The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-04-30
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KNOWN By THEIR TICKS.
CHARACTER READING THROUGH
MANY MILES OF WIRES.


tions of Each Other from the Way Hes
sa-es Are Sent from One City to An
other-Some of the Freaks.
The telegraph operators OF this city
are noted the world over as experts.
Not only are they masters of their art as
a class, but many of them have de-
veloped the wonderful faculty of read
ing character by the sharp ticks that
ernanate from the little brass instru-
ments. For instance. any old time op-
orator who ranks as first rate can tell by
the tick of the machine in Philadelphia
what manner of man is at the other end
of the wire, no matter whether he be in
Chicago, New York or any other distant
city. Just as the bank cashiers recoS-
nize the signatures Of old customers.
so do telegraphers identify friends by
their sending" or writing.
The fast, jerky sender. who stops
every few minutes to tighten this screw
or loosen that spring, or TO talk with his
desk mate easily tells the receiver that
he is nervous, irresponsible young man
Of little experience and less Judgment;
he warns the receiver 10 be on constant
watch for errors, for which he will shirk
any responsibility. Without having def
mite reason to say so, the receiver will
not hesitate to assert that such a sender
would lie himself out of any difficulty
that might arise.
The fearless, manly telegrapher is the
man who sends even, well spaced Morse
fast, of course, but steady withal. and
sends ''all the time" This man seldom
has eases" He impresses the receiver
at once that he is invariably correct.
He never stops for bad copy, because he
always reads message ahead of the one
he is sending, and returns any he cannot
decipher to the clerks before starting it.
This sort of man has friend in every
Office. All the students and operators in
way stations know him. They recognize
his sending and appeal to him as would
child TO an older brother. This mans
character is well known to every one
with whom he works.
sNEAKs, JOKES AND DUDES.
The sneak is quickly discovered and
promptly roasted" He sends slowly,
and with an aggrayating drag. he never
swears on the wire, which, by the way,
is certain to be rewarded by dismissal
if reported, although a majority of oper-
ators are more or less profane. While
this man may not have been in tho
business at the time of any strike. he IS
fosY 70 hA oil ~ f,-ss IL
out of town men, with whom he has fire.
quent spats.
Practical jokers and witty men are
generally Indifferent operators. but usual
ly have reputation, reaching from San
Francisco to Boston, which always Sc
cures them work at good salaries. Their
characteristics are denoted by the small
amount of business they handle, not
withstanding the fact that they seem TO
work every minute. They make all
sorts of blunders and worry the receiver
sick, depending upon their good humOr
and new stories to square matters.
Dude operators, like their funny breth-
rem, are poor artists, but they are not
fortunate in the way Of acquiring "repu-
tation." They never need tell the re-
ceiver that they love dress and think Of
little else. Their frequent stops and
silly chatter between messages telli for
them. After six months working with
an operator of this sort the receiver could
describe him almost to q positive exact
ness without ever having seen him or
heard him described.
FEMALES AND TRAMPS.
Surly, morose and tramp operators are
alike as to ability. They are all fine tel
egraphers. Their characters are well
defined by silence, and they are distin-
guished one from the other by bits Of in
formation regarding other cities dropped
from day to day by the tramps. They
tell their story when they correct errors
discovered IN the addresses of messages
relayed from one city to another. and by
suggesting some word to take the place
Of one badly written by some newspaper
man whose copy" they had handled"
Lady operators are identified by the
hghtness OF their sending. few Of them
being able 10 work on long distance
wires. On this account Clara" Is IA
vorite name for light senders Of either
sex, and their character ~ well as their
sex Is revealed by their constant anxiety
and ever faithfulness, as well as by their
disposition to talk.
Few people understand why telegra-
pliers use go much and such variety of
slang. This is easily accounted for.
The men in New York and san Francis
co communicate all the latest phrases TO
Chicago, from which point Galveston,
Denver, New Orleans and Ogden receive
the ''new talk" and the forces at Phila-
delphia, Pittsburg, Richmond and Bos-
ton acquire their stock from New York.
in this way bright saying heard by an
operator in New York Is repeated the
world over the same day, as the cable
operators are quite ~ slangy Is the rsst
IF the Graf. -philadelphia Record.