The best condenser for this use is of about 1/2-microfarad capacity, which is ample for voice-transmitting purposes, while it serves to effectively bar the major portion of the generator currents.  A higher capacity condenser would carry the generator currents much more readily and thus defeat the purpose for which it was intended.

In order that the requisite impedance may be given to the ringers employed for bridging party lines, it is customary to make the cores rather long and of somewhat larger diameter than in series ringers and at the same time to wind the coils with rather fine wire so as to secure the requisite number of turns.  Bridging bells are ordinarily wound to a resistance of 1,000 or 1,600 ohms, these two figures having become standard practice.  It is not, however, the high resistance so much as the high impedance that is striven for in bridging bells; it is the number of turns that is of principal importance.

As has already been stated, the generators used for bridging lines are made capable of giving a greater current output than is necessary in series instruments, and for this purpose they are usually provided with at least four, and usually five, bar magnets.  The armature is made correspondingly long and is wound, as a rule, with about No. 33 wire.

Sometimes where a bridged party line terminates in a central-office switchboard it is desired to so operate the line that the subscribers shall not be able to call up each other, but shall, instead, be able to signal only the central-office operator, who, in turn, will be enabled to call the party desired, designating his station by a suitable code ring.  One common way to do this is to use biased bells instead of the ordinary polarized bells.  In order that the bells may not be rung by the subscribers’ generators, these generators are made of the direct-current type and these are so associated with the line that the currents which they send out will be in the wrong direction to actuate the bells.  On the other hand, the central-office generator is of direct-current type and is associated with the line in the right direction to energize the bells.  Thus any subscriber on the line may call the central office by merely turning his generator crank, which action will not ring the bells of the subscribers on the line.  The operator will then be able to receive the call and in turn send out currents of the proper direction to ring all the bells and, by code, call the desired party to the telephone.

[Illustration:  ONE WING OF OPERATING ROOM, BERLIN, GERMANY Ultimate Capacity 24,000 Subscribers’ Lines and 2,100 Trunk Lines.  Siemens-Halske Equipment.  Note Horizontal Disposal of Multiple]