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BELLKAisi:;;A::i C
Telephone Magazine
VOLUME XX, 1941
INFORMATION DEPARTMENT
AMERICAN TELEPHONE AND TELEGRAPH COMPANY
195 Broadway, New York
PRINTED IN r. S. A.
BELL TELEPHONE MAGAZINE
VOLUME XX, 1941
TABLE OF CONTENTS
FEBRUARY, 1941
The Bell System and National Defense, by /. S. Bradley 3

Pioneering in Radio Telephony 21
Making Telephone Directories Better, by O. M. Hancock 38
How Our Population Is Changing, by R. L. Tomblen 47
The Conquest of a Continent: Conclusion, by R. T. Barrett 57
For the Record 68
Contributors to This Issue 69
MAY, 1941
Engines for Defense, by F. K. Rowe 73

A Townsend
College Course in Telephone Speech, by F. P. 80
Independent Telephone Companies, by H. M. Pope 87
Trends in Toll Cable Usage, by A. F. Rose 97
Chemistry Behind the Telephone, by R. R. Williams 106
For the Record 109
AUGUST, 1941
Western Electric: Telephone Arsenal, by Alvin von Auw 117

New Channels for Old, by Eustace Florance and Austin Bailey .... 129
Evolution by Design, by R. L. Jones 136
Providing the Information Service, by F. C. Baurenjeind 151
Telephone Statistics of the World, by Knud Fick 162
For the Record 174
^ Bound
Periodic^
1073054 „/,y 2 1 190

BELL TELEPHONE MAGAZINE CONTENTS, VOLUME XX
NOVEMBER, 1941
Telephones and Defense
Introduction 181
I. An Operating Telephone Company s I'ari in National De-
fense, by Hcrvey Roberts 182
II. Providing Substitutes for "Critical" Telephone Materials 195
III. The Present Situation and the Present Outlook 200
Engineering the Transcontinental Telephone Cable, by H. H. Nance 207
The 1941 Convertible Bond Issue, by /. F. Behan 221
The Telephone by G. W. Mcrw'w
Afloat, 234
Patents and Free Enterprise, by W
R. Ballard
.
243
For the Record 252
BELL TELEPHONE MAGAZINE
VOLUME XX, 1941
INDEX
PAGE
Bailey, Austin, and Eustace Florance: New Channels for Old 129
Ballard, W. R.: Patents and Free Enterprise 243
Barrett, R. T.: The Conquest of a Continent, Conclusion 57
Baurenfeind, F. C: Providing the Information Service 151
Behan, J. F.: The 1941 Convertible Bond Issue 221
Bell System and National Defense, The, by J. S. Bradley 3
Bell Telephone Magazine —
Index to Vol. XX
(1941) Available, Note on 254
Bell Telephone Magazine —
The Quarterly Becomes the Magazine, Note on 68
"Bell Telephone System, The": A Review of a Book by Vice President Page .... 252
Bond Issue, The 1941 Convertible, by J. F. Behan 221
Bradley, J. S.: The Bell System and National Defense 3
Cable, Engineering the Transcontinental Telephone, by H. H. Nance 207

Cable, Progress Is Rapid on Transcontinental Telephone, Note on 174
Cable, Trends in Toll, Usage, by A. F. Rose 97
Campbell, George A., Receives the Edison Medal, Note on 109
Chemistry Behind the Telephone, by R. R. Williams 106
Circuits, Direct Radio Telephone, to Portugal and Panama Established, Note on 174 .
Circuits, —
Radiotelephone New Channels for Old, by Eustace Florance and Austin
Bailey 129
College Course in Telephone Speech, A, by F. P. Townsend 80
Communication— Pioneering in Radio Telephony 21
—
Communication The Conquest of a Continent, Conclusion, by R. T. Barrett .... 57
Conquest of a Continent, The: Conclusion, by R. T. Barrett 57
Contributors to February, 1941 issue of Bell Telephone Magazine 175
Contributors to May, 1941 issue of Bell Telephone Magazine 113
Contributors to August, 1941 issue of Bell Telephone Magazine 175
Contributors to November, 1941 issue of Bell Telephone Magazint: 255
Connecting Companies — Independent Telephone Companies, by H. M. Pope .... 87
Defense, Engines for, by F. K. Rowe 73

Defense —Our Part in the Nation's Defense Program: A Statement by President
Gifford at the Annual Meeting of Stockholders on April 16, 1941 109
Defense, Telephones and
Introduction 181
I. An Operating Telephone Company's Part in National Defense, by Hervey
Roberts 182
5
BEI.L TELEPHOSE MAGAZINE INDEX, VOLUME XX
Defense, The System and National, by J. S. Bradley

Bell 3
Defense — WesternElectric: Telephone Arsenal, by Alvin von Auw 117
Director, Thomas I. Parkinson Elected a. Note on 68
Directories, Making Telephone. Better, by O. M. Hancock 38
—
Directories Providinj; the Information Service, by F. C. Baurenfeind 151
Direct Radio Telephone Circuits to Portugal and Panama Established, Note on . . 174
Drop Wire — Evolution by Design, by R. L. Jones 136
Edison Medal, George A. Campbell Receives the. Note on 109

Emergency Power Equipment Engines — for Defense, by F. K. Rowe 73
Engines for Defense, by F. K. Rowe 73
Engineering the Transcontinental Telephone Cable, by H. H. Nance 207
Evolution by Design, by R. L. Jones 136
Fick, Knud: Telephone Statistics of the World, January 1, 1940 162

Florance, Eustace, and Austin Bailey: New Channels for Old 129
Gifford, W. S.: Our Part in the Nation's Defense Program: Statement Read at
Annual Meeting of Stockholders on April 16, 1941 109

Greece, Radio Telephone Service Opened with, Note on 68
Harrison, W. H., New Defense Post for. Note on 252

How Our Population Is Changing, by R. L. Tomblen 47
Hancock, O. M.: Making Telephone Directories Better 38
Independent Telephone Companies, by H. M. Pope 87

Index to Vol. XX
(1941) Bell Telephone Magazine Available, Note on 254
Information Service, Providing the, by F. C. Baurenfeind 151
Jones, R. L.: Evolution by Design 136
Laboratories — Chemistry
Behind the Telephone, by R. R. Williams 106
Laboratories — Evolution
by Design, by R. L. Jones 136
Lawrence, F. P., Is New Head of Long Lines, Note on 68
Long Lines, F. P. Lawrence Is New Head of. Note on 68
Making Telephone Directories Better, by O. M. Hancock 38

Merwin, G. W. The Telephone Afloat
: 234
Nance, H. H.: Engineering the Transcontinental Telephone Cable 207

National Defense —
Telephones and Defense 181
National Defense, The Bell System and, by J. S. Bradley 3
New Channels for Old, by Eustace Florance and Austin Bailey 129
New Defense Post for W. H. Harrison, Note on 252
New Records Set in September, Note on 252
Nineteen Hundred Forty-One Convertible Bond Issue, The, by J. F. Behan 221
Now More than 17,600,000 Bell Telephones, Note on 68
6
—
BELL TELEPHONE MAGAZINE INDEX, VOLUME XX
I'AGt
Operating Telephone Company's Part in National Defense, An, by Hcrvcy Rob-

erts — Part I, Telephones and Defense 182
Operators, Information — Providing the Information Service, by F. C. Baurenfcind 151
Our Part in the Nation's Defense Program: A Statement by President Gifford at
the Annual Meeting of Stockholders on April 16. 1941 109
Page, Vice President, "The Bell Telephone System": A Review of a Book by .... 252
Panama, Direct Radio Telephone Circuits to Portugal and, Established, Note on . 174
Parkinson, Thomas I., Elected a Director, Note on 68
Patents and Free Enterprise, by W. R. Ballard 243
Pope, H. M.: Independent Telephone Companies 87
Population, How Our, Is Changing, by R. L. Tomblen 47
Portugal, Direct Radio Telephone Circuits to, and Panama Established, Note on . 174
Present Situation and the Present Outlook, The, Part III, Telephones and Defense 200
Progress Is Rapid on Transcontinental Telephone Cable, Note on 174
Providing Substitutes for "Critical" Telephone Materials, Part II, Telephones and
Defense 195
Providing the Information Service, by F. C. Baurenfeind 151
Quarterly Becomes the Magazine, The, Note on 68
Radiotelephone Circuits —New Channels for Old, by Eustace Florance and Austin
Bailey 129
Radio Telephone, Direct, Circuits, to Portugal and Panama Established, Note on . 174
Radio Telephone Service Opened with Greece, Note on 68
Radio Telephone— The Telephone Afloat, by G. W. Merwin 234
Radio Telephony, Pioneering in 21
Receivers —Evolution by Design, by R. L. Jones 136
Relays—Evolution by Design, by R. L. Jones 136
Research — Chemistry Behind the Telephone, by R. R. Williams 106
Research —Evolution by Design, by R. L. Jones 136
Roberts, Hervey: An Operating Telephone Company's Part in National Defense
Part I, Telephones and Defense 182
Rose, A. F.: Trends in Toll Cable Usage 97
Rowe, F. K.: Engines for Defense 73
Ship-to-Shore—The Telephone Afloat, by G. W. Merwin 234

Speech,A College Course in Telephone, by F. P. Townsend 80
Statement Read by Walter S. Gifford at Annual Meeting of Stockholders, April
16, 1941 109
Statistics —New Records Set in September, Note on 252
Statistics— Now More than 17,600,000 Bell Telephones, Note on 68
Statistics, Telephone, of the World, January 1, 1940, by Knud Fick 162
Stockholders Annual Meeting, Walter S. Gifford Statement Read at, April 16. 1941 109
7
BELL TELEPHONE MAGAZINE INDEX, VOLUME XX
PAGE
Telephone Afloat, The, by G. W. Merwin 234
Telephone Arsenal, Western Electric: by Alvin von Auw 117
Telephone, Chemistry Behind the. by R. R. Williams 106
Telephone Directories, Making, Better, by O. M. Hancock 38
Telephone, Independent, Companies, by H. M. Pope 87
Telephone Speech, A College Course in, by F. P. Townsend 80
Telephone Statistics of the World, January 1. 1940, by Knud Fick 162
Introduction 181
I. An Operating Telephone Company's Part in National Defense, by Hervey
Roberts 182
Telephones, Now More than 17,600,000 Bell, Note on 68
Toll Cable, Trends in. Usage, by A. F. Rose 97
Tomblen, R. L.: How Our Population Is Changing 47
Townsend, F. P.: A College Course in Telephone Speech 80
Transatlantic Radio Telephony —
—
Transcontinental Communication The Conquest of a Continent, Conclusion, by
R. T. Barrett 57
Transcontinental Telephone Cable, Engineering the, by H. H. Nance 207
Transcontinental Telephone Cable, Progress Is Rapid on. Note on 174
Trends in Toll Cable Usage, by A. F. Rose 97
von Auw, Alvin: Western Electric: Telephone Arsenal 117
Western Electric: Telephone Arsenal, by Alvin von Auw 117

Williams, R. R.: Chemistry Behind the Telephone 106
Woodford, L. G., Appointed Chief Engineer, Note on 252
BELL TELEPHONE
MAGAZINE
VOL. XX FEBRUARY, 1941
THE BELL SYSTEM AND NATIONAL DEFENSE
PIONEERING IN RADIO TELEPHONY
MAKING TELEPHONE DIRECTORIES BETTER
HOW OUR POPULATION IS CHANGING
THE CONQUEST OF A CONTINENT
American Telephone & Telegraph Co. • New York

—— — —
BELL TELEPHONE
MAGAZINE
Continuing the Beix Telephone Quaktehly
A Medium of Suggestion and a Record of Progress
VOL. XX FEBRUARY, 1941 no. i
PAGE
The Bell System and^National Defense— J. S. Bradley 3
]\Iaking Telephone Directories Better 0. M. Hancock 38
How Our Population Is Changing R. L. Tomhlen 17
The Conquest of a Continent: Conclusion R. T. Barrett 57
For the Record 68

—
Thomas I. Parkinson Elected a Director F. P. LawTonce Is New
—
Head of Long Lines Radio Telephone Service Opened with Greece
—
Now More than 17,600,000 Bell Telephones The Quarterly Becomes
the !\L\GAzixE
Published by the Information Department of the

American Telephone and Telegkaph Company
195 Broadway, New York, N. Y.
^KIUICE JU Tin: NATIUA
IN PEACE AND WAR
Bronze and marhle rfrnup in llw lobhy of (he American
Telephone and Telegraph Company building, A>mj York
—
THE BELL SYSTEM AND NATIONAL DEFENSE

The Systenis Notion-wide Organization and Capacities Enable It
to Meet the Vast Needs of the Aimed Forces and of Industry for the
Services and Equipment So Vital to the Defense Program
By JUDSON S. BRADLEY
O
hangs
States
N
a
the wall of an inner office in
the Bell System's headquar-
ters
large
It is
building in
map
studded
of
with a
New York
United
the
mosaic
Inspiring would be such a compre-
hensive view of the country's defense
program.
terest for
And it would gain in in-
System people because at
each point visited there would be
of more than 400 vari-colored pins. either actually or figuratively — tele-
They cluster along the seaboards, are phone men at work.
thick in the south and the industrial The Bell System's capacity for this
mid-west, scatter seemingly without and other defense work was the theme
pattern in other parts of the country. of a radio broadcast by President
Were one to journey to all the places Gifford, and of an advertisement in
designated by those bright pin-heads, magazines of nation-wide circulation,
he would see much of the nation's a few months ago. Current advertise-
defense activity: columns of march- ments include the statement, "The
ing men, and men spread thin in Bell System is doing its part in the
skirmish line; rows of tents, and bar- country's program of national de-
racks springing up over vast areas; fense." Such pledges are, neces-
the long runways of airports, and bull- sarily, generalizations. To the ques-
dozers knocking down hills to make tion of what the System's part is_ and
more; pile drivers hammering away how it is doing it, there are, in detail,
at new docks, and sleek gray vessels many answers. Of these that pin-
taking shape on the ways; huge fac- studded map is a partial summary.
tories in various stages of construc-
tion. For each pin in that map marks A CITY of 40,000 or 50,000 is a siz-
a point where the Bell System operat- able community. Such a place repre-
ing companies are providing com- sents many years of growth. It has
munication facilities for a military or a history, traditions, an individuality.
—
naval establishment Army training Among the many
services which have
camp, naval base. Coast Guard sta- grown with through the years is
it
tion, aviation field, ordnance or air- that of the telephone. Yet today
plane plant. "cities" of that size are being built.
The Captain Goes Up
The Post Signal Officer of a huge Army
camp examines the fine points of a splice in
an Army cable just completed by the Bell
System men on the ground
pacity, skilled and loyal men and

women; and through and with full
cooperation between branches of all
the System and all branches of the

Government concerned in the defense
effort in all its many aspects.
Service to the Many Camps

i HE nation's defense program cen-
ters inWashington, of course. There
the American Telephone and Tele-
graph Company has for some years
maintained an office, in order that it
may be in a position to cooperate
quickly and completely with the vari-
ous government departments. Word
is received there as soon as a decision
has been reached to construct a new

Army camp or expand an existing
post, to set up an Army or Navy air
base, to build a munitions or airplane
plant. First definite news may in-
clude not much more than the loca-
constructed from the ground up, in
tion, the size of the establishment, an
the course of a few months, at a num- estimate of the communication re-
ber of locations in the United States: quirements, and the expected dates
Army camps for the young Americans for start of construction and for oc-
who are to receive a year of military cupancy. But that is enough to put
training, formembers of the National the wheels in motion.
Guard who have already been called All available necessary information
out by Presidential order. And for is flashed to the Associated Bell Com-
those "cities" telephone service must pany in whose territory the project
be provided — likewise, in many cases, is Western Elec-
to take shape, to the
from the ground up. Smaller camps tric Company, the System's manufac-
— —
and there are many present the turing and supply arm, and to A. T.
same problem in scale. Government- & headquarters in New York.
T.
owned munitions and aviation plants Certain preliminary deductions can
must have service too. So must the be made at once. A camp for a given
Federal housing projects which are number of troops will require a pri-
planned or going up near many of the vate branch switchboard to serve a
cantonments and factories. certain number of lines; about so
As President Gifford pointed out, many feet of distribution cable; an
the Bell System is able to provide estimated number of public tele-
that service, and the necessary equip- phones and booths for the conven-
ment, through systematic planning, ience of the men. The telephone
ample stocks and manufacturing ca- company's engineering, plant and
The Bell System and National' Defense
commercial officials, Western Elec- training of thousands of men are be-

tric's local distributing house man- ing administered. In such case, the
ager, confer, plan. Western can look central office switchboard will have to
ahead, schedule tentatively. be enlarged, perhaps two or three fold.
Service on the post is only part of An addition to the building may be
the story, however. What about serv- necessary. In more than one instance,
ice to the post? Big new military es- an entire new central office has been
tablishments are being built in thinly created near the camp as the most
populated territory, often miles from satisfactory solution of the problem.
the nearest town. And that may be a Do a few open wires run past the
small town, receiving telephone serv- site of the proposed camp? Those
ice through a switchboard ample for poles should be carrying cable too by
the needs of its few residents but not the time the constructing Quarter-
originally engineered to handle the master and the contractors have
number of calls which will flow to and opened their field offices and are ready
from a camp where the daily life and for service, providing pairs later for
FULL CO-OPERATION
Signal Corps and Bell System men working on an Army cable close to the camp telephone
headquarters in the background, where Western Electric has installed a multiple P.B.X.
Rkadv on Timf
Three nionlhs, lo Ihe day, afler (irouiiiJ u'(i.s
broken, this new central oJ)ice was ready lo

[live service to a biij camp located between
two small towns. The iiO-position switch-
board is the lanjesl of its type in the Hell
System, and space has been provided for
another .'}() positions if they should be needed
the Army's P.B.X. too. What about the last step than the first, for much
toll circuits? The facilities will in has gone before.
all probability have to be enlarged A big camp does not go up literally
to handle a sizable increase in long over night; it takes time to build. So
distance calls. does equipment.
telephone Those
All these things are reviewed by the two facts are complementary. Thanks
operating company and Western Elec- to the opportunity for advance plan-
tric. They discuss, plan, on the basis ning in the field, preliminary schedul-
of experience and present knowledge. ing of manufacture, and ample shop
A. T. & T. staff men are always avail- facilities, "shipped same day ordered"'
able for consultation. isa frequent notation against Western
Electric's record of the disposition of
JMeanwhile, the picture takes on some piece of apparatus for Govern-

constantly clearer definition. Supple- ment service. Central office switch-
mentary information in more and more board sections must be added, larger
detail becomes available: in Washing- quarters provided, cables run, more
ton, from the War Department or the operators provided and trained all —
Navy Department, as the case may on schedules carefully worked out to
be; from the headquarters of the meet the needs for service.
corps area or the naval district. Not all of the Government's defense
Plans for the camp become definite, projects are as large as some of the
the scheduling of telephone equipment huge new Army cantonments. Nor
and construction can proceed with as- do all of them require the manufac-
surance. The Government signs the ture and installation of large amounts
order for service —but that is nearer of plant and equipment, since some call
The Bell System and .National Defense
simply for additions to existing facili- wide long distance service through
ties. But communication is vital to connection with the Bell System net-
them all, and the defense program does work.
call for new service or additions to In normal times, the Army buys,
existing service at Army and Navy builds, maintains and operates its own
headquarters in Washington, at Corps telephone systems and its own fire-
Area and District headquarters, at alarm systems at the larger perma-
regular Army posts, Army air bases, nent posts on Government reserva-
anti-aircraft firing centers, National tions. It always builds, maintains,
Guard concentration camps, replace- and operates its harbor defense fire
ment centers for draftees. Quarter- control and target range systems. An
master supply depots. National Guard agreement of long standing with the
aviation units, Coast Artillery units, Bell System covers the furnishing of
Coast Guard stations, iMarine Corps and payment for lines to the tele-
bases, present naval bases, naval air phone company central offices; simi-
bases, naval training stations, ord- lar agreements are in effect with the
nance and airplane plants, hospitals, independent telephone companies con-
and housing projects. cerned.
Some of these establishments are Said Major John G. Grable, Signal
located in the territories of independ- Corps, U. S. A., in an address before
ent telephone companies. They too the U. S. Independent Telephone As-
furnish the Government with nation- sociation :
CENTRAL-OFFICE ENLARGEMENT
An addition was made to the huildittu and the switchboard was more than doubled in this
central office, in anticipation of the telephone needs of a near-by Army cantonment
Bell Telephone Magazine FEBRUARY
Ahmy Switchboards
Communication on a post is provided through
a Private Branch Exchange switchboard,
either manual or dial, as needed, which also
connects ivith a telephone company central
office. Above: A Bell System P.B.X. in-
structor trains an Army operator. Left: A
Western Electric installer discusses circuit
layouts ivith members of the Signal Corps
—
cumstances have been met right on
time and every effort made to assure
that the service and equipment are
satisfactory."
Research and Manufacture

"The Chief Signal Officer wishes to
express his appreciation of the excel- Only the most general mention may
been rendered
lent cooperation that has be made of certain special undertak-
during the present emergency by com- ings which both the Bell Telephone
mercial telephone companies and man- Laboratories and the Western Elec-
ufacturers telephone material and
of
tric Company are carrying out di-
equipment. Without a single excep-
rectly with and for the Army and
tion, the demands made by the Army
Navy.
for service and for rush shipments of
material and equipment —
and I would Since the Laboratories is one of the
like to say that many of those requests major development organizations in
have been of such a nature that they the communications field, it is natural
would appear impossible in other cir- that its unique knowledge and facili-
i9^ti The Bell System and National Defense
ties should be directed toward de- ment of many kinds ordered by and
fense measures where they will be of to be delivered directly to the Army
greatest The adaptation of
value. and Navy. The full implications of
telephone circuits to serve new and that statement may best be under-
special needs, and the application of stood from the brief explanation that
scientific principles to the solution of the value of these orders, at the be-
new problems, are matters currently ginning of the present year, is about
receiving major attention. It is also $31,000,000.
reassuring to know that substitutes
have been developed for certain mate- Aircraft Warning Service
rials which have become difficult to
r OR a number of years, the Bell
obtain in recent years, and that re-
System and independent telephone
search along these lines is actively
companies have cooperated with the
continuing.
Army, during various military man-
Similarly, the Western Electric spe-
euvers, in technical exercises looking
cializes in the methods and manufac-
ture of communication equipment.
In Western's Specialty Products Di-
vision, wheels hum and lights burn
late to turn out communication equip-
Helping Train Signal Corps

Instructors
The Signal Corps men shown here are going
through a complete Bell System Plant School
course, including the various phases of con-
struction and maintenance (right) as well as
class-room instruction (below). They will,
in turn, become instructors in their battalion
10 Bell Telephone Magazine FEBRUARY
CAMOUFLAGED BATTALION COMMAND TELEPHONE POST

During maneuvers and field exercises, Signal Corps men simulate war-time conditions.
The equipment shown here is of Western Electric manufacture
toward the establishment and opera- ority and by special operating meth-
tion of an Aircraft Warning Service.* ods over the regular communications
Briefly, a corps of observers is or- network of the telephone companies.
ganized from the civilian population A large-scale test of the effective-
to man observation points located ness of such an aircraft warning serv-
throughout large sections of the coun- ice took place in the northeastern part
try. Each observation post is proof the country early this year. The
vided with telephone facilities which Bell System's experience, gained in
permit reports of hostile airplanes earlier similar activities, was placed
seen or heard by the observers to be at the service of the Army, and tele-
flashed directly to Air Defense Com- phone company officials in the terri-
mand operation centers, where officers tory covered worked closely with of-
direct defense measures against the ficers of the Air Defense Command
invading bombers. Observers' rein charge of the exercises.
ports are handled with special pri-
* "A War Game Test of Telephone Service,"
Service to Expanding Industry
Quarterly, January, 1939; "Another War
Game Test of Bell System Services," Quar-
1 HE Army and Navy have long
terly, July, 1940. been known as our first line of de-
—
19^ i The Bell System and National Defense 11
fense. But against the kind of war plants and the construction of new
being waged today, Industry any
is buildings.
less so? Each day's newspaper head- To this aspect of defense, communi-
lines, the newscasters' radio sum- cation is as vital as it is to the Army
maries, the grist of reports and state- and Navy directly. Administration
ments from Washington, have made of a vastly expanding business calls
the answer familiar to everyone; it more than ever for telephonic inter-
is no. To
Industry the nation looks communication within a plant, for
for the things which make defense adequate facilities for local and long
possible, from ships and shoes to distance services. A P.B.X. switch-
—
perhaps sealing wax; there is no board which has long been quite suf-
need to recount here the multiplicity ficient must now be replaced, almost
of products, from uniforms to air- over night, by one two or three times
planes, which the country's defense its size. New central-office connec-
program requires for fulfillment. tions must be provided. Cables must
Equally well known is the manner be run from the firm's main office to
in which Industry is responding to serve telephones in new buildings, and
the pressing need: speeding up pro- wires must be run in those. It is not
duction, doubling and tripling ulti- unusual in the experience of more
mate capacity by additions to existing than one Bell System company to find
NEW SWITCHBOARD FUR THE NAVY

A yeoman stands by at this P.B.X. recently installed to serve a Naval District headquarters
The Pelorus Watch Stands By
Bearings on objects, or on other vessels, are
communicated to the ISavigalor by telephone
wire facilities are used to interconnect

the nearly twenty-two million tele-
phones which are served by some
nineteen thousand central offices
throughout the United States. On a
map of the country the lines are sug-
gestive of a loosely and irregularly
woven fabric overlaying the entire
nation.
For the past twenty years or more,
construction of toll and long distance
lines has been planned not only to

furnish the circuits necessary to meet
an increasing use of the service but
also to provide alternative routes be-
tween the country's largest cities.
The purpose, of course, has been to

insure maintenance of communications
in almost any contingency. As a re-
it expedient to assign several plant
sult,today the Bell System has access,
men regularly to one expanding indus-
telephonically, to every major city
trial establishment, simply to take
over several different routes. In this
care of the day-to-day requirements
way, even though an accident should
for changes and extensions of tele-
completely disrupt service over one
phone service.
route, a detour will usually continue
All this is occurring not in occa-
the flow of calls with little or no delay
sional isolated instances, nor even
to traffic.
here and there, but in hundreds of
Traffic control bureaus for the
plants working on Government orders
longer haul routes are located in New
all over the country. And here, again,
York, Cleveland, and Chicago. They
the Bell System generally finds it pos-
keep a general watch over the ebb and
sible to meet Industry's requirements
flow of traffic throughout the country,
for service and equipment adequately
and manipulate the supply of circuits
and promptly.
to meet the constantly changing pat-
And, obviously, there must be, and
tern of traffic.
is, provision for an increasing use of
Due to anticipated defense require-
telephone service which reflects the
ments and to the general stimulation
heightened tempo of activity through-
of which accompanies the
business
out the nation.
defense program, theLong Lines De-
partment of the American Telephone
The Country's Telephone Network
and Telegraph Company increased its
In and in cable the
aerial wire lines 1940 construction program to $21,-
Bell System and the independent con- 000,000, which was $9,000,000 above
necting companies have nearly one the amount spent in 1939. The Asso-
hundred million miles of wire. These ciated Companies also increased their
The Bell System and National Defense 13
building programs during 1940 above channels along the Atlantic coast, as
those of the previous year by amounts did they also along the fourth trans-
depending upon their several require- continental line from Oklahoma City
ments. to Los Angeles.
Chief among the major projects of
this construction program were a new An important extension scheduled
underground cable laid last year be- for year is that of twin un-
this
tween Baltimore and Washington at derground cables linking Richmond
a cost of about $1,000,000; and the and Norfolk, Va., to serve Nor-
start of construction of a new cable folk, News and the vi-
Newport
between Omaha and Denver. This cinity, where there are concentrated
cable will be pushed through to Cali- extensive ship building, naval, and
fornia, and will connect the long dis- army activities. Others planned for
tance cable network serving the East the next few years include twin under-
with that which serves the Pacific ground cables about 700 miles in
coast. length, from Atlanta, Georgia, to Mi-
Last year communications facilities ami, Florida; a new cable between
along the seaboard routes
eastern Los Angeles and San Diego; and twin
were supplemented by important ad- cables between Seattle and Portland.
ditionson various links all the way A second cable to be placed along
from Boston to Florida. Here, "car- each of several existing routes will
rier" systems provided many new substantially increase long distance
THE FIRE ROOM WATCH AT SEA

On a modern battleship, the fire room watch maintains telephonic communication with other
departments
14 Bell Telephone Magazine
facilities into southwest, where

the to ocean. Its very size makes it, in
Army on a large scale, par-

activities its entirety, unassailable, while the
ticularly aviation, will be centered. provision of so many alternative
This program envisions by the end of speechways precludes that any impor-
1943, exclusive of the transcontinen- tant place, or section of the country,
talroute mentioned above, cable con- should be cut off for long from the
struction on more than 4,000 miles of rest of the nation.
principal toll routes which are now
Protecting the Service
served by open wire.
The construction of these new ca- Jl ROTECTiON of evcry phase of the
bles will be accompanied by the ex- service against serious interruption,
tension of the network of broad band either accidental or intentional, is, of
telephone transmission systems. "Car- course, a highly important aspect of
rier" systems are being superposed the Bell System's responsibility for
not only on new cable facilities but on nation-wide communications. It is
existing cable routes. Circuits so pro- not the intention to defeat the purpose
vided are of high quality and are par- of precautionswhich have been taken
ticularly well suited for use in estab- by describing them in detail or by
lishing alternative and protection cir- connecting those mentioned with any
cuit routes. Each of the multi-cable definite locality. On the other hand,
routes, as proposed, can accommo- a summary more important
of the
date as many as 50 or more carrier steps taken belongs in any compre-
systems, each of which will provide hensive account of the System's part
twelve telephone circuits. in the national defense program.
Various measures, mentioned below, The protective measures fall into
have been taken to protect the physi- three general groups: those dealing
cal telephone plant. But above and with personnel, those safeguarding the
beyond such steps as are possible to outside plant, and those having to do
guard against injury of any kind, the with protecting the buildings and the
greatest protection to the nation's tele- equipment inside them.
phone service, now so vital to the Before proceeding with other parts
defense program, is the criss-crossing of the program, it was highly impor-
web of wire and cable which stretches tant that telephone employees par- —
from border to border and from ocean ticularly those in the Plant Depart-
ments and others whose work includes
actual contact with vital telephone
equipment — d be acquainted
s hou 1
with the purposes of the precautionary

measures to be taken. Letters from
company officers impressed upon such
employees the need for protective
measures, and further emphasis was
given by group meetings and discus-
sions held throughout the organiza-
tions.
Student Pilot
In this Link Trainer, the naval aviation
student gets his instructions by telephone
u'hile he is "in the air''
Mobile Communication Post
Pictured here is the interior of an Army
truck, where the teletypewriter has been in-
stalled for field use
Surveys of citizenship have been

made which confirm the fact that ex-
tremely few employees are not citi-
zens, either by birth or by naturaliza-

tion. Detailed information about
—
employees up to and including de-
—
partment heads who work directly
with international telephone circuits,
both wire and radio, has been fur-
nished the Federal Communications
Commission at the latter's request. plement the many already available
Records have been prepared show- to fill the breach in the event of the
ing the men who are subject to call temporary loss of outside power.
for military duty. Plans have been Other potential emergencies have
developed for replacing men so af- —
been anticipated so far as it is pos-
fected. Data relating to prospective sible for experienced telephone men
temporary employees are being main- to foresee and to provide against ac-
tained with an eye to insuring an ade- cidents or other causes of interruption
quate service force in case of emer- to the service. Plans already exist,
gency. for example, for the restoration of

telephone service to various govern-
In addition to the alternative toll ment buildings, hospitals, police head-
routes previously mentioned, alterna- quarters, railroad stations and impor-
tive toll entrance routes are being es- tant manufacturing plants, in case
tablished, and other safeguards have the facilities serving these buildings
been employed at points of importance should be damaged or destroyed.

where operating centers might be iso- One of the most interesting items
lated through the temporary loss of in the emergency program is the ex-
toll entrance cables. Various plans panding use of portable radio tele-
are in effect for emergency routing of phone sets, to span temporarily line
toll service, while other plans exist for breaks which would take a consider-
the provision of toll service in case of able length of time to repair and
serious damage to a toll building or which might be so widespread as to
an intermediate repeater station. An- leave no alternative routes in service.
other safety precaution bearing on the Several emergency uses in the past
outside plant is the application of con- year or two have proved the worth
tinuous gas pressure to more hun- of these portable radio sets in times
dreds of miles of the toll cable system. of disaster. While each pair —send-
The provision of emergency power ing and receiving — provides only one
in case of possible failure of the nor- circuit, there are times when even
mal supply has received attention. A one circuit is priceless. It is natural,
considerable number of large fixed therefore, that the Bell System com-
engine-alternator sets and smaller panies are adding to their present sup-
portable sets are being added to supply of such equipment.
1 ELEPHONE buildings — local ex- the several units of the Bell System
changes, toll centers, test stations, re- have furnished to the respective pub-
peater stations, radio telephone sta- lic utility commissions in the states in
tions, factories and warehouses each— which they operate a large amount of
presents its own individual problem of information about existing and pro-
protection. Particular attention has jected plant facilities, measures taken
naturally been paid to guarding all for the maintenance and restoration
means of entering buildings housing of service in emergency, and similar
important telephone equipment, as matters relating to national defense.
well as their immediate surroundings.
Every important telephone office has
Men in Service
been given individual consideration A CONSIDERABLE number of Bell Sys-

and has been provided with precau- tem men who are members of the
tionary measures, both inside and out, National Guard, Army and Navy Re-
designed to meet its individual situa- serve, etc., are now on active duty.
tion. Operation of the Selective Service Act
In response to a questionnaire spon- has taken relatively few as yet, but
sored by the National Association of will no doubt call more in successive
Railroad and Utility Commissioners, drafts. The Adjutant General has di-
SUBMARINE TELEPHONE CABLE

I.nid under an eastern river recently, this speechway is an important addition to com-
munication facilities along the Atlantic coast
19^1 The Bell System and National Defense 17
PLOWING CABLES INTO THE GROL ND

Pulled by two powerful tractors, the plow in the middle of this rig can cat a narrow slot in
the ground from 30 to ^8 inches deep, into which telephone cables from the two reels at the
rear are fed as the train moves along. Under favorable conditions, several miles of cable
can be buried in a day
reeled that employees of the Engi- pany and Chairman of the Board of
neering and Plant Departments who the Bell Laboratories, is serving as a
are chosen be assigned to the Signal member of the National Defense Re-
Corps. search Committee, heading the group
For men called into the service un- concerned with transportation and
der the terms of Public Resolution communication, in addition to his re-
No. 96 (summoning the National sponsibilities as President of the Na-
Guard, Reserves, etc.) or the Selec- tional Academy William
of Sciences.
tive Service and Training Act of 1940, H. Harrison, A. T. & T. Vice Presi-
the Bell System provides, in brief, dent and Chief Engineer, who has
that employees will be granted a been on leave of absence for some
year's leave of absence, will receive months as Director of the construc-
credit for System service during that tion division of the production de-
period, will have the protection of the partment of the National Defense
Benefit Plan in the event of death, Advisory Commission, has recently
and will be offered re-employment in been appointed a chief executive of
accordance with the provisions of the the Production Division of the Office
Selective Service Act. In addition, of Production Management, in charge
each of the Companies makes an of ships, construction, and supplies.
adjustment payment to employees, Still others from the A. T. and T.
for periods ranging from one or two Corqpany, Western Electric, the As-
weeks up to three months, of the dif- sociated Bell Companies —
experts in
ference between their Company pay engineering, statistics, personnel work
and government pay. —have been loaned to those branches
Several System officials already oc- of the defense effort where their ex-
cupy important posts in the defense perience and capabilities will have
program. Dr. Frank B. Jewett, Vice particular value.
President of the A. T. and T. Com- At the request of Mr. James Law-
rence Fly, Chairman of the Defense tatives and alternates on five of the
Communications Board created by eleven committees designated by the
Executive Order last September to de- Board to assist in carrying out its
termine, coordinate, and prepare plans functions by providing for continuing

for the national defense. President studies and for contact with other gov-
Walter S. Gifford of the A. T. and T. ernment agencies and with the civil
Company is serving on the Board's communication industry. These com-
Industry Advisory Committee on be- mittees are the Telephone, the Tele-
half of the Bell System companies, graph, the Radio Communication, the
and has been elected its chairman. Domestic Broadcasting, and the Avia-
The System has also named represen- tionCommunications Committees.
Call your telephone central and say: "ARMY FLASH

<(iiyv your phone aunbcr)—
Central will connect you with an Army Information Center.
When you hear: "ARMY, GO AHEAD PLE.-\SE", you say: "FLASH"
and continue message you have checked on form below, in the order indicated:
1
19^1 The Bell System and National Defense 19
CONSTRUCTION SPECIALISTS
Center figure in this group, observing progress at an Army camp, is William H. Harrison,
A. T. ^ T. Vice President and Chief Engineer, who after seven months as head of the
construction division of the NDAC
has been placed in charge of ships, construction, and
supplies in the Production Division of the Office of Production Management in Washington
1 HE nation's defense program is, in ness was completely and thoroughly

size and scope, stupendous beyond de- reviewed, with the objective of being
scription. What part the Bell System, adequately prepared for an increase
with its Associated Companies from in demand for service which might
coast to coast, its headquarters group, arise for any cause or from any source.
its research and manufacturing organ- (It is notable that in that fateful
izations, is playing in this program September 1939 an upward surge
of
has been but sketched in outline here. in toll calls throughout the country
Enough has been said, however, to of from 25 to 40 per cent a huge —
indicate that the Bell System has long increase, in numbers was
absolute —
realized —and soberly faced— its share handled smoothly and efficiently.)
of responsibility for national defense. The steps which have followed, from
The outbreak of war on the conti- review to planning, from planning
nent of Europe in the Fall of 1939 had to action, have kept pace so far with
immediate repercussions throughout the communication needs of the coun-
the System. Every aspect of the busi- try's defense program. No man can
say surely what these next momen- heroic bas-relief which is reproduced
tous months will bring; but the Bell as the frontispiece of this issue.
System hopes to keep abreast of the Sculptured in bronze and marble, it
service requirements which are still bears as its sole legend the words
to come —and is implementing those " Service to the Nation in Peace
hopes with all the skill and the re- AND War." The last dread word re-
sources of its nation-wide organiza- ferred, of course, to the events of
tionand the sincerity of the 325,000 1917 and 1918. None could dream
men and women of which it is com- that again so soon this country would
posed. be engaged in a program of national
defense. But such a program is here.
In 1928 there was placed in the In it the Bell System has its essential
lobby of the American Telephone and share, and its pledge remains:
Telegraph building in New York the Service to the Nation. , . .
:
PIONEERING IN RADIO TELEPHONY
The Part Played by Individuals Co-operatively in the Events Which

Ushered In a New Era of Communication Is Revealed in the Records
Compiled in the Historical Library
The following article on the historic of a speaker's voice. In order to make

radio telephone experiments of 1915 is possible these globe-girdling facili-
based in the main on the personal recol- ties for the transmission of speech,
lections of some fifteen of the men who "things" almost innumerable have had
took part in them. Their memoirs were to be created vacuum tubes in a wide
:
collected several years ago at the sug-

variety of forms; and
tuning coils
gestion of Dr. Frank B. Jewett, now
condensers; networks of
intricate
Chairman of the Board of the Bell Tele-
wires for antennas; even more intri-
phone Laboratories, Inc., who himself
cate systems of wires that form the
played a leading role in the events of
circuits of transmitting and receiving
more than a quarter of a century ago.
apparatus.
These intensely interesting documents are
on file in the American Telephone His-
But none of these "things" created
torical Library, New York. itself. Behind each of them down —
—The Editors
to the least essential element of this
far-flung system of facilities —has
been human imagination, human ef-
N one of his poems, Rudyard fort. Behind each small detail of this
Kipling uses these arresting vast Thing that is called Radio Te-
I Hnes lephony there lies the statement of
Things never yet created things — fact with which so many nursery
stories begin, and which Kipling para-
Once on a time there was a man.
phrases: "Once on a time there was a
Rarely have these words found man."
more striking illustration than in the Or, more properly speaking, behind
development of the radio telephone as each of these details that have been
the world knows it today: a means of built into the creation of modern
communication by the spoken word radio telephone communication there
that is world-wide in its reach; facili- has stood not one man, but many.
ties for radio broadcasting which bring For it is impossible to put one's finger
millions of listeners within the sound on a single contribution to the achieve-
&q
Cil
19i i Pioneering in Radio Telephony 23
ment of this modern miracle, and to high power current had to be supplied
say of it, "This thing was done by to antenna of the transmitting
the
such an one, alone and unaided." station, and this current had to be
Modern research is not carried on in —
modulated that is, varied in pitch
that way. It accomplishes its results, and intensity, so as to reproduce the
if another quotation may be permitted, variations of the human voice. Up to
thistime radio telephone transmission
By the everlastin' teamwork of every
over really long distances had been
bloomin' soul.
impracticable because, although there
Even a quarter of a century ago, were known ways of establishing high
Bell System research and experimenta- frequency currents in the antenna, the
tion were carried out on this coopera- variations in those currents corre-
tive basis. So far as the achievements sponding to voice sounds were too
of 1915, in which the human voice was small, and it was these variations
made to span the ocean, were con- which carried the spoken word.
cerned, they could have been brought
about in no other way than by the co- 1 HE system developed by the engi-
ordinated effort of many men, workmen under Carty's
neers and research
ing on many phases of an over-all direction was so completely a depar-
problem. ture from those previously tried that
in reality it constituted a new art.
A New Problem and a Neiv Art Essentially it consisted in generating
1 HIS problem was new. Some ex- a very small current of the radio type
perimentation in radio telephony, over —a current so small that it could be
relatively short distances, had

been completely modulated by a current
carried on by DeForest, Fessenden, from a telephone transmitter. The
and others, but it was not short-haul current thus modulated was then am-
radio telephony that was now contem- plified until it was strong enough,
plated. Bell System scientists and when flowing in an antenna, to pro-
engineers, under the leadership and duce the desired effects at a distance.
direction of John J. Carty, then Chief In order to provide this amplifica-
Engineer of the American Telephone tion, one group of Bell System men
and Telegraph Company, had suc- undertook a series of studies in the
ceeded, in 1914, in transmitting speech electronic nature of the three-electrode
across the continent. Even before vacuum tube. This was the invention
thiswas achieved, Carty had begun to ofLee DeForest, and rights to its use
dream of making the human voice had been acquired by the American
span the seas. And transmission over Telephone and Telegraph Company
such distances involved new factors several years before. Much research
that made whatever had been learned and experimental work had already
by previous experiments practically been done in developing the device
useless for the project then contem- (originally used by its inventor as a
plated. detector of radio signals and called by
For satisfactory radio telephone him the Audion) into a dependable
transmission over great distances, a high-vacuum tube which could be
24 Bell Telk phone Magazine FEBRUARY
used as an amplifier or repeater of tory groups reporting to R. V. L.

the Transcontinental Telephone Line. Hartley: one headed by R. H. Heis-
This important achievement was in ing, working on the development and
the main due to the efforts of the late design of transmitter apparatus; the
H. D. Arnold. other, under R. H. Wilson, perform-
These studies were continued under ing a similar function as to receiving
Arnold's direction after the develop- apparatus development. In addition
ment of the telephone repeater, and to supervising thework of both of
on their basis, new types of tubes were these groups, Hartley was individu-
produced, a hundred or more times ally responsible for much of what was
as powerful as any that had been done on the receiving equipment.
previously designed or even imagined. Continuing the basic studies of the
Methods were worked out for the use electronics of the vacuum tube, in-
of the vacuum tube as a modulator. itially instituted, as has been seen, for
To receive these radio telephone sig- the purpose of repeater development,
nals, new and improved receiving cir- was H. J. Van der Bijl. The produc-
cuits, also utilizing vacuum tubes and tion of high power tubes of the proper
the principles and methods of ampli- quality and in sufficient quantities for
fication which had been developed in the purposes of the experiments was
part for transcontinental wire teleph- assigned to O. E. Buckley. Concen-
ony, were devised. trating on various phases of this pre-
liminary work were B. W. Kendall,
How the Job was Assigned
W. Wilson, C. R. Englund and others.
In general charge of the entire When the actual work of radio trans-
radio experimental program, and re- mission and reception began, many of
porting directly to Carty, was Frank these men did duty in the field, at first
B. Jewett, then Assistant Chief En- at Montauk, Wilmington and St.
gineer of the Western Electric Com- Simon's Island and later at Arlington,
pany, which at that time maintained Panama, San Francisco, San Diego, or
what is now the Bell Telephone Lab- Honolulu, as did others, including
oratories. He was
assisted by E, H. John Mills, B. B. Webb, H. W. Ever-
Colpitts,Research Director of the itt, Lloyd Espenschied, H. E. Shreeve
same company. In no small measure and A. M. Curtis.

as a recognition of the outstanding
work he had already done on the Nearly All Still in Service
vacuum tube, Arnold was made senior Indicative of the rapidity with
member of the research group. which radio telephony has been de-
Besides initiating many of the steps —
veloped and of the youth of the men
required in carrying on the program who were responsible for this devel-
of research and experimentation in opment in its early stages is the fact —
this new field, these three key men that, with the exceptions of Carty and
were responsible for coordinating the Arnold, the men who played promi-
groups to which specific
efforts of the nent parts in the experiments of 1915
problems or developments were as- are still living. A few, like Colpitts
signed. These included two labora- and Shreeve, have retired from active
19^d Pioneering in Radio Telephony 25
uKuLP AT MUiMALK PULNT, L. I., UN APHIL 4, 1915

Left to right: Messrs. Christopher, Arnold, Blackwell, Mills, Jewett, Carson, Robert A.
Millikan, Espenschied, Carty, Col. Samuel Reber, Thurber, Scribner, and Gherardi
service. Van der Bijl was for some and his reminiscences assure us that
years Director of Research and Chair- he saw his first three-element vacuum
man of the Power Authority of the tube on July 27, 1914. Van der Bijl
Union of South Africa, where he is had a similar experience, though about
now Director General of War Sup- a year earlier.
plies. The remaining members of the
group are still actively engaged in the 1 HOUGH they lacked practical ex-
research and experimental work of the perience with the vacuum tube, these
Bell System. young System scientists had
Bell
—
The youth of these men and their something far more valuable. Many
lack of practical experience with the of them had Ph.D. degrees; all of
radio art —
is one of the features that them were trained physicists, mathe-
first and most forcibly impresses one maticians, or engineers. They knew
who reads their accounts of their ex- the formulae for approaching the job
periences. Thus Buckley had become of finding out what they had to learn.
an employee of the Bell System in They could compute, observe, reach
July, 1914, and had been in the lab- conclusions, and apply these conclu-
oratories less than a year when he was sions to the problem at hand.
precipitated headlong into production The spirit with which they went
and tests of the power tubes which about their work recalls that of the
were to be used in attempting to trans- nameless hero who is quoted as hav-
mit the voice through space across the ing said: "I will find a way —
or make
Atlantic and wide stretches of the Pa- one!" Each phase of the over-all
cific. R. A. Heising arrived at the problem was assigned to one man, or
laboratories at about the same time, a small group of men, and they went
to work with a will. Arnold found — ences, a quarter of a century after

or —
made a way to transform De- those days of humdrum tasks which
Forest's device into a really efficient later proved to be historic.
high-vacuum tube. Others patiently As has been intimated, it would be
studied its characteristics, learned impossible, even if it were desirable,
how to stabilize its performance; to evaluate the part which any par-
found — or made —ways of putting it ticular man played in the work that
to different uses. was then being done in laying the
For they had another quality, in foundation for the radio telephony of
addition to their fundamental training today. It may be impossible, in the
as scientists. If they had the inex- present article, even to mention the
perience of youth, they had also com- names of all of those who took part
pensating characteristics that went in this work. It will certainly be im-
with or arose out of their youthful- possible to give any detailed and con-
ness. Out of the pages of their remi- nected account of what happened in
niscences —
which, by the way, are the field of radio telephony during
written with a curious degree of mod- that memorable year, a little over a
esty, each writer protesting that the quarter of a century ago. It is not
part which he played in the success of the purpose of this article to do so.
the project was, after all, only a minor Its aim is, rather, to catch glimpses
—
one there leaps at the reader an in- of some of these men at their work,
escapable feeling of the enthusiasm, in order that thus the reader may
the optimism, and the boundless en- understand the spirit that lay behind
ergy with which these young engineers the over-all job that then was done.
went about their job. There were, as
The Challenge of the Oceans
we shall see, phases of that job that
called for high courage, when sleet- It would appear that, as early as
covered towers had to be climbed. the end of 1913, Carty had tehtatively
suggested experimentation in radio
i HERE wereother phases that called telephony as an activity in which the
for an even higher form of patient Bell System research staff might well
—
endurance "two-o'clock-in-the-morn- engage. The final order to go ahead
ing courage" —when men stationed seems to have been given about the
alone at distant points had to listen, end of 1914. When it was given, it
night after night, for signals or spoken was accompanied by an injunction to
words which, it seemed, the crashes of proceed without delay. From Carty
staticwould never let through to their down to the most recently employed
ears. There were menial jobs to be college graduate on his research staff,
done with hammer and saw, pick and they looked upon what they were
shovel, broom and dustpan, which about to engage in as a great adven-
were done with a laugh and a humor- ture, and one that they approached
ous shrug of the shoulders that still with a zest that made them impatient
is suggested in the light-hearted way of inaction.
in which the writers of these reminis- And so these young physicists and
cences have recounted their experi- engineers were instructed to drop
1 9 't 1 Pioneering in Radio Telephony 27
everything else and prepare for what

was to be the first convincingly suc-
cessful demonstration of the transmis-
sion of speech by radio telephony.
As has been pointed out, the over-all
task was subdivided into parts, and a
part assigned to one man or a group
of men: some to work on the trans-
mitting sets; some to design the best
possible "hook-up" for a sensitive re-
ceiver; some to make surveys for ad-
vantageous locations for transmitting
and receiving stations; some to put
up the temporary buildings to house
these stations, erect towers, string an-
tennas; some to coordinate all these
highly specialized efforts.
1 HE notes of almost all of these men

give evidence of long periods charac-
terized by results that were discour-
aging in the extreme; failures, fol-
lowed by the something else

trial of
that worked a little better; dogged
and patient cutting and trying until, MoNTAUK Point Tower
at last, fairly satisfactory results were This is the i65-foot structure which Espen-
achieved. schied had to ascend on April h, when a
But alertness —the habit of keeping blizzard had laid the antenna on the ground
one's eyes and mind open for any pos-
sible suggestion that might prove help- the Bell System's radio telephone ex-
ful — played its part as well. One of periments.
the men, for example, had been sent Other shrewd observations by young
to Virginia to make a study of points engineers, equally alert to the rele-
that might be selected for a receiving vance of the seemingly insignificant,
station. As his train was pulling into improvements
led to vitally important
Wilmington, Delaware, his eye caught in apparatus or in methods of its op-
a glimpse of two tall masts on a roof eration. Much of this work went on
in the business section. He investi- simultaneously, and had to be co-
gated, found that they were on the ordinated by Carty, Jewett, Colpitts
Dupont Building, and had been used and others who had general super-
by a now defunct wireless telegraph vision of the job. By the last of
station to support its antennas. Upon March, such progress had been made
his recommendation, the location was that Easter Sunday, April 4, was set
selected for the receiving station for for the first demonstration.
Montauk to Wilmington But, some way, Espenschied and

Christopher reached the top, restrung
XXECEiviNG apparatus had been set
the antenna, and got back to solid
up at the point selected at Wilming-
ground without mishap.
ton. Meanwhile John Mills and
The demonstration went off, a little
others had erected two 165-foot steel
delayed, but with encouraging suc-
towers at Montauk Point, Long Is-
cess. Speech transmitted from Mon-
land, had strung their antennas, and
tauk was picked up at Wilmington
had installed transmitting apparatus
and was carried back over a long dis-
in a small wooden structure built for
tance telephone circuit to those who
the purpose. A group of executives
were listening at its point of origin.
of the American Telephone and Tele-
It was also received at a monitoring
graph Company, with prominent
radio station which had been set up
guests, including the physicist Robert
at the laboratories, 463 West Street,
A. Millikan and Col. Samuel Reber,
of the U. S. Army Signal Corps, made New York City. The distance of
the Montauk-Wilmington transmission
way to the wind-swept point of
their
Long Island to witness the tests.
was approximately 200 miles —not
great, as radio channels are measured
in these days, but an epochal achieve-
But Mother Nature was in no mood
ment twenty-five years ago.
to yield without a struggle to the con-
quest of a realm over which she had Reaching for New Goals
for ages held undisputed dominion.
IJUT 200 miles was not enough for
On the night before the scheduled peoplewho were dreaming of sending
demonstration, a blizzard, accom-
speech by radio telephone across the
panied by severe sleet, blew in from
Atlantic. They reached out for new
the ocean. As Sunday morning
goals, and their next objective was
dawned, the tall steel towers were
transmission from Montauk to St.
coated with ice —and the transmitting Simon's Island, off the Georgia coast
antenna lay on the ground, useless. — some 800 miles. Here we catch
John Mills describes with not a lit- glimpses of John Mills, who had been
tle relish his recollection of the scene sent down to select a site and erect a
as Espenschied, a stiff derby hat line of masts to support the receiving
jammed firmly on his head, climbed antenna. He was joined by Sydney
the ice-coated steps of one of the tow- Hogerton, then District Superintend-
ers to replace an end of the antenna, ent of the Long Lines Department,
while H. J. Christopher, a New York with headquarters at Atlanta, and a
Telephone Company lineman, per- crew of construction men who were
formed a similar service on the other to erect the masts.
tower. The job was not without in- Each mast was to be made by lash-
convenience, not to say peril, for 165 ing two poles together. The poles
feet is a long way up when it has to had been ordered, but did not come.
be traveled foot by foot on steel steps Mills, Hogerton, and their plant gang
glazed with ice, and with a high wind awaited their arrival, with growing
blowing in from the stormy Atlantic. impatience. Without asking instruc-
f 94/ Pioneering in Radio Telephony 29
ST. SIMON'S ISLAND RECEIVER

