44 Telephone Systems of the Continent of Europe 



subscriber would ring, thus needlessly occupying both hands and 

 rendering the use of papers or pencil difficult, especially as no 

 scribbling desk is provided. The magneto crank is inconveniently 

 placed on a level with the subscriber's mouth, and in a position 

 which renders it liable to be knocked against and damaged. 



There must be a separate 

 battery-box, on the floor 

 or elsewhere, with the ex- 

 pense of long connecting 

 wires. The phones are 

 hung up by looped cords 

 in a manner calculated to 

 fray both the cords and the 

 users' tempers. Trembling 

 bells are employed in con- 

 junction with magnetos ; 

 in fact, every practicable 

 sin against convenience and 

 teachings of experience is 

 committed. The combina- 

 tion is the more extraor- 

 dinary, seeing that the 

 Vienna Company's engi- 

 neers have had the Con- 

 solidated Company's sets, 

 comprising magneto bell, 

 desk, battery-box, crank at 

 right-hand side, automatic 



FIG. 3 



cut-in, forked lever for holding phone all on one back-board 

 before their eyes for years, in Prague, Trieste, and other towns. 



OUTSIDE WORK (LOCAL) 



The greater part of the work in Vienna is underground, the cables 

 extending in some directions as far as four and a half kilometers 

 from the exchange. The subscribers, however, in the immediate 

 neighbourhood of the central station are served by overhead wires : 

 these number some 300 only. The underground conductors are 



