the history of the telephone-第34章

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n　may　talk　to　a　professor。　In　this　case　the　Queen　is　Margherita　of　Italy　and　the　professor　is　Signor　Mosso；　the　astronomer；　who　studies　the　heavens　from　an　observatory　on　Monte　Rosa。　At　her　own　expense；　the　Queen　had　this　wire　strung　by　a　crew　of　linemen；　who　slipped　and　floundered　on　the　mountain　for　six　years　before　they　had　it　pegged　in　place。　The　general　situation　in　Italy　is　like　that　in　Great　Britain。　The　Government　has　always　monop…　olized　the　long…distance　lines；　and　is　now　about　to　buy　out　all　private　companies。　There　are　only　fifty…five　thousand　telephones　to　thirty…two　million　peopleas　many　as　in　Norway　and　less　than　in　Denmark。　And　in　many　of　the　southern　and　Sicilian　provinces　the　jingle　of　the　telephone　bell　is　still　an　unfamiliar　sound。

The　main　peculiarity　in　Holland　is　that　there　is　no　national　plan；　but　rather　a　patchwork；　that　resembles　Joseph's　coat　of　many　colors。　Each　city　engineer　has　designed　his　own　type　of　apparatus　and　had　it　made　to　order。　Also；　each　company　is　fenced　in　by　law　within　a　six…mile　circle；　so　that　Holland　is　dotted　with　thumb…nail　systems；　no　two　of　which　are　alike。　In　Belgium　there　has　been　a　government　system　since　1893；　hence　there　is　unity；　but　no　enterprise。　The　plant　is　old…fashioned　and　too　small。　Spain　has　private　companies；　which　give　fairly　good　service　to　twenty　thousand　people。　Roumania　has　half　as　many。　Portugal　has　two　small　companies　in　Lisbon　and　Oporto。　Greece；　Servia；　and　Bulgaria　have　a　scanty　two　thousand　apiece。　The　frozen　little　isle　of　Iceland　has　one…quarter　as　many；　and　even　into　Turkey；　which　was　a　forbidden　land　under　the　regime　of　the　old　Sultan；　the　Young　Turks　are　importing　boxes　of　telephones　and　coils　of　copper　wire。

There　is　one　European　country；　and　only　one；　which　has　caught　the　telephone　spiritSweden。　Here　telephony　had　a　free　swinging　start。　It　was　let　alone　by　the　Post　Office；　and　better　still；　it　had　a　Man；　a　business…builder　of　remarkable　force　and　ability；　named　Henry　Cedergren。　Had　this　man　been　made　the　Telephone…Master　of　Europe；　there　would　have　been　a　different　story　to　tell。　By　his　insistent　enterprise　he　made　Stockholm　the　best　telephoned　city　outside　of　the　United　States。　He　pushed　his　country　forward　until；　having　one　hundred　and　sixty…five　thousand　telephones；　it　stood　fourth　among　the　European　nations。　Since　his　death　the　Government　has　entered　the　field　with　a　duplicate　system；　and　a　war　has　been　begun　which　grows　yearly　more　costly　and　absurd。

Asia；　as　yet；　with　her　eight　hundred　and　fifty　million　people；　has　fewer　telephones　than　Philadelphia；　and　three…fourths　of　them　are　in　the　tiny　island　of　Japan。　The　Japanese　were　enthusiastic　telephonists　from　the　first。　They　had　a　busy　exchange　in　Tokio　in　1883。　This　has　now　grown　to　have　twenty…five　thousand　users；　and　might　have　more；　if　it　had　not　been　stunted　by　the　peculiar　policy　of　the　Government。　The　public　officials　who　operate　the　system　are　able　men。　They　charge　a　fair　price　and　make　ten　per　cent　profit　for　the　State。　But　they　do　not　keep　pace　with　the　demand。　It　is　one　of　the　oddest　vagaries　of　public　ownership　that　there　is　now　in　Tokio　a　WAITING　LIST　of　eight　thousand　citizens；　who　are　offering　to　pay　for　telephones　and　cannot　get　them。　And　when　a　Tokian　dies；　his　franchise　to　a　telephone；　if　he　has　one；　is　usually　itemized　in　his　will　as　a　four…hundred…　dollar　property。

India；　which　is　second　on　the　Asiatic　list；　has　no　more　than　nine　thousand　telephonesone　to　every　thirty…three　thousand　of　her　population！　Not　quite　so　many；　in　fact；　as　there　are　in　five　of　the　skyscrapers　of　New　York。　The　Dutch　East　Indies　and　China　have　only　seven　thousand　apiece；　but　in　China　there　has　recently　come　a　forward　movement。　A　fund　of　twenty　million　dollars　is　to　be　spent　in　constructing　a　national　system　of　telephone　and　telegraph。　Peking　is　now　pointing　with　wonder　and　delight　to　a　new　exchange；　spick　and　span；　with　a　couple　of　ten…thousand…wire　switchboards。　Others　are　being　built　in　Canton；　Hankow；　and　Tien…Tsin。　Ultimately；　the　telephone　will　flourish　in　China；　as　it　has　done　in　the　Chinese　quarter　in　San　Francisco。　The　Empress　of　China；　after　the　siege　of　Peking；　commanded　that　a　telephone　should　be　hung　in　her　palace；　within　reach　of　her　dragon　throne；　and　she　was　very　friendly　with　any　representative　of　the　〃Speaking　Lightning　Sounds〃　business；　as　the　Chinese　term　telephony。

