Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-07-14
DURING A PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
The Credit is Said to Belong to a
Washington Man.
HOW IT ALL CAME ABOUT

| since left the ranks of the active teleg-
| raphers. but during his connection with
| the service he had some very interesting
| experiences.
| 1t was but a short time after the compile
ton of the telegraph line between Wash
| ington. D. c., and Philadelphia that Mr..
| Larcome. then a school teacher in a small
town in New Jersey. went one Saturday to
| the latter city to examine what he had
short time before heard OF and which he
| looked upon as a novelty-a telegraphic in
| strument.
This novelty was at the office of Mr..
j. d. Reid. a warm personal friend of Prof.
| Morse, the inventor of the telegraph. and
| who had been appointed general superin-
| tendent of all the lines that might be con-
| structed between Philadelphia and Pitts
| burg. 1t was but a brief space of time until
| MIR. Larcome became Intensely interested
| in the subject of biography, which mean
while had been explained 10 hum by Mr..
| Reid, and his interest became so evident
| that Mr.. Reid asked his visitor to resign
the position held by him in the New Jer-
sey town. and take service with the tele-
| graph company After some further con-
versation along the same line. Mr.. Larcome
decided to accept Mr.. Reids offer, and dur
ing the same day learned to operate the in
| Strument to certain extent.
| AT this time there was a single wire ex-
tending from Philadelphia to Lancaster,
| Pa. and week from the day Mr.. Reid
| held the conversation above referred to with
| Mr.. Larcome the latter was sent to Lam
| caster to take charge of the office in that
| place Mr.. Larcome remained at Lancaster
| until the telegraph wire Cfor there was but
| one wire between any two cities connected
| by that means in those days. was extended
to Pittsburg. Soon after the wire was run
| into Pittsburg there occurred an incident
| wt.ch illustrates that the rivalry between
| papers and associations for news was
keen then as now, and that means were
resorted to sometimes to beat the other
| fellow that would be severely condemned at
| the present day, especially by the party
| who got beat. In 1919 Pennsylvania was
regarded as the pivotal state so far the
| presidential election of that year was con-
| cerned, and the remark was widely quoted
| that went Pennsylvania 50 would go
| the Union, there beEg at that time an cleo
| ton in October, when state officers were
| chosen, and another every four years in
| November, when the President of the
| United States was voted for. The cam
| paign in that state had been conducted with
| great zeal and energy by both the WING and
| the democratic parties, and many big papers
| had Joined or the other of two news
associations. which had made arrangements
| to collect the election returns and bulletin
| them at the earliest possible moment.
Trouble With the Wires.
| 1t was the good fortune of one of the as
scciadons to secure a lease of the wire be-
tween Philadelphia and Pittsburg for sew
|
OH that day and for some three days suhse-
quent to that event for both the October
and November occasions. Their comped-
| tors were intensely angered over the occur
renee, and was soon developed, devised
| plans by which they hoped to cIrcumvent
| their rivals, and bring Their enterprise to
naught. Anticipating trouble. General Su-
perintendent Reid ordered Mr.. Larcome to
| proceed to the mountain region and look
| out for trouble that might occur to the
1 x1rir On, dow nff he DOT alsa ala
| Mr.. Larcome was in the Bedford office
| awaiting developments. Every hing worked
| nicely until about 3 o'clock in the after
noon, when suddenly the armature dropped,
| indicating that the circuit had failed, and
| that there was something wrong with the
wire west of that point. Mr.. Larcome at
once called up the Philadelphia Office. in
| formed the officials there of what had oc-
| CURED and was instructed to locate the
| trouble. horse was mounted. and after
| travelling for about ten miles Mr.. Larcome
| reached a lonely spot where pole had been
| cut down, throwing the wire to the groun.i.
Mr. Larcome repaired the break as best he
| could using a forked stick substitute
| for a pole for the time being, and until the
regular repairer could attend to the matter
| on the following day. Philadelphia was
again called up and informed that COM
| munication with Pittsburg had been re-es-
| tablished. Hardly. however, had the good
| news been received by Mr.. Reid than Pitts
burg was again cut off of the wire. Again
| Mr. Larcome mounted his horse, and after
travelling another ten miles. found a second
| pole cut down and the wire lying on the
ground. This break was repaired as the
first had been, and for second time Phila-
| delphia and Pittsburg were again in COM
| munication. Still another fallen pole was
found by Mr. Larcome at third place
| about ten miles further west, and like the
| other was mended in a similar manner.
After this there was no further trouble and
| the officials arrived at the conclusion that
| the person who had cut their line had de-
| ci0pd he he wi
| for election return purposes, and that ii was
unnecessary for him to cut down any more
poles in order to accomplish the end he had
| in view.
Election News by Wire.
Nightfall found Mr.. Larcome in a little
town on top of the Allegheny mountains.
where the election excitement was at a
high pitch. He was determined to hear
the election returns as quickly as he could,
and he secured the consent of the proprie-
tor Of the hotel where he stopped for the
night to let him run wire into his recep-
ton room. To this he attached small
magnet he had brought with him, and IN
due time the returns began to pass through
the improvised office. As he heard the
news he told it to the assembled crowd OF
farmers and townSpeople, and along to-
ward midnight able to inform his au-
dience that the wings had carried Pennsyi-
vania. As the democrats had invariab y
carried the state ever since any of those
present could remember there was dispo-
sit:on to dsbelieve what Mr.. Larcome had
stated about the returns Of the evening.
but when the official vote was published.
which was a day or two later, 1t was
found that he had been entirely correct IN
his statements relative thereto.
Up to this period. and. indeed, until Mr..
Larcome had demonstrated the feasibility
of taking messages from the wire by sound,
the orders of the company were inflexib!e
that the dots and dashes made by the in
strument under the Morse code must be re-
corded and the record preserved. OF course,
it took several years to secure the general
adoption of the system of taking news by
sound, and 1t was not until the outbreak OF
the civil war that 1t became a regular part
Of the Geographic system
During the Civil War.
A year or two before the beginning of
that struggle Mr.. Larcome accepted posi- |
ton on the Memphis and Charleston rail- |
way as train dispatcher, and was located
at Huntsville. Ala. where he rose in a short |
time to be assistant superintendent Of the |
entire system. He was unflinching |
Union man, and although this fact was well |
known to the confederate authorities thew /