Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1919-03-01
REFUSE TO TELL
SOURCE OF FIRE
ALARM TO Chief
August Schmidt Unable to Find Out
From Telephone Company
Where Blaze Is.
ASKS WHAT SERVICE IS FOE
Appeals to Public Health and Safe
ty Commissioner in Behalf
of People Of City.

It made no difference how strong
the wind was blowing or to what
extent the flames were causing the
devastation of property, Chief Aug
ust Schmidt of the Rock Island fire
department<could not find out at 10
O'Clock this morning from the Cen
trail Union Telephone company
where fire was raging and as a
result he in his own car and other
firemen in several fire trucks made
a wild goose chase through the city
trying to find out where an alarm
had come from.
It was not because the telephone
Office did not have the information,
It was because the operators would
not give it out.
81 told the operators and more
than one supervisor that l was the
chief of the Rock Island fire de-
partment and asked information re-
garding a fire alarm that had been
turned into the department. The OPP
orators and supervisors told me
that they were not allowed to give
out information, Chief Schmidt
said.
While the fire, which was at log
Fourteenth street at the residence
occupied by George Green, did not
amount to much, more serious fire
might have ben burning and thou
sands of dollars damage caused
while the department trucks wan
dered aimlessly about on the
streets.
The department this morning
first went to Seventh avenue and
Thirteenth street. There was no
fire there. 1t started north on
Thirteenth street and the chief at
the offices of the Rock Island Arti-
fetal Ice company proceeded to ask
the telephone company for informa-
ton. The refusal of the operators
and supervisors followed. The fire
was finally located at the George
Green home.
Complaint was made by Chief
Schmidt tb John II. Liedtke, COM
missioner of public health and
safety, with reference to the matter.
Schmidt requested that some action
be taken to force the telephone
company to give information at
least in regard to fires.
"a mans home and even his fam
Fly may be endangered by fire and
il he is away from home, he first
thinks of the telephone to find out
where n fire is when he sees or
hears the fire trucks going by. II
he calls the telephone Office now, he
is told that no information is given
out there What are telephones for,
ryT.= ~. 4 Il
Thomas S. Brown, district man
ager of the Central Union Tele-
phone company here. stated to an
Argus representative this morning
that the giving of information in re-
gard to fires ties up the switch
boards at the telephone Office for
several minutes after a fire has
broken out.
1--WE couldn't give service to any
one because we were answering the
curious people who just wanted to
know where a fire was Mr.. Brown
said.
Seeks Conference.
Commissioner Liedtke said today
that he would arrange with Mr..
Brown of the telephone company to
have him attend a meeting in the
near future of the city commission
with the hopes of having Some adj
1ustment made with reference to
the giving of information.
Numerous other complaints have
been made by Rock Island people
about the telephone company's &C
ton in stopping the giving of time
TO it's patrons.
1t is the argument of the people
that the operators take more time
in telling that they are not allowed
to give information than they would
If they merely stated the hour of
day. II is also shown that If the
time is wanted, some other call
must be made to get the informa-
ton. Two calls are therefore made
in place of one.
Orders stopping the giving of in
formation by telephone operators
and employees of the company. were
issued as war measure for the pur-
pose of decreasing unnecessary la
Dor.