Milford chronicle., 1936-06-26
PRESENT MEDAL
TO EMPLOYEES OF
PHONE COMPANY.
[COnfinned from First Pagel

SCNNEFNeNF6 j
He pointed out that this was the
third Vail medal to be awarded in
Delaware. The first award was
made in 1925 to Phoebe L. Mousley,
operatOr-in-charge of the Holly Oak
central Office, for conspicuous iEiti-
ative and good judgment during a
serious fire. The second medal was
presented in 1884 to Margaret B.
Grant, night peratOr-in-charge of
the Dover Office, in recognition of
her good judgment and resouTceful-
ness in connection with a serious
train wreck.
Hardly a day has passed since
the organization of the Bell Tele-
phone System that did not record
somewhere in the system some act
that strikingly illustrated the 10y al
ty and devotion of Bell telephone
employees he said. This thought
of service first is more than devO-
tiOn to an organization, inspiring as
that might be. 1t comes from a sense
of individual responsibility in the
public service. It is devotion to the
highest ideals of duty and Obliga-
tion in that service"
Mr.. Staples read the citation,
which recalled vivid memories Of the
severe blizzard.
Before the height of the blizzard
was reached, the Diamond State or
ganization was bucking the blocked
roads toward its CENTER" he said.
"As patrols brought word to Dover
of the extent of the damage, it was
clear that the emergency was be-
yond the resources of the Diamond
State organization, and men and
trucks from Pennsylvania were call
ed for and emergency materials or
dered in wholesale.
"Traffic women stayed at their
switchboards, many sleeping in the
rest rooms at night, to help with
the disrupted traffic. Commercial
employees got quick word, by what
ever means available, to all sub
scribers, advising as to the extent of
the damage and the measures being
taken to correct it, and undertook
also to find living accommodations
for the several hundred plant and
engineering men spreading out over
the affected area in which accom-
modatiOns were few.
"The plant men, as fast as their
trucks could get through, on foot
when the trucks were blocked,
fought the wreckage in low temper
atures and high winds, regardless of
hours and great discomfOrts, and,
when emergency service was back.
at once tackled the restoration OF
permanent plant.
ION the Diamond State Organiza-
tion fell the brunt of the job 1t had
fine help, without which it could f.
not have won through so quickly and |
brilliantly; but on the men and wo-
men of the Delaware organization |
lay the principal responsibility. and .
they shouldered it with a spirit and .
performance that measured up TO /
the finest traditions of the Bell Sys-
tenn"
William H. Harrison, vice presi-
dent in charge of operations for the
company, paid high tribute to the
teleDhOne forces for the speed and
efficiency which characterized tier
handling of the emergency and re-
construction job. he Sald tIit the
storm. which crippled 1900 poles,
tore down 1000 miles of wire, and
put some 5000 telephones out of SER
vice, cost the company approximate
ly 100000. This included the con-
struction of 60 miles of stOrm-re-
sisting cable. which completed a
backbone cable plant extending the
full length of the State.
"This reconstructed telephone
plant." he declared, Stands as a
monument to a trying job well
DONE"
Warm appreciation for the service
provided by the telephone forces and
the manner in which they cleared up
the storm wreckage was expressed
by Secretary of State Smith in a
brief talk. In referring to the pre-
sentation of the award, ne COM
mended the employees for the dis
tinction they have brought upon
themselves and the State as a
whole"