The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-11-14
AMUSING TELEGRAPH MISTAKE.

the postal telegraph department of he
postCff1ce, but, although most people
nave occasion to send a siXpenny tele-
gram, few people have more than the
vaguest notion as to how that great
branch of the public service is managed.
The conduct of the central telegraph
office (writes one of our correspondents
who has been inquiling into the subject)
is a matter of so much intricacy that no
one could imagine it who has not ac-
tually seen the details of it's workings
The employees in the service Of the
office amount to about 5000; they consist
of men clerks, women clerks, and mes
sengers. To see how they live, it is
enough to say that men clerks receive
somewhere about 9150 year, more or
less-nOt SO bad in these days. Women
get less, but still their posts are relative
ly quite as desirable. Indeed, there are
hun dreds of promising girls who are now
in special training for postoffice eXamina..
lions.
1t is interesting to note the sums which
these busy workers spend annually in
food. The office provides tea gratis-so
1 Understandable Of this the annual
cost is only $4,000 a year for $500 peo-
pie. This is truly marvellous, and
amounts to about a half-penny head
per day. But tea and bread and butter
are not expensive articles.
But at their midday dinner these good
folk naturally want something more solid
They pay for it themselves, but it is all
done an cooperative lines, and so comes
in very cheap, though, compared to the
tea rather lavish. The sum spent per
annum is e25Oo0, which makes e5 per
head, or about sgd each day What they
get for that modest sum I am not able
to say, but there were no complaints.
AS to periods when business is most
pressing. l hear they come just before
the Derby and the other big racing fix
lures. But the record of overpressue oc-
Cured just before the Diamond Jub lee
day. when something like 100000 mes
sages had to be dealt with. However,
the average daily number of London tel
egrams is from $4,000 to $4,000.
For more figures, if anyone can care
for them, it seems there are altogether
80 Geo miles of line, 5000 miles of wire,
1856 cables. between coo and 10,CO1 Offices
800 of them in London-and between 26,-
600 and $1,000 instruments, which can do
600 messages in minute: while single
Wheatstone tranSm4,.er will send from
300 to 400 words minute.
Now, as to organization With the ex-
ception of the stock exchange, which
it's separate communication with the pro-
vincial exchanges it is the rule for all
office which thus forms a transmitting
center. This rule applies absolutely TO
London district messages, because ere
is not enough business between any two
rate wire between them. Thus. if a
message has been sent from the Ele-
plant and Castle to Kilburn, it would
either be wired to the central office and
or both portions of it's journey by pneu-
matte tube.
These tubes number something like 40
in all, and provide a very speedy means
of transit, the pace being about 10 miles
per hour, and the time required fo- re-
copying the message being thus econo-
mixed. They are worked by compressed
air. which IS pumped in by powerful
steam engine.
In cases of a telegram dispatched be-
tween two towns like. we will say,
York and Leeds, it is obviously cOmDli-
eating matters to send it round by way
of London, because there are numerous
wires between the two cities which can
carry it direct. But in majority OF
tween Dover and Yarmouth it vastly
simplifies matters to utilize the central
office in London. London possesses d.
rect communication with nearly all coun-
towns like Manchester and Bradford. ana
messages directed to small out-of-the-
way country places are transmitted to
the nearest head office and thence redi-
rected. The same method holds with re-
gard to continental capitals, most OF
which are directly connected with Lcn-
don. Some curious mistakes arc Oh rec-
ord.
A message recently. occupied a week in
travelling from Leeds to small town
fifty miles off. Expostulations led to
a perfect bundle of documents, when the
fault was explained and regretted. ''But
aren't you going to return me my six
pence?' This request produced second
bundle, after which the sixpence was
duly paid over.
A gentleman named Lionel was asked
to go to meet his son William on his
coming home from school,. He wired:
Cannot meet Bill. Due 1:5O.-L." On
delivery it read. Cannot meet bill due
150e." Result, a domestic panic.
Another who was stopping in town met
a Frenchman named Abel who was well
known to his family. He sent message
to say: 81 am STAYING at the Cecil with
M. Abel" What his wife read was: II
am staying at the Cecil with Mabel"
Some explanation was afterwards neces-
sary. ss.a+,ss- 80 &