670
THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE.
[No. 20

12. Private telephone lines may not be erected otherwise than pursuant to a license issued by the Department in accordance with the regulations made under section 29 of the Post and Telegraph Amendment Act, 1919. (See Regulations Nos. 27 to 93 inclusive.)

13. The party or parties forming a private telephone line shall be represented by a duly appointed agent, who shall be responsible to the Department for the due observance of these regulations.

14. A private telephone line may be connected with a telephone office on the following conditions :—

(a.) The line must be led into the telephone office by or under the supervision of a duly authorized departmental officer.

(b.) The apparatus required at the telephone office shall be provided free of cost by the Department, but all other costs incidental to the installation shall be a charge against the owner of or the agent for the private telephone line.

(c.) For each private telephone line connected with the telephone office there shall be charged a maintenance fee of 10s. per annum to cover the cost of maintaining the apparatus at the telephone office. Such fee shall cover routine maintenance carried out during the periodical visits of a departmental officer. If a special visit is requested, the travelling time and expenses of the departmental officer will be charged against the agent making the request.

15. A private telephone line may not be connected with more than one telephone office except under special circumstances and by the written authority of the Secretary or Chief Telegraph Engineer.

16. When a private telephone line is connected with a telephone office in charge of a permanent officer a switching fee, to be payable in advance, of £1 10s. per annum for each telephone connecting therewith is charged for switching a private telephone line to other private telephone lines. The service for switching a private telephone line to a toll line, and the transmitting and receiving of telegrams on the private telephone line, will be performed free of charge; but the schedule rates for telegrams and toll messages will be charged, the telephone office to which the private telephone line is connected being regarded as the originating office for the toll calls.

17. Where a one-party private telephone line is connected with a telephone office in charge of a non-permanent telephonist a minimum fee of £2 per annum shall be chargeable for switching the line to another private telephone line or to a departmental line, or vice versa. Where there is more than one party connected to a private telephone line the minimum fee to be charged shall be £1 per annum per party for the like service. All such fees shall be paid by the owner of the private telephone line to the telephonist in addition to the usual scale charges for telegrams and toll communications.

18. If premises connected by a private telephone wire with a telephone office are transferred from an occupier to another the incoming occupier must in every case sign an application on the proper form before making use of the line. In all cases the transfer shall be subject to the approval of the Department, and of the telephonist in the case of a non-permanent office.

19. The Department will, where practicable, repair telephones used for communication over a private telephone line connected with a telephone office upon application being made and upon payment of the expenses incurred, including cost of any material used.

20. Upon the establishment of a telephone exchange at a telephone office all private telephone lines connected with the office must be converted to telephone-exchange connections or be discontinued.

21. Where a telephone exchange has been established, private telephone lines may, as indicated in clause 11 (b), be connected with the same on the owners signing the prescribed form of application and paying the entrance fee of £1 and the authorized charges.

22. For the equipment of a private telephone line which forms part of a telephone-exchange circuit the Department supplies the telephone, lightning-arrester, and inside wiring free of charge to each subscriber, and, where necessary, an earth-plate; but these remain the property of the Department, and are not installed or maintained by the Department except at the expense of the subscriber, and when the Department can conveniently spare the services of a lineman; neither does the Department maintain any part of the private telephone line. The Department will, however, upon application, supply material for renewing batteries, and will also repair or replace a defective telephone if it is sent in to the telephone exchange by the subscriber. Otherwise such subscribers have all the privileges of ordinary subscribers. No telephones or apparatus other than that supplied by the Department for the purpose may be joined to the line without the approval of the Chief Telegraph Engineer having first been obtained.

23. When a private telephone line is erected for the purpose of connecting with a departmental telephone-exchange line the Department shall decide at what point the private telephone line may be connected with the Department’s exchange lines.

24. When a telephone-exchange circuit composed partly of a private telephone line becomes faulty, the Department may require that the owner of the private telephone line shall first examine his section of the line and give an assurance that no fault exists thereon before the Department’s portion of the circuit is examined.

25. If after receiving the assurance mentioned in the preceding paragraph the fault is found to be on the privately owned section of the line, the Department may charge the cost of examining its section against the private telephone line owner.

26. By arrangement with the Department, a departmental lineman may be detailed to examine the privately owned section of a line in order to remove a fault, provided the services of the lineman can be spared and the owner of the private telephone line undertakes to pay the whole cost of the work including labour, travelling time and expenses.

CONDITIONS FOR ERECTION OF PRIVATE TELEPHONE LINES.

27. Application for permission to erect a private telephone line shall be made on the printed form “Application for License to erect Private Telephone Lines.”

28. Every such license shall be in the form set out in the Schedule hereto. No fee shall be charged in respect of the issue of a license.

29. The construction or maintenance of private telephone lines is not undertaken by the Department, but where engineers or other competent officers can be made available their services in a consultative capacity will be given free of charge.

30. The construction of a private telephone line along a road is subject to the owner obtaining the consent of the County Council, Road Board, or other local body; but such consent will not abrogate the claims of the Department to the right of the