Did You Say 5 Cents? Yes, 5 Cents; And No Salt Bribes

A penny, Lincoln or Indian, with salt or without, is only one-fifth of a nickel, no matter who your section man was in Ec A. And when unscrupulous people inject a penny into an unsuspecting pay phone, with salt or without (although the salt, experts will tell you, is indispensable) that means the stockholders, about a million of them in this case, are out $.04, or a net loss of return on investment of 80%. And you can't run a business with that kind of a loss, whether you've been retooled by the Busy School or not.

That's why the American Telephone and Telegraph Company sent a man around to Kirkland House the other day with an ultimatum. "One more salted penny," said he, "and we rip out every pay phone in the House." The Deacons still don't quite see why A. T. and T. should be worried about a measly $.04. And, after all, it isn't a plain penny. It's got salt on it.