the history of the telephone-第21节

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　the　telephone　was　now　on　its　way　to　be　universal。　It　was　adapted　to　all　kinds　and　conditions　of　men。　A　great　corporation；　nerved　at　every　point　with　telephone　wires；　may　now　pay　fifty　thousand　dollars　to　the　Bell　Company；　while　at　the　same　time　a　young　Irish　immigrant　boy；　just　arrived　in　New　York　City；　may　offer　five　coppers　and　find　at　his　disposal　a　fifty　million　dollar　telephone　system。

When　the　message　rate　was　fairly　well　established；　Hudson　diedfell　suddenly　to　the　ground　as　he　was　about　to　step　into　a　railway　carriage。　In　his　place　came　Frederick　P。　Fish；　also　a　lawyer　and　a　Bostonian。　Fish　was　a　popular；　optimistic　man；　with　a　〃full…speed…ahead〃　temperament。　He　pushed　the　policy　of　expansion　until　he　broke　all　the　records。　He　borrowed　money　in　stupendous　amounts150；000；000　at　one　timeand　flung　it　into　a　campaign　of　red…　hot　development。　More　business　he　demanded；　and　more；　and　more；　until　his　captains；　like　a　thirty…horse　team　of　galloping　horses；　became　very　nearly　uncontrollable。

It　was　a　fast　and　furious　period。　The　whole　country　was　ablaze　with　a　passion　of　prosperity。　After　generations　of　conflict；　the　men　with　large　ideas　had　at　last　put　to　rout　the　men　of　small　ideas。　The　waste　and　folly　of　competition　had　everywhere　driven　men　to　the　policy　of　cooperation。　Mills　were　linked　to　mills　and　factories　to　factories；　in　a　vast　mutualism　of　industry　such　as　no　other　age；　perhaps；　has　ever　known。　And　as　the　telephone　is　essentially　the　instrument　of　co…working　and　interdependent　people；　it　found　itself　suddenly　welcomed　as　the　most　popular　and　indispensable　of　all　the　agencies　that　put　men　in　touch　with　each　other。

To　describe　this　growth　in　a　single　sentence；　we　might　say　that　the　Bell　telephone　secured　its　first　million　of　capital　in　1879；　its　first　million　of　earnings　in　1882；　its　first　million　of　dividends　in　1884；　its　first　million　of　surplus　in　1885。　It　had　paid　out　its　first　million　for　legal　expenses　by　1886；　began　first　to　send　a　million　messages　a　day　in　1888；　had　strung　its　first　million　miles　of　wire　in　1900；　and　had　installed　its　first　million　telephones　in　1898。　By　1897　it　had　spun　as　many　cobwebs　of　wire　as　the　mighty　Western　Union　itself；　by　1900　it　had　twice　as　many　miles　of　wire　as　the　Western　Union；　and　in　1905　FIVE　TIMES　as　many。　Such　was　the　plunging　progress　of　the　Bell　Companies　in　this　period　of　expansion；　that　by　1905　they　had　swept　past　all　European　countries　combined；　not　only　in　the　quality　of　the　service　but　in　the　actual　number　of　telephones　in　use。　This；　too；　without　a　cent　of　public　money；　or　the　protection　of　a　tariff；　or　the　prestige　of　a　governmental　bureau。

By　1892　Boston　and　New　York　were　talking　to　Chicago；　Milwaukee；　Pittsburg；　and　Washington。　One…half　of　the　people　of　the　United　States　were　within　talking　distance　of　each　other。　The　THOUSAND…MILE　TALK　had　ceased　to　be　a　fairy　tale。　Several　years　later　the　western　end　of　the　line　was　pushed　over　the　plains　to　Nebraska；　enabling　the　spoken　word　in　Boston　to　be　heard　in　Omaha。　Slowly　and　with　much　effort　the　public　were　taught　to　substitute　the　telephone　for　travel。　A　special　long…distance　salon　was　fitted　up　in　New　York　City　to　entice　people　into　the　habit　of　talking　to　other　cities。　Cabs　were　sent　for　customers；　and　when　one　arrived；　he　was　escorted　over　Oriental　rugs　to　a　gilded　booth；　draped　with　silken　curtains。　This　was　the　famous　〃Room　Nine。〃　By　such　and　many　other　allurements　a　larger　idea　of　telephone　service　was　given　to　the　public　mind；　until　in　1909　at　least　eighteen　thousand　New　York…Chicago　conversa…　tions　were　held；　and　the　revenue　from　strictly　long…distance　messages　was　twenty…two　thousand　dollars　a　day。

By　1906　even　the　Rocky　Mountain　Bell　Company　had　grown　to　be　a　ten…million…dollar　enterprise。　It　began　at　Salt　Lake　City　with　a　hundred　telephones；　in　1880。　Then　it　reached　out　to　master　an　area　of　four　hundred　and　thirteen　thousand　square　milesa　great　Lone　Land　of　undeveloped　resources。　Its　linemen　groped　through　dense　forests　where　their　poles　looked　like　toothpicks　beside　the　towering　pines　and　cedars。　They　girdled　the　mountains　and　basted　the　prairies　with　wire；　until　the　lonely　places　were　brought　together　and　made　sociable。　They　drove　off　the　Indians；　who　wanted　the　bright　wire　for　ear…rings　and　bracelets；　and　the　bears；　which　mistook　the　humming　of　the　wires　for　the　buzzing　of　bees；　and　persisted　in　gnawing　the　poles　down。　With　the　most　heroic　optimism；　this　Rocky　Mountain　Company　persevered　until；　in　1906；　it　had　created　a　seventy…　thousand…mile　nerve…system　for　the　far　West。

