The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1912-10-29
change in Telephone Service.

Leonard II. Kinnard, formerly genera
commercial superintendent of the Bel
Telephone Company, has been elected
second vice president and general manager
of the company. he succeeds Philip l.
Spaulding, who has gone with another
company. The new official Is a Pennsyl
vsnian by birth and has advanced from
various positions until he has reached the
high office to which he was elected on
Wednesday.
While not connected with the selection
of new vice president but simply one OF
the transactions of the Bell company 1t ia
stated that there will be change In rates
for phone service beginning ON the first
of January. At present there are In Mount
holly about 100 telephones which pay by
the call. Under the new rule these will
all be abolished ON the FIRST of January
and those wishing to use the Bell system
will be required to rent at the rate of
$16 or more per year.
Tue company's agent here admits that
at least 100 Of these phones will be re-
moved as those now using them will not
pay the increased charges. OF these
machines many of them are for out of
town service chiefly and the persons In
whose homes they are installed pay by
the call. The new rates will be SIS per
year for having the phone in the house
with the privilege of calling within a
certain radius free, but the out Of town
calls will be charged for at the usual
prices unless the company should suddenly
take notion that they were too low, then
of course up they would go.
One customer, whose bills we have
before us. has paid to this company an
average of $3.50 per month for the nine
months ending October /. Now 1t is
proposed In order that this customer NAV
get 81 go worth of service to make him
pay $50 per month for that privilege,
or. In other words, he must pay an
advance of 100 per cent. for what he has
been having.
The company argues that 1t Is not fair
to the customers to have what they term
is discriminatory" rate. But that is
just what they will do when they put the
new rule into effect. They have that now,
In fact Customers are charged fiat rate
for county service, while one may use the
telephone ten times as often as some other
customer. The installation of phones on
pay as you use" basis Is by far the
fsirest method that can be adopted. 1t is
like the use of gas meters and water
meters. The customer pays for what he
consumes and the general average is where
the profit or loss comes In to the company.
When the Bell Telephone company was
striving to get foothold In Mount Holly,
seeking all sorts of privileges, tearing
up our streets and getting an underground
line which they evidently thought worth
something there was no scarcity of prom
ises, and an agent even went around and
urged people to put In phones on the
''pay as used" system and many were
installed. 1t Is very probable that many
of these do not return munificent sums to
the company, but when the entire system
is averaged how much do you suppose the
company losesf
In the telephone building in Mount
Holly, where the Western Union telegraph
Office is located. there Is sign which says:
kilograms may also be sent from any
Bell telephone. Just say telegram you
will be connected at once with the nearest
open Western Union Office. Thea dictate
your telegram to the telegraph operator"
Yesterday a gentleman went to Bell
telephone and followed above instructions
The telephone was Bell pay station and
he was refused the telegraph service nm
less he paid five cents telephone toll first,
the above sign apparently being joke.