The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-07-15
ONE SYSTEM now
The Change Was Made With
cut a Hitch.
Subscribers Tested New Serv-
ice Thoroughly.
10000 CALLS PER HOUE
Manager Mackay Says, "Burn
the Old Directories
New Members in Many Cases
in New Book.

The one phone system in Topeka is
working smoothly with the exception of
a few bitches due mainly to nonuse
of the numbers in the new directory.
The cutover was made at ten minutes
before II o'clock Saturday night, the
operation taking but four seconds.
The wires were disconnected from
the old Bell exchange on West Sixth
avenue, and both Bell and Independ-
ent wires were connected with the en-
larged switch board at the Jackson
street office. One hundred and TWEEN
ty-fiVe girls are now operating the sys-
tenn of 1880 phones. =
Hundreds of persons are using the
the new system. Six thousand five
hundred calls an hour have been turn
ed in, so per cent more than normal,
while for several hours Sunday the
rate was 10000 an hour.
Use the New Directory.
Up to noon today there had not been
more than a half dozen complaints of
actual defective service. In numerous
cases persons have called up in an an
noyed tone of voice to know why they
could not get the parties wanted, when
it was discovered that they had failed
to use the new numbers in the new
telephone directory. The management
desires to impress upon the subscrib-
ers the necessity of burning up the old
directories, which are now not effec-
tive.
A number of the officials of the Mis-
souri, and Kansas Telephone company
were present at the time the cutover
was made late Saturday night. They
were: General Plant Superintendent r
G. Moody, Traffic Superintendent J. e
Bratney, P. H. Hopkins of General
Manager F. L.. Gilnan's staff, together
with the local officials.
THE changing and arranging of tne
telephone numbers" says Manager A
II MaRKaU wa hfTf ~ of
Gus problem that confronted us here Ill
uniting the two exchanges, considering
what we had to do. There were old
subscribers of the Independent COM
pany who had had a certain number
for years That number, in turn. was
held in the Bell exchange by an old
Bell subscriber. The number itself on
the switchboard is to distinguish one
line from another. With all lines run
ming to one switchboard, 1T was neces-
sary that there be no duplicates; that
every line be distinguished from every
other line, and for that reason we had
to change the number either of the
Independent subscriber or of the Bell
subscriber.
1.-The wire leading from each SUBJ
scriber's telephone enters the switch
board in two parts; one ending in
what is known as the answering Jack.
The jack is a small round hole about
one-quarter inch in diameter Over the
answering jack is a signal light, whicI
flashes on as the subscriber removes
the receiver from the hook, and which
dies out as the subscriber replaces the
receiver. This part of the line has but
one ending on the board
The other part of the line ends in
what are called multiple jacks that is
that part of the wire branches off into SO
so that every operator at the board is
able to reach the jack or line of every
subscriber in the city. To illustrate:
Operator Miss A. has, in her position. the
answering jacks of telephones one to
twenty-five. She also has a multiple the
jack of every subscriber before her.
THE answering jacks of the other sub
scribers are distributed down the board to
each operator in about similar proportion.
The subscriber, with telephone No. 1, re-
moves the receiver from the hook. A
swerfng Jack No. l. Operator Miss A,
taking one of pair of plugs before her.
No. 1, and says, Number. please. The
subscriber replies, 1894 Miss A, taking
the other OF the pair of plugs before her,
reaches up into what is known as the
| multiple board and which contains the
termini of lines of every subscriber in the
city. and puts that plug into the jack be-
fore her of 1874, ringing the bell and LA
answering the connection is established.
THE multiple part of the board is
ranged in rotation from one to 1880, this
enabling the operator to place the plug
Immediately and inSuring the subscriber
a prompt connection Were there dupI-
cation of any of these numbers of the
jacks the operator would not know which
party was wanted She could not dfstin-
guish She could not know the names of
the subscribers of each line. All that she
knows is that the Jack is wanted. So
with duplicates of numberSshe would have
to guess which party was wanted and VOL
can see the confusion that would result.
with 1880 stations as there are in To-
peka you can see that the operator can
not begin to remember what party is on
each jack. She must deal with the num-
bers. And in the work that confronts us
now with so many subscribers with new
numbers, out of the need of placing both
groups of subscribers in one numerical
list, she must rely on the subscriber to
give the proper number. It's I'D to the
Tok at fI1io