Staunton spectator, and general advertiser. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 183?-1849, 1846-08-13
MISCELLANY.
FROM THE NEW YORK MIRROR.
THE LIGHTNING TELEGRAPH.
>T~~~ essesssO
BY JOSH MILLER, JR.

'fut glrulc round inc moon IN forty mInutcs.'
Thus boosted the swift-winged Puck to his lord
and master, the princely Oberon. Ii is quite pro-
babe that the immortal Shakespeare thought he was
"layng il on an inch thick" when he put this SEN
timent into his mouth But the experience of lat
ter times has convinced the admirers of the great
bard, that ''there are more things in heaven and
earth than were dreamed of in has philosophy. p
To of this day, the activity of the fairies cou-
rier is but frozen aziness, and his lightoed eats
'no great siakeS.'
What are all the imaginngs Of the poet to the
realities of this day2 This age of jagged thunder
and bottled lightning. This era, when galvanism
makes our door plates, electricity talks for u.s. and
the sun takes proiiles Now, when the quiet tea
kettle, singing lazily on the hob, may be made to
perform the labors of Hercules, or develope the
emery les of new Prometheus. When the same
principle which discharges chld's pop gun may
be used to propel not only potato pellets, but letters
bundles and packages; and when it is only neces-
Sary to get pump TO draw the air out of tube as
boy would whilst sucking cider, to drag after it
mighty cars freighted with merchandise and men.
| Is there aught like this in the old romances-or
will not the Arabian Nights lag far behind the truth
in a century hence2
Forty minutes to put girdle round the earth
Why, Professor Morse can do it sin less than no
time" Put his electric wires from here TO our an
tipode neighbors, the Chinese, ard what would be
the consequence This nation is bound to ego
ahead" the celestial people cannot ''come to tea"
with us. In the race to eternity we beat them
twelve hours, that being the difference in astrono-
mlcal time. Suppose the special reporter for the
Chinese press expressly engaged to transmit to his
4 employers whatever transpres of interest among
outside barbarians. should have something of inter
est to report. Knock, knock, goes Young Hyson
on the writing key of the telegraph at Philadel-
phia instantaneously-din whz-go the register
and pens at kantung making the pig tails of old
China stand on end with establishment. Buzz off
1t comes, take it TO the newspapers. This nforma-
ton comes from America to China instantaneously
and where is time now? This is December 3lst
among the crockery men, and January LIST in the
rightangled city. These events transpired on ia
nuary LIST in Philadelphia, and here we have full
account in Canton on December 3lst. Hank to the
| lively chorus of the news boys-''Here's the cx-
tree moons brother and suns fust BROTHER great
news from the fowery country here's all that's
going to happen tomorrow among the Kwa-ku
Here's full account of all the people that's going
to be taken up and ined for firing off the old year
here's the only list of New Years presents what's
going to be made tomorrow to the Yankee ladies
here's the extra Golden Lilly here's all to-mor-
rows news in advance of the mail Extra Moons
Brother'-extra Golden Lilly!
The wonders of this talking machine have not
yet begun TO be understood, and the extent Of its
availability can be scarcely imagined. What we
will be able to do with it, twenty years hence, who
can conceive?
| We can easily suppose that fond husband at
Philadelphia might hold quite domestic colloquy
with his wife at New York such as
"Dear Mary, III be home in the nine O'Clock
! line, have some corned beef and cabbage for dinner
and hot wliskey punch, for Eve got bad
cold''
To which, in a few seconds, the devoted wife
answers:
'"Dear Charles, tic an extra handkerchief around
Il TT al. Al I
is all ready. I've got no whiskey, and some one
has stolen my purse and all the money"
"That's just like your careless way; ask Mrs
Jones TO lend YOU a dollar-but stop, never mind
I've just given MIR. Vail two dollars for you, and
he will tell the telegraph at the other end o.
the line TO pay it to you Good bye-don't forge
the whiskey punch, and take care of the baby;
measles"
This sort of thing will be an every day occur
renee, but how much more romantic may be IFS
uses. In old times many painful ballads have beer
written TO describe the pangs of separated lovers,
! thousand miles apart, and metre Inongers have
elected from sympathetic souls "a world OF signs
for the wo-begone situation OF the unfortunate pair
4 All that humbug is exploded now. The lover ii
New York and the beloved in st. Louis may tall
at each other for hours. Let them invent a tele
graphic alphabet for themselves, and the uncon
sclOus superintendent may convey regular tornado
of signs, and at the same time be as ignorant ant
as innocent as a poor dumb oyster. What glo
rous idea Counting by Telegraph! Here is thu
true gal-vanic battery, in the lovers bOsOul--her
is the only electro magnet the heart Of tile beloved