The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1916-10-06
LETTERS TO EDITOR
Automatic Telephone system
} the Editor of The Age-Herald:

To the Editor of The Age-H Herald:
In today's issue of your paper appears
an article under the caption, Every
home Must Have Telephone" in which
note that your reporter treats the SUBJ
ject of Mr.. BARRIERS resolution in a spirit
of levity.
will state that have some knowledge
concerning the telephone system which
Mr.. Barber is DESTROYS of having adopted
by Birmingham. 1t is an automatic sys-
tenn at present in use by the Louisville
and Nashville Railroad company in Bir-
bingham, and understand gives perfect
satisfaction. A number of cities have al
ready adopted the automatic system and
find it superior to the system which we
are now using.
1t, therefore, does not seem to me an
entirely commercial idea of Mr. Barber's
to have installed in every home and bust
ness place in Greater Birmingham one of
these automatic telephones. Every homo
has road to it's door. Over this road
the public has access and over this road
goes the mail man to deliver whatever
mail may be for that home whether cas-
tie or howell. Also every home is required
to have sewer connections and the home
owner does not always have to pay in.
dividually for the building of the road
for the sewer or for the electric light
on this road or street. The man who
sends the letter pays the expense of its
delivery when he puts on the stamp. The
community pays for the road, sewer and
electric lights
The telephone proposition may be q
chimerical idea and impracticable but
this is a progressive age, and we are
not supposed to always stand still in
the methods and manner of conducting
city life, and it may be considered a pub
lie need that every home should be pro-
viGed with telephone in order that the
occupant may give quick alarm in case
of fire and thus in a way give protec-
ton to his neighbors; may quickly sum-
mon the police in case Of breach of
peace, or attempts at burglary, or for
any cause that might call for immediate
notification to the city officials for their
attention.
Therefore, 1t does not appear to me
dolly incompatible with progressive
ideas of the twentieth century, since the
telephone has become almost as much
necessity in our homes as running
water, electric lights, gas or an open
highway. And it might be practicable
Under police regulations to require every
home and place of business to have a
telephone. This automatic telephone sys-
TEN can be installed and operated at
cost that will admit of placing phone
in homes at price of 90 cents per
month, and in business places at cost
of 81 per month. Now, with 10000 homes
and 5000 office phones at that price, the
city would collect more than $500 900 per
arnum, and as the expense Of upkeep
and overhead expense of the automatic
system is almost nil, I->think it very
probable that after three or four years
operation, the plant would have entirely
paid for itself, and then the price might
be reduced so per cent and thereafter net
the city an income Of more than 800, 900
each year.
I am collecting some data at present
and trust you will allow me enough space
in your columns to say more a little later
OH this subject. In the meantime, write
merely to fix the attention of our citi-
zens upon the subject which I regard
as one of Importance and measure of
INCONSISTENCIES that Birmingham, the
leading city of the south, should not be
slow in considering.
From all information that have at
the present, the automatic system is as
much superior to the system at present
rsed as the automatic fire trucks re-
Gently installed is superior to the old
hand engines of the past.
o. T. DozIER
Birmingham, October s. 1916.