The improvised masts, and the apparatus shack in the distance, are shown in this picture
tions from New York, Mills further some of them to be a German agent,
illustrated the formula: "Find a way but that most people thought he was
— make one!" Buying a number
or in the pay of Japan.
of beams and planks from a local A crew from the Southern Bell
lumberman, these telephone men set Telephone and Telegraph Company
six thirty-foot beams in the marsh, so built a six-pole loop to connect the
that their ends projected about ten testing hut with a nearby toll line.
feetfrom the ground. To the top of On May 21, 1915, speech sent out
each of these, two planks were bolted, from Montauk was picked out of the
one being about twice the length of ether at St. Simon's. Two-way con-
the other. This staggered arrange- versation was made possible by using
ment made possible the progressive a long distance circuit from St. Si-
raising and bolting of new sections of mon's to Montauk and New York.
planks and beams, each slightly
smaller than the last, so that when the IVLeanwhile, demonstrations had
structure was completed, it was ta- been given to United
officers of the
pered. When properly guyed, this States Navy, including Captain (later
improvised line of radio masts, with Rear Admiral) W. H. G. Bullard. It
the antenna which they supported, was the generous cooperation of such
was quite adequate to the purpose for open-minded officials as Bullard and
which it was intended. Incidentally, Colonel Reber, a personal friend of
they prompted no end of speculation Carty, that later made it possible to
on the part of the natives of St. attempt the more pretentious pro-
Simon's as to just what they were for. gram of transmitting speech across
Mills recalls that he was supposed by the Atlantic. But in the early stages
of his contact with these Bell System The demonstrations before the naval
engineers, Bullard was far from being officers led to the Bell System's ob-
enthusiastic. Writes R. A. Heising, taining permission for the use of cer-
in his reminiscences: tain government radio telegraph sta-
Captain Bullard told me late that tions for themore ambitious project
year that he had no faith in our being which was now to be undertaken. It
able to talk across the Atlantic when was realized that enormous expense
the subject was first broached to him. and delay would be involved if the
He felt it was the idea of people who Bell System were to erect towers of
knew nothing of radio. He didn't ex- sufficient height for use in attempt-
pect telephone people, of all people, to
ing to transmit speech across the
be able to do it. It was only the fact
Atlantic,and other towers at the var-
that the engineers who approached him
ious points at which it was planned
had unquestioned reputations in the
to attempt to receive this speech. It
engineering world that prevented him
from throwing them out and dismissing was proposed that the United States
the proposal from his mind. He there- Navy give permission to the Bell Sys-
fore listened politely to what they had tem engineers to connect transmitting
to say, and witnessed the tests without apparatus to the antenna at the great
being convinced. They seemed to be wireless telegraph station at Arling-
so enthusiastic about the project, how- ton, Virginia, and that similar per-
ever, that he finally thought that as it mission be granted to connect receiv-
was their own money they wanted to ing equipment at naval stations at
spend, they should be given whatever
Darien, Canal Zone; Mare Island,
opportunity there was, and he would
near San Francisco; Point Loma, San
look into the matter further.
Diego; and Honolulu, Hawaii. The
Contagious Enthusiasm good offices of the United States Navy
1 HE enthusiasm of this group of were also sought as a means of per-
radio telephone pioneers was, as a suading the French military authori-
matter of fact, the driving power that ties to permit receiving apparatus to
not only convinced outsiders, like be installed in the Eiffel Tower, Paris.
Captain Bullard, and later the French
military authorities in Paris, but in-
Getting Ready for the Tests
spired the less sanguine of their own 1 HANKS in no small measure to the
associates to believe that the tele- and cooperation of Captain
interest
phone organization was embarked Bullard, all of the desired arrange-
upon an adventure which would even- ments were made, and by the end of
tually lead to vitally important results. May, 1915, the necessary apparatus
If there ever was, in the history of sci- was on its way to these widely scat-
entific what may be de-
research, tered points. The mere job of manu-
scribed as self-starting zeal, that was facturing, packing, and shipping this
the thing which kept these young en- equipment was in itself a formidable
gineers at their tasks, despite all too one. This was particularly true of
frequent experiences that would have the vacuum tubes which were to sup-
dampened the spirits of less ardent ply the power for the transmitter at
souls. Arlington. On this point, Dr. Buck-
:
iO^ti Pioneering in Radio Telephony 31
ANTENNA AT HONOLULU
This was Espenschied's listening post at Pearl Harbor
ley's brief account of his experiences Twelve to fourteen tubes, connected

sheds an interesting hght. After de- in parallel, had been used in the trans-
scribing how he and his associates at mission to Wilmington and St. Simon's
times worked on a twenty-four hour Island. was recognized that more
It
basis while producing the tubes (one tubes would be required if speech was
of them, on one occasion, doing a to be sent over the vastly greater dis-
thirty-six hour stretch) Dr. Buckley tances now contemplated. Before
writes Paris and Honolulu were reached,
Not after months of effort, 550 of these
the least exciting incident was
the shipment of the tubes to Washing- tubes had been installed in banks at
ton. A special express car had been the Arlington station, filling practi-
set aside; I had personally seen to the cally every nook and corner of the
packing of the tubes and had ordered little building which the Bell System
a heavy truck for the purpose of trans- men had erected at the base of the
porting them safely. Our shipping de- tower to house their apparatus.
partment down on the job and at
fell
the last moment came through with a Pioneers in More than Name
light horse-drawn cart on which we
r REQUENTLY these tubes would be-
packed our precious tubes and with
come overloaded and explode with a
which I rode, in fear and trembling
bang and a crash of broken glass,
lest they be smashed, to the ferry and
falling into the air-blowers thatwere
escorted them to the special express
car reserved for the shipment and saw installedbelow them to keep the tubes
them safely aboard. This completed from becoming too hot. Now and
my contribution to the Arlington dem- then an engineer would inadvertently
onstration. get his knuckles in the way of the
happen. Most of them reached the

points to which they had been as-
signed early in June, 1915. The ear-
liest of them to report the reception
of speech from Arlington was R. H.
Wilson, who did so from Darien on
August 25.
R. V. L. Hartley was at San Fran-
cisco, W. Wilson at San Diego, Lloyd
Espenschied at Honolulu and H. E.
Shreeve and A. M. Curtis at Paris.
If circumstances had been different
— or, perhaps, if as much had then
been known as is known now about
the effect of atmospheric disturbances
on radio transmission it is quite —
likely that this ambitious project
might not have been undertaken dur-
ing the time of year that was, un-
fortunately, chosen for it. Particu-
larly in the tropics, distant flashes
H. E. Shreeve in 1915
of heat lighting, if not the roll of not-
II was he who heard,in Paris on October 21,
so-distant thunder, were almost daily
the words transmitted from Arlington, Va.
or nightly occurrences. Crashes of
blades of the blower fans, with most static formed an almost impenetrable
unpleasant results. On at least one wall through which no speech could
occasion, one of the men in charge possibly have made its way. At some
at Arlington received more voltage of the receiving points, moreover, re-
than any human form could absorb ception wasbut blotted out by the
all
without serious discomfort, not to say "sparks" of high-powered wireless

danger. They were pioneers in more telegraph stations. The time allotted
than name, these young men who at all receiving points, with the single
blazed the trail for modern radio te- exception of Honolulu, was limited to
lephony. They did things
— —
of neces- periods when the authorities in charge
sity "the hard way." of the stations were not using facili-
Nor was the task of those who had own communication pur-
ties for their
been sent out to listen for the speech poses. This was particularly true as
which their associates were to trans- to the use of the Eiffel Tower, for
mit from Arlington a job for what France was engaged in a death strug-
Thomas Paine described as "sunshine gle with Germany, and every moment
patriots." At their distant listening of antenna time was precious.
posts they waited, like sentries as-
Sentries of Science
signed to patrol a given post, for
something to happen that, it must 1 HE problem that faced these men
have seemed to them, never would at their "listening posts," therefore,
19^1 Pioneering in Radio Telephony 33
resolved itself into one of sitting for

minute after minute, night after night,
with receivers at their ears and fer- —
vently praying that, by the grace of
Providence, a period of particularly
strong transmission from Arlington
might coincide with a period favorable
for reception at the point where they
were stationed, with both static and
spark interference miraculously
hushed at just the right moment.
Weary business, for although acoustic
shock was prevented by a volume lim-
iter built into the receiving apparatus,
listening to sudden crashes of static
in headset was not a pleasant
the
sensation, to put it mildly! These
sentries of science might have recalled
the words of Milton: "They also serve
who only stand and wait."
B. B. Webb
But atmospheric conditions were
li was his voice that Shreeve heard in Paris.
getting better; and improvements in
Note the high-quality microphone, 1915 ver-
the transmitting apparatus, increased sion, used in transmission from Arlington
power, modifications in the receiving
equipment, and skilled and patient at- building he strung his antenna, in-
tention to details at the Arlington stalled his apparatus in part of a small
transmitter and at all listening points shack used by naval engineers as an
gradually resulted in success. office, and went to work at his job of
Espenschied, Honolulu, had
at listening. had an op-
Incidentally, he
given another demonstration of mak- portunity demonstrate anew his
to
ing a way when one could not be ability at climbing, of which he had
found. He had received permission made use at Montauk, for he himself
to connect his receiving apparatus to had to mount the power house chim-
the radio telegraph station in down- ney in order to get his aerial in place.
town Honolulu, On all sides of the
naval base ran electric light and power
A Job Requiring Diplomacy
wires, and he surmised and on ex-— i HE job assigned to these listeners
—
periment proved that these would at their distant outposts was one re-
seriously interfere with reception. quiring qualities that would have
But he found, at the Pearl Harbor fitted them for the diplomatic corps.
Naval Reservation, then under con- For obvious reasons, the whole proj-
struction some distance from the city ect was undertaken with considerable
proper, conditions that were more secrecy. It was distinctly not in-
favorable. So between a water tank, tended that publicity should be given
a power house chimney, and a steel to the enterprise until it had reached
:
a satisfactory conclusion. On this badly. The French military authori-

point it may perhaps be of interest to ties, through General Ferrie, had
record that the good people of Hono- graciously and generously granted the
lulu gave evidence of considerable in- use of their largest antenna for brief
quisitiveness as to just what it was periods, when Shreeve had applied to
that the young visitor from the States them, through the United States Em-
was doing in their tropical midst. bassy, early in June. It was now
And it may be of further interest to October, and the struggle on the battle
add that the first information they got front was taking on more and more
on this point was an account pub- of the characteristics of a mortal com-
lished in a Honolulu paper of October bat. The listening period had to be
1, based on cables received from the still further shortened, lest messages
United States, to the effect that words of vital military importance, includ-
spoken in Arlington had been heard ing German
transmissions, which
in Hawaii. A later account gave suf- were sometimes picked up at the
ficient details to apprise the Hawaiians Eiffel Tower, be missed altogether.
of the fact that it was their Mystery As days lengthened into weeks and
Man who heard these ocean-spanning little or nothing came through from
words, and that this had been what Arlington, it was apparent that the
he had come to Honolulu for, some time was fast approaching when,
months earlier. courteous though the French were, the
two Americans would find that they
JMeanwhile, satisfactory reception had worn out their welcome.
had been achieved at San Francisco
and San Diego, and a demonstration Encouragement from Col. Ferrie
of transcontinental radio telephony
had been given on September 29. OOME of the French officers who had
been assigned to cooperate with
During this demonstration, Theodore
Shreeve and Curtis had already made
N. Vail, then President of the Ameri-
it apparent that their patience was
can Telephone and Telegraph Com-
pany, and a group of other telephone
becoming exhausted. Shreeve writes
officials in New York, had talked to I decided that we had better have
Mr. Carty in San Francisco by radio a heart to heart talk with Ferrie and
telephone and had received his replies find out just where we stood. ... I
over the newly-opened transcontinen- explained that things were not going
tal telephone was, as a mat-

line. It
very satisfactorily with our experiment
ter of fact, a part of a coast-to-coast

and that there was some evidence that
we were making nuisances of ourselves.
conversation that Espenchied had
I told him that if this were the case I
picked up in Hawaii.
wanted to be advised of it officially,
As far as these widely separated
and that we would then withdraw.
outposts in the Canal Zone, on the General Ferrie listened to me very pa-
Pacific Coast, Hawaii were
and in tiently and said, "What you say is
concerned, the enterprise had been an quite correct in some respects. Your
undoubted success. But with Shreeve experiment has taken longer than we
and Curtis in Paris, things were going expected. We are a very busy people,
f 94f Pioneering in Radio Telephony 35
'"-''^
COMPAGNIE FRANCAISE DES CABLES TELEGRAPHIQUES
ruLITZER SUILO'MG
.
GOOURIIEIIEIIT IIIITAIRE DF FAKIS Parh. le
COIIANDEIENT DU GENIE
U Lirulenanl-Cotonrl FF.Rnif:.
DIRECTION Direcleiir Techniqur de la fiiidiolfli-iimiihir Vililaire.

du MaUnol du GAnie
PSOCES-VERBJUi eomaalre dee experiences de t^l^pnonle
B»na fll faites entre AKLINOTON et la TO'JK tlFFiiX.-
La station, aoi^rloftlne d'ARLINO TON» ayant et6 mur.le de e.^nnrateure

d'onde) ep^claux* 6tablla par/£r' ..s:. lEfUI ^SBsaac-r^tf^ et dispoB's de ra-
nlere a peruottre de falre dee emle-fclons de Tîcphonle cans Fll, la dlte
ooDpaijnle dument accreditee auprfet: du Departement de la "ruerre par I'Aa-
baaeade des 3IA1B-UNIS k PARir,< a c hari?e un de ses In(?^nleure/i:.bflit^v,vr

d'eob-ayer d'entendre ces emlaaion:; tolephoniques au poste radiot<^le(?ra—
pnique de la Tour Slffel, en utlliaant des r<icepteur8 r«;alement or'es

par elle.
Tou8 les essais faits ont ete suivis a la lour 2lriel en toue d^tailt
par le 8oufl8ign6 ou par dee Officiere de son Service ; Capltalney BRENOZ
et PINCaiN, Lieutenant de \/AL3REUZS) :
Une premiere eerie d'experlencee faites en Juln I^lo n'a pae doniif^
de r^sultats^probablement en ralson dee pertaâtions electrlques naturel-

les trfes Intensee en oet e salson.
Une deuxleme eerie ,en Octobre 1915^ a et^ plus heureuBc

. II a ete
possible de percevoir tree distlncl^ment a plusieure
reprices des paro-
les tellee que ••
One two three etc; good bye etc." iûivant I'intenelte
des pertvJBatlonB 6leotrlques natu-xelies ou I'itat de I'atmosphire,

les paroles etalont entendues plu--e ou molns distlnctemont et aveo
plus ou moins d'lnt.enelte.
Ces resultatB, blen qu'lopa rfalts.aont xx* extrenxaien*- Int^rea-

aanto et 11 eat pernle d'eaperer qu'lle pourront etre blen aciloriâ
Paria, le k;i; Ootoore 1616
Le Lieutenant-Colonel du O^nle FEa<fi.IE,Direoteur

technique da la Radiot^lnf^raphle Mllltalre.
OFFrr.I\L CONFIRMATION
Slalement by Lieulenaiil-Colonel FerriS regarding the successful reception in Paris
of speech transmitted from the United States
19^1 Pioneering in Radio Telephony 37
ent effect. Finally Shreeve played his All that remained now was to ob-
trump card. He writes: tain from General Ferrie a statement
remembered the letter of in-
I then certifying that he, too, had heard
troduction which had been given me speech transmitted from Arlington to
by Mr. Thayer and I asked him if he Paris. This Shreeve did, and, after
could read English. He said that he obtaining the authority of the proper
could and I handed him the letter. He French officials, hurried off to get it
grabbed it upside down, looked at it on the cables to the United States,
for a minute and then returned it to
so that it might be included in a state-
me saying it was all right.
ment to the press which it was pro-
Shreeve and Curtis had had a simi- posed to release immediately. The
lar experience with a country con- New York papers of the next day
stable while on leave in England dur- headlined the dramatic story of how
ing a period when experiments at the human speech had leaped the Atlantic.
Eiffel Tower were suspended. A great pioneering adventure had
So matters went on, with the mo-
notony of their long wait lightened for
—
been carried to success a success
that had been made possible only by
the two American engineers only by
the patience, the painstaking attention
an occasional incident such as that
to a multitude of details, the endur-
above described. They had resumed
ance, the resourcefulness and the un-
listening in September, but heard noth-
wavering enthusiasm of a group of
ing from Arlington until early Oc-
men who for months had given all
tober, when on several occasions they
they had to a Thing in which they
thought they heard the sounds of a
profoundly believed.
voice counting "One, two, three, four,
All of which is important for only
five," etc.
one reason, for history has significance
When History Was Made only in so far as it may be related to
On October 21, —now recog-
1915 the present. That reason may be
briefly stated: Behind and beneath
nized as one of the historic dates in
communication history— successful re- the qualities which made it possible
ception, capable of full verification, for these pioneers in radio telephony
was achieved. On that date the listen- to accomplish what they did lay a
ers in Parisheard B. B. Webb, at the spiritual something that still inspires
transmitter in Arlington, speak the those of them who are yet in the tele-
words, "Good-bye, Shreeve." These phone service, as they go about their
were several times repeated. daily duties; that inspires others who
Shreeve at once cabled to Frank B. share with them the responsibilities
Jewett, reporting this reception, and of the laboratory or the field —the
asking if the message could be con- hundreds of Bell System scientists and
firmed. Jewett could confirm it, and engineers who spend their working
did. The long vigil at Paris was lives in a quest of means by which the
ended. The voice of man had been value of America's telephone service
carried by radio telephony across the to its users may be constantly in-
Atlantic 1 creased.
MAKING TELEPHONE DIRECTORIES BETTER
Type, Paper, Covers, Informative Material Are All Under Constant
Review and Frequent Improvement to Make This Important
Element of Telephone Service More Satisfactory to Its Users
By OTIS M. HANCOCK
Bell System
THE about 2,200
publishes
different tele-
are very important, because the value
of the customer's telephone service is
phone directories. They affected adversely if his listings are in

range in size from two-page cards error or if he fails to receive his new
with a few listings to the Chicago directory promptly.
alphabetical directory of 1,500 pages, Of equal importance, however, and
each of which contains about 450 possibly of more concern to all tele-
listings. About thirty million direc- phone users, is what may be called the
tories are printed each year, and on physical characteristics of directories.
many hundreds of thousands of tele- While such things as type face, cover
phone calls each day the directory is and text paper, introductory page and
miscellaneous information, cover de-
the first point of contact between the
sign, etc., do not have any bearing
customer and the telephone company.
upon the technical accuracy of the
Since the planning and production of
customer's directory or of his tele-
these directories are an important
phone do affect the fa-
service, they
part of the System's constant effort
cility withwhich he may use his
to make telephone service more and
directory, and thus influence his sat-
more pleasing and satisfactory to the
isfaction with telephone service. It
user, they are the subject of continu-
is therefore the purpose of this article
ous study by the directory organiza-
to review some of the things which
tions of the Associated Companies
have been done or are being done to
which publish them, as well as by the
improve directories from the stand-
staff engineers of the American Tele-
point of their appearance, physical
phone and Telegraph Company. characteristics, and general service
In considering the quality and ade- value.
quacy of directory service, it is nat-
ural to think first of the results as One of the most important prob-
measured by technical standards: list- lems which those charged with the
ing errors, delivery failures, produc- responsibility for telephone directories
tion time, etc. These technical results have had to face is the selection of
f 94 f Making Telephone Directories Better 39
type for the listing pages. In the type served its purpose well, and was
early days of the telephone business, used for many
years in the larger di-
when customers were few and direc- rectories. Later a similar type face
tories small, any type face
almost was developed in slightly larger size
which the printer happened to have for use in the smaller directories.
available served the purpose. But, as During subsequent years, the possibil-
the telephone business grew, and the ity of further improving these special
directories became larger and larger, directory type faces was kept con-
there developed a need for type faces stantly in mind. All current develop-
which would be easy to read and yet ments in typography and printing
provide the maximum number of list- were carefully watched, and new de-
ings on each page, in order to keep signs of type analyzed for their ap-
the directories down to a conveniently propriateness for directory use. Some
usable size. modifications in letters and numerals
About 1915 the Bell System en- were made from time to time as a
gaged type experts who, working with result of these studies.
type manufacturers, studied and tested In 1937 the New York Telephone
many different type faces. From Company was faced with the necessity
these tests there was developed a spe- of resetting all the listings in its New
cial type face for directories. This York City directories. Before doing
La Rue W H r 903 State MA in-1874 La Rue W H r 903 State MA in-1874

Larue W K groc 1916 Walnut CO ngress-7942 Larue W K groc 1916 Walnut CO ngress-7942
Laundry Airdry 612 Clark NO rth-10126 Laundry Airdry 612 Clark NO rth-10126
Le Blanc Inc 1361 Grant av BE lnint-8839 Le Blanc Inc 1361 Grant av BE lmnt-8839
Leblanc J phys 1422 Park av MY stic-5940 Leblanc J phys 1422 Park av 'MY $tic-5940
Lee Hong 3905 State ®Milton-1012-W Lee Hong 3905 State ®IVlilton-1012-W
Lee Wa Co 4289 Clark LI ncoln-2951 Lee Wa Co 4289 Clark LI ncoln-2951
Leroy F H r 121 North BElmnt-3071 Leroy F H r 121 North BE lmnt-3071
Le Roy G H meats 435 Arnold WE st-0506 Le Roy G H meats 435 Arnold WE st-0506
Lincoln A & Bros 8323 Grant av BE lmnt-5290 Lincoln A & Bros 8323 Grant av BE lmnt-5290
Lincoln A & Co 3289 North CO ngress-3932 Lincoln A & Co 3289 North.* CO ngress-3932
Lincoln A Inc 144 Walnut WE st-1043 Lincoln A Inc 144 Walnut WE st-1043
Lincoln A & Son 427 Beacon LI ncoln-1565 Lincoln A & Son 427 Beacon LI ncoln-1565
Lincoln A & Sons 30 Clark NO rth-3315 Lincoln A & Sons 30 Clark NO rth-3315
Lincoln A & Sons Co 581 Arnold ®Milton-2000 Lincoln A & Sons Co 581 Arnold ®IVlilton-2000
Lincoln A Jos r 1918 Beacon MA in-0266 Lincoln A Jos r 1918 Beacon MA in-0266
Lincoln Bradley B r 7414 Park av AD ams-1688 Lincoln Bradley B r 7414 Park av AD ams-1688
Lock Port Fisheries 501 Beacon BElmnt-3932 Lock Port Fisheries 501 Beacon BE lmnt-3932
Lockport Engine Co 7S1 Walnut MY stic-2401 Lockport Engine Co 781 Walnut MY stic-2401
Long Low Tai r 136 Arnold MA in-63l8 Long Low Tai r 136 Arnold MA ln-6318
Looman Geo r 1593 McAllister WE st-2336 Looman Geo r 1593 McAllister WE st-2336
Louisville VarnishCo 628-3rd KA rny-2200 Louisville Varnish Co 628-3rd KA rny-2200
Love G A Sons contrs 378 Diamond MI ssion-3562 Love G A Sons contrs 378 Diamond MI ssion-3562
Lowrey Alan J ofc 331 Montgomery SU ttr-0130 Lowrey Alan J ofc 331 Montgomery SU ttr-0130
Lov^ry H Ids furnshngs 2447-44th MI ssion-4069 Lowry H Ids furnshngs 2447-44th MI ssion-4069
Lucas M soft drinks 2301 Market PA rk-7914 Lucas M soft drinks 2301 Market PA rk-7914
Lunsmann A W groc 447 Irving SU nsct-2461 Lunsmann A W groc 447 Irving SU nset-2461
Lurch Clara Mrs r 74 Portola MA rket-3484 Lurch Clara Mrs r 74 Portola MA rket-3484
Lutz & Fritsch violins 45 Gearv DO u£;las-2127 Lutz & Fritsch violins 45 Geary DO uglas-2127
Lux Hand Lndry 316 Eddy FR ankln-0165 Lux Hand Lndry 316 Eddy FR ankln-0165
Mabury Oliver nurse 721 Park av LI ncoln-5290 Mabury Oliver nurse 721 Park av LI ncoln-5290
MacDonald A J r 847 Grant av WE st-5290 MacDonald A J r 847 Grant av WE st-5290
Macdonald B J groc 51 State BElmnt-4634 Macdonald B J groc 51 State BE lmnt-4634
Mace L V r 1360 Arnold CO ngress-1547 Mace L V r 1360 Arnold CO ngress-1547
Macomber A A r 15 Grant Av AD ams-4211 Macomber A A r 15 Grant av AD ams-4211
Mansfield Walter attv 1210 ParkAv BE imnt-5934 Mansfield Walter atty 1210 Park av BE Imnt-5934
Mark-Off Shoe Co J 24 North MY stic-9728 Mark-Off Shoe Co 124 North MY stic-9728
OLD AND NEW DIRECTORY LISTING TYPE FACES

The column at the right is set in the specially developed "Bell Gothic''
Directory Paper
E E E E LiiKE the type, the current

white paper used in telephone direc-
blue-
M M M M
tories is the result of numerous im-
provements made during the past sev-
eral years.
While telephone directories printed
on a good grade of book paper might
be impressive, it became evident many
years ago that this would be imprac-
g g g tical, since the thickness of book pa-
per would increase the size of direc-

Design Details Enlarged tories to the point where they would
Examples of the simpler, more open, and be too big to be usable or would have
therefore more legible ''Bell Gothic'" type {at to be split into a number of volumes,
the right in each pair). The pair at the left which would be inconvenient from the
represents an enlargement of the former and
customers' viewpoint. As a conse-
present type face used for names; at the
quence, directory people turned to the
right, for addresses
type of paper ordinarily used in news-
SO, undertook to see what could be

it
papers as a starting point in the de-
done improve further the directory
to
velopment of a satisfactory paper for
directory use.
type then in use. Working with the
Mergenthaler Linotype Company, the A recent article in the Quarterly *
directory engineers altered a number described how Bell System engineers,
of the characters by opening up the

working with the paper manufactur-
ers, developed methods for the bleach-
inside of the type to permit more white
ing of pulp, the filtering of water, the
space to show through, and eliminated
all serifs from the type used for selection of fillers and the establish-
the address portion of the listing. ment of specification controls which
Thereby they derived a new type face have resulted in a directory paper
which was more clean cut and ap- which meets exacting requirements as
peared larger than the type formerly to color, cleanliness, thinness, opacity,
—
used although it actually required no and sturdiness, and yet is not unduly
costly. During the past few years,
more space. As a result, individual
Hstings were more legible and the di- changes paper
in the ingredients of the
rectory as a whole was improved in or in the manufacturing processes

appearance. This new type, known as have been made four different times,
Bell Gothic, has been made available each resulting in a distinctly better
in three sizes. It has already been
stock. At the present time research
adopted in about 700 directories, in- is being directed toward increasing the
cluding practically all of the large city opacity of the yellow paper used for
books, and has met with immediate the classified sections, in order to im-
favorable reaction from the public and * "Directory Paper Purchasing," Quarterly,
the press. April, 1939.
19î Making Telephone Directories Better 41
prove the general appearance of these material on the following introductory

pages and to increase the attractive- pages. A typical current introduc-
ness of the "yellow pages" to business tory-page section includes informa-
customers as a desirable advertising tion on how to transact business with
medium. the telephone company, brief instruc-
Similarly, directory cover paper is tions on how to dial, and a description
studied to take advantage of any pos- of the types of out-of-town calls and
sible improvements in the quality of how to make them. Then follows a
the stock, its appearance and printa- page or two devoted to the various
bility. Recently a study was made of classes of telephone services and in-
the effect of different dyes and differ- struments available for the home and
ent surface finishes on the general business, and how the customer may
tone of the cover paper. As a result, make us of them to get the most out
two new colors, buff and gray, were of his telephone service. All of this
selected which, with the green for- material is carefully edited to elim-
merly used, have been accepted by the inate technical language so far as pos-
Associated Companies as standard for sible, and the text is liberally illus-
future use. These new colors, when trated. Great care is taken in the
printed with an attractive cover de- selection of type and the design of
sign, greatly improve the appearance the pages to insure easy reading and
of the directories. attractive appearance. Some of the
Associated Companies print these
Introductory Pages
pages on a special color of paper to
r ROM the very beginning of the add to their attractiveness and to en-
telephone business has been the uni-
it courage their use.
versal practice to devote the first few
pages of the directory to general in- Civic Information in Directories
formation regarding the telephone and A. NEv^ feature of telephone direc-
its use. For many years this material tories adopted by many of the Asso-
consisted largely of detailed and often ciated Companies, which has resulted
somewhat technical directions for in many expressions of approval from
making telephone calls, together with the public, is the inclusion of a certain
the rules and regulations applying to amount of non-telephone information
the furnishing and use of the service. of general interest. This feature has
Recognizing that the need for much been developed as a result of evidence
of this type of information no longer that the public looks to the telephone
generally exists, the telephone com- company for certain services which go
panies in recent years have made im- somewhat beyond the rendering of
portant revisions in these pages. satisfactory telephone service, and ap-
Page 1 is used uniformly now to list preciates the value, convenience, and
emergency call numbers such as Fire, accessibility of the telephone direc-
Police, and Ambulance, and for serv- tory as a place to publish appropriate
ice calls, that is, calls to the telephone miscellaneous information.
company. Many of the companies The information carried in the di-
also include on Page 1 an index to the rectories includes such material as
PITTSBURGH CIVIC SECTION

Designed to help both residents and visitors in locating
themany points of interest in and around Pittsburgh.
• POINTS OF GENERAL INTEREST •

ALLEGHENY COUNTY COURTHOUSE — An archiitc- CITY-COUNTY BUILDING— Located in the block next to
tural Ijndnurk in the Romanesque blyle, the masterpiece o! the Courthouse on Grant Street, it is occupied by both city and
one of the foremost American architects of fifty years ago, county offices, as well as Courts of Justice. Growth of the city
Richardson of Boston. Dedicated in 1888, it occupies the entire and county necessitated the construction of this building, but it
block at Grant Street, Diamond Street, Ross Street and Fifth was inadequate to accommodate all demands and a beautiful
Avenue. stone building, known as the County Office Building, was
erected in the rear, on Ross Street. The Courthouse, City-
ALLEGHENY OBSERVATORY—A department of the Uni- County Building and County Office Building form one of the
versity of Pittsburgh, situated in Riverview Park, North Side. most notable groups of municipal buildings in the country.
Some of the most noteworthy work in astronomical photog-
raphy was done here by the late Prof. James E. Keeler. Visit- EAST LIBERTY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH — At the
ors admitted free, but reservations must be made in advance. corner of Penn Avenue, South Highland Avenue and .*aum
Bouleyard. A beautiful Gothic structure, a masterpiece of the
BUHL PLANETARIUM AND INSTITUTE OF POPU- famous architect, Ralph Cram. Built by the late Mr. and Mrs.
LAR SCIENCE— Gift of The Buhl Foundation to the City of Richard B. Mellon, as a memorial to their parents. Open to
visitors on week days at 10 A.M., 1 and 3 P.M.
Pitliburgh, it is dedicated to the popular understanding of
astronomy and tlic natural sciences. It was opened to the pub- FEDERAL BUILDING—The U. S. Government BuUding in
lic on October 25. 1939. and is the fifth of the American Plane-
Pittsburgh, containing the postoffice, federal courts and many
taria and the world's most modern and complete. In the five other federal agencies. The Pittsburgh Postoffice has 26 sub-
spacious gallciiis of the Institute of Popular Science, the mira- stations for delivery of mail and there arc 148 postoffices in
cles of twentieth century are told by hundreds of moving and Allegheny County. The Federal Building occupies 83,200
Ulkinc exhibits which operate at the will of the visitor. The square feet of ground, in the block at Grant Street. Seventh
building is open daily from 10 A.M. until 10 P.M. ar.d on Sun- Avenue and Bigclow Boulevard.
days from 1:15 P.M. until 10 P.M. Sky shows are presented in
the Planetarium every afternoon and evening. The Buhl Plane- FRICK PARK — An extensive and beautifully wooded district
tarium is located at Federal and West Ohio Streets on the in theextreme cast portion of the residential district of the city.
North Side, five minutes from the Golden Triangle. Includes facilities for many types of recreation. This park was
presented to Pittsburgh by Henry C. Fnck.
GENERAL LOGAN ARMORY— Named after the late Gen.

Albert j. Logan and situated on Thackeray Street in the Civic
Center, this i^jhtAa3i^^B^^<it>< JL:
TYPICAL NEW FEATURE IN DIRECTORIES

Part of {he first being introduced between the alphabetical and
page of a section such as is
classified sections in many books. Other topics in the Pittsburgh Civic Section are: historic
shrines, education and the arts, public libraries, office buildings, national and state parks
and recreation areas, and postal information
maps showing city streets, with the for the large books. In many in-
main transportation arteries; postal stances the information in these so-
information; the location of principal called "Civic Sections" has been re-
office buildings; the location of public lated to local civic activities such as,
libraries and branches, together with forexample, the featuring of traffic
their open hours and regulations ap- rules and regulations during local
plying to the borrowing of books; traf- safety campaigns, or of material de-
fic rules and regulations; points of voted to the historical background and
local historical interest, with pertinent the development of the community,
information concerning each; and se- both commercially and culturally, dur-
lected economic data for the commu- ing centennial celebrations, etc.
nity. The amount and scope of such The response of the public to these
information varies, of course, accord- civic sections has been extremely fa-
ing to the size and type of community vorable. Customers not only feel that
served by the directory. It may range the telephone company is taking a real
from two pages to eight or ten pages interest in their home cities, but much
i9Ul Making Telephone Directories Better 43
of the information has been found of point-to-point rates. Despite this,

considerable usefulness, particularly many telephone users are still under
such things as the maps, indexes to the impression that long distance
streets, locations of office buildings, rates are higher than is actually the
etc. In one resort city some of the case. While a certain number of
hotels instructed their bellboys, when typical toll have always been
rates
showing guests to their rooms, to open included in most directories, and toll
the telephone directory to the civic advertising has often asked the cus-
section and suggest that the guests tomer to refer to his local directory,
familiarize themselves with the local there has been no direct reference
points of interest. In another city heretofore because there was no one
several doctors commented that they standard place in all directories where
had found the index to the location of customers could be told to look for
streets particularly helpful when called rates from their own telephones.
to sections of the city with which they With this in mind, the suggestion was
were not familiar. Municipal govern- made in 1939 that the inside front
ments, civic bodies, post office depart- cover of all directories be reserved for
ments, and other public utilities have a table of toll rates. This would make
cooperated wholeheartedly both in de- possible the inclusion in both local and
veloping the information shown and national toll advertising some such
in calHng attention to its availability line as "See inside front cover of your
in directories. directory for rates from your city."
Civic information is generally placed The inside front cover was chosen be-
on the pages of the classified sec-
first cause it is a prominent location, easy
tion of the directory. In this location, to find in all directories, and it avoids
public reference to this section is in- complications which might arise from
creased and thus they tend to become the selection of any other page be-
a more familiar daily convenience. cause of the varying number of pages
This in turn should stimulate a greater
in directories of different sizes.
use of the classified sections for find-
This suggestion was quickly
ing both telephone numbers and buy- adopted, and at the present time over
ing information.
75 per cent of all Bell System book-
type directories show a list of typical
Toll Rates in Directories
toll rates on the inside front covers.
Another recent development is the This year, for the first time, national
use of the inside front covers of di- toll advertising will include reference
rectories for showing toll rate infor- to rate information in that location.
mation. For several years Bell Sys- Directories are thus used to localize
tem national toll advertising, in the Bell System's national advertising
addition to being designed to impress in much the same way that other na-
customers with the ease of telephon- tional advertisers utilize Trade Mark
ing out of town, has emphasized the Service in the classified sections of di-
low cost of the service, and advertise- rectories to increase the effectiveness
ments have sometimes quoted typical of their advertising in other media.
"WHERE TO, PLEASE?"

"I'm your Long Diolanre operator. I'll take you almost
iinywhere you want to go—quickly, easily, inexpen-
>ively. Rateii to many out-of-town points
are lii<le<l below. If there are any olherH you
wi>nl<l like to know, juKt axk me. (Dial 211 )"
^gmi^Jk.
TYPICAL RATES FROM MANHATTAN TO OUT-OF-TOWN POINTS

RATES ARE FOR 3 MINUTES (On Slilion-to-StjIion Calls of 2S CcnH or L<ti, 5 Minut<il ind In «l<lilio>t
en calls coiling «rom $ 50 to $ 99, tcdcral fa< it 10 conli; from SI to $1 99. la> ii IS ccnti; $2 and o>er. 20 ccntt.
NIGHT AND SUNDAY KATtS APPLY FROM 7 P. M TO 4:30 A. M. AND ALL DAY SUNDAY
STATION-TO- PERSON-TO-
STATIOK PERSON
WEEK- "'JIJJ' WEEK- "'^^JJ^

DAYS SUNDAY DAYS junday
Akron, Ohio
19^1 Making Telephone Directories Better 45
cently, it was suggested that there signs newly created for consideration,
would be advantages in a uniform and a design was selected which was
front cover for all Bell System direc- felt to be appropriate for the front
tories. All the then current covers covers of directories throughout the
were reviewed, together with other de- System.
FORT WORTH
TELEPHONE DIRECTORY
JUNE 1940
SOUTHWESTERN BELL TELEPHONE COMPANY
FOR EMERGENCY CALLS AND

GENERAL INDEX SEE PAGE 1
STANDARD DESIGN
Bell Syslem directories are gradually becoming everywhere identifiable as such
The central figure of this new stand- known everywhere as the sign of the
ard cover is the symbolic figure, "The public telephone.
Genius of Electricity," which sur-
mounts the Bell System headquarters It is appropriate that this review of
building in New York City. As modi- constant improvement in the planning
fied for reproduction on directory cov- and production of telephone direc-
ers, the figure is identified as the tories should close with
a reference to
''Spirit of Communication." More the symbolic figure of the "Spirit of
than half of all System directories now Communication;" for it represents,
bear this common design on their when translated into action, the mo-
front covers, and this number is ex- tives and the efforts of telephone peo-
pected to be largely increased during ple everywhere. To make telephone
the present year. Bell System tele- directories both more useful and more
phone directories will be readily recog- usable is all part of the obligation as-
nizable as such to telephone users in sumed by the Bell System in its pledge
any part of the country, and the new to provide "the best possible service."
cover will doubtless have a definite The record shows what has already
recognition value in much the same been accomplished and is the sign that
way that the Blue Bell has come to be progress will continue.
HOW OUR POPULATION IS CHANGING
A Slower Rate of National Growth and of the Growth of Cities,

and Other Significant Trends Revealed by the 1940 Federal
Censuses, Are Important to the Telephone Industry
By ROBERT L. TOMBLEN
OME of the most revolutionary tion trends. Not only have past
changes in x^merican social his- trends with respect to the size and
tory occurred during the 1930- geographical distribution of the tele-
1940 decade. Among the outstanding phone market undergone marked
developments of this period were a change, but the composition of this
greatly reduced population growth, market has been vitally affected.
with several states actually losing in- The census data available at present
habitants a sharp drop in the average
;
permit only a quantitative analysis,
size of the household, associated with but such an appraisal of population
a much more rapid rate of increase in numbers and their location should
number of families than in popula- prove helpful to the telephone indus-
tion; a drastic decline in city growth, try in evaluating and anticipating fu-
due largely to a very marked slowing ture demands for its services.
down in the rural-to-urban migration;
the lowest rate of natural increase on
Nationcd Population Growth
record; and, for the first decade in 1 HE total population of the United
history, a net outward migration from States on April 1, 1940, was 131,669,-
the United States. The returns of the 275, according to final returns of the
1940 Federal Census of Population, Sixteenth Decennial Census. This
some of which are still preliminary, figure representsan increase of 8,894,-
confirm and measure the changes 229, or 7.2 per cent, since 1930, as
which students of population have compared with a recorded growth of
known were taking place in this coun- 17,064,426, or 16.1 per cent, between
try. 1920 and 1930. The numerical gain
These developments are accounted between 1930 and 1940 is the smallest
for by a combination of unusual cir- for any decade since the Civil War,
cumstances peculiar to the past decade and the per cent of increase is less
and so pronounced in their effect upon than one-half of the lowest previous
national growth as to cause radical decennial rate in our national history.
alterations in many previous popula- The decline in the rate of popula-
tion growth was foreshadowed by the ance for under-registration should be

annual Government reports on vital made in the official figures, especially
statistics and foreign immigration. in regions where the completeness of
The reports of the Commissioner of registration is still subject to question.
Immigration show an excess of emi- Finally, there always the possibility
is
gration over immigration from 1930 that official immigration figures are
to 1940 of about 200,000 (including too low because of unreported aliens
United States citizens who departed who may have been smuggled into
permanently), as against a net immi- this country or who otherwise entered
gration of approximately 3,000,000 it illegally. The relative validity of
between 1920 and 1930. The reports these explanations cannot be deter-
of the Bureau of Vital Statistics show mined with any degree of accuracy
an excess of births over deaths be- until such additional information as
tween 1930 and 1940 of about 8,100,- the age and nativity composition of
000. (Exactly corresponding figures the population is published.
for the 1920-1930 decade are not
available, because the registration Urban and Rural Population
areas for births and deaths were far
r iNAL figures indicate that the urban
from complete during that period.)
and rural populations grew at nearly
The net gain in population between
equal rates during the past decade,
1930 and 1940 indicated by data from
7.9 per cent for the urban and 6.4 per
these two sources was 7,900,000, or
cent for the rural.This represents a
about 1,000,000 short of the recorded sharp contrast with the 1920-1930
census growth. decade, when the rate of increase in
There are several possible explana- the urban population was more than
tions for this apparent discrepancy, six times the rural rate. Since there
among which the following seem to be was very little difference between the
the most logical. First, an improve- urban and the rural rates of increase
ment in the efficiency of census enu- in the 1930-1940 decade, the propor-
meration, such as characterized the tions of the total 1940 population that
1930 count, may have been in evi- were urban and rural remain approxi-
dence again in 1940, with the result mately the same as they were in
that the reported population gain may 1930: about 56 per cent and 44 per
be somewhat greater than the real cent respectively.
growth. While cities in the aggregate One of the principal explanations
probably were enumerated with a de- of thegrowth in rural population be-
gree of accuracy fairly comparable to tween 1930 and 1940 lies in the rela-
the 1930 standard, many rural areas tively large increase in the number of
seem to have been canvassed rela- persons living on farms during the
tively better in 1940 than they were decade. In this connection it might
in 1930. Second, there may be some be noted that the United States Bu-
justification for the theory that vital reau of Agricultural Economics has
statistics, particularly births, are not estimated the farm population on Jan-
fully reported, and that some allow- uary 1, 1940, to be 32,245,000, the
I
i9Ui How Our Population Is Changing 49
PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN POPULATION BY STATES - 1930 - 1940

BASED ON FINAL RETURNS OF THE l»40 FEDERAL CENSUS OF POPULATION
STATES LOSING
STATES GAINING LESS THAN 5-/.
STATES GAINING 5 TO 10%
STATES GAINING 10 TO ISV.
STATES GAINING 15 TO ZOV.
STATES GAINING 20 TO 25V.
STATES GAINING 25X AND OVER
POPULATION CHANGES BY STATES

Percentage increases in the past decade ranged from 25 per cent and over (black)
to minus figures (white)
largest in 24 years and close to the preceding decade. Reduced employ-

1916 all-time high record of 32,530,- ment opportunities in industry caused
000. The increase of 2,100,000 in many young people to remain on
farm population during the 1930's farms who in normal times would have
followed a decrease of 1,500,000 dur- migrated to the cities. The number
ing the 1920's. Whereas the net mi- of youth reaching the age when mi-
gration from farms to cities during gration is usually at its height in-
the 1920's was approximately 6,300,- creased during the past decade, and
000, the corresponding figure during will continue to increase for several
the 1930's was only 2,200,000 persons. years more, as the effect of the peak
in births of 1921-1925 is reflected in
i HIS difference was not due pri- a correspondingly large number of

marily to any substantial back-to-the- young persons currently reaching ma-
land movement largely offsetting the turity, when they ordinarily start out
cityward migration, but to the fact for themselves.

that the farms retained a much larger In some areas the greater utiliza-
proportion of their natural increase tion of abandoned or semiabandoned
between 1930 and 1940 than in the farms for subsistence farming by peo-
pie who returned to the country after Mississippi was about equal to their
a stay in the city, or who retained their natural increase, with no appreciable
city jobs while supplementing their migration in or out of this general
incomes by incidental farming opera- region. However, there were such
tions, may have been a factor in rural marked differences in the rates of nat-
growth. Furthermore, Government ural increase between the northern
agricultural policies have tended to and southern sections of this region
make commercial farming increasingly that all the southern states grew faster
attractive during the past decade. than the country as a whole, while the
northern states, with the exception of
Groivth by States and by- Michigan, had rates of gain below the
Major lipfr ions national average. Within this eastern
region three areas were conspicuous
1 HE population growth between in their relatively heavy gains from
1930 and 1940 was very unevenly dis- inward migration, namely, the New
tributed among the states and the York and Washington metropolitan
principal subdivisions of the country. areas, and Florida. At the same time
This situation is brought out graph- Pennsylvania, although gaining 270,-
ically on map on the preceding page. 000 population, experienced a net out-
These wide variations in population ward migration of nearly 300,000 resi-
changes during the past decade re- dents, the largest loss from this cause
flect not only differences in rates of for any state.
natural increase but also extensive in-
terstate migrations. 1 HE central belt of agricultural
The states east of the Mississippi states retained only one-half of their
River received a slightly smaller pro- natural increase, losing about one
portion of the national increase be- million persons through net outward
tween 1930 and 1940 than their pro- migration to other states. Most of
portion of the actual population in occurred in five states: North
this loss
1930, while the group of states be- Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska,
tween the Mississippi and the Rocky Kansas, and Oklahoma. Each lost
Mountains, which contained one-fifth population, the aggregate loss amount-
of the total population in 1930, re- ing to over 300,000. Among the pos-
ceived only one-eighth of the decade sible explanations of these losses were
growth and the states from the Rock- successive prolonged droughts, exces-
ies to the Pacific, with less than one- sive soil erosion, and severe dust
tenth of the 1930 population, gained storms, along with increased mechani-
more than 22 per cent of the ten-year zation of agriculture which contrib-
increase. uted to consolidation of farms and to
A further consideration of these reduced labor needs.
broad areas according to the division The western group of states grew
of their population gains between nat- four times as fast as the central area,
ural increase and migration reveals despite the lowest rate of natural in-
some interesting differences. Popula- crease among the three regions, and
tion growth in the states east of the gained about one million new residents
PEB- 1930 -1940
)PULATION
LEGEND
I I
Counties unchanged or losing
^^ Counties âinin^ less than 7.5 %

^^ Counties gaining 7.5 to 15 %
H Counties 6ainln6 15% and over
Am Ttl ITel Co.Slaliilical Division - October 1940

PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN POPULATION BY COUNTIES - 1930- 1940
BASED ON PRELIMINARY RETURNS OF THE 1940 FEDERAL CENSUS OF POPULATION
PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN FAMILIES BY COUNTIES - 1930-1940
BASED ON PRELIMINARY RETURNS OF THE 1940 FEDERAL CENSUS OF HOUSING
JES BY COUNTIES - 1930-1940
FHE 1940 FEDERAL CENSUS OF HOUSING
i9î How Our Population Is Changing 51
from net inward migration. Indeed, ade is reflected in individual cities of

all these states except Montana grew all sizes throughout the country. The
faster than the country as a whole. decline in the rate of growth between
In absolute numbers the increase of 1930 and 1940, as compared with the
population in California was consider- 1920-1930 period, was much more
ably greater than that in any other marked in the larger cities than in the
state,amounting to slightly over 1,- smaller ones, however. The compara-
200,000 as compared with nearly 900,- tive figures for cities grouped accord-
000 in New York, the next highest ing to size in 1930 are shown in the
state in this respect. Among the rea- following table:
sons for the rapid growth of the west-
ern region, the greater activity in
silvermining and the influx of refu- Size of City
(Based on 1930 Population)
gees from drought-stricken areas were
undoubtedly important factors. Of
course, California, like Florida, bene-
fited materially from the inward mi-
gration of the retired classes.
A. MORE detailed picture of popula-

tion changes between 1930 and 1940
is available from the census returns
by counties. The map opposite page
50 shows the relative population gains
by counties during the past decade.
There were 983 counties, or 32 per
cent of the total number, that had
fewer inhabitants in 1940 than 1930,
in contrast with only six states that
lost population. One-third of these
counties were located in the losing
states, while another third of them
were distributed elsewhere in the cen-
tral area. Indeed, a large majority of
the counties between the Mississippi
and the Rockies lost population dur-
ing the past decade. Counties in this
region thatgained population were
largely concentrated in the coastal
area and the lower half of the Mis-
sissippi River valley.
Growth by Cities
1 HE material decrease in the rate

of urban growth during the past dec-
Bell Telephone Magazine FEBRUARY
ter.Jersey City, Toledo, Akron, Syra- growth among the large cities and also
cuse. Worcester, and Youngstown. ranked third in amount of absolute
Almost all of these 31 losing cities gain, rctlecting the great expansion of
are industrial centers located in the government activity during the dec-
northeastern states. Furthermore, 33 ade. In this connection it is note-
of the 98 cities between 50,000 and worthy that capital cities generally
100,000 population in 1930 declined grew faster than their states, and con-
in size during the jiast census decade. siderably more rapidly than other
In some instances, however, the inclu- cities in their size groups. This is
sion of communities suburban to these shown in the accompanying table:

cities would erase the by small
losses
margins. The aggregate urban growth
Size (in 1930)
is commensurate with national growth
only because a few metropolitan areas

gained heavily, usually for special
reasons.
1 HERE are other factors in addition

to the decline in the birth rate and the
cessation of immigration that account
for the marked changes in city growth.
Some of the slow urban growth can be
attributed to the reduction in employ-
ment opportunities caused by curtailed
business activity and by decentraliza-
tion of industry. Another factor can
be found in the movement of popula-
tion toward residential suburban com-
munities which can easily be reached
by train, bus, and automobile, and
which combine lower living costs and
other advantages to make life more at-
tractive there than in the large city.
Thus, all over the country the sub-
urban areas outside the large and even
moderate-sized cities have grown rap-
idly, while the central cities themselves
have experienced little gain or have
even decreased in size.
Of the cities which did experience
growth. New York was first in nu-
merical increase, while the next larg-
estgrowth occurred in Los Angeles.
Washington had the highest rate of
i9H How Our Population Is Changing 53
PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN FAMILIES BV STATES - 1930 - 1940

BASeO ON PREliminARV RCTuRNS of the 1940 ftOERAL. CENSUS OF HOUSING
LEGEND
STATES GAINING LESS THAN 5V.
STATES GAINING 5 TO lOV.
STATES GAINING rO TO 15)4
STATES GAINING I J TO 20 V.
STATES GAINING 20 TO 25*/l
STATES GAINING 25X AND OVER
ALL STATES GAINED FAMILIES

Note that, in contrast with the map on page 49, no state suffered a net decrease in families
in families occurred in every state of this map with the one on page 49
with a remarkable degree of consist- will emphasize the relatively greater
ency. The same situation held true growth in households than in indi-
for more than 97 per cent of all urban viduals and will reveal that many
places of 10,000 or more inhabitants. states with only nominal population
This development may be considered gains, or even decreases, experienced
a favorable factor from the stand- relatively substantial family increases.
point of the telephone industry, in Furthermore, while 983 counties
view of the fact that the residential had fewer persons in 1940 than they
market for telephone usage is usually had in 1930, only 402 counties lost
measured in terms of households families during the same period. The
rather than of individuals. map opposite page 51 shows the loca-
tion of the counties that lost families
AxTHOUGH six states lost population between 1930 and 1940 and also the
between 1930 and 1940, every state distribution of the counties that gained
gained families during this period. according to their relative rates of
The accompanying map indicates, for growth. The table on page 54 shows
each state, the rate of family growth the marked contrast in the percentage
within specified limits. A comparison changes in population and in families
by counties classified according to

their rate of population gain.
Counties Classified
by Their Rate of
Population Gain
19î How Our Population Is Changing 55
national history and by the fact that and urban employment,

trial activity
on record emigration
for the first time with the that there was a
result
from the United States exceeded im- marked slowing-down in city growth,
migration. The number of families, with many cities actually declining in
however, increased relatively faster size. Despite the rapid growth of
than population and so the average some resort centers through the influx
size of household dropped sharply. of tourists and retired classes, there
Sizeable shifts in population caused a has been a deterioration in living
considerable redistribution of people standards for large numbers of the
throughout the country, with marked population. All of these changes
gains occurring in some areas and have a bearing on the market for tele-
large losses in other places. In con- phone service, and consideration of
trast to the 1920-1930 decade, eco- them important to the telephone
is
nomic conditions between 1930 and industry in planning for additional

1940 were far less favorable to indus- facilities.
THE CONQUEST OF A CONTINENT
The Successive Means Which Have Been Devised for Coast-to-
Coast Communication Have Been Fundamental to the Growth of
This Country and to Its Unity as a Nation
By ROBERTSON T. BARRETT
Part III* The first of these was the electric

telegraph. We are not concerned
PART
tained
I of the present article con-
an outline of some of with its invention, in the form that
the social and economic fac- it took in America, by Morse; nor

tors which have led to the develop- with the picturesque history of its
ment of various means of transconti- development in the United States up
nental communication, and touched to the point where
its use was seri-
upon those facilities which antedated ously considered as a means of trans-

the use of steam for land transporta- continental communication. Even
tion from coast to coast. In Part II, when so limited, our subject takes us
the roles played by the railroad and back more than eight decades.
the airplane as factors in communica- If the name of Butterfield is to be
tion between the Atlantic and the Pa- linked with the Overland Mail, and
cific were discussed. Thus we have that of Russell with the Pony Express,
considered those instrumentalities of the name of Hiram Sibley should be
communication which, beginning with forever associated with the building of
the Pacific mail steamers of nearly a the first telegraph line that connected
hundred years ago and ending with the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. As
the air mail planes of today, have de- early as 1857 —hardly more than a
pended on the physical transportation dozen years after Morse's historic
of written messages. In this conclud- transmission of the sentence "What
ing section of the discussion, we turn hath God wrought!" — this far-seeing
to those products of man's inventive ex-sheriff of Rochester, New York,
faculty which, in one form or another, was seriously proposing a coast-to-
have employed electricity for the coast telegraph line. He submitted
transmission of intelligence over dis- Board of Di-
his project first to the
tances. rectors of the Western Union Tele-
* Parts I and II appeared in the Bell Tele-

graph Company, of which he was
PHOXF. Quarterly for July and October, 1940. president.
. :
•Sibley's experience provides a strik- committee accomplished little or noth-

ing example of what can be accom- ing.
plished by one man when fired by an Nevertheless, Sibley did not have
idea for which he is willing to fight. to "go it alone," although he pro-
His proposal at first found his asso- vided most of the driving force and
ciates of the Western Union direc- enthusiasm which pushed his project
torate so conservative as to drive him forward to final fulfillment. To sup-
to the point of ill-concealed exaspera- plement the support which he hoped
tion. It is said that in one of their to get from private investors, he en-
early conferences, when the argument listed the cooperation of other West-
on his proposal had been particularly ern Union directors in applying to the
protracted, Sibley rose from his chair, government for a subsidy to finance
stalked toward the door, turned and a part of the cost of the building of
said crisply, "Gentlemen, if you won't the line.
join hands with me in this thing, I'll
Aid from Congress
go it alone."
The hesitancy of those who ob- At length, after Sibley, with the
jected to the proposal that the West- prestige of the Western Union behind
ern Union proceed with the project him, had conducted a masterful cam-
on its own account was not without paign in Washington, an act of Con-
justification in sound business judg- gress was passed, on June 16, 1860,
ment. Many of them shared with "to facilitate communication between
Sibley a conviction as to the impor- the Atlantic and Pacific states by elec-
tance of building a transcontinental tric telegraph."
telegraph line but, according to James The following November 1, Salmon
D. Reid, "The Telegraph in Amer-
in P. Chase, Secretary of the Treasury,
ica," felt that "itwas too hazardous executed a contract with Sibley, indi-
a venture to be undertaken by a com- vidually.Among its provisions were
pany having the care of so many in- two of which the substance was as
terests, and which was not yet thor- follows
oughly established in some of its 1 The line was to be completed within
undertakings." ten years following July 31, 1860.
2. The government was to pay a sub-
oiBLEY also proposed his plan to the sidy of $40,000 a year for ten years,
North American Telegraph Associa- to be "taken out in trade." In ex-
tion, an organization which included change for this subsidy, the govern-
membership representatives of a
in its ment was given certain service pref-
number of companies not connected erences, and certain government
with the Western Union, at a meeting bureaus or agencies were to be
given free service, during the life
held in August, 1857. As such or-
of the subsidy.
ganizations still do, the association
passed a resolution appointing a com- Meanwhile, steps were under way
mittee to devise measures by which that led to an arrangement which dis-
the work might be prosecuted. And, posed of the most serious objections
as committees sometimes still do, the to Sibley's original plan. A separate
i9î The Conquest of a Continent 59
THE PONY EXPRESS SALUTES THE TELEGRAPH

