Omaha daily bee., 1897-02-06
THE FIELD OF ELECTRICITY
Annihilation Of Time in Telegraphing
Between New York and Chicago.
ELECTRIC AND STEAM LOCOMOTIVES
Ex~traordinnry Progress in Electrical
Science I'm Recent Years-Eiec-
tricnI PIowfnr-A Divers
Telephone.

but in each case it has been found neces-
sary to revise the answer soon after IL was
given. as q few more seconds were chppeu
of the record. When the name OF the wan
ner of the Derby is known In New forh
n ouorter of n minute after the contest
Is over, when the result oil an ihterna-
tional yacht race Is announced IN Gias-
cow forty-fcur seconds after the winner saiis
across the finish line in New forks io"er
bay. 1t seems as though the practical ann
hilation of time was accomplished. But inc
mon who srend their time in trying to i'm
prove the telegraphic service have not been
satisfied with these astonishing records, ana
have tried to drive the time limit still nearer
the vanishing point. AS a result OF their
efforts. II may be said that II time VIII
not wait for any man 1t will at least almost
stand still sometimes.
and special work of the Western union
Telegraph company, has regularly peen De
tween the great exchanges, especiaiiy tne
Stock and Produce exchanges OF New lork
and Chicago. This has been so propaply
because 1t has had to be so, that is 10 say
| because the demand for the fastest possible
| service has been stronger here than any.
where else. The limit, for the time peing al
| least. has now been reached by an improve
ment which was recently made in the CON
nectiou between the produce exchanges III
these two great centers OF American traee.
The floors of the two exchanges nave lof
q long time been connected by direct wires,
so that only q few seconds were consumed
in sending information from one to the
other. Some time ago, however, the west
ern Unions manager In New YORK sue-
] gested that time might be saved in sending
\ quotations if a telegraph apparatus was set
tp in the wheat pit itself. This meant
saving a trip of perhaps fifteen feet pc
tween the wheat pit and the telegraphlc
tL =: IT, 30 n ms
cut exceeding thin and even the smallest
things have to be taken into account. the
change brought about by. the adoption OF
this suggestion may be best observed by
taking a peep into the New York exchange
at the opening Of business.
CHoPPING DIFF SECONDS.
At one side of the circle known as the
wheat pit stands a high box, which looks like
an old-fashioned pulpit, and in which two
men are sitting. In front OF one OF them IS
a telegraph instrument, the wire from which
runs directly to the floor of the Chicago eX-
change. and before the other is a set of keys,
controlling the big indicator at the end oil
the room, which announces at every moment
of the day the ruling price of wheat on the
floor of the exchange. AS soon as the frst
bid is offered, before the sound of the mans
voice can travel across the floor of the eX-
change, the operator in the pulpit presses one
CT his keys, and the big indicator on the
great dial flies around to the figures named IN
the first transaction. In the second, while
we have been watching the performance, the
reporter" who has been standing just below
the pulpit among the brokers. has scratched
the same figures on a yellow slip. mas passed
this sheet up to the man above him, and the
opening price in New York is written in a
lightning flash at the Chicago end OF the
wire. ~
on the floor of the Chicago exchange is al
one side of the room next to the black
board on which the New York quotations are
displayed. The slip on which the message
is received is handed directly to the man al
the board, who chalks down the figures witt
the speed that long practice has giver
: him. The whole transaction occupies per
haps five seconds, and is repeated every tim
+, a fresh transaction is made throughout TN
day. The difference between the time /
] takes a message to travel across the floor o
) the New York exchange, less than 100 rect
/ and to Chicago, 1,000 miles away, is SO sign
:, that the announcement may be said to b.
V made simultaneously in both places. TN
e represents the perfection of telegraphic com
n munication as carried on at present.
e REMARKABLE SPEED.
1t is probably true, also, that a message
may be sent and an answer received through
the public offices on the floors OF these eS
changes more quickly than IN any othe
= offices. 1t is a matter of record that a mes
II says has been sent from New York to Chi
{ cage, delivered to a broker on the foo
u of the exchange, and an answer returne
- to the sender IN New 1oTh, II III lhl|
n seconds. In fact, this has been done sew
n era. times. The New York manager of tn
Western Union is authority for the state
ment that in sending the thousands CT mes
a sages which travel back and forth betwee
s, the two exchanges the average time be
I'd tween receiving a message and deliverin
a its answer is not more than two minute
to and one-half. 1t is an interesting fact tina
err If a New York business man sends tW
is messages at the same time, one addresse
in to the uptown district of his own city, an
SIS the other to the business portion of Oh
lg cago, or any of the great cities, the chance
are that the second message Will reac
tn its destination first. The reason for tn
as is simply that the facilities for sendin
or the second message are better than for III
d. first.
of OF course in accomplishing the quick wor
i'd which has been described the completene:
he of the connection is not the only facto
nv though it is very important. The operator
employed in this work are all men who hay
rs been carefully picked from the most ski
cd full operators in the service OF the con
er pany, the transmitters and receivers al
ad of the latest pattern, and every precautic
GO Is used to secure accuracy and speed wbet
,rt the slightest lack OF either may mean Il
,st loss of thousands.
N, ELECTRICITY BEATS STEAM.
ng A writer in Casters Magazine says II
zee most striking thing about the behavior
me the electric locomotive is the certainty VII
In which it may be moved over short distance
nd VARYING from a few inches to a few feet. III
lst obedience of the motors to the controller
In practically instantaneous, thus doing avn
I'll at one stroke with one of the chief draN
backs to steam switching engines with viii,
re- there is a noticeable delay between the tin
MS when the throttle valve lis open and the pi
rg. tons begin to move, in this way often eau
tea ing the engineer, no matter how careful
art may be, to overshoot his mark. This del
IN in action, while generally only a few sc
IN onds in each case, amounts up seriously
as the course of a whole days work and Is I
pen chief cause of the ;proverbial lateness
the freight trains which have much SWITCH
let to do at intermediate stations. From I
Nm fact that the movement of the electric loC
ers motive can be graduated so nicely, a +
ong third OF the time usually occupied by stei
ere locomotives can be saved.
nse A DIVERS TELEPHONE.
EN- An American inventor has perfected a
his patented a highly ingenious form OF te
phone system for the use OF submarl
divers. The device can be used in ell
deep or shallow water. -
h a The first requisite, OF course, In a dive
telephone should be that the added mech
len: ism can change no conditions whatever, II
Zig far as making any demand upon the dive
vigilance OF activity. In other words
nds telephonie arrangements must not be
ing lowed to hamper the person with whom Z
on are connected. The De Veau invention
our complishes this. The receiver OF the phi
is within the helmet, close to the left
- q - CO.. and IL nf the ordinary wat