Nebraska Newspapers

    THE OMAHA DAILY BEE : IWRSDA'Y , SEl'TEMNEll To , 181)2-'TWELVE ) PAGES ,
Is the torr of how ho telegraphed ono on oc-
CMloti rvlthnut Instruments.
In July , 180.3 , ho hpcatno serlnuslv sick ns
tbo result of cxpoiurcs. In October , It ft ! ,
ho was mndo superintendent uf the Depart
ment of'i'cnnc.sico with the tank of t'jptnm
nnd niklst&nt nunrjormnster. Mlur his
Jurisdiction WHS oxtunued to Nou Orleans
nnd nlone tno gulf. At tna close of iho wnr
ho assisted in repairing dnmagnt to Bouttiern
linos. Ho nnd hi * sucwssur In ihn Don-
imrtmenl of the Gulf nlono thus restored
: ilKi ( miles of southern telegraphs. Captnln
fuller Is said to hnvn conRtruclcd ns many
miles of telegraph during the wnr as nny
man onga.'Cd In the wont , and his si'rvlro
hai received the most II ittering encomiums.
MAKINO IMSTOKV.
Iiivalunhto Srrtlri ! nf ilin Corps In .Sa\lng
( Illlclnl ItccoriN.
Novnr In history loft such an abundance
of authentic record of its operations ns the
American rebellion , and this wns largely the
work of the military telegraph corps. ICarly
in the cohlllet operator * and manager * received -
ceivod nn order thai "thb original copy of
every lolugrntn soul by nnv military or olhur
povci-nmont nfllcor must bo retained and
carefully Hind and at the end of ihn month
bo mnllod to the War department nt Wash
ington. "
General Grant objected to giving origlnnU
of his dispatches , and the rule wns not en
forced itgnlnst department roiiimnnders.
The operators rotninod copies , however , nnd
nnd It Is bv vlrtuo of that order that the
Wnr department has been able to publish
volume after volume of nftlclal tnlcgiams
covering cve.ry Imnnrtnnt movement in the
\vnrwlth a fullness novcr betoro possible.
i\iiinpln : t Ailiiptnlilllly ol thn Tulr-
u-rnpli tn ClrriiinstiinrpN
W. II. Wilson was ono of Iho llrst op
erators In the tolcgraohlc service of the army ,
having boon detailed from nn Ohio regiment
for that purpose. Ho was assigned to van-
uus posts in Virginia , nnd was nt Bermuda
Hundred for bomo time. Later ho wan at
tached to General Hancock's headquarters.
Whllo In this position ho was ordered ono
evening to open nn olllco nt n pontoon bridge
across the .lames river , and ho established
himself alii o'clock at night.
Ills ofllco was an empty cracker box stand-
Ill ! ' on cud. His Instrument unil paper were
In ski o , and to use cither ho had to lie Hat on
the ground nnd reach Inside the box to do
his work. His ground wire was Inserted in
a hole tnndo with hU poclict Knife. In this
manner Grant , who had directed the opening
of the ofllcc , was advised for hours of thu
movement * of the army in that vlclnttv.
This Is but a mild sample of the dlflleultios
under which tbo npurutors labored , to sav
nolhliiB about the danger. Wilson was with
General Wright of the Sixth corps when thn
news of Lincoln's assassination was Hashed
over the wiro.
Sr.COND 111)1,1. ) KUV.
Dnrlni ; Oprnitin-H ( ialhrr Ihn I'lrHt Aiilhriu
tic llppcirt Spnl \Vii4lilimton. .
Operators J. II. Nlcholls nnd Ed Couway
lipd n magnificent view of the second battle
of Bull Hun for a couple nf hours and sent
Iho llrst conncctod report received in Wash
ington for a day or t.vo , receiving a well dp-
served compliment from tbo secretary of war.
Alter watching the llht long enough to got
u tolerably clear Idea of the situalion they
rode hack to Fairfax station , when ) 13 , Hose-
water was working the wire with the Wnr
department. An account of iho balllo nnd
the disposition of the union troops as scon by
Nlcholls and Conway was at once tele
graphed to Washington , greatly relieving
the anxiety of the government , ofticinls. The
daring operators again started for the batuo-
tk'ld to gather more Information.
Darkness overtook them , and they wan
dered about all night , avoiding camn fires
nnd pickets n best they could , but having
frcqupjit collisions with trees nnd stumps.
Kany In the morning they neiiroil
Fairfax courthouse and were arrested
by a German plcitot , but were released
by a federal olllccr who was satisfied
of their character. They gathered such in
formation ns they could and started again for
ICosuvvator's ufllco nt Fairfax station. They
had barely reached that point in thy evening
nnd wired their report when iho confederates
were seen getting uncomfortably near.
Then the depot wi.s lircdnndtheoperamrs ,
who had been ordered to remain as long as
possible , pulled out on the last train. The
party Included Klcholls. ConwaHosowater
nnd Flngp , Iho Inner from Burkes station.
An army lolcgrnnber In relating the circum
stance says : "Kosewntor had loft his bag-
uago to the watchful cnro of the enem"
about Mamissas. That enemy , clad In cnr-
potmgs , quillings , blanket clo'ib , anything ,
iwcr.vtlnng , well knew the uti.Uy o'f such
clothing ns Kosow.itcr wns ucciistomea to
adorn his person \\lili.1'
AVANT-COt'KIiit : OF lVIMV5ATIOX.
\n Omaha Hey tit tlu > Ki-iuil In Crusting thu
CUIllllUMlt.
Mr. Frank Len
in o r , secretary
and treasurer of
the Morse Dry
Goods company
of Omn'ia , wns
living In Omaha
in ISW.nndln the
fall of tbat year
entered the ofllco
of the Missouri &
Western T o 1 c-
graph company as
n mosBongor boy. This company had a line
from St. Louis to Omaha and employed ono
operator at this ond. Business was not very
brisk and early in the winter Iho messenger
hey was lot out on the plea that it was
necessary to economize. The operator then
delivered Iho messages himself. *
Inthosummor of IWH the Crolghtnn line
reached Fort Kearney by' an overland route
along the Plntto river , and in the following
winter young Lnhtnor went out us assistant
operator. That was the jumping-off place.
