The commercial telegraph business of the Dominion is carried on, and
has been for many years, by the Great North-Western, the Canadian
Pacific and the Western Union Telegraph Companies--the latter in New
Brunswick and Nova Scotia.
The Anglo-American Telegraph Company has the monopoly in Prince Edward
Island and Newfoundland.
The Canadian Government Telegraphs operate in territory where it would
not be profitable for commercial telegraph companies to enter. The
competing companies each get a fair share of patronage by exercising
care and promptitude in handling the business placed in their hands.
The Canadian public have every reason to feel satisfied with the
telegraphic facilities provided by these companies and can take pride
in the fact that no better exists anywhere, or in any country.
The rates are reasonable when the great distances covered are taken
into account.
It is gratifying to know that they are doing a thriving business, every
year showing better results, all sharing in the universal prosperity
felt throughout the country now and for years gone by.
The following sketches of prominent and well-known telegraph men,
some of whom are living, and others who have passed away, will be of
interest to many Canadian readers.
Preceding these brief portraitures are a few reminiscent tales recalled
at random, chiefly Canadian incidents of “days that are gone.”
_The Fall of Sebastopol._
I was in the service of the Montreal Telegraph Company at the head
office in Montreal. One day the Superintendent summoned me to his
presence. He directed me to proceed at once to Sherbrooke as the
operator in charge there was very sick and unable to discharge his
duties.
I left by the first train and reached my destination the same evening.
On arrival I noticed a great crowd of people awaiting the train.
Something unusual must have happened surely.
I immediately reported myself to the station master, and was
considerably astonished when he seized me by the shoulder, rushed me
across the passage to the telegraph office, ordered me to call up
Montreal and enquire if the rumored fall of Sebastopol was true. This
I did and found the report confirmed. This was on the 20th day of
September, 1855. A Cunard steamer arrived at Halifax that afternoon
bringing the news which was flashed over the wires by the Associated
Press.
Montreal sent a full report, which came in on the old style recording
instrument. A newspaper man came in and volunteered to write it down as
I read it off the paper reel. Each sheet when finished was read aloud
to the crowd outside. The despatch ended and the people dispersed.
Next evening the event was celebrated by illuminations, bonfires, _feu
de joies_, etc. The local militia turned out _en masse_, headed by
Captain Ibbotson, loyal and patriotic songs sung, and universal joy was
manifested by all.
At that period the town was largely populated by English railway men
and mechanics who had been brought here by the Grand Trunk Railway
Company when the road opened up a short time before. There was also a
considerable number of retired naval and military veterans in the town
and neighborhood, some of whom had fought under Nelson and Wellington.
All of these took a keen interest in the fate of the British army in
the Crimea, and were naturally overjoyed at the defeat of the enemy and
of the victory achieved.
Sebastopol fell on Sept. 8, 1855, and the war was virtually ended.
Montreal, Toronto and every town and village in Canada celebrated the
event with the greatest delight, but it is safe to say that nowhere was
there more hearty rejoicing than in the capital city of the Eastern
Townships on the occasion referred to.
_How a Duel was Prevented._
One day during the winter 1856 I received a telegram from Richmond, a
station on the Grand Trunk Railway, about 25 miles distant, addressed
to the High Constable at Sherbrooke to the effect that a party of
gentlemen were on the southbound train with the object of fighting
a duel when the American frontier was reached, the party consisting
of the principals, seconds and surgeons, and to have the whole party
arrested.
Seeing the importance of the message due measures were taken to have
it delivered promptly. The minions of the law were duly on hand and
secured their prey on the arrival of the train. The party were much
surprised, as they had taken every precaution to keep the affair a
profound secret and were ignorant as to how the matter had leaked out.
All were placed under arrest and escorted to the Magog House. They had
come from Quebec. The nature of the quarrel I am unable to say.
They were brought before a magistrate and admitted the object of
their journey, when each and severally were released on their own
recognances. All promised to abandon their evil intentions and return
to the ancient capital forthwith.
Having nothing special to interest them for a time they adjourned to
the bar-room of that famous hostlery, then carried on by Mr. Cheney,
the flowing bowl passed round with the result that a reconcilation was
effected, and the rest of the evening spent in harmony and good feeling.
The only one who refused to come to terms of amity was one of the
sawbones of the party! He would have none of it.
They departed from Sherbrooke the following day, if not sadder, at
least, wiser men.