This old drawing of the extension of the telegraph lines across the plains was originally
published in Harper's Weekly
company was organized to undertake should follow the example of the

the building of the line westward Western Union and organize a sep-
toward the Pacific. This was the arate company —
the Overland Tele-
Pacific Telegraph Company. Its —
graph Company to build the line
principal stockholders were largely eastward.
directors of the Western Union, but The selection of a route was a dif-
its funds were provided by them as ficult problem. This important phase
individuals, not by the Western Union of thework Sibley assigned to Edward
as such. Creighton, the only man whose train-
ing and experience qualified him for
Selection of a Route the task. After rejecting two alterna-
JMeanwhile, Jeptha H. Wade,
too, tive routes as being too long, Creigh-
of the Western Union, had gone to ton personally surveyed the line fi-
California and presented the project nally chosen, beginning this historic
to a number of telegraph companies piece of communication engineering
which were operating independently on November 18, 1860. With the ex-
of each other in that state. Catching ception that its eastern terminus was
some of Sibley's enthusiasm, as a re- Omaha, instead of St. Joseph, Mis-
sult of Wade's conferences with them, souri, this route substantially followed
the executives of these companies the route of the Pony Express, which
agreed upon a merger with the Cali- we have already described. Creigh-
fornia State Telegraph Company. It ton covered the distance from Omaha
was also agreed that this company to Salt Lake City by stage coach, but
—
from this pointwestward he made the To both groups

this critical need,
difficult journey alone, on the back of of responded with a will.
builders
a mule. On the basis of his report, Armies of men, oxen, mules, with
arrangements were pressed for begin- necessary supplies and equipment,
ning construction of the line at the were put to work at different points of
earliest practicable date. the line. Despite the natural difficul-
ties inherent in the task of building a
Building; Begins line through rough terrain, across a
Actual building began — as if in rec-
region largely uninhabited; despite
misunderstandings with local contrac-
ognition of the important part the line
tors in Utah, who had agreed to fur-
was to play in the affairs of the na-
tion —onJuly 4, 1861. Creighton nish poles and then decided that the
price which they had agreed upon was
himself took charge of operations for
too low; despite mistrust, if not open
the Pacific Telegraph Company, which
opposition, on the part of the Indians,
built westward from Omaha, his as-
signment covering a 700-mile stretch which required a high degree of diplo-
which was to connect with a 400-mile matic skill to overcome despite all—
this, and much more, the line was
line to be built by Charles M. Steb-
built.
bins, working eastward from Salt
Lake City. The crews of the Over- Completed in Record Time
land Telegraph Company, in charge
of James Gamble, began at Fort And it was built at a speed which
Churchill, which had previously been made the ten-year limitation provided
linked with San Francisco, and for in Secretary Chase's contract seem
worked eastward to Salt Lake City, almost humorous, when contrasted

which was agreed upon as the point at with what was actually accomplished.
which the eastern and western sec- On October 18, 1861, Creighton raised
tions of the completed line were to the last pole on the Omaha-Salt Lake
meet. A bonus or prize was to be City section of the line. On October
paid by the losers to the builders who 22, Gamble's men —
who had worked
reached that city in advance of the through far more difficult country
others. reached Salt Lake City. On October
But considerations more important 24, the Atlantic and the Pacific were
than the winning of bonuses or prizes
linked by telegraph. To Abraham
Lincoln, in the White House, there
made speed the essence of success in
must have been special significance
which was being un-
this difficult task
and special cause for gratitude in the
dertaken. Issues between North and
words which the telegraph ticked off:
South had reached and passed the
breaking point; Fort Sumter had been "The people of California desire . . .
fired upon. It became doubly impor- to express their loyalty to the Union
tant that every possible link which and their determination to stand by its
government on this, its day of trial."
would assure the loyalty of California
and Utah to the Union be strength- The cost of building the line was
ened without delay. estimated, in advance of construction,
i9Ul The Conquest of a Continent 61
i*-'**'
PONY EXPRESS, OVERLAND MAIL, TELEGRAPH

These three modes of communication, contemporaneous for a brief interval, are here pictured
by William H. Jackson, Secretary of the Oregon Trail Memorial Association, at the Red
Buttes stage and pony express station
at between $400,000 and $600,000. fixed, for telegrams from San Fran-
Probably its actual cost was nearer cisco to the following points, were:
the latter figure than the former. The
expense of maintaining the line was
estimated at $150,000 a year.
Determining the rates which should
be charged for telegrams over the
coast-to-coast line was a difficult prob-
lem. Few, if any, of the communica-
tion services which had hitherto been
established across the continent had
paid their own way, and it seemed
probable that, even with the govern-
ment subsidy, this might be the case
with the transcontinental telegraph,
unless in fixing the rates a wise bal-
ance could be maintained, with due re-
gard to the investment in the line, the
value of the service, and the public
demand for it. The rates finally
one-half cents for each additional 32,094 miles of pole line; 1,104 miles
word. These rates are for regular of single duct underground conduit;
telegraph messages. Day letters and 1,980 independent and 2,377 joint
overnight telegrams may be trans- telegraph offices. It had handled 40,-
mitted considerably more cheaply. 288,453 domestic telegraph revenue
messages.
Modern Telef^niph Facilities
Oehind these bare statistics, if it
Out the cost of a communication could be read, is written the story of

service never the full measure of
is
the nation's industrial, commercial
its value. The expense of transmit- and social life, in which each of these
ting President Lincoln's annual mes- telegraph messages, speeding over
sage of 1862 from Washington to San miles of wire, had played its part,
Francisco is stated to have been $600 great or small.
—which was not considered too high How much of this large volume of
a price at a time of crisis when every telegraph business was transcontin-
word of the national executive was ental, it is impossible even to esti-
fraught with meaning. Similarly, the mate. hardly more possible to
It is
importance of the role played by the estimate how much of the total wire
facilities provided by the two princi- mileage operated by these telegraph
pal telegraph companies which serve companies might be described as be-
America today cannot be gauged by longing to transcontinental circuits.
the cost of sending any particular tele- Both companies maintain large num-
gram, nor by the total sums paid to bers of permanently set-up circuits
them each year for their services. from coast to coast. In addition to
Statistics afford some measure of these, there are many alternative
the extent of these services, to be routes which may be "patched in" for
sure. According to the Federal Com- use in transcontinental communication
munication Commission's "Selected if becomes necessary or desirable
this
Financial and Operating Data from for any reason.
Annual Reports of Telegraph, Cable Out of the development of tele-
and Radiotelegraph Carriers" for the graph, and later, of telephone service,
year ended December 31, 1938 (the have grown the network of private
most recent available at the time of teletypewriter or printing telegraph
writing) Western Union Tele-
the lines, and the news and stock ticker
graph Company had operated during systems that play so important a part
that year a total of 213,123 miles of in the business life of modern
pole line; 5,005 miles of single-duct America.
underground conduit; 3,713 independ-
ent and 16,258 joint telegraph offices.
Teletypewriter Exchange Service
It had handled during the year 146,- Of particular interest in connection
063,679 domestic telegraph revenue with a discussion which centers
messages. During the same period around the establishment of transcon-
the Postal Telegraph-Cable Com- tinental telephone service is a form of
pany's land line system had operated communication by the written word
19^1 The Conquest of a Continent 63
FIRST TELEGRAPH OFFICE IN SALT LAKE CITY

It was here, in October of 1S61, that the wires from East and West were joined
which is in some important respects For many years, the Bell System
analogous to telephone service and has been providing private-line tele-
which utilizes telephone facilities for typewriter service to large numbers of
transmission — the so-called TWX or subscribers. In 1931 it inaugurated
teletypewriter exchange service which teletypewriter exchange service, which
for some years has been provided by enables any subscriber to the service
the Bell System. to be connected with any other sub-
As its name implies, the teletype- scriber, after which transmission may
writer is a device for ''far-typewrit- be in either direction, as above de-

ing." It makes possible the electrical scribed. This service has been dis-
transmission of messages in typewrit- cussed in detail in previous issues of
ten form. Whatever is typed on the the Bell Telephone Quarterly.*
keyboard of the apparatus, while In the nine years that have elapsed
functioning as a transmitter, is trans- since the inauguration of teletype-
formed into electrical impulses which writer exchange service, growth has its
travel over the circuit to the distant been little less than phenomenal. The
apparatus which, functioning as a re-
TWX directory of July, 1940, shows
ceiver, reproduces the original mes- 13,337 customer stations and 218 of-
sage exactly as it was typed on the * "Modern Business Adopts the Teletype-
transmitting machine. In most cases, writer," by J. M. Tuggey; Quarterly, October,
1935. " 'TWX'— Its Growing Importance to
the same machine may be used either
the Nation's Business," by R. E. Pierce and
for transmitting or receiving. J. V. Dunn; Quarterly, October, 1937.
— —
ficial stations. These include sub-

THE PACIFIC AND ATLANTIC UNfTEO.
scribers in 1501 different towns. With
Completion of lh« TcUirnpli ron^rtil,-
•• Fr«»elifo wllh 1V«w York, Ac. cross references, the book contains
Tli* rollowlDg dMpotch wkJi re civcJ yr-ur-Uj w 1871 separate locality listings, made
»Uyf» Wrod frnm Ucjror Tn*. heiii.chi r, o^ 8«ii fr^ up not only of the more important
ot»r<> u tp««k« for Uaeir _
ATOR or BAN IHNCLVO TO MAYOR WOOD. cities from coast to coast, but of
BiR FiLUICIKM, <V;i Jfr, lm_
To nm Mjitoi or Nrw Toam hundreds of relatively small communi-
^
8«o rriBclnco to Nfw V..r* miuIii KrwiiDg. «nd
a*.
(rktaUUn brr on lli* <»ini.;< 11. .o of ihc oiit.ri.rlv whl«
ties. To meet the needs of these
cuuorcli the I'k.IIc wllfa lti« lllMitie. May the pn».' varying sized communities, new types
perltjr of U'th ciiim bo lLrrM*ril Uirril.y, anr|
j<^cIor« of Uw ImporUol
the ar*.
w.>rl( môl wiili b.Ô'v ^ of TWX switchboards have been de-
reward. n. K TVSCIlflUACiiKS,
Majnr
veloped, and circuit setups have been
of Sttu rr»nci«».
M«ftV4ref of tH aarU pcwed orer the wirco frii, 8^ improved. and en-
Scientific research
KranrBoo to Malt Litkr Citr, and frotn Han JTanf»c»»
gineering which gave the tele-
skill,
Ui» cllioi on the Atlaoltc iIoim, ami lb(T>- 8«rni«<t Ui b«(
fraaj MkUrallun kll aloug llio uov hue In booor of Ik*

phone a nation-wide reach, have
freal «\*nl. Hrre U oo«; given this new form of transconti-
MKHPAOB FBOM OKI'AT PAI.T LAKB TO TUR nOtALI
Gr.KAi fUiT luESCmr, Oc!. 34—8
nental service a network of facilities,
P. M.
Tn ma EjitroB ot mi Hbriu>:— and an acceptance by the public, that
TIjo Jur,ctt->n of lli« U\«rlaoil Tetegraiib tine wA< ina4i
here IhU PTruing. The lino la workion very nalt'farl*. is also continent-wide.
rllf. Am Franrtsco Is all ciciiriueta. M(f>i>î(| u4
C'lDgral'ilalliiLS ar* ruablr.g tbn.iigh.
IIE88A0K TO TUK PI :K.<IDIST OF TUB t' S ITKO ST ATW.
Si. JOHiirn. Mil , (tri 2.\,l'l«l.
Transcontinental Wireless
Tim r«clfle t«'«in'«l>b "«-' Sjd Kraooteo*
jro»'i>r.'»y,Bn<1 wa.4 lu Ono working or.JiT lai«t »veoin.
oniii-'c-'e I l.>
Telegraph
Ttip Qrrl lUr<>i.„'l! m^«»»(;o tr.insmlli h1 ci\orth«lio«M
rrotii ^loiLcn J. I icli), CLlcf Jiu-Iko of Calif.Tni*—
al*-ofo of ll.o i;..verbor— to Al.rahain Lincoln, rrmldvt

In tba We have thus far considered only
iif th« I'mivd si.-»ie«. In coii».v].|>occ of llic lin* twaf those instrumentalities of transconti-
cV»r (nM of 1„T" l>ef.rc w> rtt .4to.1 ii.,l(cc <( (lie |id«
nental communication which have as
1
W'tTkut l»-t Mîa »<• wor» tibli,;<Ml to h'-ld tlie D>>wa(*,

with oil- jr», KViT tltbt. TU» cnicriiruo Macouipltu their purpose the physical transporta-
icccnui.
I*rcfs d8*;..iti hp» aod prlrat* bnsinrFt rorirard"d tnm tion of written messages, or the elec-
hTK Lp lo iw .-he »\'r<-k la«l m^hl, witk Uj.t Uûralh*
l>ikblir In ralii< riiia thta moniHii;.
trical transmission of such messages
MK-«>«AOE TO TUi; rKl:-U>ST Of TUB TTIKBAFU over physical, wire circuits. Let us
Ci>MrAKY.
C'lmr.uirn. (\X. 15.1861. turn briefly to the part which the wire-
Tli» ro'l..»inr iio*"!^* rr..ni H W r»ri>«>t;i.<r, !Y>»|.!(a|
i.f Itic Ca'.ir.iriita Ûi« Telr^rapL (..n,|«i:)', vaa r<^MlT«< less (or radio) telegraph plays in pro-
brr« to d IJ-:
?Ai Fi.iX'i«»,A 1. 2.S.IU1. viding contacts between the two
To J. ». Wale, Pr.* Ici.l i.f ihc f.r.a. T l<»rai>h Ctm-
|«- V — coasts of the United States.
Wi jro't Tmi a^.-i«4 tlirrnnllrioiit. Yo<i bo-l i» hf'a
"lijro.- lw.» I. il wr fcrgUe jc-a..inl f.r It r<«ftvr< oi» Lack of space forbids an extended
c»o«;r4lu'Ati-'>.-'. U. W. (. A!U-t.N"r»-3t
IVfOKTAMK (>» THK TR iNCATI. «NTIl TKI.KOBAAa. discussion of the early experiments of
f** Fm^TMx.Oc- '/A. IMl.
Tilt- C'-i.pl .i-T I.f thr Iwl lliiL ,.f Uk- .Vir.cricaa K<». Hertz or the contributions of Clerk-
rfTit.b I I*., « 1 .f4- Ita,-.. Willi tliot.... |.>3 II u IraTWS.
|ii£ lio.-l. ft.ri. 1 mi;.-* wiiti ni.rt i-wrl
I
i.* wiro aa4

Maxwell, Fleming, and others to the
development of wireless communica-
tion. We cannot, indeed, dwell on
A Contemporary Account Marconi's discoveries and inventions
This announcement of the consummation of of practical means of sending mes-
a great undertaking, and summaries of con- sages through space, or on the devel-
gratulatory messages exchanged between the
opments in that field in which men
Atlantic and Pacific coasts, is reproduced
like DeForest, Fessenden, and Alex-
from the New York Herald of October 26,
1S61 anderson have played important parts.
i9î The Conquest of a Continent 65
It early became evident that the tion of its own in any study of the
chief field of usefulness of the radio means which have been developed for
telegraph (and later of the radio tele- linking the eastern and western coasts
phone) was for communication be- of the American continent. Broad-
tween points which could not practi- casting, as it is known in the United
cably be connected by land wires or States today, particularly in its trans-
cables. One of its first uses, as might continental aspects, is so vitally de-
have been expected, was in providing pendent upon networks of wire tele-
service between ships at sea and sta- phone circuits that the two means of
tions on shore. Its next field was in communication become, in some re-
the establishment of transoceanic tele- spects, different forms of the same
graph service, often in direct compe- thing.
tition with existing telegraph cable The story of the development of
services. radio broadcasting, and of the place
Following the establishment of such which telephone networks have had in
overseas telegraph services, the radio this development, has been treated so
companies of the United States es- often and so fully that there is little
tablished overland radio services, pri- point in here dwelling on it at length.
marily as a means of relaying mes- The transcontinental aspects of this
sages from overseas, but secondarily development may, perhaps, deserve
as a means of providing purely do- more than mere mention, for certainly
mestic point-to-point communication. the remarkable growth of radio broad-
Such radio telegraph services have casting has been a vitally important
been inaugurated and are operated by factor in the recent economic, social,
the Radio Corporation of America, and political history of the United
the Mackay Radio and Telegraph States.
Company and Press Wireless, Inc. A transcontinental telephone

As above intimated, it is probable that hook-up was first demonstrated to the
public as an adjunct to radio broadcast-
the greater part of the traffic handled
ing on February 8, 1924, when seven
over these transcontinental radio tele-
stations, at Havana, Washington,
graph channels is supplemental to
transoceanic services. These com-
New York, Providence, Chicago, Oak-
land, and San Francisco were linked
panies, however, do a considerable
by 5,141 miles of wire, for the simul-
amount of purely domestic business
taneous broadcasting of a program be-
between a limited number of points.
ing held at a dinner of the Bond Club,
at the Congress Hotel, Chicago.
Transcontinental Wire Networks
General John J. Carty, who was in
for Radio Broadcasting
charge of proceedings at Chicago,
JAADio broadcasting is so essentially "called the roll of the Continent" and
different in purpose from the point-to- twenty test stations, along the circuit
point service provided by the facilities linking Havana with the Golden Gate,
of the Bell System that it might al- responded as their names were called.
most be considered a different form of Millions of people undoubtedly list-
communication, and to deserve a sec- ened to this dramatic demonstration
— a —
of the extent of the facilities of the Americans, from the very beginning
telephone system, and of the possibili- push their frontiers
of their history, to
ties of radio broadcasting on a coast- farther and farther westward. But
to-coast scale. More than 4,000 let- there has been another force, equally
ters were received by station WEAF, irresistible —the urge to link these
in New York, alone, expressing ad- westward -moving frontiers with that
miration for what was then consid- which lay to the east of them. In
ered an outstanding achievement of doing this, Americans have inevitably
science and engineering, and is today chosen the best form of communica-
accepted as a commonplace. tion that, at any given time, man had
From this beginning grew the been able to create. Always they
transcontinental radio broadcasting have made use of the swiftest, most
networks of today, over which it is not direct, and most dependable means
uncommon to serve more than 500 then available for speeding their mes-
radio stations, with radio listeners sages.
running into millions that it is almost That the telephone would, some
impossible to estimate. This develop- day, be numbered among these instru-
ment, in turn, had its beginning when mentalities of transcontinental com-
the first transcontinental telephone munication was almost a matter of
line was built, twenty-five years ago predestination from the moment Bell
although the transmission afforded spoke his first full sentence over an
over that line would be far from satis- electric wire
—
"Mr. Watson, come
factory for broadcasting purposes to- here; I want you!" It was the wants
day. Circuits intended for use in of the —

American people their social
radio networks have to be specially and economic and political needs
engineered in order to provide the that made manifest the destiny of
high quality of sound reproduction Bell's then crude instrument. Coast-
that their purpose demands. to-coast telephone service was created,
a quarter of a century ago, because
Not Unlike Evolution nothing less direct and personal could
longer meet the new and growing
bucH is the background against
needs of the American nation.
which must be viewed the opening for
service of the first transcontinental
Times of Testing
telephone line, just a quarter of a
century ago. We have called this de- Ljy one of those unexplainable "co-
velopment of coast-to-coast communi- incidences" with which history is
cation facilities the "conquest of a filled, this pioneer transcontinental

continent," and such it has been — telephone line was completed just in
peaceful conquest achieved by a suc- time to play its part in meeting a
cession of steps, each one of which has great national crisis. Even while
followed the others by a process not gangs of linemen were setting its poles
unlike that of evolution. and stringing its wires, the nations of
As has been seen, there has been an Europe were engaged in a titanic
irresistible force which has prompted struggle. Hardly more than two years
19^1 The Conquest of a Continent 67
after it was opened for service, the possessed of a common purpose, pre-
United States entered that conflict. pared for common action. That, just
Just as Overland Mail, Pony Express at this time, all of these facilities for
and Transcontinental Telegraph had, the exchange of thought and opinion
in turn, played their part in American have been brought to so high a de-
life during a period of crisis, so this gree of effectiveness, may be only an-
highway for coast-to-coast communi- other "coincidence." But to those
cation by the spoken word was to play who are engaged in providing them,
its part when the American people these continent-spanning instrumen-
were passing through a new time of talities for national unification are
testing. more than the mere results of for-
To the first Transcontinental Tele- tuitous circumstance. They are man-
phone Line have been added three ifestations of an age-old purpose, any
others. In a quarter of a century, contribution to the achievement of
telephone service has been speeded up, which by present-day Americans is a
made vastly more efficient, more eco- high privilege, carrying with it large
nomical. Epochal advances have responsibilities.
been made also in other forms of That purpose has created the wires
coast-to-coast communication that and waves and rails and pathways for
serve America —the railway and air planes which stretch from the Atlantic
mail services, telegraph service by to the Pacific today, as it created the
land lines and by wireless, radio Overland Mail and the Pony Express.
broadcasting. It is a purpose that was best stated
when our American form of govern-
Once more, America faces troub- ment came into being: "We, the peo-
lous days —
days filled with problems ple of the United States, in order to
which can be solved only by a people form a more perfect union. . .
,"
FOR THE RECORD
e<^
THOMAS 1. PARKINSON ELECTED A DIRECTOR

At the meeting of the Board of Di- death of Hale Holden. Mr. Parkinson
rectors of the American Telephone and is President of The Equitable
Life As-
Telegraph Company on November 20, surance Society of the United States, and
Thomas I. Parkinson was elected a Di- has been a director of the Western Elec-
rector to fill the vacancy caused by the tric Company, Inc.
v5^
F. P. LAWRENCE IS NEW HEAD OF LONG LINES
r RANK P. Lawrence, Vice President was born in Newark, New Jersey, and
and General Manager of the Manhattan was graduated from Lehigh University.
Area of the New York Telephone Com- He entered the telephone business in
pany, has been elected Vice President of 1912 as an engineer in the Southwestern
the American Telephone and Telegraph Bell Telephone Company in St. Louis.
Compan}' in charge of the Long Lines He Oklahoma be-
served in Kansas and
Department, effective January 1. Mr. fore coming to New York in March,
Lawrence succeeds Vice President Cleo 1929, as General Plant Manager for the
F, Craig, who will take charge of the Upstate Area, with headquarters in Al-
Department of Personnel Relations upon bany. He moved to New York City in
the retirement of Vice President Karl \V. 1933 and was elected Vice President and
Waterson next March. Mr. Lawrence General jNIanager in 1938.
Ctf>l
RADIO TELEPHONE SERVICE OPENED WITH GREECE

(j-REECE was brought within reach of short wave radio circuit between New
Bell and Bell-connecting telephones on York and Berne, Switzerland, and from
January 12, when the A. T. & T. Com- there to Athens by means of land lines
pany's transatlantic telephone service was via Zurich and Belgrade. The New
extended to include that country. The York-Athens connection is nearly 5,000
new service is provided by means of a miles long.
«<s^
NOW MORE THAN 17,600,000 BELL TELEPHONES

In 1940 there was a net gain of about the largest increase for one year in the
949,900 telephones in service in the prin- history of the Bell System. The largest
cipal telephone subsidiaries of the Ameri- previous annual was 876,000 in
gain
can Telephone and Telegraph Company 1937. The gain in 1939 was 775,000.
included in the Bell System. This was At the end of December, 1940, there were
68
about 17,483,800 telephones in the Bell The total number of telephones in the
System. The gain during January of United States which could be intercon-
1941 was about 129,400, bringing the to- nected, including those of the Bell System
tal Bell System telephones to about 17,-
and several thousand independent tele-
613,200 as of January 31. By the end of
phone companies, was about 21,830,000
1940, all the operating telephone com-
panies in the Bell System had passed
at the end of 1940. As of January
their pre-depression peak numbers of tel- 31, 1941, the number is approximately
ephones in service. 22,000,000.
^c^
THE "QUARTERLY" BECOMES THE MAGAZINE

JjEGiNNiNG its twentieth year with the contemplated, the new name seems more
present issue, this publication changes its appropriate to the magazine's scope and
name from the Bell Telephone Quarterly content, and the change of title will
to the Bell Telephone Magazine. permit greater flexibility of publication
W^hile no change in editorial policy is dates.
CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ISSUE

XIjntering Yale in 1914, Judson S. dent training course he was assigned to
Bradley left college in 1917 to enlist in commercial work, and in 1923 was made
the U. S. Army Ambulance Service. Re- Directory Production Supervisor. In
turning from overseas in 1919, he re- 1927 he joined the staff of the Com-
entered and received his B.A.
college, mercial Engineer of the A. T. T. Com- &
degree in 1920. For the next four years pany, and since 1929 has been in charge
he was assistant editor and managing ed- of the group handling directory produc-
itor of the Yale Alumni Weekly. In 1925 tion and service problems.
he joined the Publicity Department of
the Southern New England Telephone ijATES College graduated Robert L.
Company, in New Haven, as copy writer, ToMBLEN with the degree of B.A. in
and was subsequently advertising man- 1914, and Worcester Polytechnic Insti-
ager until 1928. In that year he was tute with the degree of B.S. in E.E. in
transferred to the Commercial Division 1917. He joined the Long Lines De-
of the American Telephone and Tele- partment of the A. T. and T. Company
graph Company, and in 1930 became a in July of the latter year as a student in
member of the staff of the General In- traffic engineering, but left for military
formation Department. He has con- service in September. After 19 months
tributed several articles to Quar-
the of army duty in this country and over-
terly, of which the most recent was seas he rejoined the A. T. and T. Com-
"At the Customer's Service," in the issue pany in the Commercial Engineer's Divi-
for October, 1940. sion of the Department of Operation and
Engineering. Here he was engaged for
(jrRADUATiNG from Purdue University several years in making commercial sur-
with the degree of B.S. in E.E. in 1921, veys of some of the principal cities of the
Otis M. Hancock entered the Bell Sys- country. In 1929 he transferred to the
tem immediately as a student engineer Chief Statistician's Division of the
with the Ohio Bell Telephone Company Comptroller's Department, where he con-
in Cleveland. After completing the stu- tinued his market research and popula-
69
tion studies. He is a member of the was engaged in newspaper work. In
Population Association of America, and 1921 he joined the Information Depart-
has contributed a number of articles to ment of the A. T. & T. Company, and
the Quarterly, the most recent being since 1936 he has combined his duties
"The Sixteenth Decennial Census," in the
in that department with those of Histori-
issue for April, 1940.
cal Librarian of the A. T. & T. Co. He
is editor of the Telephone Almanac, and
XXECEiviNG the B.A. degree from Lafa-
has contributed a number of articles to
yette College in 1907, and the LL.B. de-
gree from New York Law School in 1909, the Quarterly, the most recent being
Robertson T. Barrett practiced law "The Telephone as a Social Force" in
until 1918, and for the next three years the issue for April, 1940.
70
BELL TELEPHONE
MAGAZINE
VOL. XX MAY, 1941
ENGINES FOR DEFENSE
A COLLEGE COURSE IN TELEPHONE SPEECH
INDEPENDENT TELEPHONE COMPANIES
TRENDS IN TOLL CABLE USAGE
CHEMISTRY BEHIND THE TELEPHONE
American Telephone &. Telegraph Co. • New York

— —— —
BELL TELEPHONE
MAGAZINE
Continuing the Bell Telephone Quarterly
VOL. XX MAY, 1941 no. 2
PAGE
Engines for Defense F. K. Rowe 73
A College Course in Telephone Speech F. P. Townsend 80
Independent Telephone Companies H. M. Pope 87
Trends in Toll Cable Usage— A. F. Rose 97
Chemistry Behind the Telephone R. R. Williams 106
For the Record 109

Our Part in the Nation's Defense Program A Statement by President
:
—
Gifford at the Annual Meeting of Stockholders on April 16 Dr.
Campbell Receives the Edison Medal
Published by the Information Department of the

American Telephone and Telegraph Company
>A'
*-
"^^
''*--" ^-:-^'"iJ^!^"'
.>i•
A BELL SYSTEM TOLL ROUTE

Along this cross-country right of way the newer
aerial cable (foreground) supplements the open-
wire line, which is still in service. Other types
of cable are laid under ground. See " Trends
in Toll Cable Usage,'' beginning on page 97
— "
ENGINES FOR DEFENSE
The Danger of Interruptions to Telephone Service Is Further

Guarded Against by Numerous Installations of Emergency
Power Equipment for Charging Central Office Batteries
By FRED K. ROWE
a recent mystery novel, two of commenting on the increased use of

IN the characters, discussing the ef- engine-driven equipment for emer-
fects of power interruption on the gency sources of power, remarked
life of a great city, have the following that "The A. T. & T. Company real-
conversation: izes the likelihood of interruptions so
"'What about the telephone? I we are seeing scores of emergency
suppose it would go too?' The other Diesel plants being installed by the
shook his head. 'That's one of the Bell Telephone System."
companies which have had enough What is the emergency equipment
foresight to prepare for emergencies. that is thus referred to? Briefly, it
They have a secret power plant of consists of an engine driving a gen-
Diesel engines safely hidden away.' erator for furnishing power to keep
The book is fiction, but the state- the batteries in the central office
ment —except for the reference to
charged during an interruption of the
secrecy — is essentially a fact.
commercial power service. Should
In the report of the American Tele- these batteries be allowed to become
phone and Telegraph Company for discharged, the office could not func-
1940, President Gifford made the
tion, and, while a failure of a tele-
following announcement: "Reserve
phone office even under normal con-
power equipment was installed or
ditions might be termed a calamity,
ordered at all important telephone
it takes no great effort to realize the
central offices which did not already
vital importance as a defense measure
have it, so as to insure continuity of
of making sure that under no condi-
power supply under all conditions."
tion will there be an interruption of
Further reference to this increased
provision of emergency engine equip- the current required to keep the
ment was made in the article "The storage batteries in telephone central
Bell System and National Defense" offices in a properly charged condi-
which appeared in the February, tion.
1941, issue of this magazine; and a Experience has indicated that un-
recent article in a trade magazine. der normal conditions the large ma-
Fig. 1. A 650-watt Portable Gasoline
Emergency Set
One of these may serve as a source of emer-
gency power for several closely grouped dial
or manual central offices
of power lines and crippling of power

stations.
JIjXCEpt for a few relatively unim-

portant and isolated cases, none of
these emergencies in the past has re-
sulted in a failure of the central office
batteries to continue to carry the load.
In instances, however, where no emer-
jority of power failures are of short gency engine equipment was installed,
duration and do not approach the it was necessary to make hurried ar-
period during which the batteries will rangements for procuring it. This is
continue to carry the office load be- never a simple task, in view both of
fore they become discharged. Tele- the time elements involved and of the
phone service, however, must be demand for similar equipment by oth-
maintained under abnormal as well ers, such as hospitals, whose service
as normal conditions, and it is these also needs protection. Even after lo-
abnormal conditions which determine cating suitable equipment, such as arc
the need for providing emergency en- welding sets from local sources and
gine equipment. Such abnormal con- battery charging sets from other tele-
ditions arose, for example, during the phone companies, there is always a
unprecedented floods of 1936 and serious transportation problem in the
1937 which made it impossible for case of large charging sets coming
days to supply electric power service from a distance. Many of these have
to such cities as Pittsburgh, Hartford, been sent hundreds of miles for ex- —
and Louisville. ample, from Milwaukee to Pittsburgh
For another illustration, there was by truck during the dead of winter
the short circuit and fire in the Hell over ice-bound roads.
Gate power station in January, 1936, There then follows the task of set-
which interrupted power in a large ting up and connecting the sets to
part of New York City for several the load and of providing suitable
hours. A fire in the Essex power shelters. No provision is normally
station in December, 1936, resulted made for the storage of gasoline sup-
in power failure in the central part plies,and obviously considerable trou-
of Newark, New Jersey, and in some ble would be experienced in obtaining
suburbs, for intervals of from five to fuel because gasoline filling stations
eight hours. The March, 1938, floods are almost universally equipped with
in Southern California, reported to electrically driven pumps and nat-
have been the worst in 61 years, re- urally are inoperative when power
sulted in prolonged failures of electric lines are not functioning. Because
power service in many localities. of prompt, skilful and efficient action,
During the New England hurricane there has been no failure of telephone
of September, 1938, entire commu- service due to depleted batteries, but
nities were out of power for periods there have been many anxious mo-
up to three weeks, due to devastation ments for fear that the needed equip-
19^1 Engines for Defense 75
ment might not be obtained in time are of such a size that the batteries
to prevent the batteries from being can economically be made large
discharged. Another reason for anxi- enough (generally from one to three
ety is that such emergencies require days' capacity) so that the office load
an extraordinary amount of time and may be carried on the battery until a
effort that are always needed for other small portable engine driven charging
work. set, such as shown in Figure 1, can be
brought in and placed in operation to
Adequate Provision for Emergencies pick up the load. Such a set is small,
As a consequence of such experi- the one pictured weighing only 71
ences in the past, and because na- pounds, so that in general one man
tional defense requires a telephone can quickly load it into a truck, trans-
service without threat of interruption, port it to the office, and connect it
the Bell System operating companies to the battery. Some 200 sets of
have reached the conclusion that this general type, ranging in size from
adequate provision be made now so 650 to 3,000 watts, are distributed

that all offices may be readily op- throughout the System, and while this
erated when necessary from emer- number has so far proven adequate,
gency sources of power. more than 300 additional sets are be-
Of the 5,200 offices having storage ing purchased.
batteries, there are about 4,000 which The 4,000 offices just mentioned
Fig. 2. A 60-kilowatt Stationary Diesel Emergency Set

A set of this size may be installed to serve two and sometimes three small dial units, and
may be used temporarily as a portable set in an emergency
Fig. 3. A 535-kilowatt Stationary Diesel Emergency Set
Including engine, generator, and concrete base, it weighs nearly 100 tons, and has sufficient
capacity to supply power to five large dial units and, in addition, to care for essential
building services in an emergency
Fig. 4. A 75-kilowatt Portable Gasoline Emergency Set

The Bell System noiv has more than 50 such sources of emergency power, one of which can
be trucked in a few hours to any location where it may be needed
d9 ^1 Engines for Defense 77
consist for the most part of small dial ation in one of the large central west-
and manual and small repeater
offices ern cities threatened to interrupt the
stations. The remaining 1,200 of the electric service,and several of these
5,200 common battery offices com- sets were brought in from other cities
prise the larger and more important as far as 500 miles away.
offices in theSystem, where it is the
Automatic Power Supply for
general practice to provide not more
Unattended Stations
than two to six hours' reserve in the
battery. Of these, 850 are now pro- In connection with the recent in-
vided with emergency engine equip- stallation of carrier systems on trans-

ment that is permanently installed in continental routes, it has been found
the building. The sizes of the units necessary to locate some repeater sta-
involved range in capacity from about tions at points which are inaccessible,
10 kw to nearly 900 kw, with most particularly during the winter season.
of them, however, not exceeding 60 If storm damage should cripple the
kw. Figure 2 illustrates a typical power lines supplying these stations,

60 kw installation, while Figure 3 is and cause a power failure, the work
typical of the very large units, the of restoration would be retarded or
one shown being rated at 535 kw. hampered in some cases by difficulties
These very large units are all located of the terrain. Although the storage
in large buildings and it has been the batteries at these stations are usually
general practice to provide them with large enough to carry the load for one
sufficient capacity to care for limited or two days, it is considered undesir-

elevator service, other essential build- able under these conditions for re-
ing services such as fire and sump peater stations to depend on portable
pumps, lighting in operating rooms sets. Moreover, since they are nor-
and test centers, as well as the usual mally unattended, so that no one is
telephone load. present who could start an engine, it
has been necessary to provide engine
1 HERE remain about 350 large of- sets that will start automatically in
ficeswhich have been served by two case of accidents to the electric serv-
or more independent power services ice. Figure 5 shows one of these sets,
and in which emergency engine equip- which charge the battery

will start to
ment has not as yet been installed, when the battery voltage drops to a
but it is expected that the program certain value and will stop when the
under way towards providing this battery reaches full charge. This cy-
equipment will have been largely cle, of course, will be repeated if nec-
completed within the next year. For essary as long as the usual supply of
use pending the completion of this power is unavailable.
program, the System has over 50
large portable engine generator sets 1 HE engines associated with the
in case the commercial power service emergency equipment are in general
should be interrupted at any of these designed for operation on either gaso-
offices. Figure 4 illustrates one of line or fuel oil, and are cooled by a
the large portable sets. A recent situ- radiator and fan, as in the case of an
Fig. 5. A 6-kilowatt Automatic Gasoline Emergency Set
Aulomalic control equipment starts this engine when the battery voltage drops to a pre-
determined value, and stops it when the battery reaches full charge. The cycle will repeat,
without attention, as long as normal power supply is cut off
Fig. 6. A 120-kilowatt Gas Emergency Engine of 20 Years Ago

Compare this set with the one shown in Figure 3, which is about the same size as this but has
nearly five times the capacity
i9î Engines for Defense 79
automobile engine. Some of the early ago, with Figure 3, which shows an
Bell System installations, however, engine of about the same size but
utilizegas as fuel and are cooled by having five times the capacity.
city running water. In order that
these engines may be independent of And so, if and when the continued
all supply services that might be inter- functioning of the central office bat-
rupted in times of emergency, consid- teries giving electrical life to tele-
eration is now being given to a pro- phone facilities is threatened, there

gram of arranging them for operation will be means readily at hand with
on gasoline, with radiator cooling. which to meet the emergency. To
The student of engine design will be those entrusted with the responsibil-
interested in comparing Figure 6, ity of rendering a telephone service
which illustrates one of the older gas "free from . . . delays" this is a re-
engine sets installed about 20 years assuring situation.
A COLLEGE COURSE IN TELEPHONE SPEECH
Classes in Public Speaking for Seniors at Rutgers University
Now Include Instruction in Exteruling the Voice and Personality
Pleasingly and Effectively by Telephone
By frank p. TOWNSEND
N ow comes a college course

practical telephone
encouragement to
to serve as
telephone people who for years have
been striving in a variety of ways to
speech,
in tor of
is
is
Speech and Debate at Rutgers,
responsible for the. new
co-author of the text book "Speech
Is Easy," Rutgers University Press
1938, which is regarded as one of the
course. He
increase public interest in "good tele- most practical volumes on speech in-
phone usage." struction.
A four-week course of telephone In common with many colleges and
speech instruction was introduced in schools, Rutgers has provided instruc-
April, 1941, as a permanent part of and debate for
tion in public speaking
senior year courses in public speaking a lengthy period.In recent years the
and debate at Rutgers University, use of microphone and loudspeaker
New Brunswick, New Jersey. It is has been added to older forms of in-
believed to be the first course of its struction to help students familiarize
kind in the country, and the fact that themselves with the advantages and
it makes use of the "hear your own restrictions of public address systems,
voice" technique is of special interest now in common use.
in view of production by Western room procedure was recently
Class
Electric Company of the "]\Iirro- modified successfully by making re-
phone" magnetic tape recorder for cordings of students' voices. A stu-
public exhibition and instruction. dent addresses the class. His remarks
Announcement of the introduction are heard by loudspeaker, and part is
of the course produced considerable recorded. He then joins the class and
publicity in newspapers and in publi- hears the record played, taking part
cations circulating among members of in comment and criticism.
college faculties, an in-
suggesting "We were immediately convinced of
creasing consciousness of the impor- the effectiveness of the 'hear your own
tance of proper use of the telephone, voice' technique," Professor Reager
particularly in the business world. states. "For some twenty years I
Richard C. Reager, Associate Pro- have been speaking at conventions
fessor of Public Speaking and Direc- and to groups of business men on the
19î A College Course in Telephone Speech 81
Listening to a Recorded Conversation

The two students who conversed by telephone, out of hearing of the class, have rejoined the
group, and all are listening not only to what they said but to how they said it. Professor
Richard C. Reager is at the extreme right
subject of better speech as an aid to ful assets these men can have, es-
the business man. I have had occa- pecially since their careers are still
sion to mimic some of the common ahead. Therefore, we are interested

speech faults, and invariably I sense only in speech that can be used intel-
a reaction among my auditors to the ligently. Speech to be useful and
effect that 'Of course, / never make valuable must be practical!
such mistakes.' Recordings in the "It occurred to us that for every oc-
class room, where the student hears his casion when a man speaks from the
voice, thoroughly upset this happy be- platform or in the conference room,
lief! Improvement is rapid, however, he takes part in hundreds of telephone
as soon as 'mike fright' disappears. conversations. Again, this applies
Early records are kept for comparison particularly to the younger men. So
with recordings made toward the end far as we knew, no school or college
of the course. Thus the student can offered instruction in use of the tele-
note his progress. phone —
not even schools specializing
"In my opinion a great deal of non- in speech training. Yet your voice, by
sense istaught and written about telephone, is often your first introduc-
speech. At Rutgers we approach the tion to some stranger. His first im-
subject from a strictly practical view- pressions are likely to be determined
point. We are turning out young men, by how you sound to him in his re-
many of whom will go into business. ceiver. No matter what you actually
Good speech is one of the most help- may be like, if you sound ill-educated,
82 Bell Telephone Magazine MA Y
Recording a Conversation
Two Rutgers seniors converse and Professor Reager monitors as the apparatus in the center
makes a record of the conversation. Specially grouped for this picture, the students are
actually stationed in separate rooms for regular instruction
slovenly, or uninterested in the other tion. Two students go to separate

man's affairs, his impression will be un- telephones which are connected to the
favorable. Regardless of the logic of equipment. They converse on various
it, made every day (and
decisions are topics, such as a detailed business
often important decisions) on noth- transaction, a campus problem, or per-
ing more tangible than the thought: haps arrange an interview. Their re-
'He seems like a pleasant chap,' or 'I marks are heard in the class room by
didn't like him!' This led us to be- loudspeaker, and part is recorded.
lieve that instruction in speech for Then the participants join the class
practical daily use is incomplete with- and hear the recordings for comment
out training future business men to and criticism.
extend their voices and personalities The equipment used was assembled
by telephone in an effective, pleasant by Walter K. Dau, Jr., a Junior in
manner." Rutgers School of Engineering. It
consists of a portable recorder with
Recording Permits Review
loudspeaker, and a plug-in micro-
When new four-week course
the phone for use during public speaking
was introduced, use was made of the instruction. For recording telephone
recording technique because of its ef- conversations, the telephones men-
fectiveness in public speech instruc- tioned above may be connected with
19^1 A College Course in Telephone Speech 83
this equipment. Recording is moni- very personal feeling" as to how they

tored by headphone. The apparatus sound by telephone.
is contained in a locking steel cabi- Even students who had achieved
net, mounted on rubber-tired wheels, some proficiency in platform delivery
which also serves as storage space discovered immediately that quite dif-
for auxiliary equipment, replacement ferent methods are necessary for best
parts and new and used records. results during telephone conversa-
Preliminary experiments made use tions. not only that voices sound
It is
of non-working telephones, students changed. On the platform, a speaker
''conversing" with each other in the can use facial expression, gestures,
class room. Moderate progress was and even the fact of his physical pres-
achieved. However, as soon as re- ence to offset or minimize effects of
cordings were introduced there was a faulty speech. By telephone, the
marked improvement. Students were voice carries the entire burden. It be-
in agreement that the "hear your own comes necessary, they learned, to con^
voice" method provides a "vivid and centrate on what comes out of the dis-
The Recording Instrument

Professor Reager adjusts the input of the recorder as students in distant rooms carry on a
telephone conversation
tant telephone receiver, and then to give the effect of discourtesy or inat-
adjust voice and manner at the trans- tention at the other end of the line.
mitter to obtain the desired effect. Booklets are distributed giving prac-
The essentials of good public speak- based on experience
tical suggestions,
ing apply, in general, to telephone and observation, for improved usage
speech and its These in-
instruction. in business concerns. Some telephone
clude proper use of the vocal mech- companies maintain a staff of em-
anism, clarity, prior knowledge if pos- ployees to train telephone contact
sible of what is to be said, conversation people in business establishments.
along orderly and logically developed These are considered service im-
lines, care in producing and maintain- provement activities, since anything
ing a courteous and friendly effect on done by the telephone company which
the hearer, good vocabulary, unhur- assists a customer to handle his affairs
ried manner. The New York Tele- by telephone more efficiently, pleas-
phone Company's booklet, "The Voice ingly, or satisfactorily is a service im-
With a Smile," which was drawn upon provement to him, just as are better
freely in preparation of the telephone transmission or faster handling of
chapter in Professor
Reager's text calls.
book, "Speech Is Easy," also serves
as background material for class room r OR some time there has been evi-
instruction in telephone usage. dence that these efforts are bearing
Better Speech —Better Service fruit in increased public consciousness

of the importance of good telephone
1 HE interest of telephone people in speech. More and more requests come
"good usage" is based in part on the to telephone companies for assistance
philosophy that telephone service, rein training telephone sales forces and
gardless of technical excellence, other telephone contact employees.
should not be considered as entirely The "Hear Your Own Voice" mag-
satisfactory unless it is so regarded by netic tape recorders demonstrated in
the customer. A number of telephone the Bell System exhibits at the New
developments resulting from this view- York and San Francisco World's Fairs
point will come to mind, such as opin 1939 and 1940, and by many Bell
erating practices and methods which companies during "Open House" pro-
have been devised not merely to avoid grams, made thousands of individuals
the possibility of confusing customers conscious of speech defects of which
but to be actually pleasing to them. they had been unaware. The Sys-
A further extension of this thought tem's sound motion picture, "A New
is the acceptance by telephone com- Voice for Mr. X," which portrays the
panies of responsibility for assisting business value of good telephone
customers to obtain the most useful- speech and practice, has made a strong
ness and value from their service. Ef- impression upon business men. This
forts are increasingly being made to impression has been strengthened
help eliminate slovenly speech habits when the showing of the film is accom-
and faulty technique, and overcome panied by setting up the magnetic tape
unconscious mannerisms which may recorder for the audience to experi-
i9ii A College Course in Telephone Speech 85
ment with. Instead of resenting criti- degree of importance in practical daily

cism or disbelieving it, they appreciate life that ranks it with public speaking
knowledge of faulty usage when and debate.

gained by themselves through hearing Application of the essentials of good
their own voices. speech to the 80,000,000 telephone
Professor Reager's innovation at calls handled daily in the Bell Tele-
Rutgers well illustrates this increased phone System may be too much to
public interest, and is perhaps the hope for within the foreseeable future,
most significant illustration to date. but the new course at Rutgers cer-
So far as is known, it is the first or- tainly is a step toward such a goal and
ganized effort on the part of an insti- forecasts the introduction of similar
tution other than telephone companies instruction in schools and colleges
to teach proper telephone speech tech- generally as something not too vi-
nique and to assign to the subject a sionary.
c/)
j. Ill Jj.v.JJ->V-^-^'^-^-:--'^-'-'-
INDEPENDENT TELEPHONE COMPANIES
Co-operation between These 6,400 Organizations, Serving 20 Per

Cent of All Telephones in the Country, and the Bell System Is
Vital in Providing a Nation-wide Telephone Service
By H. M. pope
PEOPLE living in areas served by high degree of cooperation between

Bell telephone companies may the Bell and connecting companies
not have occasion to know must, of course, be apparent. To it
that, in addition to the 24 operating President Gifford of the American
companies included in the Bell Sys- Telephone and Telegraph Company
tem, there are some 6,400 other tele- paid tribute in his report on the Com-
phone companies whose management pany's operation for 1940 when he
and personnel play a most important said: "this cooperation is invaluable
part in giving the United States what in marshalling the resources of the
is often termed ''the best telephone entire telephone industry in the in-
service in the world." terest of national defense."
These companies are independent Without such cooperation, tele-
of the Bell System, except that there phones could not be so quickly and
isa physical connection of their lines readily connected one with another,
with the lines of the adjacent Bell for obviously there is a most complex
company in order to bring about a operating problem involved in so com-
universal telephone service nation- bining the properties of thousands of
wide in its scope. companies that anyone anywhere can
Because of this physical connection, pick up a telephone and talk to any-
these companies are known to Bell one else anywhere else. It is to point
System people as "connecting com- out some of the features of this co-
panies." They own and serve about operation, which results in a combined
4,400,000 telephones, or approxi- network handling about 100,000,000
mately 20 per cent of the more than local and toll conversations a day, that
22,000,000 telephones in the country; this article has been prepared.
they have 10,000,000 miles of wire; The 6,400 connecting telephone
they handle in the neighborhood of companies are scattered over the en-
19,000,000 local and toll conversa- tire country, having exchanges in
tions every day. every state except Delaware. A map
That the high standard of telephone prepared by the United States Inde-
service in the United States reflects a pendent Telephone Association in
1938, Figure 1, shows the widespread

distribution of 12,000 independent tel-
ephone exchanges. In several states State
the connecting companies serve a

larger geographical area than that
served by Bell System companies.
(connecting companies vary in size

from those with only one exchange
having not more than 10 telephones
to those having more than 100,000
telephones located in a number of ex-
changes. Some of these companies
have their own toll lines connecting
several exchanges, while others have
no toll lines. There are seven con-
necting companies having more than
50,000 telephones each, two of which,
the Associated Telephone Company,
Ltd. (California) and Rochester Tele-
phone Corporation (New York), have
more than 100,000 telephones.
Many connecting companies are not
financially affiliated with any other
company or corporation. Some, how-
ever, are members of so-called group
companies which own the controlling
interests in a number of telephone
companies operating in several states.
The largest three group companies are
General Telephone Corporation, with
532,000 telephones; Telephone Bond
and Share Company, with 240,000;
and United Utilities Company with
98,000 telephones.
Ohio has a larger number of con-
necting company telephones than any
other state, while Maryland has less
than 800. The 10 states having the
largest number of connecting com-
pany telephones are shown in Plg-
ure 2.
It became apparent to the non-

Bell companies prior to
telephone
1900 that some form of central or-
19^1 Independent Telephone Companies 89
There are now 32 state associations. inating messages are routed either
These provide a clearing house for to another connecting company or to
information of interest to their mem- a Bell exchange for handling. Ex-
bers through annual meetings, fre- changes in which all originating toll
quent group meetings, through advice messages are routed to another office
on problems of all kinds relating to for handling are called full tributary
the industry, and through their re- exchanges. In some cases a connect-
lationship with the United States ing company operator handles to com-
Independent Telephone Association. pletion certain originating messages,
There have been many evidences of usually those destined to points to
cooperation between the Bell System which the originating exchange has
companies and the connecting tele- direct circuits, while the remaining
phone companies and their state and originating messages are routed to an-
national associations. Problems of other office for handling to completion.
mutual interest, including those deal- These exchanges are called AB or
ing with the interchange of toll mes- CLR tributaries. The exchanges at
sages, frequently are discussed at the which all originating messages are
state association meetings as well as handled are called toll centers.
at meetings of the United States Inde-
Handling Interchanged Messages
pendent Telephone Association. The
national and state associations have 1 HE growing out of
relationships
been of great value to connecting com- the exchange of millions of toll mes-
panies throughout the country. sages between connecting companies
and Bell companies cover practically
Another indication of the important every phase of the business. Only
part connecting companies play in the through the closest cooperation is it
industry is the fact that during 1940 possible to coordinate the efforts of
about 94,000,000 interchanged toll both groups so that a high grade of
messages were originated by cus- telephone service will be provided.
tomers of connecting companies. The This involves not only the provision
services performed by connecting of adequate plant, as to both grade
companies in the handling of so many and quantity, but also the use of such
millions of interchanged toll messages traffic operating methods and routings
vary considerably, of course. In all as will achieve speed and accuracy in
cases the connecting company bills the handling of the messages to and
and collects the charges for Bell toll from all points encountered in nation-
messages sent paid or received collect wide service. messages may
Toll
by its customers, and it performs the originate anywhere and likewise ter-
inward toll operating on all messages minate anywhere, and the prompt and
that terminate in its exchanges. In efficient handling of the millions of
some cases the connecting company such messages requires carefully
operators handle to completion (su- thought-out operating methods and
pervise, time, and ticket) toll mes- practices.
sages which originate in their ex- In order to achieve a universally
changes, while in other cases orig- good telephone service on calls be-
90 Bell Telephone Magazine MAY
2 Toll .? Toll 5 Toll 7 Toll W Toll

(lenters- (lenlers- (lenters- Cenlers- Genlers-
i Group 3 Groups 10 Groups 21 Groups ^45 Groups
Fig. 3. Groups of Toll Circuits Required for Direct Connections between

Various Numbers of Toll Centers
tween any two customers, regardless From the standpoint of improved

of where they are located or whether service to the customer, it is desirable,
they are customers of a Bell company whenever feasible, to provide operat-
or a connecting company, it is neces- ing practices that will permit the call-
sary to provide toll circuits in such ing customer to remain at his tele-
numbers and so arranged that satis- phone while the connection is being
factory connections may be estab- established. Any improvements in
lished quickly. Toll connections may equipment or operating practices that
require operators at a number of tele- reduce the time of establishing con-
phone central along the route
offices nections or in other ways improve the
to connect together toll lines in order service to customers are extremely im-
to build up the toll circuit between the portant and are being continually
calling and called customers. These studied.
points of connection are referred to as
"intermediate switching points" or oiNCE 1925 the speed of service of
"switches." Each additional switch handled by Bell Companies
toll calls
introduced in a built-up toll connec- has been improved from an average
tion increases the time required to es- of 7.3 minutes to 1.4 minutes at the
tablish the connection and reduces present time. It has long been recog-
somewhat the volume of speech trans- nized that to give an efficient and
mitted. The telephone plant must speedy service requires methods of
therefore be designed so that the operating such that an operator any-
standards of transmission and number where in the country will understand
of switches required on any call will the request of any other operator any-
be such that satisfactory transmission where else in the country. Obviously,
of speech will be provided. The toll these matters require close coopera-
calls on which it is most difficult to tion between Bell and connecting
give a high grade of service are those companies, and the service today ex-
scattered calls between customers lo- emplifies such cooperation. The
cated in remote and widely separated modifications and changes made from
exchanges, because it is difficult to time to time in central office equip-
establish such connections and still ment, outside plant, and operating
keep the number of switches to a practices have permitted the satisfac-
minimum. tory handling of toll business which
has grown tremendously over the is known as the " General Toll Switch-
years. The connecting companies ing Plan." This plan was developed
have done their share in contributing and adopted by the Bell System just
ideas as to improvement of both equip- before 1930.
ment and operating technique. It is of interest to note in passing
Itwas early recognized that to pro- that the Toll Switching Plan has been
vide an adequate number of direct toll carefully studied by telephone engi-
circuits from each toll center to every neers of the various European tele-
other toll center in the country was phone organizations. In 1938 the
impracticable. For example, to con- International Telephone Consultative
nect two toll centers, only one group Committee (C.C.I.F.), at its meeting
of circuits would be required; for in Oslo, adopted rules and regulations
direct connections for three toll cen- along fundamentally the same lines
ters, three groups; for five toll cen- for international connections within
ters, 10 groups; for 10 toll centers, 45 Europe.
groups; for 100 toll centers, 4950 The purpose of the plan is to pro-
groups; for 1000 toll centers, nearly vide systematically a basic plant lay-
one-half million groups of toll circuits, out designed for the highest prac-
and so on. This is indicated diagram- ticable standards of service consistent
matically in Figure 3. with economy, including speed and
Another means of establishing toll accuracy.
connections between toll centers might
be to provide direct circuit groups An important part of the develop-

from each toll center to only its ment of the plan was the determina-
nearby toll centers, thus providing a tion of proper transmission require-
network of circuits between all toll
centers in the country. Under such
an arrangement, a toll connection be-
tween distant toll centers could be
built up by switches at each interven-
ing toll center. Such a plan would be
most impracticable, however, as it
would, in many cases, require too
many switches to permit establishing
a speedy, efficient and economical
service.
The General Toll Switching Plan