From Kearney westward telegrams were
fcunt by the famous pony express to Mnr.vs-
vlllo. Cat. At distances of tun miles across
the plains were stations with relays of
horses. A rider started out from Kearney at
u pace of ten miles nn hour , At the next
station he throw his snddlebjgH over a fresh
horse- und started out on another ten-
mile race against time. This bo kept
up for ten hours , during which hu used tun
horse * ana covered 100 miles. U now seems
almost incrcillblo that this could have been
Jono day after day , but > > o well had the sp * ed
and ouduranco of man and beasl boon tested
that thu pony express had a lognlar time
table.
table.When
When the war brnko out all thu oftlcar-i at
Fort Kearney with but ono exception sym
pathised with the bouth und thro.itenuii to
decamp with the munitions and other gov
ernment property , which happened to bo of
extraordinary value at lhal tiuui. There
wire rumors of the approach of a body of
Tiixnu rniigoiv , nnd the settler.uboul tha
tort Hocked to it for protection nrmud tviih
Mich guns us they could pick up and nrgan-
licd ; a volunteer company. Among these
who enrolled thmnsi'lvc.s in this nil ) romptu
homo guard was the boyish iiH istnut opera
tor , who bhimldorod a musket to light the
e.xp"eetod Irvadors.
Ono day Judge WnUli , a prominent man In
( hu llttlo siiUloineni ol Kuarnuy City , two
miles wckl of iho tort , catno in uon hastu
wnh the report thnt thn Johnnies were stir : ly
coming , homo distance behind the Judge
rose a cloud of dust , evidently inadn by a
mounted party of roiihlilcnvlilo tizc. it wes
assumed , of course , lhal iho approaching
party \vus a troop uf rebel ciwalry , and
the dlslojnl oftlfciH spiked the gunn with
rat tall Him. The loyal ofllctr , batkcd : by
the BoldTerh nod thn settlers , took coinmund
mid Joli'nnlnt'd thnt the nuppo cd confed
erates should not up allowed in iho forl
without a light. Ono of the oilluors who had
turned traitor was compelled at iho point of
u revolver to go outsldi- , meet the troop and
warn It off. Hu did no ordered und reported
the strangers to have been n body of Indians.
It wus not known where they hud coma
fmm or why , mid iluiro are people wno Mill
believellie. HtriingurH wont rebel * , who loft
quietly for fiiar of putting the disloyal
onicort. ' nvrks In jeopardy At any rule , thu
union people muuo it to warm for the traitors
that they dotorlvd the fort thut nighl and
tlixt l the Bouih , taking u number of ambu
lances and a quantity of other property.
An the telegraph Huu wiu extended 'west
ncrnss the Great Amonnan ilojort , the
Konrnoy operators worn sent out to tnko Iho
ktattons at the front , Young Lchn.ur thus
beonmo nn nvant-cuurlor of fivlilratlon , m.d
he went ns far west ns Horseshoe crcckforty-
( lovon mlles bovond I.nramle. In the Miring
of 18(12 ( , nt the ORO of 10 , ho wont to St. Louis
nnil enlisted In the military rorp under Col
onel 11. C. dowry. Ho served In Missouri
for two jcara , Doing shitted about at fre
quent intervals a < needed.
'J ho plucky lad wns In a country infested
with guerrillas nnd had ranii.v a
dangerous mission to perform. Homo-
limes he was sent out to rcpalrllncs.nnd Ilko
many another telegrapher ho know ho wns
taking his llf.i In hit hands. Men were shot
by sneaking bushwhnckers just In front of
him and just behind him , and ono liitut hu
pulled Into a station to ilnd nine dead section
men Ivinjjon a hand car. Thov were picked
off by guerrillas , und had Just boon brought
in by a fquad nf federals. Many litllo tuads
of union soldiers were loomed In dirt forts
along the Hues of railroad to guard thorn
from raiders , and these northerners , knowIng -
Ing the woods along the Ir.ick to bo Infested
with rebels , olten urged Lehmor to como
Into their defenses , but ho had a duty to per
form and trudged on. His heart was In hU
mou'h , but there wns only ono thing for him
to do nud hn did it as bruvcly as many an
other American boy did his duly. Ho was
novur molested ; und ho accounts for ll on Iho
theory thai thu bushwhackers weronshamed
lo Hri ) on n mere bov.
Anxious relatives llnally secured his trans
fer to Atchlsuti. nnd shortly afterwards , In
July , Iwil , hn ramn to Oniiiha ns operator for
the Pneitlu Telegraph company. Altur serv
ing two yours in that capiclty ho was made
manager of the ofllce , whii'h position ho retained -
tainod until IS * * , whuii hu aoandonod the
business.
i. . .11. IHIIIM. : :
Sliptrli of the District Tplr.gr.ipli Malinger
AVltli Oimilm
L. M. llhosni of
O naha , mat ngor
of iho Amoricon
D strict telegraph ,
liugan his telegraphic -
graphic career
with the Chicago ,
IJ u r 11 u P t o n &
Quliicv railroad
ntChnrlton , lu.,111
ISO" . Ho picket !
up his II rat knowl
edge of the busi
ness whllo acting-as n railioad dork. In
180 ho wonllo Council Bluffs lo : nko Iho
Associated Press report , and three years
later ho wus made manager of tho'onice.
In IbTf hi came to Omaha , nnd after a few
months In .1. ,1. Dickey's ' ofllca ho was ap
pointed manugor for the Atlantic ft Pa
cific. V/ith the exception of a foxy months In
DoQvcr In 18" ( ! , ho remained hero until the
company wns nbsoroed by the Western
Union In 1S7T. After a year in the hotel
business ho hecamo manncor of the Ameil-
rnn Union oHIce. He transferred his sor-
vicei to tlin Western Union in 1SS1 , romain-
Ingits manager until lSS."i , when ho em
barked In the American District Telegraph.
In 1870. according to Mr Hhuom's recollec
tion , there worn lifteen oper-Hors in Omaha ,
and they were uald $100 a month and-10cents
an hour for extra tune. Everything went by
single wire , there being uo duplex or quad-
ruplcx. There were only three wireg to Chicago
cage , and the Western Union had three
west on the Crelghton line.
One of the peculiar phenomena of that ,
time was an electrical storm accompanied by
a line dry snow , which came without warn
ing and rendered the wires usole s for the
time being. Thcrovas a superabundance of
olectricltv , for the switch boards were alire.
Bui llioro ivas uo evidence of lightning nnd
the electricians were puzzled. In 1SS2 this
disturbance lasted four days. U came each
season a few days Inter than in the preceding
year until it ran into the springtime and dis
appeared. It hns since Deen declared that
the phenomenon wns simply the mnnifestn-
tion of a urora borenlis. Dining ono of Ihcso
seasons Chief Onernlor Currv telegraphed
to Chicago without using a batlery.
