The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1913-08-30

0ence, ~, business, wow QdIt
residence. $3.50; part business. 81.
ESQ to 500 Telephones-Resi-
dence. 81; business, So; part resi-
dence, $3.50; part business, $3.50,
500 to $50 Observation-Disclosures
$3.50; business, $3.50; part resi-
Once, 50; part business, SO.
$50 to 1000 Telephones-Resi.
dence, SO; business, 81; part resi-.
dence. 81; part business, So.
Extensions
500 or less telephones wall sets,
81. Desk sets. $1.25.
500 or more telephones, $3.50.
Local conditions in individual
cases may justify a departure from
this schedule. Indeed 1t would be
impossible to find a schedule of rates
which would meet the varying condi'
tions for all of the telephone ex-
changes throughout the State.
There is probably no commodity
which is utilized by so many of the
general public and paid for by them
about which there is SO little under.
standing of the elements which en-.
ter into the expense or cost of pro.
duction as telephone service. Near
ly every one who uses telephones is
familiar with the fact that the
charges for telephone service are
greater upon large exchange thar
upon small one, but few under
, stand the necessity for this, an(
there is confusion in the minds Of
the general public as to why this i!
necessity. There has, accordingly
developed general impression thai
somehow the telephone business i!
different in this respect to all othe1
business.
The difficulty lies at the very
threshold of the subject. The gen
eral public seems to assume that the
telephone located on the wall, OF
standing on the desk of each sub.
scriber is the unit of cost of the com.
modify which the telephone company
is selling. and herein lies the error
The telephone is not the unit Of ex.
pense, but the number of calls pei
telephone determines the expense oil
rendering the service for which the
subscriber pays. BY analogy the
conditions are very similar with q
telephone to that of water pipe OF
an electric light wire leading into
the premises of consumer.
The placing of the water pipe or
the electric light wire does not de-
termine what it will cost the com.
pany to serve the patron, but the
number of gallons of water which
the company is required to pump
through the pipe for the use Of the
patron, or the amount of electric
current which the company gener-
ates, and causes to flow through the
wire for the use Of the patron.
The only real difference Is that in
the case Of water and electric cur
rent the patron may determine the
expense by the use he makes of the
water or light, while in the case of
the telephone, the size of the ex
change determines the average num-
Der of calls per telephone, which
rapidly increases as telephones are
added to the exchange.
1t is not true that the telephone
business differs in this respect from
any other business. 1t is fact that
the cost of furnishing service to a
telephone upon a large exchange is
proportionally much greater than the
cost Of furnishing service to a tele-
phone upon q small exchange. and
that an increase upon the charges
per telephone is necessary. But
when the increase in the amount of
service rendered to a subscriber
upon a large exchange is taken into
consideration there is found to be
really very great reduction in the
price of service to the subscriber as
against the cost Of service upon a
small exchange.
For illustration: The average
number Of calls for each Of the tele-
phones upon an exchange of one
hundred and fifty telephones per
day will not exceed five calls per
telephone, or one hundred and fifty
calls per month per telephone. If
the rate be $3.50 per month, the
telephone service then costs the av-
erage subscriber one cent per call.
The average number OF calls per
telephone upon an exchange Of FIVE
hundred or more is approximately
ten calls per telephone per day, or