A GREAT deal of consideration was
given to the broad general problem
involved in the routing of calls and
FiG. 4. Toll Centers and Primary
provision of adequate circuits, which Outlets
finally led to thedevelopment of the
This diagram shows the operation of the
fundamental layout of toll plant and General Toll Switching Plan within a
routing of toll messages which today limited area
j
ments for each connecting link be- traffic and economically.

speedily
tween offices, such that any toll con- Within same area a small number
this
nection established in accordance with of the more important toll centers
the plan would have satisfactory were selected as "primary outlets."
transmission efficiency. All technical In general, each toll center in the area
measures of the quality of service, in- is directly connected to at least one of
cluding speed, accuracy and transmis- these outlets, and each primary outlet
sion, indicate that the difficulty of is directly connected to the other pri-
giving satisfactory service increases mary outlets within the area. This
rapidly with the number of intermedi- makes it possible, as seen in Figure 4,
ate switches. The General Toll to connect any two toll centers within
Switching Plan, therefore, in addition that part of the area served by the
to establishing standards of design same primary outlet with a maximum
that will provide satisfactory trans- of one switch, and within the entire
mission, involves the layout of the toll area with a maximum of two switches.
circuits in such a manner as to reduce
to a minimum the number of switches Choosing the Primary Outlets
required to connect any two tele-
phones. It is obvious that the pro- 1 HE selection of the primary outlets
vision of such circuits and routing of required not only a study of the par-
calls must be considered not only from ticular area involved but also careful
the standpoint of traffic between any consideration of its relation to the na-
two particular points but also from tion-wide plan. A minimum number
the standpoint of the best over-all of primary outlets in a given area,
arrangement to provide a flexible and capable of handling the traffic, is es-
economical nation-wide system. The sential, since the number of circuit

importance of this is emphasized by groups between the primary outlets
the rapid growth in the volume of increases appreciably as the number
long-haul traffic. of primary outlets is increased. This
The general features of the Toll point will be emphasized by again re-
Switching Plan, as applied to a limited ferring to Figure 3 but now consider-
area, such as a State, required the se- ing each of the toll centers shown
lection of a minimum number of ex- there as primary outlets. For ex-
changes as toll centers. The selection ample, ten groups of circuits are re-
was based on a careful study of the quired to interconnect five primary
existing and probable future develop- outlets, and 21 groups are required to
ment of toll traffic within the area, interconnect seven primary outlets.
and the ability of such exchanges to The selection of certain exchanges
handle the toll operating work from as toll centers, and certain of these as
the standpoint of facilities available, primary outlets,was made from the
including lay-out of toll line plant and standpoint of furnishing the highest
other factors. The selection of such practicable standards of service con-
exchanges also required a careful an- sistent with economy, and without re-
alysis in order to arrive at the best dis- gard to the ownership of the exchange
tribution of toll centers to handle the involved. This resulted in the selec-
LEGEND
% REGIONAL CENTERS
O PRIMARY OUTLETS
• TOLL CENTERS
Fig. 6. Primary Outlets and Regional Centers

Each primary outlet is directly connected with at least one of the country's
eight regional centers
tion of about 2400 toll centers in the mately each regional center may be
United States, of which about 590 are directly connected to every other re-
connecting company exchanges, and gional center in the country. At the
in the selection ofabout 140 of the present time, through the circuits pro-
toll centers as primary outlets, of vided by the plan and other direct cir-
which nine are connecting company any one of the primary outlets
cuits,
exchanges. The distribution of the can be connected to another primary
primary outlets throughout the coun- outlet served by the same regional
try is shown in Figure 5. center with a maximum of one switch,
or can be connected to any other pri-
1 o facilitate the handling of the mary outlet in the country with a
longer haul business throughout the maximum of two switches.
country, eight of the primary outlets In addition to the routes provided
located in the larger cities have been by the plan for country-wide service,
designated as "regional centers," as illustrated in Figure 6, direct cir-
which are also shown in Figure 5. cuits or other routings are also pro-
The method of routing calls
between vided where the volume of business
exchanges in different regional areas is sufficient to make it desirable. Fig-
is illustrated by Figure 6. The plan ure 7 illustrates such supplementary
contemplates that each primary outlet circuits by dashed lines. The use of
will be connected with at least one re- such circuits is illustrated in the case
gional center and with as many more of a call from a connecting company
as is practicable. If the traffic vol- customer in Centerview, Missouri, to
umes increase sufficiently, then ulti- a telephone in the connecting com-
1941 Independent Telephone Companies 95
LEGEND
# REGrONAL CENTERS
O PRIMARY OUTLETS
• TOLL CENTERS
Fig, 7. Supplementary Circuits

In addition to the basic circuits of the General Toll Switching Plan, supplementary circuits
(shown by dashed lines) are established when the volume of traffic warrants
pany exchange at Gibsonville, North Bell System. As a result of extensive

Carolina, as shown in Figure 8. development work in its Laboratories
The toll circuit groups between re- and through the provision of the high-
gional centers, and in some cases be- est grade of facilities throughout, it
tween primary outlets, frequently has been possible to reduce the trans-
have a large number of circuits be- mission loss to a very low value. This
cause of the large volumes of traffic is likewise generally true of the cir-
involved. More calls per circuit can cuits between primary outlets and re-
be operated over a large group of gional centers.
circuits than over a small group. For
example, the available conversation
time per circuit in a group of ten cir-
1 DLL calls vary in length, from a few
cuits is almost 22 per cent greater
miles to across the continent. The
than the available conversation time charges for calls also vary, depending
per circuit in a group of two circuits. not only on distance and length of
This demonstrates why it is fre- conversation but also on whether the
quently more efficient and economical call is person-to-person or station-to-
to back-haul the routing of a toll call station and whether week-day rates or
so that it may be routed via a large night and Sunday rates apply. On
group of high grade circuits with good calls toand from customers of con-
transmission and a fewer number of necting companies, these companies
switches, as is the case shown in participate in the furnishing of the
Figure 8, All of the circuits between service and hence are entitled to a
regional centers are furnished by the part of the revenue on each such mes-
MEW YORK
^9
LEGEND
ST. LOUIS % REGIONAL CENTER / GIBSONVILLE, N. C.
O PRIMARY OUTLET
WARRENSBURG, MO. GREENSBORO, N. C.
CENTERVIEW, MO.
ATLANTA
Fig. 8. B.\CK-HAULmG a Call between Centerview and Gibsonville

The longer way 'round (dashed lines) is the shorter way home in this instance, requiring
only two switches —
at Kansas City and New York —
between terminating toll centers. In
the absence of these high-quality direct circuits between Kansas City-New York and New
York-Greensboro, the call would be routed via the regional toll centers (solid lines) and would
require switches at Kansas City, St. Louis, and Atlanta
sage. The business relationships aris- joyed today didn't just happen, but is
ing from the vast interchange of toll the result of careful planning, together
messages are described in traffic agree- with excellent teamwork on the part
ments executed between the connect- of hundreds of thousands of em-
ing company and the Bell company ployees engaged in the industry.
with which it connects. The agree- While the Bell System and the con-
ments define the responsibilities and necting companies throughout the
duties of each of the companies, and country have for years worked to-
specify the points of connection of the gether harmoniously to provide this
systems and the toll operating that is country with the best telephone serv-
to be performed by each. The agree- ice in the world, they are now even
ments also provide for the basis of more determined in their efforts to
division of revenues derived from the meet successfully the important prob-
interchanged business. lems that will face the industry during
The fine toll service which is en- the coming days.
TRENDS IN TOLL CABLE USAGE
Telephone Engineering, Scientific Research, and Manufacturing
Skill Are Represented in the Wide and Constantly Growing
Toll Cable Network Designed to Insure Service Dependability
By ARTHUR F. ROSE
W •ITH national
present time, the importance of the

Bell System toll
not be overestimated.
defense
dependability of telephone
service the keynote at the
cable network can-

and
came
almost with the first conception of
the telephone and its possible use in
business and social activities.
Only a short time after the inven-
tion of the telephone in 1876, it
clear that the interconnection of

be-
As early as 1909, when Washington telephones in individual cities would

was substantially isolated by an ice be the initial step in the development
storm during President Taft's inaugu- of this new device, but for maximum
ration, the management of the Bell usefulness it would also be necessary
System realized the need for a more to interconnect the telephones in dif-
satisfactory form of long telephone ferent cities. The first long distance
circuit than generally used at that telephone line was a grounded cop-
time. A large amount of engineering per circuit about two miles in length
effort was at once devoted to the solu- between the Walworth Manufacturing
tion of the problem, and during the Company in Boston and their works
lifetime of many engineers still in Bell in Cambridge. It consisted of copper
System service the character of the wire suspended by glass insulators.
plant has changed, from one generally Up to about 1900, the early long dis-
subject to the rebuffs of nature to one tance telephone circuits in the United
that sturdily stands through many of States were practically all of this type
her most savage attacks. of construction, although it had soon
Between these extremes is the story been found that for the longer circuits
of scientific research, manufacturing the ground return at first used would
skill,and pioneer methods of engi- not give satisfactory results. By the
neering, combining to foil the tele- use of metallic (i.e., two-wire instead
—
phone's ancient enemy the ice storm of grounded) copper circuits, consid-
— and also to meet the social and erable distances were covered and by
economic needs of a growing nation. 1884 a New York-Boston circuit had
The sequence of events leading up been established.
to our present toll cable network starts The open wire lines, however, soon
^ -o
\-, o
i9îi Trends in Toll Cable Usage 99
became inadequate to carry all the spanned with this type of construction.
toll circuits required and were subject In 1902 a toll cable, the first in the
to damage from heavy ice conditions United States to be equipped with
which frequently broke either the these inductances, known as loading,
wires or the supporting poles and was placed between New York City
crossarms. Before the turn of the and Newark, New Jersey, a distance
century, the management of the Bell of only about 11 miles, but this his-
System had come to appreciate the toric step was merely the advance
need for improving the reliability of guard of a continuing development
the more important toll circuits be- which gradually but with increasing
tween the larger cities, and there was strength spread across the country.
continuous experimentation directed In 1906 cables were placed between
toward finding some way to remove New York and New Haven, and New
the toll circuits from open-wire type York and Philadelphia; and, spurred
of construction and put them in cable, on by the critical failure at the time of
where a lead sheath protects the cir- the Taft inauguration, an underground
cuits from direct action of ice and cable between Boston and Washing-
other hazards. With cable, moreover, ton, a distance of about 450 miles, was
it is readily practicable to protect the completed by 1913. This cable repre-
circuits further by placing them un- sented about the practical limit of
derground whenever this seems desir- loaded cable transmission at that time.
able and economical. The problem The next step in the extension of
appeared to be almost insurmount- the application of cables to the toll
able, as the transmission losses were network required the development of

so large that with the types of cables a new toolknown as the telephone re-
available a few miles of cable trans- peater. The repeater, a device placed
mission was equivalent to 100 miles or at intervals along a telephone line,
more of open wire transmission. For adds new energy and revives the dy-
some years after suitable cables had ing speech currents, sending them
been developed, this higher loss re- along the circuit with renewed vigor.
sulted in their being used only in cities, The first crude applications of the
or in very small amounts where they telephone repeater were made early
were permitted in the open wire lines in the 20th century on both open wire
under conditions which made such and cable; but it was not until 1914,
construction imperative. A long toll when the use of the repeater resulted
cable between cities was unheard of. in a satisfactory transcontinental tele-
phone conversation, that the repeater
Extending the Range of Cable
reached a point in its development
After many discouragements, it was where it could be used with assurance
found that under carefully controlled as part of plant design.
conditions the insertion of inductance As soon as it had been proved by
at regular intervals along the cable the transcontinental experiments that
line greatly improved the electrical ef- the vacuum tube repeater was satis-
ficiency of the cable circuits and per- factory, it was applied to toll cables
mitted much longer distances to be and resulted in a rapid expansion of
16 200 The Production of Cable

During the years 1929 and 1930,
when the toll cable network was pre-
Id 12 150
viously expanding at its maximum
ii.
rate, the toll manufacturing
cable
o plants were called upon to produce
O
3 tremendous quantities of cable for
O
in Bell System toll purposes. As the toll
8 8 100 H
cables vary considerably in size, a
O LEGEND
CABLE quantity representing a product of the
tn CABLE CAROIER
z
o number of wires in the cable and the
_l
length of the cable in feet has been
(O 4 50
used as an indication of the manufac-
turing effort involved in producing the
cables. Figure 2 shows the produc-
M tion of toll cable expressed in this way
m ^
for four past periods. be noted
It will
1910 1920 1930 1940
# NO CABLE CARRIER INSTALLED UNTIL 1938 from this chart that during 1930 the
Fig. 2
Western Electric toll cable shipments
reached the tremendous high of 15 bil-
Production of toll cable, expressed in billions
lion conductor feet in that one year.
of conductor feet, at four different periods
The toll wire mileage included in the
cables installed that year would be
the toll cable network. The barrier of
sufficient to encircle the globe at the
distance was thus practically removed,
equator more than 100 times.
and from that time on economic con-
siderations largely controlled the fu-
The next point of interest in con-
nection with Figure 2 is the fact that
ture expansion of the toll cable net-
work. By the end of 1930 the exten-
in 1940 the amount of cable manufac-
sions of toll cable covered the entire
tured and shipped by the Western
northeastern quarter of the United
Electric Company and installed by
States. During the next decade, how-
the Telephone Companies was
Bell
ever, further progress went on at a only about one-tenth as much as was

somewhat slower rate because of the shipped in 1930. These surprising to-
business depression; but at the pres- tals occurred in the face of a rising
ent time the cable network is again demand for circuits; toll messages in
being extended rapidly, with the pros- 1939-1940 increased at a considerably

pect that by the end of next year the higher rate than in 1929-30 and there-
east and west coasts will have been fore theoretically a larger increase in
connected by a transcontinental cable. cable demand would have been ex-
Most of the important cities of the pected, even allowing for differences
country will then be tied together by in plant margins existing in the two
toll cables, presenting a tremendous periods. But actually only Yio of the
contrast with the picture existing 30 previous record shipment of 1930 was
years ago as seen in Figure 1. ordered by the companies in 1940.
/54f Trends in Toll Cable Usage 101
The reason for this was the fact that cable needed by the Bell Telephone
in the meantime an important change Companies, for even although many
had taken place in the type of cable more circuit miles were theoretically
used for toll purposes, springing out required in 1940 than in 1930, some
of constant effort to develop cheaper were supplied by carrier and much
and better ways of providing toll cir- fewer conductor miles were actually
cuits, needed and installed.
Under the older technique, the larg-
1 HE cables which were put in dur- est standardtoll cables were approxi-
ing the very early years of the cable mately 2^2 inches in diameter, con-
art, such as the cable between
first tained about 300 pairs of wires, and
Boston, New York and Washington, produced about 225 voice channels.
employed large gauge conductors, Under the carrier technique, 300 pairs
each wire without its insulation being can be made to yield 1800 voice chan-
nearly half as thick as an ordinary nels when completely equipped with
lead pencil. With the advent of the carrier systems. To do this, however,
telephone repeater, there was no need the 300 pairs must be divided between
to employ so much copper and it was two cables, one for transmission in
much cheaper to use a smaller size one direction and the other for trans-
conductor. Therefore, the wires in mission in the reverse direction. Of
the cables used between 1915 and course, 1800 circuits would hardly
1930 were largely composed of 19 ever be required on a single route, and
gauge conductors, about as thick as for this reason most of the cables be-
the fine lead in an ordinary automatic ing installed at the present time con-
pencil. This was the cable technique sist of a pair of much smaller cables,
which, with a demand for circuits perhaps 40 or 50 pairs each. Two 50
somewhat smaller than in 1940, repair cables are large enough, however,
sulted in the very large quantity of to have an ultimate circuit capacity
toll cable shown in Chart 2 for 1930. more than twice as great as one of the
During the early 30's, when growth 300 pair cables of an earlier day.
was at a low ebb and few cable ex-
Repeaters and Other Equipment
tensions were being made, the Bell
Laboratories continued actively at In connection with the difference in
their development work, and by the the size of the cable, it is to be borne
end of the period a new step in the inmind that the multiplication of the
cable art had been taken. This new number of circuits per pair of wires
art still utilized the small gauge con- in the cable is attained by the addition
ductors of the previous decade, but of new and complicated types of car-
each pair of wires provided 6 times rier equipment. Under the older
more circuits than previously. This technique, the cost of equipment and
tremendous increase resulted from the terminations was already an impor-
application to cable of the carrier tant part of the total cost of the cir-
technique which had been utilized for cuits. With the carrier technique, the
many years on open wire circuits. equipment and terminations are a still
This naturally affected the amount of larger proportion of the total cost.
Fig. 3. Exterior of an Auxiliary
Repeater Station
Buildings such as these, normally un-
aliended, are along the routes
located of
cable carrier-system toll lines
reaching effects. Previously, cables

were installed either aerially on pole
lines or underground in conduit, de-
pending on the expected growth, the
former method being used on slow
growing routes and the latter being
justified when 2 or 3 cables could be
Under the carrier technique, sev-
foreseen in the next 10-20 years.
eral channels are amplified by each
With the new method of installation,
repeater, but the repeaters are needed
it iseconomically practicable to place
at more frequent intervals along the cable underground, and therefore ob-
line. Under the old voice technique, tain greater security, even although
telephone repeaters were placed at 50
one cable represents the ultimate for
to 100 mile spacing, while under the
the route in question.
new technique the higher frequencies
used require new energy about every Plowing Cables into the Ground
17 miles.
Figure 3 shows an outside view of 1 HIS new method involves a single
a typical auxiliary repeater station of operation of trenching and cable lay-
the new art. These small buildings ing, and can be employed on a very
are generally
about 20 feet square large percentage of the toll route mile-
and house as many as 100 repeaters, age involved in our present cable ex-
amplifying 1200 voice channels. The tensions. The engineers of the Amer-
compact manner in which apparatus ican Company have developed a plow
is fitted into one of these small re- with a hollow share through which the
peater stationsis very interesting and toll cables are fed directly from the
can be readily seen in Figure 4. No toll cable reels into the furrow cut in
space is provided for permanent op- the ground as the plow is dragged
erating forces, and the building is along by powerful tractors. In the
designed wholly for telephone repeat- case of the present extension of
ers, power supply, and control equip- the transcontinental cable west from
ment. The maintenance men who Omaha, there are two cables of about
take care of these repeater stations are 60 pairs each which are being plowed
usually located at about every third in simultaneously at the rate of sev-
repeater point, corresponding to the eral miles a day. Figure 5 shows such
50 mile spacing of the old voice tech- a tractor train pulling in cable. In
nique. Remotely operated alarms tell order for this installation, which is to
of trouble if any develops, but other- interconnect the east and west coasts
wise the buildings are not visited ex- by cable, to be completed at the earli-
cept occasionally for routine checks. est possible moment as a part of our
Along with the development of the defense activities, plans have been
small cable and carrier method de- worked out so that the plowing-in can
scribed above, there has been a cor- be carried on 24 hours a day, if neces-
responding advance in cable installa- sary and weather permitting. This
tion methods which will have far has been accomplished by equipping
1 9 '4 1 Trends in Toll Cable Usage 103
the tractor trains with lights to enable cisco and Los Angeles, for cables are
them to operate at night almost as already available from New York to
easily as in the daytime. It is ex- Omaha and from Sacramento to San
pected that the transcontinental cable Francisco and Los Angeles.
will be completed before the end of The net result of the rapid expan-
1942, and will result in all cable cir- sion of the toll cable network is a
cuits from New York to San Fran- great addition to the security of the
FîG. 4. Lnterior of an Auxiliary Repeater Station

Inside the building shown on the opposite page are compactly arranged the repeaters and
associated equipment for amplifying the voice channels transmitted by carrier current
104 Bell I i;m:phone .Maca/im: MA Y
Fig. 5. Plowing Cables into the Ground

Cables from the two reels feed into the furrow through the hollow share of the plow behind the
tractor. In heavy going it is not unusual to find two tractors, tandem-fashion, supplying
the motive power
toll message plant. The cables, after through swamps, below the bottoms
being plowed in across farm lands, of creeksand rivers, are more free
from damage and interruption from
12,000
storms than their predecessors, many
of which were on pole lines and, there-
fore, exposed to many possibilities of
damage. Aerial cables, with their lead
sheath protection, were much superior
to open wire lines, but were still sub-
ject tosome hazards, such as small
boys using them as targets for their
small rifles, or traffic accidents along
highways.
As more and more circuits are placed

in cable, our long distance services
become increasingly dependable. It
is interesting to note how steady this

trend has been and to what extent the
toll circuits of the Bell System are
now in comparatively storm-proof
plant. The accompanying chart ( Fig-
ure 6) shows how the long distance
Relative proportions of toll cable and open
circuits, practically entirely exposed
wire in the Bell System at four different
periods to the elements in 1910, have now
19^1 Trends in Toll Cable Usage 105
reached a point where about 75 per cable network, but already substantial
cent of the circuit miles used for long progress has been made. By the end
distance purposes are in cable. of 1942, as a result of a continuing
When one looks at the toll cable program of cable extension over past
map accompanying this article, there years, 82 per cent of our larger cities,
stillappears to be a large part of the those over 50,000 population, will be
country which is not reached by toll reached directly by the cable network.
cables. It should be borne in mind, Of the remaining percentage not on
however, that a large portion of the the cable network, many are in areas
United States is not subject to ice- not subject to severe storms and there-
storm damage and that the older open fore comparatively free from service
wire construction is adequate for these interruptions. The replacement of
parts of the country. Also, through open wire will continue, of course,
sparsely settled parts of the country, and before many more years have
where toll circuit development is low, passed the prospect is that the other
the open-wire line must necessarily large cities will be connected to the
continue to be used because of its cable network and thus approach
lower cost per circuit under such con- closer to the ideal of the Bell System
ditions. For these reasons we have for "a telephone service . . . free
not yet attained the ideal of reaching . . . from imperfections, errors or
all important towns by means of the delays."
CHEMISTRY BEHIND THE TELEPHONE
The Service of Chemistry to the Telephone Industry Is the Constant

Scrutiny and Experimental Reconstitution of the Stuffs That
Things Are Made Of
By ROBERT R. WILLIAMS
This is the text of an anniversary radio ing parts of the transmitter. To pre-
broadcast made on March 11, 1941, over vent this, the most modern instru-
Station WGY, Schenectady, by the Chem- ments are furnished with a thin
ical Director of the Bell Telephone Lab- impregnated silk membrane which
oratories. detains the moisture but not the
was
sound. Many materials were found
YESTERDAY the sixty-fifth
to sag in wet weather, and muffled the
anniversary of the first tele-
voice, or they tightened in dry air to
phone conversation. What
meant for the com-
give a drum-like reverberation. A
the telephone has
new synthetic rubber-like impregnant
fort of mankind in those intervening
proved to have the desired properties.
years brought strongly to my mind
is
Once through this moisture barrier,
by an incident of my boyhood. With
the voice must actuate the diaphragm,
difficulty I was roused in the small
which is made of a light aluminum al-
hours of a Kansas morning and told
loy and accordingly responds to gentle
to ride for the doctor while my pa-
sounds. Yet it must be rigid, an ef-
rents rendered first aid to a desper-
fect which is produced by precipita-
ately sick neighbor. With what heart tion within the metal of an ingredient
swellings I set out on the nine mile which is soluble in molten aluminum
journey through the night. As, re- but which separates as fine particles
turning, the dawn broke over the hills as the metal cools and is rolled into
on the drooping head of my weary sheets. The principle is widely used
horse, the duty had become for me, for making alloys which must be both
adventure. light and strong; for example, aircraft
But if, as now, I send my voice out parts.
over the telephone on some neces- The diaphragm passes the sound
sitous midnight errand, the sound waves on to the transmitter carbon in
waves also have a journey of adven- tiny waves of pressure. The trans-
ture. Adventure begins just inside mitter carbon particles, of the size of
the perforated disc into which I sand grains, are hard and shiny to
speak. For my expelled breath car- resist abrasion. They also have the
ries not only sound but also moisture somewhat unique property of varying
which might corrode the delicate mov- greatly in electrical resistance as they
i9H Chemistry Behind the Telephone 107
are compressed by the movements of underground, where the sheath is sub-

the diaphragm. An electrical current from stray earth cur-
ject to corrosion
from a battery flows through the car- rents. Part of it may be supported
bon grains as one speaks, in a volume by poles, on strands of steel. The
which varies momentarily with the poles are subject to the attack of
sound wave pressure. This device, wood-rotting organisms of the mush-
the microphone, is therefore in a true room family and must be protected
sense the heart of the telephone, for it by toxic substances, such as creosote,
converts sound energy into pulsations within the cells. Part of the path is
of electrical current. If the carbon usually over wires which are insulated
varied greatly in resistance from day with rubber and exposed to sun and
to day or from one instrument to an- sleet and to tossing tree branches.
other, it would be impossible to repro- The rubber must be tough or it will
duce the sounds of modulated speech; cut through at the insulators under
or if the carbon grains wore to a pow- sleet load; it must be protected from
der, frying noises would be mixed in the sun by weatherproof braid or it
with the speech. Important means to will soon lose its pliability and
avoid these evils are the selection of strength.
low-ash, hard anthracite as raw mate-
rial and the adjustment of the roast- W HERE my electrical voice passes
ing process to give a carbon of low through central offices to be connected
hydrogen content. to the proper party among the many
I might call, textile insulations are
IVlY voice, now converted into elec- much used to aid flexible and compact
trical impulses, travels with a speed arrangements. There is ample chance
approaching that of light but not for the voice currents to leak away
without incidents on its further jour- through the internal moisture of the
ney. It might go astray and be lost fibres unless the textiles are highly
in the earth or in the framework of purified of traces of conducting salts.
the central office building, if it were Tarnish films may form at any one
not securely directed along its proper of thousands of electrical contacts and
path. Outdoors its path is guarded my voice may balk at the gap caused
by insulating materials. These may by a faint film or be distorted by in-
be shielded from atmospheric mois- visible arcs sputtering through it. All
ture, as in the case of the paper wrap- these insulations and conducting or
pings around each wire of the cables, contact materials are safeguarded by
which in turn are encased in lead chemists who study their initial com-
sheaths hermetically sealed from end positions and the degradations they
to end. Inside, there is a highly des- may undergo from electrolysis or cor-
iccated atmosphere, which in the case rosion from dust or atmospheric mois-
of long cables consists of nitrogen un- ture or impurities. All along its route
der pressure connected to a signal the channels which carry the electri-
system which sets off an alarm in case cal counterpart of my voice are sub-
the sheath is perforated. ject to slow deteriorative processes
Part of my voice's path may lie which may be likened to the hard-
108 Bell Telephone Magazine MAY
ening of our arteries as age creeps which the filament provides. The
through our bodies. Much of what electrons emanate from a coating on
the chemist is called upon to do in the the filament composed of barium and
telephone industry is to anticijâte and strontium oxides. Its structure and
to retard their progress. composition give it the quality of a
If my voice has far to go, its feeble spring-board from which the other-
currents will be greatly weakened in wise bound electrons may leap off into
their travels by dissipation in the line. space.
This effect is reduced by passing these
currents through copper coils wound Arrived at the station called, the
'round a magnetic core. The action electrical record of my voice must be
of these loading coils may be likened retranslated into speech. This is
to a step-up transformer at the termi- done by passing the voice currents
nals of a power To be most ef-
line. through a coil which lies between a
fective, the core must be very perme- diaphragm of magnetic material and
able to magnetic lines of force but a strong but small permanent magnet.
highly resistant to induced electrical As the voice pulses rise in the coil,
currents. The results are best pro- they add to the field strength of the
duced by alloys of iron and nickel so permanent magnet and draw the dia-
brittle that they can be ground to a phragm toward the magnet; as the
fine powder. Each particle is then pulses fall, they subtract from the
insulated from its neighbors and the magnet's field strength and allow the
powder pressed into the desired shape diaphragm to fall away. The move-
to form the core. ments of the receiver diaphragm so
If the distance is still greater, my faithfully reproduce the movements
voice must be rejuvenated periodi- of the transmitter diaphragm against
cally by passing through an amplifier. which spoke that you not only un-
I
This could be done by interposing a derstand my message but you recog-
receiver and transmitter in the line nize my voice. The nicety of repro-
and, so to speak, make the telephone duction is greatly aided by nicety of
shout into its own ear. Nowadays, composition, both of the magnet and
however, done by imposing the
it is the diaphragm. Their compositions
voice current on a grid past which is are different, but each is preponder-
flowing a stream of electrons from a antly iron plus cobalt. The addition
hot filament to a plate. When the of vanadium diaphragm facili-
in the
pulses of the voice current reach their tates its manufacture without impair-
peaks, the grid is positively charged ing its sensitivity to the weak voice
and catches many electrons to rein- pulses; the inclusion of molybdenum
force the pulse; as the voice pulses in the magnet provides a permanent
approach their valleys, the grid is and compact source of magnetic force.
negatively charged and repels the So chemistry serves the telephone
electrons. So the voice currents are as it serves medicine, manufacturing
re-accentuated and go on their way. and other callings, by constant scru-
Their revitalization is essentially due tiny and experimental reconstitution
to the reservoir of free electrons of the stuffs that things are made of.
FOR THE RECORD
^^y^
OUR PART IN THE NATION S DEFENSE PROGRAM: A STATE-

MENT BY PRESIDENT GIFFORD AT THE ANNUAL MEETING
OF STOCKHOLDERS ON APRIL 16
W E of the Bell System are concentrating room for still another 15 positions if they
on doing well our part in our country's are needed.
defense program, which in size and speed Another example of the speed with
is undoubtedly the biggest job ever under- which we can move, and also of the fine
taken by any country. It is not easy, in spirit of our people, occurred when we
a few words, to portray to you the mag- were asked to furnish telephone service
nitude of our task and the diversity of ahead of schedule for a big ordnance plant
the problems we must face and solve in which was being constructed not far from
carrying out our part in that defense St. Louis, Missouri. Crews of the South-
program. Perhaps it will help if I try to western Bell Telephone Company got on
illustrate by specific instances. the job at daybreak on last Thanksgiving
Last September we learned that Camp morning, ate their Thanksgiving dinners
Edwards, up on Cape Cod, was to have a beside the road, and in three days, work-
quota of upwards of 25,000 men. The ing from daylight to dark, put in five miles
camp is located between two small towns, of plowed-in cable and open wire along
and it was up to us to figure out how to a heavily traveled highway.
furnish adequate service for this big mili-
tary establishment. We weighed all the
and the upshot was the deci-
possibilities, On Sunday, January 26, fire gutted the
sion to build an entirely new central office Administration Building at the Norfolk
at Cataumet, not far from the camp. On Naval Base, in the territory of The Chesa-
October 4 the New England Telephone peake and Potomac Telephone Company
and Telegraph Company broke ground for of Virginia, completely interrupting all
a brick building of colonial design, to communication service through the head-

house an initial installation of 30 switch- quarters of the Fifth Naval District. The
board operators' positions. Installation facilities destroyed included the private
started on November 4, and by January 4 branch switchboard, power plant, interior
the operating force had been trained and cables and cable records. The alarm was
everything was in readiness for service given at 9:30 a.m. By 11 a.m. and re- —
— three months to the day after ground member that this was a Sunday about —
was broken. The sequel to this is that 40 telephone installers, splicers, linemen,
already 15 more switchboard positions engineers and staff men were at the scene
have been ordered, increasing the capacity with trucks, tools and equipment. Half
of the central office by half, and there is an hour later, telephone service had been
109
provided over temporary facilities to the quickly passed on to the operating com-
offices of the Commandant of the Fifth pany in whose territory the project is to
Naval District and his aides. Two small take shape; to the Western Electric dis-
sections of private branch switchboard tributing house serving that company and
had also been obtained locally, and tem- to Western's headquarters; and to the
porary service for other vital telephones A. T. & T. staff in New York. The oper-
at the Base was being given by Sunday ating company begins at once to survey
afternoon. the kind and amount of work it will have
By Sunday noon a preliminary survey to do and the plant which will be needed,
had been completed, and the local people and Western Electric schedules tentatively
had Western Electric 's Kearny Works on the probable order for the private branch
the wire. By ten o'clock that night a com- switchboard, distribution cable, and other
plete new 10-position private branch items which the project will require. Our
switchboard, weighing five tons, was ready staff people here are always available, and
to go. It was packed in a special car are frequently consulted about various as-
which was attached to a passenger express pects of such an undertaking.
train, and reached Norfolk at 10:30 Mon- As each project becomes more definite,
day morning. Western's Hawthorne plans for manufacture and construction
Works, in Chicago, and its Washington can proceed with assurance. By the time
distributing house also shipped a consider- the order has actually been signed, much
ableamount of miscellaneous relay equip- preliminary work has been accomplished.
ment and cable for the restoration. When We have been quite successful so far in
the new equipment arrived on Monday, meeting scheduled dates for service to
Chesapeake and Potomac plant men and defense projects. Of course, in many
Western Electric installers were on hand cases our Operating Companies and West-
to install it quickly. The Nav>'^ co- ern Electric have had to work under pres-
operated splendidly, our men worked day sure to do it.
and night, and service was being given

through the new switchboard just 69 hours
after the alarm offire had been given.
New or enlarged Army and Navy camps,
bases, aviation fields, and other military
establishments, together with Government-
Those are interesting examples, I think, owned or financed plants making ord-
of what we can and sometimes have to do. nance, aircraft and other war products
I could cite many other illustrations of where major telephone construction is
unusual activities of this kind going on involved, total about 600. This includes
here and there in the Bell System. Even establishments under construc-
planned,
under normal conditions every effort is tion, and completed. We have finished
made to work out and adhere to schedules substantial telephone installations at about
of construction and installation to meet 200 of these places, and the facilities
the requirements laid down by the defense at the remaining places will be ready
agencies. In order to cooperate quickly when needed. I want to use just one
and fully with the various government de- figure to illustrate the size of our job at
partments, the American Telephone and these 600 establishments: the cables which
Telegraph Company has maintained an we have already installed or expect to in-
office in Washington for some years. As stall in giving service to them will contain
soon as the decision has been made to a total of more than a million and a
build or enlarge a military or naval es- —
quarter miles of wire and that is enough
tablishment or a defense plant, word to wrap around the earth 50 times.
reaches our representatives there, and is Our part in the nation's defense activi-
110
ties is not by any means confined to the We have had for some time a group,
service we have already provided or will including representatives of the Bell Tele-
provide to these 600 Government estab- phone Laboratories, Western Electric, and
lishments. Many thousands of privately- our headquarters' staff, at work on sub-
owned industries are making military ma- stitutes for such critical materials as alu-
terials of all sorts, totalling billions of dol- minum, and magnesium, all
nickel, zinc,
lars,under direct contracts with the Gov- ofwhich are used in telephone apparatus.
ernment. The great activity in all of We have pledged to the Priorities Division
these military and manufacturing estab- of the Office of Production Management
lishments is reflected today throughout in Washington that we will make every
the whole industrial and social structure effort to reduce our use of such materials,
of the country,and is to a great degree the even at some penalty in cost and effective-
cause of the heavy demands generally for ness. It is not a simple matter, but we
telephone service and equipment. In have already made some real progress and
reality, therefore, a very large part of all we hope to go further.
our current telephone plant expansion is More than 200 of the Laboratories' sci-
directly associated with the nation's de- entists and engineers are engaged in re-
fense activity and is vital to it. search and development projects for the
Army and Navy and for the National De-
fense Research Committee. Some 60 of
In addition to manufacturing all the
the Laboratories' staff are employed in
equipment and materials needed by our
telephone problems which have been di-
Operating Companies for this huge con-
rectly occasionedby the national defense
struction job, Western Electric is furnish-
situation,and another 80 are engaged in
ing directly to the Army, Navy, the air
fundamental research for which the meth-
services and the Coast Guard, quantities
ods and point of view have been changed
of switchboards, cable, telephones, micro-
because of problems suggested by defense
phones, radio telephones, field sets, field
activities.
wire, and other items of communication
equipment. Moreover, Western's Speci-
alty Products Division has already re- The Selective Service Act has taken
ceived Government orders for highly about 700 of our men so far, and about
specialized communication equipment to- 1,500 who were members of the National
talling approximately $40,000,000. Guard and the Army, Navy, and Marine
These figures are a few days old, and Reserves are now on active duty. Despite
are therefore not complete, for even days these absences on leave, the number of
make a difference now. employees in the System, including the
Obviously, where camps, aviation fields, Western Electric Company and the Bell
ordnance plants, etc. are located in terri- Telephone Laboratories, has increased
tories by independent telephone
served 18,000 since the first of the year and is
companies, itordinarily they and not
is now about 340,000.
we who provide the service and equipment. The President of your Company is
I should like to emphasize the point made Chairman of the Industry Advisory Com-
in theAnnual Report that the splendid co- mittee of the Defense Communications
operation between these 6400 independent Board, and ten other members of our
connecting telephone companies and the headquarters organization are assisting in
Bell System is extremely important in the work of this Board as members or
marshalling the resources of the entire alternate members of its several com-
telephone industry in the interest of na- mittees. Dr. Jewett, a Vice President of
tional defense. this Company and Chairman of the Board
111
of the Telephone Laboratories, is
Bell the two services, almost every other in-
serving as a member
of the National De- dustry in the United States is also work-
fense Research Committee, and more than ing on defense production, as I said a
a score of the leading scientists and execu- minute ago. We have our part in that
tives at the Laboratories are serving as because as others increase the tempo of
members or as consultants in the work of their efforts they inevitably use the tele-
its various divisions and sections. Mr. phone more and use more telephones, for
ILirrison, A. T. & T. Vice President and the telephone is an instrument of speed
Chief Engineer, who has been on leave of and accuracy in modern affairs. And this
absence since last summer on government means that we have a little part in almost
defense work, has recently been made every effort toward national defense. A
Chief of the Branch responsible for ship- little part in every effort adds up to pretty
building, construction, and supplies in the large figures.
Office of Production Management, and a We have never yet had a net gain of
dozen other men from the Bell System as much as a million telephones in a year
have been loaned to the government in — last year's gain of 950,000 was the
connection with the defense program.

highest we ever had —
but if the present
rate of growth should continue throughout
the year, we would gain nearly a million
Work is going ahead with sections of —
and a half telephones 50 per cent more
the new transcontinental telephone cable than ever before in one year. In any case,
mentioned in the Annual Report. This an increase of well over a million looks
cable is being laid underground, starting certain. Long distance calls are running
west from Omaha, where it connects with about 25 per cent above a year ago some —
tlie eastern cable network. In the mean- days more than 35 per cent. That is a
time, additional equipment is being added percentage increase in one year which we
to our open-wire lines west of Laramie, would normally expect might take place
Wyoming, which, in conjunction with this over a period of two or three years. Ac-
cable, will provide another 36 circuits to tually, we are now handling, on the aver-
the Pacific before the end of this year. age, more long distance calls every day
New wire is also being strung between than we did during the unprecedented
Oklahoma City and Albuquerque, New peak of traffic which we experienced in
Mexico, which, with existing wires over September of 1939, when the war broke
out in Europe. All of this necessitates ad-
the remainder of the distance and with
associated equipment, will provide 2>2
ditional facilities, and we now expect to
spend in 1941
about $400,000,000 for
more circuits to the Coast within the next
few weeks. Thus we shall have this year —
new construction $110,000,000 more
68 more transcontinental circuits —an in-
than we spent last year . . .
crease of about one-third over the already

existing 200 circuits. These east-west Ihk speed and vastness of our country's
lines, running in four widely separated defense program and the importance of
main routes across the continent, are, of the telephone to its success are a challenge
course, interconnected at a number of to every man and woman in the Bell
points. System, and I am sure that you, as stock-
While we are working at high pressure holders, would be proud if you could see
Army and
to give telephone service to the the spirit and competence with which the
Navy, and to provide other equipment for entire personnel is meeting that challenge.
ttf>»
112
DR. CAMPBELL RECEIVES THE EDISON MEDAL
1 HE Edison Medal for 1940 has been goals, high standards of performance, rec-
awarded by the American Institute of ognition of the importance of the division
Electrical Engineers to George Ashley of labor,and the advantage of teamwork.
Campbell, who retired from the Bell Tele- "In the Bell Organization, I was as-
phone Laboratories in 1935 after thirty- signed assistants who could do many
eight years of Bell Telephone service. things with greater dispatch and efficiency
The award is "in recognition of his dis- and perfection than I could. To some of
tinction as a scientist and inventor and for these assistants I later reported myself,
his outstanding original contributions to and others have carried on the work into
the theory and application of electric cir- difficulties which I myself could never have
cuits and apparatus." Among the eminent surmounted.

engineers and scientists who have been re- "You will see that it is perfectly natural
cipients of the medal are Elihu Thomson, that I am
an admirer of that kind of team-
George Westinghouse, Alexander Graham work which represents a division of labor
Bell, John J. Carty, Michael I. Pupin, in the intellectual field. At one and the
Robert A. Millikan, Frank B. Jewett, and same time it gives a greater opportunity to
Bancroft Gherardi. those whose talents lie within rather nar-
In accepting the medal, at the winter row fields, and it results in an integrated
convention of the Institute, Mr. Campbell product greater than the sum of the indi-
said in part: vidual efforts. For reasons I have just
"Curiosity is as good an explanation of explained, I feel that I am the beneficiary
the Edison Medal award as I could of the group method of attacking scientific
find . . . problems. Without the collaboration of
'Tn the Bell System I have found the innumerable associates in the Bell System,
greatest opportunity for the pursuit of the contributions you have designated to
curiosity. It was a fascinating field 40 be mine I probably should not have suc-
years ago, and during that interval its ceeded in making. It is a distinct pleasure
expansion has been phenomenal, both to me to recall these many associations
quantitatively and qualitatively. What and to testify that those who have been
was even more important in my own case my colleagues over the years are in large
was that I became a part of a research and part responsible for the honor of receiving
development organization with clear-cut the 1940 Edison Medal."

(j-RADUATED from Drury College in 1911 After studies at Princeton and at New
with the degree of B.S. and from the Uni- College, Oxford University, Frank P.
versity of Pennsylvania in 1914 with the Townsend, Jr., entered newspaper work
degree of B.S. in E.E., Fred K. Roviê as a reporter on the Newark, N. Eve-
J.,
joined the Engineering Department of the ning News. In 1926 and 1927 he was
A. T. & T. Company in the latter year.
successively city editor and managing ed-
After completing the student training
itor of the Hollywood, Fla., News. After
course, he was assigned to work on central
a brief period of free-lance advertising
office and P.B.X. power equipment mat-
ters. He was
later engaged on manual
and publicity work, he joined the Public-
central office equipment problems, and at ity Department of the New Jersey Bell
present is in charge of the group handling Telephone Company in 1928. To prepare
local manual and auxiliary equipment and his article, he interviewed Professor Rea-
central office and P.B.X. power plants. ger and members of his classes.
11.3
IJORN and educated in England, H. M. terly, all of them dealing with various
Pope gained his first experience in the aspects of the toll plant.
telephone business with The National
Telephone Company, then operating in After receiving the M.S. degree at the
Great Britain. From 1906 to 1909 he University of Chicago in 1908, Robert
was Engineer in charge of outside plant R. Williams spent eleven years as a
construction in South Wales. Coming to chemist in the service of the Philippine
the United States in 1909, he entered the Government Manila and the Federal
in
employ of the New York Telephone Com- Government Washington.
in He joined
pany Plant Engineering Department in the Engineering Department of the West-
New Jersey, where he remained until the ern Electric Company in New York in
war. Early in 1917 he joined the Signal 1919, where he conducted studies of sub-
Corps, U. S, Army, and
later was in marine cable insulation and later of textile
charge of the Corps engineering
Signal insulations for central offices. Paragutta,
department for the Eastern Department. on the one hand, and purified textiles, on
Returning to the New York Telephone the other, as now extensively used in the
Company in 1919, he soon was trans- Bell System, are outgrowths of the stud-
ferred to the Commercial Engineering De- ies inaugurated by him. When the Bell
partment of that company in New York Telephone Laboratories were organized in
City. In 1921 he became an engineer in 1925, he became Chemical Director and
the Department of Operation and Engi- has since had general charge of chemical
neering of the A. T. & T. Co., and since and metallurgical investigations of the
1933 has been its General Commercial manifold materials used in telephone engi-
Problems Engineer. neering practice. His avocational activity
has brought him distinction in another
After from Colorado Col-
graduating field. Becoming interested in the chem-
lege with the degree of B.S. in E.E. in istry of nutritional disease through his
1914, .\rthur F. Rose joined the Gen- contact with beri-beri in the Philippines,
eral Engineering Department of the he has continued this study throughout
American Telephone and Telegraph Com- his professional career by alliance with
pany. Upon completing the student train- various research organizations and with
ing course for new employees, he was the aid of funds from foundations, notably
assigned to the development work then the Carnegie Corporation. Working at
under way on the New York-San Fran- Columbia University and utilizing the
cisco route which culminated in the first time freed by the short working weeks of
transcontinental telephone service in 1915. the depression period, he brought to a
As a result of this initial acquaintance successful conclusion, with the aid of a
with telephone repeaters, he continued in small group of affiliated workers, the isola-
transmission work dealing particularly tion, determination of structure, and arti-
with these devices. In 1919, when the ficial synthesis of vitamin B,. The avail-
General Engineering Department was di- ability of this substance has rendered
vided and the O. and E. Department possible the present program of enrich-
formed, Mr. Rose was assigned to the ment of flourand bread under the aus-
group which was concerned primarily with pices of the Federal Government and the
the application of repeaters and carrier National Research Council. He has been
systems in toll engineering. In 1939 he honored with medals of the American
was transferred to the plant extension sec- Chemical Society, the Franklin Institute,
tion, where he has continued to the pres- and the American Association of Manu-
ent time. He has contributed several facturers, and by honorary degrees of
articles to the Bell System Technical Jour- D.Sc. from Ottawa and Ohio Wesleyan
nal and the Bell Telephone Quar- Universities.
114
BELL TELEPHONE
MAGAZINE
VOL. XX AUGUST, 1941
WESTERN ELECTRIC: TELEPHONE ARSENAL
NEW CHANNELS FOR OLD
EVOLUTION BY DESIGN
PROVIDING THE INFORMATION SERVICE
TELEPHONE STATISTICS OF THE WORLD

.
BELL TELEPHONE
MAGAZINE
Continuing the Bei.l Tklkphone Quauterly
VOL. XX AUGUST, 1941 NO. 3
Western Electric : Telephone Arsenal 117

Air in von Auw
New Channels for Old .... 129

Eustace Florance and Austin Bailey
"The ideal and aim of the
American Telephone and

Evolution by Design 1.36
Telegraph Company and
R. L. Jones
its Associated Companies
is a telephone service forthe Providing the Information Service 151

nation, free, so jar as F. C. Baurenfeind
humanly possible, from

Telephone Statistics of the World 1 62
imperfections, errors, or
Knud Fick
delays, and enabling any-
one anywhere to pick iip a
For the Record 1 71
telephone and talk to any- Direct Radio Telephone Circuits to Portugal and
one else anywhere else,

—
Panama Established Progress Is Rapid on Trans-
continental Telephone Cable
clearly, quickly and at a
reasonable cost." Contributors to This Issue 175
^^^^
Published for the Bell System by the Information Department of

INSTEAD OF ALUMINUM
Dial lelephones'go through the assembly line as fast as ever, but
the finger wheel is made of steel now — in place of the lighter metal.
By substituting less critical materials inmany ingenious ways, one
Western Electric plant alone saving an estimated million pounds
is
of aluminum this year, and similar savings are being made at the
otfier ]\. E. Works, as well as in other vital metals and alloys —
as described in the article beginning on the opposite page
WESTERN ELECTRIC: TELEPHONE ARSENAL
The Bell System's ''Service of Supply, " Experienced in Meeting
Emergencies Imposed by Nature's Forces, Is Geared Up to Serve
the Nation in This Time of Crisis
By ALVIN von AUW

The following article discusses the part phone. Today the products of West-
being played in the nation's defense effort ern Electric are moving up to the
by the Western Electric Company, which defense front in an ever-mounting
is the manufacturing, purchasing, and dis-
stream.*
tributing unit of the Bell System. More Military analogies In
are apt.
general statements of the System's role in
these recent crowded months Western
the re-armament program have appeared
magazine:
Electric has become the arsenal of
in three previous issues of this
October, 1940, the text of a brief radio
telephony. For many years Western
Electric has been termed the Bell Sys-
broadcast by President Walter S. Gifford
of the A. T. and T. Company over a tem's "service of supply," a phrase
nation-wide network on October 14; Feb- borrowed from the armed forces. The
ruary, 1941, "The Bell System and Na- W. E. organization was established
tional Defense"; and May, 1941, the and is maintained to secure the ad-
statement to stockholders by Mr. Gifford vantages of standardized manufacture
at the annual moeting on April 16. and of large-scale centralized pur-
chasing coordinated with nation-wide
the re-armament program in
INwhich this country is so mightily
distributing
tion forces
and equipment
— all in
installa-
order to supply a
engaged, the Western Electric
communications front stretching the
Company is a full partner. For vital
length and breadth of our country.
to the nation's defense effort is co-
In emergency after emergency this
ordination, which depends, in turn,
type of organization has demonstrated
upon communications. And commu-
its advantages. Today, in an "unlim-
nications means the telephone. The
ited national emergency," they are
telephone network has become the
once more apparent.
nerve system of a democracy on guard
against the perils of a world at war. * So, of course, arc the products of other
manufacturers of communication equipment,
Recent months have seen a demand
who supply in large part the needs of the
on the services of the Bell System, and country's 6,400 independent Bell-connecting
thus on the manufacturing facilities telephone companies. Many of them arc also
working on defense contracts directly for the
of the Western Electric Company, un-
armed forces. See "Independent Telephone
precedented in the history of the tele- Companies," Magazine, May, 1941.
118 Bell Telephonl: Magazine AUGUST
Planning Comes First

In all Weslern Eledric plants, engineering conferences are a basic preliminary to the
production of communication equipment for the nation's defense
Western Electric's defense effort is advance of the first huge defense

two-fold. The Company has thrown appropriations. Telephone company
its full weight of man-power and ma- and Western Electric men organized
chines into (1) the manufacture of regional defense committees to speed
radio and other communication items local activities. In New York, the
for the Army, the Navy, and the Air headquarters defense-program group
Corps, and (2) the engineering, manu- includes a W. E. "coordinator" as one
facture, and installation of telephone of important members. To the co-
its
equipment ordered through the Bell ordinator's desk has come a mounting
System operating companies for serv- stream of teletype "flashes" from the
ice in government defense establish- fieldand from the Bell System repre-
ments, in vital privately-owned de- sentatives in Washington as well:
fense plants, in Bell System central ". $25,000,000 NAVAL AIR BASE FOR
. .
officesand cross-country circuits ex- QUONSETT POINT RHODE ISLAND FOR

panding to meet the communications SERVICE MAY 1 AT LEAST 500 DIAL PBX
demands of a nation girding itself for LINES REQUIRED. TANK ARSENAL
. . .
any eventuality. SLATED FOR DETROIT 40,000 FEET LEAD

The Bell System laid the ground- COVERED CABLE SHIPMENT REQUIRED
work for its defense activities well in AT ONCE. SAN DIEGO CONSOLIDATED
. . .
19^1 Western Electric: Telephone Arsenal 119
AIRCRAFT 600 PBX LINES BY MAY 1 they're little more than a stack of
200 LATER. ." Advance informa-
. . blue-prints a contractor's shack.
in
tion like this, carefully collated, helps Private branch exchanges are often
the Company to anticipate the later cut into service while the big bull-
and more specific demands and to dozers are still making molehills out
make corresponding preparatory ad- of mountains, clearing the ground for
justments in production programs all Uncle Sam's military cities. By the
along the line. time a camp crackles with its first
Cryptic initials "A. S. A. P." (for bursts of practice rifle fire, an entire
"as soon as possible") give a staccato telephone system will have been in-
touch to many telephone company stalled, and telephones are ringing in
orders for W. E. material. On cor- headquarters' offices.
responding Western Electric invoices,

Production Quantities Are Vast
the notation "shipped same day" re-
curs with gratifying frequency. On Western Electric's finger on the
specific defense orders, normal "engi- pulse of the defense situation is the
neer, furnish and install" schedules program planning group at head-
have been telescoped. Cable reels quarters. Twice monthly the group
may roll into army camps when issues a detailed report of progress
This Is a Flier-Stranuer
At the rate of 600 feet a minute, 101 separate pairs of wires are drawn from spools through
the drilled plate and stranded together —
one step in the manufacture of telephone cable
120 Bell Telephone Magazine AUGUST
along the communications front, to- yards, airfields, arsenals, anti-aircraft
gether with carefully considered esti- firing centers, etc., Western Electric
mates of future requirements. How willprovide telephone equipment in
many telephones are needed in the —
whole or in part or has already done
building of a two-ocean navy, an army it.
of a million and a half, an air force To do the job, current estimates

second to none? How much cable? indicate, will require
9,191,000,000
How many PBX's? These reports conductor feet of lead-covered cable,
chart the rapidity with which Western 629 private branch exchanges, 10,000
Electric's production, delivery, and public telephones, 8000 booths, 3200
equipment installation schedules must teletypewriters — and corresponding
be revised in step with the fast ex- totals for other major and miscel-
panding defense program. Last Oc- laneous items.
tober some 153 army, navy, and other But these figures cover only equip-
defense establishments were projected ment destined for installation in army
or a-building. By December 136 camps, naval bases, airfields, arsenals,
more had been added. In February and other government-owned or gov-
the total reached 777. Today the ernment-financed defense establish-
number is approaching 1,100. To ments. They do not take into account
nearly all of these army camps, navy equipment required for the Bell Sys-
FiKi.DTklephones for the Army

Skilled fingers assemble in mass production the sturdy sets which may handle vital orders
and reports in action
Learning the Techniques of Industry

