Mississippi leader. (Jackson, Miss.) 1892-1895, 1893-12-05
A PRACTICAL MARINE TELEPHONE.
It's Use In England in Reaching the Light
ships successful Experiments.

It's Use in England in Reaching the Light
shIps-successfui Experiments.
Boston Herald.l
An experiment of the greatest i'm
portance to the commercial world is
now being made on the east coast of
England by the Telegraph Construction
and Maintenance company. For the
last eight months the company has had
several of its best operatives located
in the neighborhood of the Maze, off
which the most dangerous sands round
England are to be found. These
gentlemen are hourly in communica-
ton by telephone with a lightship
which is anchored ten miles out,
in the vicinity of the Swim passage. An
ordinary telegr h cable has been laid
from Walton -the-Naze to the Sunk
lightship, and telephone and telegraphic
apparatus have been affixed to both
ends.
1t was considered improbable that the
human voice would be conducted ten
miles, especially in rough weather, but
this has been now proved to be thor
oughly practicable. A conversation
was carried on with Mr.. Stevenson, one
of the Telegraphic Maintenance COM
pany's officials who was on board the
Sunk lightshipJ, by telephone for con-
siderable time. Mr.. Stevenson had
been month upon the boat,
and had experienced all kinds of
weather, during which time he had
kept Mr. Lewis and Mr.. Pinkerton, his
colleagues on shore, fully informed of
the state of the weather, roughness of
the sea an passing craft, adding fire.
quently forecasts of weather which
usually turned out to be correct. A
month on the lightship is trying or
deal, but Mr.. Stevens was so satisfied
with the success that attended the ex-
pertinent, and knowing, if the advan-
tage of telephone communication with
lightships was understood and generally
adopted, what splendid boon it would
be to mariners and merchants, that he
spent his time busilv in collecting in
formation and watching the working of
his electrical machines.
In a back room of the Walton postof-
fee are machines for utilizing magnetic
currents of all descriptions. A button
is touched, which rings bell in Mr..
Stevenson's cabin upon the Sunk light
ship, ten miles away, then voice-that
of Mr.. Stevenson-is heard inquiring
what is wanted. "How is the wind2'
Glow is the tide2" ''Have you seen
such and such ship passF' ''How
much water is there in the Swim pas
sage" These questions can be answered
at once. Or the following is trans
mitted: "Signal such and such ship
that she is to put in at Harwich. "
Every ship passing is duly signalled j,
and her name and description telephoned
to the Walton postotfice On an average,
ninety ships pass in the day, and if was
known that messages could be sent
ashore no doubt the majority of these
would avail themselves of the benefit.
A considerable number of the ships
passing have come great distance with
out passing one of Lloyd's signalling
stations. Tho signalling of these pass
ing the Sunk lightship would be OF
great commercial value, as their time
of arrival at any port they were bound
for could be timed by the owners in
London accurately, and everything
could be made ready for the landing
and sale of the cargo.