TirKcuAriiKKs AS PKISONKKS.
ChuriitttcriHtlc Kxiimplrs nl tlio Klslcn or
rupture They I'rei-ly Tiiok.
Frank Drummond was in the Winchester
efllco when .lacksoon undertook lo drive the
federals out of the place and break their
communication with Harper's ferry. Ho
wus nearly oxhausiod from a rush of work
forseveral days and
nights , but re
mained at his key
an hour after tbo
union retreat had
begun. lie saw that
his horse was ready
to mount , nnd sent
his orderlies to join
their rculinents.
Tno rebel yell und
the crack of the
musket ry were
coming lu at the
window. His dts- .1. \ \ novn.
patches were on his person. His hand
was on his inslruinent ready to tear il
from its bold. A moment moro and ho
would bo off. Thnt instant an orderly
rushed In with a teleeram for Harper's
Kerry about reinforcements. With OHO
hand Dru'iimond burned his dispatches , nnd
with the other called for Harper's Ferry.
The operator at that point happened to bu
talking with Washington , und of course wns
blissfully unconscious of that ominous yell
ut Winchester.
Drummond started out to get his horse up
to the door ready for n dush. Some soldier
hail stolen it. Ho rushed back and called
"H. F. " several times without imponse. Ho
snatched up his instrument and sinned
after the lleulng army with the , ! ohnnv Hobs
llrinir down the street aud in hot pursuit.
Ho dashed down n side street oulvlo run Into
a troop of confederate cavalry , und barely
hud lime to smash his Instrument on the
stone pavement before ho was captured. Ho
win sent to Libby with Kernor und after
wards paroled.
M. H. Kornor was stationed at Martins-
burg , W. Va. . when the war broke out. Ho
was urged to Join a rebel company organized
at thai point , hut. being , a unionist , refused
and wan made a prisoner. Throuith the in-
lorcesflon of Hello Uoyd , afterwards u noted
confederate spy , and another ptolly young
woman , ho was released on condition that bo
should return to his olllco and telegraph for
the con federates. The length of such sor-
vlco was not sllpu'aicd. ' and ho soon escaped
to the federal army across thi > Poiomao Tno
rebels olTorea { 1,01)0 ) reward for his capture ,
but ho subsequently returned to the oftico at
Summorvltli * .
A party of confederate cavalry made a
dash Into Summorvlllo and captured the
federal force , including the operator , The
wlru was cut on both sides of thu olllco and
a soldier WHS stationed at the door to keep
ICerner a prisoner. During the excitement ,
however , Kcrnur wranpod his Instrument In
a blanket and passed the guard wilh Iho
statement Hun the Yunlicns hud kept him u
prisoner with Nnnoy Hurt , a phi who hau
guiued rebel guerrilla bands through the
mountains at iho risk of being
snot. Tlio operator mudo a dash
down the road , hoptnir to attuch
hlb Instrument 10 the severed \virn and bond
the now * of the situation to the Union ofll-
ctM' , hut hia irlck wu.s discovered too soon.
Four rnouiui-d mini blurted niter him with
carhltif * und persuaded him to return.
Kcrner was bent to Hello Ulaiul and then
to Ijlbby prison , nnd several months later ho
and other operr.tors were exchanged They
reached Washington nl nluhi nnd wcio re
fused lodging nl ilui St. James hotel because
they looked so shabby. Those men never
received a cent for the tinm ihoy were in iho
bunds nf thu onem.v because there wus no
law providing for sueh payment. Tno first
claim of lhat kind which tno government
paid wus thut of George Al. Hush , who was
captured in the west In the full of ISH3 ,
About one hundred of tlio union operators
were taken prisoners and sent to rebel pens.
Most of thnm were paroled or exchanged ,
but fcnmo buffered from hunger nnd iilmmno
and hove niivor recovered from thuterrlblo
hardship ) of their prison llfo , No-HI of thuie
bus received a pension or beer , permitted to
outer one of the homos provided by the nation
for its disabled soldiers aim sailors , who were
no n ore patriotic , no biaver , no grander In
achievement than the keepers of the mystic ,
omnipresent electric current.
J , A. Ftagtr was In charge of on ofllco nt
Uurku' * , lu Virginia ; not new * of u party
of robot rnldert nppioichlnc : . I In wlrad two
I union trnitii down Urn railroad , enabling
thbni to croM ii Ijriitao to snfotv before It
I was burned On liN wnv through the
woods ho met a valuable wagon train nnd
found ihn ncuro driver * nhoiit tn do crt It
for thewoods. Putting hit Imnd intn his
lireust pockntns llinttRii to Jr.nv n revolver ,
ho comm'tlt.tho ! ! darkles to hitch up their
hordes nnd ilrivo birk to Fairfax Courthouse ,
thus saving Ibo stores. Kliiys vua by this
net-Iota ) PI ! so lone .In atteiiiptitig his own
escape tbnt hu was too Into. Ho wns can-
tnrert by the rnluon nnil sent to LlhDy
prison ,
DM : or TIM : TIUST.
In Ihn Ntirlims IrotnVlucli the TrtoRiiitli |
Corjn ( IriMv.
Klchnnl O'Brien was a telographar In the
ctcploy nf tlio Pennsylvania wlion thn wnr
bro < < o out mid was ono or tha llrst four operators
raters culled Into the survlco of the govorn-
tnont bv thu Wnr donnrlmcnt , thnt quartet
being thn perm from which the military tule-
rrapti corps crow
Ho reported n
Washington April
! i , 18B1. nnd wns
* lnlluneil nt Iho
depot of the Haiti-
inoro ft Ohio rail ,
road , which was
aim for a time
i riny headn.u rtcrs ,
Ho was soon given
rhnrco of the olllco
For ! ross Motii'oe ,
. advanced post
proat Import-
i nco , nnd was on
eye witness of the
light between the
Monitor and the Morrimut * .
Subsequently ho bociime chief oparator for
General Duller nnd put up n number of Hold
lines In usu about Uermtida tiunlrcd , for
which service ho was complimented by his
superiors at Washington. When hcbolliild
went to Butlcr'.s aid in iho operations nbcy.1
Wilmington , N. C. , O'Hrieii accompanied
him to mho charge of iho telegraphs in that
now tli'ld.
