The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-09-09
YCLE SAN USES WIRES.
Electricity Serves the Government in
Many Ways.

meuts- Ihe state ana navy secret
rtnber Codes-other Uses of the Sub
tIe Fluid-The World Nearly Encir-
oled by Wires and Cables.
From the Chicago Times.
Washington, Sept. president Cleve-
land. acting as the nations physician
during its financial prostitution, has his
finger always on the public pulse
The telegraph instrument is an import
sur bit of furniture at the white house
Bymeans of its key aud sounder the chief
magistrate maintains a constant inter-
change of intelligence with the outside
world. During any excitement or trouble
ne receives news direct from the seat of
d,-rder and can control affairs as if him
s.rfou the spot. At the time of the
I.uustown food Gen Harrison and Mr.
HsIford spent day and night beside the
ticker. giving orders for furnishing tents,
pontoons, supplies, etc, for the relief of
the survivors Wires were first perma-
psutIy introduced to the executive man
sion lust before the Inauguration of
HAYES. He found use for them during
The railway strikes and riots of 1877,
when he was daily and nightly in CORES
uondence with the tnOubled districts.
After Garfield was shot the telegraph
was kept busy for months distributing
news about the dying Presidents condi-
ton all over the union.
Most of the routine daily cOrrespOn-
dence between the president and officers
of the executive departments is conducted
over the white house wire. The same
wire is the usual means of communica-
ton between the white house and the
capitol while congress is sitting. The
government owns the lines which connect
the white house and capitol with all of the
departments. Congressman employ these
wires freely in sending messages to and
tranSacting business with the depart
ments BY the courtesy of the telegraph
companies and news associations Mr..
Cleveland is constantly kept informed of
the latest important intelligence from all
parts of the globe. When an election is
pending he has the use Of direct wire,
getting the returns as fast as they come
in The clerk who operates the telegraph
at the white house is paid by Uncle Sam.
He also acts as keeper of the executive
scrapbooks, in which are pasted whatever
opinions respecting the administration
are deemed worth clipping from the col
umus of the newspapers.
THE NAVY AND THE TELEGRAPH.
Each department must pay its own ex-
penses for telegraphing out of its appro-
priation. The navy has secret cipher
code, a COPY Of which is kept locked in a
copper box on board of every ship. There
are two keys to this box; one of them Is
held by the commander of the vessel and
the other by a subordinate officer Both
are instructed in the use Of this cipher.
Thus they are able TO send by cable to
Washington any confidential communica-
ton from any port in the world without
revealing the nature of the message even
to the operators who transmit it, The
navy code stood the test of practice better
than the state departments cipher dur
ing the recent Chilian imbroglio. The
correspondence in that affair was con-
. Quoted by the state and navy depart
ments together, the cost of the private
i Cablegrams exceeding $50, 600. The labor
of making and deciphering such dis
patches particularly the latter, was very
great, Unavoidable errors in transmits
sion made them much more troublesome.
Officials employed in the work at this end
sat up all night to translate the messages,
In order that they might report in the
morning. Not a word leaked out.
Nearly all Ofuthe important diploma
tic correspondence of the department of
state Is conducted over submarine wires,
by means of which Secretary
ton with Uncle Sans representatives
all over the world. Every minister has
copy of the cipher code The same
mark of confidence is not bestowed upon
any other officials ordinarily outside of
Washington, though a copy may be
given to a consul general in case of an
emergency. During the fishery dispute
with Canada agent was sent all the
way to Halifax to deliver the cipher to
] cd e1,1
The latter official was thus enable to
render his messages secret.
The wires which connect the capitol
and the white house with all of the de-
prtments form one continuous circuit.
There are two of them, to cover the
chance that one may get out of order.
!hey are under the charge of the super
lhtendent of public buildings and grounds,
and $1,000 year is appropriated to keep
tnem In repair. They are strung in or
uhary fashion on poles, and the thirteen
operators who send messages over them
are all IN the pay of Uncle Sam. There
Is one at the House end and another at
lne Senate end of the capitol. Both are
stenographers, taking in shorthand the
eegrams directed to them by busy leg
IS!ators. Many congressman use these
WlreS largely for communicating with
the departments. The convenience costs
Lnem nothing, and is a great aid in the
BUSINESS which they are obliged to trans
d'V with the various bureaus. They have
appointments to ask about, inquiries to
puJ as to how pension cases stand, ques-
IONS TO offer as to whether such and such
papers are on file, etc, ad infnitum.
NOT VERY PRIVATE.
Inc heads of the departments make a
E[eaJ deal of use of the government wires.
vi Nanamaker found them such a con-
TrGniente that he had his business Office in
uAduelphla connected with them by a
".e leased at his own expense. Owing
~ IHe clrcultOus track taken by the wires
os news from the white house has got
SSul more than once Unexpectedly. Secret
uSpaJches have been overheard as they
fechJ clicking through the different Of
TTJleS' thus getting into print prematurely.
II ~ E0Vernment owns a system of tele-
t,aph INES which connect certain mill
raIS posts IN the west. AS is well known,
larry all congressman have Geographic
tlauk books, by which they are enabled
~, W SEND messages free of charge all over
SIt United States. These books contain
oogydcnaDle stamps which can be torn out
s EMU aHiHed to kilograms. They are pre-
StILuOeu Dy the telegraph companies, with
sne stipulation that they shall only be
M r'i loS ca on messages of a private nature,
r ~ LoI Tor business purposes 1t is only
s1 Ivy mat legislator refuses to accept
TN fDu IdVors. The temptation which in
80 80 man to get something for nothing
40 well nigh i1,rpcictSb1o