Students in the Works receive some
training department at Hawthorne pointers
on the operation of a tool-and-die machine
tern's greatlyexpanded program of duction rates in almost every line of

new construction. The rapidly grow- communications equipment. A check
ing communications requirements of of central office apparatus production
private industry and of the thousands shows current annual "going rates" of
of America's new homes, as well as 116,000 lines of panel, 584,000 lines
the equipment needed to increase the of step-by-step, 303,000 lines of cross-
capacity of hundreds of telephone cen- bar. Manual central office equipment
tral offices, to add many circuits be- is running at the rate of 2,090 switch-
tween the great industrial centers of board positions per year. Sales of
the land, to link suddenly booming carrier and repeater equipment, items
communities to the nation-wide tele- for which there is a heavy demand to
—
phone network all these have placed supplement the long-distance facilities
a demand on the production capacity now serving the nation-wide prepared-
of Western Electric unmatched in the ness program, are expected to reach
Company's 7 2 -year history. a total of $22,600,000 for 1941. The
loading coil going rateis currently set
All the Company's plants are run- at 1,227,000; telephone sets at 2,870,-
ning at exceptionally high annual pro- 000; dials at 1,980,000. Rubber-cov-
Cables for Eskhiuhkhk

By water, by rail, and
over the road these reels of lead-covered cable —
already tested, sealed,
and packed — will speed to points throughout the country where an expanding telephone
service requires them
ered wire is being turned out at the ing of great value in the light of pres-
rate of 2,156,000,000 conductor feet ent problems of supply. In Western
per year. Cable shops are working at Electric plants, less critical materials
an annual rate of 48,850,000,000 con- are now being substituted for metals
ductor feet. Much of this lead- and alloys vital to airplane and muni-
sheathed cable is being armored, at tions manufacture. Engineers at the
an annual rate of more than 5,000 Hawthorne Works estimate that the
miles a year, for protection against substitution program will effect a sav-
the elements and marauding rodents ing of more than a million pounds of
when buried along underground toll —
aluminum in 1941 approximately 62
routes. per cent of the amount this one plant
alone would otherwise use. Impres-
A.NOTHER example of advance plan- sive savings are also being effected at
ning is Western program of
Electric's all Western Electric Works with other
conservation of vital raw materials. critical materials as well — nickel, zinc,
For some years, Bell System engineers magnesium, etc.
nickel-steel,
have been studying materials, both old In twelve months the Western's
and new, to assure their most effective man power has increased nearly 50
use, and today these studies are prov- per cent. Since June of 1940 more
than 16,000 new employees have You have to see, for instance, a crew
taken their places beside the old, of installers rolling out of improvised
learning from them the tricks of their bunks in an unheated, unfinished
trade and absorbing the spirit of serv- army barracks to complete an elab-
ice. The Western's training pro- orate PBX installation before the
grams, too, are bearing fruit, relieving troops arrive. You have to see the
somewhat the acute shortage of ma- conveyor systems in the Western's 29
chinists and skilled operators which distributing houses disgorging mate-
was forecast as a potential defense rial labeled "National Defense." You
stumbling-block. Western Electric, have to see the men and women and
like many
another vital defense in- machines of Hawthorne, Kearny,
dustry, burning midnight oil: extra
is Point Breeze, and the other W. E.
shifts in key departments are con- plants in action. You have to visit
tributing heavily to the Company's one of Uncle Sam's vast new Army
total defense effort. camps.
Take Camp Blanding, for instance,
W . E. in Action
Florida's fifth largest "city," popula-
You can't tell the story of action tion 45,000. Twelve months ago the
on the communications sector with uninhabited tract was
55,000-acre
generalizations and statistics alone. given over to palms and pines and
You have to go into the front lines. an impenetrable thicket.
For an Air Base am) Two Army Camps

Cable, switchboard sediorif!. and miscellarteous equipment are leaving Itie loading dock of a
^\ eslern Electric Didribiitin<j House. With a magnifying glass, the words "National
Defense'' can be seen on every address label
124 Bi:ll Tklkphoine Magazine AUGUST
Nearest community to Blanding is To provide communications facili-
Starke, 30 air miles south of Jackson- ties for mushrooming military

the
ville. A
year ago Starke awoke with city, the Bell System matched strides
a Twenty-two thousand work-

jolt. with Uncle Sam.
men came to town. In a week cot- Pine trees hadn't yet given way to
space was at a premium. A boom barracks when the Southern Bell
town overnight, Starke went to work Telephone and Telegraph Company
in earnest for defense. rushed the first temporary PBX to
On October 26, 1940, the first flag Blanding. It was set up in the con-
went up over the soldier city. Work tractor's office, an Army kitchen, and
crews knocked off for a few minutes connected with Starke over a two-
to gaze at the banner, then set to bracket line rigged by the National
again at the double. Early in Decem- Guard. Two weeks later, while car-
ber the troops began toroll in by train penters were still hammering away on
and truck. Based at Blanding today the rooftop, an 80 line PBX from
are two full Infantry divisions and a Western Electric's Jacksonville dis-
Field Artillery brigade. tributing house was cut into service
A Washington Centkal Office Expands

Western Electric installers are placing dial switching equipment to care for the Capital's
vastly increasing numbers of telephone calls. Many central ofjices have been greatly enlarged
to care for the traffic occasioned by the defense program
Army Field Exercises

A permanently is linked to smaller
installed dial-type switchboard in the front of the truck
Command Post switchboards ahead and to larger units at the rear. So functionally designed
is this equipment that telephone facilities to serve a relatively large sector can be completely
set up, including the running of field wire, in a few minutes
in the temporary administration build- Electric installation crew rolled into

ing. Later the contractor called for, Starke. On November 18 they rolled
and got, 80 more lines. out again, the central office installa-
At September's end, Southern Bell tion completed.
ordered from Western Electric suffi- Completed is the word,
hardly
cient wire to increase the number of though; for within a few weeks West-
circuits between Jacksonville and ern Electric men were back on the
Starke from three to nine, the circuits job to answer the call for three more
between Starke and Gainesville from switchboard positions. Then, later,
two to six. Circuits between Starke
( four more positions were added. And
and Jacksonville have since been in- recently the installation of ten addi-
creased to 22.) Western Electric was tional switchboard positions has
also called upon for four positions of brought the total in the new Starke
number 12 switchboard for the new central office to 21.
central office at Starke. Within ten Meantime, Southern Bell men were
days after the order was dispatched, burying 43,900 feet of 76-pair cable
the switchboard had been engineered in the sandy soil between town and
and the first shipment had been re- camp.
ceived. On October 10 a Western Meantime, too, workmen rushed
126 Bell Telephone Magazine A UGUST
" — WITH THE Greatest of Ease"

Conversation with ground stations and with other ships inflight is vital to this pilot of one
of the celebrated Army P-Ws. Note the throat microphone, which transmits the voice
clearly but not motor and other extraneous noises
rate air fields. Twenty-five are prac- ern Electric's two Texas distributing
tice landing fields scattered over two houses established a record, too, by
counties. Only the main base and shipping poles, cable, and five posi-
three auxiliary fields are edged with tions of manual PBX to provide tele-
dormitories and administration build- phone facilities preliminary to the of-
ings,however, so that the huge air ficial dedication of the base last
campus will have four separate dial March 12. Moreover, W. E. men
PBX systems—an 800-line 701-A have installed six new toll positions
PBX with five 605-A positions for in Corpus Christi's central office, an
the main base, two unattended 100- aldded capacity that in normal times
line 711-A's and a single-position would provide for growth over a pe-
701-A for the auxiliary fields. Will riod of some years.
have? On June 7 all four PBX's Air-base telephone communication
went into service simultaneously, six is, necessarily, highly versatile. The
weeks after Western Electric instal- elaborate crash alarm system at Cor-
lers put in their first appearance. pus Christi will send crash boats, am-
Equipment for the main base was bulances, crash wagons racing to the
ordered April 9, shipped on the 23rd. rescue inside a minute and a half
Installation began on the 28th. West- after an accident report is received.
—
Corpus Christi and Blanding have telephone, amplifier, and loudspeaking

been cited here in some detail not equipment on the new
for installation
because they're unusual, but because battleships, cruisers, and aircraft car-
they aren't: — that is, in reference to riers that are sliding from the ways in
military construction which is being ever increasing numbers. Work on

accomplished in many places through- Specialty Products contracts is pro-
out the country. Multiply these two ceeding at all three Western Electric
instances by the total defense picture manufacturing locations, and, in line
and you have the reason for unprece- with the announced policy of the Of-
dented production figures at Haw- fice of Production Management, mil-
thorne, Kearny, and Point Breeze, for lions of dollars in sub-contracts have
the accelerated pace of distributing been let. Thus Western Electric's ex-
house service, for new installation rec- perience in the manufacture of broad-
ords. cast transmitters, of radio telephones
for use on land, on sea and in the air,
For the Armed Forces and ofpublic address systems and
other miscellaneous items fits smoothly
IÔRPUS Christi and its swarms of
into the defense program.
canary-colored primary trainers
"yellow perils" in cadet slang — call to
What the future may bring, no one
mind another Western Electric de-
can say with certainty. But as the
fense contribution. present danger to democracy becomes
Backed by Bell Telephone Labora- —
more clearly seen or, perhaps, better
toriesand a quarter century of avia- —
comprehended surely this country's
tion radio experience, Western Elec- exertions to avert it will be redoubled.
tric, with little or no fanfare, has been More and heavierdemands will be
turning out radio telephone equipment made upon the Western Electric Com-
used by all major United States air- pany, as upon all industry: upon its
lines and hundreds of private fliers. plants and equipment, upon the re-
That experience is bearing fruit to- sourcefulness of its management, and
day. The Specialty Products Divi- upon the loyalties of its employees.
sion at Kearny has Government or- Along with all the other units of the
ders approaching a total of $100,000,- Bell System, the Western Electric
000, a major share of which is for Company will continue to contribute
light-weight, low-powered aviation rain unstinted measure to the provision
dio equipment for installation in and maintenance of the country's es-
America's rapidly multiplying squad- sential communication service. West-
rons of training and fighting planes. ern has a job to do for national de-
The balance of these orders calls for fense, and to the limit of its resources
high-powered radio equipment for use and capabilities it will keep on doing
on the ground, and also for special it.
NEW CHANNELS FOR OLD
To the People of Two Isolated Islands in Chesapeake Bay, a
Recently Established Radio Telephone Circuit Brings Contact
with the Bell System's Mainland Network
By EUSTACE FLORANCE and AUSTIN BAILEY
the shallow waters of the Chesa- choking ice sometimes blocked these
INpeake Bay, 90 miles or so, as the channels; but even when the elements
crow flies, southeast of the dome were friendly, the time and exertion
of the United States Capitol, lie Smith required to convey a single word
and Tangier Islands. These islands across the Bay was hardly less than
were settled near the end of the seven- would have brought a cargo of lumber
teenth century, by English from the or flour.
Colonies. Although these folk and In recent years, while the islanders
their descendants have always been spent the seasons oystering and crab-
seafaring, they have had but infre- bing, caulking boats, or marking chan-
quent contacts with their neighbors nels, others elsewhere explored and
on the mainland. They have been devised channels of a vastly different
fishermen, but the sea could not sup- sort. was inevitable that one of
It
ply their every need. For two and these newchannels, dug out of the
a half centuries, summer and winter, mystery of electricity by scientists in
the men of these islands have fought distant laboratories, should find a
to keep open a sparse network of boat swift route above the boat channels
channels, their only outlet to the town to carry this traffic of words across the
of Crisfield, twelve miles away on water barrier in calm or in storm.
Maryland's eastern shore. Through The need for swift communication
these channels, in sail boats, power with the two islands had long been
boats, and barges flow all those com- obvious. In years like 1936, when
modities of commerce not taken from Chesapeake Bay froze almost solid,
the sea that go to support 2,200 souls. and even ice-breakers could not pene-
Not all of this has been food and ma- trate Tangier Sound, word spread
terial things. Part of it has always abroad that aid was sorely needed by
been a precious freight of words, writ- the residents of Smith and Tangier
ten or borne by messenger; words that Islands. Then the Red Cross and
asked and answered, that sought and Coast Guard cooperated to send suc-
gave help or comfort. cor to the starving islanders by air-
Shifting sands, strong winds, or plane and parachute. Hazardous
Their Isolatiox Ended

now links Smith and Tangier Islands, in Chesapeake Bay, irilh Ihe
liadio Itlephone serricc
Bell System's wire network at Crisfield, on the eastern shore of Maryland
^9^^1 New Channels for Old 131
Harbor at Tangier
Bell System engineers came ashore here frequently during the past winter, The island was
discovered and named by Captain John Smith in 1608
days such as these were not the only proved its worth: when ice threatened
occasions when communication was to block the channels, emergency calls
sorely needed; but, of course, it was summoned ice breakers from the U. S.
most essential at such times. Coast Guard, while other calls sought
and secured medical advice or traced
Providing Emergency Service
the movements of the mail boat and
1 ELEPHONE connection by submarine other craft that were over-due. Dur-
cable had often been considered, but ing three months in the winter of
both shallow water and extensive 1939-40 alone, more than a hundred
oyster dredging would make any cable emergency calls were completed.
insecure. This fact led to repeated Much development work was neces-
rejection by telephone engineers of sary, however, to construct a tele-
all such cable projects. Progressive phone system that would be adequate
developments in the art of radio for general commercial service: radio
telephony suggested new approaches transmitters, radio receivers, and
to the problem. As soon as suitable power supply that would operate con-
radio telephone equipment became tinuously, dependably, and automati-
available, the local telephone com- cally with a minimum of supervision.
pany made provision for at least the Working together for nearly half a
emergencies by establishing on the and
year, engineers of the Chesapeake
islands portable units for voice com- Potomac Telephone Companies, the
munication with the mainland. Re- Bell Telephone Laboratories, the
stricted though it was, this service Western Electric Company, and the
Jl
'^'^f^-^-îS^
"tlBJ
IIaUIO 'IeLEFHOMC EgLlHMKiNT OiN THK MaI.NLAM)

On these poles is the Heceiving antenna and
apparatus for communicating with the islands.
equipment are on the pole at the left, and at the right are not only transmitting antenna and
equipment hut an antomntically-operating emergency jmwer supply
1 —
19^1 New Channels for Old 133
On Smith Island
This is Main Street in Ewell. Since there are no vehicles larger than hand carls and
bicycles here, this narrow ''highway'' is both safe and picturesque
A. T. and T. Company devised such frequencies around 160,000 kilocycles

a system. —the highest frequency in Bell Sys-
Many times during the past winter, tem commercial radio telephony to-
often when the passage was coldest day. The channel is controlled from
and windiest, telephone and Labora- the Crisfield telephone office, and pro-
tories men visited the islands to direct vides a circuit between Crisfield and
the installation of equipment and to Smith Island, Crisfield and Tangier
line up the circuits. As visitors are Island, and between the two islands
few on Smith or Tangier, Bell System through Crisfield. In effect, a forked
men soon became known, and each radio channel has been devised, engi-
step of the project had its interested neered to cut the tine to one island
audience. when operating with the other.
The mainland radio station is in a
Telephone Service at Last marsh near Jenkins Creek, just out-
LiAST February, with the opening of side the village of Crisfield. Here
a reliable radio telephone link which the equipment is all housed in pole
could be used for any messages, these boxes. The radio receiver is on one
two islands were connected with the pole,which is likewise the support for
nation-wide telephone network of the the beam antenna used for receiving.
Bell System through the Crisfield tele- The balance of the radio equipment
phone exchange. The radio link largely radio transmitter, control
equipment consists of radio trans- units, and beam transmitting antenna
mitters and receivers operating at — is supported by another pole about
An Island Telephone Installation

The switch at the right of the instrument on the wall gives access either to the radio telephone
circuit to Crisfield or to the local wire circuit for conversation among the islanders
30 feet away fromthe first. Between lands convenient access to the service,
this latter pole and a stub pole about four telephones have been provided on
5 feet distant is a platform which sup- each island, strategically placed in
ports an emergency power supply village store or dwelling. A flip of a
generator which will start automati- key switches these instruments off the
cally if there should be an interruption radio connection and onto a magneto
of the regular power. line to furnish local talking facilities
On the islands other sixty-foot an- which run the length of each settle-
tenna poles, towering over the flat ment.
marshlands, disclose from afar the
Voices from Afar
location of the sending and receiving
apparatus and wholly automatic gaso- L«ONSTRucTiON and testing completed,
line engines which generate the neces- theday came for opening of the serv-
sary power; all snugly fitted into di- ice. On the fourteenth of February,
minutive huts which gleam white in shortly after nightfall, most Smith
new paint. made their way on
Islanders foot
To give the inhabitants on the is- down Main Street in Ewell to the
/£>/// New Channels for Old 135
community hall. In the dim light of at Tangier, Va., and went to the town
kerosene lamps, men and boys in rub- hall there to install theirequipment.
ber boots and heavy clothing and In the early hours of the evening a
women in shawls awaited, perhaps a group of nearly 400 interested people
little skeptically, the events of the gathered to witness the ceremonies at-
evening. On
an improvised stage a tendant upon the opening of telephone
pair of telephone men put finishing service to the mainland. Although
touches to the installation of a tele- everyone was interested in the ex-
phone and loudspeaker. The gather- planation of the new telephone system
ing showed polite interest throughout and how it could be used, that in-
an explanation of the new system; all terest was intensified when the min-
attention stiffened as the wife of the ister of the island placed a call to the
island's clergyman took her place by Governor of Virginia, in Richmond.
the telephone on the stage. A moment Clearly they all heard the greetings
later the greetings of Maryland's from the Executive Mansion.
Chief Executive, speaking from the
State Capitol, sounded through the
1 o the District Manager of the
hall.
Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone
Those ceremonial congratulations Company at Salisbury, Md., came re-
cently a letter which was signed by
completed, she placed another call,
the Mayor, the Treasurer, and the
and nodding heads and smiles re-
vealed excited pleasure as the voice Clerk of the Town of Tangier, Va.
of Captain Whitelock —
skipper of the In it these gentlemen said, in part:
mailboat — poured clearly and famil- come to us from time
"Inquiries
iarly from the amplifier: "It's a great to time concerning the telephone
thing the telephone people have done and its service to the Island. After
for us folks." All knew the Captain's three months we can truly say its
words came from a hospital bed in convenience, efficiency, and satis-
faction in service are daily being
Baltimore, but few could comprehend
—
how through aerial, submarine, and
increasingly realized.
"Shakespeare said, 'Some are
underground cable, overland and un- born great, some achieve greatness
der the Chesapeake Bay to Crisfield, and some have it thrust upon them.'
then out through the air across the Concerning Tangier and the tele-
water — his voice flashed into the phone, even before it is needed for
meeting hall. Captain Whitelock has emergency service, there is a sense
for many years piloted messages into of comparative greatness about it
that means progress. ."
Smith Island ports through the slow . .
channels of the Bay, and it was fitting So science, and the skill and the
that he should be among the first to enterprise of many —
people executives
use this new channel of the air to and engineers, business men and boat
bring his message to those he has men, installers and —have
others lifted
served so faithfully. the voices of these lonely people out

The following day, with telephone of dependence upon the slow channels
and loudspeaker, Bell System men of the water and into the swift chan-
sailed up to the peaceful boat landing nels of the air.
EVOLUTION BY DESIGN
The Purposes and Methods of the Bell Telephone Laboratories
Are Exemplified in the Continuing Program of Development of
Three Plant Items: Drop Wire, Relays, ami Receivers
By HKC.IWI.D L. M)\KS
To the telephone subscriber, the

"drop wire" which is sus-
pended between his house and
ductor,
strength,
thus gradually reducing
and which also causes the
subscriber's line to become noisy or
its
the telephone pole line may seem to perhaps to fail altogether. Because
be of quite ordinary nature. If he of the addition of new subscribers,
should examine it, he would find it to changes in residence of old subscrib-
be oval in cross-section, about one- ers, and service changes, about four
fourth inch in its greater dimension, hundred million feet of new drop wire
and merely of two conduc-
to consist are needed by the Bell System each
tors symmetrically imbedded in rub- year. Obviously, low cost is an im-
ber insulation covered by impregnated portant requirement.
cotton braid.The plant man, how-
knowing by long experience the
ever,
The Evolution of Drop W ire
many hazards to which drop wire is 1 HE use of drop wire is almost as
subjected, recognizes it as a highly old as the telephone art itself. Work
specialized product, developed by the toward improving its performance has
Bell Telephone Laboratories with been carried on since the earliest
painstaking care to fit its particular days; but the major improvements
purpose. have been made during the past fifteen
Of all the parts of the exchange or twenty years, as a result of general
telephone plant, the drop wire oc- advances in chemical and metallurgi-
cupies the most vulnerable position. cal processes.
It must support itself in the gap be- Let us pick up the development
tween building and pole line, of either about the year 1928. By this time it
cable or open wire, no matter whether had become evident, from analyses of
the distance be long or short. In field results and by Laboratories tests
many cases, must pass through
it of the product, that a major source
trees or other obstructions which may of trouble with the then standard wire
rub against it and finally wear it was failure of the insulation at the
through. Damaged insulation admits pole and building attachments, be-
moisture, which corrodes the con- tween which the wire was suspended.
i9 ^4 1 Evolution by Design 137
Protective Apparatus at Subscribers' Premises

Near where the drop wire enters a building, a protective device is installed to dis-
the point
charge harmlessly any stray current of excess voltage which might accidentally be on the
outside telephone ivires. The new one-piece porcelain protector at the right is cheaper to
make and is better adapted for mounting in homes of modern construction than is the
protector of older design
It was known that this was due pri- factory level. Basically, it is the drop
marily to the fact that as the rubber wire clamp in use today, although a
aged, it gradually lost part of its elas- number of design improvements have
ticityand strength and finally became been made since it was first devised.
brittle. Development work was un- "Rubber" insulation such as is

dertaken with two objectives: to de- used on drop wire is a complicated
sign a suspension attachment which compound of which rubber itself is
would distribute the gripping pressure only one of the constituents. The
of the attachments over a wider area compound includes sulphur, "mineral
of the rubber, and to obtain a rubber rubber," which is an air-blown as-
having better physical characteristics. phaltic compound, and "mineral fill-
Up to that time, the suspension de- ers" such as whiting and zinc oxide;
vice had consisted of a porcelain knob it also contains organic materials
attached to a bracket, the wire being known as antioxidants ( to retard
looped around the knob and secured aging ) and accelerators ( to hasten
by a tie wire. A clamping device was vulcanization). The Laboratories
developed in which the wire was laid technicians to whom fell the job of
in a slot with a tapered wedge in such securing a better rubber were faced
a way that the harder the pull on the with the essential problem of finding
wire, the tighter became the gripping the particular mixture of ingredients
action of the wedge. This wedge- which would best meet the require-
type clamp, because of its relatively ments of drop wire insulation.
large gripping area, reduced the unit It soon became evident that, as a
pressure on the insulation to a satis- first step, it would be necessary to
devise improved testing techniques A good bond between rubber and
for evaluating the relative worths of conductor is essential in order to pre-
various mixtures. To replace the vent the conductor from slipping
tensile strength apparatus
testing through the insulation at a point of
then available, the Laboratories en- clamping, thus causing the rubber
gineers developed a device for deter- and surrounding braid to take more
mining the compressive strength of than their share of the strain, and to
rubber as insulating cover on a con- break. In the older wire, the bronze
ductor. At about the same time, there conductor was tin coated, primarily
became available a device known as to prevent corrosive reaction between
an "oxygen bomb," in which samples the sulphur of the rubber and the
of drop wire insulation could be arti- copper constituent of the bronze. The
aged by exposure to oxygen at
ficially adhesion between tin and rubber was
high pressure and elevated tempera- strong when the wire was new, but de-
ture. With these new test tools, and creased rapidly with age. The Lab-
with a large previously acquired oratories engineers found that by
knowledge of rubber characteristics, placing a thin layer of brass, of a
the engineers prepared and tested closely controlled copper-zinc compo-
many kinds of rubber compound. Af- sition, next to the rubber, good adhe-
ter several years of laboratory work, sionwas secured not only when the
an insulation was evolved which was wire was new but during service.
much superior to the old from the However, it would not have been satis-
standpoints of crushing and aging. factory to deposit the brass directly
on the bronze conductor, due to the
UuRiNG this same interval, the
resulting diffusion of the zinc into the
Western Electric Company, in co-
bronze. To overcome this difficulty,
operation with Bell Laboratories en-
and at the same time to afford cor-
new technique for
gineers, developed a
rosion protection, a coating of lead
manufacturing drop wire, by means of
alloywas placed over the bronze con-
which the insulation was extruded
ductor before the brass coating was
around the conductors in unvulcanized
applied.
form and then vulcanized in one con-
During this same period, the bronze
tinuous operation. This replaced the
conductor itself received development
former method of extruding unvul-
attention. A new bronze was evolved,
canized wire into pans of talc or
containing a larger amount of tin
soapstone and then vulcanizing in the
than the older bronze. This bronze
pan. The new manufacturing process
was stronger, permitted the size of the
was simpler and less expensive than
conductor to be reduced, and at the
the old; but, together with the better
same time met the electrical conduc-
rubber compound, it accentuated a
tivity requirements for drop wire.
problem which, while troublesome
with the older form of wire, had been 1 HE cotton braid covering of drop
partly masked by other deficiencies. wire is needed to protect the wire
This problem was the tightness with from abrasion, and from sunlight,
which the rubber adhered to the con- which would tend to cause cracking
ductors. of the rubber. To improve its dura-
19^1 Evolution by Design 139
Steps in the Development of "Input" TRANSFORArERs

They form part of the repeaters used to amplify the currents at reifularly spaced intervals.
along telephone toll lines. At the left is the transformer associated with an early type of
repeater. The widely used transformer in the center has been superseded recently by the
smaller one at the right, which requires less space and is improved electrically
bility and increase the abrasion re- Thus, during the period from about
sistance, the braid is treated with 1928 to 1938, there was evolved a
weatherproofing compound. Many of drop wire which has longer life, better
these compounds have been studied. adhesion, and higher abrasion resist-
The present treatment involves satu- ance, but costs no more than the wire
rating the braid with a mixture of se- it replaces. The Laboratories, never-
lected asphalts and waxes, followed outdoor test stations located
theless, at
by a coating of stearine pitch and, at San Antonio, at Miami, at Chester,
finally, by a coating of ground mica. New Jersey, and at the New York
The decrease in conductor diameter headquarters, continue their search
has made it practicable to use a for a still better product.
heavier cotton braid and a correspond-
Organized Development Effort
ingly greater amount of weatherproof-
ing compound than in the older wire, 1 HE development of drop wire is
thus further increasing durability and typical of the Laboratories method, in

abrasion resistance and at the same that it utilized and integrated the
time retaining the former cross-sec- creative efforts of a number of tech-
tional size. Retention of size makes nicians in various fields of research

it possible for the plant man to use and engineering. The telephone plant
the same "braid stripper" for both as a whole, with its manifold, inter-
new and old wire, avoiding duplication locking parts, requires a large and
of installation tools. highly specialized personnel and ex-
1 10 \Ua.l Telephone Magazine AUGUST
Loading Coil Cases

Each rase conluiiis 200 loading each coil consists of many turns of fine wire around a
coila;
ring-shaped magnetic core. Left, with iron coil cores, made available in 1926, total weight
1750 pounds. Center, with permalloy cores, made available in 1931, total weight 4.5o
pounds. Right, with molybdenum-permalloy cores, made available in 1937, total weight
360 pounds. Loading coils are placed at intervals along a telephone line when it is desired
to improve the efficiency of the circuits by ''loading.'' The cases shown here are for use with
exchange cable; other types for use on both exchange and toll lines have been similarly improved
tensive facilities to meet its needs for containing the multitude of individual
coincident developments. To carry on laboratories, machine shops, drafting
the necessary work, the Bell Telephone rooms, and paraphernalia necessary
Laboratories employ about 2,000 sci- for the functioning of an organiza-
entists and engineers; 1,000 drafts- tion of this kind. In addition, aux-
men, laboratory assistants, skilled iliary laboratories for special purposes
mechanics, and artisans; and a total are located at a number of points in
personnel of over 4,800. New Jersey, and include an outside
The Laboratories' headquarters are plant laboratory at Chester, radio lab-
in New York, in a ten story building oratories atWhippany and Holmdel
occupying an entire city block and and Deal, and a chemical laboratory
19 'f1 Evolution by Design 141
Joints in Open- Wire Telephone Lines

Below are a and one of the pair of sleeve-twisters used to make it. Before
twisted-sleeve joint
twisting, the sleeve is form of straight twin tubes slightly larger than the wire in
in the
diameter. Above are the more recently developed rolled-sleeve joint and the rolling tool.
The wires are inserted in opposite ends of the sleeve, and the tool is applied at one end of the
sleeve and rolled along to the other end by turning the handle. Applying pressure of about
one ton, this process reduces the diameter of the sleeve to a tight grip on the wire, as strong
as the wire itself and free from corrosion difficulties
at Summit. These are used for de- switching and transmission needs of
velopment projects which require large the Bell System plant, and prepares
amounts of space or special test con- switchboard and central office equip-
ditions not available in New York ment specifications for manufacture
City — as for instance, a study of the and installation. The Apparatus De-
effect of wind on open wire lines. velopment Department designs and
specifies most of the items of appa-
1 HE technical forces of the Labora- ratus and material used at subscrib-
tories are organized in three general ers' stations, in central offices, and in
departments: Systems, Apparatus, the outside plant. The Research De-
and Research. The Systems Devel- partment conducts fundamental stud-
opment Department formulates cir- ies in physics and chemistry, empha-
cuits and assemblies to serve both sizing particularly the branches of sci-
ence underlying communication phe- such diverse purposes as controlling

nomena and materials. the operation of a supervisory relay
By careful planning, the work of in a toll trunk circuit, keeping con-
each department is coordinated within stant the amount of output power of
itself and with that of other depart- a cable carrier repeater with changes
ments. An important phase of this is in input power, and stabilizing the
the continuous dissemination, to each transmission loss of a telephone cable
group, of knowledge concerning the circuit with changes in cable tempera-
new materials, processes, apparatus, ture.
and circuits which are being worked With these Bell System resources
on by other groups. This is done by for laboratory study, analysis, and ex-
conferences of key engineers, by the periment mind, let us further ex-
in
circulation of technical memoranda, amine in broad outline the recent de-
by lectures in the Laboratories audi- velopment histories of two familiar
torium, by articles in the Bell Labora- telephone parts which, like drop wire,
tories Record, and, perhaps most im- have been in use since earliest days.
portantly, by the day-to-day contacts
which resultfrom the centralized as- The Telephone Relay
sociation of a large group of people all In a telephone central office, whether
skilled in the technical aspects of the local or toll, large or small, there
telephone art and the sciences which are many contrivances for establish-
underlie it. ing the connections and guiding the
voice currents to their destination.
A CASE in point is the development Each has reached its present form
for telephone use of certain oxide as a result of a large amount of
mixtures which have the characteristic development effort. We shall focus
that their resistance to electric cur- our attention on one the relay, which :
rent decreases rapidly with increase is the automatic switching device of
in temperature. Basic laboratory the telephone network. About ninety

studies led to the conclusion that such million relays are in use in the Bell
mixtures could be usefully employed System. In some types of dial sys-
to meet several immediate needs of tem, as many as five hundred relays
the telephone art and that probably may come into play in completing a
they could be adapted advantageously connection between two subscribers,
to other needs. and ten or more of these relays may
By means of lectures held in the remain in action until the subscribers
Laboratories auditorium, the tech- hang up. Many relays are called
nical staff was made familiar with the upon to operate millions of times dur-
theoretical possibilities of the mix- ing their service lives. Reliability of
tures and the applications in prospect performance, small size, and low cost
up to that point. A new tool, the are paramount design objectives.
"thermistor," thus became a part of The basic relay parts are an elec-
the working capital of the Labora- tromagnet and a switch operated by
tories engineer. Within a short time, this magnet. The magnet is made of
thermistors were being developed for a wire-wound iron core and a movable
1 9î1 Evolution by Design 143
-^
Telephone Relays
The most recently developed type of relay, at the right, is more powerful than the older type
shown at the left, will operate a larger number of contact springs, and embodies other im-
provements in design, as discussed in the accompanying text
iron piece called the armature. The from the core, spacing the terminal
winding is arranged for connection to wires from the rest of the winding,
a control, such as an operator's key, and affording mechanical protection.
the dial of a telephone set, or an- For these purposes, early designs of
other relay. The armature is usually relay employed materials such as
hinged at one end, with its other end bookbinder's cloth and ordinary
free to move toward the core in re- paper similar to writing paper. A
sponse to the magnetic force gener- source of trouble with relays has been
ated by a current in the winding. The gradual corrosion of the wire, which
armature, in turn, operates the switch finally causes the winding to open.
which, in most relays, consists of a Intensive laboratory study indicated
number of reed-like contact springs that this corrosion was due chiefly to
mechanically coupled to the armature impurities in the insulating materials.
and moved by it to make or break One by one these impurities have been
the desired electrical circuits. Each eliminated by the development of in-
spring is about one-fourth inch wide sulating materials better suited to the
and two inches long, and has a small purpose. The most recent step in this
contact point welded near one end. phase of relay development has been
The distance over which a spring the substitution of thin sheets of cellu-
moves is about one-sixteenth inch. lose acetate for the paper insulation
of former times.
1 HE wire of the magnet spool is In order to retard corrosion, the
coated with enamel or silk; but still paper insulation of the older relays
more insulation is needed for such was impregnated with wax. Particles
purposes as separating the winding of the wax, seeping from the winding.
HI JiELL Telephone Magazine AUGUST
Two Types of Modern Telephone Cable

A quadded toll cable, left, and one form of the recently developed coaxial cable, shown in
cross section, about actual size. The quadded cable contains approximately 150 "quads"
of paper-insulated wires. The coaxial cable contains two copper conductors, each held
centrally in a copper tube surrounded by helically-wound steel tape, and also two quads for
circuit supervisory purposes. Both cables hare about the same message capacity. Struc-
tural details are shown on the opposite page
would in some cases be deposited on tact welded to the contact spring.

the moving parts of the relay, causing The shape of this contact and the
the armature to stick. With cellulose metal of which it is made are of great
acetate insulation, wax treatment was importance in determining the relay's
discontinued, and sticking became a reliability, and have been the subject
less serious problem. of almost continuous laboratory study.
Insulation made of cellulose acetate Extensive investigations have been
has an additional advantage : it is bet- made of the behavior of contacts of
ter adapted than paper to manufac- various metals and shapes when sub-
turing processes using automatic coil jected to mechanical action and to
winding machinery. The new in- erosion of an electric spark, the
sulating material has made practicable amount and effect of tarnish, the pres-
several major advances in manufac- sure required for good contact, and
turing technique, and these have re- the effect of foreign particles.
duced the cost and improved the uni- Silver, tungsten, platinum, rhodium,
formity of the product. iridium, gold, and palladium, and their
alloys, all find use as relay contacts.
1 HE most vital part of the relay, Years of experience have shown that
and at the same time one of the most precious metals are better than base
vulnerable, is the tiny projecting con- metals for contact purposes. For
19^ 1 Evolution by Design 145
Components oy Cables
Ai shown one of the two coaxial conductors pictured in the cable at the right on the
the top is
opposite page. The central wire is held in place by insulating discs and enclosed in a copper
tube which is wound about by two steel tapes, and is enclosed, with its twin and two sets of
quads, in a lead sheath. Below is a quad, composed of four copper wires, each wrapped
in paper insulation and then twisted together. Coaxial cable is cheaper per mile to make
than the quadded cable shown opposite, but requires more expensive terminal equipment
many kinds of relay, silver or pal- ing particles should lodge on a contact
ladium is the most satisfactory. As surface and prevent proper closing of
regards shape, the older contact, with the contacts.
its pin-head contour, has been re- To diminish troubles from this
placed by one in the form of a tiny source, individual covers have been
bar about one-sixteenth inch long and used to keep the dust away, the con-
one-sixtyfourth inch high. The bar tacts have been mounted in vertical
of one spring mounted horizontally
is planes to minimize accumulation of
and the bar of its companion spring dust by settling, and air filtering
vertically, so that the two contacts, equipment has been used in some
when touching each other, are in the cases. A recent improvement which
form of a cross. is very effective is a relay spring hav-
ing double contacts.
r OREIGN particles have been a fre- The advantage of twin contacts
quent source of relay trouble. The over the former single contact can be
air is full of minute objects: drops of illustrated by an extreme example of
moisture, bits of hair, soot and coal, atmosphere wherein dust particles are
metallic particles, fibers of cotton, so dense that at every thousandth
silk, and wool. With the thousands of operation a contact, when pressed
relays in a central office, it is not sur- against its mate, will close over a
prising that at times one of these float- piece of dust or lint, and thus fail to
Telephone Receivers
The desk-stand has been largely superseded by the handset receiver below.
receiver, above,
Differences between them are described in the text on the opposite page
l9Ui Evolution by Design 147
operate. If now the contact on each of the windings are somewhat larger,
spring spHt into two independent
is the shape and material of the magnet
members, the chance of a particle are altered, and the armature hinge is
falling between the second set of con- improved, in order to increase the
tacts will also be one in a thousand; pulling power. By these means, suffi-
but the likelihood of two particles of cient power has been added not only
dust falling at the same time, one be- to permit the use of more springs
tween each of the sets of contacts, but to increase the pressure per spring
will be one-thousandth as large, or and also the distance over which the
one in a million. Field experience has armature and springs move. The
indicated that with the twin contact greater pressure has served to increase
arrangement, as used in practice the reliability of operation. The
where the two contacts are not inde- greater swing provides surplus move-
pendent, the improvement in reliabil- ment which is utilized to take up wear
ity of operation is about ten-fold. on the contacts and so to increase

service life.
xIelay springs must be properly di- Thus the development of the tele-
mensioned and mounted. Otherwise, phone relay goes forward: contact
when they close they may bounce materials and shapes, elimination of
apart and flutter back and forth for chatter, protection from dust and dirt,
a few thousandths of a second. The improved magnetic structures, better
consequent "chattering" of the con- —
windings all are being studied by
tacts results in excessive contact wear, the Laboratories in the constant effort
and may cause false switching opera- to provide more efficient and trouble-
tions. Studies of spring shape and free telephone apparatus.
mounting have been an important
phase of Laboratories' design. As The Telephone Receiver
part of this work, high speed motion In Bell's original telephone, the
picture apparatus developed by the sound waves of the voice caused a
Laboratories has been utilized to piece of magnetic material to vibrate
photograph in "slow motion" the in the field of an electromagnet, and
rapidlymoving relay parts. thus to generate in the coil of the
Another objective developmentin magnet a varying current. At the re-
studies has been the improvement of ceiving end of the circuit, this current
the electrical and mechanical efficien- passed through a similar coil and
cies of the relay so that a smaller op- caused another piece of magnetic ma-
erating current is required and the terial to vibrate, reproducing the origi-
load on the central office battery is nal sound waves. In the earliest com-
reduced. In recent years, this phase mercial telephone receivers, the elec-
of the work has received added em- tromagnet was replaced by a perma-
phasis as the number of circuits con- nent magnet, the coil was placed
trolled by a relay has increased, due around an iron pole-piece attached to
to advances that have been made in the end ofthe permanent magnet, and
automatic switching systems. In re- the vibrating^ piece of magnetic mate-
lays of more recent design, the cores rial was a disc of iron.
Apparatus in the Telephone Set

Above are the ringer, induction coil,and condenser used in a telephone of older design.
Below are the improved ringer, induction coil, and condenser for the latest type of telephone
This same general arrangement for as efficient. With the advent of the
converting electrical energy into sound hand set, in which the transmitter and
energy has continued in use through- receiver are mounted as a handle-like
out the development of the telephone, unit, both the appearance and the in-
and is found today in the many mil- ternal design were radically changed.
lions of telephone receivers in service The extent of the change in internal
in this country and throughout the design is indicated by the fact that
world. However, although the operat- the receiver unit of the hand set
ing principle has not changed, many weighs only about three ounces, as
improvements in receiver design have compared with ten for the unit of the
been made as the years have gone by. desk stand.
Up to about 1927, these improvements Until about four years ago, the tele-
were of such nature as not to alter phone receiver was so designed that
radically the instrument's general ex- its diaphragm was clamped rigidly
ternal appearance. The hang-up re- around its edge by the receiver cap.
ceiver of the desk stand of that time This arrangement produced a vibrat-
bore a resemblance to the receiver of ing element which was most efficient
earlier days, although it was ten times at its natural period of vibration.
19^41 Evolution by Design 149
The thickness and diameter of the of the diaphragm and behind it, and of
diaphragm were so proportioned as to the openings connecting these spaces
place the maximum efficiency at about with the ear and with the housing of
1,000 cycles per second (two octaves the receiver, and by using better mag-
above middle C on the piano). This netic materials, with a consequent in-
placed the greatest response of the crease in efficiency, it has been practi-
receiver at a tonal pitch in the middle cable to obtain a naturalness of speech
of the voice range. While emphasis reproduction far beyond that of previ-
on sounds in this range was helpful ous receivers and with no material
in producing loudness, the naturalness decrease in loudness.
of voice reproduction was of course Thus, the telephone receiver, rely-
somewhat impaired. ing for its operation on the same basic
principle conceived by Alexander Gra-

In the meantime, receivers and loud
ham Bell, has over the course of the
speakers for high-quality speech re-
years been greatly improved in effi-
production, such as those of public
ciency and in quality of sound repro-
address and broadcasting systems, had
duction, and at the same time has been
been developed by the Laboratories to
reduced in size and weight,
a point where they operated with
satisfactory loudness without dia-
1 HESE development histories are
phragm vibration at its natural fre-
illustrative of the manner
which in
quency. The designs were relatively
Bell Telephone Laboratories perform
complicated, however, and extensive
their function of designing telephone
development work was required to
equipment to meet Bell System needs.
adapt the principles involved to the
Drawing upon field experience and
small receiver unit of a telephone set.
ideas, as reported to them by the
The more important features of these
high quality systems were incorpo-
American Telephone and Telegraph
rated in a Bell System hand set placed
Company and the associated telephone
in production about 1937.
companies, and upon observations and
In the improved receiver, the per- ideas of their own specialized tech-
manent magnet is made of an alloy of nicians, the Laboratories constantly
cobalt, molybdenum, and iron, instead survey each over-all operating mecha-
of the former cobalt-iron alloy; the nism and each component part, no
pole-pieces are of permalloy instead of matter how small, and continuously
silicon and the diaphragm is
steel; bring into being new and improved
made of permendur instead of mag- kinds of apparatus for telephony and
netic iron. By proper design of the its related arts of electrical communi-
dimensions of the air spaces in front cation.
a
PROVIDING THE INFORMATION SERVICE

Specially Developed Equipment, and Operating Practices Adapted
to Local Requirements, Have Brought About a Pleasing Service
Supplemental to the Regularly Published Directories
By FRED C. BAURENFEIND
HE responds to your call with her directory; the young man who is
a pleasant "Information" to — trying to locate the telephone number

your call and to three million of that good-looking girl he met at a
others which are handled daily by over party the night before. There are
ten thousand employees engaged in fur- calls for the telephone numbers of
nishing Information service through- hotels, airports, and railroad terminals
out the Bell System. you live in a
If from visitors in town; calls for the
small community, perhaps you recog- telephone numbers prominent
of
nize her voice, for frequently she alone people; the urgent request for an am-
is responsible for handling the calls bulance, or the call from a youngster
which reach Information. In the who is in some difftculty and asks the
larger cities, she may be one of as assistance of Information in obtaining
many as five hundred operators re- the telephone number of the family
quired every day to give this service. doctor. There are requests for tele-
In either case, she takes her responsi- phone numbers from salesmen, profes-
bilities seriously, and is anxious to sional men, and business executives
serve to the best of her ability those who find the services of the Informa-
who consult her. She is interested in tion operator invaluable in their day-
her job, for in it there is variety — to-day telephone communications with
variety of calls and requests which their customers and associates.
keep her abreast of the happenings in Then, of course, there is always the
her community. unusual situation in which the opera-
There is the housewife who likes to tor's experience and good judgment
shop by telephone, for instance, and —
play an important part as, for ex-
wants the telephone number of the ample, the cleaning matron who finds
new grocery store on the corner; the herself locked in the building and
young lady, home from school, who wants to know how to get out. An-
wants to telephone for an appointment other customer wants to know the tele-
with a certain hairdresser recom- phone number of some one in the dead
mended by her roommate but whose flower business (he means artificial
number she has been unable to find in flowers), another wants advice on
some domestic problem. There is also telephones in service increased in the
the appeal from the elderly person larger towns and cities, the abandon-
who is ill and unable to take Buster, ment of this practice was inevitable.
her dog, for his usual walk in the Telephone growth, however, was not
park. Can the operator suggest any- the only reason for changing to num-
thing? Fortunately, yes, for a search ber designations. Evidence of an-
of her records reveals the existence of other consideration is expressed in the
a "dog walking service," the telephone following excerpt from a paper on
number of which is suggested to the "The Telephone System of Today"
calling —
customer and Buster once which was presented in Boston on
again is happy and well taken care of. November 24, 1903, at a meeting of
While the Information operator ob- The Insurance Society of New York:
viously cannot supply the answers to "When the telephone central sta-
all questions which are asked of her, tions were first established, the names
she is usually able to do so better than and positions on the switchboard of
nine times out of ten and, on the aver- the subscribers were known to opera-
age, in about half a minute. Consider- tors with strong memories; an epi-
ing the fact that she frequently has demic of measles occurred in Low-
but very meager details with w'hich to ell, Massachusetts, and Dr. ]\Ioses
search her records, that on about one- Greeley Parker, a member of the
fourth of the calls she handles custom- Board of Directors, with viewed
ers are unable to supply a definite alarm, from his standpoint as a phy-
name to associate with the telephone sician, the possible condition of af-
number desired, that there are unusual fairs if more than two of the four op-
situations w^hich must be coped with, erators be taken with the
should
and that there are still a great many measles, and proposed that the sub-
people who do not have telephones, it scribers should be numbered.
is not difficult to account for that tenth "His associates demurred, as they
time when she is unable to be of assis- were of the opinion that the subscrib-
tance or must admit of a limit to her ers would give up their telephones
fund of information. sooner than submit to the indignity
of being known by number, but in
In the Early Days
view of the contingency of the service
In the early days of the telephone, being paralyzed they finally yielded,
calls were placed by name instead of and to the surprise of all, the new ar-
by number. While telephone direc- rangement was cheerfully accepted by
tories were published as early as 1878, the subscribers, who appreciated the
they were merely lists of subscribers improvement in service which resulted
to the service and, except as they per- from the change."
haps encouraged the use of the tele-
phone and stimulated a demand for With the introduction of number
the service, they had no directional designations, telephone directories of
telephone value. The handling of course began to show customers' num-
telephone calls by name was a very bers. When local operators were re-
personal service, but as the number of lieved of the responsibility of remem-
19^1 Providing the Information Service 153
A Modern Information Bureau Equipped with Frequently Reprinted Records

Pictured here is one of the largest information bureaus of this type in the Bell System.
The arrangement of operators' positions, the accessibility of records, and the privacy afforded
individual operators conduce to the furnishing of an Information service which is pleasing
to customers
bering the names of all theircustom- Bell System's approach to the task of
ers, and their locations on the switch- rendering a pleasing and efficient serv-
board, they were able to concentrate ice to its customers. Staff engineers
on the numbers of new customers at the System's headquarters in New
whose telephones were connected be- York, as well as the men and women
tween directory issues, and usually in the operating telephone companies
were able to supply these numbers who are directly concerned with the
from memory. As the business con- conducting of the business day by day,
tinued to grow, however, this added have constantly under review the
responsibility became too much for various phases of this important spe-
the local operator, and finally the In- cialized service — the training of In-
formation specialist came into being. formation operators, the design of
From its early beginnings, the pro- equipment, the adequacy of records,
vision of Information service has been and other aspects of the job so that —
the subject of the study and develop- it shall contribute its share to a tele-
ment which are characteristic of the phone service which is not only the
best in the world but shall continue to dress as well as alphabetical records
be the best that it is possible to render. makes it possible for the operator to
conduct a more rapid search for the
Information Records number requested than she could if
1 HERE are, as a consequence, sev- only the latter were available. This is
eral types of Information records in particularly true on calls involving
use throughout the System today, each common names. In one of the larger
one designed to fit the needs of the cities, for example, there are 15 col-
particular locality in which it is used. umns of "Smith" in the telephone di-
In the smaller exchanges, Information rectory. On a call for the telephone
records may consist of a customers' number of a person by that name
at a
directory and a long-hand list of new given address, obvious that a
it is
telephones connected after that direc- search of the alphabetical record is

tory went to press. Many refinements apt to be a lengthy one unless the per-
have been incorporated in the arrange- son calling knows the first name or
ment of these basic records for use by initials, while the search of the street
Information operators in such locali- address record probably would reveal
ties. In the larger cities, however, more quickly the number desired.
either frequently reprinted book rec- Also, on calls involving an indefinite
ords or rotary file records are the name, or when the name is unknown
types more commonly used. The but the person calling knows the busi-
former isa book record of telephone ness and address of the person whose
listings which, as its name implies, is telephone number is wanted, the street
reprinted at frequent intervals, while address record enables the operator to
the latter is a record maintained in a conduct an effective search for the
specially designed circular file. number which otherwise might not be
Customers' listings in Information possible.
records may be arranged in two dif-
ferent ways. The is an alpha-
first In cities using frequently reprinted
betical arrangement, in which custom- book records, both the alphabetical
ers are listed in the same manner as and street address records are brought
in the telephone directory. The up to date and reprinted at frequent
second is a street address arrange- intervals. Between printing intervals,
ment, in which the listings appear the alphabetical record is supple-
numerically under the proper street mented with a printed alphabetical
name. If there are two or more list- list known as the "daily addendum."
ings at the same address, these are This list is placed on the Information
shown in their proper alphabetical switchboard early each morning, and
order. contains all the new and changed list-
All Information Bureaus are ings which have occurred from the
equipped with alphabetical records, time the alphabetical record went to
and in many of the larger cities both press up to the close of business the
alphabetical and street address rec- previous day. In some cities, where
ords are provided. Under certain con- experience has indicated the need for
ditions, the provision of street ad- even more up-to-date information,
Rotary Records Are Used in This Modern Information Rureau

The staggered positions of the desks, and the floor racks between pairs of girls, make all
records readily available to each operator in this moderate-sized Information bureau
"new telephone" files are maintained necessary to consult one or more of

from current connections, so that if a their addenda records to obtain the
calling person indicates the telephone information desired. This was par-
number desired is one connected "this ticularly true with increasing obsoles-
morning," the operator is usually able cence of the customers' directory. In
to obtainit for him. one large city it was found that for
Prior to the introduction of fre- every 1,000 calls handled, the opera-
quently reprinted some
records, in torswere obliged to consult over 1,800
cities the alphabetical record used by records under this plan, while with
Information was the regular customer frequently reprinted records this num-
directory, which was supplemented ber was reduced to less than 1,300.
by a bi-weekly alphabetical addendum
Use of Rotary Files
and a daily alphabetical addendum.
The street address record was supple- HoTARY file records, both alphabeti-
mented in some cases by a bi-weekly cal and street address, differ from
address addendum, but was reprinted frequently reprinted records chiefly
only as frequently as the customer di- in thatthey are contained in rotary
rectory. This arrangement of records files of books, and in the
instead
adversely affected the time interval method of maintenance. The rotary
involved in locating telephone listings, file consists of a stand on which rotat-
because operators frequently found it ing drums are mounted, and fastened
An Information Position
The operator is using one of fhe frequently reprinted rerords provided for her indiridunl use.
In the racks are current directories for other frequently called localities, which are also ivithiti
reach of operators at adjacent and opposite positions
in segments of these drums are frames serts are placed in their proper posi-
which carry the listings. The stand tions among the other listings in each
may have one or two drums, giving of the rotary files. When a telephone
either a one-tier or two-tier rotary is disconnected, the inserts showing
Rotary files are placed on the switch- the listing of the customer involved
board in a manner which makes them are removed from the files.
easily accessible to the operators who

Information Equipment
use them. When an order is received
for the connection of a new telephone, Information operators work in
inserts containing the new customer's groups or teams, except in some of
listing are prepared by the clerical the smaller localities where one op-
force at the Information center. erator, or sometimes one operator
When advice is received that the tele- who combines Information with some
phone has been installed, these in- other type of operating, is sufficient
Frequently Reprinted Records

Note that the open directory is five columns wide. Directly above it is a ready-reference
list of the local numbers most frequently requested. At the left is the key panel used in
operating the position
to care for the needs of the commu- answering key which provided for
is
nity. The size teams will

of these each incoming trunk. This kind of
vary, depending upon the volume of equipment is generally used in the
traffic to be handled and the kind of smaller Information Bureaus, where
equipment in use. From the stand- the volume of traffic does not require
point of team arrangement, there are the use of large teams of operators.
two types of equipment in use The trunks can be multipled to as
throughout the System at the present many positions as are needed to han-
time. dle the traffic during the busiest period
The first and original type is ar- of the day.
ranged to provide for terminating di- When the volume of traffic is such
rectly on the operator's position the that more trunks are required than
Information trunks from the central can be terminated on one position,
offices served by an Information Bu- two or more groups of positions and
reau. Associated with each trunk is a corresponding number of teams of
a lamp signal which lights whenever operators must be used. This, in
that trunk has been selected on a call effect, divides up a large information
for and the operator

Information, bureau into two or more small ones,
trunk on which she wishes
selects the and is not a desirable arrangement,
to answer by manually operating an particularly in the larger cities em-
RoTAHV Files in Use
The upper tiers of (he files here pidured carry the alphabetical list and the lower tiers the
street-address list
ploying hundreds of Information operators.* With this arrangement, in-

erators, for it develops certain ineffi- coming trunks are not wired directly
ciencies in operating and tends to to operators' positions. Instead, each
affect adversely the speed of service. trunk connected to a position-select-
is
The introduction of call distributing, ing switch which performs the func-
the second type of equipment devel- tion of associating an incoming call
oped for use in the larger cities,
* "Idle" meaning in this instance simply op-
remedied this situation.
erators who are not engaged at the moment in
Call distributing equipment is ar-
actually responding to inquiries and who are
ranged to distribute calls to idle op- therefore free to accept new ones.
/P4f Providing the Information Service 159
with any one of a number of Informa-

tion positions. Each switch is pro-
vided with terminals for use in estab-
lishing "paths" to 40 Information
positions, if desired, and in response
to an incoming call the switch will
automatically test these terminals
until it finds a path to a position at
which an operator is idle, waiting for
a call. When the position has been
selected in this manner, the operator
receives a signal indicating that there
is a call on her position to be an-
swered, and is in immediate com-

munication with the calling customer
without further action on her part.
Position-selecting switches are ar-
ranged so that as many as 120 can
be used for terminating incoming
trunks in a single group, and the calls
received over these trunks can be
distributed, if necessary, to a team of
40 operators. In addition, the design
of call-distributing equipment practi-
A Section of Rotary File
cally insures that incoming calls will This is a section of one of the files shown of
the opposite page, indicating how the indi-
receive attention at the Information
vidual listings may be inserted or removed
Bureau in the order that they are
to keep the files up to date
received.
istic which is important in the In-
The Information Operator formation operator if she really is to
W HiLE improved methods and equip- be helpful to those who come to her
ment provide the means, it is the for assistance.
operator who is responsible for giving The Information operator's initial
the service;and if full benefit is to training period may take up to two
be derived from new developments, weeks. During this period she is
it is important that care be taken given what might be termed a "tailor-
in the selection and training of In- made" course of instruction a course —
formation operators. A student op- designed to prepare her for the spe-
erator selected for Information must cificwork performed in the bureau to
be a good speller, of course; she should which she is assigned and to assist her
know the general geography of the in becoming a productive operator
community in which she is engaged; through instruction to fit her indi-
and she should be familiar with the vidual needs. During this initial
different racial names of its inhabit- training period she will learn how to
ants. Resourcefulness is a character- make effective use of her records, the
—
AiNoTHKK Recent Development in Information-bureau Equipment

