, 1875-02-24

oOAOA AAO 00O NV LOU I1OOlltdUlOs
AS q matter of fact telegraphic signals
can be transmitted over a continuous
wire in an almost i~mperceptible space of
time, the time occupied in transmitting
o message being regulated by the mum
Der OF signals to be transmitted. But Mr..
Ronalds' idea of speedy communication
was rather in advance of the requirements
Of his age, and of the means placed at his
disposal. His underground telegraph was,
however, a very fair specimen Of what
exists in the present day. We use iron
or eartbenware pipes in lieu of his wood
en- trough ; but we are not very far in ad-
vance here, for he points out in his book,
by way OF anticipating possible objections
to his plan, that "cast iron troughs might
be rendered as tight as gas pipes" should
1t be found desirable to employ them.
The ''thlck glass tubes" through which
he led his conducting wire have been re-
placed by that useful substance gutta-per-
cha, which had not been discovered in
Nr. RonaIds' day, but which is now used
most extensively as an Insulating substance
IN all operations connected with telegra-
ply. Not only in the method of con-
structlng, but of testing and keeping in
repair our underground telegraphs, have
we very closely followed out Mr.. RonaIds'
ideas Dealing with the subject general
ly, he says, "The liability of the subter-
ranean part of the apparatus to be injured
by Gn enemy, or by mischievously dis
posed persons, has been vehemently OBJ
jectcd. If an enemy had occupation of
all the roads which covered the wires, he
could undoubtedly discomfort my electric
signs without difficulty but would those
now in use Ghe old semaphore, presum-
ably escape And this case relates on
ly to invasions and civil wars therefore,
let us have smokers enough to prevent
invasions, and Kings that love their sub
jects enough to prevent civil wars. To
protect the apparatus from mischievous!y
disposed persons, let the tubes be buried
GIFT. below the surface of the middle of high
roa1s, and let each tube take a different
route to arrive at the same place" Of
course, the danger which Mr.. Ronalds here
suggests has never menacpd our lines of
underground telegraph. But his notion
of alternative routes is precisely what
is done in the Postal system as regards
overhead wires; the object being, of
COURSE W ulFluC ll0 IlSk VI IhVllS INC
whole communications with certain places
devastated by storms like those which
have recently played such havoc with
the wires. could any number of rogues,
then, continues Mr.. Ronalds in his
characteristic style, "open trenches Gift.
deep, in two or more different public
high roads or streets, and get through two
or more strong c%ast-iron troughs in less
space of time than 40 minutes9 For we
shall presently see that they would be
detected before the expiration of that time.
IF they could, render their difficulties
greater by cutting the trench deeper; and
should they still succeed in breaking the
communication by these means, hang them
if you can catch them, d~~-n them if
you cannot, and mend it Immediately in
both cases." Mr.. Ronalds must have re-
ioiced at having lived to see a time when
cutting the telegraph wires, or otherwise
wilfulIy interrupting the communication
was punishable as a felony but he pro-
posed to rely on other means than Lynch
Law in maintaining his system, and here,
again, the telegraph engineers of the pres
ent day have followed out his ideas almost
to tho letter. He proposed to keep his
wire constantly charged with electricity
in other words, to work it on the per-
manent current principle :" then to have