Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1895-10-17
Philadelphia Ledger. Monday.

Nhthbut Will Also MAKE
Teiegraphing Cheap.
Philadelphia Ledger. Monday.
An experiment OF more than usual
interest was made in this city yester-
day by well-known experts to determine
the practical value of the new high
speed system of machine teegrarhy,
recently brought out by Mr. Patrick
y. Delany, by which he proposes to do
the. mail business by wire instead of by
train, and at cost 30 low that very
large proportion of business communi-
cations between distant cities would be
thus transmitted
The new system Is worked automati-
cally, punched tape taking the place
OF the sending operators. Its great adj
vantage over other systems is that over
single wire as many as 1000 words
minute can be sent between points as
far distant from each other as New
York and Chicago, while the very best
that can BIO done by other high-speed
systems will not exceed $50 a minute.
The test yesterday was the first that
has been made over long line, and
was looked forward to with a great
deal OF interest by the experts. The
weather was as unpropitious for such
test as could we'll be imagined, as the
rain was pouring the whole length of
the line. The very first message sent,
however, over line of high resistance,
2lS miles long, was received in per-
fectly legible shape, as was every other.
sent during the test Tho speed, which
was at first 100 words minute, was
increased Ito p40 minute without any
decrease in tho legibility. Mr.. Delany
stated that, with wire weighing $50
pounds to the mile, which would give
line resistance much less than that
used yesterday, he could send 1000
words a minute with equal legibility,
and at cost not exceeding five cents
for so words.
At such cost, or anything like 1t,
business correspondence would be done
by wire instead of by train. Under
present conditions, IL 1t Ia necessary to
conclude negotiation with party in
Chicago to-day, a merchant will use
the telephone at cost OF 50 for five
minutes, with possible transmission
of 300 words, or he will use the tele-
graph for an equal number OF words at
cost OF 50. 10. With the new system
the cost need not BIO greater than 30
cents II the system were operated rs
part OF the postoffico system, as ii is In
Great Britain.
Mr.. Delany's idea is that il could be
| operated in connection with the post
Office, either as part OF the postoffice
| system, or as separate organization.
Messages could be deposited In the
| post boxes, collected by the carriers,
sent from central telegraph station
situated at the general postofilce, re-
ceived at destination and delivered by
| carriers, and answers received within
| two hours, or even in very much less
time. Between New York and Chicago
25 hours would be saved which is now
consumed on the fastest mail trains.
Between New York and San Francisco
five days could be saved in tho trans
mission of the China malls The pos
sibilities of such revolution in the
transmission of intelligence are great.
| The system is an electro chemical
one, tho message being received on
moistened tape, tho dots and dashes
| duced by the action of the current
upon the tape. All electro. chemical
systems heretofore have failed as high
speed systems, because the dots and
dashes would run together SO as to be
indistinguishable.
This was caused by what is called
| the static charge ON the wire, which
discharged itself through the tape after
the Legitimate charge had passed, and
thus filled up the spaces between the
signs intended to he produced. Mr..
Delany's extended Investigations, con
nected with his invention Of the multi.
pick system and ocean cable teIe-
graphy, led him to attack this problem
in the electro chemical system vigor-
ously with the result that he has got
around the difficulty.
He could not entirely get rid of the
static charge, but he avoided it's
effects. He did this by sending no
dashes into the line, but only dots,
which by putting less current to line
reduced the static charge. He also
sent impulses representing dots from
one pole of the battery, and impulses
representing dashes by the other pole,
the dots being received on one line or
plane of the tape and the dashes in
double lineH, one above the other, be-
low the line of dots 1t will thus be
seen that there can be no running to-
gether of the characters, which are as
clear as type and can be read without
hesitation.
The message to be sent is punched
by very simple machine with three
keys, the power working the punches
being an electro magnet. These can
be operated at a speed of at least 20
words minute, and are so cheap that
any business house could own its own,
and have it worked by the typewriter,
and thus expedite the transmission OF