The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1883-04-13
Wonderful Achievement in Telegraphy.

Up In q small, triangular-shaped room
over q misunderstanding warehouse a
No. 9 Merwin Street, q crowd Of people
have watched during the past week the
operations of couple as queer looking
Inventions as ever graced the interior Of
o patent attorneys Office. Whist they
were for no one could guess. Cylindrical
in form and with polished crank at the
end. the machines might have been mis-.
taken for peanut roasters, or some other
trifling invention; but for their manipu.
lators. Men of genius. like MIR. c. +.
Stumm and his associates are not likely
to spend days and nights at the handle
| OF such ordinary contrivances.
On closer inspection couple of bright
copper wires were seen running from
the apparatus, and passing through the
outer wall were fastened to the top of .
line of prodigiously high poles. stretch.
ing away toward Brooklyn. The import
ance of the little room and its tiny ma
chine becomes now significant. 1t is the
Cleveland test office of the American
Postal Telegraph Company.
The electricians who were gathered
together there through the week were
engaged in testing the new line that
threatens to completely revolutionize
modern systems of electrical communi.
cation. Commodore Garretson, the
famous railroader, of New York, was
among the interesting spectators in the
Cleveland office, and Governor Charles
Foster, of Ohio, watched the develop
ments at the New York end. The re.
suits, on the whole, were wonderful.
Great things had been anticipated, but
the developments exceeded the most san.
guine expectations.
Modern electrical manipulators stood
awed when the Cleveland operator
stepped calmly up to the little instrument
and transmitted message of over SOC
words to New York City and received
his o. X. from the operator there, the
whole operation taking less than one
minute. But one wire, a set of instru-
ments at either end, and the sending and
receiving operator were required to per-
form the business Little wonder that
operators who have hitherto considered
the transmission of a message of the
above length, occupation for at least hall
an hour, marveled at witnessing the
business performed in less than one
minute of time. Messages of 600 or SOC
words were telegraphed in from thirty
to forty-five seconds, and several shorter
messages in a correspondingly brief
space of time. As the preparations were
made for the final experiment an annoy.
ing breakage occurred that necessitated
postponement. The preliminary trials,
however, had indicated the wonderful
powers of the machine, and would seem
to establish beyond the possibility of
doubt its complete success for the bust
ness of postal telegraphy. What is
claimed for it and what is proposed to be
by it have already been
outlined i'm the Herald. The Cleveland
business mans letter is dropped into the
box, a number of which will
be distributed about the city. The letter
will be hurried to the office, and in a
minute or two its duplicate will be de-
livercd in New York. Brevity will not !
Of necessity be studied. A letter dropped |
into the box during the evening will be
delivered, like mail, early the next morn
ng, excepting that it will be received |
nearly twenty-four hours sooner
The experiments just made were OF
he utmost Importance, as testing the |
merits of the only line of the kind in
America. Its success, as indicated by
he experiments made in the Cleveland
,ffice, means complete revision in the
modern methods of telegraphy.
The wire over which this lightning
message was transmitted is of copper
md No. gauge. 1t is the only cop
Der wire of that size and length in the
world, and its power is wonderful. The
experiments were conducted between
cleveland and New York, with but six
common battery cells attached. The
of this is better compre-
iended when it is known than an ordi-
lary iron wire, like those in ordinaryuse,
'equire two hundred and fifty cells forthe
;ame distance, or over forty times as
many. The wire was of course grounded
1t this place. During the experiments
t was also grounded at Olean, New
York. Messages We're sent from that
place to New York City without single
battery attached. The earth currents
hat sweep from the east to the west
performed the necessary functions. This
could have been accomplished only over
, copper wire. The company have their
own wire mandatory, and the achieve
nents resulting from the experiments
exceeded the prophesies of the inventors.
The wire runs from New York City
along the New York, Lake Erie & West
srn road to Salamanca; from Salamanca
along the New York, Pennsylvania s
Ohio road to Newburgh. A little Yves.
If here the line loops down to Cleveland.
The main line runs along to the Cleve.
and, Columbus, Cincinnati & Indianap.
,lis road and runs along that to Green.
vich. at the Baltimore & Ohio roads
crossing. Itfollows along that road tc
Defiance and then runs diagonally across
the country to the Lake Shore road and
keeps close beside that road into Chi.
ago. The latter city will be reached in
, day or two, the wire being already
several miles west of La Porte.
The experiments made by the project
DIS and managers in this city and in New
York have filled them with the highesi
of its success. Two sys
ems are used-one the Gray system anc
he other the Legrad. One is capable Of
holding six hundred words and the other
eight hundred. The transmission is
almost instantaneous. After the exper.
ments above described had been com
,leted telephone was attached to eacf
md of the wire. and although the tone:
we're little indistinct, the conversation
,ould be plainly heard. Cleveland Her
lld.
One man and one gentleman-tha'
5, one common plain man and one col
ege-bred gentleman-have started ir
syracuse a correspondence bureau, and