\Vhll Johnston was noaotlatinp with Sherman -
man for torttu of tmrronder the tolenraph
line was bolng pushed forward , and by the
time the surrender was inndu wlros were at
the headquarters In Goldsboro , where the
paroles were being made out , and th
authorities at. Washington had prompt
nolico of what wns being done
Mr. O'Urlen ' was again olllcially eompli-
mcntod for "his energy nnd pcrsoverenco in
establishing prompt comtnunicatlon , " an
honor not often shown ilio itiembor.j of Iho
tclosrnph corps.
At the closn of the wnr ho was instructed
to repair the lines about Knlolgh , N. C. , and
put I horn In con ill lion for the use > of peace
ful pursuits. Ho was ono ol the ton oper
ators to whom tno secretary of war pre
sented silver watches , which were accom-
naoied bv a crateful letter from their chlof ,
Major Eckert.
; MII : > I > I.IM > .MI ; OF run : us.
Thplr Umrnrrantcil Intorli-ri-iicp Promptly
ItpMMitfd by tlu > Operator * .
Military operators sometimes suffered from
the Interference of meddlesome army ofll-
cers , but the humble telocraphers generally
evened the score. During the operations
about Donolson , General Sherman was at
Puduoah nnd anx
ious about the loca
tion of Noison , who
had started to rein
force ( ! rant. Tljero
was n telegraph of
fice at Sinllhlund
on tbo river , but
the colonel commanding
mandingiuiagin -
*
i up that there
talent bo n rebel
opera or on the line
between the two WII.UAV t. . IVKS.
places , ordered bis telegrapher not to talk
over the wire , and stationed a guard over him
to enforce the order. It was a stupid perform
ance , because the young man at the key ,
while pretending to send a message , talked
to Operator Parker at Paducah and told him
iho situation.
Parker prepared nn order for the Smith-
land man's release and a ikea a ranking oil- !
cer to sign It. Ho was about to do so when
Sherman , who happonotl to hoar it road , di
rected him not to In crforo. Shortly af lor-
ward Sherman wont to the olllco at Pnducah
to learn if Nelson had passed Smithland on
his way uo the river , when tho' following
conversation over the wire passed between
the two operatots :
Parker to Smithland Has the steanjor
Tarascon passed yeti
Smithland I am under arrest and can't
answer you.
Parker -General Sherman wants to know.
Smithlund I don't c.iro if H'sllnlleck him
self. I'm under arrest and can't talk about
such things.
Paikor Sherman asks. Do you know }
Simthlat.d Of course J know.
Parker Sherman wants to Know if General -
oral Nelson ha * passed up.
Smithland Tell Sherman to send a mes
sage then.
Parker Do you know ?
Smii bland Certainly 1 do.
Parker How far Is the colonel's hoaa-
nuurtcrsl
Smithland A milo and a half.
Sherman to Parker Whatklnd of a fellow
I ? that operatori
Paritcr Ho seems to bo peed at obeying
orders. It was a foolish ihliig for tbo colonel
to put soldiers over an operator to Uoep him
from talking by telegraph.
Sherman \\oll , that's so. I didn't think
of that.
Gonura ! Shormtm then wrote nn order re-
loabini ! the Smithlaad operator , and was In
formed that Nelson had safely passed up the
river to Grunt's aid.
Duncan T. Bacon entered Memphis with
the federal troops , and among his llrst duties
was the forwarding to HallecK at Corinth of
messages brought in ticouriers. . General
Huvcv. who was in command at Memphis ,
claimed the right to re.-.d these messages ,
but Ilueoii refused to pivo them up. Ho was
ordered under arrest , but in his absence from
the olllco the orderly teen his assistant.
Bacon at unco laid thn matter before Halleck
by wire and ho promptly ordered llovoy :
"Heloaso the operator at onco. Ho did per
fectly right In dlboboyinjr your orders. "
Those are characteristic examples of u
number of oases in which military officers
tried to exorcise unwarranted authority ever
the telegraphers. It was to prevent this
kind of Interference that Secretary of War
Statiton refused to organize the corps on a
military basis , an act that wrought the he-
role telegraphers u great wrong.
"HATTUICY .MATKIUAI. . "
Ingenlocu llnno of the I'olugrapliorH to ( Jot
Omi of the ( ii.iid TliliiKHiit l.lfn.
The military telegraphers weroonly liu-uan
after all , and had somti of the desires for the
peed tilings of life the same as other men.
While In front of Corinth Hallook's provost
marshal Isbiiod an eider closing the bar. ) on
the Tennessee rlvor steamer * and forbidding
the landing of liquor. The operators were
puzzled how to ovorcoino this Uinicultv , but
llnally ouo of thorn inudo a social call on thu
provost and incidentally dropped a remark
about thu Hold lines 'vorning sadly. Tbo
mirjlnl naturally aslcd thu ro son , and was
told that It was for want of acid , The
marshal rogroit d that ho bad no acid , mid
thu lulugraphur , in a casual way , said if ho
had a barrel of alcohol it could bo made to
answer as a uubslltuto until sumilieu arrived.
The marshal was ttorry ho had no alcohol ,
but , having the good of tbo servlco at heart ,
hu added that ho hid several barrels of con-
lUcnled whisky , and ho would donaioono of
them , if It could bo used , in ruplonishlnuiho
batteries. The operator confessed that
whisky would not do us well as alcohol , but
hu thought it could bo ma Jo to answer until
siiunlius arrived ,
The barrel was sent to tbo
telegraph oftico , and a darkoy sank
It In the earth In the tout. A
small elder Mick with the pith removed pro
truded from the barrel an inch above
ginmul. The "battery material" proved
verv RatUfactory.
In the afternoon Ilallock dropped Invhllo
ono of the operators was lying on the ground
testing the buttery , The general's curiosity
waiexcltodby the man's peculiar position ,
and hu asked questions until ho learned the
Kocrot. Ho laughed heartily at the joke mid
tald bo wqjild have to ulvo the marshal a les
ion In telegraphy. Tim story soon leaked
out , and for months fan marshal's decanter ,
labelt'il "bnttcri' material. " was thn * olaco
of friends who c.ilol ) to condole with him.
Contraband liq-iori wcra qulto frequently
pasu-d throUL-h thd-fllnps ns "ncln" nppdod
for the batteries , nnllj many iltnuslnp adven
tures did this " .tucritsorvico" have.
A.MII ) AND DVI.VO.
Trying Cirrimxhincps UnilprVhlcli Opcr.i-
turn Wll-ii Hail InVnrk. .
