The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1913-03-06
THE TELEPHONE
SERVICE IS NOT
SAT|SFA FACTORY
Board of Safety Receives
Complaints From Fire
Chief and Electrician, Who
Want More Prompt Con-
nections-Clerk to Com
municate With Manager.

Following a complaint filed by City
Electrician Len LeBaron, which was
supported by Fire Chief 3icker and ap-
proved by all members present, the
board Of public safety at its meeting
last night went on record as saying
that the night service of the Pensa-
cola branch OF the Southern Bell Tele-
phone AMI Telegraph Company should
be improved. After hearing the fire
chief and electrician state that the
night service is far from being salts
factory, the board ordered City Clerk
Adrian Langford to address a COM
n1unicati to the company asking
that the service be improved to the ex-
tent of eliminating the -lelay in secur-
ing connections.
Electrician LeBaron called the
boards attention to the matter by
saying that the delay in getting rapid
connections at night should be elimi-
mated on account of the numerous tele-
phone alarms which will be received at
the central fire alarm station, which
will be placed in service within the
next few days.
When the electrician said that he
hal experienced much delay in secur-
iEg telephone connections at night, he
was supported in the statement by
Fire Chief Bicker who said that he
had on numerous occasions, both at
home and at the fire stations, encoun-
tered much delay in getting connec-
tions.
Electrician LeBaron said that il the
1elay is occasioned by the lack of
operators on duty at night, the COM
pany should increase the number so as
to give a more rapid service
The board approved the statements
of the electrician and fire chief and
ordered the communication sent to the
company.
In order to increase the efficiency Of
the central alarm station, Electrician
LeBaron told the board that he and
Fire Chief Bicker would inaugurate a
system Of phantom" or imaginary"
FIRE alarm boxes, by which the city
will have the advantage of using ad-
boxes without cost.
According to the electrician, certain
corners will be designated as boxes
bearing numbers, but, Of course, there
will be no box at the designated place.
The corners at which the phantom"
boxes are to be placed will be named
by the fire chief and their location will
be known by the operators and every
of the fire department. Under
this system when a telephone call is
sent to the central sta ton from the
in which the phantom
tox is located, the operator will send
certain number into the truck houses
and the drivers of the trucks will know
almost the exact location Of the fire.
The board approved Of the system
and it will be arranged within a short
time.
The report of the fire chief showed
that the average cost Of feeding horses
il that department during the past
month was $9.03 per head
A communication from Phillip d.
Beall in which he asked would 1t be
necessary TO secure the approval Of
the board before bringing a suit for
damages against the Pensacola Elec-
tric Light Company in behalf of Of
1cer Burke, was received and filed.
officer Burke was recently struck. by
an electric arc lamp, he said, which
hit him on the leg when it fell while
ne was assisting in lowering it. Chief
Sanders said that the officer was paid
BY the city for the time he lost on ac-
count of the injury.
OFFICER GOT THE "MUMPS"
A request from Turnkey Langley, |