_Reading by Sound._
In the early days of telegraphy I was employed at an important station
on the Grand Trunk Railway as commercial and railway operator. One
night, after a busy day’s labor, I was preparing to leave when I
overheard the office call sounded from the relay, the local battery
having been disconnected, as was then the custom when leaving for the
night, for economical reasons. I answered the call and ventured to
receive the message from the sound of the relay, and in this found no
difficulty whatever.
Whilst thus engaged the locomotive foreman stepped in. Singular enough,
the communication was for him. He was rather astonished at my receiving
a message in this fashion and expressed his surprise. He spoke to
others about it, and the affair in time reached the ears of the Railway
Telegraph Superintendent, who, thereupon, called me up on the wire and
gave me a severe reprimand. A “23” or circular was sent immediately
thereafter to the effect that it had come to his knowledge that certain
operators were in the habit of reading by sound instead of from the
register, with which all stations were provided, and warning all to
desist from this dangerous practice.
The modern operator will be inclined to smile at this bit of ancient
history.
In no very long time, after the custom became general in both railway
and commercial telegraphy, the Recording instrument, upon the
perfecting of which Professor Morse had spent so much time and labor,
was abandoned, and the more convenient method of reading by sound
substituted.
_A Cheeky Operator._
My predecessor at a certain station on the Grand Trunk Railway vacated
his position rather suddenly by reason of the following colloquy, and
against whom many and frequent complaints had been made.
On one occasion the General Manager happened to step off the train to
interview the station master. Amongst other subjects spoken of was the
troublesome operator. He immediately stepped across the passage to have
audience with the obnoxious telegrapher.
In a very impressive tone he said, “Young man, I hear a great many
complaints against you. You had better be careful or I shall have you
discharged.”
The operator not knowing the General Manager from Adam, never having
seen him before, looked at him in surprise, and said, “Who in the blank
are you, anyway?”
“I am Mr. Bidder. Be careful, sir.”
“I don’t care a blank whether you are Mr. Bidder or Mr. Auctioneer,”
turned on his heel and walked away.
It may be explained that, although doing railway telegraph work, he was
actually employed by the telegraph company, and believed the railway
company had nothing to do with him, in this he was mistaken. This
interview more than confirmed the numerous complaints, and the services
of the youth were immediately dispensed with.
Mr. S. P. Bidder was the first General Manager of the Grand Trunk
Railway of Canada.
_All Fools’ Day Incident._
In the year 1855, when the Government of Canada was located at Quebec,
a Militia Bill was passed, dividing the militia into active and
sedentary, the first to consist of volunteer troops of various grades
and classes. Provision was made for dividing the country into military
districts, regimental divisions and battalion divisions, with officers
for each. This was the first step towards the organization of a regular
volunteer force in Canada.
At Sherbrooke there was considerable political wire-pulling on behalf
of those who were ambitious of being appointed as officers of the
company to be raised at that place. One individual claimed that he was
certain of getting command of the new company and ridiculed the idea of
any one else having the slightest chance of getting the appointment.
This rather nettled one or two who were equally ambitious for the
honor, and a conspiracy was entered into to perpetrate a practical joke
at his expense.
A certain gentleman called at the telegraph office and requested the
favor of a telegraph blank and envelope, explaining the purpose for
which they were intended. I hesitated over the matter, but was assured
he would be responsible should any trouble arise. I reluctantly
consented. The result was a message was concocted as coming from the
Militia Department at Quebec to the effect that the Department were
pleased to inform the recipient that he had been appointed to the
command of the company at Sherbrooke and that his commission for same
would be duly forwarded by mail.
The victim was elated over the psuedo despatch and took special pains
to show it to those who doubted his success.
One person, to whom he confided the contents to and who was one of
the conspirators, doubted its being genuine, remarking, the Militia
Department was not likely to inform appointees by telegraph. He thought
it a joke, and come to think of it, this was April Fool Day. This led
the irate individual to me, when he desired to be informed, when the
message was received, handing to me the bogus telegram. I, of course,
felt in a very awkward position. I scanned it over for a minute and
told him the message had not come through my office. He thereupon went
off like a shot in a very dangerous mood.
He wrote the Superintendent enclosing the alleged telegram and
threatened an immediate action against the Company for allowing its
property to be the medium of such a trick as was the one complained of.
I was in a rather bad fix. I explained the whole matter as it
occurred. The instigator of the hoax came to my rescue and assumed all
responsibility; the threatened action was not taken and the matter
was soon forgotten, but a new rule was embodied in the Company’s
instruction book to agents and operators forbidding inside blanks to be
allowed to go out of the office under any pretense whatever, except on
the business of the Company. This rule is still in force.
