Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1844-06-21
MOrse'S Teleeranh.


We therefore present it instead an article of our
own, which we had intended to get up, more mar
tcuary for the qualification of our country read
ers, most of whom, probably, will not soon have
an opportunity to personally inspect what is en-
phatcaly the wonder Of the day--;n this country I
at least:
There are few persons who have not seen an
electrical machine, and Witnessed the spark which
passes from it when in action, to any blunt object
which is presented to it. The accumulation Of G.
ectrcity in the machine, caused by turning the
cy hinder or plate has the same tendency to pass TO
an object which has less electricity that air has to
rush into vacuum, or water to seek leveI,-e-
Electricity, like air or water, always seeking to es-
tabish an equilibrium. Besides the mode of pro-
ducing electricity by friction, as in the common
electrical machine, it is also produced by the action
of an acid upon plates of different metals proper
| Iy attached together-a fact discovered by the per-
son whose name is perpetuated in the term Gal |
Uanism The mode, in common use, of produ-
! cling galvanc action is to lmmcrsc the plates in a
trough with separate dyisons-at one end off
which the supply of electric fluid, generated by
the action Of the acid, is in excess, This end of
the trough or battery, is called the positive, and
the other end the negative pole of the battery
| Now, ii wire attached to one end, is brought
near to wire proceeding from the other end, the
electricity passes from the positive to the negative
| pole, and spark is seen, like that proceeding
from the common electrical machine, which is the
electricity seeking to establish an equilibrium IfI
the two wires are kept in contact there is stream
! of electric fluid passing from one to the other
which is kept up by the action of the acid on the
metallic plates already mentioned. Now, the or
binary length of these wires, in a common CAL
vanic battery, is but few feet; but they may be a
thousand or an hundred thousand miles in length
and the effect of bringing them in contact with
each other is still the same-that is, the flow,
through their entire length Of stream of cleo
tricty at the rate already mentioned Ii therefore
the machine or battery is in Washington, and
wire from the positive pole is brought to Bat-
more and carried back to Washington, the end of
it drought in contact with the wire at the negative
pole, which is but few feet long, will cause
stream of electricity to flow from Washington to
Baltimore and back again along the wire and it
Is this wire, coming here and going back which is
fixed on high posts in W. Pratt street, the i,uo
wires there visible being in fact hut the opposite
sides of a loop Of which would be eighty miles in
length were it extended And this is the first
! thing to be understood.
: Now it is known, that piece of soft iron bent
into the shape Of horse shoe, or the letter u,
becomes a magnet, long ms a stream Of rIccri-
city is passing through wire wrapped around it;
and the wire from the positive pole of the battery
after coming to Baltimore, is wrapped here round
piece of iron of the proper shape, and then goes
back to Washington. To make this iron mag
TO connect the ends Of the wires in Washington,
where, so long as they arc connected, the stream
OF electricity which passes along them produces
the desired effect upon the iron. When the con-
Inecton is Interrupted the iron ceases to be mag.
netic, and is like any other piece of soft iron.
This magnet which the Professor has the power
20 create at pleasure, is Ms prime mover. Imme-
dlately over the magnet, say i'll Baltimore, is a
brass lever, with Il piece of iron attached to It,
= which is brought within quarter of an inch Or
@ less, of the horse shoe. As soon as this last is
=, made magnet by uniting the ends of the wire at
Z Washington, it attracts the iron on the lever and
= draws one end Of the lever down, causing, at the
h same time, the opposite end to rise. At this OPP
posite end is the pen or Sylus, which is Of steel
about an inch long, and about the size of knit
e ting needle. Immediately over it, is brass cylin-
: der with grove around il, into which the stylus
strikes when the magnet attracts the other end OF
; the lever. Not far from this roller are two others
: revolving in contact like the rollers used to draw
d out cotton, prior to spinning it in a cotton mill
y motion being given to them by very simple clock
J, work moved by weight. The office Of these
two rollers, is to draw from another roller, ant
e under the grooved roller, strip Of paper which il
wound round it, like rlbband, its center block
With these explanations the operation of the ma
o chine can be readily understood.
" When the professor in Washington wishes t
II send message to Baltimore, he spells it with let
leI5 CUUnpOSeu vi uOtb ana IIncS-IOT lIlSLa0Cct
d may be dot and line thus -; B, two dots ant
a line, thus -; G, a line and a dot, thus
1t BY connecting the end of the wires for an insan
only, dot is made by the pressure of the stylus o,
the paper which is passing over the grooved cylin
v der; line is formed by letting the ends Of thu
> wires remain in contact for longer time, whe
re the sly lus is kept pressed on the moving paper
e The writing, when completed, resembles the rails
ed characters used in the instruction of the blind
e only, instead of the common alphabet, an alpha
l. bet of dots and lines, in different conbination
made use of.
O. The mode ofconnectiug the wires Ms required
al is very simple One of them is kept always i'm
mersed in a mercury, into which the other is dip
ID electricity through the entire circuit the fluid met
D. al forming conductor between the ends. TIL
r. operation of writing consists in press button,
Y which the end of the wires in use is attached i
* the manner in which single key of piano
off struck ty the finger, with succession of rapid
n prolonged strokes dots required to be form
ed. We have spoken of the stylus as a singl
i'll piece Of ron but it is in fact composed Of three
10 like three pronged fork, that each letter
le made in tripIicate.
Or AS already stated, the paper is drawn over tn
j. grooved roller, against which the stylus presses
~ by the two rollers, which are set in motion by
re simple cocE-like wOrk-whch, in its turn,
started by the first stroke of the lever-a detent O
catch being withdrawn like the detont of sto
watrh;-so long writing is going on this lie
nc tent is kept back, and when the writing is douC
the deent falling into its place, stops the coc
arb npffI fir.