The western Democrat. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1852-1870, 1863-06-09
TRICKS OF THE TELReRAPH.

TRICKS Ox Ia6 T6h66hAFA.
I. il no less pity than shame, that an insti-
tuition which was designed to subserve che most
beue6cent public purposes should Be used for the
public detriment and thus be converted frola a
blessing into a curse. The Telegraph is as potent
for evil as for good, and it is matter therefore,
of vast importance to secure it by all practicable
methods against the abuses to which. il il liable
We are not in favor of Government monopoIies of
Railroad Transportations Telegraphic Lines,
exeept in cases of extreme necessity, when the
public safety demands this supreme control of the
former over the latter As yet, the Telegraph is
under the management of the Company to which
it belongs. But wecoubt whether the imputation
under which it labors Of playing into the hands
of spectators, will not justify Congress at its
next session in placing it under the control Of the
Government as it was proposed at the late session
At all events, if this iniputa.on is strengthened
in the meantime by any other acts of suspicious
character, it viii not besamiss for that body to
consider whether the public good will not,be ad-
vanced BY such change.
These remarks have been more Immediately
suggested by the following passage of letter
from the Richmond correspondent of the Atlanta
Intelligencer, which. contains q statement that
justice to the Telegraph and the public alike re-
quires should be noticed. Says the writer:
"Our community was much relieved by tho
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telegraph frorhthe Mississippi, placing an entirely
different face upon the state of affairs at Vicks-
burg from what we had been led to believe from
the dispatches of the day before The abuses to
which this mode of CONTAMINATION are subject in
the hands of designing PERSONS is fit subject for
the severest inquistien Of the Government au-
thorities. 1t is bad enough ia times of peace, for
whole communities to. be thrown into q state of
excitement and alarm by false representations
touching matters of vital importance, but it is
still worse when.the greatest invention Of the age
is converted into instrumentality for circula-
ting serious misstatemeuts in time of war, when
the public mind is more than ever anxious to re-
ceive truthful information in respect everything
that occurs that is likely to affect fortunes and
destiny as people Under such circumstances,
whoever employs the telegraph to misrepresent
facts for his own interest qualification is worse
than the -slanderer .'who scatters frebrands,
arrows and death, and calls it sport" 1t is indeed
urmised. that the telegram of the 2lst instant,
representing the unfavorabe condition of things
at Vicksburg, was gotten up for the purpose of
affecting the sugar market. Such is the general
impression in this city, where, on the receipt of
the news, the price of sugar went up fifty cents in
the pound. To the advanced price of the article
the spectators will hold with an iron grasp till
circumstances compel an abatement of it, and so
it is with other articles of prime necessity to which
lJlng rumors give an adventitious value. The
high prices to which the lies have given birth,
remain long after the lies themselves are detected
and exposed If private companies will not keep
watchful guard over the telegraph. and see to it
that it crculates "the truth, the whole truth, and
nothing but the-truth," it ought to be placed un-
der the supervision of the Government-at least
for the present. when the interest ofthe people
qure that it should be made the vehicle ofatruth,
and not an instrument of extortion and swindling
in the haHds Of artfal and heartless villsss"
This is not the first timo we have seen the tele.
graph charged with similar offence, whether
truly OF falsely in any of the cases we know not
But aike Caesars wife, it ought to be free from
suspicion. BY publishing the charge an opportu-
nifty is offered for the partular Offices duplicated
for vindicating themselves if innocent, or expos
ing the parties who have thus misused the wires
for their selfish ends It lis hard we know, for the
operators to prevent these impositions, but they
can always take down and preserve the names of
persons who send private dispatches on occasions
like that in question, and they should be particu-
Iarly careful always to adopt this precaution
They can then, if the exigency requires it, hand
the guilty names over for publication, which will
relieve then, from public censure and put it where
it beongs.-Petersburg Erpress.