L. 1) , Parkrr join .l the corps In October ,
1801 , anil was imjgnod to Paducah , Ky.
Whnn the Jiattlo o | 'IMttsburg Landing be
came Imminent hoMliJhcd General Grant by
b6at and wns iur/v itd ; to remain on the
a'oamor. The nearest olUco was at Sa
vannah , nlno miles iH-tant , and
theio , nflnr the , battle , Purser and
Wavno H. Piir.tons opened an oftico
In the front window of a deep store filled
with wounded and dvlng/sotdtors. Messages
concerning the dead , the living nnd the
wounded , telling of victory and dcfoat , oamo
pouring into that otllco by the hun
dred for transmission north , and
Iho clickintc of the tclogruph uoys
was drowned bj- the croans ot the injured
tren. All nighl long Parker and Parsons ,
aided somewhat bv George A. Purdy , man-
iputatod thosu llttlo pjcuot Instruments ,
sending north tidings ol jov to somu and of
sorrow to others , aud this wearisome duly
continued for several days.
A few days later the line was extended to
the rivet at P ttsbuig Landing and a cable
laid across the stream. Unfortunately the
cable was not qulto long enough to reacn
the opposite shore , and ono end
was carried to a fallen tree that
nrolcctcd out Into the stream. Hero
Parker opened an ofllco. sitting astrldo a lop ,
ono foot In the water , the other leg being too
short to roach it. Ills instrument wns
placed on the trunk nnd his copy paper and
clip were hung on n limb. With ono hand
lighting torturinp mosquitoes , the other for
hours received and sent messages of the ut
most importance.
iAM OI'IICATOICS. :
( ii'ttlnt ; Angry Over the Wires ,
.Sought .Satlsliietlnn In I'erHiui.
Nothing was so trying as the position of
the operator who had important dispatcher
to send , nud who could easily hoar the office
bo wanted , but could not in 111:0 himself un
derstood because fas a rule ) the operator at
the distant ofllco did not adjust his Instru
ment so delicately as to catch iho faintest
change In Iho electric charge of the lines.
When , however , ho did respond , the fault
wes apparent , and it not infrequently hap
pened tbat Danto's ' inferno was telegraphi
cally ponrayeo In language fraught with
blisters and somebodv consigned where time
was not the osscucd'of'lho conlract. It wns
nftor an occasion of . this kind lhat Patrick
Mullarkoy , then \yoring ( at Memphis , took a
trip all the wnv to L'pulsvillo lo see the oper-
alor who spoke. ov rTho wire inelegantly but
forcefully of him and Ins.
In another case ' "HanK" Cowan , while
working at Bealeton , Va. , wa& convinced
that A. H. Bliss , operuior at Kaopahariiiocn
stallon , deserved a whipping for lolepraphlc
inueuaoes which reflected on Cow
an's past nnu present nnd as
sumed to foreshadow nis future. "Hank"
pronoureed it a casus belli and started for
Uappanaiinonk , but buloro ho arrived Ins Ire
had cooled. Bliss reigned supreme in a box
car and announced himself in readiness for
the tncmy , but Cowan declared a truce , and.
not to lose his journny onlirely , suggested u
game of euchre. When Bliss clnrned him
with cheating n new casus was established ,
and Cowan's optlcs turne'd color ; but , bent
on rewarding merit , bo hau his photograph
taken und presented a copy , , to Bliss with
suitable resolutions.
INI ; > II : I'iKij.
I'lelilVirc Siicpvsstnlly Hrcctml nnil Op-
orateit Muring Unities.
During the war aoout 1,000 miles of field
wires were erected ; They were of untold
valua to Grant in the Wilderness , to Sher
man in Georgia , to j Thomas in Tennessee , to
Canby at Mobile and in most all of the cam-
'
palgns in the latter
half of the war.
In ono campaign ,
during Grant's nd-
vance upon Peters
burg , 150 miles of
Held wire were
used , and it was
officially reported
, 'hat they were
worked many times
' lll ° filca of the
jnemy , exposed ta
lire , without shelter
day or night. " Not
cnly were Generals
D. K. SMITH. Grant nnd Meade
and many brigade commanders thus con
nected , but communication was oven main
tained whllo the army wns actually on the
move.
Some foreign military authorities have
doubted the assertion that American opera
tors worked while under tire , but such in
stances nro too well aulhentlcntod. Hero is
thn losllmony of General Wurron about
Grant's telegraphers :
"I often tulle of those who were with mo of
the operator , who , In iho first of our attacks
on PotersborR , brought his wire to I bo front ,
ui'.dor milskot runga of the enemy nnd or.er-
nled it behind a tree thai proved to bo hol
low and which any ono of the cannun shot ,
which were at close range Hying fast , would
huvo gone clear through with little loss of
force ; and again , of iho ono on iho Weldon
railroad on iho Sunday morning wo were
Hhellsd out of it , both from Iho north and
wast , ana who warned his recorder in the
south cast nnglo and outside under the mus
ketry 11 ro tbat , by its sound so near , and tbo
pattering of tbo balls around , confused the
records of his souudr , and many others on
many other occasions. "
'
W'non Gcnorau bpmnor rotronted from
Seven Plnns tot Harrison's Landing ho
wanled to talk to'McClollanu , but Operator
J , H Nlcholls objected lo grounding tha main
line wire , which would Imva ant off McCinl-
land from unslher distant command. Nichols
hud only tbroo foot of ulro with him , out
with the assistance of a general ho piled up
hard-tack boxes to tha tot ) of a telegraph
pole , and thcra opened an olllco without
oroniclng tlio circuit. This xvns kept open
suvcrnl hours after dark , und to 1,00 to write
Nichols had to use n lantern , Thu light
made an excellent target for thu enemy , who
npnneil up on It with Ills cuns. The boxes
worn peppered , tut.tho olUco was not closed
mill ordered by Sumner. At the battle of
Mochanicbvlllo N.ltitio'ls wont to division
lundquarters and worked at , instrument In
the rear of thu federal nrtlllory , ivinoh WHS
receiving the enemy'f * lire. It was a most
dangerous position'nnd tbo operator was
only IS years old.
rOtl.NJl AN AIJ.MV JSV WJIU5.
miiiplci ( il the Itupjcllty ut THt'irnipli Ccm-
mriK'tlciu IIiKlrr ilrimt Ulllldiiliic * .
