The morning call., 1891-10-18
TELEGRAPHY In ENGLAND.
What MESSAGES Cost in 1852 and What They
Cost at The Present Time.

Mr.. w. II. Preece, Electrician-in-C Chief OF
the British POstoffice, read a most interest
ing paper at the International Electrical
Congress at Frankfort, on 1.-The Progress OF
Telegraphy and Telephony in England"
from which we take the following abstracts:
'In 1852 the teleer aph instrument in use
in England was Cooke and Wheatstone's
double needle. One wire (half the circuit
transmitted on an average ten words a
minute. Now, in 1891. one wire transmits
600 words n minute. Then one wire carried
only half a message. Now one wire habitu-
ally transmits SIX different messages at one
and the same time. Then messages cost %
cents q word; now they cost l cent a word.
There are four things essential to the
commercial success of biography:
81. Well-cUnstructed lines that shall be
free from interruption.
so. Perfectly working apparatus that will
develop the utmost capacity of each circuit
% A weli-educated staff. not afraid OF
work and trained to habits of accuracy.
Al. Rapidly of delivery of messages.
The favorlte instrument Is the SOunder.
Messages are read by the ear and not by the
eye. 1t is by far the most accurate inStru-
ment III use. The Morse recorder is to us
fossil, rejected for It's antiquity and liability
to error.
Successful telegraphic business is depea-
dent on accuracy and dispatch. The en-
gneer may keep his wires In admirable or
der, the electrician may perfect his appar-
atuS, the telegraphlSt may transmit and
write down with absolute accuracy, but ii
the effect of this may be lost If the message
is not promptly delivered. A lettering mes
seuger is the bane of the telegraph. In
England we employ boys alone for this
work, and we pay them practically by re-
suits. The boy who delivers the greatest
number OF messages earns the highest pay.
"a message can now be sent between any
two places In England and a reply received
within half an hour, if the recipient of a
message resides near postcffice. II this
time is exceeded 1t IS almost invariably
delay in delivery, either because the re-
ceiver resides far away or because lie IS not
10 be found.
The Great Central Telegraph Office af-
fords a striking example of the increased
amount OF business developed by reduction
in tariff and prOmptneSS III dispatch; 80 per
cent of the work in the United Kingdom
is transmitted through this office. The staff
employed numbers 1853, and the salaries
paid amount to upward of S1,6O0,000. The
total number of kilograms passing through
the office in 1S90-9l was 3, 537, 779.
he work done for the press in England
is enormous
Five million, three thousand, four hun
dred and nine press teiegrams, containing
GOO, 400. 600 words, were delivered to the pub
lie in the year ended March 3lSt last, about
1000 600 words per day"
With regard TO telephony Mr.. Preece had
but little IT, say, because they are ashamed
of the telephone in England. Referring to
the Lonfon-PariS telephone line, which is
3i1.3 miles long, he said:
There IS no circuit in or out of London
on which speech is more perfect. We have
spoken also between London and Brussels,
Lyons and Marseilles. the latter circuit be-
ing 1440 kilometerS long.
The charge for conversation between
to- -, ILL,
minutes use of the wire. The average
number of talks per day is S6. The MAXI
mum in one day has been lis. We have
had as many calls as 10 per hour. Four
hundred and fifty words have been sent and
recorded il three minutes, which means five
ynrds tor q rnnrS - L gel ricitv