the history of the telephone-第22章

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3。　Expansion。　1896　to　1906。　This　was　the　era　of　big　business。　It　was　an　autumn　period；　in　which　the　telephone　men　and　the　public　began　to　reap　the　fruits　of　twenty　years　of　investment　and　hard　work。　It　was　the　period　of　the　message　rate；　the　pay　station；　the　farm　line；　and　the　private　branch　exchange。

4。　Organization。　1906。　With　the　success　of　the　Pupin　coil；　there　came　a　larger　life　for　the　telephone。　It　became　less　local　and　more　national。　It　began　to　link　together　its　scattered　parts。　It　discouraged　the　waste　and　anarchy　of　duplication。　It　taught　its　older；　but　smaller　brother；　the　telegraph；　to　cooperate。　It　put　itself　more　closely　in　touch　with　the　will　of　the　public。　And　it　is　now　pushing　ahead；　along　the　two　roads　of　standardization　and　efficiency；　toward　its　ideal　of　one　universal　telephone　system　for　the　whole　nation。　The　key…word　of　the　telephone　development　of　to…day　is　this　organization。



CHAPTER　V

THE　EXPANSION　OF　THE　BUSINESS

The　telephone　business　did　not　really　begin　to　grow　big　and　overspread　the　earth　until　1896；　but　the　keynote　of　expansion　was　first　sounded　by　Theodore　Vail　in　the　earliest　days；　when　as　yet　the　telephone　was　a　babe　in　arms。　In　1879　Vail　said；　in　a　letter　written　to　one　of　his　captains：

〃Tell　our　agents　that　we　have　a　proposition　on　foot　to　connect　the　different　cities　for　the　purpose　of　personal　communication；　and　in　other　ways　to　organize　a　GRAND　TELEPHONIC　SYSTEM。〃

This　was　brave　talk　at　that　time；　when　there　were　not　in　the　whole　world　as　many　telephones　as　there　are　to…day　in　Cincinnati。　It　was　brave　talk　in　those　days　of　iron　wire；　peg　switchboards；　and　noisy　diaphragms。　Most　telephone　men　regarded　it　as　nothing　more　than　talk。　They　did　not　see　any　business　future　for　the　telephone　ex…　cept　in　short…distance　service。　But　Vail　was　in　earnest。　His　previous　experience　as　the　head　of　the　railway　mail　service　had　lifted　him　up　to　a　higher　point　of　view。　He　knew　the　need　of　a　national　system　of　communication　that　would　be　quicker　and　more　direct　than　either　the　telegraph　or　the　post　office。

〃I　saw　that　if　the　telephone　could　talk　one　mile　to…day；〃　he　said；　〃it　would　be　talking　a　hundred　miles　to…morrow。〃　And　he　persisted；　in　spite　of　a　considerable　deal　of　ridicule；　in　maintaining　that　the　telephone　was　destined　to　connect　cities　and　nations　as　well　as　individuals。

Four　months　after　he　had　prophesied　the　〃grand　telephonic　system；〃　he　encouraged　Charles　J。　Glidden；　of　world…tour　fame；　to　build　a　telephone　line　between　Boston　and　Lowell。　This　was　the　first　inter…city　line。　It　was　well　placed；　as　the　owners　of　the　Lowell　mills　lived　in　Boston；　and　it　made　a　small　profit　from　the　start。　This　success　cheered　Vail　on　to　a　master…　effort。　He　resolved　to　build　a　line　from　Boston　to　Providence；　and　was　so　stubbornly　bent　upon　doing　this　that　when　the　Bell　Company　refused　to　act；　he　picked　up　the　risk　and　set　off　with　it　alone。　He　organized　a　company　of　well…　known　Rhode　Islandersnicknamed　the　〃Governors'　Company〃and　built　the　line。　It　was　a　failure　at　first；　and　went　by　the　name　of　〃Vail'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　u