Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1900-04-20
HAS 55I MILES OF WIRE.
R.p.d Communication Attending American
Occupation Of Philippines.
Excellent Work by the q. \. signal
Corps Telegraph aud Gable
Lines Proposed,

Manila. March lj.-Correspondence OF
the Associated Press.--Ihe Signal
Corps of our army in the Philippines,
Colonel Allen at present commanding.
have In operation today 1901 miles of
Wire IN LuzOn and the Nisayan Islands.
They have established 100 telegraph
offices and with "a total muster Of 55l
men aud n officers this department
handles l3j.00l messages q month, the
messages containing from twenty TO "a
thousand words each, Every officer on
the system receives daily az IL a. m.
the official time from Manila.
This 1851 miles OF wire was first laid
In the wake OF our advancing soldiers,
thus keeping our firing line in commu-
nicaton with corps headquarters IN
Manila. Then. when time permitted,
the light copper wire used Tor quick
running during marches and fighting
was replaced by an iron Wire on tenn
p0raTy poles and eventually this Sec
ond wire was replaced by heavy iron
wire well strung on poles Thus the
1851 miles of wire has actually been
laid three times our army uu July 81,
uf last year had but l2s miles of wire
in operation and during the months
of August, September. October and No
Vembpr. 800 more miles We're added 20
this original 100 During December
1899, the signal corps SET up il5 miles
OF wire, during January 1900 io2 miles
and during February ZSj miles. these
figures giving the total distance in
operation today The central Office OF
this entire system Is 1f Coure 10 Manila.
where eight trunk lines converge and
preparations are making 90 receive four
more trunk lines this month
There is "a commercial cable from
Manila TO lloIlo ON Pauay, from ll0ilo
tO Nggr0s island, and from Ncgros 90
the island of Cebu Our wires in these
Visayan islands amount 90 100 miles.
From lloil0 We have "a line 90 Caplz
through the interior and then 20 lloilO.
on NegrOs We have lines north and
south 60 Manalpa and Jamanilan re-
spectivoly on Cebu We have q line
from Cobu. the capital TO the interior
of the town of karkat
Not far from Cebu are the islands OF
Samar and Leyte. recently occupied by
the Forty-third under Colonel Murray;
these latter islands win be placed Zoo
communication with Manila by rum
ming a cable from Cebu to the island of
Bohul. then O land wire across B1hul
again a cable Co Leyte and land wires
90 the principal towns thereon. From
Leyte the lire win get o Samar by ca-
bic across the narrow straits of san
Juanlto ana in Samar 70 win run as
far north as the town of CalbayOg
This new branch viii De about go miles
long.
with the idea OF eventually placing
the island of Mindanao in c0mmunica-
ton with the corps headquarters in
Manila. "a cable viii boz laid from the
southern end of Ccbu island to the
northern shore OF Mlnianao. From the
landing point ON Mindanao wires VIII
be run Go Couabatto. Ilhgan. Mlumio
and Ndkai8lar bay This projection
will require about two hundred more
miles Of Wire.
There ere 1851 miles Of wire on Lu-
ION and the island is thoroughly well
covered From The twelve trunk lines
there are many omihc3tlOus running
into practically every town where we
have garrisOns Going south from Ma
nila our lines enter wei into Taybas
and Laguna provinces. and this SOUTH
ern lire win be soon extended through
the Camarines provinces north and
south and into Nucya Caceres Albay
Legaspi and SOrsOgon on the southern
end of Luzon From Manila north
the long lire up the Cugayan valley viii
soon be completed aud then Apart on
the extreme northern coast of Luzon
win Doe in communication. Another lire
up the western coast OF the island ale
ready extends as FAR north as the town
of Lacag.
In Manila itself the signal corps oper-
ate o local system OF wires for the use
OF the several governmental depart
meuts here located as well as an Of
fetal telephone system
The signal corps IN mad and rs still
having much difficulty ia securing good
telegraph operators. "A good operator
can DO pretty wen az home, ana this
service in the Philippines BIS not at
tractiyc enough to draw good men from
good positions IN the United States.