The Republican journal., 1907-11-14
TELEPHONE TALKS.
THE ART OF rELEpH0N1NG.

Every day some subscriber asks the New
England Company what he can do person.
ally to get most satisfactory results with
the telephone. The answer, put briefly, is
this: Look up numbers before calling
Central; be prompt about answering
your own telephone bell when it rings
take pains in speaking.
The necessity for looking up telephone
numbers is obvious. With the rapidly
increasing list of subscribers connected
with each exchange, it would be impossible
for operators to identify everybody,s line
from his name. Giving Central the
number you wish correctly and distinctly to
, start with saves time and errors.
The desirability of answering promptly
is also evident. If the operator receives no
response after ringing at regular intervals
during a minute and a half or two minutes,
she reports, "They don't answer" Even
at ID little inconvenience it is better to re-
run the risk of losing what may be an i'm
portant communication and causing the
person who rings you up, as well as your
self. distress or annoyance.
Conversing well by telephone is some
thing of an art, but it is one easily acQuir-
over the wire is as positive an asset in
business and as valuable an accomplish
ment in social life as is good personal ap-
pearence IN a face-tO face interview. Being
Invisible to the person with whom you are
speaking, the impression you make depends
very largely on the quality of your voice
When 1t reaches the other end of the line.
In telephoning to person in your own
town you will get the clearest transmission
II you speak in an ordinary conversational
tone. In fact, the tone should be shade
lower rather than higher than that you use
In ordinary conversation. For long distance
talking the voice should be little louder
n n
the same room with you, but it should never
even approach shouting, which causes the
uiaphragam IN the tranSmtter to vibrate SO
last that your words are likely to be jun
bled when they are reproduced in the
listeners receiver. II you cannot make
yourself heard without too great an effort,
signal your operator ana she will do any
thing she can to remedy the difficulty.
pronounce your words distinctly and not
TOO rapidly. A telephone conversation gen.
orally lacks the pauseS of face-to-face talk,
SO 1t should be slower to give chance to
catch the full meaning of each sentence
Above all, speak directly into the transmit.
and throw your voice, that is to say, dc
not talk from the chest" which smothers
your words, but force your breath from the
mouth as you speak The telephone nstru.
ment is designed to be used this way in or
der that it may be made to exclude, so fal
DIS puSSlDle, the miscellaneous noises WITHIN
a building or from the street. If your voice
does not go directly into the transmtter ii
will not be reproduced with full distinct
ness.
''Desk sets" are sometimes unconSciouSly
misused in ways that affect their efficiency
They are likely not to ''talk up properly il
they are turned almost upside down in or
der that the speaker may lie back in his
/ chair while he cOnverSeS, for instance. The
angle at which the instrument works bes
is fixed by the thumb screw at the top OF
| the stand, which allows some variation
Furthermore, the instrument is made tt
stand on a desk, table, shelf or some sucf
hollow framework when it is in use anC
will gain resonance if it is so placed.