SLOT TELEPHONES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 10682, 31 January 1913, Page 1

SLOT TELEPHONES.

COST OF INSTALLATION. Mr li. G. Ell, M.P., ha* addressed the following letter to tho Hon R. H. Rhodes, tho Postmaster-Genera 1. in connection with tho cost of installing slot telephones:

Chri-itohuroli, January 30,1013 - -Hon H. 11. Rhodes, Postmaster-General, Wellington—Bear sir, —Acting on your verbal reply to my telegram asking for an opportunity of seeing the district telegraph engineer with respoct to the estimate as to cost and maintenance of a eoin-in-the-slot-te'ephone for corner of Fisher Street, Bockenham, I yesterday saw the engineer, who showed mo tho estimate, but he was unable to supply me with all the information 1 wanted. I may say that many items of the estimate surprised me. For instance, the telephone is charged up at £l2. One firm .here has offered to make them for £.B 10s. another firm for £7 10s, and both firms have informed me that if i given'a 1 'number to manufacture that tlie.y could bo ttirned out for even Jess. Tile two items that I would like information about are with regard 't'o the actual cost of the metallic circuit cable which is set down at £2O for the .first mile and £ls for the second mile. The ciigineer said he was not in the position to furnish me with the ..cost without the permission of the chief engineer. In the'capital outlay of £9l,' % for installing this one machine, the cabinet is at £2O, which is correct, and installing the gas lighting with clock at £B, which I think this is on the high side. Then there is line material I and labour £7 "10s. This seems reasonable. Annunciator and batteries £7 10s. Ido not know whether this is the actual cost or not, 60 cannot express any opinion. The sign writiu-r on 'the cabinet is set down at 255. "There is not very much writing, and this Geems to me high. I venture to say that a pi gn-writer could do the whole lot in half a day. With regard to the metallic circuit cable which, <is fiet down at £35, this is to me astonishing. : You are, no doubt, aware that the aerial pables contain from 52 pair to 100 pair and upward. From personal observation I know that 'there is an aerial cable on the poles down , Colombo Street. All the wires, of -course, may be taken tip, but, if not, then some are lying idle, and, therefore, not revenue producing. You may remember that I .suggested in a previous letter that it jfmight be as well to make inquiries as to whether there wero any ■ idle, wires j at the lower end''■ of ■ Colombo Street. I However, what I would like to know is whether these aerial cables actually cost*.£2o for the first mile, and £ls for the '-second, - because after all it is only [■one pair of - wires that is required. -If there are 52 pair in the cable, then £2oi«per mile. works out at .£IO4O per milo'-of a cable with 52 pairs of wires in it'. This .1 can hardly/credit. In the face of the estimates which wero put' before,mo during the time that I was in office there must have been a tromendous increase in tho .price of aerial cable. Speaking from'memory, and I think my memory serves mo correctly, the expenditure I, was asked to authorise in - connection with;, the .installation of a siot_ teleSeatouii and • Miniumr was' f£69. 1 think/you will fiii'd the 'docui,ment with -my initials approving''the• recommendation on the file for the-Mini-ma r and .Seatoun slot telephones, and Miramar is nearly seven miles out of Wellington from the Wellington- exchange. I would be very glad if you would ask the. Chief Engineer to supply me with the actual cost of tho cable required for the slot-telephone at Beckerihaia. If you remember, you laid on the table of the House last session a return,, on my motion, which gave the capital outlay for material and labour for installing all the slot telephones in New . Zealand as £1312. It is evident fr.om this that the. cable could not have been charged up at the rate of £2O for the first mile and £ls,for ; each cucceediiig mile. But it is in connection with the annual maintenance that I am more surprised and astonished. ' I find £4 is put down for the maintenance of the telephone, £1 for the cabinet, an,d yet G per cent is charged up as renewal fund on cost of telephone, cabinet, etc. This looks very much like loading. I venture to say that the last two items cannot be justified, viz., switching charges £3 10s (that is, of coiirse, switching on at the exchange board by the operator) and £3 14s 6d coin collecting and accounting. These two items alone amount to £7 4s 6d, within 6d of the amount of deficiency which your letter stated to me would, be the loss involved on the working of the machine. . . . lam aware, of course, that the money has to be collected, and- in collecting a taxicab is. engaged once a week, but this should only amount to a few shillings, as the 'phones are within easy distance of the centre. I think you will- agree with me that the estimate prepared in connection with this installation is decidedly on the high side. In conclusion, I would point out that tho slot telephones in Christchurch (there are only ten in number) are earning at the rate of over £SOO a year, and that notwithstanding the fact that tlie capital cost of-installing these telephones, arid at the exchange, is a little more than the. ordinary 'phone, tlioy are paying handsomely, besides providing a very great convenience not only to the people in the city, but in the suburban districts, where the residents are making great, use of them. The averago calls per week at • Aldington, Selwyn are between fifty and sixty, 1 and in .Sydenham over 100. The idea of placing these telephones out in the open occurred to me after observing the use made of those .which had boon •placed on the railway stations and in a few of the telegraph offices, and the venture has been amply justified, as is proved by the large amount of use made of them, and the fact that they have .not been damaged or interfered •with to any appreciable extent. My intention was to place them at inter-, vals throughout the suburban districts, in order that people who could not afford telephones to their private houses might be provided with the use of the telephone at a reasonable charge. Personal inquiries elicited the fact that very little use was being made of the bureau telephones in the suburban offices for communicating with people on the central exchange, one cause being that the 'phone was only available within certain hours, but the chief cause was because of the charge of 6d, which from inquiry I found most people objected to, as thev considered it too hi ah.— Yours faithfully, H. G. Ell. MR ELL AND THE POSTMASTERGENERAL. Mr H. G. Ell, M.P., sent the following telegram yesterday to tho Hon IT. H. Rhodes, Postmaster-General, in regard to the installation of slot telephones in Christchurch: "On November 2, you wrote to me stating that instructions had been given for the installation of a slot telephone on some premises in Christchurch. I asked the engineer this morning, and he replied that the telephone for that place had not arrived. Evidently the Department is not to meet public requirements. The dolay is not fair to the publi.-. and involves .i U)s'< of revenue; tv vhe J" '