The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1909-10-07
The Hello Box in The Country.

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coming into vogue in the rural dis
tricts, and outlining its practica
value to the farmer and the rura
resident generally, The Manufactur
ers' Record says:
1t is not alone that the farmer
can, in this way, keep posted as t.
the price of his products. and many
of the farmers Of the West depend
entirely upon the telephone in max
ing sales of grain and other produce
value as the telephone is from this
financial point of view, it is ever
more valuable in bringing the fam
lily of farmers in touch with their
neighbors. The loneliness which
has made farm life burden to sc
many people especially to the women
and children; the fear that takes
possession of them when the men
are away, the fear of the inability to
reach doctor in times Of sickness,
are all banished by the telephone in
the home. Among the great bless
ings which have come to civilization
in recent years there is scarcely any
thing comparable to the value of the
telephone, and as valuable as it is to
the people of the city, it is infinitely
more valuable to those in the
country
''In the South, and, of latter years,
especially in Georgia, the voice in
the box has made wonderful strides
in the country districts.
''The farmer has outgrown the old
impression that the telephone was a
luxury accessible only to the man in
the city.
"He has discovered that the use
of the party line system and coop
erative methods, now so prevalent
throughout this section, he can have
an instrument in his house the year
round at cost we'll within the reve-
nue. from one bale of cotton.
The claim of The Record that
telephone is even more essential to
the country than to the city is en-
iirely logical.
In the city there is none of the
isolation that characterizes the rural
districts, and the means of conlmu-
nication, aside even from the tele-
phone are numerous and rapid.
I'm the country there is only the
highway connecting farmhouse to
farmhouse, highway often nearly
in inclement weather and
under the best Of conditions forcing
of elements of delay
and outlay.
Into this difficult situation the
rural telephones come as great
transformer. 1t mitigates isolation
almost to the vanishing point. 1t
puts the farthest-removed farm in
touch with neighboring
farms as we'll as civilization-at-large.
1t gives the farmer, with a crop
ready for sale, instant access to
market quotations, it provides for
the summoning of physicians, for
aid in fighting fire, or for any other
of the dozen emergencies insepara-
bic from country life.
ct is not strange that, offering
these and other revoIutionizing ad-
vantages, the telephone should be
rapidly conquering the rural dis
tricts.
$50 vividly was Mr.. Roosevelt's
life commission impressed
with the salutary results that had
followed the general prevalence of
telephones in the country that it
named their patronage as one of the
factors destined to solve the rural
problem
''V' South facing unprece-
dented prosperity, it is likely the
coming year will witness even great
er progress on the part of this mod
ern adjunct to life and business"
The method which has been adopt
ed by the Carolina Telephone and
Telegraph Company has placed this
service within the reach of every
one. The service they offer is not
cheap service because the price is
low. 1t is good service. Their tele-
phones are all Western Electric Com
pany's Standard "Bell' instruments
such as are used throughout their
entire system by the Southern Bell
Telephone and Telegraph Company.
From any one of these stations it
is possible to talk not only to points
connected with the Carolina Tele-
phone and Telegraph Company sys-
tern, but to any points reached by
the long distance lines of the South
ern Bell Company. That their plan
is proving very popular is evidenced
by the number Of lines which are
being built into each of their ex-
changes, and we hope that the time
is not far distant when there will be