I am accustomed to the touch of others yet my own reach is abstract.

I only speak when spoken to yet I am responsible for much gossip.

I am hard-surfaced yet am not impervious to abuse.

I often rest in a cradle yet am over one hundred years old.

I regularly disturb peace yet have been known to incite that very thing.

I am an exceptional communicator yet have no ability to articulate.

I am low maintenance yet will stop responding if forgotten for too long.

I respect privacy yet do often oversee breaches of secrecy.

I was invented by a chap with a name like a chime.

I have an unremarkable façade yet number almost a ten.

I am the advanced cousin of Morse’s brainchild yet am almost considered obsolete.

I will not consider myself easy yet will accept your ring even before we know each other.

WHAT AM I?

Last week’s Fustigator: Clock