TELEPHONE MYS ERY.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIX, Issue 283, 30 November 1915, Page 7

TELEPHONE MYS ERY.

PEN CAUSES SHORT-CIRCUIT

A telephone mystery that, for two months, had baffled *tho telegraph engineer's staff has been, solved m Auckland (reports the Herald). Some time ago a merchant in the city comElained .of the peculiar behavior of is telephone. It worked quite satisfactorily while he was in his office, he said> but as soon as he went out all communication with the exchange generally ceased. He said that when he left his office" he generally switched the wire across to the clerk s room, and the switch was carefully examined—but it was. found thatalmost always, in the owner's absence, neither of the two telephones would work. Daring two months telephone linesmen and engineers paid between 20 and -30 visits to-this, office, and overhauled the instruments and wires, but still the extraordinary -behavior of the telephone continued. Then, one day recently Mr M. j.vl. Bairdf, chief telegraph engineer, was passing, and ho called and asked the merchant if there was any improve-, ment. "None whatever," was the repiv. "What do you do when you leave the office ?" asked Mr Ba>rd. "Just, push the -switch, over and go / away," said the merchant. Mr Band asked him to leave thevoffice in the ordinary way, and the merchant got up pushed over the switch—and laid his metal pen across the brass terminals' or screw-knobs, on the top of the telephone. The mystery was solved The merchant, a careful, methodical man, always laid his pen clown in-the'same place, and Mr Baird explained that it had always • shortcircuited., the • installation,, and cut off communication with the exchange. "But," the merchant protested, "I have been putting my pen in the same place for* years." Inquiry/however, showed, that for years he had used a porcupine quill, which will not conduct electricity, but that, two months before he had adopted a metal penholder, with the interesting result described.