over
the telephone, although that method
of asking people has become popular.
Maybe they foresee that rebellion
against the telephone that comes from
the conservatives.
cts appalling" said an elderly
aunt who was spending a week in
town, ito see how they use the tele-
phones nowadays. Only last night
when there was dinner party on,
Nary, who was dressing, answered
the telephone which is in her room.
And it was one of the men calling her
up to say that he had been detained
Gown town and was dressing then as
quickly as possible, but didn't want
dinner to be kept waiting for him.
"There the two of them stood talk
ing to one another just as if they were
entirely dressed and had stopped for
little chat on the street / tell you
this generation is little too much
for me-"
Nobody would insist that persons
who talked to one another over the
telephone should look just as they do
in private life. That would be car
rying prudishness to a degree almost
incompatible with the conditions of
life as they exist in New York. But
there is a compromise.
Many men who would send a mes
sage over the telephone under infor-
NAL conditions would ask for servant
and not the mistress of the house her
self. That can be easily enough ar
ranged. Usually it is more conve-
nient unless the telephone happens to
be in the lady's room.
A story is told on one man in New
Hfs.ilSs rhocrJtlsc sucn- circumstances
from his own room and was astonish-
ed to recognize the voice of the lady
OF the house. He knew from the
time of the day that she must be in
about the same state of undress that
he was. So he put his excuse in the
third person.
"Mr. Smith, he said, every much
regrets that owing to detention at
business today he will be somewhat
late at Mrs. Jones' dinner"
That seemed to rob the interview
of its too great informality and salts
fed his scruples.
1t was out of respect for them that
the lady answered in French that she
was Nine. Jones maid and would
give her the gentleman's message.
This was followed by a giggle which
showed that the lady had played her
part in the comedy entirely out of re-
spect to his feelings.
But there are persons who are pom
dering over the long distance intima-
cies that the telephone seems to pro-
duce.-Mea0 York Sun.