In Soptomher , 1W11 , General Bauks began
'ulllnT ' hack from Harper's Ferry , and no
DUO at Wasblngtou knew where bo wai , On
Sunday , lo 7th , J , ] { . Gllmoro , thq superln-
londont of tnloerapb In thntdopdrtmcnt , was
ordered to build a line to Bank's army ,
rhoro wns not a inllo of , wlro or u spare in
sulator in the department , and the disloyal
people along tk/e proposed route refused to
lurnlsh timber except as forced to. Sup
plies were ordered Irom Philadelphia , Balll.
moro and Now York. Monday morning Gil-
uoro tartod out on the route on horseback
ind arrangoa for the setting of tlio polos.
Line building bocun Tuesday morning , and
ou Thursday Banks was mot thirty miles I
from Washington Gllmoro wn n minor nt
the time , nnd co nl I trlni ; the clrcumstnncc.s
Un * ttns a notnhle nuhloycmcnt.
The operators nt the front with the build
ers wcrn William ,1. Dealeynnd A. P Prltch-
nrd. Ono rainy night nttc'r they were fairly
nloop couriers came from Banks nnd oruored
them to open nn ofllco at Iho end nf thu llnu.
Groping their way about through the rnln and
dnrknes'j for a suitable plnco. the best thov
could find wns n pig slyo. They covered it
\uththelr blmiKcts nnd shivered through
tliu bnlunco of the night.
This feat of building Is moro notable. , be
cause It oecured early In the wnr when the
corps had the most vague organization , Later
H was no uncommon thing for the wire to go
tip ns fast as tbo nrmy moved ou. Never
during the wur did the corps Ilnd ll Impos
sible to erect a wire ever nny route traversed
by an urmv , and it often constructed lines of
communication over routes ttnpnssnbla to
largo commands.
\ \ ITIIOtIT INSIIU.UKNT.S.
Heading Mcssngpt liy thn Lnugtli nf thn
Shock * M-nt Through the Tongue.
In January , ISO. , W. O. Fuller , n suuerln-
tondcnt of telegraph , wns ordered to build a
line south from Labnuon. Ky. Some dis
tance oiitn rebel troop raided his camp and
carried off everything but the clothing worn-
by tlio party. Ful
ler was unnbto to
open tbo Columbia
ofllco Immediately
on ronchlne Unit
point , because ho
bad no instrument.
G o n o r a 1 J. T.
Boyle , who was In
o o in in n n d , wns
grentlv provoked
and threatened to
shoot Fuller , hut
tbnioxport , great- \NSOM
ly to Boyle's astonishment , sent his Im
portant messages by using iho wire ends as
n key nud his longuo as a sounder for re
ceiving.
For the uninitiated It tiny bs o < c plained
that Fuller held the ground end of the wire
In ono hand and the main line in the nthor.
Every limn ho touched the two togolher ho
completed the circuit , which was Indicated
on the instrument til Lebanon precisely the
same as if the wprk had boon done with n
key. Il was compaparattvoly easy to send a
message In thb minnor , but. the dlfllculty
wns lo lonrn if it had boon received. Tele
graphic signals nra combinations of long and
shorl clicks , which nro ordinarily read by
sound. Fuller , having no Inslrumeul , could
only read the messages by the oloo-
trie shocks which passed through his
tongue. As he touched a wire to
either sldo of his tongue that mem
ber , being moist , permuted Iho electric cur
rent to pass through it , and Fuller dis
tinguished the long nnd short clicks by the
length of the shocks.
Several months later H. W. Plum started
to reinforce the operators at Nnshvillo , but
was cornered nt an out-of-ihc-wav nluco
with a small party of federals. Hu hail run
a wire from the main line to the stockade In
nnllclpallon of getting an Inslrument , bo.1 it
nld not dome in time. Ho sent a message by
louchlng Iho end of Ibe wire to a crowbar
stuck in the earth for a ground connection.
Ho received the acknowledgment by placing
one hand on the oar and putting the wire in
his mouth , reading iho message by the dura
tion of iho electric shocks uhich passed
through his bodv. This passed in front of
the stockade in full view of Iho whole com
pany of federals. Instances of receiving
lelegrams In this manner nrn rnro , but thnso
cases were too well uuthonticatod to bo
doubted.
Kcitois or Tliu WAII.
ClmructtirlHtUInridcMits ol the Telegraph
SiTVlc-e Toll ! ISrlrlly.
In General Morgan's campaign about Cum
berland Gap the telegraph party was organ
ized into a corpi of minors and sappers , who
aided materially in opening roads , removing
obstructions and building bridges. For
days they lived ex
clusively on corn
grated on a tin
plate , through
which rough-edged
null bolos hud been
made. Solomon Pal
mer entered the
survlco in Ducoin-
, her , 1S01 , nnd wns
fgS assigned to take
charge of Iho con-
structlon of tele
graphs In the de
partment of Hal-
leek east of the
M1LOMOX 1'AI.MCII , Mississippi. To his
energy nnd fertility of resources was largely
due the ofllcloncv of the tolopraph servioo in
Tennessee and Mississippi. His ability as a
uuildcr aud repairer under Iho most adverse
clrcuinstnnrcs and oven in the face of the
unomy won the admiration of the corps in
the wesc.
Down in Tennessee Kit Dougherty , hap
pening to have some big copper pennies and
considerable leisure , amalgamated the coins
in his battery , and thov readily passed
among the illiterate natives as silver half
dollars In exchange for watermelons nnd
other vocotnbles. And Kit was only Hi.
The ofllco at Mnnnssas was ut ono time
operated by Thomas Q. Watorhouso and
Charles W. Mooro. The building was a one-
room shanty. A box on which tlio Instru
ment rested also served ns a dining Ublo.
Ono nail Itog an
swered for chairs ,
nnd some broken
nieces of iron , held
together with tolo-
craph wiro. was
cat lad a cooking
stovo. They slapt In
n collin for a bed ,
and the only oojt'c-
linn Ihoy had was In
the fact that the
sleeper had to gotj
out in order to
ovor. Working al
ternately , ono
blanket served both. \
They had to make a V
lively retreat t > ubsoTIIOS. . p. . WATKIIIIOUPK.
quently and narrowly escaped capture.
During the siege of Vlcksuurg the opsr-
ntorj wors worn out by a long terra of duty ,
and they finally got snatches of sleep by ly
ing down at Ibo sldo of their instruments
nnd making the couriers wake thorn when
ever iho sounders hoiran clicking.
Probably the youngest man in the servicn
was.iotin O'Hrion , who was not 14 when
-made assistant operator at Fortress Monroe.
