August 12, 1000.
THE ILLUSTRATED HIS 13.
5
Woman Workers
Telephone Girl
To thy thousands of Omaha citizens who
mako use of the telephone- na a dally, per
haps hourly necessity, "Central" Is a dis
embodied voice, low and well modulated.
Tempted by the sweetness of Its tone nudac
Ioub ones havo even sought to lift the veil
and behold tho priestess only to meet with
buslnces-llko rebuff, for Central la a busy
young woman and tho eyo and car of the
chlof operator are keen. Not to Imply, of
course, that tho audacious one would meet
with bettor fortune if tho rules wcro lees
strict on tho subject.
In tho largo exchange room of tho tele
phono building sit eight young women with
the 'phono becomes engaged In conversation
and falls to renllzo tho Might of tho minutes
until' ho Is couftonted by his bill. Then
there has usually been wrangling, Fre
quently also ono girl looking nt tho clock
from a certain angle would glvo nn entirely
different interpretation to tho time from
that of another operator differently located,
This difficulty has now been dono away
with by tho "calculngraph," a clover do
vice which registers minutes and seconds.
When a patron begins a conversation the
operator stamps tho knob governing tho ma
chine nnd the exact second of tho occurrence
is registered, When the conversation is
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MltS. M. J. FOHD TELEPHONE GIRL NO. 2 I'hoto by Louis II. Dostwlck.
deft fingers and quick euro. Their work
requires Intelligence and education and tho
girls arc abovo tho average in dress and
bearing. Each operator cares for 100 num
bers, each of which surmounts a tiny trap
door. When a patron makes a call a small
electric bulb glows and tho trap door falls.
On a lower keyboard are columns of holes
covering every 'phono on tho list, and Into
the number sought for tho operator thrusts
the patron's plug. If tho lino is already in
uso tho operator is warned by a slight jar
In tho transmitter pressed to her car and
sho makes tho stereotyped romark, "Talk
ing now."
In addition to tho privates In the ranks
thero aro a number of young women who
havo proved themselves worthy of greater
responsibilities. Ono of these is "No 2,"
answoring In everyday life to tho name
of Mrs. M. J. Ford, "No. 2" Is a slender,
buslncss-llko young woman and has boon In
tho service in various capacities for ten
years. Whllo sho has no othor official
title than her number, Mrs. Ford Is to all
purposes nn assistant to tho manager.
Duties of No. II.
Sho works boforo a switchboard, as shown
in tho photograph presented herewith, and
does in addition a large amrunt of ofllco
work. Tho switchboard Is connected with
tho central exchange, the long distance ex
change, tho flro operntor nnd every ofllco
In tho building. Inquiries of every sort
referring to the removal nnd setting up of
telephones conio to her desk nnd sho is
obliged to bo thoroughly posted as to the
prices of desk telephones, long distance bat
teries and all uiU uf supplies and ap
pliances, In addition to her labors, as a
source of information Mm. Ford carries a
heavy burden of routine business nnd finds
every hour of the day from 8 to C filled to
overflowing.
Another number with nn Interesting per
sonality behind it Is "001," tho long dis
tance operator, who has under her chargo
five of tho most Intelligent girls in tho
service When a customer announces that
ho wishes to speak to William White of
Oalesburg tho operator must know whore
tho city Is located and how to obtnin a wire
Btrnlght to tho desired destination.
Over tho long dlstnnco wire a customer Is
rhnrgod by tho mlnuto and this time limit
hns been tho sourco of much bitterness r,f
spirit on tho part of patrons. Tho man at
concluded tho machine once more announces
tho time of day and any dissatisfied patron
Is confronted by tho testimony of typewrit
ten figures which novor Ho.
l-'lrc II ml l'ollee Operntor.
"No. 37," flro and pollco operator, la also
a young woman of many cares and responsi
bilities. "In caso of fire, call 37" is the
flaming notlco posted on ovory telephone in
tho city. When tho location of tho flro is
announced, 37 presses a lever which sounds
a gong in every flro houso in tho city. At
tho samo instant tho bars confining tho
horses aro dropped by an olcctrlc connec
tion and ovcry animal springs to his place.
Tho captain or lieutenant at each house hur
ries to his telcphono and 37 announces tho
location several times In succession. If
tho flro Is within his territory tho captain
shouts to ills mon and they aro up and away.
Undor tho old system of exclusive box
alarms It wns necessary to wait until tho
signal had been sounded on tho gong, with
a consequent loss of probably thirty seconds.
