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Sunset Telephone & Telegraph
Office of the
General Superintendent Oregon & Washington
Portland, Oregon Nov 28, 1890
Mr. A J Clark
Seattle Washington
Dear Sir: R A please see Board of Public
Works, and if there is any cause for trouble repair it, and give them
good service, but under no circumstances, will we become part of the
Fire Alarm system or held responsible for reporting fires. Will do the best
we can; we do not claim to be perfect and owing to outside disturbance
we cannot take the responsiblilty.
You know that when a fire occurs, a person will often
rush to the nearest telephone and simply say "Fire" you cannot get
location of fire or any intelligent reply, then again they will keep ringing the bell and can get nothing and oftentimes send the Department
astray.
In this city, Portland, each EngineHouse had a telephone
and they pay regular rates for them, but no person or subscriber is allowed
to connect with them, not even the Chief. In case of fire (when report
ed by telephone]] the subscriber calls central office. Central Office
gets location of fire and all particulars. Then the opertor calle
the Chief of Fire Department and gives him the case, or Assistant Chief
etc. Then we rarly have any trouble. Fire telephones are not
used for any purpose but fire. I think at Seattle, you connect
the person calling to thestationand of course have trouble.
If the City has a competent electrician, he should be able
to be independent of telephones, except inexceptional cases, as nine-