The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1908-03-15
SOUTHERN BELL MAKES RECORD
in REPAIRING SLEET DAMAGE
Story of How Men and Material We're Quickly Secured to Meet
the Unusual Emergencies of Serious Fire, Heavy DANE
age Caused by Sleet Storm.

from the world for several hours on
Friday night and Saturday mornins.
The center of the storm seems to have
been In Anderson. No wire communis
cation out of this city has been obtain
ed since Friday night.
1T will be observed that the new
switch board was Immediately sent;
forty men hurried to the scene aud
Others were en- route when the story
was written. and while the plant was
completely destroyed by fire. few days
only and things are again running as
of yore. We insist that such sys-
tenn Is worth while: IL is worth much
monopoiy---but always under the regu-
lation of sworn State officials, so II II
one monopoly that must be conceded
by many mon to be blessing.
"A special dispatch to The Atlanta
Constitution thus tells of a heavy blow
dealt the Bell Company and also re-
cords its methods of doing things a.
follows,
Gainesville. Ca. February 3-(Spe-
cial.) LAS the linemen of the telegraph
and telephone companies are enabled IN
got further out from the city on their
wirework, the destruction from FRI
days sleetstorm grows accordingly.
The Southern Bell Telephone and Te1e-
graph Company is the heaviest loser
About twenty miles of its poles and
wires are down between Gainesville
and Suwanee. Not only are the. wires
and cables down. but the poles are
broken of near the ground. The West
ern Union Telegraph Company has 352
poles down between Gainesville and
Suwanee and the Postal Telegraph
Company is also a heavy loser by the
sIeet storm.
ION the Gainesville Midland Rail-
way. between this point and Athens,
che Southern Bell Telephone and TeIe-
graph Company, which built this line
with new poles last year. suffered much
damage. No poles are down, but the
wire Is broken fearfully. Between
Gainesville and belmont. a distance OF
ten miles, theke are eighty-seven
breaks in the wire. The larger force
Of the company Is at work on this line
repairing IT, as trains on this road are
largely operated by the phones Of this
system.
"AII this is worth ones time to
think about. 1t suggests that the Bell
Telephone and Telegraph Company is
out for business; If misfortune over
takes 1t and it loses thousands of dol
lars 1t does not try to patch up and
make out--but 1t goes to work, has
forca of trained and skilled workmen
always ready for any emergency and
Immediately restores the lost lines
general public are not in the least an
noyed and business is delayed but a
few hours or day or two ut the least.
"In recording these facts we hope we
will be forgiven. We know in these
DAYS of red fire effects and plays to
the Rrandstand 1t Is a sorry wretch
who dares speak out for a deserving
corporation. but we feel that as events
have indicated US and proven our po-
sition Of couple of years ago we will
be forgiven. Our publication was the
only one that dared speak above
whisper for the railroads year ago
everything seems to cry .crucify'-but
we note that time also yindicates US on
that score. and we have lived to see
q Legislature called In special session
to reverse itself and go on record as
saving that our contention was Just
and equitable. and all these things have
tendency to make US feel that we
have not gone far astray.