In　Persia　the　telephone　made　its　entry　recently　in　true　comic…opera　fashion。　A　new　Shah；　in　an　outburst　of　confidence；　set　up　a　wire　between　his　palace　and　the　market…place　in　Teheran；　and　invited　his　people　to　talk　to　him　whenever　they　had　grievances。　And　they　talked！　They　talked　so　freely　and　used　such　language；　that　the　Shah　ordered　out　his　soldiers　and　attacked　them。　He　fired　upon　the　new　Parliament；　and　was　at　once　chased　out　of　Persia　by　the　enraged　people。　From　this　it　would　appear　that　the　telephone　ought　to　be　popular　in　Persia；　although　at　present　there　are　not　more　than　twenty　in　use。

South　America；　outside　of　Buenos　Ayres；　has　few　telephones；　probably　not　more　than　thirty　thousand。　Dom　Pedro　of　Brazil；　who　befriended　Bell　at　the　Centennial；　introduced　telephony　into　his　country　in　1881；　but　it　has　not　in　thirty　years　been　able　to　obtain　ten　thousand　users。　Canada　has　exactly　the　same　number　as　Swedenone　hundred　and　sixty…five　thousand。　Mexico　has　perhaps　ten　thousand；　New　Zealand　twenty…six　thousand；　and　Australia　fifty…　five　thousand。

Far　down　in　the　list　of　continents　stands　Africa。　Egypt　and　Algeria　have　twelve　thousand　at　the　north；　British　South　Africa　has　as　many　at　the　south；　and　in　the　vast　stretches　between　there　are　barely　a　thousand　more。　Whoever　pushes　into　Central　Africa　will　still　hear　the　beat　of　the　wooden　drum；　which　is　the　clattering　sign…language　of　the　natives。　One　strand　of　copper　wire　there　is；　through　the　Congo　region；　placed　there　by　order　of　the　late　King　of　Belgium。　To　string　it　was　probably　the　most　adventurous　piece　of　work　in　the　history　of　telephone　linemen。　There　was　one　seven　hundred　and　fifty　mile　stretch　of　the　central　jungle。　There　were　white　ants　that　ate　the　wooden　poles；　and　wild　elephants　that　pulled　up　the　iron　poles。　There　were　monkeys　that　played　tag　on　the　lines；　and　savages　that　stole　the　wire　for　arrow…　heads。　But　the　line　was　carried　through；　and　to…day　is　alive　with　conversations　concerning　rubber　and　ivory。

So；　we　may　almost　say　of　the　telephone　that　〃there　is　no　speech　nor　language　where　its　voice　is　not　heard。〃　There　are　even　a　thousand　miles　of　its　wire　in　Abyssinia　and　one　hundred　and　fifty　miles　in　the　Fiji　Islands。　Roughly　speaking；　there　are　now　ten　million　telephones　in　all　countries；　employing　two　hundred　and　fifty　thousand　people；　requiring　twenty…one　million　miles　of　wire；　representing　a　cost　of　fifteen　hundred　million　dollars；　and　carrying　fourteen　thousand　million　conversations　a　year。　All　this；　and　yet　the　men　who　heard　the　first　feeble　cry　of　the　in…　fant　telephone　are　still　alive；　and　not　by　any　means　old。

No　foreign　country　has　reached　the　high　American　level　of　telephony。　The　United　States　has　eight　telephones　per　hundred　of　population；　while　no　other　country　has　one…half　as　many。　Canada　stands　second；　with　almost　four　per　hundred；　and　Sweden　is　third。　Germany　has　as　many　telephones　as　the　State　of　New　York；　and　Great　Britain　as　many　as　Ohio。　Chicago　has　more　than　London；　and　Boston　twice　as　many　as　Paris。　In　the　whole　of　Europe；　with　her　twenty　nations；　there　are　one…　third　as　many　telephones　as　in　the　United　States。　In　proportion　to　her　population；　Europe　has　only　one…thirteenth　as　many。

The　United　States　writes　half　as　many　letters　as　Europe；　sends　one…third　as　many　telegrams；　and　talks　twice　as　much　at　the　telephone。　The　average　European　family　sends　three　telegrams　a　year；　and　three　letters　and　one　telephone　message　a　week；　while　the　average　American　family　sends　five　telegrams　a　year；　and　seven　letters　and　eleven　telephone　messages　a　week。　This　one　na…　tion；　which　owns　six　per　cent　of　the　earth　and　is　five　per　cent　of　the　human　race；　has　SEVENTY　per　cent　of　the　telephones。　And　fifty　per　cent；　or　one…half；　of　the　telephony　of　the　world；　is　now　comprised　in　the　Bell　System　of　this　country。

There　are　only　six　nati