This type of information desk has been developed for use in localities where relatively few
records are required. In all other respects its operation is the same as the other modern
information equipment pictured on the preceding pages
normal limits of search which have a continuing activity and experience

been found to be most productive, a big factor in the development of
how to handle emergency calls, and proficiency. With experience, she
many other fundamentals of the job. will become familiar with the more
She will learn that customers are not frequently called business firms, and
always listed exactly as asked for by will find she is often able to give out
the person calling, and that she must their numbers from memory, thereby
acquire the habit of making suitable expediting her report to the person
suggestions which occur to her as she asking. She will learn to associate
searches in her records for requested trade names which are not listed in
information. She will learn that there the directory with the manufacturers
are several ways in which the more or distributors of these products. She
common names can be spelled which will become more proficient in the
she must be aware of if she expects to handling of her records, and will in-
make intelligent use of her records. stinctively know which record to use
Some examples of these are Peter- in beginning a search to locate a list-
sen, Peterson —Smith, Smyth, Smit ing in the shortest possible time.
Cohen, Cohan, Coen, Cone, Kohn. These are only a few of the things ex-
perience will develop in an operator,
1 HE initial training period is only allof which go a long way towards
the beginning of the Information op- making the service more complete
erator's education; for in this branch and efficient.
of the service, as in others, training is To make the service more pleasing,
i9î Providing the Information Service 161
operators have been encouraged to use listed in the directory, and as the vol-
a natural, courteous tone of voice in ume of these calls increases, major
their contacts with customers. They problems are created. A great deal
are given considerable latitude in the of thought is given to making the
choice of operating phrases to fit par- thirty million directories printed each
ticular situations, and the degree of year as satisfactory to customers as
liberalitywhich is permitted in this possible,* and it is considered not un-
connection has been effective in pro- reasonable to expect customers to re-
moting an atmosphere of personal fer to them before calling upon Infor-
service. mation for assistance.
Information Trends The purpose of Information is to
1 HE effect of introducing improved provide customers with telephone
methods and equipment in Informa- numbers which do not appear in the
tion has been reflected in a substantial current directory, and to assist tele-
reduction in the average interval of phone users who may be having diffi-
time required to handle an Informa- culty in locating people they wish to
tion call. In some of the larger cities, call. In the fulfillment of this pur-
this interval has been cut almost in pose, it is the' desire of all those
half. There is evidence, however, charged with the responsibility of the
that this situation has encouraged the service to do the job thoroughly, effi-
use of Information service to a point ciently, and in a manner which will
where some customers are using it as merit the approval of those customers
a first source of reference, rather than who have occasion to seek the assist-
as the secondary source for which it is ance of Information.
intended. In 1940, over half the In-
formation calls handled in the Bell * See "Making Telephone Directories Better,
System were for telephones correctly Bell Telephone Magazine, February, 1941.
—
TELEPHONE STATISTICS OF THE WORLD

The High Development of Facilities and of Use of
the Frecfuency
the Service in This Country, as Contrasted with the Rest of the
World, Are Revealed in This Annual Survey
By KNUD FICK
THE and
latest issue of
Telegraph
"Telephone
Statistics of
countries, so that the tables
in the bulletin, which are reprinted
and charts
the World" illustrates in de- here, are substantially accurate and

tail and in summary form, in its eight representative of the status of world
pages of charts and tables, the statisti- telephone facilities at the beginning
cal situation in respect of wire com- of 1940.
munication throughout the world as As of that date, there were 42,642,-
of January 1, 1940. As in former 252 telephones in service throughout
years, this survey has been under- the world, half of them — 20,830,950
taken by the Chief Statistician's Di- — in the United States and about a
vision of the American Telephone and third— 15,765,994— in Europe. Con-
Telegraph Company, with the coop- necting with these 42,642,252 tele-
eration of the government administra- phones were 179,110,000 miles of ex-
tionsand the private companies which change and long distance wire con-
own and operate the various com- ductors, again with about one half
ponent parts of the world's vast net- 95,150,000 miles— in the Unitd States
work of telephone and telegraph fa- —
and one third 60,611,000 miles in —
cilities. In the compilation of the Europe. The indicated net gain in
present edition of this bulletin, how- telephones during 1939 was 1,551,905,
ever, it proved impossible to obtain or 3.8 per cent, while the world's
authentic statistics covering develop- telephone wire increased by 4,562,000
ments during 1939 for many of the conductor miles, a gain of 2.6 per
foreign countries now involved in the cent. The relative telephone develop-
war. But the latest statistics pre- ment of the United States can be seen
viously available are included for such from the following brief comparison:
19^4i Telephone Statistics of the World 163
At the beginning of 1914, just be- statement of this country's relative po-
fore the first World War, a similar sition would have shown:
DISTRIBUTION OF THE WORLD'S TELEPHONES
January 1.1940
GIÊAT BRITAIN y / GERMANY
FRANCE
ALL OTHER
ALL OTHER EUROPEAN
COUNTRIES
COUNTRIES
CANADA
in Europe, whereas 99 per cent of all January 1, 1940, but with only six per
the telephones in the Western Hemi- cent of its population —has retained
sphere are in private hands. its supremacy as the world's leading
During 1939, more than 30 billion country in the field of voice communi-
localand long distance telephone calls cation.
were completed in the United States In point of absolute size, the next
and it has been estimated, from rec- largest national telephone system is
ords covering the majority of foreign that of the German Reich (including
telephone systems, that some 60 bil- Austria and Sudetenland). On June
lion callswere completed throughout 30, 1939, embraced
this 4,226,504
the world at large, or about 28 tele- telephones interconnected by some 18
phone conversations per capita. For million miles of wire, these facilities
the United States alone, however, the representing some 10 per cent of the
per capita calling rate was 231.5, The over-all
respective world totals.
which means that there were only German telephone development, how-
about 15 calls per capita outside the ever, was equivalent to only 5.28 tele-
United States. phones per 100 people, which is a
little less than one half the average
It be seen from the various

will telephone development of the smaller
tablesand charts reproduced herewith communities and rural areas in the
that the United States —
with nearly United States, At the beginning of
one half of the world's telephones on 1940, there was, in fact, an average of
19^1 Telephone Statistics of the World 165
11.33 telephones for every 100 people phone facilities abroad is that of Great
in American communities with a popu- Britain and Northern Ireland, embrac-
lation of 50,000 or
less. This is a ing on March 31, 1940, 3,375,902 tele-
relative telephone development better phones and over 16 million miles of
than that to be found in the vast ma- telephone wire. This corresponded to
jority of cities, even the great national 7.06 telephones and 34.10 miles of
capitals, abroad. In most of the telephone wire per 100 population.
larger German cities, for example, Operated as a branch of the British
there were fewer than 10 telephones Post Office (except for three small
for every 100 people, the exception systems serving the City of Hull and
being Berlin, where the 599,911 tele- the Islands of Guernsey and Jersey),
phones on March 31, 1939, corre- the British telephone system is the
sponded to somewhat less than 14 per best developed system among the
cent of the population. larger European countries. The Brit-
The second largest network of tele- ish system handles some 2,255,000,-
TELEPHONE5 PER lOO POPULATION

January 1, l940
io 12 14
UNITED STATES
SWEDEN
NEW ZEALAND
CANADA
DENMARK
SWITZERLAND
AUSTRALIA
HAWAII
NORWAY
GREAT BRITAIN
GERMANY
NETHERLANDS
BELGIUM
FINLAND
LATVIA
FRANCE
ARGENTINA
URUGUAY
JAPAN
CHILE
^
HUNGARY
ITALY
CUBA
LITHUANIA
MEXICO
RUSSIA
BRAZIL
TOTAL WORLD
6 8 IO 14
Telephones per 100 Population

"
,-<T4<>-iir500OOO'-<r0OO-HO4 ooôo ON 00 o fn o o ^ •^
ior-iOOiO-^rÔ>tÔO —
O PC ^ PD --
t--
— to PO
vO r-)
po o
-^ 100(^1 — 00 —
*o
lOC — "OOOpC o
<^0^ t~-l fN t^ lO O
;:; j= i;
OO — OOfNOOOOOPOOO'^
—
OUOOÔOr^vOOwO OpOOs 00
t^
O
C 00 PO 0\
"^ o o^
PC OO 00 On
00 00 tN On
NO -^ PC On NO PC -^
O^ lO •— NO O^ On r~)
OOiOOOOOi»ioOt-~COOOON POÔ On — •^ On r-J •^ NO On — 00 00 t^ t/-^ r^
o" POvOOO'^PNr^lO'^f^'^'îO
lOOOCslvOiDt^CrÔOOt^r^vO
PO
OO vO
O r-'o"—
O— fN NO PN * re
O T}<CN >— tNPOOO'* ir)r-~ — PC PC On rv) .^ ^
C
O
NO 00 C t^ O
O O
O
•^ -+ oo
OC O
I
NO
lO CN
I
O Ov
NO lO On lO O
I PC
O PC
lO
* no"
PC o
—o
168 Bell Telephoine Magazine AUGUST
TELEPHONES PER lOO POPULATION

OF LARGE CITIES
January 1, 1940
lo I
•)
2o 2S 30 3S 4o
SAN FRANCISCO
STOCKHOLM
WASHINGTON
DENVER
LOS ANGELES
SEATTLE
CHICAGO
MINNEAPOLIS
OMAHA
TORONTO
VANCOUVER
COPENHAGEN
ZURICH
CLEVELAND
GOTEBORG
NEW YORK
LONDON
OSLO
MONTREAL î
HELSINKI
PARIS
AUCKLAND
HONOLULU
BERLIN
BRUSSELS
SYDNEY
HAMBURG-ALTONA
COLOGNE
VIENNA
ROME
KAUNAS
ANTWERP '
AMSTERDAM
RIGA
BUENOS AIRES
ROTTERDAM
BUDAPEST
MEXICO CITY
BIRMINGHAM, ENG.
HAVANA
GLASGOW
LIVERPOOL
BUCHAREST
RIO DE JANEIRO
OSAKA
SANTIAGO. CHILE
DUBLIN
LISBON
MONTEVIDEO
TOKIO
MARSEILLE
MANILA
HONG KONG
SHANGHAI
IS 20 25 30 3S 4o
19^1 Telephone Statistics of the World 169
000 telephone messages per year, an phones per 100 population, which was
average per capita telephone usage six times better than that of Japan
(47.4 messages in 1938) which is still and 16 times better than that of Rus-
considerably below either the Scandi- sia. Both of the latter countries op-
navian or North American calling erate their telephone systems as a
rates. The telephone development of function of the Government.
British cities is similar to that found
in Germany and France, averaging In proportion to their respective
around 8 or 9 telephones per 100 populations, the telephonically best
people. London, however, had 17.81 developed territories —o u t s i d e the
telephones for every 100 inhabitants North American continent —are the
of the and county of London
city three Scandinavian countries and
proper, although Greater London, Switzerland, in Europe; Australia;
with nearly nine million people and Hawaii; and New Zealand. In all
well over one million telephones, av- of these, the number of telephones in
eraged less than 13 telephones per service corresponded to between 8 and
100 inhabitants. 13 per cent of the population. In
Denmark and Hawaii, all or nearly
Ike French telephone system, op- all of the telephone facilities are pri-
erated by the Government Admin- vately operated. In Norway, over
istration of Posts, Telegraphs and Tel-
one third are under private operation,
ephones, had 1,589,595 telephones on
and Sweden gained her position of
January 1, 1939, or less than 4 per
telephonic preeminence in Europe
100 population, with a wire mileage
during the period when the telephone
of 14.35 per 100 population. Al-
system was still largely in private
though no less than 28 per cent of
hands. Australia'sand New Zea-
all French telephones are to be found
land's large cities have telephone de-
in Paris, the telephone development
velopments of from 10 to 20 tele-
of the French capital was only 15.45
phones per 100 inhabitants, and the
per 100 inhabitants; other French
larger cities in Scandinavia and Swit-
cities are considerably less developed
telephonically. The average French zerland likewise are fairly well pro-
citizen uses the telephone only some vided with telephone facilities. Stock-
23 times during the year, or just about holm, an exceptional instance, had
one tenth as much as the use in the 40.16 telephones for every 100 of its
L^nited States. 460,000 inhabitants.
The three countries of Canada,
Japan, and Soviet Russia all had LiEAviNG Russia out of the computa-
approximately the same number of tion, Europe covers nearly two million
telephones (1,397,272, 1,367,958 and square miles, as compared with three

1,272,500, respectively). But Can- million in the United States, but Eu-
ada, where but about 15 per cent
all rope's population of 400 million is
of the telephones are owned and op- three times that of the United States.
erated by private companies, had a Considering the fact, then, that Eu-
development equivalent to 12.35 tele- rope is, on the average, about four
5 — '5
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/ 5 // / Telephone Statistics of the World 173
and a half times as densely populated provision of adequate telephone fa-

as the United States, one would ex- cilities a more difficult problem.
pect a more uniform development of According to the latest available in-
telephone service in European com- formation, however, the greatest dis-
munities outside the largest cities than crepancy in the telephone develop-
would be the case in similar American ment of Europe as compared with
areas, where the much sparser average that in the United States occurs in
settlement would seemingly make the non-metropolitan areas; viz.:
Ratio of U. S. to
Europe United States
Europe
Cities with a population of over 1 ,000,000 10.1 24.3 2.4 to 1
500,000-1,000,000 8.9 25.4 2.9 to 1
200,000- 500,000 6.8 23.3 3.4 to 1
Total metropolitan areas 8.9 24.3 2.7 to 1
Rural areas and communities with less than 200,000

population 2.4 12.7 5.3 to 1
Total 3.6 15.9 4.4 to 1
In relation to population, the large while our smaller cities and rural areas
cities of the United States have gen- have over five times the telephone
erally from two to four times as many facilities of similar communities in
telephone facilities as European cities, Europe.
FOR THE RECORD
v^
DIRECT RADIO TELEPHONE CIRCUITS TO PORTUGAL AND

PANAMA ESTABLISHED
A DIRECT radio telephone circuit between New York and Panama City was opened
New York and Lisbon, Portugal, was on July 11. This system provides one
opened on June 25. Previous to the open- circuit initially, with facilities for a sec-
ing of this circuit, calls from the United ond as soon as it is needed. Calls between
States to Portugal had passed over the the United States and Panama and the
New York-Madrid radio telephone circuit, Canal Zone have more than doubled dur-
completing their journey to Portugal over ing the past year. Since 1933, telephone
long distance wire lines. The service link- service with Panama has been operated
ing Bell and Bell-connecting telephones in between the A. T. & T. Company's short-
this country with those in Portugal is op- wave radio telephone stations near Miami
erated between the American Telephone and the radio telephone stations of the
and Telegraph Company's short wave sta- Tropical Radio Telegraph Company in
tions in New Jersey and the Portuguese Panama Viejo. The new radio circuit op-
Marconi Company's radio telephone sta- erates between the Tropical stations and
tions near Lisbon. stations of the A. T. & T. Company in
A direct radio telephone service between New Jersey.
v$>i
PROGRESS IS RAPID ON TRANSCONTINENTAL

TELEPHONE CABLE
Work goes forward rapidly on the Bell and of circuit balancing apparatus is
System's new $20,000,000 transcontinen- under way in more than a score of them.
tal telephone cable between Omaha, Neb., The two cables are laid side by side in
and Sacramento, Cal., which is to link the a furrow plowed usually about 30 inches
eastern and Pacific Coast cable networks, deep. The cables feed off their reels and
and by the end of July about 500 miles into the ground through an aperture in
of the twin underground cables had been the plow share, and the entire operation
plowed in by three tractor trains at work is completed at one time as the train is
along different sections of the route. (See drawn along by powerful tractors. While
"Trends in Toll Cable Usage," Magazine, the speed of one of these trains naturally
May, 1941). About 30 of the approxi- depends on the character of the ground,
mately 100 repeater-station buildings under particularly favorable conditions
along the line have already been com- one train covered seventeen miles in one
pleted, and the installation of repeaters week.
174
The circuits in one of the twin cables into service in the completed section be-
will carry words bound eastward, while tween Laramie, Wyo., and Omaha before
those in the other will carry the west- the end of this year. When the rest of
bound halves of conversations. For the the cable is finished, next year, there will
most part, the cables are manufactured 'be about 100 circuits to link the eastern
and laid in lengths of about 3,000 feet, and western cable networks at Omaha and
and gangs are now engaged in splicing the Sacramento respectively, and an addi-
lengths together and conducting tests. tional 20 or more to take care of traffic
Gas pressure is maintained in the cables between Denver and the east. This will
during the laying operation, and the pres-
be an increase of about SO per cent over
sure is tested after each length is in place,
the number of circuits provided by ex-
to determine that no opening in the lead
isting transcontinental lines. It is ex-
sheath has occurred during the plowing in.
pected that ultimately this one cable alone
For protection, the route follows a care-
will furnish some 600 telephone circuits,
fully selected right-of-way which avoids
or about triple the present number of
highways.
The new cable will supplement several transcontinental circuits. Channels will
transcontinental which consist in

lines also be provided for radio network trans-
part of open wire. According to present mission and for telegraph and teletype-
plans, from 50 to 70 circuits will be put writer purposes.
^^
A 1937 graduate of Wesleyan University, Entering Harvard in 1916, Eustace
Alvin von Auw stayed on at the Uni- Florance 1917 to serve as
left college in
versity to take his MA. in 1938. Until a First Lieutenant and Captain of In-
April of 1939 he served as managing edi- fantry in several southern cantonments
tor of Listeners Digest, a national maga- until the middle of 1919. In 1921 he
zine featuring condensed versions of nota- joined the Chesapeake and Potomac Tele-
ble radio broadcasts. When Scribner's phone Companies in Wâshington, where
Commentator took over the Listeners Di- he was engaged in commercial engineering
gest formula, Mr. von Auw became radio work. In 1926 he was appointed Division
editor of the combined publication. He Commercial Supervisor of the Washington
joined Wêstern Electric's Public Relations Division, and in 1929 General Commercial
Department in July of 1939, and has since Manager of the Chesapeake and Potomac
contributed numerous articles to trade Telephone Company of Baltimore City,
and general publications on such subjects serving the State of Maryland. In May
as broadcasting, aviation radio, marine of 1936 he returned to Washington, head-
radio, public address systems, and sound quarters of the companies, as General In-
motion pictures. During recent months formation Manager.
he has written a series of articles for
Western Electric's employee papers, de- Graduated from the University of Kan-
signed to keep the Company's employees sas in 1915, Austin Bailey received his
informed on the extent of the Western's Ph.D. degree from Cornell University in
contribution to the Bell System's and the 1920, after having served during the
nation's defense efforts. World War as a Second Lieutenant in the
175
Signal Corps, assigned to the radio lab- in the Signal Corps Reserves, assigned to
oratories at Camp Alfred Vail (now Fort research work for the Army and Navy
Monmouth). In 1920 he accepted a posi- relating to acoustic instruments and sub-
tion as superintendent of the apparatus marine signaling. In 1923 he was placed
division of Corning Glass Works, leaving in charge of the Inspection Engineering
this in the Fall of 1921 to become As- Department, newly organized to establish
sistant Professor of Physics at the Uni- a scientific basis for inspection operations
versity of Kansas. He joined the Bell in factory and field. When the Bell Tele-
System in 1922, his first assignment being phone Laboratories was organized, in
on radio problems in the Department of 1925, Dr. Jones continued in this work
Development and Research of the Ameri- in the new organization. In 1927 the
can Telephone and Telegraph Company. Outside Plant Development Department
Dr. Bailey was sent to England and Scot- was added to his responsibilities. He
land in 1926 for a year's work in connec- organized the first laboratories devoted
tion with the establishment of the first exclusively to the development and speci-
commercial transatlantic radio telephone fication of materials and constructions
circuit. In 1934 he was transferred to used in the outside plant of the Bell Sys-
the Bell Telephone Laboratories, where he tem. In 1928 he became Director of
continued with the development of radio Apparatus Development. This depart-
for Bell System applications. In 1937 he ment is responsible for investigation and
returned to the A. T. and T. Company, design of most of the apparatus and mate-
in the Department of Operation and Engi- rials used by the Bell System. He is a
neering, where he has since been engaged representative of the telephone group on
with the technical aspects of numerous the Standards Council of the American
radio projects, such as ship to shore, over- Standards Association, and is the Bell
seas, emergency, point to point, and ve- System representative on the Aviation
hicular services. He has contributed sev- Communications Sub-committee of the
eral articles to the Bell System Technical Defense Communications Board. He is a
Journal, Bell Laboratories Record, and member System Committee on
of the Bell
Bell Telephone Quarterly, all dealing Critical Materials, and is chairman of the
with various aspects of radio telephony. Benefit Committee of the Bell Telephone
Laboratories.
After graduating from the Massachu-
setts Institute of Technology with the Upon graduation from Brown University
degrees of B.S. in E.E. in 1909, M.S. in with the B.S. degree in 1922, Fred C.
1910, and Sc.D. in 1911, Reginald L. Baurenfeind joined the New York Tele-
Jones became a member of the research phone Company, and in the next several
staff of the Western Electric Company, years filled a number of assignments in
engaged in study of the fundamental the traffic field organization in New York
characteristics of telephone transmitters City. In 1930 he was appointed District
and receivers and of mechanical telephone Traffic Superintendent of the Washington
repeaters. In 1914 he was placed in Heights district; in 1932, after a brief
charge of the Transmission Research De- period during which he was in charge of
partment, organizing and directing early traffic instruction work for men in dial
studies of the nature of speech and hear- panel operation, he became District Traf-
ing; development studies of improved fic Superintendent for Information bu-
transmitters, receivers, and loud speakers; reaus in Manhattan, with a personnel of
and transmission engineering of telephone about 1,000; and in 1938 he was made
systems. In 1917-18 he was a Captain Traffic Superintendent of the Circle dial-
176
loll district. Last November he was other branches of the Danish Government,
transferred to the Department of Opera- he joined the American Telephone and
tion and Engineering of the A. T. and T. Telegraph Company in 1925. In the
Company, where, in the Traffic Division, Chief Statistician's Division of the Comp-
he engaged on local and auxiliary serv-
is troller's Department he has been in charge
ice —
which include, among others,
matters of statistics and economics relating to for-
the Information service. eign telephone development. In 1932 he
was sent Madrid, Spain, and in 1938
to
Born in Denmark, Knud Pick was grad-
to Cairo, Egypt, in connection with work
uated in 1916 from Hellerup Gymnasium,
for the International Telecommunication
near Copenhagen, with a degree corre-
sponding to Bachelor of Arts, supplement- Conferences. His present discussion of
ing this two years later with the degree what statistical analysis reveals about the
of Candidate of Philosophy from the Uni- world telephone situation is his seventh
versity of Copenhagen. Following a num- annual contribution to the Magazine and
ber of years in the Foreign Office and its predecessor on this topic.
177
BELL TELEPHONE
MAGAZINE
VOL. XX NOVEMBER, 1941
TELEPHONES AND DEFENSE

L An Operating Telephone Company's
Part in National Defense
IL Providing Substitutes for "Critical"
Telephone Materials
in. The Present Situation and the
Present Outlook
ENGINEERING THE TRANSCONTINENTAL

TELEPHONE CABLE
THE 1941 CONVERTIBLE BOND ISSUE
THE TELEPHONE AFLOAT
PATENTS AND FREE ENTERPRISE

li
BELL TELEPHONE
MAGAZINE
Continuing the Bell Telephone Quakterly
VOL. XX NOVEMBER, 1941 NO. 4

Introduction 181
I. An Operating Telephone Company's
Part in National Defense 182
Hervey Roberts
VAV II. Providing Substitutes for "Critical"
Telephone Materials 195
*'The ideal and aim of the Til. The Present Situation and the Present
Outlook 200
American Telephone and
Engineering the Transcontinental Telephone
Telegraph Company and Cable 207
its Associated Companies H. H. Nance
is a telephone service for the The 1941 Convertible Bond Issue 222
J. F. Behan
nation, free, so far as
humanly possible, from The Telephone Afloat 234

G. W. Merwin
imperfections, errors, or
Patents and Free Enterprise. 243
delays, and enabling any- W. R. Ballard
one anywhere to pick up a
For the Record
telephone and talk to any- "The Bell Telephone System": a review of a book
—
by Vice President Page New Defense Post for W.
one else anywhere else, —
H. Harrison L. G. Woodford Appointed Chief
— —
Engineer !Vew Records Set in September Index to
clearly, quickly and at a Volume XX Available
reasonable cost." Contributors to This Issue Zo^
=^^
Published for the Bell System by the Information Department of
MODERN PIONEERING
This is one of the huge tractor trains which is plowing the twin
transcontinental telephone cables into the ground along the route
from Omaha, Neb., to Sacramento, Cat., to link the eastern and
Pacific toll cable networks. See ''Engineering the Trans-
continental Telephone Cable,'' in this issue.
TELEPHONES AND DEFENSE
AS this country gears up more and more to the achievement of a
condition of impregnable defense, a fast, dependable, nation-
wide telephone service is of incalculable importance: in the crea-
tion of Army camps and Navy bases and the training of great numbers
of men; in the building of huge factories and the operation of plants both
new and long established; in the transportation and distribution of raw
materials and finished products; in the administration of the vast new
and special activities of the Federal Government — în all the innumerable
consequences of the hurried transformation of a whole people from a state
of peace to one "short of war." To keep pace with the present un-
exampled demand for telephone service is the grave responsibility of
Bell and independent telephone companies, whose interconnected lines,
and manufacturing facilities as well, are being called on as never before
in the maintenance of the time-schedule of defense.
How the Bell System is meeting its responsibility is best told by the
line gangs who are placing wire and cable at top speed, by the installers
who are putting in telephones and switchboards in unprecedentednum-
bers, by the operators who are handling more calls than ever before, by
the heightened tempo at the Bell Laboratories, by the day-and-night
shifts at Western Electric's great factories.
Parts of that story have also been told in this Magazine. In the issue
of February, 1941, "TheSystem and National Defense" gave a
Bell
summary of how the System had risen to the situation by the first of
this year. "Engines for Defense," in the May issue, told of one aspect
of the preparations for an emergency. "Western Electric: Telephone
Arsenal," last August, reported how the System's manufacturing and
supply organization is keeping pace with the demand for communication
equipment to meet requirements of both civilian needs and our armed
forces. Two briefer statements by President Walter S. Gifford of the
American Telephone and Telegraph Company (in the issues of October,
1940, and May, 1941) were recapitulations. In the following pages of
this issue appear three which bring sharply into the foreground
articles
the extent to which the Bell System is contributing to the defense pro-
gram. "An Operating Telephone Company's Part in National Defense,"
182 Bell Telephone Magazine NOVEMBER
which begins below, has been written especially to supplement the articles
just named. "Providing Substitutes for 'Critical' Telephone Materials,"
and "The Present Situation and the Present Outlook," which follow, are
statements recently prepared for the information of employees and al-
ready given some circulation in the Bell System; they are included here
as contributing materially to the perspective of the whole picture.
v^ t.^^ t<^
AN OPERATING TELEPHONE COMPANY'S

PART IN NATIONAL DEFENSE
Furnishing Service Quickly to New Army and Navy Establishments,
Defense Plants, Boom Towns, and Expanding Industry Creates
Problems Which Can Be Met Only by Extraordinary Exertions
By HERVEY ROBERTS
Of the 24 operating companies of the and all the miscellany of a national
Bell System, the Southwestern Bell Tele- defense emergency; when thousands
phone Company whether in point of
is,
of workmen and swarm
their families
area served, telephones owned, or number where defense building is
to cities
of employees, neither the largest nor the
going on; when towns double their
smallest. In the territories of the other
population in a few weeks, and tar-
Bell companies there may be more camps,
paper shacks and old chicken sheds
more men in training, more defense plants,
more mushroom towns or there may be— are snatched for houses; when ordi-
fewer. All of these companies are meet- nary business zooms from the addi-
ing the demands for communication which tional pay checks and the clamor for
national defense is creating in their areas. supplies; and when, on top of all that,
This article, which narrates the intense two of the country's four Armies start
activity of the Southwestern Bell arising practicing for the largest peacetime
out of the country's defense program, may maneuvers in the history of the United
be regarded as representative of the way
States .well, normal ways of liv-
. .
in which all the System companies arc re-

ing and doing business are likely to go
sponding to the present emergency.
by the board. And just incidentally,
HEN more it's likely to present some problems
Wl
than a billion
is suddenly poured
dollars to the telephone company furnishing
one section of the
into service in that area.
country for Army camps, navy bases, That is exactly what has been going
air fields, shipbuilding yards, chemical on Southwestern
in the territory of the
and steel plants, airplane factories, Bell Telephone Company during the
— —
i9Ui Telephoises and Defense 183
Room for Expansion

Behind the protection of thetemporary walls, service is rendered as usual in the central office
at Victoria, Tex., as work starts on a two-story addition made necessary by the creation of
an Army air field near by
last year or more. Of course, much Corpus Christi for the Navy; more
the same thing
is taking place in other than a score of Army camps, new and
parts of the country; there are larger enlarged; airplane factories and air
defense factories in the East, and big- fields;chemical plants and munition
ger Army maneuvers in the South. dumps . the list runs on and on.
, .
But Southwestern Bell territory And each in its way has offered a
Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas, Okla- challenge to the telephone forces.
homa, Texas, and a bit of Illinois
furnishes a good cross section of the Just as a sample, at Freeport, Tex.,
defense effort because to some extent a $10,000,000 addition was made to a
it is getting in on practically every- magnesium plant. Result: the num-
thing. ber of workers at the plant jumped
Southwestern newspaper headlines from 550 to 2000 —a fair-sized in-
for months have been reporting daily crease for one factory in a town of
additions to defense activity: a $30,- 2600. And that's not all. When
000,000 TNT plant at Weldon building began, nearly 5000 construc-
Springs, Mo.; a $5,000,000 shipyard tion workers poured into Freeport
at Houston builtin 100 days; the nearly twice the town's normal popu-
largest air base in the world, built at lation. So strained were living accom-
major problems — just as it has, of

course, many other industries. For
when factories costing millions start
rising in the middle of flats previously
inhabited by sea gulls, and Army
camps spring up among the scrub oaks
and armadillos, the job of rushing in
telephone facilities is by no means
simple. It can be done, and it is being
done. But it has taken some fast
action.
Action through System
OTiLL, the problems are somewhat

similar to those raised by storms and
floods, and it has been possible to
solve them with methods used to meet
such " normal " emergencies. The
Southwestern Company bases its sys-
tem upon a series of special commit-
tees similar to those formed for emer-
gency storm restoration. At the top
is a General Defense Committee for
the company as a whole, composed of

the General Sales Manager as chair-
man, the General Commercial Engi-
Lines in a Hurry
neer, the General Plant Supervisor,
Telephone service is one of the first require-
the General Plant Extension Engineer,
ments of the contractor building a defense
project—in this case Camp Robinson, Ark. and the General Traffic Engineer. As
Permanent facilities come later, when re- chairman, the General Sales INIanager
quirements for the camp itself are definitely
also acts as chief liaison man in the
known
company's dealings with Government
officials on defense projects.
modations that some of these men had
While these are the regular ap-
to stay in Houston, and drive 125
pointed members, actually the com-
miles a day to and from work-
mittee is a flexible and informal group,
Even more spectacular, a small-
arms munition plant employing 8000 and anyone in the general depart-
workers is now in operation at Lake ments may be called upon to sit in on
City, Mo., which early last spring had specific jobs. The idea is to get the
a population of 30! And these are work done as smoothly and as quickly
just two examples. as possible. Similar committees are
This tremendous expansion, plus organized in each of the company's

the acute need for speed, has faced four areas, which correspond in gen-
the telephone industry with some eral to state lines except that Arkansas
19^1 Telephones and Defense 185
and most of Missouri are combined in

one area.
The committees cover a wide range
of activities. One of their most im-
portant tasks is to keep informed of
the new defense projects that enter
the picture, including where each
project is to be and when it is
new
to start.
a r^
Unless such information is received in
plenty of time, the company may find
it difficult to be ready when the inevi-
table rush begins. The Army, which

is supervising much of the defense in-
dustry expansion, has been very co-

operative in providing this informa-
tion as soon as it is available.
The committees also watch such
things as force adjustment, to make
sure that enough plant men, engineers,
and operators will be available for the
new jobs. They work closely with the
Army and Navy, and, in the case of
the general committee, with the
Company and with neighboring Asso- A Service Order
ciated Companies. With the whole- Not telephone work for defense is done
all the
hearted cooperation of the Western in the field. This is the order written for
Electric Company, they have proved telephone service for the new plant of the
themselves adept at seeing that, no Beech Aircraft Company at Wichita, Kan.
matter how urgent a new order may
be, needed supplies can be provided
ceived that the plant and houses will
for the job without delay. be built. On the basis of all the in-
formation they can gather, they decide
ijET us assume that word is received approximately what telephone facili-
that a new airplane plant is going up ties will be needed for the construction
in the country outside of Tulsa, Okla. contractors, for the plant itself, and
There will also be a housing project, for the people who will live in the new
financed by the government, to take houses. Past experience has proved a
care of the workers. Perhaps there trustworthy guide, and it is highly
are only a few rural lines in the neigh- probable that the advance estimate
borhood. willcome out very close to what will
The Oklahoma people go to work be actually needed.
immediately, both at Tulsa and at The advance figure on the amount
state headquarters at Oklahoma City, of material and labor that seems nec-
even before official notification is re- essary is telephoned to St. Louis,
where approval is obtained over — ing up, while the volume of long dis-
night, necessary
if —
for ordering the tance calls went out of sight. Natu-
material. The order is placed, and rally, there would be even greater
Western Electric gets under way at traffic when the field was completed,
once. By the time the new plant is to say nothing of the volume con-
ready for the work, the material is tributed by the new families that were
usually ready for delivery. The for- certain to be drawn into town.
mal estimate, upon which normally When Victoria was converted to a
every move must depend, may not be common battery system, only five
submitted for approval until the work years ago, it had eight toll and six
is well started. local positions. On April 1 of this
\\'hat amount to double jobs are year there were eleven toll and eight
almost standard now for defense ex- local, and the activity at the field had
pansion. First comes a small manual just started. Careful estimates indi-
PBX for the contractor, and other ac- cated that by May 24 a four-position
tivities involved in construction, plus, toll table would have
to be added; by
perhaps, teletypewriter service. Then, October another local and two more
as the building nears completion, a toll positions; and by July of next
dial PBX is installed to serve the com- year two more local and two more
munication needs of the plant itself. toll, or a total of 30 positions as com-
pared to the original 14.

JMaturally, this putting in and tak- One trouble was that 19 positions
ing out of PBX's has kept the Plant jammed the operating room. The last
Department fairly busy. But on top one literally touched the rear wall of
of that, nearly every defense job has the building. Not another jack could
also meant a big outside construction
program. Most of the defense plants,
be squeezed in —much less eleven
more So the end of the
positions.
as well as the Army establishments, building was knocked out, and 28
are located and
outside city limits, more feet added to both stories. This
many of them have housing projects allowed room for all the estimated
associated with them. The combina- new positions, with space for more if
tion requires new facilities in territory they are needed. Incidentally, the
perhaps iive or ten miles from the operating force at Victoria has in-
central office. In many instances it is
creased from 33 a year ago to 54 at
necessary to string open wire circuits present.
for the contractor's immediate needs,
following along with a permanent At Grand Prairie, Tex., the changes
cable later. were relatively even greater. Three
But other things happen to the tele- years ago Grand Prairie was cut in as
phone company, too. Victoria, Tex., an agency office, with a two-position
where an advanced air training field is switchboard. Things went along
being built for the Army Air Corps, quietly for two years. Then last sum-
is a good example. Weeks before mer North American Aviation started
work started on the field, the number building a huge new airplane plant
of local calls at Victoria began shoot- which will employ 10,000 persons by
Cables for Defense

A Southwestern Bell cable splicing foreman inspects the reels in the storage yard
at Camp Robinson
the end of this year. A housing proj- quadrupling the force in a few weeks.
ect brought additional activity, while Part of the need can be filled by trans-
a Naval Reserve airfield, next door to fers, but in addition it has been neces-
the factory, took on new life as a pri- sary to train new girls at some of the
mary training field for the Navy. smaller places.
Local calls and telephone installations
rose in a flood. Long distance calls
Ihese localized shortages of opera-
jumped from 50 a day to 800, with far tors, however, have proved one thing
more in prospect. The operator hur- again: that the Bell spirit sticks even
after telephone people leave the serv-
riedly moved her residence to another
house; part of the telephone equip-
ice. Just as former operators fre-
ment was moved to her former bed- quently volunteer to help in time of
room, a wall was torn out so that the storm or flood, quite a few are now
kitchen could be added to the operat- coming to the "tight" offices and say-
ing room, and five new switchboard ing, "I know you're short-handed, and
positions were put in — just as a I'll be glad to help until you can pull
many cases these

starter. Now chief operator, she has out of the hole." In
twelve girls working for her, and girls are men who have
wives of the
more must soon be added. come in to build or work at the new
Such force increases have brought defense plants. The girls may have
problems for the Traffic Department worked for Michigan Bell or Pacific
in their train. You don't expect to Tel. . but as far as they're con-
. .
find enough trained operators in a cerned the Southwestern is part of the

small town to permit doubling and family, and they want to lend a hand.
Service for the Camps request was made to furnish telephone

service for the contractor: two 80-line
But defense industries are just one
PBX's and number of circuits to
a
aspect of the telephone's new job.
Mineral Wells. The material was or-
There are also Army camps and air-
dered November 12, the first switch-
fields to serve, to say nothing of the
board was working November 18, and
world-record Naval Air Base at Cor-
the second was in by the 22nd.
pus Christi, which 18 months ago was The switchboard for the camp it-
a stretch of sand dunes and mesquite. self was ordered January 7, and was
The new additions vary considerably
in size, from 1000-man reception cen-
in service February 12 — three weeks
before schedule. Ahead of schedule
ters to full-fledged camps for 35.000
work im-
or not, the board was put to
to 40,000 troops such as Fort Leonard
mediately.
Wood in Missouri. But the story of
Meanwhile, telephone construction
one is pretty much the story of all, so
gangs were brought in from as far
let's take Camp Wolters, a medium-
away as Houston, until finally 32
sized infantry replacement center at
crews were on the job. These in-
Mineral Wells, Tex., as typical.
cluded two oversized cable gangs, one
Last fall Camp Wolters was noth-
of which had 13 men. Thanks to the
ing but 8000 acres of pasture and
number of men, and the cooperation
scrub. But when the contractor got they received all the way up the line,
under way last November, the camp
these gangs did a little record-breaking
popped into being like a field of mush- of their own. Some toll circuits to
rooms. Using the system that is
Abilene, which normally would have
standardized on these camp projects,
taken 100 to 120 days to put in, were
bulldozers first scraped off the scrub,
up and working in 20 days. On the
and then pushed the hills casually into
local end, a 50-pair cable was run in
the valleys. To give you an idea of
from Mineral Wells for the contrac-
the way these bulldozers work, at one
tor, and later, when the Army's re-
period it was planned to set some 30- quirements were definitely known, a
foot poles across a low spot. The con-
200-pair cable went in for the camp's
tractor suggested waiting until the
permanent facilities. It was in use
next morning, as during the night the two days before the date set by the
bulldozers were going to push a hill
Army.
into that hollow, and the dirt would
cover the tops of the poles. That's a W HiLE all this sounds smooth
long way from a man with a shovel! enough, there were a few minor inter-
As soon as the camp site was leveled, ruptions, some more amusing than
a railroad spur was rushed in, a hard- serious. The contractors were jump-
surfaced main road and a system of ing so fast that in a couple of cases
streets was started, and the buildings they literally moved their shacks out
themselves began springing up. By from under their telephones, leaving
March the camp was partly garri- the instruments lying on the ground.
soned and troops were in training. And the ubiquitous mud, chief enemy
When work first started, the usual of camp construction all over the
—
1941 Telephones and Defense 189
country, insisted upon bogging down the necessary and hard-

crossarms
telephone trucks as well as everyone ware were hauled So bad was the
in.
else's. mud that 12 crossarms were a full

Bad as the mud was, though, the load for a team, and even then the
crews at Minerals Wells had an easy mules would play out. They would
time compared with gangs putting in lie down to rest, and the men would
some toll circuits to Camp Wallace, a have to hold their coats under the
coast artillery replacement center near mules' noses to keep them from
Galveston. drowning! To get in the wire, the
Four miles of this toll lead runs reels were set up on the highway, and
through a typical Gulf Coast swamp one strand would be hitched to a mule.
a swamp that's bad enough normally, Then the mule would drag that one
but that had become soupy muck wire through the bog, the reel unwind-
through weeks of steady rain. It was ing as he pulled.
too thin for trucks, and too thick for Just to complicate matters, at one
boats. So three teams of mules were point the gangs ran into a few mos-
hired, wagons were stripped
three quitoes ... a few thousand, that is.
down to wheels, axles, and poles, and The men were already wearing boots.
"General Mud" Takes a Hand

Caterpillar traction, and caterpillar mount for the cable reel, helped to get cable in on schedule
at Fori Leonard Wood, Mo.
a
slickers, and gloves, but to protect phone equipment isn't the only way
their faces they made hoods of slicker in which Southwestern Bell has helped
cloth, cutting holes to see and breathe. the Army, however. Unorthodox ar-
It was probably the weirdest-looking rangements have been worked out to
construction gang on record, but it was enable them to meet unusual condi-
better than being eaten alive. tions. For instance, a number of
small PBX boards have been re-
JVluD didn't cause all the chuckles, arranged for use as portable switch-
though. One day at expanding Fort boards in the field, some of them
Riley, Kan., a building contractor mounted in Army trucks. Some of
rushed and said he had cut a tele-
in these boards, used for specific situa-
phone cable. There was no sign of tions during maneuvers, are designed
trouble, and he was so assured, but he to juggle magneto and common bat-
insisted he knew a telephone cable tery circuits in a manner that would
when he saw it. Investigation showed never be needed under ordinary cir-
it was a telephone cable all right — cumstances. In one case, Plant men
piece of underground that had been assigned to help the during ma-Army
abandoned back in World War days I neuvers designed a system whereby
The prize story also goes to Fort teletypewriters could be made to op-
Riley. Shortly after the selectees had erate over field wire laid on the
started coming into the fort, a long ground, with its insulation wet from
distance call came through for a constant rain.
private named approximately John Less obvious, but no less important,
Smith, outfit unknown. As there were was some specialized training for the
then about 5000 regular and selectee Army. Faced with all their new and
troops on the reservation, the operator enlarged camps needing communica-
asked for further identification. She tions service, and with a sudden addi-
got it thus: ''He's blond, has curly tion of hundreds of new men to the
hair, and one gold tooth." Signal Corps, the Army last year fore-
It hardly seems fair to neglect the handedly started expanding the group
story of the air bases, both Army and of instructors who are now teaching
Navy, in Southwestern Bell territory, the new Signal Corps men their jobs.
because this region is one of the major The communications companies were
air training centers of the country. asked to help in certain phases, and all
Besides the Corpus Christi base, it last fall the Southwestern Bell con-
contains the Randolph-Kelly-Brooks ducted classes in teletype operation,
Field group, the " West Point of the PBX maintenance, station installa-
Air," at San Antonio, and more than a tion, and central office work. In a
score of other military air training number of camps, experienced opera-
fields, exclusive of the regular Army tors have been assigned to teach sol-
air posts. But the telephone jobs at diers how to operate switchboards.
these fields have been similar to those
Service during Maneuvers
already described, and further com-
ment would be mere repetition. 1 HE maneuvers mentioned earlier
Building lines and installing tele- are an entirely different phase of the
i9Ui Telephones and Defense 191
Right at Home
The Post Signal Officer, going over plans for the switchboard at Camp Funston with Western
Electric installers, was a facilities engineer with the Southwestern Bell Company until he
donned khaki
telephone company's defense job. as possible, the Armies chose the most
They involve many of the regular de- sparsely-settled sections of the areas
fense activity problems, such as rush for their practice. For these objec-
orders formajor construction, but tives the country chosen was excel-
they also add a few of their own. lent: enough stretches of mesquite in
In the last year there have been Texas, and cypress swamps and pine
three maneuvers in Southwestern ter- hills in Arkansas, so that only a few
ritory: one in East Texas last fall, a towns need be involved. But from a
Second Army action in Arkansas this communications standpoint it wasn't
August, and Third Army maneuvers so good. Most telephone lines stay
that started in West Texas the first away from hill and swamp areas.
part of August, and then moved to
Southeast Texas and Louisiana the Ihe Army, of course, handled the
latter part of the month. These last actual operation of its communica-
two were preliminaries to joint ma- tions, using its own switchboards, sol-
neuvers, largely in Southern Bell ter- dier operators,and Signal Corps men.
ritory, during which the Second Army It also strung hundreds of miles of
defended against the invading Third. field wire between different units.
Both for tactical reasons and to But the backbone of its communica-
avoid disrupting civilian life as much tions network was the regular com-
^^îîK
Portable Central Office

Southwestern Bell men helped the Signal Corps to mount this magneto switchboard
in an Army truck
mercial lines; for, rather than run dreds of visitors, were going to be
lines between units which might be making calls, to say nothing of the
many miles apart and frequently on would be needed
first-class service that
the move, the Army leased toll cir- by newspaper and radio men covering
cuits between the two nearest towns, the activities. Obviously, facilities
and ran its own lines from the unit normally adequate for the maneuver
headquarters to Southwestern Bell areas would be hopelessly swamped.
lines.
Naturally, the Army requirements Ihe Army, however, has always
had be superimposed upon those for
to proved very considerate, and as soon
regular civilian usage, with as little as its plans were developed, they sup-
disturbance of the latter as possible. plied a fairly complete picture of what
Moreover, non-Army telephone us- could be expected. Weeks before the
age was certain to increase, rather troops moved in, the Southwestern
than decrease, during the maneuver Bell was able to swing into action.
period. General business was certain Construction crews from Oklahoma
to boom (El Dorado, Ark., had one and Kansas were brought into Arkan-
million-and-a-half-dollar payday that sas to help the local forces there, and
practically cleaned out the stores), gangs from different parts of Texas
and long distance was sure to jump as were concentrated in the Texas ma-
merchants frantically tried to replen- neuvers areas. In both cases, special
ish stocks. On top of that, several groups of Plant, Traffic, and Commer-
hundred thousand soldiers, and hun- cial men were assigned to devote their
iP4 / Telephones and Defense 193
entire time to the Army "for the troubles. Temperatures reached 100
duration." and higher every day they were on
The biggest construction job had to the job, and shirts became so soaked
be done in a section running roughly with perspiration that they shorted
from Gurdon, Ark., to El Dorado and circuits temporarily as the men worked
the Louisiana line. In this area more among the wires. And to make things
than 1700 miles of new lines were worse, there was an epidemic of chig-
strung; circuits were rearranged, and gers. Things weren't nearly so bad
26 new carrier terminals were in- on the similar job in Texas. There
stalled. New positions were added to the worst trouble was that the cows
the switchboards in Gurdon, Prescott, developed a taste for insulation, and
Camden, and other towns, some of would eat it off the field wires.
which are served by independent tele- Despite heat and chiggers, the
phone companies. Western Electric crews made remarkable time. Using
poured in supplies literally by the car- truck-mounted borers to dig pole
load: 4500 crossarms, 50,000 insula- holes, and hiring mule teams to pull
tors, 45,000 locust pins; two and a whole cross-arms of wires at once,
more than a quar-
half tons of tie wire, some of the grouped gangs averaged
ter of a millionpounds of line wire. three miles a day.
The construction gangs had their Meanwhile, representatives of the
Army Message Center

Hidden in the woods during maneuvers, this 35th Division post included telegraph facilities
in the trailer at the left, a teletypewriter in the center, and a telephone switchboard mounted
in the truck at the right
Pulling In a Whole Cross-arm of Wires

Local motive power was used in stringing these wires in preparation for Army maneuvers
independent telephone companies in- neuvers, and why. An explanation

volved (there are 28 in the Arkansas was made of the work being done to
maneuver area alone) met with the hold these delays to a minimum, but
Southwestern Company to work out it was frankly admitted that service
arrangements to keep all the work co- was bound to suffer somewhat. The
ordinated. This was highly neces- advertising took the form of newspa-
sary, as one order from the Army per advertisements, inserts in custom-
might involve several telephone com- ers' bills, and special posters placed
panies. The cooperation of all the at our own and connecting-company
companies was excellent throughout public telephones. It is difficult to tell
the maneuvers, a fact that contributed the exact effect this advertising had,
greatly to the successful handling of
but one fact stands out: not one seri-
the project.
ous complaint was received through-
Oecause the public was also af- out the entire maneuvers period.
fected, the company conducted an in- Thanks to these preparations, and
formative campaign to
advertising the excellent cooperation from every-
tell people that there might be delays one concerned, the job of providing
in telephone service during the ma- maneuvers was accom-
service for the
—
plished, in general, with gratifying Long Lines circuit has been borrowed
smoothness. And the Army said it to an emergency gap. Western
fill
was satisfied —which was the impor- Electric has brilliantly upheld its
tant thing. Cooperation throughout reputation for delivering the goods
the defense job is so excellent and so usually wanted in quantity, and right
consistent, however, that only its lack now! The independent telephone
would be cause for comment. Practi- companies have collaborated closely
cally everything the Southwestern Bell and whole-heartedly. And too much
has done and is doing involves other emphasis cannot be placed on the co-
organizations: the American Tele- operation of the country's armed
phone and Telegraph Company, its forces. Faced with staggering prob-
Long Lines Department, the Western lems of their own, they have been both
Electric Company, independent tele- considerate and helpful in their deal-
ings with the telephone company.
phone companies.
The help of the A. T. and T. Com- i HIS has been the story of what the
pany is of great value, not alone in Southwestern Company has had the
the form of staff assistance and advice opportunity to contribute to the ac-
but in the handling of matters with complishment of the nation's defense
the Army and Navy which could not program. Basically, it might have
well be settled in the field. There is been written about any one of the
constant interchange of work with the operating telephone companies in the
Long Lines Department, and many a Bell System.
!.<5b t^>% t^
PROVIDING SUBSTITUTES FOR 'CRITICAL"

TELEPHONE MATERIALS
As Shortages of Necessary Materials Develop, the Availability
of Satisfactory Substitutes Becomes Increasingly Important to
Continued Production of Telephone Equipment
THE present national emergency

has given rise to a demand for
For some time this vital activity to
reduce Bell System usage of materials
ever-increasing production. needed for defense purposes has been
Such production consumes tremendous coordinated in the System by an Inter-
amounts of many raw materials. As company Committee consisting of the
they have become scarcer, the search Plant Engineer of the American Tele-
for satisfactory substitutes has been phone and Telegraph Company, the
greatly stepped up. So, too, the Bell Director of Apparatus Development
System has stepped up its efforts to- of the Bell Telephone Laboratories,
ward thrifty use of the basic materials and the Manager of Manufacture and
available. the General Purchasing Agent of the
Western Electric Company. Back of is helpful in recommending designs

them, however, the prompt coopera- which can be made with existing or
tive effort of many other groups is put- slightly modified facilities. In some
ting the material changes into effect. cases, circuit experts may
be called on
to decide whether any changes will be
Development of suitable substitutes needed in existing systems. Finally,
begins in the Bell Telephone Labora- manufacturing engineers of the West-
tories. The problem is many-faced, ern Electric Company are responsible
and requires a great variety of skills. for and the actual
the tool set-ups,
First comes the materials engineer, processes of making and assembling
who suggests available materials of the changed parts. The work of these
suitable properties. Sometimes metal- men constitutes a useful function in
lurgists or chemists may
be consulted. the defense program even outside the
Apparatus designers then take hold of Bell System, for they cooperate with
the problem, to see if the changes in the Government and various engineer-
strength, conductivity, or insulation ing societies in developing simplified
require changes in the form of the part practices and otherwise alleviating
or device. Their knowledge of West- material shortages.
ern Electric's manufacturing methods Bell Laboratories' engineers con-
IIeplacing a "Critical" Metal

Pliolite-coaied paper tape used instead of aluminum tape in this operation of switchboard
is
construction at Western Electric s plant at Kearney, N. J.

i9Ui Telephones and Defense 197
Saving Rubber
Wood fibre hoard substitutes for the scarcer material in assembling terminal strips for central
office equipment at Western s Hawthorne plant
sider the technical questions involved their operations to the new material
and pass on the suitability of avail- and methods of manufacture.
able materials to replace those on the The Bell System's substitution pro-
Manufacturing depart-
"critical list." gram has adirect and obvious bearing
ment engineers at all Western Electric on the outcome of the defense pro-
plants review the piece parts affected gram. At the present going rate, it
by the shortage of a given material, will divert for use in the defense ef-
consider available supplies, discuss the fort nearly 1,900,000 pounds of alumi-
manufacturing features with Bell num annually; more than half a mil-
Laboratories' engineers, and revise lionpounds of nickel; well over 3,-
manufacturing information after 000,000 pounds of zinc and 8,300 of
agreement has been reached on the magnesium. Additional reductions
substitute to be used. Representa- are foreseen for 1942. It is estimated
tives of Western's purchasing depart- that about 300 fighter planes might be
ment immediately place new orders, built with the aluminum the System
revise outstanding contracts, and at- will save from its present annual rate
tempt to keep a smooth flow of new of consumption.

