Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1890-12-13
NM MESSAGES ARE CABLED.
tam Entirely Unlike What Used on
Land Wires.
t,rnyc the n. Y. SSH.


r.. manner in which messages are
aso and received over the trans-Atlan-
fD, ,1Ioc between this country and Eu-
l. very different from that in
n.y. w. iolegrams are transmitted across
%1cH n,t;n491t on land lines. The two
bs . oU,t' If submarine and overland
""Sssronhv. although but two depart
FIt lts IF The one science, and in many
u ',l, closely connected, are yet entirely
w. S3',ont one from the other. The ap-
Vl nnotue the method of signaling, and
9a hn 1be telegraphic characters that
gym ,s[ the alphabet, age altogether dis
;';or aad the most expert land-llne
nnrotor would be as much at loss IN
ottpuDt to send q message over the
iIa az ,vOuld a locomotive engineer.
Instead of the loud clatter and din
,nJ the incessant clicking of brass
aonndprs, 50 familiar to everyone as the
Tst;nrtiye characteristic Of q telegraph
a 1%rp there is in the cable office almost
0Icohte silence, SO far as the manlpula-
fan Of the Instruments is concerned.
Instead of the messages being ratified
no;siIy off the tongue Of a brass sounder
into the ear of the operator they are 81
iantIv written by q slender, mysterious
f Srri on ribbon of white paper,
which passes quickly before the opera
tors ewes. The paper ribbon, about
half An inch wide. Is unwound from a
roll and drawn along by noiseless
rIockwork over r shelf-Gke desk in
front of the operator. A delicate glass
hbp. no thicker than al ordinary nee
dIe and crooked like bent fOrehnger,
which is suspended between the poles
Of large upright magnet, moves merry
ousIy to the right and left on the rib
bon being beneath it, and traces in a
thin line of blue ink characters that
look something like the markings on a
4 barometer chart or the quotation board
Of the gold and stock board.
The instrument is the Thompson
sphon recorder, All elaboration Of the
Thompson mirror instrument, once
generally used on submarine cables,
with which messages were read by the
flashing or waNerlng OF little dot OF
LIGHT ona gradual scale. In the recorder
the principle is the same, but the move
ments of the flash light are recorded on
the paper slip. On account of the per-
feet insulation Of q submarine cable
and for various other technical reasons
il is only necessary or safe to use very
small amount OF electrical power to
transmit messages through it. About
thirty volts is all that is required to
transmit a message under the Atlantic
from America to Europe. A similar
force Of current on a land line would
barely carry message from tie post
office 10 I0nkers.
If the comparatively clumsy instru
ments used for land telegraphy were
used on the Atlantic cables scarcely one
word minute could be transmitted,
while with the recorder a speed of from
fifteen to twenty-five words a minute Is
regularly maintained. The mirror,
which is still used on some cables, ls
the most delicate and perfect telegraph
instrument ever invented. 1t is simply
small needle suspended IN magnetic
coil, delicate and fragile as feather
caught in SPIDERS web. The needle
Is piece Of watch spring, three-eighths
OF an inch long, suspended by short
thread OF cotton silk, ami having small
piece of silvered glass affixed to 1T with
sheac. The whole thing weighs but
one and a half grains. The instrument
IL placed In a dark room, and ray OF
night from lamp is centered through a
lens on the mirror and reflected back
Oh to 4 graduated scale. The currents
OF electricity sent through the cable en-
ter the magnetic coil and cause the
needle to be detected from side to side,
The motions being made to form tele-
graphic character These minute vi
orau0ns are read off by an operator,
who calls ont each word as he receives
II 10 COpyist, usually III an adjoining
lighted room.
The principle of the mirror is, in the
man. that Of the recorder now used on
ali the principal cables, but in place OF
'he small coil large upright magnet is
used and modification of the needle
arrangement is suspended between the
Two poles and has very delicate glass
'Qbe bent like a siphon attached to it IN
place of the silvered glass. One end OF
The sphOn rests III reservoir OF INK
ana the other end is adjusted within
nan breadth of the surface OF the
white paper ribbon which is drawn be-
meath it. Aniline ink is forced through
The siphon by an electric process, and
as the tube moves to the right and lett
WIN the currents IT traces the move
MentS on the paper ribbon. As the
RIBBON passes before the operator the
marks are read upward and downward;
me upward marks correspond In sense
10 the dots and the downward to the
d&Shes Of the Morse alphabet. Owing
10 the peculiarities of spaced letters.
IN the ordinary Morse alphabet. which
cannot be transmitted on the recorder,
an entirely different combination OF
characters called the continental code
IS ased. Unlike the Morse, the dots
ana dashes of which are always alike,
or should be, unless the operator is a
ham" the cable signals vary very
much in proportion to the length of the
cable and from many other causes.
III sending messages on the recorder
Two keys are used instead Of the one
,0Ite lever used on Il Morse land fine;