Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-12-17

NV WlSULIsA UL UaAW w A III
TELEPHONE INDUSTRY
PAPER USED in DIRECTORIES
WouLD REACH FROM EARTH
TO MOON
SOMETHING ABOUT THE GREAT
INCREASE IN INDUSTRY in
so YEARS
Washington, Dec. 16---Figures In
the recent bulletin Of the United
States census on the printing indus
tries of the country, showing q total
value Of printing and publishing pro
ducts for log Of nearly half a billion
dollars, seem to indicate that Ameri-
cans must be a remark ahly well read d
people. So they are, Of course; eY-.3
cry news stand and Christmas book
stall shows that. However, the eIier-'
NOUS total for the art preservatiye
| in this country isn't altogether due to
consumption Of literary books, maya
zines and newspapers. Not by a good
deal. w. S. Rossiter, chief clerk Of
the census, in an article just publish
ed in the technical periodical Print
ing Art calls attention, In his explain.
alton of the bulletin, to the great
swelling of the whole amount Of print
ing and publishing by the plain, eco
nomical kind that is used in COM ON;
merce and industry ..ss.
The handy telephone directory in
particular, has become one Of the.
most widely distributed OF all com
pilations. Few persons realize" Mr.
Rossiter says 1.-THE Importance Of the
telephone industry ito the printer The
use of the telephone has been rapidly
extending to all classes Of persons
and in rural as well as in urban COM;
munities. A book, general bulky.
1 is indispensable inS connection with
this invention, and in consequences the
number of hooks which are published
by the 4,151 or more companies has
been governed by the increase In sub
scribers. For the three cities having
more than one million Inhabitants
New York, Chicago and Philad elphiga5
the total number of books required
| in 1906. was ,4O0, 90. and If their pa
lper requirements were reduced to the
standard size Of "a < 3SI inches they
contained nearly 10000. 900 sheets.
i The contribution of these cities. how
lever, to the printing industry was, OF
course, but q portion Of the entire re-
quirsment. In terms of "a * 80 sheets
4 all the telephone books issued In the
| United States in 1905 contained APP
I proximately 49,, 100000 sheets Of pa
a per-
Mr.. Rossiter mighSv have added that
these sheets placed end to end would
i reach twice from the earth to the
moon and still leave enough to bind
4 into a good sized library.
Getting out all these reference
i books certainly is a big undertaking
q las compared with the one which at
Il tended the issuance Of the first tele-
Iphone directory in the world. This
d was brought out on February q 1878,
Z by the Southern New England Tsle-
phone Company OF New Haven, Conn,
q q lealet that is preserved under glass
/, at the company's headquarters in that
d city. 1t shows as the; total list Of
Telephone stations of that date eleven
residence. three physicians, two dent.
. lists, eight miscellaneous, twenty
stores and factories, four meat and
! fish markets, two hacg and BOARDING
stables.
In less than thirty years the task q
/ getting out the telephone directories
especially for the bigger companies Of
the Bell system, has become tremen
dous. 1t is also a matter Of very
large expense. A company that covers
broad and thi9kly populated terri
tory must, for the convenience Of ths
public in. different sections Of It's field
Issue several different 1catalogs," al
telephone men call the official lists d
subscribers, and there are from tw,
to four editions Of each catalog dur
) ing year And several companie,
keep a good sized printing plant bus,
the year around doing nothing else bu
getting out the telephone book, I'll
2 work on one issue beginning as 500
as the previous edition Is Off the press
e es.
~ ---- --.---
Ladies' Of Bismarck
Ask your gentlemen friends to cal
4 at G. w Wolbert Hardware co, an
:. !.