Chicago；　in　this　year；　had　two　hundred　thou…　sand　telephones　in　use；　in　her　two　hundred　square　miles　of　area。　The　business　had　been　built　up　by　General　Anson　Stager；　who　was　himself　wealthy；　and　able　to　attract　the　support　of　such　men　as　John　Crerar；　H。　H。　Porter；　and　Robert　T。　Lincoln。　Since　1882　it　has　paid　dividends；　and　in　one　glorious　year　its　stock　soared　to　four　hundred　dollars　a　share。　The　old…　timersthe　men　who　clambered　over　roof…tops　in　1878　and　tacked　iron　wires　wherever　they　could　without　being　chased　offare　still　for　the　most　part　in　control　of　the　Chicago　company。

But　as　might　have　been　expected；　it　was　New　York　City　that　was　the　record…breaker　when　the　era　of　telephone　expansion　arrived。　Here　the　flood　of　big　business　struck　with　the　force　of　a　tidal　wave。　The　number　of　users　leaped　from　56；000　in　1900　up　to　810；000　in　1908。　In　a　single　year　of　sweating　and　breathless　activity；　65；000　new　telephones　were　put　on　desks　or　hung　on　wallsan　average　of　one　new　user　for　every　two　minutes　of　the　business　day。

Literally　tons；　and　hundreds　of　tons；　of　telephones　were　hauled　in　drays　from　the　factory　and　put　in　place　in　New　York's　homes　and　offices。　More　and　more　were　demanded；　until　to…day　there　are　more　telephones　in　New　York　than　there　are　in　the　four　countries；　France；　Belgium；　Holland；　and　Switzerland　combined。　As　a　user　of　telephones　New　York　has　risen　to　be　unapproachable。　Mass　together　all　the　telephones　of　London；　Glasgow；　Liverpool；　Manchester；　Birmingham；　Leeds；　Sheffleld；　Bristol；　and　Belfast；　and　there　will　even　then　be　barely　as　many　as　are　carrying　the　conversations　of　this　one　American　city。

In　1879　the　New　York　telephone　directory　was　a　small　card；　showing　two　hundred　and　fifty…two　names；　but　now　it　has　grown　to　be　an　eight…hundred…page　quarterly；　with　a　circulation　of　half　a　million；　and　requiring　twenty　drays；　forty　horses；　and　four　hundred　men　to　do　the　work　of　distribution。　There　was　one　shabby　little　exchange　thirty　years　ago；　but　now　there　are　fifty…two　exchanges；　as　the　nerve…centres　of　a　vast　fifty…　million…dollar　system。　Incredible　as　it　may　seem　to　foreigners；　it　is　literally　true　that　in　a　single　building　in　New　York；　the　Hudson　Terminal；　there　are　more　telephones　than　in　Odessa　or　Madrid；　more　than　in　the　two　kingdoms　of　Greece　and　Bulgaria　combined。

Merely　to　operate　this　system　requires　an　army　of　more　than　five　thousand　girls。　Merely　to　keep　their　records　requires　two　hundred　and　thirty…five　million　sheets　of　paper　a　year。　Merely　to　do　the　writing　of　these　records　wears　away　five　hundred　and　sixty　thousand　lead　pencils。　And　merely　to　give　these　girls　a　cup　of　tea　or　coffee　at　noon；　compels　the　Bell　Company　to　buy　yearly　six　thousand　pounds　of　tea；　seventeen　thousand　pounds　of　coffee；　forty…eight　thousand　cans　of　condensed　milk；　and　one　hundred　and　forty　barrels　of　sugar。

The　myriad　wires　of　this　New　York　system　are　tingling　with　talk　every　minute　of　the　day　and　night。　They　are　most　at　rest　between　three　and　four　o'clock　in　the　morning；　although　even　then　there　are　usually　ten　calls　a　minute。　Between　five　and　six　o'clock；　two　thousand　New　Yorkers　are　awake　and　at　the　telephone。　Half　an　hour　later　there　are　twice　as　many。　Between　seven　and　eight　twenty…five　thousand　people　have　called　up　twenty…five　thousand　other　people；　so　that　there　are　as　many　people　talking　by　wire　as　there　were　in　the　whole　city　of　New　York　in　the　Revolutionary　period。　Even　this　is　only　the　dawn　of　the　day's　business。　By　half…past　eight　it　is　doubled；　by　nine　it　is　trebled；　by　ten　it　is　multiplied　sixfold；　and　by　eleven　the　roar　has　become　an　incredible　babel　of　one　hundred　and　eighty　thousand　conversations　an　hour；　with　fifty　new　voices　clamoring　at　the　exchanges　every　second。

This　is　〃the　peak　of　the　load。〃　It　is　the　topmost　pinnacle　of　talk。　It　is　the　utmost　degree　of　service　that　the　telephone　has　been　required　to　give　in　any　city。　And　it　is　as　much　a　world's　wonder；　to　men　and　women　of　imagination；　as　the　steel　mills　of　Homestead　or　the　turbine　leviathans　that　curve　across　the　Atlantic　Ocean　in　four　and　a　half　days。

As　to　the　men　who　built　it　up：　Charles　F。　Cutler　died　in　1907；　but　most　of　the　others　are　still　alive　and　busy。　Union　N。　Bethell；　now　in　Cutler's　place　at　the　head　of　the　New　York　Company；　has　been　the　operating　chief　for　eighteen　years。　He　is　a　man　of　shrewdness　and　sympathy；　with　a　rare　sagacity　in　solving　knotty　problems；　a　president　of　the　new　type；　who　regards　his　work　as　a　sort　of　obligation　he　owes　to　the　public。　And　just　as　foreigners　go　to　Pittsburg　to　see　the　steel　business　at　its　best；　just　as　they　go　to　Iowa　and　Kansas　to　see　the　New　Farmer；　so　they　make　pilgrimages　to　Bet