In Fobiuary , 1SIW , ho had hud three years'
experience and was rated an expert. General -
oral Wool was greatly surprised to sco ibis
slripllng receiving by found.
Edward P. Whllford , when a moro lad oc
cupied the responsible position in Nushvlllo
of ulplicrcrunii _ asslstu'ul clerk at the headquarters -
quarters of Colonel
Van Dusor , stipar-
Intcmlont , of tele-
craph , where most
of tno telegrams of
Governor Johnson
aim General \ \ ob
iter were pui line
cipher. W h o n
Sherman started
on h 1 H famous
, inarch from Atlanta -
lanta to the sea
; nlno ope ru tors
were detailed to
accompany him ,
111. M'lmaoiin. \\hlifordwin
noiit trith funds to pay them off. In the
closing davH of the war Whlifurd was sia-
lloned at San Antonio us cipherer.
When McClelland moved Into Yorktown
D. Ji. Lat hroj > Hurried to Iho confederate
telegraph olllco to test for u circuit with
Richmond , but the wires hud bcon cut and
loft haiiKlng to iho noles. In starting to repair -
pair it. Luthrop slcppcd on ouo ol the torpu-
does buried by thu rabeU , A leg was torn
off nnd ho died In greal utouy u few hours
afterwards.
lt\CINl WITH Till : AltJlV.
Kiifurilaliil lit I'ilMi Trial I'lml Onirliil Army
1'rlnlvrVIIH a Tdlrurujilmrt
Karly in July , leOl , McClelland started
south from Clarksburg , Va. , und General
Singer mode lila first attempt to follow nn
unuy with the telegraph. He easily kept up
with the troops until they reached Hteh
rooiiiiliiin , n dis
tance ot over thirty
miles , when the bat
tle of that name
was fotmlit , nnd the
electric spark sent
to the north the
hews ot Us first
victory , almost before
fore the light was
finished. Operator
David had barely
V ' ' " " " opened an ofllco at
4osi IMI KN'ITTI.K. the fortifications
occnmca by the enemy the day before , when
n Confederate prisoner marching by ex
claimed In wondering astonishment to a com
panion : "My God , Jim , hero's ' thn tele
graph 1" ,
with McClelland was ,1. h. Cherry , who
had worked nights in n railroad otllco at
Cleveland , and beguiled his unoccupied
hours with n llltlo printing outfit. Ho had
been recommended to McClelland because of
his Industry nnd knowledge of printing , nnd
iho general had secured an oullll of press
nnd typo. Ho Issued an address congratulat
ing his nrmv on the victory nt Hlch moun
tain , and that probably wns Iho llrst order
over printed lii n portable printing oflleo
regularly connected with nn army whllo on
n campaign.
i'i\TS WITHOUT PAI\I.MI : ; , .
Hut ( ilorlmiK Nrnx of Itlclimoiitl'i *
full iititl Leo * * SiirroiKliii- .
When the federal army entered Richmond
nt 8 o'clock on the morning of April a , IW55 ,
General Wot/.ol prepared n dispatch an
nouncing thu fact to the military governor at
Norfolk. For four years the confederate
city had been cut off from the north , and the
neatest olllco with a connection was live
miles out in a union camp. W. H.
Wood , the oporalor , was Just about lo close
ihu olllco anil move Into iho oily , when ho
espied u courier riding toward him at a
furious gait. Suspecting nn important mes
sage , ho waited for the horseman. Ho
ouickly called Fortress Monroe , aim Opera
tors William J. Doaly and C. A. Hoinuu at
that point put the War department olllco at
Washington In connection that It might re-
ccivo the news allho same time. '
At the latter was little Willie E. Kltllos ,
a precocious boy but an ox pott operator , who
hud already done distinguished sarvtce.
"Shnrptju your wire for Richmond , " said
Dealy. Then Wood called and Killlos
answered. The boy took Iho message with
tremulous excitement and then , upsetting
inkstand nnd Instrument , rushed into i\lnjor
Eokert's room with the glorious news. War
'Secretary Stanton was notillod at once , mid ,
rushme Into the ofllco , ho snatched up
Kittles and held him ut arm's length oul of
Iho window lo the view of thn gathering
erowd , which bud heard the news fiom an
operator who could not contain him
self. Sinn ion was in his snirt
sleeves and loars of Joy were
coursing down his chocks Before ho retired
he said to the operator.- . : "IJoys , I consider
iho lelegraph my righi arm , anil If ever 1 can
do anyinlng lor you don't hosllnlo lo ask for
It. " Unfortunnloly he never rignicd Iho QUO
great wrong ho did tlie telegraphers in bis
doiira lo promolo Iho ofllclency ol Ino ser
vice.
vice.At
At 4:30 : p. m. of April ll , IbiM. General
Grant wrote u tolocram to Stanton announc
ing Iho surrender of Lee. Calling up iwo op
erators , R. C. I.uvcrty and Edward Scher-
morhoni , hu gave them ibo dispatch with or
ders to co In search of a wiro. They found
at Appomattox station a wire lhal bad 1
boon nut In order to tbat point mid
inndo iheir ofllco in a box cur loaded with
bags of sand intended fur breastwork" . After
putting in n ground wire they succeeded in
raisinir the operator at Petersburg , who con
nected them wl'h Iho Wnr department at
Washington. So quickly had the work bcon
done thai Grunt received congratulations
from President Lincoln within an hour.
Within two houts of the surrender the line
had boon extended lo Grant's headquarters
and hn wus in direct communication with
Washington. By lhal time , toe. iho news
was known In all parts of the land. These
feats , like many others of the American tele
graph coipi. wcro without parallel in the
history ol the world previous to Ibis war.
KDI.SO.Vs UOVHOOD.
liiuiilrius of Ills VoiThi as Told liy Hi ,
I'ntlii'r.
The bustling litllo city of Port Grattot ,
Mich. , snucly resting ut the foot of Lake
Huron , is a place of .soino distinction , from
the fact lhat. It was there that Thomas A.
Edison passed many years of his youth. The
old homo where ho lived with his p-irents is
an objecl of curiosity lo iho thousands of
persons who dally travel on the electrio
railway that runs trom Fort Gratiottotho
noted summer rssort some distance above
the town on the shore of Lake f luron , tias-
slng wilbin a few feet of the fence iiicloMuc
the old Edison homestead. From the rail
way truck a fair view of the old house is
afforded through the mammoth trees that
surround It The dwelling stand ) ti.tck
some dKtancc from the foot of the lake , and
u short wav northwest ot the lighthouse
lhat guides tbo luke bools into thoSt. Cluir
river. It U quite a largo structure , bul it is
beginning to show signs of decay.
