The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1877-01-11
ABOUT TELEGRAPHY.

dom pass an hour or two more enter
tainingly than in company with some
intelligent electricians or telegraph
ers, especially if they have a taking
way of telling story-and majority
of them have, for a jollier set of dogs
than these neutrality-suspicious. it
would be difficult to find. The won
ders of telegraphy divide into two
parts, those which pertain to electric
ity, or the transmission per Sc, and
those which belong to the method of
transmission. From whatever point
you contemplate this sphinx, you are
confronted with marvels, and if you
were called upon to say which is the
greater it would be difficult to make
choice.
The invention and achievements of
the telegraph are as well calculated to
enhance ones notion of human nature
and its possibilities as any other prod
uct of the human intellect, and each
day it draws more and more upon our
admiration. By means of the tele
graphic signs, absolute wonders are
now achieved. language is dispensed
with, sound is not heard, space and
almost time are annihilated, and
where the end will bring us no man
knows. But as this progress is in the
right direction, there will be few to
grumble.
The other day it was the good for
tune of the Sunday Times reporter to
find himself in company with some
of the leading lights of the Western
Union Telegraph Company at this
point, and they were passing leisure
hour in relating some of their expert
ences. For the benefit of the reader,
few of these recitals will be repro
duced.
Gen. Arson Stager, Vice-President
and Western Manager, used to be a
York State printer boy, and about the
time the telegraph got into running
order he turned his attention to tele-
graphy, and soon became an expert at
the business. About twenty years ago
he was still an operator, and the pos
sibilities of the telegraph were yet in
a large measure in embryo. AT this
time Pittsburgh was the Generals
headquarters. One bitter cold night
he found himself on the cars ON the
Pittsburg.i and Fort Wayne Railroad.
All of a sudden the train came to a
halt. Time passed, and still there was
no forward movement. Finally, after
half an hour had gone, our operator
made bold to inquire what the matter
was, and was informed that the loco
motive had gone back on them, and
that they would be compelled to wait
at least four hours for relief.
Chow are we to be relieved? ?" in
quired Mr.. Stager.
1.-The conductor is hoOfing it to the
next station, nine miles away" was
the answer.
"Why didn't you call me? ?" inquired
our operator.
"Call you? What could you have
done?"
81 would have telegraphed."
Are you an operator?'
eyes, sir"
"Have you an instrument? ?"
"No."
"Then what good would it have
done to have called you; you can't
telegraph without an instrument
Yes, can," said the ambitious
Arson; "and if the officers of the
road are willing, I'll make the at
tempt"
1t should be remarked here that the
Directors car, well filled with dignita-
ries of the road, was attached to the
train. These were exceedingly anxious
to reach Pittsburgh to attend an i'm
portant meeting, and the delay was
exceedingly annoying to them. Al
though incredulous to the last degree,
when informed of our operators prop
osition, like drowning men they were
willing to catch at any straw, and ac-
cordingly gave the word to "go
ahead and all of them "stood
round in the bitter cold to witness
the experiment.
Detaching several car-lengths of the
conductors bell-rope, our operator |
threw it over the telegraph wire, and
broke it as near as possible in the
middle between two poles. Having
succeeded in this enterprise, he was
not little chagrined to find that the
wire was not charged. 1t appears that
it was only used for commercial pur-
poses. and twenty years ago CONNER
cial telegraphing was still in its infan-
cy. Nothing daunted, the sanguine /
Arson tackled another wire, and the |
only other one there was. This proved |
to be well charged and prepared to act
to his desires. He now
to make "both ends meet"
in more than metaphorical sense.
Securing all the slack he could, he
brought the two broken ends together,
and by expert touches succeeded in
calling the nearest Office. He then
sent brief message calling fresh 10
to their aid. The operator
felt considerable confidence that his
had been properly transmitted
and received, but he wanted to be
fully satisfied, and how to receive
in return was the problem.
The manner in which he did finally
receive it illustrates most thoroughly
how the senses may be educated
through long training to an almost abb
normal acuteness, and what results
may be achieved through careful OBJ
and what may be called ex-
act mental measurements, to the at
tainment of which nothing can be
seemingly more conducive than the
Geographic sound reading. The sense
Of hearing, on which the operator had
been accustomed to rely, failing him
for want of an instrument, it was
necessary to call some other sense or
faculty into requisition, and hence he
decided on that Of feeling or touch,
and concluding that the tongue was the
most sensitive to electricity of all the
parts of the human body, he accord
ngly applied the tongue thereto. But
his was not enough. Ground connec-