CONSTRUCTING THE LINE.
The next day was a day of hard work for the Board of Managers. Mr.
Lyons, who took the greatest interest in the enterprise, got another
operator to take his place at the Hetertown station, and came over to
help the boys.
Under his direction, and with his help, they arranged the instruments
and the batteries, sunk the ground-wires, and, in a general way, put the
office-apparatus in working order. When night came, there were still
some things that remained to be done in the two stations, but the main
part of the office arrangements had been satisfactorily concluded, under
Mr. Lyons's supervision.
Now, it only remained to put up the wire; and this was a piece of work
that interested the whole neighborhood. There had been lookers-on enough
while the instruments were being put in working order, but the general
mind did not comprehend the mechanism and uses of registers and keys and
batteries.
Any one, however, could understand how a telegraphic wire was put up.
And what was more, quite a number of persons thought they knew exactly
how it ought to be put up, and made no scruple of saying so.
Tony Kirk was on hand--as it was not turkey season--and he made
himself quite useful. Having had some experience in working under
surveyors, he gave the boys a good deal of valuable advice, and, what
was of quite as much service, he proved very efficient in quieting the
zeal of some ambitious, but undesirable, volunteer assistants.
Certain straight pine-trees, at suitable distances from each other, and,
as nearly as possible, on a right line between the two cabins, were
selected as poles, and their tops were cut off about twenty-five feet
from the ground. All trees and branches that would be apt to interfere
with the wires were cut down, out of the way.
At one time--for this matter of putting up the wire occupied several
days--there were ten or twelve negro men engaged in cutting down trees,
and in topping and trimming telegraph poles.
Each one of these men received forty cents per day from the company, and
found themselves. It is probable that if the Board had chosen to pay but
twenty cents, there would have been quite as many laborers, for this was
novel and very interesting work, and several farm-hands threw up their
situations for a day or two and came over to "cut fur de telegraph."
When the poles were all ready on each side of the creek, the insulators,
or glass knobs, to which the wires were to be attached, were to be
fastened to them, a foot or two from the top.
This was to be done under Harry's direction, who had studied up the
theory of the operation from his books and under Mr. Lyons.
But the actual work proved very difficult. The first few insulators
Harry put up himself. He was a good climber, but not being provided with
the peculiar "climbers" used by the men who put up telegraph wires, he
found it very hard to stay up at the top of a pole after he had got
there, especially as he needed both hands to nail to the tree the wooden
block to which the insulator was attached.
In fact, he made a bad business of it, and the insulators he put up in
this way looked "shackling poorly," to say nothing of his trowsers,
which suffered considerably every time he slipped part way down a pole.
But here Tony Kirk again proved himself a friend in need. He got a
wagon, and drove four miles to a farm-house, where there was a long,
light ladder. This he borrowed, and brought over to the scene of
operation.
This ladder was not quite long enough to reach to the height at which
Harry had fastened his insulators, but it was generally agreed that
there was no real necessity for putting them up so high.
The ladder was arranged by Tony in a very ingenious way. He laid it on
the ground, with the top at the root of the tree to be climbed. Then he
fastened a piece of telegraph wire to one side of the ladder, passed it
loosely around the tree, and fastened it to the other side. Then, as the
ladder was gradually raised, the wire slipped along up the tree, and
when the ladder was in position it could not fall, although it might
shake and totter a little. However, strong arms at the bottom held it
pretty steady, and Harry was enabled to nail on his insulators with
comparative ease, and in a very satisfactory manner.
After a while, Tony took his place, and being a fellow whom it was
almost impossible to tire, he finished the whole business without
assistance.
It may be remarked that when Tony mounted the ladder, he dispensed with
the wire safeguard, depending upon the carefulness of the two negro men
who held the ladder from below.
The next thing was to put up the wire itself, and this was done in
rather a bungling manner, if this wire were compared with that of
ordinary telegraph lines.
It was found quite impossible to stretch the wire tightly between the
poles, as the necessary appliances were wanting.
Various methods of tightening were tried, but none were very successful;
and the wire hung in curves, some greater and some less, between the
poles.
But what did it matter? There was plenty of wire, and the wind had not
much chance to blow it about, as it was protected by the neighboring
treetops.
There was no trouble in carrying the wire over the creek, as the bridge
was very near, and as trees close to each bank had been chosen for
poles, and as the creek was not very wide, the wire approached nearer to
a straight line where it passed over the water than it did anywhere
else.
At last all was finished. The "main line" wire was attached to the
copper office-wire. The batteries were charged, the register was
arranged with its paper strip, and everything was ready for the
transmission of messages across Crooked Creek.
At least, the Board hoped that everything was ready. It could not be
certain until a trial was made.
The trial was made, and everybody in the neighborhood, who could get
away from home came to see it made.
Harry was at the instrument on the Akeville side, and Mr. Lyons (the
second operator of the company had not been appointed) attended to the
other end of the line, taking his seat at the table in Aunt Judy's
cabin, where Mr. and Mrs. Loudon, Kate, and as many other persons as the
room would hold, were congregated.
As President of the company, Harry claimed the privilege of sending the
first message.
Surrounded by the Board, and a houseful of people besides, he took his
seat at the instrument, and after looking about him to see if everything
was in proper order, he touched the key to "call" the operator at the
other end.
But no answer came. Something was wrong. Harry tried again, but still no
answer. He jumped up and examined the instrument and the battery.
Everybody had something to say, and some advice to give.
Even old "One-eyed Lewston" pushed his way up to Harry, and exclaimed:
"Oh, Mah'sr Harry! Ef you want to grease her, I got some hog's-lard up
dar on dat shelf."
But Harry soon thought he found where the fault lay, and, adjusting a
screw or two, he tried the key again. This time his call was answered.
"Click! click! click! click!" went the instrument.
Wild with excitement, everybody crowded closer to Harry, who, with
somewhat nervous fingers, slowly sent over the line of the Crooked Creek
Telegraph Company its first message.
When received on the other side, and translated from the dots and dashes
of the register, it read thus:
To Kate.--Ho-ow are you?
Directly the answer came swiftly from the practised fingers of Mr.
Lyons:
To Harry.--I am very well.
This message had no sooner been received and announced than Harry,
followed by every one else, rushed out of the house, and there, on the
other side of the creek, he saw his father and mother and Kate and all
the rest hurrying out of Aunt Judy's cabin.
Mr. Loudon waved his hat and shouted; "Hurrah!"
Harry and the Board answered with a wild "Hurrah!"
Then everybody took it up, and the woods rang with, "Hurrah! hurrah!
hurrah!"
The Crooked Creek Telegraph Line was a success.