The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-06-11
BROWN RESIGNS
 AS PRESIDENT
 SOUTHERN BELL
Ben s. Read, Of Denver, Slated To Fill
 Vacancy

J. Epps Brown, president of the Southern Bell and Cumberland Tele- phone companies, has resigned these of- fees to assume the duties of chairman of the board of directors of the South ern Bell company, it was announced in Birmingham Tuesday by local officials of the latter company.
 Ben S. Read, president of the Noun tain States Telephone and Telegraph company, of Denver, Colo, and a for mer official of the Cumberland com pany, has been named president of the Southern Bell company to succeed MT. Brown. se
 As the board of directors of the Cum berland concern has not yet acted on the resignation, no appointment has been made to fill the vacancy. The changes in positions will be made in the near future, it was announced, as soon as necessary changes involved can be worked out.
 Health Impaired
 Impaired health, as the result of a nervous breakdown about two years ago, is said to be the cause of Mir. Browns resignation. Although great ly improved in health by virtue of an extended rest, he is said to have felt that he could not fully recover while engaged with the strenuous duties cen tering around the chief executives po- sition. $-
 He has accepted the proffer of the board chairmanship, it is announced, and still will be in position to devote considerable time to the development of the company's interests.
 Probably the outstanding figure in telephonic development in, the south during the past 25 years, Mir. Brown rose to the position of president from the office of manager of the Americus (Georgia) branch. He was. named general manager of the entire South ern Bell interests in 1907, and remained in that office until 1919, when he was named president to succeed w. T. Gentry.
 Started As. Toll Agent
 Starting as toll agent in Tennessee, Ben S., Read, who succeeds as president of the southern branch, has spent a total of 32 years with the Bell system. The majority of that time he was con nected with.sthe Cumberland company. From his first position he was pro noted to the office of manager of the Owensboro -( (KeAtucky) office. Later he was transferred to the office of manager of the Louisville and New Or leans branches and at the time he left the Cumberland company he was di- vision superintendent for Louisiana and Mississippi.
 He was then made general manager of the Missouri Bell Telephone com pany, and within year after accepting that post became general manager of the Missouri and Kansas Telephone company and within another year was elected operating vice president of the Southwestern Bell Telephone system, embracing the states of Missouri, Kan sas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Texas.
 During the World war he served as director of commercial rate matters for the Bell system under the operating board of the, federal telephone and tele- graph administration. >
 Following the close of the war he was placed in charge of the Mountain States Telephone and Telegraph com pany as president. While there he has been actively engaged in broaden ing the scope of the company through the mountains and sparsely settled sec tions it served.