the history of the telephone-第20部分

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ail's　Folly。〃　But　Engineer　Carty；　by　a　happy　thought；　DOUBLED　THE　WIRE；　and　thus　in　a　moment　established　two　new　factors　in　the　telephone　businessthe　Metallic　Circuit　and　the　Long　Distance　line。

At　once　the　Bell　Company　came　over　to　Vail's　point　of　view；　bought　his　new　line；　and　launched　out　upon　what　seemed　to　be　the　foolhardy　enterprise　of　stringing　a　double　wire　from　Boston　to　New　York。　This　was　to　be　not　only　the　longest　of　all　telephone　lines；　strung　on　ten　thousand　poles；　it　was　to　be　a　line　de　luxe；　built　of　glistening　red　copper；　not　iron。　Its　cost　was　to　be　seventy　thousand　dollars；　which　was　an　enormous　sum　in　those　hardscrabble　days。　There　was　much　opposition　to　such　extravagance；　and　much　ridicule。　〃I　would　n't　take　that　line　as　a　gift；〃　said　one　of　the　Bell　Company's　officials。

But　when　the　last　coil　of　wire　was　stretched　into　place；　and　the　first　〃Hello〃　leaped　from　Boston　to　New　York；　the　new　line　was　a　victorious　success。　It　carried　messages　from　the　first　day；　and　more；　it　raised　the　whole　telephone　business　to　a　higher　level。　It　swept　away　the　prejudice　that　telephone　service　could　become　nothing　more　than　a　neighborhood　affair。　〃It　was　the　salvation　of　the　business；〃　said　Edward　J。　Hill。　It　marked　a　turning…point　in　the　history　of　the　telephone；　when　the　day　of　small　things　was　ended　and　the　day　of　great　things　was　begun。　No　one　man；　no　hundred　men；　had　created　it。　It　was　the　final　result　of　ten　years　of　invention　and　improvement。

While　this　epoch…making　line　was　being　strung；　Vail　was　pushing　his　〃grand　telephonic　system〃　policy　by　organizing　The　American　Telephone　and　Telegraph　Company。　This；　too；　was　a　master…stroke。　It　was　the　introduction　of　the　staff…and…line　method　of　organization　into　business。　It　was　doing　for　the　forty　or　fifty　Bell　Companies　what　Von　Moltke　did　for　the　German　army　prior　to　the　Franco…Prussian　War。　It　was　the　creation　of　a　central　company　that　should　link　all　local　companies　together；　and　itself　own　and　operate　the　means　by　which　these　companies　are　united。　This　central　company

was　to　grapple　with　all　national　problems；　to　own　all　telephones　and　long…distance　lines；　to　protect　all　patents；　and　to　be　the　headquarters　of　invention；　information；　capital；　and　legal　protection　for　the　entire　federation　of　Bell　Companies。

Seldom　has　a　company　been　started　with　so　small　a　capital　and　so　vast　a　purpose。　It　had　no　more　than　100；000　of　capital　stock；　in　1885；　but　its　declared　object　was　nothing　less　than　to　establish　a　system　of　wire　communication　for　the　human　race。　Here　are；　in　its　own　words；　the　marching　orders　of　this　Company：　〃To　connect　one　or　more　points　in　each　and　every　city；　town；　or　place　an　the　State　of　New　York；　with　one　or　more　points　in　each　and　every　other　city；　town；　or　place　in　said　State；　and　in　each　and　every　other　of　the　United　States；　and　in　Canada；　and　Mexico；　and　each　and　every　of　said　cities；　towns；　and　places　is　to　be　connected　with　each　and　every　other　city；　town；　or　place　in　said　States　and　countries；　and　also　by　cable　and　other　appropriate　means　with　the　rest　of　the　known　world。〃

So　ran　Vail's　dream；　and　for　nine　years　he　worked　mightily　to　make　it　come　true。　He　remained　until　the　various　parts　of　the　business　had　grown　together；　and　until　his　plan　for　a　〃grand　telephonic　system〃　was　under　way　and　fairly　well　understood。　Then　he　went　out；　into　a　series　of　picturesque　enterprises；　until　he　had　built　up　a　four…square　fortune；　and　recently；　in　1907；　he　came　back　to　be　the　head　of　the　telephone　business；　and　to　complete　the　work　of　organization　that　he　started　thirty　years　before。

When　Vail　said　auf　wiedersehen　to　the　telephone　business；　it　had　passed　from　infancy　to　childhood。　It　was　well　shaped　but　not　fully　grown。　Its　pioneering　days　were　over。　It　was　self…supporting　and　had　a　little　money　in　the　bank。　But　it　could　not　then　have　carried　the　load　of　traffic　that　it　carries　to…day。　It　had　still　too　many　problems　to　solve　and　too　much　general　inertia　to　overcome。　It　needed　to　be　conserved；　drilled；　educated；　popularized。　And　the　man　who　was　finally　chosen　to　replace　Vail　was　in　many　respects　the　appropriate　leader　for　such　a　preparatory　period。

HudsonJohn　Elbridge　Hudsonwas　the　name　of　the　new　head　of　the　telephone　people。　He　was　a　man　of　middle　age；　born　in　Lynn　and　bred　in　Boston；　a　long…pedigreed　New　Englander；　whose　ancestors　had　smelted　iron　ore　in　Lynn　when　Charles　the　First　was　King。　He　was　a　lawyer　by　profession　and　a　university　professor　by　temperament。　His　specialty；　as　a　man　of　affairs；　had　been　marine　law；　and　his　hobby　was　the　collection　of　rare　books　and　old　English　engravings。　He　was　a　master　of　the　Greek　language；　and　very　fond　of　using　it。　On　all　possible　occasions　he　used　the　language　of　Pericles　in　his　conversation；　and　even　carried　this　preference　so　far　as　to　write　his　business　memoranda　in　Greek。　He　was　above　all　else　a　scholar；　then　a　lawyer；　and　somewhat　incidentally　the　central　figure　in　the　telephone　world。

