The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1888-01-27
ADVANCES IN -rELEaRApHY.

It is stated that . gentleman in Victoria,
B. c., and another in London, England,
recently held . conversation direct by tele-
graph, the intervening distance being 10000
miles. This 10 stated to be the longest
distance over which communication WAS
ever held, although we do not quite UNDER
stand how, with the intervening Atlantic
cable and its different system Of signals, the
communications could have passed without
'repeating." But ever If 1t we're 80, 1t is
more of . "feat" than q benefit-something
Of the nature of one locomotive pulling .
train through over = 1000 mile route instead
Of five locomotives each pulling it 200 miles.
There has been, however, . recent advance
in te!egrapby, which promises vast benefits.
This IS "train telegraphy"-receiving and
sending messages on and from = train while
under full Roadway at any point on the road.
Aside FROM all the ordinary uses of . station
ary telegraph Office it embraces the possitil-
ity of reporting any accident from the train
to any or all Offices on the road, and the still
greater advantage Of telegraphing from any
Office or other train to q train under motion
between stations and preventing collisions
like hundreds which have occurred Where
trains had passed the last telegraph station
under wrong orders, and collisions were
inevitable on crooked roads. This system,
deemed at first almost as impossible IS was
telegraphy itself when invented, is now re-
duced to a practical perfection. We believe
it was originally one of Edison's inventions.
A company known as the Railway & Tele-
graph Company was organized, and also
another known as the Phelps Induction Co.,
each having certain patents. Some months
ago these two combined as the Consolidated
Railway Telegraph Co., and a system of
experiments were carefully made on tie
Lehigh Valley r. r. to ascertain the merits
of each. After this was done a simplided
system, adopting the best features of both,
was devised, and this system is now per-
fected and is in use on six daily trains of the
New Jersey division of the Lehigh Valley
road. 1t consists of q short pole, 10 to 16
feet high, telegraph line, with the wire
strung 8 Or 10 feet from the train. On one
or more cars q metal rod or tube is extended
along under the cave of the car roof, or the
metal roof Of the car alone may be used. In
the car n operator is stationed with . small
portable instrument on the arm of the oper-
ator and battery connected to the car roof
or metallic rod. A single wire connects the
aground wire' through the wheels. The
cost of equipping . car is about Sis; the cost
Of the telegraph line is approximately $50
per mile, or if the wires of the ordinary tel.
egraph line are close enough to the road
may be used. Special operators are
suggested for passenger trains, and that the
conductor or one of the brakemen on freight
trains be an operator. The system, if
adopted, would be an almost certain guaran-
tee against q large class Of accidents and put
every train in constant communication with
the train dispatcher and all other trains on
the road. This we consider one of the
greatest advances made in telegraphy since
electricity became mans servitor. The
company, of which Thos. A. Edison is the
electrician, is now established to
equip roads at Il Park Row n. Y, and it
will be but q little time until every import.
road in the world adopts the system.