Tho emergency calls, however, mako up
tho smallest part of 37's dutloa. Evory hour,
In tho eontrnl districts evory half hour, the
eighty mombcrs of tho pollco and detective
forces call In for Instructions from all over
tho city. If property has been lost or a
crlmo committed It Is 37's duty to glvo out
tho descriptions as read to her by tho dosk
sorgcant at the pollco station. Within sixty
minutes, at an outside estimate, therefore,
ovory patrolman on tho force comes into
any information which tho captain In chargo
may wish him to make uso of. If a patrol
man falls to call In nt the proper time, par
ticularly at night, tho operator at onco noti
fies tho station anil dotectivo aro sent to
his boat to ascertain whether ho haB mot
with accident or foul play.
Comfort of Knilo cm Provided I'or,
For tho benefit of tho young women em
ployes tho telcphono management has pro
vided ovory facility for comfort and good
health, It Is necessary that tho windows
should bo located high nbovo tho floor to
lock out tho rumblo of passing trucks and
electric fans nro largely rellod upon for ven
tilation. Every girl comes undor tho grate
ful influenco of these atmospheric disturb
ers nnd thero Is novor a lack of cooling nlr
currents, At tho lunch hour most of tho
girls open tho baskets brought from homo
nnd spread them upon the long tnblo In a
cool room equipped for tho purpose. There
Is nil attendant who prepares tea and any
small dish may be warmed at a moment's
notice. Thero are also toilet and bath
rooms, with plenty of hot and cold water
for those who wish to avail themselves of
the bath fncltltles.
Tho hours of labor range between eight
and nine, with a shifting scale. In order
that tho less desirable ''tricks" may be ap
portioned among all alike. Tho full force
remains on duty until 6 or G o'clock In the
evening, when tho greater portion goo
home, the number dwindling rapidly until
midnight, when only a half dozen are left
to attend to tho wants of those who sleep
not.
Whllo thero is littlo leisure for the teh
phono operntor, her work would not be con
sidered exhausting nnd hns many pleasant
features. Thoro nro occasions, howover,
election nights nnd porlods of excitement,
when tho public nppcars to roly upon th"
operator as a divinity who knows nil things
People cnll her up to ask the time of day
or to Inquire whether It Is going to rain
Two weeks ngo, when It wns nnnnunced In
wholesale circles that a largo Jobbing house
had decided to locate In Omaha, tho fact
was celebrated by a general blowing of
whistles. Tho public had no wnrnlng of the
now 8 and evory man rushed to his telephone
Almost every ono of tho 2,700 trap doors on
tho long keyboard dropped nnd the opera
tors woro hopelessly swamped for an hour.
Told Out of Court
A littlo Iowa girl was bitten by a dog
at which she had thrown sticks and Hiones
a few months boforo and this was pleaded
In extenuation of damages, but tho court
laid down the doctrine that n "dog has
no right to brood over its wrongs and re
member In malice."
A newspaper Item says tho following is
a will as it appears un tho surrogate's
record and published in tho Syraiuso (N.
V.) Herald:
"C1CEKO, August tho 20, l&yi. 1 hero
Ily Draw up a Coppy of a will in cuco of
axldent or death. 1 bequato the inorgngo on
My Farm held by Hlchard Doylo to my
wife, Mary Murphy, also tho Money In
Hank. Sinod, TIMOTHY MUKl'HY.
"And 1 llequato 20 Dollars per year from
iho Incum of tho fnrm to pay tho dot on
tho church until tho church is Paid For.
T. MUKl'HY.
"And 1 bequato 10 Dollars to St. Joseph
society, Now York, to huvo my naino in
tho society and 1 bequato 25 Dullnrs to AUIs
Dauder and to put a suitable monlumeut
on my grave. Slued,
"TIMOTHY MUKl'HY."
Tho two last clauses were not held valid
btcauso not signed In tho presence of wlt-muses.
A Maori chief who lost 40 through a
white storekeeper going through thu bank
ruptcy court has given tho following lucid
exposition of this particular branch of
Hrltlsh Jurisprudence: "Tho pakcha
(white man) who wants to become pnk
arapu (Insolvent) goes into business and
gets lots of goods and does not pay for
them. Ho then gets all tho money he can
togother, say 2,000, nnd puts all of It
except 0 away where no ono can find It
With tho G ho goes to a Judge of tho
court nnd tolls him ho wants to become
pnkarapu. Tho Judge then calls all tho
lawyers together, likowlso all tho mon to
whom tho pekoha owes money and ho Bays:
'This man Is pakarapu, but ho wishes to
glvo you all that ho has got nnd so ho
hns asked mo to divide this f among you
till.' Tho Judgo thereupon gives tho law
yers 4 and tho remaining 1 to the
other men. Then tha pekelia goes homo,"
Chinese Policemen--
Thirty Thousand in Pekin
In cojtume a Chinese policeman Is some
thing between a circus elown and a fool
ball player, Ills breeches are always baggy
mill very well wadded no clumsy you
wonder how ho gets around In them
particularly when, as Is often the ease, h.i
wears u coat, also thick and clumsy, com
ing well below the knees. Dark blue Is the
prevailing color, set olT and nccenteil with
bunds and facings of lighter blue, red, green,
maroon and brown, but never yellow. That
Is the sacred or royal hue, permitted in no
body below the rank of u viceroy.
