The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1907-03-29
The Telephone Situation In haury
DR. Porter Gives Brief History of The Past and Oers
Some Valuable Suggestions For Reorganization
of The Citizens Company.

He has co-operated with me heartily
in our efforts TO improve the service
and. aside from his salary, has taken
an interest in our fortunes and mis-
fortunes second 70 no stakeholder in
the company. I would have omitted
this reference to your Supt and Man
ager but for the fact that ] am about
to suggest certain radical changes In
our system for the necessity, the
equity and ultimate success Of which,
YOU in a large measure must rely on
our good faith. our loyalty to the ultl-
mate best interest Of all the people
and to our Judgment regarding the
plan to be proposed from a financial
point OF view. We have tried to serve
YOU well in the past We want to
serve you better in the future.
Just here we meet our first DIM
Guilty. / have talked to many OF our
stockholders of our desire to improve
our service. After brief explana-
tion, the usual exclamation is-"What
do you want to change for? We are
satisfied; Your service is as good
some say better than the Bell This
and other like reasons based, let US
frankly state, on imperfect knowledge
of the business, are the stock In trade
arguments offered by those who would
let we'll enough do
Let me tell you plainly the tele'
phone situation in Maury county The
/ Citizens Co. operate what is known
as a ground" circuit system. This
means that from subscribers house
the wire starts from an iron rod IN
the ground up through the telephone
out to the pole line thence to the Cen
trail ONCE, after passing through
which the wire again enters the
ground. The modern system uses
what is known as Metallic" Circuits
That is, from the subscribers house
! the wire starts, not from the ground
: but from the telephone. From Themes
: to the pollline, thence to the centra
ONCE, after passing through which !
r goes back to the pole line, and bacl
e to the subscribers telephone TOUCHING
) the ground at no point.
E There are numerous insurmountaDl
! defects in a grounded system. Wit
0 It, it is impossible to get rid OF eros
0 talk" all kinds of electric current
r have access though the ground Wit
i the telephone wires. At present tn
e induction from the electric light sy'
tenn in Columbia makes our lines
e noisy that at all times 1t is trouble
e some and Id rainy weather almos
l. impossible to give service to som
y of our subscribers.
y The electric light plant gives U
n about all the noise that we can stan
n now; what will be our situation vine
y the interurban electric cars come
t. Besides the crosstalk trouble Whlc
makes a private conversation impo
re sible and the heavy current trouble
re that will, when the interurban ge
is here make any kinds of conversatlC
n difficult. attention is called to II
n fact that with the grounded clrcu
re IT is impracticable for us to get mut
benefit from the long distance SERVE
tie which has recently been placed at o.
i; disposal. The Bell was a ground G.
le cult system hsre when we began
We do business, but with plenty OF mon
ne thew soon placed us at disadvantai
Ill by putting in metallic. If they dol
,r- give a far better service than 1t
ad possible for us to give, it is fault
their inattention to details.
NJ Another point that / would impre
re is that when we started none OF
contemplated that our system won
90 grow to its present size. Many OF
ib- remember how Brother Gooch, at t
ex- Opera House meeting, raised
of voice until it loosened the plaster
air the ceiling and exclaimed, BOYS
lat inst want to live to see this Cltlze
mt Co. have 500 subscribers"
to Mr.. Gooch is still a young man,
rv- have considerably more subscribe
'ur than his then widest dream conceiV
up. and that too in the face OF the Il
w. that for over IL months ! have DC
Nv. under the necessity Of discourage
on proposed subscribers from putting
all, telephones.
md Our rate was all right ten years a
ty The average length of lines was mi
IL less than now. Labor and mater
of also cost but from one-half to U
thirds of its present price. But nj
ere as any sensible man must be able
nto see. If we gave service at cost
the years ago and that 1t took all the
hts come, as 1t did, to do this, 1t IN
we be difficult business to do the sa