The weekly Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1911-1922, 1912-02-08

The last rites have been perform
ed in one of the biggest telephone
combinations ever effected in Nor
thern Indiana, viz: that between the
Winona Telephone Company, with
headquarters at Plymouth, and the
Bell Telephone Company.
On Tuesday, January 23rd, the
Bell toll lines were cut into the
Winona Central at Winamac; on
Wednesday, January oath, they
were cut into the Winona Centrals
at Kewanna and Grass Creek; and
on Friday, January 26th, they were
cut into the Winona central at
Plymouth. Connections having been
made heretofore at Knox and Mont
Grey, the entire Winona system is
now connected up with the great
Bell toll line system. The Bell toll
stations have been closed at all
these places, the Bell signs have
been moved and now call toll users
to the Winona booths. So far as
comfort and convenience is concern
ed, people would not know that
there was more than one telephone
system in all the earth.
Bell toll users In other cities
may now call any Winona telephone
subscriber from their Bell telephone
without the former Inconvenience
of going to the Independent booths,
or of calling the Winona subscriber
to the Bell booths in the Winona
territory. The saving of time ef-
fected by the big deal, both for
subscribers and for the telephone
companies, is almost beyond COM
putation. Plymouth manufacturers
and business men are especially
aware of this fact. For years they
have been running to the Bell
booths every day or every few days
to answer calls over the Bell toll
lines. Of necessity, there was al
ways long wait before the person
called could get to the booth. Then
of necessity there was another wait
to get the caller back on the line.
In the meantime, perhaps the line
was busy with another call to some
other town and both parties to the
call must wait until connections
were regained. Thus the waste Of
time for telephone company and for
subscribers at each end of the line
was going on every day of the year,
to the annoyance Of those interest
ed, as well as to the detriment Of
business wherever the condition ex-
listed.
The new conditions of combina-
tion do away with all this. Con-
venience, saving Of time and there
fore of money, and pleasure at the
vastly superior situation, now take
the place of the former unsatis-
factory and expensive service. The
conditions are entirely satisfactory
to both the telephone companies and
to the subscriber who must use toll
lines to any extent whatever.
A Big Deal.
People Of the four counties af-
fected do not realize the magnitude
nor the Importance Of this big tele-
phone DEAL. nor its far-reaching ef-
feet on the telephone business in
this and adjoining states. Both the
Winona Company and the Bell
Company were wise to their own in
terests and to those of the general
public when they made the combina-
tion.
The deal affects practically all the
people of Marshall, Starke and
Pulaski counties, and a large Sec
tion of Fulton county, embracing
total area of approximately 2400
square miles, interconnected by
toll pole line system of more than
300 miles and carrying 600 miles Of
toll circuits. 1t takes in by direct
connection, the seven exchanges of
the Winona Company, viz: Plym-
outh, Knox, Winamac, Kewanna,
Grass Greek, Hamlet ad Monterey,
at which places there are over 5000
subscribers and in addition thereto,
renders the Bell toll lines accessible
to approximately 5000 more subscrib
ers to affiliated companies Of the
Winona Telephone Company. To
all of these subscribers, it opens
wide the use Of the magnificent Bell
toll lines over the entire United
States; and to all the Bell sub
scribers outside Of the Winona sys-
tenn, it opens direct connections to
Al IL Il