In the treaty ports, that Is lo say, those
open to foreign Influence and commerce,
the police force is largely made up of Sikhs
fimii northern India The loaxon perhaps.
Is that the Chinese thoinsehes are so
estentlnlly iiuwarllke they have a pr ivorli
tlovlU aro to witness thu review or the
parade. Tho weapons are curious looking,
but wicked In the extreme -the three
hooked spcara they all carry In particular
make Jagged and ghastly wounds, llesldes
tho 20,01111 within the wall 1'cklu maintains
a force of 11.000 with which to regulate
affairs in the outer city. They are under
command of the same general ollleer and
governed by the same regulations, though
there are variations arising from thu differ
enccH of situation. Men and otllcers alike
furnish their own uniforms, but are armed
by the state and receive a mniilhly rice nl
lowanco In addition to their pity The
chief gets a fair satin- but the men and
subordinate olllcers are mcagerly paid Not
withstanding, they make and save money
enough to retire after moderate terms of
MiilluT, Mrs Inn t'niiilal Or iiidin,,iirr .Mis 1 roulii Yr,
(licit t ratulinot Iht, Mrs (liuxlllu Smith.
(Jr-'iit (treat nrmnlmnt her, Mim. Iliuumh U'uli '.iMiiiirnmm.
1 taliy, Ituth Criitulul.
PICTUKE OF FIVE (5ENEKATIONS KESIDINO AT K1VEKTON, la. -Photo by J. F.
Lewis.
lo the effect that "no good man is ever a
soldier." As men in tho pay of tho Chinese
government, whether natives or not, they
have taken an active part In the present
tioubtis in China.
Tho pollco rank officially as gendarmerie.
In Pel.lu thu head of them Is always a
Miinchu. Policemen must bo plentler than
blackhi rrles In thu Chinese capital. Thu
sacred or imperial walled elty keeps be
tween 15,001) and 20,000 or them. This
walled elty Is two miles square, with two
great gates in eacli wall-face, half a mile
from the corners, and a mllu from each
other. Broad streets stretch straight from
one to another, thus cutting the space In
side Into a big nine-block. Police stations
aro scattered all along the nine squares,
especially around their outer edges, which
face upon thu passway Inside the wall. The
head of tho police has charge of all the
city gates. They aro iiiuo In number
since thu side next the palace proper has an
extra gate In the exact middle of tho two
mile wall. Policemen In tills, tho Tartar
city, belong to whnt is known as tho Eight
Banner corps. They do not carry arniH, not
even no much ns the baton of a civilized
officer, but keep swords, spears, guns and
cutlasses In racks at tho stations and make
u rush for them when they hear tho signal
gun. This Is fired by an ollleer whoso
special charge it Is, either upon orders, or
If in ills own Judgment It is necessary. The
penalty for firing it at the wrong time Is
severu It may ho degradation and banish
ment, or simply strangulation.
Upon parades and reviews tho policemen
nro always armed, especially If foreign
service. "Inllueuco" In the shape of cold
cash stands the prisoner's friend In China
oven more than anywhere else In thu world.
In fact, but for tho "presents" tho forco Is
allowed to Hqui.j.ci i lit of natives and
foreigners alike, thero might be dllllculty
In getting men for the service, oven though
humanity Is cheaper than dirt-cheap all
over the Celestial empire.
A Memorandum
Detroit Journal: Doing ullllcted with an
Ingrowing nail upon his great too, Socrates
consulted thu Delphic oraole,
"Cut a V iu the edgu of tho nail!" said
tho oracle.
"Hut," said Socrules, who was nothing, If
not disputatious, "there Is no V In the
Creek alphabet!"
Tho oracle perceived its faux pas at once,
nnd was much nettled, hotly accusing Soc
rates of deliberately trying to mako a
monkey of it.
Plants that Reason
In order to And tho truo answer to this
question a daughter of n prominent Mexi
can plnntor tried tho following oxperlmont:
This young woman drovo a nail lu tho wall
somo distance from the tendril of n morn
ing glory plant. Tho tendril begun ut onco
to grow toward tho null. Tho nail was
shlfU'd; tho tendril shifted its uourso.
Finally a cord was hung up to tempt tho
tendril and It shifted Its course toward
the cord and loft the nail which It had
flvo times persisted in following.
' U lis - ' L
CHINESE POLICEMEN A KM EI) WITH THE (JKUHL THKEIMIOOKED SPEAKS THEY CAKKY ON PAKADE.