Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-08-17
THAT POLICE WHISTLE
HUGHES ELECTRIC PEOPLE DON'T,
WANT TO taAYE ANYTHING
70 DO WITH IT.
POLICE HAVE A BusY TIME AN
sMERlNG FOOLISH CALLS BY
FOOLISH PEOPLE

FOOLISH PEOPLE.
The Hughes Electric company de-
clines to arbitrate the police whistle
matter.
They say the blowing of the whistle 4
is darned nuisance to them and that
unless the city wants to keep man
at the works to answer police calls
they decline to handle the footing
proposition any more.
~ Being asked why this was thusly,
one of the people said that the pur-
chase Of whistle had nothing to do
with their refusing to blow police calls
as they had long been weary Of the
duty. One of the company said
Why, people have no idea what q
nuisance blowing the calls came to be.
As great many people seemed to think
| it cunning to phone in calls for the
police and as many as forty calls have
been sent in on one day, most Of them
| being just joshes of these cunning
folks. Now, our men have something
else to do than answer phone calls
On this account. 1t took up great
/ deal Of their time, as they had first
i to answer the phone. then blow the
whistle, and in many instances were.
i 'phoned two or three times about the
same call. Often times the man
would be at some intricate work on
j the machinery when the call came in
and it was very annoying to have to
q drop everything and attend to the
calls. This is the reason we don't
Il want any more to do with the bust
y ness ii
This gentleman suggested that ut
& night a very simple arrangement could
& be made whereby the police could Be
. called without any noise: BY having
{ a red light bulb placed on one of the
4 poles at the corner of Fourth aud
Main streets, or some other convell-
& lent place, the switch to this light
being in the telephone Office. Then
when police calls were sent to the
telephone Office all that would be nee,
essary would be for central to turn
the switch making the light show
until notified by the policeman that il
y had been seen, and then central could
!, Inform the officer where he was
wanted. The expense would be tri
fling for this, and doubtless the nee
essary arrangements could be made
with the telephone company.
IN connection with the police calls
f some very funny stories are told, by
81 the old and new officers, of their ex
: periences as result of these calls
| Last fall call came in from up neal
II the capitol and the policeman has
tened to the house only to find thai
some dogs were barking and the
woman making the call wanted them
silenced. The officer had scarcely go'
Il down town before another call came
Z in from away out on the outskirts oil
B the city, fully a mile and half from
{ the depot. In haste the officer flew te
( the rescue of the woman making the
A appeal, only to find that there was 9
u COW in the yard which she wanted
driven out.
Another time a wife 'phoned fol
the officer to come quick as her hus
( band was beating her. On the hurry
&iu up the officer ran to the house and
\ was nearly licked by the man and his
b wife for butting into their domestic
3 affairs. q
IT On another occasion last winter
h some gay sports had three or foul
calls sent In from various parts of the
city at the same time and then en-
B joyed the fruitless chase of the
officers.
People have been very unreasonable
II about these calls. For Instance, the
ID other night a woman 'phoned the nigh
81 man at the depot to send the police tt
&I her house. The man was very busy
and being the telegraph operator anf
d concerned with the running of 5ths
t trains, could not very well go out ant
j, chase an officer; and vet that woman
{ called him all kinds of names, during
fi several times she 'phoned him, pc
1 cause he would not find the police
8 Il man, and so IT, goes through q ions
81 list of frivolous calls.
ell Whatever plan IL adopted for call
l. ing the police ought to be safeguardet
S against false alarms as are the fir
( alarm calls where the electric system
! is in. use. The police should not b
: subjected to the monkey business o
) Tom. Dick and Harry, If any system
Il adopted is to be effective. sss
s 8
q Costly sinker.