Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1914-06-17
Phone Hospital
Has Ito Hu,nors

Were It not for the humorous Incl
dents that come to their attention dur
ing their work the life of the men who
are employed in the hospital service Of
the local telephone company would be
almost sad. For they have to do with
trouble, trouble, trouble all the time. If
there were no telephone troubles
wires crossed, broken, tangled or
grounded-they would not have a Job
But the leaven Of humorous happen
ings Lighters their load of grief.
There was, for example, the man with
the faulty memory. He was mad. He
was SO mad that he stormed into the
exchange. He demanded action at
close range. A complaint over a mile
of wire was too long distanced for him.
With good many cuss words sand
Witched in for emphasis he wanted to
know why it was he never could get
his house when he called it. 1t didn't
matter where he was, he said, If he
tried to call his wife at home he never
could get her. She could get him al
right, but he got no service the other
way.
Your operators have got 1t In for
aAAS tAoe . WIIdl > tIic uldllSA' We
stood it now as long as I'm goin' to
sputter and flourish of swear words.
The case looked serious. It was prob
ably one for just complaint. But he
was assured that insofar as the opera
tors were concerned he was mistaken
for they did not even know who he was.
or cared for that matter
Haresa what invest pa fioy, 6ovolOned
That subscribers house phone was 449.
let's say. That isn't the real number
but it will do. He had shop and the
phone number Of it was 494. His work
took him frequently out Of his shop.
Often he wanted to call his wife when
he was away from his shop. but at
those times his memory had slipped.
Instead of calling for 449. his house,
he had been calling for 494 his shop.
AS there was no one at the shop OF
course his call was never answered.
He suffered in silence for a while then
tramped into the exchange looking for
trouble
Then there was the case Of the man
who could never get his home. He
swore his wife seldom left home. She
was there most Of the time, he said.
He also stormed into the exchange
pce"!sh ana pe-spiring.
His complaint was listened to. This
case looked serious. 1t looked more
so when his house was called a minute
later. There was no answer. Again 1t
was called. Still no reply.
What did tell you" he glared In
satisfaction. That's the way It's all
the time"
A trouble man was called On his
wheel he hurried to the home OF the
man and this is what his report read
when 1t was turned in a little later.
Service O. K, wife away, hired girl in
back yard playing with bull pup"
Then there are another class of In
nocent trouble makers. Good house
wives who tie their curtains back to the
receiver hook Of the phone that IL
frequently near a window. And as
the wind sways the curtain back and
forth. it pulls up and down. UP and
down, the hook which connects the line
and calls central. The girl answers.
but no one is on the line. After this
has occurred a few times the girl re-
ports the phone into the hospital.
trouble man finds the curtain tied TO
the receiver hook. and the housewife
perfectly innocent Of having caused any
trouble.
Then there are those Jacks of all
trades who tinker with their own
phones. One man put carbide under
the diaphram of his transmtter, the
thing YOU talk into. instead of carbon.
Then he wondered why his telephone
didn't work Another tried graphite
but it didn't work either.
But for these things, which are but
a few of scores and scores Of their
kind that come to the trouble man dur
ing his daily work. he'd be as solemn
as an undertaken for day after day he
works with the dying and dead SER
vices.