Evening journal., 1909-12-11
''HELLO" ALIEN
TO TELEPHONE
Tine HOnOred SalutatiOn Cast
Aside as Result Of Opera
tors Agreement
GIRLS JOIN IN UPLFT

CHICAGO. Ill, Dec. 11-'Hello," as
a salutation by telephone has gone into
the discard.
If you are a member Of the Amalga-
mated Order of Telephone Operators
and catch yourself using the time
honored. proverbial. and otherwise
noted term OF speech, telephonely
speaking, you may feel that you are
likely to get in Dutch
For upon the say 80 Of a prominent
official Of the Chicago Telephone Com
pany, hello" was rung off. 10, these
many moons ago. The elimination, as
the layman knows and the Official ad-
mits. is more or less theoretical 80 far,
but the wires are being pulled to that
end and when an operator forgets the
sparks fly.
This inside line on correct phone
| grammar, or telegrammar, as you
| wish got onto the public receiver
through a little extra lesson they are
teaching up at the Lake View branch.
Some Of the girls there have been
stumbling onto the ancient term every
now and then and to put them right
they passed around a little protocol,
or some such thing, and had 'em all
sign up. The signers bound them
selves TO pay 1 cent a word every time
the word was "hello."
One of these told a friend in strict
secrecy about the system for the uplift
of modern language. and that's how
many learned for the first time that
the telephone "hello" now belongs to
the ages.
A skepticaI person called up oper-
ators in various parts of town yester-
day, and now acknowledges that the
officials statement is final. It is
really astonishing when the long life
of the word Is considered to learn
to what extent it has fallen into dis
use in Chicago.
OF half a dozen girls talked to on the
subject for periods Of one to three
minutes only two went back to the old
form Of opening up the conversation
out Of the conversations the following
are chosen as representatives:
'Naaauuummmmm-bber,' pliz!"
"How's that?'
bber. PlizzzzP'
20, number you mean. Well,
don't want any number. just want
to talk to you about a little story
''Waiaminit, givyu chifoperator!"
Here. don't want chief OPERATOR
''Whassthat? Try 'em agin
Nauuuuumm-hello-n mean drop q
, nickel, plizl"
Admits Word is Out Of Fashion.
I "Chief operator-the operator haC
her way about it-"No, we don't say
hello any more. o, it has been out o.
. fashion ever so long. Really. can
just say how long. No. we neve
signed any agreement not to use Il
but we never do, anyhow. Well
maybe now and then, but it isn't good
AS the manager says. it doesn't meal
anything. Just a minute, please-Yes
Well you've got Harrison double o ,
s2Y. Try 'em aga
Out Englewood way the salutatio
was startling. When you're tryin
to get a young woman on the wir
whom you've never seen, and neve
expect TO. and a dulcet voice come
ripping from many miles away I
!, your ear: 'Is that you, dear?''-
Well, the reader may imagine tn
: experimenter was surprised
But it wasn't the operator, and IN
greeting was going to some one. else
Merely a case Of crossed wires.
over on the west side the girl assert
ed she never said "hello." and whe
she was asked what she used for
substitute her answer was about a
Illuminating as a woman's because.
: II was 20, anything"
'Well, what, for instance?"
30, Just anything"
iThen she rung off.