The one actually appointed to command the Company was the originator of
the joke herein related.
_An Angry Frenchman._
One day the hired man of the village curé handed me a sealed letter and
twenty-five cents, upon receiving which I tore open the envelope in
order to count the words in the message before transmission.
I had no sooner done this when an angry cry proceeded from the throat
of Jean Baptiste, who held up his hands, and, with a look of terror in
his face, told me in broken English that it was not for me, but for the
priest at St. Hyacinthe. Had there not been a high counter between us,
it might have gone hard with me.
I took in the situation, however, politely begged pardon, I had made a
mistake, and put the contents in a fresh envelope, readdressed it and
thrust the missive into a box under the counter, the receptacle for the
paper from the recording instrument on which messages were received,
and then gave the key a few taps, all this being within the purview of
the anxious messenger.
I now told him it was all right, the message had gone. He then departed
with a smile of satisfaction on his face and a courteous _remerci
monsieur_.
Shortly after I resurrected the message and sent it over the wire in
the orthodox fashion.
The little trick practiced and the ignorance shown may seem like
romancing, but at that date even many well-informed persons on other
subjects were quite as ignorant as this simple servant man of the
_modus operandi_ of electric telegraphy at that period.
_Pirating a Press Despatch._
A certain well-known colonel of militia in Montreal, now deceased,
who had been in the telegraph service in his boyhood and an expert
operator, told me the story I am about to relate illustrative of
primitive telegraph days.
We were swapping old-time telegraph stories when he exchanged
the following: He was in the employ of the old British American
Telegraph Company. One day, the wires down, which happened too often,
unfortunately, Bob having nothing to occupy his time, sauntered over
to the vicinity of the Montreal Telegraph Company, on St. Sacrament
Street. It was with a feeling of envy he heard the busy ticking of the
instruments there when those of his Company were dead as a door nail.
He lingered for a moment or two beneath the office window, which was
only a few feet above; it was in summer and the windows were all open
and he could plainly deciper everything passing over the wire. One item
of some importance attracted his attention when the idea struck him
he had better take it down. He took his pencil and note-book, copied
the item, went back to his office, had it manifolded and distributed
to the press. Later on the same was sent out by the other Company,
but in a more leisurely fashion; this was refused, on the ground that
it was already received over the wires of the British American; this
caused much mortification to the older Company to be beaten by their
insignificant rival.
Reading by sound of the instrument was not a common occurrence then,
and especially on the public highway.
The Montreal Company never became aware of the trick that was played
upon them.
_The Queen’s Message._
When in August, 1858, the Atlantic cable had been successfully laid,
uniting two continents telegraphically, there was universal rejoicing.
The Queen sent a congratulatory message to “Her Good Friend,” the
President of the United States, to which a suitable reply was returned.
The brevity of the Queen’s message was somewhat disappointing compared
with the more lengthy reply of the President, and many unfavorable
comments were made in the press and in conversation.
However, it was afterwards learned that only a portion of the
communication had been received owing to a temporary interruption of
the cable. When at last the completed message came there was no reason
for disappointment, and general satisfaction was evinced.
Small pieces of the unused cable of about an inch to two or three
inches in length mounted with brass or silver ferrules were sold on the
street by speculators from 25 cents to a dollar each. The event was
celebrated with great éclat on both sides of the Atlantic.
Banners were displayed with numerous devices and quotations from
Scripture such as, “Their line is gone out through all the earth and
their words to the end of the world,” and from Shakespeare, “I will put
a girdle round the earth in forty minutes.”
There were torchlight processions, displays of fireworks,
illuminations, etc., etc., together with addresses by distinguished men
in honor of the event. I refer more particularly to Ogdensburg, N.Y.,
where I was then situated as operator and received the Queen’s message
over the wire.
The rejoicing unfortunately was somewhat premature.
After working more or less imperfectly for three weeks, the cable gave
out completely on the 1st of September after the transmission of 730
messages had been effected.
The cable operator at Heart’s Content, Newfoundland, named De Sauty,
sent daily bulletins to the press holding out strong hopes for the
restoration of the interrupted communication, but these hopes were not
realized. The bulletins ceased and he disappeared and was never heard
of again, at least by the public.
It is in allusion to this mysterious individual that Dr. Oliver Wendell
Holmes wrote the following humorous lines, and in fine satirical vein
thought that with a Latin tutor and a professor of chemistry the
educated classes would understand it.