New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1851-03-13
From Chambers Edinburgh Journal
AN EVENING WITH TIE TELEGRAPH.
The spiders touch. how exquililely fine,
Feels at each thread, and lives along the line.

Feels At zach thread, and lives along the liho.
On arriving at the - station, found that my
luggage which was TO have been sent on from
town. had not arrived There was no time TO be
loss and on applying to the superintendent OF the
station an order was given to make inquiries at
London by means of the telegraph. Impatient
% get some information about the missing bag
gage, strolled to the electric telegraph othce, to
hear what was the answer received. But no
satisfactory information had as yet been obtained;
on the contrary, nothing at all was known about
the matter. 1 wanted another message sent up
10 town, but on working the needles, IL was found
shat the telegraph was engaged in corresponding
with some intermediate or branch station.
The clerk with whom j continued chatting
through the little opening where all communlca
tions arc given and received, was very youngi
bat there was something Ia his manner that pre-
possessed you fsvorably, and, moreover, there
was total absence of that abruptness OF speech
and Quichnees Of manner that seem TO have 90
come second nature with our railway officials.
At lsst he invited me to enter his oiice-she
very thing / had been N aneuyrlDg Tor aud longing
TO dO-for as squeezed my head through small
opening and looked into the snug roomi warmly
carpeted, and although it was the beginning OF
August with fire borning in the CRATE, could
jnst catch glimpse OF the small mahogany stand
AID dial of the telegraph, with which he had been
talking to the people in London about my trunks,
and was very DESTROYS OF seeing little moro
Books were lying about the table, which seemed
10 indicate taste not only Tor HLSretur0i out
It's more imaginative productions; and 30, then,
m we sat over the cheerful fire, our conversation
sskipg its tone from the volume into which had
dipped, we chartered about authors, style, and
such matters.
sYou would hardly believe he said. how suoh
m employment es mine teaches one curtness;
how one gets into the habit of saying what one
has to say in rs few words as possible, and yet
with perfect clearness write occasionally little
articles. and find that In them / unconsciously
avoid all redundancy or words, just as when
transmitting message. You have no idea what
lengthy affair the messages are which we have
given as 10 transmit, with so many useless ex-
pressions that make the inquiry, or whatever il
may be, nearly twice as long as necessary. In
delivering H. we cut il down about one halt and
yet our version tells all that is to be said quite
fntelhgiby as the original
The cause, no doubt, is, that those who want
o. give some information about q missing thing
are anxious to describe it with all exaetness, in
order to make as Us possible OF its being 70.
oognized.
SBut the details on such occasions he answer
ed ARE really without end. Now we, for our
parts, seize on the salient features: we give the
necessary marks or tokens, and these only. For
netting is the telegraph often put in requisition
~ % inquire about ladies' dogs that are missing.
Hardly day passes without such inQuiries-
And such descriptions perfect history Of tbs
animals habits and virtues it seems they never
would be shocked did they but see how all the
long history of their favorites is condensed into
couple of lines And yet u answers the purpose
a. we'll
He here turned round to the dial plate of the
telegraph and after moments watching looked
again into tho volume the leaves Of which he
was turning over.
- WAS any one speaking to you ? asked.
Not to me; they are talking with the -
station.
but how did you know II i--whst made yoa
look upl' asked.
,Because heard the wires.
That's very arrange, | observed; my hearing
isusually Gpe, yeti heard nothing.
1T 10 habit besides, perhaps, You heard the
vibration too without knowing what il was. Ny
care are 60 alive 10 ths sound, that, as sit here
reading, toe instant the hands Of the dial move,
hear them. Thst how elickolick attracts my at
sention ~ aurely rs the bel
a. There 10 an slaram, ie there not which sounds
when the clerks attention is required =
10 Yes he said; 'this is it, And SO saying he
touehed wire. and instantly a hammer struck
ppoD a beH, making low, penetrating long con-
unaed noise. but generally stop che cOmmu-
enioalion with IL, for it Is so loud, that it is ex-
'eemely disagreeable to be disturbed by the riog.
ing OF that thing at ones shoulder. Besides,
ee1 me other just as well, lot me be ever 80
immersed in what am about
e. = now beard such snsp Ss takes place when.
on putting your knuoSles to an electric machine
the spsra Is produced IL was repeated. and on
Iooking up saw tho needles rseling 20 and fro
Nbe clerk observed them for a moment, and thep
riszDe, went to the machine. Backward and IN.
wasd they went, to the right and TO the left then
wish Jerk halfway back aeain-left. righ. IaS,
---let. lsft--erk jerkrght, IeA. Jerk. and 60 on.
while the clerk who held two handles baneisS
from the instruments in bis hands, every now and
aben would also give good rattle with them. and
pull them right SDd left, and give an answering
jerk. All the time, Of conrse he was looking