New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1908-08-12
THE YOUNG
TELEGRAPHER.

+ I T !
[Original.l
Marion of the Revolutionary war
and Morgan of the civil war occupy
similar positions in history. General
John Morgan started on his military
career as commander of a company of
young Confederates and operated al
ways in the middle esouthwest. His
career was full of daring. He would
approach a Union picket, assuming to
be Federal officer. reprimand him
for some negligence, get possession of
his musket and thus capture single
handed whole picket post.
1t was during the campaign of Gen
eral Halleck against Quaker guns at
Corinth that Morgan was operating in
Halleck's rear in western Tennessee,
harassing lines of communication.
This is a very important service. An
army must be fed. That means that
the avenues of communication must be
kept open and the supplies passing
] over them to the men at the front
| must be protected. In this work an
i important feature to the protecting
| force was the telegraph.
/ The telegraph Office at the town of
P. station on the railroad supply
/ ing the army before Corinth, was in
/ charge of Tom Venable, who lived
with his family on the upper floor Of
! the two story station building, the tele.
graph and ticket office being below.
One night when Venable was in his
Office sending the dispatches necessary
/ to get heavy tran load Of supplies
south he heard tap on the window
/ pane. Looking up, there stood man
! in Confederate uniform covering him
with the muzzle of his pistol. The Off
Ger had tapped with the pistol to at
tract Venable's attention and ordered
him to throw up the sash. Venable
did so, and the officer climbed in at the
window.
i ''I'm John Morgan he said
Morgan usually declared himself in
this fashion It was the best possible
way Of striking an enemy with terror.
/ Meanwhile the station was surround
ed by Confederate cavalrymen. Nor
gan put his own telegrapher at the key,
who began to telegraph the train Ven
able had been in communication with.
The conductor had been warned that
the Confederates were making raid
, in the region and was waiting to be
assured that it was safe to advance
Morgan's telegrapher sent a dispatch
that Morgan had gone off in an easter.
ly direction and an order signed by q
Union commander for the train tt
come on.
Now, there is a hero to this story
though he is asleep in his bed above
the telegraph Office. But a clatter be
meath awakes him. Being not ovel
thirteen years old, he doesn't awake ii
: a hurry, but his mother helps him by
telling him that the station is in pos
: session Of the dreaded Morgan. Jim
ME venable was of scientific MIND
! and had already a miniature telegraph
: outfit in his own little room. His cir
! cult was but ten feet and was confined
to the room, but it was big enough t.
: play with, and he knew the dot AM
. line alphabet His father was a pris
: oner downstairs, but he heard hi
: mother say that doubtless Morgan hat
: captured the telegraph in order to de
coy train into a trap and destroy tn
supplies intended for the Union army.
Jimmie got an idea. The TELEGRAPH
: wires passed within ten feet of hi
:, window before entering the Office be
= low. He told his mother what he II
s. tended to do, and she helped him. H
took his play wire, tied hairbrush t
one end of it, threw it over the lin
) wire and completed his circuit
v means of lead pipe extending to th
e ground. 1t didn't make a very goo
q connection, but it sufficed. He didn
% know the calls of stations nor wha
q station to call. He waited till ther
n was comparative quiet below, the
q clicked: "P station. Morgan here
" This he repeated several times. 1t wa
- heard at several stations up the roat
] and the conductor of the train was az
% vised of it at once.
,s One man heard it for whom it VIZ
20 not intended. That was the Confedera
operating in the Office below Jimmie
ROOM He was sitting near the Ike