The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1880-10-26

Confession of Rebel Telsgrapher.
From Letter by Ex-Governor Bullock of,'eorgia.
Many times. and In various ways
through life. my practical experience
a. telegIapher has been of valuable
service to ME. IL is, perhaps. not en-
t,reiy forgotten that, few years ago,
there was misunderstanding"
an,org the politicians. aud that ulti-
marely the obie-bodied men on either
side made good deal Of noise about
il. Well, l WAS on the south side of
that noise, and. being patriotic, bot
not beiIigerent, l gave my uniform to
a chap who thought he had an enemy
and devoted my energies to finding
some way to serve the cOnfederacy
that did not ut the same time involve
the risk Of stray bullet depriving
the government of my usefulness.
There was quite number of other
patriots in the express companys
management who harmOnized ON my
idea, and, as natural consequence,
We were soon impressed with the great
necessity that existed for the express
company to built and operate tele-
graph wires over routes not covered
by existing lines. Several Of US were
stockholders IN the American Tele-
graph Company. and when the noise
heretofore spoken Of intertered with
''sonnd-reading" between Washing
ton and Richmond, we felt it to he our
duty to take charge of the lin-s this
side, and We became the "Sruthern
Telegraph company" You will zee
that with all this array OF usefulness.
it would indeed. be an unwise ard
thOughtless. not to say hard hearted.
conscript officer who could believe it
his duty to send US to the front as
musket bearers! If he could see, as
many Of them did, the tireless indus
try with which express men devote
themselves to the study of dots and
dishes--beaiing a tattoo for freedom
on office desks, car safes, eating-house
tables, in fact anywhere that would
echo the evidence that they were tele-
graphers ard entitled to exemption
the certificate Of ''detail ON telegraph
duty" would be- sure 70 come.
To pass the inspection Of the con
script officers, it was necessary for
the traveller to have his ''iuty orders,
"iurlough," exemption papers" or 2
black skin. AMI you can therefore inn
agine the satisfaction a patriot would
feel when he exhibited his detail as q
telegraph operator and know that be
Was more likely to serve his country
tn the end Of the war than the poor
fellow with but one arm or one leg.
travelling home on Through.
Many of the inconveniencies of the
early telegraph days were repeated
here during the war. Insulstors were
made Of clay with common glazing.
For wire We depended upon the IN
certainties of blockade running and
the Morris Wire Mill at Richmond.
which turned out only short lengths,
and few Of those. Old magnets we're
rewound and old Instruments rebuilt.
Nitric acid was hardly obtainable. and
substitutes had to be discovered and
used but the wires were kept work.
ing and new lines were to be built.
When General Sherman started on
his excursion from Atlanta to Rich
mond, via Savannah, active indus
tries on that route were iDaugurated
for telegraph operators as well a. fight
ers. The coast lines were generally
abandoned, and nea:ly all the business
was transmitted over the express
wires.
On the morning Of the evacuation
of Columbia. l left our Office and at
fairs there in charge Of Mr.. SOute.
telegraph operator, anil that night 1,
being at General B-auregard's head
quarters. held telegraph communities
ton with Soute. he being at Columbia
and within General Shermanis COM
mand. This, / presume, was the
only peaceful communication ever held
between tho contending parties during
the war, and perhaps have been less
peaceful f1r Soute and myself had it
been known To either commander.
Probably the most useful service
ever rendered by our telegraph was in
transmitting information Of the sur
render. and orders from General
Sherman. at Raleigh, to General VIII
son, at Macon, to cease operations.
thereby saving Macon. Augusta and
other places from hosti!y occupation.
The express wires, through the
country were the only ones in opera
ton at tina, time.