material coming in with a reduced vol- Three classifications have been de-
ume of the old. Likewise, the West- veloped in the substitution work.
ern Electric works departments carry Class I includes those materials for
a large part of the responsibility, in which substitutes can be introduced as
promptly arranging for the new mate- the result of investigation, research,
rial to be put into stock and adapting and design work which has already
been done. As an example, Western placing the aluminum in the dial finger
Electric and the Bell System are sub- wheel with steel, which serves the pur-
stantially reducing their use of zinc by pose adequately. Copper has replaced
coating much of their outside plant aluminum in bus bars, and an annual
hardware with lead instead of putting saving of an additional 100,000 pounds
these products through a galvanizing of aluminum has thus been effected.
process. A thermo-plastic is to some extent
In Class II are cases where substi- replacing Zamak, a zinc aluminum al-
tutes may be found, but further work loy, in the manufacture of the housing
is necessary to determine whether for combined telephone sets. Since
their use is practicable. the combination of Zamak is approxi-
The Laboratories are studying the mately 4 per cent aluminum, .03 per
possibilities of using lead foil for con- cent magnesium, and about 95 per
densers instead of aluminum, of which cent zinc, this is a substitution which
the System would use 250,000 pounds releases for other purposes a sizeable
for this purpose this year. The diffi- quantity of vital metals. Of all the
culty is to get the lead foil into the combined sets now in manufacture, 34
same dimensions as the aluminum and per cent of the housings are of plastic
thus to avoid a redesign of the entire composition. At this rate, the annual
condenser, which might then be too saving of zinc alone will amount to
big to fit into the limited amount of 1,600,000 pounds.
space available in certain assemblies The defense emergency has, of
of apparatus. course, tremendously stimulated the
Class III includes those cases in work of the Bell System engineering
which engineers have not as yet been groups. An immediate survey was
able to find working substitutes for made in 1939, based on a study of ma-
the scarce materials, and for which terials particularly used in the Bell
substitution may well prove to be im- System, and a list of critical materials
possible. For instance, there is no developed. The list initially consisted
known substitute for the zinc elec- mainly of critical materials which were
trode in a dry cell, nor, with minor ex- purchased outside of the United States,
ceptions, is there a substitute for or the sources of which were beyond
copper. control.
Looking to the future. Western
Oenerally speaking, the materials Electric's engineers are considering
used Western Electric manufacture
in the use of sisal and ixtle, fibrous ma-
which have become most critical are terials readily obtainable in this hemi-
copper, aluminum, zinc, nickel, steel, sphere, in place of jute and burlap for
rubber, magnesium, nickel-steel. Some cable construction.
of the other materials which are rap- In compliance with an order of the
idlyapproaching the critical state are Director of Priorities and in view of
phenol plastic, phenol fibre, brass and the necessity of conserving the supply
silk. of rubber. Western Electric plans a
Western Electric now saves 130,000 gradual reduction of its use of crude
pounds of aluminum annually by re- rubber which will reach a level of
—
Even Sweepings Are Collected

Gathered in railroad cars, trucks, operation departments, and from other System sources,
this scrap will charge a blastfurnace at Nassau Smelting and Refining Company, and will
yield copper to be rolled and drawn into telephone wire
more than 20 per cent by the end of fact that the defense program has
the year. This saving will be accom- greatly stimulated current telephone
plished chiefly by the use of more re- business, as well as plant expansion.
claimed rubber in rubber compound
and reduction in the use of hard rub- In the Bell System, all materials re-
ber by the judicious use of materials moved from the plant are re-used in
having similar properties. the plant, in whole or in part, if it is
For the purposes of the emergency, possible to do so. Materials which

temporary manufacturing information cannot be re-used are reclaimed. Re-
permits the manufacturing department claiming is the specific function of the
to proceed with rapid introduction of Nassau Smelting and Refining Com-
substitutes. Because of the many fac- pany, a general smelter and refiner of
tors involved — processing, engineer- copper, lead, zinc, tin, antimony, and
and new procedures
ing, materials their alloys from secondary sources
manufacturing costs inevitably will into commercial forms such as brass,
rise as a direct result of the use of bronze, copper, babbitt, solder and re-
substitute materials. Nor are manu- lated products. Nassau, which em-
facturing conditions relieved by the ploys 450 persons and maintains a
metallurgical engineering and sales Breeze Works), brass billets (shipped

has the responsibility for the
staff, also to a fabricator and, following the fab-
disposition of scrap iron, paper, rub- rication process, then to the Kearny,
ber, and similar by-products from the Point Breeze and Hawthorne Works),
operations of the Bell System. It is zinc (for Western Electric's use in
a wholly-owned subsidiary of Western galvanizing operations, and in the
Electric. manufacture of brass billets), fine lead
Nassau products include bronze bil- wires for protective apparatus.
lets fordrop wire (for consumption at 1 HE defense production job con-

Western E lee trie's Point Breeze tinues uninterrupted. Meanwhile, be-
Works), solder for Western's manu- hind the lines, so to speak, thrift and
facturing and installation departments ingenuity are at work to provide a
and for the telephone companies, lead constant supply of raw materials for
sleeving for the Eastern area telephone that production and, equally impor-
companies, rosin core solder, copper tant, to insure thatWestern Electric's
wire bar (delivered to rod mills and manufacture creates no unnecessary
there rolled into rod for drawing into drain on the nation's fund of raw ma-
wire at Western's Kearny and Point terials.
t^- 5.^ t.^1
THE PRESENT SITUATION AND THE

PRESENT OUTLOOK
The Defense Program, Creating an Unprecedented Demand for the
Bell System^s Services, Has Posed Tremendous Problems Some —
of Which Have Been Solved, While Others Lie Ahead
ordinary times the telephone These large expenditures are neces-

IN company keeps a reasonable mar- sary because in the telephone business
gin of spare facilities for growth we can't handle more calls for more
and for emergencies. Ever since the people without first building new
worst of the depression, the business plant— a lot of it. To take in $1.00 in
has been growing steadily, and to keep annual revenue we first have to spend
its plant well ahead of the demand for roughly $5.00 for telephones and wires
service, the Bell System has made ex- and central equipment and all
office
penditures for new plant construction the other things needed to render
which total about $1,400,000,000, and service.
net additions which total nearly $600,- That an unusually high propor-
is
000,000, for the years 1934 to 1940, tion of plant to revenue —

much higher
inclusive. This year the expenditure than is needed in most businesses.
for new plant construction will be Moreover, all new telephone plant
more than $400,000,000 and net addi- must be carefully planned to fit in
tions will approximate $300,000,000. with all the plant already in existence,
since the interconnection of all facili- situationtwo years ago, before the
ties isneeded in order that people may- outbreak of war in September, 1939.
talk with each other by telephone, At that time the Bell System had
wherever they are. about 16,200,000 telephones in service
This means that relatively long- and people were using them about 72,-
term advance preparations must be 000,000 times a day. Now there are
made in order to be ready to handle some 18,500,000 Bell telephones in
big increases in business. Here is one service and they are being used about
of the reasons why ample margins of 81,000,000 times a day. In two years
spare Here is
facilities are essential. the number of telephones has in-
another reason why the enormous re- creased more than 2,000,000 and the
cent increase in the use of the tele- average number of conversations each
phone, brought about by the continu- business day has jumped 9,000,000.
ous acceleration of the defense pro-
These increases are enormous.
gram, is causing serious problems for
There has never been anything like
the telephone company.
them before. The increase in the de-
Ijet us compare the country's over- mand for toll service, considered sepa-
all use of the telephone today with the rately, is even more spectacular. The
Up It Goes!
This new Long Lines cable will provide additional circuits in the important
Middle Atlantic industrial area
number of toll and long distance calls it could go. By the end of this year,
for the first six months of 1941 was net additions to plant for three years
about 15 per cent greater than for only— 1939, 1940 and 1941—will
the corresponding period last year, have aggregated something like $550,-
and the increase in the number of 000,000.
longer haul calls was about 27.5 per Nevertheless, certain problems have
cent. Comparing the first sixmonths sharpened in the last few months and
of 1941 with the first six months of may become considerably more se-
1939, we an increase of 22 per

find rious in the near future. One charac-
cent in all toll calls and an increase of teristic of the defense program is that
41 per cent in the longer haul calls. ever since it started it has been grow-
When war broke out in Europe in ing by successive leaps and bounds.
September, 1939, there was a sudden The program of a year ago, for ex-
unprecedented surge of long distance ample, was succeeded a little later by
calls —a sort of "nine days wonder" something much bigger, and today's
during which all records for traffic agenda makes last year's prospectus
over the longer distances were broken. look narrow in comparison. In a
Now, two years later, we are handling business like ours, where so much
more of these calls every business day planning and so much construction are
than in those September days of 1939. needed to give the service represented
What was astonishing then has be- by each dollar of annual revenue,
come commonplace today. these successive upward jumps com-
Whyhas all this happened? The plicate the job. Given one set of con-
fact that industry is expanding tre- ditions, we go to work to meet them.
mendously for defense is only part of But soon the conditions are changed,
the answer. Equally important is the and it appears that something more is
necessity for speed in meeting the going to be needed to meet the revised
emergency. Our national purpose is situation. This means not only that
not merely to arm for defense. It is our original program will fall short,
to do this with all possible speed. The but that some of the time needed to
telephone offers one way to speed plan a bigger program against some
things up. Hence the great increase future date has been lost.
in its use. When we understand this, In short, if it had been known by
we understand also how grave a re- anybody a year or more ago that this
sponsibility rests on the telephone country was going to organize its de-
company. fenses on the scale on which it now
seems to be organizing them, the tele-
W HAT has enabled the Bell System phone company's present problems
so far to meet this responsibility? would be much simpler than they are.
Two things, mostly: As it is, the repeated acceleration of
First, as indicated above, it was well the defense program has handicapped
prepared and had sizable margins of the telephone builders in their race
spare facilities. with telephone users. Recently, us-
Second, new construction activity age has been outrunning the growth of
has been speeded up about as fast as facilities. The builders' head start,
:
i9 '4 1 Telephones and Defense 203
Bed for a Cable

The men are measuring the depth ofan excavation in which a new telephone cable will be laid
under the Platte River
in the form of spare plant margins, give service to and from these places,
has been largely used up. Today, in as well as in them, and at thesame
many places, it's a neck and neck race. time to augment facilities between al-
This isn't true in all parts of the ready established industrial centers, is
country, nor of all the types of service a huge task in itself.

we render. It is most true of toll
service over the longer routes, and oo far, the pressure of demand on
between points where there are par- long distance facilities has been evi-
ticularly heavy concentrations of de- denced mostly in ways like these
fense effort. Also, while some of the — on certain routes, circuits some-
routes experiencing "unlimited emer- times cannot be obtained immediately.
gency" traffic are main trunk lines, — the average speed of service is a
others are spur lines that have never few seconds slower than a year ago.
been called upon before to bear any — about 12 people out of every 10,-
very heavy load. Military canton- 000 who use long distance are dis-
ments and bases have mushroomed in pleased with the service to the point
former corn fields. So have dozens of of saying so, either orally or by letter,
great industrial plants. The two types compared with 11 out of every 10,000
of establishments together have given last summer.
America something like 100 brand- But today the question is:
new medium-sized cities, for many of "If demand keeps on going up, now
which communications facilities must that spare plant margins have been ab-
be built practically from the ground sorbed, what can the telephone com-
up. And there are more coming. To pany do about it?"
Right here another problem pre- materials and in anticipation of fur-

sents itself. This is the shortage of ther difficulties in obtaining them.
materials needed to build the plant These reductions have been made by
needed to render more service. The adopting engineering and economic
race between builder and user is be- practices which involve severe penal-
coming, in fact, a sort of obstacle race. ties.
For a long time the Bell System has In doing this, the guiding principle
been studying how to make the most must be to put first things first.
effective use of materials, particularly For example, old equipment which
of newmaterials as they become avail- might normally be replaced can be
able. Such studies were begun as long kept in service, so that the new equip-
ago as 1925. Thanks to this advance ment which might have replaced it
preparation, the Bell System is now can be used somewhere else where the
able to make numerous substitutions need is greatest.
in ways that interfere as little as pos- Dial installations in some commu-
sible with the rendering of grade-A nities can be deferred, used switch-
service. boards can be reused, cables can be
However, whenever the opportunity resheathed and reused, and other simi-
to use the best possible material is re- lar expedients can be adopted.
stricted, some penalty is unavoidable. If there isn't enough copper to make
Also certain materials have no substi- enough wire to give an individual line
tutes for certain uses. to everyone who wants one, people
can be asked to accept party line serv-
W ITHOUT going into all the myriad ice "for the duration."
details of the materials problem, we Orders for telephone installations
can see the consequences
broad that are necessary or important for
clearly. One is that some parts of our defense can be completed ahead of
new plant, while they will be well other less urgent orders. So far, de-
made and capable of giving good serv- fense orders have been filled on sched-
ice, will not be just as we would like ule without the need to ask others to
to have them under normal conditions. wait.
Another is that substitutions cannot All these things can and will be
by themselves solve the whole prob- done, if they are necessary to keep
lem. To give only one example, cop- first things first. That all of them will
per may be used in some places in- be necessary we cannot say with cer-
stead of aluminum, but there is no gen- tainty. However, it is clear that some
erally applicable substitute for copper. of them are already necessary, and it
The materials substitution program is likely that others will be. Adop-
voluntarily undertaken by the System tion of such measures will not mean
has resulted in large savings of scarce that the Bell System is sparing any
materials. Recently, however, it has outlay of effort or money to provide
been necessary for the telephone com- and maintain the best possible facili-
panies to adopt further restrictions ties and service. On the contrary,
and curtailments because of inability the System has never made a more
to secure sufficient quantities of these strenuous effort to keep the service
Every Position Filled

Long Distance switchboards throughout the country are handling more calls than ever before
good, and some of the figures men- rier systems and cable-laying plow
tioned above are fair evidence of the trains,it has been possible to increase
current outlay of money. It is ob- long distance telephone facilities at a

vious, however, that if the unprece- speed utterly impossible a few years
dented demand for service which is ago, under any circumstances what-
now being experienced should con- ever. Thanks to the organization, re-
tinue, in the face of possible serious sources and equipment of the System,
shortages of essential materials, some the greatest demand in history has so
ground must be given somewhere. far been met, and met well, and incon-
veniences to the public have been kept
It may be worth noticing, in con- to a minimum. These facts are the
clusion, that were it not for the great best assurance we have that whatever
technical progress made by the Bell the problems of the future may be,
System in recent years, some of the the nation can rely on the Bell System
most serious current telephone prob- tomeet them progressively, and in a
lems would be infinitely more serious manner that will well serve the public
than they are. Thanks to cable car- interest.
ENGINEERING THE TRANSCONTINENTAL
TELEPHONE CABLE
This Major Project, Largest Single Undertaking Since the Building
of the First Transcontinental Line, Will Join the Eastern and
Western Toll Cable Networks by Underground Circuits
By HORACE H. NANCE
W 'ESTWARD across the plains

of Nebraska and the
mountains of Wyoming,
where a hundred years ago endless
herds of buffalo looked up in surprise
at the creaking covered wagons of the
and thread their way smoothly down
through the plowshare into the ground.
At intervals the train stops to reload
the trailers with
then proceeds on
new
its
reels of cable,
way. Farther
west, other trains will hurry the cable
pioneers, a strange sprawling caravan on through Laramie, Salt Lake City,
isgrumbling and growling on its way and Reno to Sacramento, where it will
from Omaha to the Pacific coast. meet the Pacific coast cable network.
The buffaloes and the wagons have Behind the trains come the splicing
long since disappeared, but this cara- and testing crews to join the sections
van again typifies the spirit of the of cable and to make tests necessary
pioneer. The trail it is following is to insure proper electrical perform-
to become a safer super-highway of ance. At 17-mile intervals along the
transcontinental speech. route, compact, efficient repeater sta-
This caravan is a ponderous steel tions are springing up, many of them
train of Diesel-poWered caterpillar designed to carry on for long periods
tractors, rooter, plow, and trailers; without human attention at the site.
nine pieces of massive machinery, 275 From the factories of the Western
feet long, weighing more than 100 Electric Company a steady flow of
tons. In one continuous operation it equipment is going to these stations,
is cutting a narrow slit some thirty where installers are rapidly putting it
inches deep in the ground, laying a into operating condition and connect-
pair of long distance telephone cables ing it to the cable conductors.
on the bottom, and covering them up This work, started about a year ago
securely behind the train. Two oxen and expected to be finished by late
could pull a covered wagon; it would 1942, will provide a cable link from
take several hundred to pull this train. Omaha to Sacramento, 1630 miles
Slowly but steadily, day after day, long, connecting the Bell System's
the cables unwind from massive reels eastern and western toll cable net-
works. Although it is being rushed to carrier transmission in one direction

completion to provide for the unusual and the other cable for carrier trans-
traffic requirements due to national mission in the opposite direction.
defense activities, it is designed to Some wires will be equipped with load-
take care of normal growth require- ing coils and used to provide voice-
ments for some years in the future frequency circuits for the shorter haul
and to afford increased reliability and and maintenance requirements.
traffic
continuity of transcontinental service. The section from Omaha to Lara-

When completed, it will be possible to mie, with a branch from Cheyenne to
talk over practically storm-proof cable Denver, some 645 miles in all, is now
from Bangor, Maine, to San Diego, nearing completion, and will be placed
California, a total distance of nearly in service this year. Forty-eight cir-
4000 miles. cuits will be provided initiallythrough

this entire section by means of type-K
IJECAUSE of the nature of the terri- systems, and thirty-six of these will be
tory traversed and the great length of extended west of Laramie to Salt Lake
the cable circuits which will be routed City and Pacific coast points on addi-
through the completed system, many tional carrier systems now being in-
unusual and interesting problems are stalled on open wire. Additional cir-
involved. Some of these will be cuits will also be provided this year
touched on here, but they can only be to serve intermediate points along the
illustrative of the vast amount of re- route.
search and of detailed planning which When the cable completed to the
is
underlie a project of this kind and coast, next year, sufficienttype-K sys-
magnitude. tems are expected to be put into opera-
This project is a joint undertaking tion to provide about 100 additional
of the four System companies
Bell circuits, and ultimately, when the
whose services are handled along the cable is completely equipped with car-
route: the Long Lines Department of rier, it will provide a total of 500 to
the American Telephone and Tele- 600 circuits. The cost of this cable,
graph Company, the Northwestern with its initial equipment, is expected
Bell Telephone Company, the Moun- to be about $21,000,000.
tain States Telephone and Telegraph
Company, and the Pacific Telephone Active engineering work on the
and Telegraph Company. The Lin- transcontinental cable has been pro-
coln Telephone and Telegraph Com- ceeding for several years. To view
pany will also acquire an interest in this important project in its proper
the cable through the territory in perspective, it must be remembered
which it operates. that universal service was a definite
The new cable link consists actually objective of the Bell System from its
of two cables, each carrying 54 or inception, and that the extensive tech-
more pairs of wires. Most of the nical advancement and engineering
wires will be left non-loaded for the effort of theSystem has continuously
application of 12 -channel type-K car- been brought to bear on current prob-
rier systems, one cable being used for lems of extending service or of im-
/54i Engineering the Transcontinental TelephoneXCable 209
Profile of the Transcontinental Carle Route
proving it by the use of new instru- the Northern, which went west from
mentalities. The establishment of Minneapolis; the Central, via Denver
transcontinental service on January and Salt Lake City; the newest one,
25, 1915, was the result of the co- known as the Fourth, west from Okla-
ordination and application of the tech- homa City through Albuquerque; and
nical advances made by the Bell Sys- the Southern, from Dallas via El Paso.
tem up to that time in outside plant As additional circuits were provided
construction, the design and construc- from time to time, attention was given
tion of loading coils, and of telephone to maintaining a good distribution of
repeaters with their associated hybrid traffic over the various routes, in order
coils and balancing networks. to minimize the disturbance to service
which could occur if one of the routes
Transcontinental Development should be put out of commission by
storms or other destructive forces.
After the initial years, during which Carrier-current development work
additional transcontinental facilities continued, and in 1938 the first of the
needed were provided by the stringing 12-channel, type-J carrier systems for
of additional open wires, carrier cur- open-wire lines was applied to the
rent development reached the com- Fourth Transcontinental Route be-
mercial state, and carrier systems tween Oklahoma City and White-
were put into transcontinental service water, Calif., an existing point on the
between Chicago and Sacramento in Pacific Coast toll cable network. The
1926. This was the type-C, three- type-J system utilizes frequencies ex-
channel system, and more systems of tending up to 140,000 cycles, oper-
this type were added from time to ates on the same pair of wires with an
time as transcontinental traffic in- existing type-C system, and affords a
creased. somewhat better quality of message
By 1937, four main transconti- circuit transmission than had previ-
nental open-wire routes had been con- ously been obtained on open wire.
structed, and type-C systems were op- By the time the first type-J system
erating on them. These routes were had been placed in service, the toll
cable network from the east had defense requirements, combined with
reached Omaha, Kansas City, Okla- the need for increased protection to
homa City, and Dallas. On the Pa- the important transcontinental serv-
cific Coast, toll cable was already ices,have made it obvious that cable
available fromSan Francisco to Sac- should be extended, as fast as pos-
ramento and Los Angeles, and ex-
to sible, to the Pacific Coast. Today
tended east from Los Angeles as far there is a total of about 250 Long
as Whitewater. Lines circuits on the four transconti-
nental open wire routes passing
through a meridian just east of Den-
Transcontinental Cable Needed
ver and about 200 circuits on these
r OR a considerable number of years routes west of Denver. There were
it has been evident that the fast only three circuits in 1915 and less
growth in the transcontinental tele- than a hundred up to six years ago,
phone traffic would soon tax the ca- west of Denver.
pacities of the open-wire lines, and As an illustration of the growth in
that a tronscontinental cable would the longer haul traffic, data for the
ultimately be required. The growth, four longest message circuit groups
even in the late 20's, had indicated are given in the table at the bottom of
this, and some studies and tentative the page.
plans for cable were made at that The growth in transconti-
rapid
time. Since this was prior to the de- nental business is due to a complex
velopment of carrier systems for ca- combination of factors. Important
bles, the tentative plans contemplated among these are the growth in popula-
a full-size cable similar to those al- tion of the western states during this
ready installed east of Omaha. period, and the development of indus-
The business depression, and later tries on the Pacific Coast, such as the
the development and application of motion picture industry. Added to
12 -channel carrier systems on open these is the growing community of in-
wires, deferred the cable plans. The terest between east and west, and, of
rapid growth in the last few years, course, the effect of better and faster
however, and now our urgent national long-haul service at lower rates.
i9^l Engineering the Transcontinental Telephone Gable 211
'^mmm^ 'p^m3r^''s^--'>^
-^^^;£ms!îs^mmi^^&'
\\ ESTWARD View
A Long Lines engineer studies the lay of the land
Deciding on the Route Long distance traffic from the east

to the Pacific coast now divides about
Ln planning the general route to be
60 per cent toward Los Angeles, 25
taken by the cable, it was necessary to
per cent toward San Francisco, and
consider a number of factors, such as:
15 per cent toward the Pacific north-
(a) The volume of traffic and length west. With the greatest amount of
of circuit routings, via the cable, traffic toward Los Angeles,
flowing
between centers in the eastern it seemed that cost factors might fa-
half of the country and centers vor a route heading directly for that
on the Pacific coast. Likewise point. However, Los Angeles and San
the volume of traffic that would Francisco are already connected by
be routed through the cable to cable, and the Pacific Company is
intermediate points on the route. proceeding with the installation of
(b) Suitability of route for installing supplementary cable and 12 -channel
and maintaining buried cable and carrier systems over that route. Stud-
repeater stations and otherwise ies indicated that there would be no
obtaining maximum protection to controlling cost advantage in routing

the over-all transcontinental the transcontinental cable directly to-
service. ward Los Angeles, as compared with
(c) Initial and future costs. routing it toward San Francisco.
(d) Extent to which the cable may An important consideration was the
permit later removal of open wire need for providing additional circuits
plant, and protect the remaining into Denver, the largest center be-
open wire lines. tween the western outpost of the ex-
costs, buried type of cable construc-

tion has been favored for this project.
As a part of these studies, therefore,
an investigation to determine the ex-
tent to which it would be practicable
to bury cable was undertaken on three
general routes.
One ofthese routes was from

Omaha to Sacramento via Cneyenne
and Salt Lake City. Another route
was generally common to this as far
west as Salt Lake City but then di-
verged southwestward directly toward
Los Angeles. A third route, starting
from Kansas City, passed through
southeastern Colorado to Albuquer-
que, N. M., and thence followed the
general route of the Fourth Trans-
continental open wire line to Los
Angeles.
Studies of available soil data, sup-
plemented by a large number of test
borings to determine whether rock
would be encountered near the sur-
face, showed that, with the exception
of comparatively short sections, cable
could readily be buried over the
With Tkanîi wd Rod
The route to the west becomes definite
Omaha-Sacramento route. On the
route from Kansas City to Los An-
isting toll cable network and the Pa- geles, however, and also on the route
cificCoast, and the studies showed from Salt Lake City to Los Angeles,
that it would be desirable and eco- conditions were not favorable for
nomical to connect Denver to the ca- burying cable for some 280 miles on
ble network within a very few years, the former and 130 miles on the lat-
regardless of the route to be taken by ter. A general route via Cheyenne
the transcontinental cable. It ap- and Salt Lake City toward San Fran-
peared highly desirable that Salt Lake cisco, therefore, appeared preferable
City, the second largest city in the to the other routes from the stand-
Mountain States region and a natural point of this objective.
communication outlet for the Pacific The installation of cable on the
northwest territory, should also be route from Omaha to Sacramento will
served by the cable. permit the ultimate displacement of
From the standpoint of reliability a greater amount of open wire plant
of service and future maintenance than could be released if the cable
f 9 4 i Engineering the Transcontinental Telephone Cable 213
were installed on any other route; fur- Transmission features similar to

thermore, the plant which can be re- those of the type-K system are also
leased is in areas subject to snow and afforded by the type-L, or coaxial,
ice storms and is, therefore, relatively system, but this latter system is not
more expensive to maintain than that yet available for use over the great dis-
over more southern routes. tances involved in the present project.
Transmission Considerations Through the Old West

r ROM Omaha, the cable route se-
In planning present day transconti-
lected is across the Nebraska prairie,
nental facilities, consideration has to
past Lincoln, the state capital, thence
be given to providing adequately not
along the Platte River near the old
only for a high standard of message
Oregon Trail through Grand Island,
circuit transmission but, in addition,
Kearney, North Platte, and Ogallala,
for program transmission, telephoto-
graph and telegraph transmission, and
for the possibility of demands for fur-
ther improvement in performance for
these services in the future. From
these standpoints, type-K carrier fa-
cilities are well suited for use on this
project. This type of facility, with a
velocity of transmission of about 100,-
000 miles per second, stabilized feed-
back amplifiers, and other desirable
transmission design features, provides
clear and transmission over
faithful
long distances. Furthermore, its ap-
plication is particularly economical in
this case, where a large number of long
circuits, many of them over 1,000
miles in length, are involved.
The first 12 -channel type-K carrier
systems were placed in commercial
service between South Bend, Indiana,
and Toledo, Ohio, in 1938, using non-
loaded conductors in two existing ca-
bles. In the succeeding years, type-K
systems have been applied in many
other sections of the plant; and, since
'they have proved to be excellent from
the standpoint of both transmission ''f-h itj
and operation, they are expected to be No Rock Here
highly satisfactory for the transconti- The earth auger tests the soil to the depth
nental cable. which the plow will penetrate
214 Bi:ll Telephone Magazine NOVEMBER
where it leaves the river, and then Evanston and Salt Lake City was the
through Sidney over the grassy plains which the Mormons had
last obstacle
to Cheyenne, a distance of 500 miles. to surmount before arriving at the

Cheyenne's elevation is 6,000 feet Salt Lake City area which had been
above sea level and 5,000 feet above chosen by Brigham Young as a site
Omaha. for the future Mormon
state of Dese-
From Cheyenne to Denver, about ret. an obstacle for the ca-
It is also
100 miles south, the cable route is bles, and intensive field work, guided
through prairie country, decreasing in by detailed aerial surveys, has been
elevation from 6,000 feet at Chey- required to obtain a satisfactory route.
enne to 5,000 feet at Denver. The cables will enter Salt Lake City
a short distance from Emigrant Can-
i HE region between Cheyenne and yon, down which Brigham Young led
Laramie, a distance of 45 miles, varies the Mormon Pioneers in 1847, and at
in elevation from 6,000 to 9,000 feet, the mouth of which took place the
and is subject to sudden blizzards and dramatic scene where he pointed out
heavy snowfalls accompanied by high their future home and said "This is
winds. The cable route between these the place."
points parallels the Lincoln Highway
(U. S. 30), which is kept open during Ihe route from Salt Lake City to
the winter. WestCheyenne the
of Wendover, Utah, skirts the southern
soil becomes increasingly rocky, and edge of Great Salt Lake, turns slightly
some blasting through rock for short to the northward to avoid a range of
distances is required in the section mountains, and traverses the mud and
over the Sherman Hill Divide. This salt flats of the Great Salt Lake Des-
is the highest point on the cable, ert before reaching Wendover, a dis-
nearly 9,000 feet above sea level. tance of 124 miles.
From Laramie the route bears Great Salt Lake is the only rem-
northwest, following in general the old nant of an ancient inland sea. The
Overland Trail to swing around Elk slope of its shores is very gradual,
Mountain and then parallel the high- so that a small increase in the water
way westward through Rawlins, over level will greatly increase the size of
the Continental Divide at Creston, the lake. Water level data on the
elevation about 7,000 feet, through lake have been kept for only about
Rock Springs, Green River, and Fort 35 years, but it appears that the level
Bridger. Here it again meets the Ore- has been steadily decreasing in the
gon Trail, then goes through Evanston last ten years,because of greater con-
and Castle Rock. In general, the land sumption of water for irrigation pur-
is rolling, covered with sage and poses from the rivers which flow into
greasewood. At this point the route Great Salt Lake. The cable will be
turns to the southwest through moun- placed above the highest water level
tainous country to Coalville, and which the lake has reached during the
thence to Salt Lake City, a total dis- period studied. The mud and salt
tance from Laramie of 378 miles. flats stretch east of Wendover for
The mountainous countrv between about 40 miles and are practically
19^1 Engineering the Transcontinental Telephone Cable 215
level. They are flooded during cer-

tain periods with several inches of
water. However, at times the surface
is dry, and it is planned to plow in the
cables during such periods.
From Wendover the cable route
will cross the plainsand plateaus of
Nevada, including a few minor moun-
tain ranges, on a fairly direct line
through Elko and Reno. West of
Reno the route crosses the Sierra Ne-
vada near Donner Pass, and continues
down the western slope to Sacramento,
a total distance from Wendover of 483
miles. The Pacific Company has
made extensive use of aerial surveys
to guide the field work in the selection
of a suitable route through this terri-
tory, particularly the difficult moun-
tain terrain. The heavy snowfall in
this region is expected to be an ob-
stacle to maintenance work, and for
this reason the cable will follow ex-
highways in the higher and more
isting
rugged sections.
Cable Details
Ihe detailed arrangements of the

transcontinental cables for the opera-
< oNsrm ( rioN oi- thk (Iable
tion of type-K carrier systems are es-
This specimen of a typical section of one of
sentially the same throughout the
the twin cables consists {reading up from the
length of the route. One cable con- bottom) of: 1, jute protection; '2, thermo-
tains, in various sections, 54 to 88 plastic protection; 3, steel ''gopher tape'';
pairs of paper-insulated 19-gauge con- h, lead sheath; 5, double paper wrapping of
core; 6, the conductors
ductors surrounded by lead sheath
over which is placed a steel tape and for the opposite direction of carrier
jute and other protection. This cable transmission and varying numbers of
is used primarily for one direction of loaded conductors. In some sections,
carrier transmission. Certain of the where a sizable number of voice-fre-
pairs are loaded for use as voice-frequency circuits are required, this ca-
quency plant maintenance circuits or, ble may be quadded.
in some sections, for message circuits Some 1,500-foot lengths of cable
between intermediate points. The sec- were used in the first sections plowed
ond cable, of similar construction, con- in. In general, long pieces of cable
tains an equal number of conductors can be buried more economically than
short lengths. Accordingly, trials of use in the toll cable plant over the last
3,000-foot lengths were made, and decade and has been found extremely
since it was found that these could effective.
be satisfactorily handled, 3,000-foot The gas will be dry nitrogen, and
lengths are now generally being sup- willbe maintained at a pressure of
plied and placed. about nine pounds per square inch.
Electrical contactors which close and
W HiLE the cable is being manufac- give warning if gas pressure falls at
tured, great care is taken to avoid de- any point, due to damage to the
viations from uniformity in the elec- sheath, will be placed along the cables
trical characteristics of the conduc- at intervals of about 10,000 feet, and
tors. When itplowed into the
is valves for testing the pressure will be
ground, it is lubricated and its tension located every 3,000 feet.
regulated to minimize physical de- The valves will be above ground,
formation of the cable, so that the and connected to the cable by means
electrical characteristics of the cable of lead pipe, which will be fastened
in place willbe as close as possible to to creosoted stubs set in the ground
those desired. In spite of these pre- deep enough to be anchored firmly and
cautions, however, experience has projecting above ground far enough
shown that there will be residual small to be readily seen above snow and
deviations in the characteristics of the growing crops. Other stubs will be
cable conductors which, if permitted placed at various intermediate points,
to remain unreduced, would have a and all of the stubs will serve as mark-
serious effect on the operation of type- ers of the cable route.
K carrier systems. This effect would Once a cable is plowed in, about
show up principally as crosstalk be- thirty inches below the surface of the
tween the channels of paralleling sys- ground, it would appear that it would
tems. be safe from any interference for a
These deviations are reduced when long time. Facts about buried cable
the cable lengths are spliced together. indicate that, even after the cable is
The number of times one pair lies ad- installed, there are a number of
jacent to another in the completed sources of potential interference which
cable is also controlled. The splicing, must be reckoned with.
a most important factor because of
the high frequencies involved, is care-
Prevention of Corrosion
fully carried out in pre-arranged pat- (corrosion of cable sheath, often re-
terns, and electrical tests are made to ferred to as electrolysis, is caused by
check the results as well as to con- a transfer of current between the ca-
tribute to the advance of the tech- ble sheath and earth, or by direct
nique. chemical attack. For example, if a
In order to obtain warning of cable cable traverses two areas having a dif-
damage, and to minimize the effects of ference in potential, the fact that the
this damage, it is planned to place the cable sheath is a conductor will allow
cables under permanent gas pressure, current to flow from the high to the
a method which has come into general low potential area along the cable
^"•^•iSBfejll!'
^•Ili--.
-,/"
I ^'^
"-^..-L-^™.
218 Bell Telephone xMagazine NOVEMBEli
current around these grounds was tion of this current in both directions.
measured, and as a result it was found The higher the earth resistivity, the
that it would be desirable to maintain greater is the distance along which this
a separation of about a mile between current will be carried by the cable
the pipe line and paralleling cable sheath. If the current flowing along
equipped with ordinary jute covering. the sheath is large enough, the drop
It was not possible to maintain this of potential due to the resistance of
distance from all pipe lines through the sheath may up
result in building
the Overton-Ogallala section, however, sufficient voltage between it and the
and another method of protection was wires inside to break down the insula-
adopted. This consists of an insulat- tion and in some cases cause holes in
ing thermoplastic and thin impreg- the sheath so that the cable has to be
nated jute covering for the cables, in dug up and repaired. The insulation
place of the usual heavy jute covering. may be punctured in various places
The thermoplastic layer is about yic, over an interval of several miles, or
inch thick and is composed of rubber, the damage may be confined to one
asphalt, and inert filler. Tests have location. Probability of damage to a
not been completed over the entire buried cable can be reduced by de-
route, but it is likely that the thermo- creasing the resistance along the
plastic covering will be used to a large sheath.
extent across Wyoming, Utah, and The relationship between earth re-
Nevada. sistivity and the geological structure
Possible corrosive effect on cable of theUnited States has been the
sheath of the soil and water in the subject of considerable study by the
flats of the Great Salt Lake Desert Bell System. From this study a very
was first considered in 1930 when for good general knowledge of the earth
test purposes a number of sections of resistivity which may be expected in
various types of cables which were any area has been obtained. By
employed in underground construction means of these data on earth resistiv-
were buried at different points in the ity, and information obtainable from
salt marshes and flats east of Wendo- iso-ceraunic charts, which show the
ver. These cables were recently dug frequency of thunder storms in all
up, and found to have been little af- sections of the country, it is possible
fected by corrosive action of the soil. to predict in a general way the rela-
tive amount of trouble from lightning
Protection against Lightning
which might be experienced with bur-
IjIghtning can damage buried as ied cable in any particular region.
well as aerial cable. When lightning The engineering work on the trans-
any point, a mo-
strikes the earth at continental cable, accordingly, in-
mentary but tremendous current flows cluded a careful investigation of the
away from that point in all directions route from this standpoint, with the
through the earth and all other pos- help of these charts and of accurate
sible paths. If the stroke occurs to or field measurements of the earth re-
near a buried cable, the cable will, sistivity at intervals along the route.
therefore, carry away a large propor- Based on the data thus obtained, pro-
i 9 'f 1 Engineering the Transcontinental Telephone Cable 219
An "Unattended" Repeater Station

This structure at Durham, Wyo., is typical of those built at intervals on the cable route.
They house the delicately attuned equipment required to amplify the currents as they become
attenuated along the line. The apparatus is designed to operate for considerable periods
without direct attention, control circuits to the nearest attended station indicating any need
for testing or trouble clearance
tective arrangements against lightning fore, various combinations of the

damage were designed for the cable. preventive measures are being used,
These arrangements vary in the dif- all three being employed over Sher-
ferent sections, but include such plans man Hill Divide.
as increasing the insulation between
Gophers Attack Buried Cable
the core and the sheath by doubling
the thickness of the paper wrapping of W HiLE it might not seem that an
the core, placing copper shield wires asphalt-coated, jute-wrapped, lead-
in the same trench with the cables, or covered cable would make a palatable
adding copper wires between the meal, the gophers and prairie dogs in
sheath and the core, and combinations many mid-western states feel other-
of these measures. For example, in a wise about has been found that
it. It
section east of Cheyenne, and from if the opportunity is presented, they
Cheyenne to Denver, shield wires are will attack the covering vigorously,
buried in the trench with the cables. finally chewing through it to the con-
Going west from Cheyenne the earth ductors and thus causing service in-
resistivity increases rapidly, reaching terruptions. In cables maintained
the highest value on the entire route under gas pressure, puncturing the
over the outcropping granite forma- sheath would of course release the
tions Sherman Hill Divide. Be-
of gas. Studies of the habits of the
tween Cheyenne and Laramie, there- pocket gopher, for instance, have
shown that he operates in a zone from iliary stations to house this equipment
12 inches to 48 inches below the sur- are 24 X 24 feet in size.
face of the ground, and prefers soil For use where commercial power is
which has been loosened, as by plow- not available, or a higher heating ca-
ing. To prevent trouble from this pacity is required, a new oil-burning
source, a steel tape about an inch wide plant has been engineered. This will
and Moo inch thick, referred to as require a building 20 X 40 feet in
"gopher tape," is being placed around size. The six auxiliary stations be-
each of the transcontinental cables, tween Omaha and Grand Island will
directly over a paper asphalt pad be 24 X 24 feet in size, but the sta-
wrapped around the lead sheath, dur- tionsfrom Grand Island to Salt Lake
ing manufacture. The protective jute City will be of the larger size to ac-
or thermoplastic covering is placed commodate the oil heating plant. Be-
over the gopher tape. yond Salt Lake City, the plans for the
auxiliary stations have not yet been
Repeater Stations and Equipment completed.
Ihe use of K carrier telephone sys-
tems utilizing frequencies up to 60,- 1 HE locations of the stations are
000 cycles per second requires repeat- chosen carefully to be accessible from
ers spaced at intervals of about 17 good roads and as close to existing
miles to compensate for the transmis- sources of electric power as practica-
sion loss experienced at these frequen- ble and, at the same time, to be con-
cies. Between Omaha and Sacra- sistent with the desired repeater spac-
mento, there will be a total of 100 ing. The power plant, being vital to
repeater stations, 18 of which are clas- the operation of the station, is engi-
sified as main and 82 as auxil-
stations neered to be as free as possible from
iary stations. The main stations, danger of interruption. In all sta-
many ofwhich are already repeater tions, large size rubber jar batteries
stations on open wire lines, will serve are used which will provide a consid-
as points from which testing and trou- erable initial reserve. Where com-
ble clearing will be directed. mercial power is not readily available,
In general, the main stations will be economic studies are made to see
attended, the auxiliary stations unat- whether it would be better to pay for
tended. These auxiliary stations have the extension of power lines, or to
been designed to house the necessary provide engine-driven power plants.
equipment, including repeater, testing, Where commercial power cannot be
power, heating, and ventilating ap- obtained economically, twin engine-
paratus. Where the climate is rela- driven d-c generators, arranged to op-
tively mild and electric power is avail- erate automatically and alternately,
able, electric heaters will be used to are provided. The accessibility of the
maintain a temperature of at least 40 station and other factors determine
degrees in winter. Electrical ventilat- whether or emergency engine-
not
ing equipment will operate automati- driven charging equipment will be pro-
cally in hot weather to aid the efficient vided. Where a number of stations
operation of the equipment. The aux- are easily accessible, it is often pref-
erable to provide a few portable emer- with people behind them. This desire
gency engine-driven alternators which was first met by the overland mail and
can be readily moved to any station. the Pony Express. Later, the tele-
The Pacific Telephone and Tele- graph, the railroad, and finally the
graph Company has a unique problem telephone came into being. Utilizing
of snow sometimes as much as 25 or these instruments for communication,
30 feet deep on the cable route over these individuals and their descend-
the Sierra Nevada near Donner Pass. ants became welded into a strong and
It is considering constructing two- unified nation.
story stations, with first and second Today we are engaged in a supreme
floorand roof entrances, so that main- arm and defend that nation.
effort to
tenance men can get into them, what- More transcontinental communication
ever the depth of the snow. Oil heat facilities are urgently needed to help
is also being considered for these direct this effort.
stations. That plow train, moving steadily
westward, with all the research, ex-
1 HE emigrants, intensely individual perience, and modern engineering of
and with a restless urge to move west- the Bell System behind it, is forging a
ward, nevertheless retained a strong vital,powerful link in the machinery
desire to maintain communication for the defense of America.
Approaching Mountainols Cuuinthy

This is typical of much of the terrain which the cable crosses. The view here is westward
in the direction of Evanston, Wyo.
THE 1941 CONVERTIBLE BOND ISSUE
Funds to Provide for Bell System's Construction Program Obtained
by Offering of $233,584,900 of Fifteen Year Three Per Cent
Convertibles to 631,030 Holders of A. T. & T. Stock
By JAMES F. BEHAN
Y means of a prospectus dated permitted trading in rights to begin,
B
Company
July 16, 1941, the American
Telephone and Telegraph
subscription
offered to stockholders for
at par, without under-
represented the culmination of weeks
of work.
Tentative preparations for a con-
vertible bondhad been started
offer
writing by bankers, $233,584,900 Fif- in the Legal,
Comptroller's, and
teen Year 3% Convertible Debenture Treasury Departments and in the Sec-
Bonds Due September 1, 1956, con- retary's office during the early spring.
vertible into stock January 1,
after The first concrete step, however, was
1942, at $140 per share. The bonds the submission of a proposed Proxy
will be convertible through 1954 un- Statement to the Securities and Ex-
less previously called for redemption, change Commission early in May,
but the conversion price and the num- 1941, to provide for a possible meeting
ber of shares issuable on conversion of stockholders for the purpose of au-
are subject to adjustment in certain thorizing such an offer. Thereafter, it
events. Under the terms of this offer, was a question of working early and
which was in the ratio of $100 prin- late on the mass of detail involved in
cipal amount of bonds for each eight bringing the project to a successful
shares of stock held, 631,030 stock- conclusion. The rigid time-table of
holders of record became entitled to printings, SEC filings, executive ac-
receive 18,686,794 subscription rights, tions, and stockholder mailings was no
one for each share held. respecter of persons. On many occa-
"One of the biggest jobs that Wall sions were kept burning long
lights
Street's trading machinery has tackled into the night at 195 Broadway, such
in a decade or longer got started as when the Comptroller and those as-
Wednesday." Such was the comment sociated with him in preparing the
of the Wall Street Journal on the start Registration Statement and Pros-
of market trading in the rights on July pectus were faced with an important
16. For the Company, however, the date in the SEC filing schedule.
• issue of the offering prospectus, which At the annual meeting of stockhold-
1 9 'I I Thi: 19 U Convertibli; Bund Issue 223
Special Training
The Treasury Department's supervisor of methods explains things to one of the groups
receiving two weeks of preparatory instruction
ers in April, President Gifford had an- of stockholders objected to the Com-
nounced that, due to the growing de- pany's financial program but because
mand for telephone facilities resulting people in general —and A. T. & T.
from the national defense program, stockholders constitute a good cross-
construction requirements in the Bell section of people in general — are apt
System for 1941 would approximate to postpone or overlook action on
$400,000,000 and that some financing propositions put up to them in proxy
would be necessary to meet these re- statements, ifthey appear at all com-
quirements. On May 21 the Board plicated. However, stockholders re-

of Directors took action, recommend- sponded promptly to telephone calls
ing that the financing be undertaken about having their stock represented
through a convertible bond offer and at the meeting and also to a short
calling a special meeting of stockhold- follow-up letter, which President Gif-
ers for June 25 to act on the recom- ford sent out about two weeks after
mendation. Nearly two-thirds of the the proxy statements were mailed.
stockholders were represented at this This special mailing, which involved
meeting, either in person or by proxy, the printing, numbering, and address-
and over two-thirds of the outstanding ing of a duplicate set of 630,000 proxy
stock was voted in favor of the offer. forms for the entire stock list, estab-
lished a time record for that type of
SECURING the return of sufficient work. The mailing was in the post
proxies to be sure of the necessary office days after executive deci-
five
two-thirds favorable vote of the stock sion to make it. Shares voted against
required to authorize the proposed is- the issue added up to less than one per
sue presented somewhat of a problem, cent of the stock outstanding.
not because any appreciable number An unexpected misconception of the
—
Early Activity
This was one of three groups which enclosed the Prospectus and President Gijford's letter
for mailing to stockholders last July
Company's proposal developed in the a great deal of money this year and
minds of quite a number of stockhold- next year and probably the year af-
ers at the time proxies were solicited, ter that. We don't try to go too far
and was encountered again during the into the future. This issue, if suc-
subscription period. The fact that cessful — and of course it will be
the management was recommending will give us $234,000,000, roughly,
an issue of convertible debenture in the fall.
bonds led some people to think that "Now, if we want some more
they would have to convert their pres- money next year, and we will want
ent shareholdings of stock into the more at the rate we are going, if the
new bonds. Naturally, they were not convertible bond issue is used, we
in favor of doing this; but later one shall get, if the conversion rate were
or two stockholders did go so far as $150 — it hasn't been fixed yet —an-
to send stock in for exchange, in the other $100,000,000 next year or
belief that the Company desired it. the year after, or whenever the con-
version privilege was exercised.
In response to an inquiry at the spe- "In other words, we would have
cialmeeting of stockholders as to why raised not only $234,000,000 but
the management had not decided on something over $300,000,000 by
an offer of stock instead of convertible this method. If we raised it all by a
bonds, President Gifford stated: stock issue at one time, we would
"We anticipate that we shall need have this larger amount of cash to
i9î The 1941 Convertible Bond Issue 225
carry with no return on it and we in July,and still faces, no one could

would receive it sooner than we feelcompletely sure about an offer of
need it." bonds to stockholders which neces-
sarily had to remain open for subscrip-
JjECAUSE of its size and the number tion for a month and a half after the
of stockholders involved, the issue at- terms were set. Fortunately, the mar-
tracted wide attention throughout the ket quotations for stocks as well as for
financial community and the three per bonds held moderately firm during
cent interest rate, coupled with the fif- this period. The price of A. T. & T.
teen year maturity, was generally com- stock slid off a bit under pressure of
mended. The following comment in the new financing, but rights to sub-
the NewYork Journal of Commerce scribe for the Convertibles never sold
of June 26, 1941, was typical of early on the New York Stock Exchange be-
predictions of success for the issue: low 1%2 ($1.21875) and the closing
^'While investment bankers hold firmly price on the expiration date, August
to the more or less occupational thesis 29, 1941, was V%2 ($1.5625), the
that every issue should be underwrit- high for the period. Since eight rights
ten, it is readily conceded that in the were required to subscribe for each
case of Telephone it matters little to $100 of bonds, these prices for rights
the company." represented an equivalent low for the
Nevertheless, in the light of the un- bonds of 109/4 and an equivalent high
certain times which the nation faced of 112M.. At 109% the investment
SinscHiiuNt; IN I'kmson
The Treasury Department established a temporary counter in the lobby of the A. T. ^ T.
building for the convenience of people wishing to make subscription personally
—
226 Bell Telkphoisk Maimzlne NOVEMBER
yield on the bonds to the earliest call $135,000,000 additional had to be

date at par in 1953 was 2.08 per cent. subscribed by Friday, the final day,
Under these price conditions, a full if the offer was to be as much as 90
subscription for the offer was assured per cent taken.
if stockholders took care to exercise It had been publicly announced the
their rights or to sell them in the mar- day before that subscriptions placed
ket for others to exercise within the al- in the mails in continental United
lotted time. As the expiration date States up to midnight on August 29
approached, this remained the only would be accepted if they conformed
uncertainty. Not until the final clos- to the terms of the offer as stated in
ing,however, could the Company de- the Prospectus. How many subscrip-
termine to what extent stockholders tions would be in transit, unreceived,
might be overlooking the value of when the offices closed at midnight
their rights. Friday, was not possible to say; but
it
smiles were plentiful around the

95.4 Per Cent Subscribed Treasury Department that evening,
Up to Wednesday night, August 27, when the day's bank deposits were to-
subscriptions for only $65,000,000 of talled up and found to approximate
bonds, or 28 per cent of the amount $139,000,000.
offered, had been received. By the After everything had been received
close on Thursday but 4 per cent more and accounted for and all pending
had come in. This meant that some cases disposed of, the books showed
Principal amount of bonds offered $233,584,900

Amount of bonds subscribed $222,745,200
Per cent subscribed 95.4%
Amount bonds unsubscribed
of $10,839,700
Shares of stock outstanding on record date 18,686,794
Rights required to subscribe for $100 of bonds . . 8
Price range during subscription period:
Stock— Ex Rights— High 155%
Low 152
Rights— High 1.5625
Low 1.21875
Bonds High 112%
Low 110
Stockholders on record date 631,030
Approximate number of subscriptions * 116,000
Average principal amount offered per stockholder $370
Average principal amount per subscription * $1,921
Subscription warrants issued, including transfers 1,030,000
Incoming Bond Issue letters 170.000
Bond Issue telephone calls 17,000
* group subscription by a banli or broker for its customers
In these figures a is counted
as one subscription since it was recorded in the bank or broker's name.
i9î The 1941 Convertible Bond Issue 227
$222,745,200 of bonds subscribed for, Bankers Trust Co. Aids Stockholders

representing 95.4 per cent of the
amount This result stamped
offered.
In previous issues of stocks or con-
the financial operation as a complete

vertible bonds, stockholders could buy
success.
and sell rights through the Bell Tele-
Some interesting statistics are
phone Securities Company. Similar
shown on the opposite page. arrangements made for this issue with
It would be natural to ask why only
Bankers Trust Company adequately
replaced these facilities. In fact,
95.4 per cent of the convertible bond
transactions handled for stockholders
offer was subscribed; why stockhold-
ers allowed 867,000 rights, with a mar- by Bankers Trust Company exceeded
those handled by the Bell Telephone
ket value of roughly $1,350,000, to go
unused, notwithstanding the demand Securities Company in past issues, as
indicated in the table below.
in the market and the high closing
price. Current unfamiliarity with These figures demonstrate the un-
subscription rights is believed to
questioned need for the provision of
have been the chief reason for the some such facilities for stockholders.
amount unsubscribed although
left — An offering on a one-to-eight basis
meant that 250,000 stockholders, scat-
correspondence after the close of the
tered throughout the country, would
issue indicated that "absence from
home" because receive fractional warrants only (that
of vacations, illness,
etc., was also a factor. Eleven years is, warrants for less than the number
of rights required to subscribe for a
had elapsed since the last subscription
offer by the Company, with the result $100 bond), and that 325,000 addi-
tional stockholders receiving full war-
that some 380,000 stockholders, rep-
resenting 60 per cent of the total, had rants would also receive fractional
never before had A. T. & T. rights to warrants which they would have to
deal with. sell or match up with additional frac-
Pursuant to a supplement to the tions if they were not going to allow

Prospectus, the Company has sold the them to lapse.
unsubscribed portion of the issue, The Bankers Trust arrangement,

amounting to $10,839,700, on the and the modest agency charge of five
various stock exchanges through mem- cents per right for buying and selling
ber firms of such exchanges, who re- made by the bank, proved entirely sat-
ceived for their services only the regu- isfactory to stockholders. The bank's
lar brokerage commission. personnel could not have been more
Rights Rights Total

Bought Sold Transactions
Bell Telephone Securities Company:
1928 234,000 341,400 121,700
1929 275,600 927,400 154,500
1930 181,000 513,800 156.100
Bankers Trust Company:
1941 303,000 2,352,500 216,700
enthusiastically cooperative than they Colt's message in the Pyramid, re-
were with the Company's bond issue printed below, indicates that almost
organization. More than 200 of the everyone in the bank was in one way
bank's employees received advance in- or another affected by the operation.
struction so that they could take part "We are within four days of the
in the work whenever the daily vol- completion of the rather unusual
ume of transactions required it, and piece of work which Bankers Trust
the entire ninth floor of the bank's Co. has had the opportunity of do-
head office building at 16 Wall Street, ing for the Stockholders of the
along with special counter space on American Telephone and Telegraph
the ground floor, was given over to the Company in acting as Agent for
rights job. According to an article buying and selling rights issued in
which appeared in the Bankers Trust connection with the recent bond is-
magazine, Pyramid, they developed sue. As the Pyramid goes to press
unique names for some of their spe- tonight, I want to congratulate
cialists. File girls wearing aprons be- those who planned and carried out
came "Flower Girls." Girls cutting this unique service with such effi-
checks apart with knives became ciency and enthusiasm. I have
"Check Butchers." Men rubber- heard nothing but the most favor-
stamping warrants became "Pound- able comments from the public
ers." Girls photographing warrants whom we have served.
became "Shutter-Bugs," and the man "Nearly everybody in the bank
in charge of supplies became "The was directly or indirectly affected
Green Grocer." President S. Sloan by this operation and I want to
Telephone Traders at Bankers Trust Co.

