No_1_1957 — Page 72

CALLING SUBSCRIBER LIFTS HANDSET AND DIALS 43099.

UNISELR

SUBSCRIBER'S UNISELECTOR AUTOMATICALLY SEARCHES FOR FREE 1ST. SELECTOR WHEN HANDSET IS RAISED

IST. SELR

2ND. SELR

3RD. SELR.

FINAL SELECTOR, RESPONDING

TO 4TH. DIGIT, FINDS THE WANTED TENS GROUP (40) BY VERTICAL MOTION. ALSO RESPONDS TO 5TH DIGIT AND FINDS THE WANTED NO BY ROTARY STEPPING

IST. SELECTOR RETURNS DIAL TONE, THEN RESPONDS TO IST. DIGIT AS IT IS DIALLED AND SEARCHES FOR FREE 2ND. SELECTOR IN THE WANTED TEN THOUSANDS GROUP(40000)

2ND SELECTOR RESPONDS TO 2ND DIGIT AS IT IS DIALLED AND SEARCHES FOR FREE 3RD SELECTOR IN THE WANTED THOUSANDS GROUP (4000)

3RD SELECTOR RESPONDS TO 3RD. DIGIT AS IT IS DIALLED AND SEARCHES FOR FREE FINAL SELECTOR IN THE WANTED HUNDREDS GROUP (400)

FINAL SELR.

WANTED SUBSCRIBER (No.43099)

Final selectors where last two digits are registered.

Inter-connecting frame.

there be as little interruption as possible to all parts of the building could be but it was not until the end of 1949 that

could be installed to the various floors and through to the different office areas, thus reducing the cutting and mutilation of the walls to a minimum and speeding up the installation of telephones once the tenants had moved in.

the pre-war figures were exceeded, there being 27,722 in operation. The progress of the following years is as follows:

December 1950

30,054

1951

34.788

1952

37,876

J

1953

44,424

+

1954

49.545

1955

56,606

E

1956

63,760

June

1957

+

66,571

in the service even when hundreds of firms made. are moving into a new building at the

The Telephone Company assist the same time.

This has always been quite architects in the planning of this distribu- a problem for the telephone engineers, tion by indicating where rising conduits but a year or so ago a circular was sent to all architects and owners of new build- ings requesting their co-operation, and asking that plans of new buildings be submitted to the Telephone Company as soon as possible with information concern- ing the number and type of tenants who would be occupying the building. When The following comparative figures con- the names of the tenants were known, vey some idea of the rapidity of the Hong Kong was one of the first cities these were also given and it was thus growth of the Company and the complexi- in the East to realize the advantages of possible for the engineers to schedule and ties of the problems which had to be the telephone and a public system has provide for the number of new lines overcome by their engineers. When been in operation since 1882 only six years required, and the transfer of the others. broke out in December 1941, 24,170 tele- after Alexander Graham Bell had register-

ed his first patent. Owners were also requested to make pro- phones had been installed and of these vision for a room Or rooms to be set only 4,000 were in working order in

The service was developed by the aside where incoming lines could be September 1945 after the cessation of Oriental Telephone & Electric Company brought in through conduits from street hostilities. By the end of December 1947. Limited which was registered in London connections and from which distribution this number had been restored to 20,274, on February 4th, 1881. The Company

70

war