Sunbury American and Shamokin journal. [volume] (Sunbury, Northumberland Co., Pa.) 1840-1848, 1842-01-29
THE Enstr,c Telegraph.

invented by WHEArsON, anu now cnnioyeu In
London He had devoted to tho subject Of Elec-
,rci,y much time andits first fruits this dis
coTcry. The felle@ing description of The object,
operation andoohstructon of this simple ye, highly
imporett Invention, we extract 'from DR.. LAaD.
srs's Third Lecture, delivered in New Y ork, and
repotted at length in n'.he New York Tribune:
Its object is, by the agency Of Electricity, to
communicate between two distant placesih very
shoit space oftime. In England ithas already been
applied along a'rai,way for some hundred or more
miles. All that is necessary Is to ITO the Office
at one eud and ask his question ; in about three
minutes receives answer. I chanceu myself
while engaged in railway operations, to witness an
operation Of this kind, and shall not soon forget
my astonishment at the result. 1 was standing
nedr'the Office Of the Great Western Railroad
when passenger got Of the train Of cars, which
had just arrived, over futty miles, from London,
went into the Office and told the clerk tha. he wish
ell to send by returning train note 10 his hotel in
London concerning atusk and umbrella he had
left there 'Yes SIR said the clerk, wait mo-
ment and will give you the answer to your note
He turned small apparatus in corner Of the
room, and in about three minutes told the man
HIS cloak and umbrella had been taken care Of, and
will be sent by the neittraih.
The method Of the operation of this invention is
extremely simple, and rs easily rendered hteIlie
bic have already explained the nature of the gal
ranic current which is produced when zinc and
copper or other metals brought in contact. The
,t, ,ko ,f 10
composed, the positive taking direction and
the negative the other; hence If two wires be
provided and put in contact, the with the posi-
tive and the other with the negative huid, these
two currents will flow tlohs the,h for any distance
( even arornd the glohe. New if magnetic nee
die be placed over the wire, along which this gal
>vsnic current flows, it will be Immediately turned
at right angles to the GIre-no matter what was its
former direction. Now suppose wire be enclosed
in glass tubes surrounel by sortc other
'iutting Substance, and passed the whole distance
from New York TO New Orleans a needle placed
above the wire at New Orleans will instantly turn
at right angles to upnn sending along i, the ecc.
/ tric current. This wou.d be the case with any
number OF wires. Thus we have method OF
communicating instantly between distant places.
The next thing is to devise nearn Of render
/ ing the commune ation intelliyihle. A v1riey of
signals have been employed for this purpose. In
! Wheassions s Telegraph the letters of the alphabet
were employed; and the mode of conducting the
communication was this; at each end of tho route
was provided loEenge marked off into iparrl!cIo-
grams, at the angles Of which placed the diff
'ferentilt,ers Of tho alphebet.
! Magnetic needles placed above the wires in
such position with respect to the figures thu: any
two Of thn needles may be made 10 point to each
OF the letters by the action of'the fluid, which on
being passed along the wires causes them to turn
at right angles TO the wires. Now in comnun-
eating from end to end, the person who makes the
FIRST advances passes acuIrent along wire which
lets 60 bell at the other extremity: thus 4 wire
touched at New Orleans would let 60 bell here
und It's language rs, I'm >Soingto send you mes
ssge-so look about yos.' The person receiving
this warning sends back current, which 'cts go
bell at the other end, saying in reply $50 On, sir,
Tn listening to you Then they begin 10 spell
out the words-if that is The method adopted. IL
E he the first iet,et, then two wires arc touched,
which will cause two needles at ,he other end TO
point TO that letter, on the lozengc and Cor all
other letters. In a general practice fewer letters
are necessary than those of the alphabet.
The manner in which these .eegraThs are con-
structed in England is this the wires, Of which
thcre FIVE sis, are placed in glass tubes and
buried several inches in the ground beside che rails
One rs now nearly finished from London 70 Liver
pool, and Ivy 1t mess ges are transmitted with as
tonishing raPidty. For commercial purposes these
teegsphs are Of especia! importance.
Fcnssyiv Csnats--. Iees, uctfon of Toll 9
| and Freight.
We find in the Harrisburg Intelligence. the fol-
lowing anDuncution OF contemplated reduction
in the rates oftolIs and frcgh,s to be charged on
the Pennsylvania woRls.-
Proposed Reduction IF ToH end Freight on ony
Public Nmks'--There are at present IN Harris
burg, delegation from the board Of Trade at Pitts
burg, and we beeve also fvom Philsaclphis, also
a number Of forwarding from the cities, and
representatives of the transportation companies up
on the cansis and railroads. The ebjec, is to eff
feca reduction of both tolls and freight upon the
\ Pennsylvania ruiaic works.
We understand that thcsc gentfemen have hat
= several conferences with she canal commissioner
aud thut reduction will take place which will en-
able public works to compete with those o
n New York, so that We ray expect mex, year, al
# increase Of business sid Consequent increase O
Y reWenre.