On November 15, 1883, the Spectator carried an account of
what work was like, in the local office for the telephone operators, also
commonly called the ‘hello girls.’ A visit to the room where the switchboards
were located to observe the work, followed by an interview with the local manager
of the telephone company :
“The work
of a telephone operator is not, as some suppose, mere play. It has advantages,
of course, but it has disadvantages as well.
“A case is
reported of Miss Bessie Goslyn having recently lost her voice completely
through constant use of the vocal organs. Cases have also been known where lady
operators have had their hearing more or less affected.
“Of late,
however, the effect has not been noticeable, owing, no doubt, to the
improvements of the instruments, and the introduction of the transmitter.
“Manager
Dunston, of the Hamilton branch, says that, although the operators in his
office are kept busy pretty much all day, they suffer no in convenience. Two
operators have been in the office for three years, and the only noticeable effect
that the work has had is to quicken their hearing. This is demonstrated by the
fact that a message by one not used to the instruments can be easily taken by
an operator.
“The
operators speak in a tone below the ordinary pitch used in conversation, and so
close to the transmitter, as to every word being distinctly heard at the other
of the wires. The farther the distance has to travel, the louder the operator
has to speak in order to be distinctly heard, but still the pitch never raises
as high as that used in ordinary conversation.
“The
number of messages which an operator receives during a day cannot easily be
estimated, but there are always enough, except between 12 and 1o’clock, and
after 4 o’clock, to keep the operator from novel reading in which they are
supposed to indulge.”1
1
“Telephone
Operating : The Effect It Has Upon the Speech and Hearing of the Operator”
Hamilton Spectator November 15, 1884.
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