The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1883-07-25
Incidents Of the Strike.

In graphic account Of the condition of
things in New York, the Morning Journal of
that city describes an alleged school for tel
egraph operators, the pupils of which are
chiefly cranks and country pumpkins AT
the end of six months" says the Journal, T." its
pupils are able to send four words in half an
hour and receive three words in the same
limited time. Though not one citizen
in five hundred nor one telegraph operator in
ten thousand, has the most remote, vague or
uncertain idea of its reasons for being, which
for fourteen years has remained sphynx-like
riddle, it was solved yesterday when its owner,
at the strike of eight thousand telegraph
operators, offered the services of twenty
seven pupils, the flower of his school, to
that excellent and highly esteemed gentle
man, Jay Gould, to defeat the great and right
eous telegraph strike. These experts went
over to the Western Union telegraph building
about noon, and were marshalled up stairs by
Gould himself. They sat down at desks in the
operating room, which was filled with worse
crowd than were gathered together in Falstaff' s
army. All the girls were red headed. All the
bows were gawky, awkward and ignorant
Scores of persons sat at the keys. They sat
there. That is all they did Few of them were
able to work, and some of them were not able
to read. Men who have been carrying turtle
signs in the Bowery and up Broadway occupied
seats where the most expert operators in the
country formerly sat. Cigars and free lunch
were given to these people by the Western
| Union telegraph company. When the tramps
who are usually seen in the street sandwiched
| between two signs went home, they were helped
| by Mr.. Gould into carriages furnished by the
monopoly. Jay helped in all the old bummers
who have been blackmailed by the company and
| blackballed by the brotherhood. The students
! from the telegraph schools were able to send
an ordinary ten-word message in about six
hours. When it was received by another tee.
graph student at the other end of the line il
was fearful and wonderful to read An order
was sent by a Long Branch hotel keeper to q
purveyor in this city for five hundred loaves oil
bread and two hundred pounds of coffee. It was
replied to by brief message. will send your
bread, the coffee is on the way The dispatch
as sent read, Your brother il dead. The
coffin is on the way hearse waited at tn,
Long Branch railway depot last night, and thu
innkeeper's family were there in two carriages
in half mourning. Another despatch to 9
butcher in Chicago was written, ship five hun
bred beeves There are few prime beeves il
New York. 1t was received in Chicago, shil
five hundred thieves. There are few prime
thieves in New York. message delivered
at wholesale crockery house In Warren street
yesterday, read as follows Send two hundre,
dozen tramps of the latest pattern; also twent.
dozen patent tramps, an d ten dozen of al
grades. viii pay carriage and cost of boxing.
The order was for lamps and shades. A broke
who went to New Haven at l clock Thursda
telegraphed to his family at the Union Squar
hotel, ! will not be At home till tomorrow
night. Business calls me out of town. Don
be anxious about me- AS he entered the yes
tibule of the hotel last evening" he saw me:
senger getting into the elevator with the mes
sage in his hand. The previous night a
alarm had been sent to all the police stations
and several thousand of his photographs ha
been printed and pasted on hand bills descril
ing him."