Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1891-03-19
TELEGRAPHIC ERRORS.
They Have Caused Fun, Sorrow
and Loss of Money.

Thousands of errors have been made
in telegraphic messages, says the New
York Times In fact day rarely
passes without good many of them
occurring. Some of them have caused
much amusement, some have caused
tears and some have caused serious
financial loss. They are not always
due TO inexpert operators. 1t is re-
markable fact that during the preva-
lence of bad weather, or what are
known as electrical storms" which
are thorns in the side of every chief OPP
erator--for while they continue wires
become rs unreliable as tickle woman
dots and dashes have been so shifted
as to cause receiver to put down
word totally different from the one
transmitted by the sender. That, how
ever, does not occur often.
The faulty penmanship of hurried
business men and others who use the
telegraph is also responsible for many
of the errors. Operators are compelled
to rigidly "follow copy" and If word
is indistinct they send whatever it seems
to them to look like, no matter how
blind their reading may make the con-
text Besides. some messages pass
through number of hands.
The telegraph companies persistently
print at the top of their message blanks
a warning that they are not RESPONSE
BILE for mistakes in transmission, and
they also proffer, in very small type,
the advice that ''to guard against mis-
takes or delays the sender of message
should order it repeated; that is, tele-
graphed back to the originating Office
for comparison" at an additional charge
of one-half the regular rate. The no
tice has steadily adorned the blanks in
spite of court decisions that the com
panies are responsible for errors,
whether the messages are repeated or
not, and in spite of the additional fact
that it is rarely read or, If it is, the in
terest excited is only casual Nobody
ever seems to accept the advice regard
ing repetition. An operator, speaking
of the old notice recently, said that in
an experience of fifteen years he had
order to repeat, and it was regarded as
great curiosity. This message fell
victim to excessive caution. 1t was
bound from New York to San Francis
co. 1t contained but one word, the lit
tie word yes" 1t was religiously re-
between the Atlantic and Pacific, but
by some misfortune, due to a second of
abstraction on the part of an operator
or to timely but unfortunate Flip of
the instrument, the word was changed
to "No." A big row ensued and an op-
orator in New York nearly lost his po-
sition.
The financial losses that have been
caused by telegraph blunders have been
due mostly to the changing around of
amounts. There have been instances
where an order to buy has been changed
in transmission into an order to sell.
But generally, if there is mistake, it
is in the figures. To make the lilkeli-
hood of error as slight as possible,
amounts expressed in figures by the
original writer of a message are usually
spelled out and expressed in words by
the operators. Even this precaution
does not always avail, however. 1t is
comparatively easy for poor handwrit-
ing and careless transmission to change
fifteen to fifty, or twenty to thirty, or
fifty to sixty. There was mistake of
this character perpetrated in Washing
ton some time ago. 1t caused no loss,
but that was because of good luck. A
grocery firm in the capital city sent an
order to wholesale house in Baltimore
for fifteen barrels of "a" sugar. The
next morning the grocery firm received
a shipping bill which contained the in
formation that fifty barrels of "A'
sugar had been shipped to them "as pei
order"
AS the sugar was by that time in
Washington, the firm, having investi
gated and discovered that the mistake
was not theirs, notified the manager Of
the telegraph office that the company
must take the extra thirty-ive barrels
off their hands. The manager told the
operator who sent the message about
the notice. While the responsibility
for the blunder, as between the sender
in Washington and the receiver in Bal
timore-it was undoubtedly the fault Of
the latter-had not been settled, the
Washington operator, who was of 9
speculative disposition, requested the
manager to delay his answer Then ht
ran around to find friend who was il
the sugar business, and inquired as tC
the future of sugar prices. He learned
that there was strong probability O.
an immediate and material advance
He informed the manager that he re-
called that the mistake was his, an(
that he was prepared to pay the penalty
for it by taking the sugar. The firm
turned over the thirty-five barrels t.
the operator. Two hours later they
too, heard that sugar was going up
They sent the operator word that they
would relieve him of his load if HI
wished. He replied that he was yer,
much obliged to them, but they needn'
trouble themselves. The next morn
ing he sold his sugar at a good profit
| tOOh pilC ihOhOJ w Wiz hoSSo aAits Aopo IL
The wifely reproaches which gay
, young New York lawyer encountere'
: on reaching his home late one nigh
were undoubtedly due in the main t.
, his own poor handwriting, but care
less operator was also responsible TO
: them. He related the experience tn
next day.
st was two o'clock when reache,
home" he said. "My wife met me a
: the door. ! saw at once that she wa
; very angry. She handed me a. tele
gram and asked freezingly: What |
! the meaning of this?' said: why
my dear, what's wrong? That's prob
: ably the message sent you in the al
tcrnoon.' 1T is, she answered. Pleas
read it and explain l read it. T
my establishment it read: Shall din