The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1847-08-02
The Magnetic Telegraph.

COVeIlcS VI Tue from tue pen Vi SehNo""h WIN
has done more for the establishment and extension OF
the magnetic telegraph than any other citizen OF the
country, except the inventor, Professor Morse himself
1t already extends from Boston to Richmond which, we
presume is the longest line of the telegraph now known
in the worldathough, in the course OF another year. no
man can calculate the distance 10 which it may be diff
fused. We should like TO experiment made, with
every facility and preparation which be employed
for the purpose of determining in what time message
can be conveyed from Boston TO Richmond and an
answer gwen The rapidly OF communication through
such long circuit doubt calculated to astonsh the
most philosophical observer. Let recollect that 10
America belongs the honor of this invention and ii is
not the first blessing which she confes upon the world
The establishment of her free and federal institutions is
among the first and the most important:
| Magnetic Telegraph.
| No l.
| To The Editor of the Union:
| A correspondent of the New Haven Journal recently
attributed TO Professor Omstead the absurd opinion that
| the telegraph wires when extended the country,
will put an end TO under-showers To correct the error
far as he is concerned, the professor appears before
the public, through the New Haven Palladium, with the
| following remarks, viz
The idea that shall have no heavy thunder show
or hear OF lightning striking, long have tele
graph wires spread the earth could not should sup
pose, be entertained by any one who reflects how small
proportion such structures OF art bear in extent TO the
grand operations OF nature Although line of Geographic
electricity from the clouds the EARTH not by attracting
the uid but by diminishing the always eXpe
enced by electricity in passing through ar vet nothing
appears to me more improbable Than thai structures SO
limited In extent these are and always must be,
should any great degree prevent the accumulation OF
| electricity IN hunder-slorms. One opinion, however,
which publicly expressed through the medium OF this
paper, year or two since, may be worth repeatng
namely that account Of the tendency OF thunder
cloud, which approaches a line Of wires, dis
! channel,
taken, when the poles give waning of the approach OF
thunder-cloud to some part of the line plee the
conducting communication with the earth, and thus to
prevent the charge from exploding through the person OF
time believed that the consequences would later be
! fatal
Doubtless, no puny structure which man has the skill
power to raise materially affect the operations OF
nature. Until he send up huge conductor to the
Clouds and carry its branches through all their Convou
TONS as they roll through the atmosphere, he will con-
tlnue to hear the echo of heavens artillery
heopinon really expressed by Professor Olmstead and
repeated IN tins communication, Is, TO some extent I'M
perhaps calculated to excite unnecessary alarm.
The telegraph wires their nature precisely like
the conductors invented by franklin which may be
on so many buildings The difference is that one enters
the ground at the foundation OF the building; the other
ten, twenty, hundred, thousand miles off. True
there is minute gap IN the telegraph wire when the
telegraph is not work, at the station, which
the gavanic electricity cannot be made TO pass but the
atmospheric electricity leaps 1t with perfect tacli
ty exhibiting red spark and making sound varying
Of small pistol When the lightning begins to flash
in the distance, spark passes this gap into the ground
and as 1t approaches nearer or becomes more VIVID the
sparks increase in sZe and the largest and loudes
when the line struck In all these cases, il the gap
the wire were closed, there would be neither light nor
sound and the current of electricity would pass into the
ground unseen and unheard.
1t should be remembered that the wire which leads out
of the telegraph offices into the ground is large that
which comes in, and consequently the former is capable
of carrying of any quantity OF electricity which the latter
bring in. know little of electrictyand believe
nobody knows much. But it seems to be universally
conceded that the current will not leave good con-
ducor for bad one unless it can save greatly in the
length of its journey 1t does not seem likely therefore,
that the current would IN any case abandon the IRON or
copper wire leading into the ground to explode through
the body of the OPERATOR Indeed, if the operator
to have his fingers in the gap in the wire when the
pas his sn the n %
ground, instead of exploding through his body Much
less there any to appehend that, instead of leap
ing the minute gap from the working to ground
wire, il would leap much wider to reach the
body of the operator The conviction in the telegraph Off
is general, that whatever currents of electricity
the wires bring in, they capable Of carrying out and
though the operators sometimes obliged to surrender
their lines for time 10 power they cannot control, they
listen to the reports and admire the flashes with no other
fear than that 1t may destroy their magnets
There facts tending to show that the telegraph
wires insufficient to convey heavy charge of cleo
tricity any considerable distance: The lines have been
the wire to the ends of the lne the charge has uniformly
shvered posts, and passed into the ground
sending along the wires only enough to make re-
port unusually loud and spark unusually brilliant
In one place, witnessed by myself (and if | am not
msnforned in all others,) post has been nearly
or entirely destroyed, and one or two 10 the right
and LETT less shattered and funowed, in
dcatng that the bolt fell upon the ruined post that
the main body OF it there passed into the ground that
| currents beyond the capacity of the wire followed it
10 the right and left most of which found their way
the ground through the adjacent posts and that guam
ty equal to the capacity of the wire followed TO the
tons. II the fact in this respect be observation
an q at
the stations, unless the line be struck within few hun
dred feet and the wires the stations generally
along streets, with higher objects all around them
of which are as good conductors there is no reas
| sonabe ground to apprehend such catastrophe
Yet the lightning troublesome, and often mis-
chievous visiter in the telegraph Offices. Our magnets
made OF small wre scarcely tenth the of our
along the conductors and passes through the small wire
OF the magnets, without nluring If. But when bolt
from the clouds charges the larger of conduc-
tors up TO their capacity, frequently melts the smaller
wires OF magnets, chars their covering This fact
further indication that current of electricity of su
cient power TO be dangerous will not follow conductor
OF minute capacity any considerable distance but, aban-
donng destroying it, will seek its way to the ground
through other objects
The danger to our magnets Is matter OF much inter-
to the several telegraph companies and the best mode
OF obvlang it has been subject of much thought. The
annexed article from Philadelphia paper describes
ingenious method invented by James d. Reid, esq.,, the
esimable superintendent of the Pittsburgh line
AMOS KENDALL.
AUoUsT 3 1917.
The LIGHTNING ARREsrRR .The frequent of
telegraph wires, causing them be charged with
Sphere electricity, is serious obstacle the permanent