THE TELEPHONE SERVICE.

Auckland Star, Volume XVIII, Issue 149, 27 June 1887, Page 4

THE TELEPHONE SERVICE.

The records of the Telegraph Department show that New Zealand is far in advance of the other Australasian Colonies as regards that convenience of modern business—the telephone. There are in the colony at the present time 2,058 telephones,' as against 1,016 in Victoria, about 200 in New South Wales, and a small number in Queensland and South Australia. Our rates of subscription are lower than those of any other country in ■ the world, save Switzerland, where the subscription is £8 for the first year, as against in New Zealand, while in other countries the charges range from £16 to ;£25 per year. The total capital cost of plant and instruments in the colony is and the net profit of the exchanges during the last financial year, after deducing working expenses and allowance for depreciation, was about The profits in Auckland alone amounted to ;£1,500 for the year. These facts simplyfurnish another demonstration of the advantages of cheapness, and the Government should now consider whether they cannot make further concessions to customers, more especially with a view of increasing the number af attachments to private residences. The lesson of this telephone experience should also be taken to heart by other than the Postal and Telegraph Departments. The Eailway Department ought to weigh it well. Here we have a clear case of low rates commanding custom. The i same results have attended the improvement of the system of "delayed" telegrams. ■ If- New i Zealand has set the world an example of th>e triumphs of cheapness with regard to* telephones, may she not likewise do £o in the management of railways and £ther branches of the public service 1