But　it　was　of　tremendous　value　to　the　telephone　business　at　that　time　to　have　at　its　head　a　man　of　Hudson's　intellectual　and　moral　calibre。

He　gave　it　tone　and　prestige。　He　built　up　its　credit。　He　kept　it　clean　and　clear　above　all　suspicion　of　wrong…doing。　He　held　fast　whatever　had　been　gained。　And　he　prepared　the　way　for　the　period　of　expansion　by　borrowing　fifty　millions　for　improvements；　and　by　adding　greatly　to　the　strength　and　influence　of　the　American　Telephone　and　Telegraph　Company。

Hudson　remained　at　the　head　of　the　telephone　table　until　his　death；　in　1900；　and　thus　lived　to　see　the　dawn　of　the　era　of　big　business。　Under　his　regime　great　things　were　done　in　the　development　of　the　art。　The　business　was　pushed　ahead　at　every　point　by　its　captains。　Every　man　in　his　place；　trying　to　give　a　little　better　service　than　yesterdaythat　was　the　keynote　of　the　Hudson　period。　There　was　no　one　preeminent　genius。　Each　important　step　forward　was　the　result　of　the　cooperation　of　many　minds；　and　the　prodding　necessities　of　a　growing　traffic。

By　1896；　when　the　Common　Battery　system　created　a　new　era；　the　telephone　engineer　had　pretty　well　mastered　his　simpler　troubles。　He　was　able　to　handle　his　wires；　no　matter　how　many。　By　this　time；　too；　the　public　was　ready　for　the　telephone。　A　new　generation　had　grown　up；　without　the　prejudices　of　its　fathers。　People　had　grown　away　from　the　telegraphic　habit　of　thought；　which　was　that　wire　communications　were　expensive　luxuries　for　the　few。　The　telephone　was；　in　fact；　a　new　social　nerve；　so　new　and　so　novel　that　very　nearly　twenty　years　went　by　before　it　had　fully　grown　into　place；　and　before　the　social　body　developed　the　instinct　of　using　it。

Not　that　the　difficulties　of　the　telephone　engineers　were　over；　for　they　were　not。　They　have　seemed　to　grow　more　numerous　and　complex　every　year。　But　by　1896　enough　had　been　done　to　warrant　a　forward　movement。　For　the　next　ten…year　period　the　keynote　of　telephone　history　was　EXPANSION。　Under　the　prevailing　flat…rate　plan　of　payment；　all　customers　paid　the　same　yearly　price　and　then　used　their　telephones　as　often　as　they　pleased。　This　was　a　simple　method；　and　the　most　satisfactory　for　small　towns　and　farming　regions。　But　in　a　great　city　such　a　plan　grew　to　be　suicidal。　In　New　York；　for　instance；　the　price　had　to　be　raised　to　240；　which　lifted　the　telephone　as　high　above　the　mass　of　the　citizens　as　though　it　were　a　piano　or　a　diamond　sunburst。　Such　a　plan　was　strangling　the　business。　It　was　shutting　out　the　small　users。　It　was　clogging　the　wires　with　deadhead　calls。　It　was　giving　some　people　too　little　service　and　others　too　much。　It　was　a　very　unsatisfactory　situation。

How　to　extend　the　service　and　at　the　same　time　cheapen　it　to　small　usersthat　was　the　Gordian　knot；　and　the　man　who　unquestionably　did　most　to　untie　it　was　Edward　J。　Hall。　Mr。　Hall　founded　the　telephone　business　in　Buffalo　in　1878；　and　seven　years　afterwards　became　the　chief　of　the　long…distance　traffic。　He　was　then；　and　is　to…day；　one　of　the　statesmen　of　the　telephone。　For　more　than　thirty　years　he　has　been　the　〃candid　friend〃　of　the　business；　incessantly　suggesting；　probing；　and　criticising。　Keen　and　dispassionate；　with　a　genius　for　mercilessly　cutting　to　the　marrow　of　a　proposition；　Hall　has　at　the　same　time　been　a　zealot　for　the　improvement　and　extension　of　telephone　service。　It　was　he　who　set　the　agents　free　from　the　ball…and…　chain　of　royalties；　allowing　them　to　pay　instead　a　percentage　of　gross　receipts。　And　it　was　he　who　〃broke　the　jam；〃　as　a　lumberman　would　say；　by　suggesting　the　MESSAGE　RATE　system。

By　this　plan；　which　U。　N。　Bethell　developed　to　its　highest　point　in　New　York；　a　user　of　the　telephone　pays　a　fixed　minimum　price　for　a　certain　number　of　messages　per　year；　and　extra　for　all　messages　over　this　number。　The　large　user　pays　more；　and　the　little　user　pays　less。　It　opened　up　the　way　to　such　an　expansion　of　telephone　business　as　Bell；　in　his　rosiest　dreams；　had　never　imagined。　In　three　years；　after　1896；　there　were　twice　as　many　users；　in　six　years　there　were　four　times　as　many；　in　ten　years　there　were　eight　to　one。　What　with　the　message　rate　and　the　pay　station；　the　telephone　was　now　on　its　way　to　be　universal。　It　was　adapted　to　all　kinds　and　conditions　of　men