These men keptin ioiich nuV/j (he market in rights in New York and other cities
i9 'ti The 1941 Convertible Bond Issue 229
Permanent Records
Micro-film cameras were used to photograph documents covering transactions handled at
Bankers Trust Co. Similar equipment was used in Treasury Department operations at
63 Wall Street and 195 Broadway
thank the entire staff for the splen- for their accounts through Bankers
did cooperation which made possi- Trust Co. on the expiration date, if
ble the success of the undertaking." they had not previously arranged with
As well as being of convenience to the Company for the exercise or dis-
stockholders without banking or bro- posal of the withheld warrants.
kerage facilities, the arrangement with Approximately 116,500 rights were
Bankers Trust Co. helped solve the delivered to Bankers Trust for sale
problem of how to dispose of the for stockholders' accounts under this
rights of nationals of "blocked" coun- arrangement. A similar disposal was
tries. At the time of the offer, 2,100 made of warrants for 4,100 rights
of the Company's stockholders resided which for one reason or another were
in blocked countries into which it was not deliverable to domestic stockhold-
illegal to send the rights, and another ers. In the case of nationals of
1,300 resided in other places outside blocked countries the proceeds had to
of continental United States where it be credited to blocked accounts in do-
would have been impracticableto mail mestic banks for such final disposition
warrants because of the time factor. as the laws and regulations of the
To protect their interests, all these United States might permit.
stockholders were sent special notices One of the early concerns of the
stating that their rights would be sold Treasury Department was settled by
the discovery in May that 36,000 l^rintedon the first run. To meet the
square feet of excellent office space for schedule of six days for the printing
the bond issue work could be rented and delivery of such a large quantity,
in an office building at 63 Wall Street. the job had to be done by two printers
This space, located on three adjoining and involved the use of 17 presses.
floors, was already equipped with It was the same story for the Pros-
Holmes-protected vaults and it was pectus envelopes. Since no one manu-

otherwise ideally suited to house the facturer could deliver the required
large organization which
would be 630,000 envelopes when needed, the
needed. Additional space was also order was placed with three envelope
required at 195 Broadway, and a spe- manufacturers, and three different
cial subscription counter was set up grades of paper had to be used.
in the lobby of the building, where, Manufacture of the subscription
of course, the larger subscriptions warrants to be mailed to stockholders
were filed by bankers and brokers. presented another interesting problem.
As in past offers, subscriptions were More than a million warrants were
also received at the Treasurer's office needed in the initial order, and 14,500
in Boston. pounds of special paper had to be
milled in advance for this purpose.
Equipment and Organization For numbering and final printing of
terms on the warrants, it was neces-
lo equip temporary quarters,
the
sary to install at 195 Broadway eight
some 2,000 pieces of furniture and
printing presses and one power cutter.
miscellaneous office equipment were
These presses were operated from 16
needed, much of which was rented, or
to 20 hours a day for a period of eight
borrowed from other companies.
days.
The growing scarcity of materials
and equipment presented a problem Visitors to the temporary quarters
which had not been encountered by
at 63Wall Street were particularly in-
the Department in organizing for pre-
terested in number of stages
the
vious offers to stockholders. This through which
bond subscriptions
meant anticipating requirements fur- passed. By reason of the volume and
ther in advance, and more careful
nature of the work, a step-by-step
planning all around. process was used which involved a
For example, the paper required for
dozen or more separate operations.
the Prospectusamounted to more than During one of these steps a "micro-
—
150,000 pounds enough to fill five picture" of each subscription and ac-
freight cars. The mills which spe- companying remittance was made by
paper to be u.sed
cialize in the type of Recordak for record purposes. This
were unable to supply this large quan- machine took small pictures on a con-
tity within the time limits available, tinuous film, and had self-contained
and it was necessary to have the paper equipment for projecting full-size en-
manufactured to a special formula by largements of the material photo-
a regular book-paper mill. More than graphed.
650,000 copies of the Prospectus were A favorite picture to show visitors
19^1 The 1941 Convertible bu?<D Issue 231
Temporary Print Shop

These presses were installed in the A. T. 4 T. building in connection with final printing
of the warrants
in demonstrating this equipment was make use of out-of-town telephone

one of a cashier's check which had calls as frequently as it otherwise
been received from a small country would have done. All told, telephone
bank to cover a $700 subscription but calls about the offer, both incoming
which, by a slip of the check-writer, and outgoing, exceeded 17,000. Some
had been written for $1,000,700. were quite amusing. In one instance,
Needless to say, the check was re- where a telephone call was put
turned for correction. A large num- through to an out-of-town bank to in-
ber of checks received, many from quire if it would honor an unsigned
banks, had to be returned because of check which it had mailed in as a sub-
being incorrectly written or unsigned. scription payment, an urgent request
If one of the amounts on a check was came back to deposit the check by all
correct, however, and the other was means, because it was intended to
not more than $200 or $300 off, the cover a subscription for the president
check was put through for clearance of the bank and it would be very em-
with a certification by the Company barrassing to the cashier to have the
as to the correct amount. check returned for correction. The
Because the long-distance wires are telephone, in many cases, offered the
important to the speeding-up of the only way to get a subscription matter
nation's defense program, the commu- straightened out in the time available.
nications bureau at 63 Wall Street, All together, some 430,000 tem-
which was receiving about a thousand porary bonds were issued to cover
letters per day to answer, did not subscriptions received. Of these, ap-
PERMANENT AND TEMPORARY EMPLOYEES

TREASURY DEPARTMENT
1941 CONVERTIBLE DEBENTURE BOND ISSUE
ipoo IDOO
800 800
c:-;
P^
600 600
400 400
200 200
12 19 26 9 16 30 6 13 20
JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER ,
•WEEK ENDING
proximately 134,000 pieces, represent- with a transparent piece of tape.

ing $131,000,000 in bonds, were de- More than nine miles of this protec-
livered over the counter to banks, tive covering were used before the last
brokers, and other large subscribers bond was on itsway.
direct from space temporarily assigned
to the Department in the offices of the It is said around the Treasury De-
City Bank Farmers Trust Co., Trus- partment that almost anything can
tee of the issue; and deliveries of an- happen during a subscription offer.
other $19,000,000 of bonds were made The idiosyncracies of stockholders
over the counter at 195 Broadway. which come to a focus on the Com-
The remaining bonds, consisting pany at such times provide many sur-
largely of $100 and $500 denomina- prises. For example, one subscriber
tions, covering some 110,000 subscrip- to this issue sent in only the lower half
tions,were sent out by registered mail. of her warrant, which provided for the
A new process was developed for ad- subscriber's signature, having torn off
dressing the envelopes used for this the upper half, which showed such
delivery, which consisted of cutting essential information as the number
and pasting a carbon copy of the sub- of rights it represented and the name
scription register on the mailing en- of the holder. She later explained by
velope to indicate the subscriber's telephone that she wanted to keep this
name and address and covering this upper half as a record of the transac-
19 'il The 1941 Convertible Bond Issue 233
tion and as a receipt. Strange things graduate students representing 105

happened in the bond issue organiza- colleges and universities. In addition,
tion itself, such as a temporary em- 50 high school and college instructors
ployee's getting lost and going to work were engaged for the summer recess.
in the wrong section for one super- These employees adjusted themselves
visor while another supervisor was to a new environment and to unfa-
anxiously awaiting her arrival. But miliar work in a most gratifying
incidents of this sort were of no im- manner.
portance compared with the balancing Most of the new people were given
out to the penny of the bank account a short training course in order to fa-
through which $223,000,000 in sub- miliarize them with the background of
scription remittances had been cleared, the Bell System, the bond issue or-
or with the full accounting for more
ganization, and the terms of the offer.
than 430,000 bearer bonds upon com- In addition, certain groups were given
pletion of bond deliveries.
specialized courses involving the han-
The out-of-pocket cost of the bond dling of correspondence, the accept-
issue to date, excluding the exchange
ance of counter subscriptions, the al-
of temporary for definitive bonds, to
lotment and mailing of bonds and
take place next year, has been ap-
various machine operations. These
proximately $1,000,000. Much of
training courses involved a total of
this expense, such as the Federal
8,200 employee hours and without
stamp tax of $257,000 and the fees for
doubt helped the employees to adapt
registration, listing,and authentica-
themselves quickly to the work.
tion of the bonds, would have been the
In order to get a picture of the spirit
same for a public offering of the bonds
and efficient operation of the bond is-
through underwriters.
sue organization it was only necessary
Out of a total of 625 employees in
to walk through the offices and see
the interest which employees took in
the bond issue organization at the
their assignments, although at times
peak of the work, 496 were temporary
employees, the balance
comprising these had to be long and hard. Satur-
regular employees of the department days and Sundays were like any other
or employees borrowed from other days when there was work to do or a
Bell System organizations — of whom schedule to be met. It is not possible
there were seventy-six. To secure the to speak too highly of the way in
required number of temporary em- which both temporary and permanent

ployees, over 1,500 applicants were employees applied themselves to the
interviewed. Of the number engaged, work or of the example set by their
283 were either college or post- supervisors.
THE TELEPHONE AFLOAT
Through 24 Shore Stations on Our Coasts and Inland Waterways,
More Than 3J)()0 Vessels Can Communicate Readily by Radio
Telephone ivith the Bell System's Telephone Network Ashore
By GAIUS W. MERWIN
W iTH more than 3,000 ves-

sels equipped with radio
telephones which have im-
mediate access to the 23,000,000 Bell
System and connecting telephones in
the United States, the telephone afloat
companies is available to ships in the
coastal and inland waters of the
United States.
Starting with the first Bell System
coastal harbor radio telephone shore
station, which was opened for com-
is indeed an important factor in the mercial business at Marshfield, Mass.,
life of those who go down to the sea 1, 1934, by the
near Boston, on July
in ships. Ship telephone service has New England Telephone and Tele-
taken its place as a regular Bell serv- graph Compan}^, a whole chain of
ice since its inauguration to ocean- radio telephone shore stations serving
going liners in 1929 and to smaller the nation has come into being in re-
coastal and harbor vessels in 1934. cent years. In addition to the Boston
Today, due to the war, most of the station, which serves New England
liners which had been equipped with waters, the Atlantic coast line is
radio telephones are either serving as dotted with a series of stations which
troop transports, are tied up idle at include New York (two stations),
their docks, or have been sunk in the Wilmington, Norfolk, Charleston and
service of their country. Thus, tele- Miami. Ships plying the waters of
phone service to these large ships must the Gulf of Mexico are served by shore
wait until peace reigns again. On the stations at Tampa, New Orleans, and
other hand, telephone service to boats Galveston. Similar service is available
in harbors, along our coasts, and on on the Pacific coast, as ships can talk
the Great Lakes has continued its at any time to homes and offices
rapid growth, from the standpoint through the shore stations located at
both of boats equipped and of num- San Pedro, San Francisco. Astoria,
ber of messages handled. Portland and Seattle. Of these fifteen
Ship telephone service through the Bell stations, Wilmington, Charleston,
coastal harbor shore stations of the Tampa, and Galveston started service
Bell and connecting radio telephone in 1940, and an additional channel was
19^1 The Telephone Afloat 235
Figure 1
Shore stations of the coastal and harbor radio telephone service
also added to one of the New York sta- connecting links between the land
tions last year. New stations at As- telephone lines and the various ves-
toria and Portland were opened in sels as they ply the waters of our
February, 1941, and others are under coasts and inland seas. A call from a
construction at Eureka, California, boat goes by radio to the radio tele-
and at Detroit and Port Huron, phone shore station desired, where it
Michigan. is picked up and placed on the wire
Figure 1 shows the location of all lines of the Bell System and its con-
these Bell radio telephone shore sta- necting companies, and the making of
tions, and also shows those which have such telephone calls becomes as much
been provided by connecting radio a matter of daily routine as the land
telephone companies for serving boats telephone service used every day.
on the Great Lakes and on certain
Operation of the Service to Ships
rivers. These connecting-company
shore stations are located at Buffalo, F IGURE 2 shows the Wilmington
N. Y.; Lorain, O.; Rogers City, transmitting station, and Figure 3
Mich.; Lake Forest, 111.; Port Wash- shows the Tampa receiving station,
ington, Wis.; Duluth, Minn.; Phila- which are good examples of the more
delphia, Pa.; Memphis, Tenn.; and recent shore station installations.
Cape Girardeau, Mo. These radio telephone transmitters

x\ll these shore stations serve as and receivers are connected by wires
Fig. 2. The radio telephone Irafismilling
station at Wilmington, Dei, for coastal and
harbor service
with the various boats, and, in case

one is not sure as to the location of
the particular vessel desired, will place
the call through the shore station
which appears to be nearest the ship
at the time of the call. In order to
bring down the cost of providing serv-
ice to ships and to give the best pos-
sible service, the calls are generally
handled by regular traffic operators,
with technical radio men always on
call if anything goes wrong with the
automatic features of the system,
i HE operating facilities at the ma-

rine positions of the telephone switch-
boards are relatively simple, consist-
ing of an arrangement of jacks and
lamps associated with the radio trans-
mitters and receivers. No special key
shelf arrangements are required, ex-
cept the provision of a dial where this
is not already provided for other pur-
poses.
Vessels may be equipped with selec-
tive signaling apparatus, which rings
I a bell on the ship
not equipped
are called by
for
name
when
tion operator wishes to call
the shore sta-
selective
it. Ships
signaling
following the op-
eration of the cord circuit ringing key
at the marine position which trans-
mits a distinctive attention signal
to the telephone company operating For both selective and non-selective
rooms. signaling, a boat will receive notifica-
Such radio equipment does not re- tion of a call only when its set is ad-
quire constant attendance, but in justed to the particular frequency of
many cases is remotely controlled the radio terminal office which is call-
from the telephone company's operating. With the set so adjusted, a bell
ing rooms, which may be miles away. will ringon a ship equipped for selec-
To place a call from a land telephone, tive signaling, and the attention signal
all that one has to do is to ask for the followed by an announcement that a
marine operator, or under certain con- given ship is being called will be heard
ditions give the details of the call to in the loud speakers of all ships not
the toll operator. The telephone com- equipped for selective signaling.
pany marine operators keep in touch The radio telephone sets used on
i9'tl The Telephone Afloat 237
boats for talking with the shore are link includes a connection with any
in all cases provided by the owners telephone within the designated local
of the boats. More than 20 different service area of the radio terminal of-
concerns are building various types of fice, in some cases within a cer-
and
boat sets, most of which vary from 10 tain zone along the shore. Where
to 100 watts in power. Some of these points on land outside this area are
sets cost as little as $200 to $300 in- involved, an additional charge for the
stalled; although where boats need land portion of the call is added to
fairly long haul communication, the the radio-link charge.
sets may cost $1000 or more, depend- Dispatching service is intended for
ing upon the type and power of the communication between vessels of one
set, the number of frequencies avail- customer and one or more designated
able, etc. As shown by Figure 4, the
smaller radio telephone sets do not
take up much more room than a me-
dium sized home broadcast receiver.
Actually this Western Electric set
shown weighs ?>?> pounds, and is only
about 13 inches in length which is —

its greatest dimension. It is arranged
for four different frequencies, so that
without changing the crystals one can
talk to two different shore stations, on
the boat-to-boat frequency, and to the
Coast Guard, which may be reached
when assistance is needed. The hand
telephone provided with the set has a
press-to-talk switch in the handle. In
a larger set such as shown in Figure 5
and having a power of 100 watts,
space is provided for ten different fre-
quencies, and voice-operated relays
are included which eliminate the need
for a press-to-talk switch. Figure 6
shows the ship telephone used as a
part of this set.
Iwo classes of coastal and harbor

radio telephone service are offered
through the Bell System shore sta-
•tions: general service and dispatching
service.
General service covers random calls
between any land telephone and any
suitably equipped vessel or between
two vessels. The rate for the radio
Fig. 3. The radio telephone receiving station

at Tampa, Fla., for coastal and harbor
service
I'k;. I. I'his .ship's rddio telephone set, made
by the Western Electric Company, provides

conversation channels on four frequencies
phone service include not only small

fishing craft and pleasure craft, but
also the largest commercial vessels.
The illustrations on pages 240 and 241
show examples of some of the widely
different types of boats which are
equipped with radio telephones.
About 1700 yachts and pleasure
craft are equipped with radio tele-
phones. Being able to keep in touch
with home and office by telephone has
telephone stations of that customer enabled many a yacht owner to enjoy
on land, as for instance, between the extra days afloat. In case of a break-
dispatching office of the owner of a down of any kind, aid can be sum-
fleet of tow boats and such boats. moned in short order and anxious
The radio-link message charge for this hours avoided by those on shore. As
service is lower than for general serv- a matter of fact, just the safety factor
ice, but the customer guarantees a of being able to call for assistance has
certain amount of message revenue caused many a private boat owner to
each month. equip his yacht with a telephone.
The need for communication is
Growth of the Service
present in all undertakings, and in
OHiP telephone service has shown a the case of dredges, which are con-
rapid rate of growth, as is shown in stantly at work on our harbors, canals,
Figure 7. From
100 boats in 1936, and rivers, the telephone is of con-
the number of vessels equipped with stant aid in calling for an additional
radio telephones registered for Bell scow, or, when there is some breakage,
System service had grown to about in calling some nearby city so that the
2,500 at the end of 1940, and there parts needed may
be dispatched at
are now more than 3,000 boats once and little time lost in keeping
equipped. Along with the marked the channel clear. The towing com-
increase in the number of boats panies find that equipping their tug
equipped with telephones has come a boats with radio telephones saves
very rapid increase in the number of them much time in giving instructions
radio telephone messages handled, as as to picking up new tows. When a
is shown in Figure 7. In 1940,
also tow gets into difficulties, aid can be
the number of these ship telephone quickly summoned by telephone, and
messages handled through the Bell many a tow has been saved from loss
System shore stations was in excess by such a call for aid.
of 50,000, or more than double the Another commercial use for the
number handled in 1939. radio telephone has developed within
When we speak of radio telephone the last year or so. In the constant
service to ships, we can think of serv- search for petroleum, a new oil field
ice to practically any kind of a boat has been located under the swamps
that floats. The boats listed for tele- and waters of southern Louisiana, and
:
19^41 The Telephone Afloat 239
A.M. Eastern Standard Time — Barom-

eter 30.12 inches falling, temperature
68 degrees, wind west 9 miles steady,
miles, weather
sea slight, visibility 3
clear with light haze."
The Coast Guard include with such

weather information reports as to
derelicts or other obstructions to navi-
gation, and the whole report is sentby
the Coast Guard to the telephone com-
pany by teletypewriter over wires fur-
nished for this purpose. As a further
Fig. 6. service to the boat owners along our
This is (he ships telephone for use with the
coast, when storm warnings are re-
set shown below
ceived such warnings are given out
a number of the large oil companies by the shore stations upon receipt and
located in the area make frequent calls
through the telephone company's
shore station serving the Gulf coastal
area.
Furnishing JVeather Reports
If a boat owner wants the latest

weather report, he can get from the it
telephone company, since twice a day

the various shore stations send out
weather reports on their regular shore-
to-ship frequency. The weather re-
ports are prepared especially by the
United States Weather Bureau for the
Coast Guard, with reports on wind
and sea conditions. A typical report
follows
"This is the New York Marine Op-

erator. Notice to all vessels. The fol-
lowing marine information was obtained
from the United States Coast Guard at
New York.
"United States Weather Bureau in-
formation — Forecast for southern New

England and New Jersey coasts Di- —
minishing northwest winds this after-
noon, clear this afternoon, increasing
cloudiness Thursday.
"Sandy Hook observation 10:00
Fig. 7). This Western Elertrir equip-

Inrfier
ment has too power, and provision for
watts'
ten frequency channels
Pleasure Craft
Lone Wolf, above, and Wakiva, among the 1700 now
below, are radio-telephone equipped
241
Coastal Harbor Service r-, 2.500
Radio Telephone Messages* Coastal Harbor Service

Boats Equipped with
Radio Telephones"
JZL JL
1937 1938 1939 1937 1938 1939 1940
* Handled at Bell Shore Stations •"Listed (or Senice with Bell Shore Stations
Figure 7
These rharfs illustrate the increase in use of the coastal and harbor radio telephone service
at two hour intervals up to the time of 1 HE fifteen Bell System shore sta-
the next weather report. Further- tions on our two coasts and the Gulf
more, if a boat owner has failed to of Mexico give a coverage of practi-
receive the regular weather report, he cally our entire coast. Like the wire
can call the nearest shore station and telephone plant, the radio plant is
for a small charge the weather report being constantly extended to meet the
will be given to him by the telephone service needs of the public. How-
company's operator. ever, can now really be said that
it
Before a ship's radio telephone set vessels along our coasts can talk at
can be operated, the owner of the practically any time to any shore tele-
vessel has to secure a ship radio sta- phone just about as easily as we can
tion license from the Federal Com- talk to any 23,000,000 tele-
of the
munications Commission, and the phones in the United States. Thus,
owner or some one on the boat must from the original aim of the telephone
have also a Restricted Radio Tele- business of connecting all land tele-
phone Operator Permit or higher — phones of the nation, the horizon for
grade radio telephone operator's li- telephone service has been pushed out
cense. To obtain a restricted permit further and further, not only to reach
requires only a knowledge of the prin- all continents but also to serve those
cipal laws and regulations relating to who travel by water as well as by land.
the operation of this type of radio Service to ships is simply another step
equipment, and enough instruction to in carrying out the aim of making tele-
operate the radio equipment. phone service available ''anywhere."
PATENTS AND FREE ENTERPRISE
Comments on Monograph 31, Prepared for the Temporary National
Economic Committee, and on the Relationship between the Patent
System and Business and Industry in the United States
By WILLIAM R. BALLARD
One of the important subjects covered bearing asit does the name of the
in the investigations of the Temporary Temporary National Economic Com-

National Economic Committee {often re- mittee and the stamp of the U. S. Gov-
ferred to as the Monopoly Investigation)
ernment Printing Office, will doubtless
was the use of patents in American in-
be quoted as an authority by many
dustry. In addition to testimony at open
who know no better or who are pro-
hearings where views pro and con found
moters of pet panaceas ready always
expression, the Committee printed and
distributed a large number of "Mono- to seize upon any "authority" that fits
graphs" in the nature of ex parte state- their theories. Under the circum-
ments by various individuals. One of stances, it seems in order to indicate
these, Monograph No. 31, is entitled the real character of the monograph
"Patents and Free Enterprise." The fol- by citing a few instances of its unre-
lowing article discusses the same subject, liability and then, by way of general
using that Monograph to some extent as answer, to give a brief statement of
a text.
the real relation between patents and
M ONOGRAPH 31
relation
free enterprise.
is
soned discussion of the real

not a rea-
between patents and

Notwithstanding lip-
service paid to the theory of patents,
free enterprise.
One of the
I
author's
mental errors is in treating a patent
more funda-
it is, in fact, merely a general attack as an instrument for taking something

on the patent system and upon the mo- away from the public and giving it to
tives and practices of business. an individual. He says of the patent
Evidently the author has had little that it is "... a privilege, in the pub-
experience with either patents or prac- lic domain ." (p. 158), "A pri-
. .
tical business enterprise, and on its vate stake in a public domain ." . .
own merits the monograph does not (p. 51), ". staked out within the
. .
deserve to be by serious
dignified public domain" (p. 44), "... a pri-
notice. Nevertheless the document, vate privilege in the public domain
:
. ,
." (p. 151), etc. From this basic substance. To purchase the residuary
assumption the author moves on to rights in his invention the public con-
expand his theory that the patentee's tributes neither money nor anything
"privilege" should be sharply circum- else it possesses. It gives only a prom-
scribed (if not abolished) and that, as ise of temporary protection for the in-
patentee, he has special "obligations ventor's own intellectual property so
to society'' (p. 52). And he ridicules that he may, if he can, make a profit
the courts for not disposing of all for himself during the period of pro-
patent litigation (regardless of the tection.
actual issues involved) on the basis of What, then, shall be said of one who
the inquiry: Has or has not the pat- undertakes to instruct the nation on
entee used his patent to promote pub- "patents and free enterprise" and
lic welfare? proceeds on the theory that a patent is
The author's premise being entirely a transfer of something from the pub-
false, what he builds upon it is natu- lic domain to an individual? Correct
rally worthless. A patent is ttot a pri- statements of the matter, which the
vate privilege carved out of the public author might easily have consulted,
domain. So far from being a means are abundant in the writings of au-
of taking something from the public thorities on the subject. As long ago
and giving it to an individual, a patent as 1852 Daniel Webster stated it as
is a means for getting something from plainly as this
an individual and giving it to the pub- "... The Constitution
does not at-
lic. If a man makes an invention of tempt an inventor a right to his
to give
the kind which can be protected by a invention, or to an author a right to his
patent, it is something which the pub- literary productions. No such thing.
lic does not then have, and to which it But the Constitution recognizes an
has no claim. That invention belongs original, pre-existing, inherent right of
to the man who made it. He may, if property in the invention, and author-
izes Congress to secure to inventors the
he choose, keep it secret and practice
enjoyment of that right. But the right
it to his own profit. He may, if he
existed before the Constitution and
choose, let the art die with him, as
above the Constitution, and is, as a
certain ancient arts actually did die.
natural right, more clear than that
If anyone surreptitiously filches his which a man can assert in almost any
secret invention, he has his remedy at other kind of property. What a man
law for the injury. The patent sys- earns by thought, study and care, is as
tem is designed to induce him not much his own, as what he obtains by
only to do the inventing but to dis- his hands. It is said that, by the natu-
close his invention and give it to the ral law. the son has no right to inherit
public gratis after the term of the the estate of his father — or to take it
patent, return by devise. But the natural law gives a

in for the assurance
that he will be protected in the exclu-
man a right to his own acquisitions, as
in the case of securing a quadruped, a
sive use of his own for those seventeen
bird, or a fish by his skill, industry, or
years, notwithstanding the disclosure.
perseverance. Invention, as a right of
In this transaction, it is clear that property, stands higher than inheritance
only the inventor gives up anything of or devise, because it is personal earn-
i
idî Patents and Free Enterprise ^45
ing. It is more like acquisitions by the Even the following brief statement
original right of nature. In all these by Chief Justice Marshall (in a case
there is an effort of mind as well as cited by the author on another point)
muscular strength. should have kept him from this basic
"Upon acknowledged principles, rights
blunder. Chief Justice Marshall said
acquired by invention stand on plainer
of the patent:
principles of natural law than most
other rights of property. Blackstone, "It is the reward stipulated for the
and every other able writer on public advantages derived by the public for
law, thus regards this natural right and the exertions of the individual, and is
asserts man's title to his own invention intended as a stimulus to those exer-
or earnings. tions The public yields nothing
. . .
"The an inventor to his in-

right of which has not agreed to yield; it re-
it
vention is no monopoly. It is no mo- ceives all which it has contracted to re-
nopoly in any other sense than as a ceive. The full benefit of the discovery,
man's own house is a monopoly. A after its enjoyment by the discoverer
monopoly, as it was understood in the for fourteen [now seventeen] years, is
ancient law, was a grant of the right to
preserved; and for his exclusive enjoy-
buy, sell, or carry on some particular
ment of it during that time the public
trade, conferred on one of the king's
faith is pledged." (6 Peters 217, 241-
subjects to the exclusion of all the rest.
2.)
Such a monopoly is unjust. But a
man's right to his own invention is a This underlying error alone indi-
very different matter. It is no more a cates very clearlyhow little depend-
monopoly for him to possess that, than ence can be placed upon statements
to possess his own homestead.
in the monograph, but the whole ar-
"But there is one remarkable differ-
ence in the two cases, which is this, that
ticle is honeycombed with lesser er-
property in a man's own invention pre- rors which show the same thing. A
sents the only case where he is made few will be noted.
to pay for the exclusive enjoyment of
his own. For by law the permission so II
to enjoy the invention for a certain
In chapter VIII (p. 123 et seq.) the
number of years is granted, on the con-
author discusses the procedure under
dition that, at the expiration of the
patent, the invention shall belong to the
which patents are granted, and asserts
public. Not with houses; not so
so that it is such as to bias the Patent
with lands; nothing is paid for them, Office examiners in favor of the ap-
except the usual amount of taxation; plicant and against the public in the
but for the right to use his own, which
the natural law gives him, the inventor
granting and refusal of claims — that
each officer passing upon the claims is
as we have just pays an enor-
seen,
prone to allow rather than to reject,
mous price. Yet a clamor out
there is
lest he be reversed on appeal. Evi-
of doors, calculated to debauch the pub-
lic mind." (Emphasis by Mr. Web- dently the author has never been an
ster.*) examiner in the Patent Office, or had
much to do with them. If he had, he
* "The Writings and Speeches of Daniel Web-
would know that they take themselves
ster," National Edition 1903, Vol. 15, pp. 438-
439. quite seriously as custodians of the
:
public interest, and are eager to dis- ". . . in the said States of Massachu-
cover anticipating evidence. So zeal- setts and New Hampshire, and in no
other place or places ."
ous are they, indeed, that it is common . .
for inventors and their attorneys to and forbade the licensee to

complain that the examiners con-
stantly reject claims for meritorious "... any way or form dispose of,
in
inventions without adequate evidence sell any license to use the said
or grant
machines beyond the 3rd day of May,
of anticipation. Fear of reversal on
A.D. 1867"
appeal is not a factor. An examiner
reversed on appeal may feel pity for and also with a sublicense
the blundering tribunal that reversed
". to run and use two sets (four
him, but never fear or remorse. He is
. .
machines) ... in said town of Hav-

a specialist in a particular art, and re-
erhill . .
."
gards himself as the one expert best
qualified to make the correct decision. But strictly limited licenses were old
even before that. Along in the 1840's,
Ill Goodyear held patents covering mate-
Another error of fact is found on rials impregnated or coated with vul-
page 43, where the author, speaking canized rubber and he granted licenses
of the use made of patent rights in the limited in various ways, as for ex-
ample *
earlier history of the country, says:
"... It was, however, even as late "... for the manufacture of wear-
as 1890^^, unburdened by covenants ing apparel of every name and descrip-
which ran with the chattel or radiated tion for men and boys, excepting boots
along the channels of trade . . . and shoes, bathing caps, gloves and
mittens."
"13 The Sherman Act was passed July 2,
1890." and again for:
It is important to the author's thesis

"... the manufacture of army and
to show that only in later years has ."
navy equipments . .
the patent right been misused to the

public detriment, one of the "misuses" In a suit involving a limited license
particularly attacked being the grant- of this type the judge said:
ing of licenses for limited uses of the

"For these reasons, I am of the opin-
invention. ion that the respondents, acting under
But simply is not true. Pat-
this that license, are restricted to the manu-
entees have granted licenses for lim- facture of cloths to be japanned, mar-
ited uses, for limited amounts of bled, and variegated, as therein de-
manufacture, and for limited terri- scribed, and that it confers no au-
tories, etc., from the very beginning. thority to manufacture any of the ar-
The case of Mitchell v. Hawley cited ( ticles specified in the bill of com-
by the author himself in another con- plaint." t
nection) dealt with licenses granted

* Goodyear v. Providence, etc., 10 Fed. Cases
about 1868 which were limited to mak- •12.
ing and using the invention t Idem, p. 723.

—
/»/// Patents and Free Enterprise 247
This decision was affirmed by the Su-

preme Court of the United States (9
Again, the author misstates the fact
Wallace 788), and in its decision that
in his discussion of the electric lamp
court noted that the license relied
patents and the Supreme Court's de-
upon by defendants was one to an
cision in United States v. General
individual to be exercised "at his own Electric Company, 272 U. S. 476.
establishment" and the court
only,
Despite the actual patent situation
said this did not authorize manufac-
there involved, which the author seems
ture in a place occupied jointly by that
to have known, he treats the licensing
licensee and others. system in that case as a scheme to con-
trol the price of "the unpatented in-
IV candescent lamp" (footnote (c), p.

100). The fact, of course, is that the
In chapter VI (p. 87 et seq.), the au- lamp was covered by three
in question
thor, speaking of the telephone in- patents of basic character on impor-
dustry, gives as facts (taken from the tant physical parts of the lamp itself.
reports of the Federal Communica- This makes all the difference in the
tions Commision investigation and world, because if the patents had been
"carefully checked") various delays merely on a process of manufacture or
by the Bell System (ranging from a machine for manufacturing, the ef-
nine to thirty years) in the introduc- fort to control the price or the use of
tion of various named innovations as- the unpatented product the lamp —
sumed have been needed and said
to would plainly have been open to at-
to have been ready at hand all the tack and subject to much of the criti-
time. And he reduces the allegation cism offered. The facts, if properly
to tabular form at the top of page 93 presented, would have undercut the
to give it an air of exactness and

author's high-sounding story.
finality. There is no truth in all of

Also, notwithstanding his own state-
ment of the facts as to the agency
this, as those acquainted with the
contracts, he treats the arrangements
facts well know. Statements substan-
there criticized as controlling the "re-
tially the same as those made by this
sale" price of the lamp (footnote 31,
author are to be found in the reports
p. 102 and footnote 25, p. 100). That
of the F. C. C. investigators, but the
is contrary to the fact. It was pre-
comments on F. C. C. Exhibit No.
cisely because the control by the pat-
1989, filed by the American Telephone
entee was control only of the original
and Telegraph Company (pp. 64, 71,
sale price, and not of the resale price,
94 to 122), and its brief on the pro-
that it was lawful rather than unlaw-
posed Walker reports (pp. 68 to 75),
ful, and was upheld by the Supreme
show that these statements were ut-
Court.
terly unfounded. would be interest-
It
ing to know what means the author VI
used for "carefully checking" these Another and oft repeated error is in
untruths. stating that patentees have a practice
of prolonging the life of their pat- sense because of an extension of the

ents beyond the seventeen-year period. monopoly of his old patent.
This is done, we are told, by taking In this matter of making and pat-
out improvement patents. The text enting improvements there is a field of
includes such expressions as "other perfectly free competition. If the out-
inventions might be used to prolong sider,who wants to get in, has the abil-
their life" (p. 90) ; "so long as basic ity and is willing to spend the time,
patents were periodically refreshed" money, and effort required to make
(p. 110); "He may, by means of im- and to patent the best improvements,
provement, give to his grant a new he will hold the advantage in the busi-
lease of life" (p. 162). ness over the original patent owner
The simple fact, of course, is that when that patent expires. If he has
no patentee can prolong the life of his not the ability or is not willing to make
patent by so much as a single day. the effort, there is no reason why he
There can be no possible excuse for should be permitted to take, free of
thus misstating the facts. It is a cost, the improvements of someone
transparent attempt to mislead the else who has spent time, money, and
reader into believing that patents are effort in perfecting them.
ready instruments of oppression and If the author of Monograph 31 did
injustice. not know and understand these simple
When a patent has run its seven- and basic things about patents, he
teen years, it ceases at once to be a bar should have devoted some study to the
to anyone in any way. The making, subject before undertaking to instruct
using, or selling of the thing covered others.
by the patent is as free to one man as
VII
to another; and whether
this is true
improvement patents have been taken Another error repeatedly made is
out or not. the assertion —either direct or im-

And during the life of the patent plied — that the assignment of a patent
one man as much as another is free to diverts the patent right from its in-
make and to patent improvements on tended purpose and turns it to an un-
the preceding invention. Of course, foreseen and undesirable end — often
the man who makes the best improve- referred to as the "pursuit of gain"
ment after the first patent ex-
will, (see pp. 45, 46, 49, 133, 162 and else-
pires,be in a better position to com- where). Perhaps this is an error of
pete (so far as patents are concerned) conclusion rather than of fact, but a
than the man who makes a poor im- conclusion so obviously wrong that it
provement, or none. If the same man is just as inexcusable. The author

who conducted a business under the makes no effort to establish the point
first patent makes the best improve- —he treats it as axiomatic, and upon
ments he, of course, will have this it bases other wrong statements.
competitive advantage; but this is the It seems almost too obvious to re-
result of his effort and ability in mak- quire stating that the very purpose of
ing the improvements not — in any the patent law in granting an inventor
i9U 1 Patents and Free Enterprise 249
a patent is to enable him to reap a VIII

profit on the invention. The chance
Another error, also in the nature of
to do that is his reward for contribut-
a conclusion and which the author also
ing to the advancement of science and
treats as axiomatic, is the assumption
the useful arts by making and disclos-
that a patentee, as distinct from the
ing the invention. From the point of
owner of other property, is under some
view of the public, it is of no impor-
special obligation to society (see, for
tance at all whether the patentee
example, pp. 52, 53, 152 and 153).
makes the profit by manufacturing
The author, having read Article I,
and selling the invention himself, or
Section 8, of the Constitution and
makes it by selling his exclusive right
found that the granting of the patent
to someone else. If he sells his pat-
is intended "to promote the progress
ent to someone else, the purchaser,
of science and useful arts," jumps to
whether a corporation or an individ-
the conclusion that it is the patentee
no rights which the original
ual, gets
upon whom falls the duty of promot-
patentee did not have. The author of
ing the progress of science and the use-
the monograph, when off guard, ad- ful arts. Of course, this is plain fool-
mits this parity between the inventor ishness. The Constitution expressly
and assignee. On page 103 he writes, states that it is Congress that is to
''The inventor —or his assignee — is promote the progress of science and
worthy of his reward." In the next the useful arts. And the precise way
sentence he suggests that this "re- Congress is to promote them is stated,
ward" is only the right to collect namely, "by securing for limited times
royalty, but that, of course, is simply to . . . inventors the exclusive right
not true. The patent right, by defi- to their . . . discoveries." So, it is
nition, is the right to exclude others. the fact that the exclusive rights are
The right to permit others, in con- granted which promotes the progress
sideration of payments, is merely an of scienceand the useful arts, and not
incident of the patent right. something the inventor is expected to
Obviously either the inventor or his do after the grant is made. Once
assignee may use the patent unlaw- made, the grant, like any other piece
fully, just as he may use any other of property, is something belonging
private property unlawfully. For ex- entirely to the grantee. It is intended
ample, he may make an agreement or for his benefit and with it he may, as
combination in restraint of trade which with his horse or his grain, do just as
involves his patent, just as such an he pleases. The patentee's obligation
agreement may involve his grain or his to society is no greater, and of course
horses. But the cure for this is not to no less, than the obligation of the
decry the sale of the patent or the holder of any other piece of personal
grain or the horses, but to prosecute property. The patent is something he
the perpetrator ofagreement
the has bought by yielding the price speci-
(whether inventor or assignee) under fied by the Government, and there the
the anti-trust laws if he transgresses transaction ends.
those laws. Of course, anyone so blind as to be-
250 Bkll Telephone Magazine NOVEMBER
lieve that human beings have already does, to some extent, limit the free-
attained such perfection that we can dom of others in conducting their busi-
now thrive and progress without the ness enterprises (and in other ways).
stimulus of any private ownership at If A owns a farm, B, of course, is not
all will object to the private owner- free to conduct an agricultural enter-
ship of the patent right, and, since it prise that would involve planting and
seems easier to a
vilify this right as cultivating A's acres. Just so, if A
"monopoly' than it is the correspond- owns a patent on an invention, B is
ing monopoly in one's horse or his not free to conduct a manufacturing

grain, it is natural that such a person enterprisewhich would involve the
should pick on patent property for making and selling of A's invention.
propaganda purposes. But our author And most certainly in neither ca.se is
should realize that he has not in him- there any reason why B should be
self as yet the power to amend the "free"' to do such a thing.
Constitution. What he really tries to The American idea of free enter-
do is to rewrite the pertinent clause of prise is man should be free
not that a
the Constitution to make it read: Con- without permission to do business with
gress shall secure for limited times to the property of others, but that so long
inventors the exclusive right to their as he respects the property and other
discoveries, and the inventors shall rights of his fellow men he shall be
thereupon use the grant to promote free to conduct whatever enterprise he
the progress of science and the useful
will, wherever he will, and for such
arts and not for their own profit.
time and in such way as he may choose
Time and space will not permit dis-
cussion and correction of all of the
— and especially that he shall be free,
so far as possible, from interference
erroneous statements contained in the
by the Government.
monograph, and, if it were to be done,
The basic relation between patents
few would have the patience to read
and free enterprise is so simple that it
these comments through. If the docu-
can be stated in one paragraph. It is
ment is read in the light of the fore-
precisely the same relation as between
going, it will be clear that practically
any other private property and free
everything in it, aside from pure his-
enterprise. While a man's, or a com-
torical recitation, is misdirected or
pany's, ownership of private property
erroneous.
is always in a true sense a monopoly
of that property, and the control of it

The Relation of Patents to
is often referred to as absolute, never-
Free Enterprise
theless it is also always true that the
1 HE might perhaps have
author use of such property, whether it be
saved himself from some errors if he patents, or grain, or horses, is subject
had thought of his subject as part of to the general laws governing the use
a more general case — as if the topic of property, as for example the anti-
were "Private Property and Free En- trust laws. And while, as already
terprise.'' Quite obviously, the right noted, private ownership of property
of any person in any private property is necessarilv a limitation on the ac-
19î Patents and Free Entehphise 251
tivities of others, it is also true that be used as the subject of an agree-

private ownership and a complete con- ment in restraint of trade, or other-
trol of theproperty involved not only wise in contravention of law, is child-
promote free enterprise but are almost ish. That, in substance, is what the
essential to it. Xo
one can have a author of Monograph 31 proposes as
really free based upon a
enterprise to patents. History indicates that oil
farm or a grocery store unless he has is more likely to be used as the basis
complete control of the farm or the of combinations in restraint of trade
store, and the same is true as to pat- than are alphabet blocks or tigers, but
ents. The ownership of patents and that is no reason for destroying or for
the complete control they give of the denaturing the oil; and anyone who
invention covered are the cornerstones suggested that as the remedy would
of hundreds of small enterprises in risk a trip to a clinic for mental ob-
this country which are now free and servation.
thriving but which could not continue Experience shows that patents, like
without the protection represented by oil, contribute to the public welfare.
the patents. If anyone doubts this, Let them remain as they are and con-
let him consult the testimony of the tinue their good work of promoting
witnesses before the Congressional science and the useful arts. If owners
Committee in 1938 where a bill for of patents use them as the basis of
compulsory licensing was being con- agreements or combinations to get
sidered (O'Malley Committee hearing control of things which the patents
on H. R. 9259 et al., March, 1938). themselves do not cover, the remedy
To propose the destruction of use- is not to destroy the patent right but
ful property merely because it might to enforce the anti-trust laws.

I
FOR THE RECORD

v^
"THE BELL TELEPHONE SYSTEM

A Book Review
"The Bell Telephone System," by not talking about stage management —
Arthur W. Page, vice president of the am talking about character," Mr. Page
A. T. and T. Company in charge of the remarks during his discussion of politeness
Information Department, is the first book and reasonableness as factors in good
of its kind. until now has there been
Not service. The reader will feel strongly that
a volume which the average reader
to he is likewise talking about character
could turn for a concise account of the when he discusses telephone rates, prog-
policies, organization, and performance of ress through research, wages and working
the Bell System in recent years, together conditions, and Bell System corporate re-
with a reasoned estimate of what condi- lationships. In reviewing the reasonable-

tions are most likely to help or hinder the ness of telephone rates, he points out that
job of rendering telephone service in the had investors received one half of one
future. per cent less on their investment in the
Mr. Page's method is first to show the years 1925-1940, the business would have
System's character by stating the facts incurred serious risk and danger while the
which reveal it. On the basis of this saving to telephone users would have been
demonstrated character, he asks that the less than two cents on the dollar. This
telephone companies be permitted to re- saving to the consumer might well have
tain the freedom to go forward and do a meant the between good and
difference
constantly improving job. "Progress in inadequate service —
it might even have
or
the art, improvement in management and cost the consumer far more, ultimately,
methods, preparedness for the future and by jeopardizing the improved plant and
liberty to act quickly and effectively and methods from which future savings come.
with undivided responsibility," he says, In short, only adequate earnings can give
''are the positive factors from which the the System and the service the character
public may expect real benefits." Regu- they need.
lation by public authority is desirable and The fundamental policy of the Bell
necessary so that management liberty to System, as stated by Mr. Gifford at Dal-
act will never be abused. But the taking las in 1927, is quoted at length. Mr.
over of management under the name of Page shows how the words of the policy
regulation is another matter. Under such have been sustained by deeds, and he
circumstances, management initiative and forcibly suggests that this will continue if
responsibility will decline,and operating management is given the requisite free-

and service paralysis will be on the way. dom to act. If there has been doubt any-
It is impossible to read this book with- where that the policy means what it says
out obtaining a fresh realization that Bell — to furnish the best possible telephone
System character is not just something to service at the least cost consistent with
talk about, but is something real. "I am financial safety — this book ought to dispel
it. The reader can look forward to a dom suggestions for rate reductions, he
heartening demonstration that the Bell points out that no rate reduction by itself
System not only sets its sights high, but can produce improvement or economy in
is intent on hitting the mark. telephone service; the vital thing is the
Although Mr. Page is concerned from improved technique that produces the
start to finish with the moralities of his saving that makes the reduction possible.
subject — with
the principles and philoso- Such appraisals rest on faith in human
phy of the —
System it would be wrong to nature, which Mr. Page has. His book
imply that this makes for heavy reading. is not for cynics. It is a book for people
The author is a plain-speaking man with who will believe what it is reasonable to
an extraordinary gift for getting directly believe, who will think well of that which
to the point. His language is simple and deserves to be held in esteem, who have
his word-pictures often have a homely faith that real progress can be made and
—
charm as, for example, when speaking who are willing to share the responsibility
of the need for a balance of routine and for making it.
initiative in telephone operations, he re- "The Bell Telephone System" was pub-
marks that "The bull in the china shop lished by Harper & Brothers on Octo-
was full of initiative." In discussing ran- ber 1.
v5>^
NEW DEFENSE POST FOR W. H. HARRISON

William H. Harrison, who has been in January, 1941, Mr. Harrison became
on leave of absence as vice president and chief of shipbuilding, construction, and
chief engineer of the A. T. and T. Com- supplies in the production division of the
pany since July, 1940, was appointed new organization. In his new post, Mr.
director of the production division of the
Harrison directs all activities of the 0PM
Office of Production Management on Au-
production division, one of the six divi-
gust 29. This is the third important de-
fense post in which Mr. Harrison has
sions through which the 0PM now func-
served since he went on leave of absence.

tions. The other five are civilian alloca-
At that time he was appointed director tions, headed by Leon Henderson; labor,
of construction in the production division Sidney Hillman; materials, William L.
of the National Defense Advisory Com- Batt; priorities, Donald M. Nelson; and
mission. When the 0PM was organized purchases, Douglas L. MacKeachie.
'-O^
L. G. WOODFORD APPOINTED CHIEF ENGINEER

L. G. Woodford was appointed chief Woodford began his telephone career in
engineer of the A. T. and T. Company on Des Moines in 1911. After experience in
September Mr. Woodford has been
10. the commercial and plant engineering de-
assistant vice president of the company partment of the Iowa Telephone Com-
since July, 1940, and has been in charge pany, he was appointed appraisal engineer
of the Department of Operation and Engi- of the Northwestern Bell Telephone Com-
neering during Mr. W. H. Harrison's ab- pany, with headquarters at Omaha, Ne-
sence in Washington. Pending the latter's braska, in 1915. From 1921 to 1923 he
return, Mr. Woodford will continue to re- was engineer of costs and practices for
port to Vice President C. P. Cooper. ]Mr. the Northwestern Company. In the latter
253
year he joined the department of opera- 1927, plant extension engineer in 1933,
tion and engineering of the A. T. and T. operating results engineer in 1937. plant
Company at New York. Here he became operation engineer in 1939, and in 1940
plant inventory and costs engineer in was appointed assistant vice president.
''0--
NEW RECORDS SET IN SEPTEMBER

September of 1941
established new This level has been reached through
records for the number of telephones the increase in transpacific and Pan
installed, the number of telephones in American communications, despite the de-
service, and the use of overseas radio cline in European traffic because of war
telephone service. conditions. Telephone calls to important
There was a gain of about 142,400 outposts of this country in Panama,
telephones in service in the principal Puerto Rico, and Hawaii also contributed
telephone subsidiaries of the American to the record-breaking rise. Since the out-
Telephone and Telegraph Company in- break of war, traffic with Puerto Rico has
cluded in the Bell System during the doubled, with Hawaii has increased four-
month. This was the largest increase fold, and with Panama six-fold.
for any month in the history of the Bell Overseas service is now available with
System. The largest previous gain for a 47 countries, of which 28 are reached by
single month was 129,200, recorded in direct circuits. Although European traf-
January, 1941. The net gain for nine fic is only about 50 per cent of its pre-
"months of this year totals 1,007,900,
war volume, direct transatlantic circuits
which is greater than the entire 1940 gain
are maintained to London, Berne, Berlin,
of 950,000, the largest increase for any
Rome, Madrid, and Lisbon.
year up to now.
To meet the unprecedented increases in
The gain for August of this year was
overseas traffic the A. T. and T. Company
110,400, and for September, 1940, was
has been speeding up measures to improve
109,200. The net gain for nine months
and augment the world network of radio
in 1940 was 646,900. At the end of Sep-
telephone radiating from the
facilities
tember this year there were about 18,489,-
United States. During the last two years,
300 telephones in the Bell System.
additional facilities have been provided to
Overseas telephone traffic for the month
of September soared to its highest level
Argentina, Brazil, Panama, Netherlands
The calls Indies, and the Philippines. Within the
in the history of the service.
handled over the radio telephone facilities next few months, additional facilities also
of the Bell System during the month will be provided with Puerto Rico and
showed an 85 per cent increase over Hawaii, as well as another circuit to
September of 1940. Brazil.
v5>^
INDEX TO VOLUME XX AVAILABLE

An Index to Volume (1941) of theXX Department of the American Telephone
Bell Telephone Magazine may be and Telegraph Company, 195 Broadway,
obtained upon request to the Information New York, N. Y.
254
After four years as a field and labora- cago. A year later he was made division
tory entomologist with the U. S. Depart- plant engineer in Atlanta, and in 1922
ment of Agriculture while also attending was transferred to Philadelphia in the
Washington University for three years, same capacity. He was made Engineer
Hervey Roberts went into newspaper of Transmission in New York in 1924,
work in 1925 as a reporter on the St. and in 1928 was appointed to the post of
Louis Post-Dispatch. In 1927 he became Plant Extension Engineer. For the next
editor of The Lumber Manujacturer and twelve years he was responsible for stud-
Dealer, a lumber trade journal published ies and plans for extending Long Lines
in St. Louis, and The Chicago Lumber- plant facilities, and it was during this
man, a Chicago affiliate, spending alter- period that plans for the transcontinental
nate two-week periods in those two cities. cable matured. The preparation of much
The following year he joined the South- of the background data and the engineer-
western Telephone Company as a
Bell ing studies touched on in the article of
copy writer the Eastern Missouri-Ar-
in which he is the author came under his
kansas area advertising department, and personal direction. In February of this
in 1929 was transferred to the company's year he was made Engineer of the Long
general advertising department. He be- Lines Department.
came advertising assistant in 1935, copy
supervisor in 1938, and in 1939 was made Starting his Bell System career in 1903
editor of the company's employee maga- in the accounting department of the New
zine. The Southwestern Telephone News. York Telephone Company, James F.
In this capacity he has recently spent Behan transferred to the A. T. and T.
much time in the field covering defense Company in 1912 as an accountant, and
activities in the Southwestern Bell terri- in 1919 became Chief Accountant. A
His in-
tory such as his article describes. year later he was appointed Assistant
terest in photography is an asset to his Comptroller, and in 1933 was elected
editorial duties, and some of the accom- Treasurer. Always important in the
panying photographs are from his camera. work of the Treasury Department are the
—
day-to-day contacts by mail, by tele-
After attending Washington Univer- —
phone, and in person with that sizable
sity, St. Louis, Mo., Horace H. Nance section of the public which includes A. T.
joined the St. Louis staff of the Long & T. security holders. During times of
Lines Department of the A. T. and T. special activity, such as the recent con-
Company in 1910 as an equipment at- vertible bond issue Mr. Behan describes,
tendant. In 1916 he went to Denver as these contacts greatly multiply.
district plant chief, and two years later
was transferred to Washington, D. C. Returning to Harvard University in
After absence in military service, he re- 1919 after serving American

with the
joined the Long Lines Department as a Red Cross during the World War, Gaius
technical employee in New York. In W. Merwin j-eceived his A.B. degree in
1919 he was appointed division superin- 1920 as of the class of 1918. In Novem-
tendent of equipment construction at Chi- ber following his graduation he joined the
Commercial Division
rate section of the that Oflice concerned with applications for
of the patents relating to tools, electrical appa-
Company, and continued in rate work ratus, and textiles. During the later
until 1925. when he transferred to the years there he was Solicitor for the Patent
operation results
section. After a year Office, representing it in numerous cases
and a he returned to the rate section
half, before the courts, and for a time was a
as a group head, first on toll rates and Special Assistant to the United States
later on exchange rates. In 1929 he at- District Attorney for the Southern Dis-
tended the Public Utility Course at the trict of New York in connection with
summer Graduate School of
session of the
litigation there relating to patent matters.
Business Administration of Harvard Uni-
He holds the degree of LL.B. from George
versity. He was made Staff Engineer in Washington University. He was admit-
Admin istration-M Department in 1936, ted to the Bar of the United States Su-
where he handles patent licensing activi-
preme Court in 1911, and is also a mem-
ties and keeps in touch with new services
ber of the New York State Bar and the
—such as the ship telephone service he
Bars of several of the federal district
describes. He contributed "The Tele-
courts of the country. He joined the A.
phone Goes Down to the Sea in Ships" to
T. and T. Company in 1917 as patent at-
the July, 1938, issue of the Bell Tele-
torney, and has taken an active part in
phone Quarterly.
most of the patent litigation involving the
Experience with patent matters began company since that time. In 1937 Mr.
for William R. Ballard with his ap- Ballard was made General Patent At-
pointment as assistant examiner in the torney for the American Telephone and
United States Patent Office in 1904. He Telegraph Company, the position he now
served at different times in divisions of holds.
256
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This Volume is for

REFERENCE USE ONLY

San Francisco, California

VOLUME XX, 1941

The Bell System and National Defense, by /. S. Bradley 3

Engines for Defense, by F. K. Rowe 73

Western Electric: Telephone Arsenal, by Alvin von Auw 117

1073054 „/,y 2 1 190

Cable, Engineering the Transcontinental Telephone, by H. H. Nance 207

Defense, Engines for, by F. K. Rowe 73

Defense, The System and National, by J. S. Bradley

Edison Medal, George A. Campbell Receives the. Note on 109

Fick, Knud: Telephone Statistics of the World, January 1, 1940 162

Annual Meeting of Stockholders on April 16, 1941 109

Harrison, W. H., New Defense Post for. Note on 252

Independent Telephone Companies, by H. M. Pope 87

Jones, R. L.: Evolution by Design 136

Making Telephone Directories Better, by O. M. Hancock 38

Nance, H. H.: Engineering the Transcontinental Telephone Cable 207

BELL TELEPHONE MAGAZINE INDEX, VOLUME XX

Operating Telephone Company's Part in National Defense, An, by Hcrvcy Rob-

Quarterly Becomes the Magazine, The, Note on 68

Ship-to-Shore—The Telephone Afloat, by G. W. Merwin 234

von Auw, Alvin: Western Electric: Telephone Arsenal 117

Western Electric: Telephone Arsenal, by Alvin von Auw 117

VOL. XX FEBRUARY, 1941

THE BELL SYSTEM AND NATIONAL DEFENSE

PIONEERING IN RADIO TELEPHONY

MAKING TELEPHONE DIRECTORIES BETTER

HOW OUR POPULATION IS CHANGING

THE CONQUEST OF A CONTINENT

American Telephone & Telegraph Co. • New York

A Medium of Suggestion and a Record of Progress

VOL. XX FEBRUARY, 1941 no. i

Pioneering in Radio Telephony 21

]\Iaking Telephone Directories Better 0. M. Hancock 38

How Our Population Is Changing R. L. Tomhlen 17

The Conquest of a Continent: Conclusion R. T. Barrett 57

For the Record 68

Contributors to This Issue 69

Published by the Information Department of the

THE BELL SYSTEM AND NATIONAL DEFENSE

Services and Equipment So Vital to the Defense Program

pacity, skilled and loyal men and

the System and all branches of the

Service to the Many Camps

has been reached to construct a new

commercial officials, Western Elec- training of thousands of men are be-

broken, this new central oJ)ice was ready lo

JMeanwhile, the picture takes on some piece of apparatus for Govern-

Research and Manufacture

Helping Train Signal Corps

CAMOUFLAGED BATTALION COMMAND TELEPHONE POST

19^ i The Bell System and National Defense 11

NEW SWITCHBOARD FUR THE NAVY

wire facilities are used to interconnect

lines has been planned not only to

The purpose, of course, has been to

THE FIRE ROOM WATCH AT SEA

facilities into southwest, where

Army on a large scale, par-

with the purposes of the precautionary