A FREE TELEPHONE BUREAU.

Press, Volume LIV, Issue 9882, 12 November 1897, Page 3

A FREE TELEPHONE BUREAU.

(Br Tklegraph.)

(FROM OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT.)

WELLINGTON, November 10.

Mr Pirani spraDg a surprise upon the House to-night by stating that he was informed that a member of the House had a Telephone Bureau in his private house, which telephone was only used by himself. There were crie3 oi "Name," and someone remarked that it was the same member who had had a public road constructed to his residence. The Premier stated that the Bureau was in a scattered district. Mr Pirani asked if there was any revenue from this Bureau. The Premier said that as no charge was made for the use of the Bureau, there was consequently no revenue derived from it. Several members, representing country districts, protested strongly against such an arrangement in view of the oppressive conditions imposed by the Department in regard to the establishment of Telephone Bureaus in their localities. November 11. The revelation made in the House yesterday by Mr Pirani that a Telephone Bureau had been established in the private residence of a member of Parliament, and that no revenue was derived from it, as no charge was made for its use, has been the subject of much comment. The member in question is the Hon. W. Larnach, who it will be remembered was facetiously commiserated by the member for Palmerston on having had a public road made to hie house while he was away from home acting as the New Zealand Commissioner at the Brisbane Exhibition. The Bureau in question appears to have been in existence for two years, and to have been sanctioned by the Hon. J. G. Ward when Postmaster-General. The Opposition do not intend to let the matter rest where it is, seeing the difficulty all other country districts experience in obtaining telephone facilities, and the almost prohibitory conditions insisted upon by the Department before consenting to establish a Bureau. In this particular case these conditions do not seem to have been imposed, while the extraordinary arrangement has been made that those using the telephone should not be required to make any payment, an arrangement which would, no doubt, be greatly prized by settlers in other scattered districts.