Telegram-herald. ([Grand Rapids, Mich.) 18??-1892, 1890-08-28


1ass s1eeszd=&.
Bzs aak = fs~ q shs veterans of tsls-
graphy have eoasiaas3 ~ their o. +
a. Business. liss Eekers las Ee4 "a
f44s - ala h1sinsss. bslaz 49, sics-
pr=si5szs 81 Eaat great oEgaai zatioa.
ths Nsstsra Cnioz Conpaay. Nnlls1
b SomsrsiLls as In = xood Easny can
paigns. ssFYiag aaasT Grass. Shsrmaa
snd others, al 80 With heR1ersea
- hsn be was killed Hs Is uo~ suDer-
iatsnseas Of tas Western Ualoa
ComPs.y Walter 3 PAillips Is
81 Cd timer and wasn hs
wzs "a operator h as considered one
OF the fastest that ever sss before rs
telegraph instrument. he hss = msdal
whieh Vas presented 70 him By Prof.
Morse Ia recognition Or his skull he
Is nov - the h-a2 Of the United Press
Association ana il mAking, they s4y,
some 50. 900 year
The Joint convention viii De uuiqas
in It's way Delegates 70 it are not elect.
81 a. 10 other conventions. AL shs cd
timers who can attend IL are supposed
% Do 50 without ceremony and 10 bring
their wives along, 300, Il they wish 10
do 50. And the way the veterans OF
tas wire do enjoy themselves Is simply
immsnss, according 20 Trustworthy re-
ports The stories they tell OF old
time operating, TOO, are worth listen
ing TO.
Superintendent somsrviils, of the
Western Union Telegraph Conpany,
was in arsmi nisesnt mood the other day
when the subject of the coming con
vsRtion was preached.
hot times, were those" he said, TO-
ferring 10 the war period, and some
times when the balls would come near
enough to you 70 cut your wire II used
TO be a bit unpleasant.
Some other veterans who happened
about ssssntsd very heartily TO this.
II don't want 10 see again
any hotter times than saw
when l was with MCPHERSON and
with Gran. There was one time
l remember az Holly Springs when we
were two miles IN advance OF the army
snapped up. Then there were other
times when we would be sent to tap the
rebel wires. and that was job that
meant danger every time. It's won
der that more men were not lost than
really were" Then the old time oper
ator began to recall incidents of tele-
graph service, and other old -timers near
4 3 = u.
were second hand, some were not,
and many were interesting. yes"
said Someryille, tapping Con-
federste wires was dangerous work.
There was the case of one of the best
OF oCr military operators, Lsthrop his
name was. he Was one of the first of
our army 10 enter Yorktown. His duty,
as he knew il. was 10 hurry 10 the
rebel telegraph headquarters for the
purpose of trying the Richmond wire.
There was a torpedo ingeniously placed
In the tent by the Confsderstes. Well,
while poor Lathrop was at work IL ex
ploded and fairly blew him to pieces.
There was something serious about that
sort OF " ord.
Yes broke in another old-timer,
"but do you remember how informa-
ton as TO the position of the Confeder-
ate intrenchments IN Yorktown was
obtainedi 1t was BY means of . light
wire worked by an operator in a balloon
and connecting with our headquarter. >"
''Some OF the men were very success
full at wire tapping" continued Somer-
vile. Gen. Eosecranz had with his
army two men who were, to use slsng
expression, daisies One of these was
an Irishmsn named Patrick Nullarkey
and the other was named F. S. Van
Valkenburg. These two men were in
the enemy's country between Richmond
and Chattanooga for thirty-three days
tapping wires. They had good many
narrow escapes, but finally reached
headquarters in Nashville safe and
sound
Yes" broke in another speaker,
"then there was E. T. Chapman who
was with Sherman for a while. There
was not a Drawer man In either army.
He Was with Sherman when the latter
made his successful raid into Western
Virginia in the latter part OF 1854.
Chapman was always at post OF
danger tapping the Confederate wires
and intercepting the rebel dispatches.
he came through it all right though
and sherman himself reported that his
success was attributable in great
degree 20 the information derived By
his operator Chapman from the rebel
telegraph lines"
"Gsu. z. K. Warren hiss written oil
two instances that fell under his
notice. said Supt. somervills. "On,
vas a. Petersburg. An operator brought
his wire to the front directly under the
FIRE o. the snemy's guns and operated il
behind big tree there. But the tree
Vas hollow and IL a cannon ball had
ever struck that tree It would have
gone right through "a and II
would have been goodbye operator
Another instance Was at point on the
Walden railroad on the Sunday morn
ing that the Union men were shsllec
out Of "a. Ons of the operators brought
his recorder right up under ride Ere oi
F sac -u7hl y - "en Sefoas -pot -
could possibly b chosen. Bullets jus'
hailed around him. their pstt4r md tn.
sound Of The msskstry sometimes con
fusiug The records Of his soondar Ia
be went On With bis work without
finchinE Gen Warren sfterp srd,
said thst he VS. sstourdsd a. th,
heroism displayed - sons Of ID,
oPerstors