The Star THURSDAY, JULY 12, 1923. THE TELEPHONE.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 12 July 1923, Page 4

The Star

THURSDAY, JULY 12, 1923. THE TELEPHONE.

Delivered every evening by 5 o'clock in Hawera, Manaia, Nonnanby, Okaiawa, Eltham, Mangatoki, Kaponga, Awatuna, Opunake, Otakeho, Manutahi, Alton, Hurleyville, Pabea, Waverley, Mokola, Wbakamara, Ohangai, Meremere, Fraser Road, and Ararata,

« Of all the conveniences which the people of these modern times enjoy, th-d telephone ranks as one of the greatest, and from what can be learnt of the systems in other countries we believe that New Zealand has one of the finest telephone services in the world. The attention which the Department has paid to the telephone during the last twenty years has enabled the Dominion to secure an excellent service. The impatient subscriber may at times complain, but were he to see the boards in an exchange at certain hours of the day and see how there may be many calls made within a few seconds, he would understand why it is that even the most efficient operators cannot always avoid delays. Subscribers in New Zealand are never subjected to lengthy delay, and one recalls using the telephone in Australia and having to wait nearly half an hour before securing a desired communication. The staffs in the New Zealand exchanges are efficient and there exists among them the spirit that they are important factors in a very necessary service. They take a pride in the work and try to meet the wants of the users of the telephone in every possible way. The ease with which one can carry on conversation over long distances is proof of the care with which the lines are erected and the connections made, and the telephone service is one of which there is reason to be proud. The service has not been paying its way, and the Postmaster-General thinks that such a gTeat public convenience should at least be self-support-ing and not dependent upon the postal branch, and it is to this end that it has been decided to recast the scale of charges to subscribers. In a statement containing the schedule of rates for telephone connections within, basa ! Fate areas, single office exchanges (of { less tha.u 1000 subscript.;) with continuous attendance come under class 3, in which the annual rates are set down at: Individual line, business £10, residence £7; two-party, business £7, residence £5 10s; four-party, business £6, residence £4 10s. The Minister, in outlining the system, says: "The new system of telephone rating consists of denning an area (known as the baserate area) for each city or town at which an exchange is in existence, and fixing a schedule of rates at which subscribers within such area may be- provided with telephone service irrespective of the location of the subscribers within the area. The essential features of the change are that the telephone service, which has hitherto : been furnished principally on the basis of the subscriber's distance from the) exchange, will in future be furnished on a flat-rate basis to all subscribers within the base-rate- area, with provision for charging, as far as practicable, on & quantitative basis, by fixing a scale of rates for each class of service. This new system is the outcome of a study of the rating systems of the foremost telephone administrations abroad, and is a combination of the Ameiean flat-rate and the English message-rat© systems,, so arranged as tol meet the special conditions peouliar to New Zealand." The statement sets out in detail the various regulations' which the new system entails, and though there are bound to be some' cases in which the Minister will be criticised', we think that a praiseworthy effort is being made to put the telephone branch of the service on a sound financial footing. It is very difficult" to rearrange or change a system that has been in use for a. long time, and it would be practically impossible to devise a scheme that would not be open to criticism. We cannot foresee the full effects of the change which the I Minister is making, but we believe that ■ it is being undertaken with the desire '• ito improve the position by calling upon! those who derive the greatest benefit! from the telephone to pay a little more ! so that the financial side of the service) Tr.ay be made more satisfactory. Opin j ion throughout the Dominion is divided ' uj'on the scale of charges, some people ! regarding the^new rates as justified * others saying that they think that' there should be no increase. It is a I matter of individual opinion, but \t\ must be conceded 'that .the Minister s I <?«ei«ions have been made after very careful thought, with the assistance' of his expert officers, and with the desire' to handle the Department on business-' like lines. We do not think that those subscribers who will be called" upon ten

pay a little more for the use of the mod- : era service which the country has bm:t I up will find the new charges so burden- I t-cme that they will decide to cease be- t | ing subscribers, and we presume that the j working of the new system will be fol- t lowed very carefully by the Minister f and that, if it is found that it contains t anomalies or places an unfair burden c 1 upon certain subscribers, he will make a j necessary readjustments. Ia