SLOT TELEPHONES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 10684, 3 February 1913, Page 4

SLOT TELEPHONES.

* —_— TELEPHONE EXTENSION V ESTIMATES. STATEMENT BY THE POST-MASTER-GENERAL . The Hon R, Heaton Rhodes, Post-master-General, on his return from the south on Saturday was seen by a reporter, and the Minister's attention was drawn to remarks made by Mr H. G. Ell, .M.P., regarding the statement made by Mr Rhodes to the Spreydon deputation which asked for a slot telephone for that district. Mr Ell criticised the Minister's statements that more slot telephones would be erected if funds were available and that the departmental estimates were drawn up by the present Government's predecessors in office and. that there were not sufficient funds to supply all needs in the matter of providing slot telephones. Mr-Rhodes said that in the references he made in the course of his reply to the deputation he did not intend to reflect in any way upon the estimatesprepared by Mr Ell, for no one could have forseen tfie increased demand for telephone extensions which arose during the first three months of the present Ministry's term of office. In that period telephone subscribers increased j by 100 per cent. As he (the Minister) j stated en a previous occasion, this in- < crease was partly due to the reduction' I of telephone rates provided for by tho party wire system. The result was that the canital expenditure, which is mad© from the Public "Works Fund (vote, telegraph extension), increased considerably beyond the amount estimated, tuid while this increase left the Administration with very jostricted funds at its disposal, on the-other'hand it tended to considerably increase the revenue from what is regarded as a paying business. Though the net result was an eminently satisfactory one, the amount available out of the Public Works Fund vote for telegraph extension was less than otherwise would i have been the case, and it is for this j reason that the issue of slot machines . has had to be somewhat restricted in the meantime. ~ ■ As to Mr Ell's remark that the Minister was "quite unjustified in refusing the Spreydon deputation's request." , Mr Rhodes 'said -that he desired to point out that it was not only the Spreydon request that he had to con- I sider. There were requests for a very I large number, not only from the four j centres, but from the smaller towns.