The age-herald., 1898-07-31
THE sUEz CANAL SIGNAL SYSTEM
The Devices, Save in Exceptional Cases,
 Works Perfectly,

From the New Haven Register.
 In the large office at Terreplein there is almost perfect silence, though the em- ployes are working steadily, each at his especial task Sometimes there are as many as forty ships in the canal at one time, and the slightest mistake in signalling between the stations might lead to serious conse- quences. All these vese whether they are in the narrowest cutting, whether they are moving along at full steam through the twenty-three miles of deep water in the Great Bitter Lakes or whether they are leaving the canal at Port Said, are under the direction of the man who sits at his desk in the office at Terreplein.
 The method of working the canal is in- genious, yet comparatively simple. At one side of the room against the wall is a mar row shelf along which runs a groove. At intervals this groove has deep recesses, which in two places are much larger than they are elsewhere. The groove repre- sents the canal and the receSSeS the sid ings the two large ones being the Great Bitter Lakes and Lake Timsah. When a vessel has been sdgnalled and is about to enter the canal-at the Suez end, for eX- ample-a toy boat or model about four inches long is chosen to represent her. group of these little models stand ready near the model canal, and each one is furnished with a flag to denote its natlon- ality The English flag is naturally the predominating ensign, though all countries are provided for. As the real steamer ap- breaches and her name becomes known it is written on a slip of paper and placed on the toy boat. The number of ships ac- tuay in the canal can thus be seen at a glance, and also the exact positions in which they are situated, for, as the tele- graphic signals give notice of each vessels progress her toy representative is moved along, placed on a siding or shown cross ing one of the lakes. Signals are sent from this office to the various "gares, or sta- tions, naming the siding at which each ship must stop and wait to let another pass it. The official on duty moves the models according to his dispatches, and when two vessels going in opposite directions are both nearing the same siding he warns their pilots by means of the signal balls and flags at each station, which he con trols from the office, and indicates which of the two is to give way 10 the other.
 The arrangement, except in the case of occasional accident, works perfectly The clerk can tell in a moment the name. na- tionality, tonnage, draught and precise po sition of every ship in the canal; he knows who her pilot is, how fast she is moving, her breadth of beam and various other details, and he has absolute control of her every movement. Most of the Suez pilots are of Greek origin, though Engishmen and men of other nationalties are occas- ionally met The pilots chief duty is to prescribe the rate of speed, as the officers of a vessel would have really no difficulty in taking her through the canal without guidance. In the narrow cuts the speed is limited to six miles an hour, but vessels may proceed much faster in the lake sec tions. Two pilots are always employed, for one goes off and a second comes on at 1s- mailia, on Lake Timsah