Gulf Coast breeze. [volume] (Crawfordville, Fla.) 1897-19??, 1898-08-19
WHY | LEFT SANTIAGO DE- CUBA.
By A CABLE OPERATOR.

AZ LuotVAA SoOW III GCOAuukI uuu
March, 1898, which were very busy
months In the cable Office at Santiago,
where / had been for four years. In
the early part OF 1896 we seldom han
died more than 80 messages day,
but after the instruction began the
number rose TO 90 and 100 daily, in
creasing little every month.
The cable from Santiago to Spain
goes under sea first to Kingston, ia
maica. thence to Puerto Rico, thence
to st. Cyoix aud from there 10 Para
marble and Pernambuco In Brazil.
Cables from Pernambuco cross the
South Atlantic to st. Vincent, Cape
Verde islands, and from st. Vincent
other cables extend to Madeira, thence
to Lisbon and overland to Madrid.
There Is also less direct cable from
Pernambuco to st. Louis in Senegal,
Africa, and thence to the Canary ISL
ands and Cadiz.
Beside myself, there was but one
other operator in the Santiago office,
Laurin Merode,a young Spaniard, who
had learned cable work at Lisbon.
We thought that 100 messages daily
made work enough, but over 800 passed
the day after the Maine was blown up
in Havana harbor. Four more oper-
ators were needed, and we called to
Havana for help; but no notice was
taken Of our appeal, and, rather than
desert our posts and leave the COM
pany's business undone, we shaved
night and day, elways hoping the
pressure would moderate.
One day we sent 49, 42 words in
over HOO dispatches, yet we were two
hours shack" at midnight, with Ha-
vana Tuning at US over the land wire
and still burrying messages through
the Cienfuegos cable. There were
Spanish government cipher messages
from Sagasta to Blanco and Blancos
cipher to Sagasta; reams OF bombast
from the Cuban correspondents Of The
impartial and Correo for Madrid, fol.
lowed by more cipher to Weyler at
Barcelona from his brother officers at
Havana, and then the bankers and
merchants quoting, selling and order
ingl
To add to our vexations, the mouse
milf' Of the siphon recorder gave
trouble constantly, and the clockwork
that carries the record tape broke
down every day or two. Now Span
lard Is utterly without native ingenu-
ity. Merode was tolerably good OPP
orator, but when 1t came to rectifying
faults OF the instrument he was an in
FAINT, and all such tasks fell on me.
Anything like clockwork Il can
tinker" but the mouse mill that
works the siphon pen is very delicate
bit of mechanism, which assists the
faint electric impulses that come great
distances through the cable to move
the ink point OF the recorder to aud
fro on the tape.
suppose had taken the record
tape clockwork and mouse mill apart
30 different times, and on the evening
of the second Of April, after Merode re-
lieved me, set to work to wind
new motor coil for the mouse mill,
which had worked so very badly all
day that, rather than struggle with it
longer, had determined to sit up all
night and build new "mill."
The cable-house at Santiago is
most lonesome place, particularly at
night; but Spanish sentinel was sup.
posed to pass the door every three
minutes. These poor fellows were
rarely paid and often looked in at the
door to beg cigarette. So when the
outside door opened behind us that
evening, ] supposed the incomer was
the sentinel, and I did not even look
around till au amused voice exclaimed.
saba, senors! Buenos noches!'
A Spanish sentinel begging cigar
cite does not speak in that tone, so
Merode and faced round with q
jump. There stood rather tall, good
looking young fellow, in white duck
suit and white cap, regarding us keen
ly; and step behind him was a typi.
cal Cuban rebel-sombrero, long mus
tachios, broad belt, long boots, revolt
YER and machete.
In an instant Merode was on his
feet aud shouted, "Sentinela!" at
which our unexpected visitors laughed
good-humoredly, aud the Cuban said:
II must beg the Senior Telegrafero
not to distress himself concerning the
worthy sentinel, for that watchful SOL
dier is now lying comfortably on his
back outside, with gag in his mouth,
and his hands are tied to his feet"
swell, who are you, and what do
you want here?" I exclaimed, in Span
isb.
The young man in white duck
laughed. "You are an American; any