In the dwelling yet resides Samuel Edi
son , the fulhor of thu noted inventor. Hu is
a well-prosorvod old gontloinan of hi , having
boon born in Bigby , Nova Scolla , in 1801.
Ho is tall of slaturo , and remarkably robust
for ono of bis years. Added to this is a
memory of unexcelled clearness. A brief
history of the old genllciimn and his recol
lections of his son who has since rhon to
such prominence will bo of interest.
In Ibll , whun bul7 years of ago , Samuel
moved wltn his p.i routs 10 Now York city.
Remaining there bul n short time , the fam
ily traveled through upper Canada. Samuel
passed hlsyouth In Vienna , Canadaami ihero
met Iho girl , Nancy Elliott , who aflorward-i
bucamo Iho mother of the Inventor. In 1 I7
Sumuol , his wife and the throe children who
hud arrived to bless thorn , moved to Detroit
and iwo years later lo Milan , O. Thomas
A. was born in Milan , February 11 , 1817. In
185:1 : his parents moved lo FortGrailotwhoro
iho Inventor passed his youth and whore ho
received but u meager schooling , not having
in all gone to school for moro than ono year ,
Ho was distinctively u boy without boyish
days. At this early auo began tha develop
ment of the rare gift with which ho was pos
sessed , and ho was almost continually en-
guucd In endeavoring to liguro out snma dif
ficult mechanical problem. His brain , ap
parently , was never permitted to iesi , and
tie hud gone to school but a short time before
fore his teacher n'otlccd this fact , and bonier
alarmed uv it advised the lad's parents to
hoop him Irom school If they did not wish
bin ) to lose his reason. Ho wus indeed n pe
culiar boy , und never played with other boys
for moro than u few minutes nt a time ,
Meumlngly preferring to bci iilono HO that ho
could iriv ) His whole altmitlon to studying "
the solution of some problem , Ho was ill-
ways uf an older dUpoiltion than hlni ago
would Indicate. When about mldwnv ho-
iwt-on lliu iigo of I'Jand III ho burprlsud his
parents ouo ovunlng by bursting in upon
them anil gleafullv Hliotitlngi
'Mn ' , I'm u bnshul of wheat 1 wolt'h Jnbt
Blxlv pounds. "
The day following Ihlx Joyful aialomont
young EUlsnn niiidti his first trip an u IIUWM-
bov oil Iho Grand Trunk railroad botweua
Fo'rt C ; rat lot and Uutrolt. it was ai abuut
this lime , as nuur us his fatbercan recollect ,
liial young Edison llrst took an Interest in
tulegiuph operating. Ills llrst.experiment *
In this line weiii made wild a small lublu and
a piece of whalebone , There was n crack In
the table , and In this Itf ) placed ouo end of the
whalebone , u siring bumg so arranged that
hu could with case causa the wtmlotiono to
bo swiftly drawn down to tno table , and ,
with a shbot of paper lull on the tablu with
which whttleuono could como in contact ,
a lair fulMltuto for thu clicking ot u regular
telegraph instrument was secured. He then
spoilt houtb clicking off the telegraph alpha
bet.
bet.Tno facts of the priming by him of a Hmall
newspaper called iho Granu Trunk Hor.iUl
whllo nuwHiioy on tha train are well known ,
lieforo accepting thu position as nowHboy on
the railroad the young md ruud it grout deal
on thomibjeia of ilrugs , etc. , und In u snort
lime ho hud u ttmull siiod drut ; tituru In thu
basement of his futhor'h houso. Hunt ho
passed umuy hours iiiliauy and compounding
f drugs. He would work until Into nt night
endtmvorlnir to study out Various questions
nnd bring hit oxpcrlmonU to n successful
Issue. So Interested would ho hccotno that
ho fulled to notice the passing away of tlu
hours , and his father had frequently to arise
at 4 or D o'clock In the morning nnd compel
the Ind to go to bod. So proficient had he
become In the art of telegraphing by constant
practice il urine thu thrco years spent by liltn
, as newsboy on iho train that at the end ol
that time ho was offered n position as tolo.
craph operator. Ho loft iho cars nnd Immo
, dtairly took charge of the I'ort Huron tele
graph ofilce.
! Ho hnd rotnniuril there forsomo llltlo time ,
, when the Grand Trunk soul him to Strut-
| ford , Ontario. Ho went thence to Forl
, \\avno , liid..and then successively lo Indian
apolls , Cincinnati nnd Louisville. Durltm
, the war ho entered-tie sorvlco of the sov
eminent in nn operator In 'IViiiiossqe. After
the wnr , having bcon offered a position
abroad , It bcc.uno necessary for him to master
tor the Spanish language , which hu did ID
the remarkably brief ported of four month !
without losing nn hour of his time as operatot
for the government. Later lu llfo ho con
cluded to accept n position In Central America ,
buton his way down was taken so 111 with sea.
sickness that the physicians on Iho bout sent
him back. Ho landed at Now York city nnd
went to his homo for several weeks. Ho
then \\cnt to Boston whcro ho completed hU
ilrst Invention nud received his llrst patent. "
His career since then Is familiar history.
The father Is naturally very proud of hit
son , and rondliy tells what ho can regarding
him. When some funny Incident , In his son't
llfo Hashes upon the old man's mind ho slupj
Lls It n co and exclaims :
"Oh , hn was the dnrmlosl kid I ever saw , "
nnd then the old gentleman chuckles quiutiv
to himself.
Tno old man is qulto wealthy , owning n
larpo amount of property in the very ht-art
of Fori Gratlol. but notwithstanding this
the ti.vontor nnnuallv gives him n Inriro sum
of n oney with which to travel abroad and
see the world. The old gentleman U Mill
"ono of the boys" to n rent extent , and has
nn intimate Iriund mini tl Symington , n man
about nls own ago , whom ho takat with him
on his nnnuiil trips. Thn lust trip thov took
wns to oltl Mexlcn. nnd there is no reason to
believe thut thev did not have us coed a time
us though they were twenty or thirty years
jouimur.
IF YOU EVER SUFFERED FROM
If you are In position to take
advantage of the laws re
lating to
you have taken up a piece o *
1
! f you have made an invention
on which you desire to
secure a
You should communicate
with the
Bee Bureau of Claim ;
The object of this bureau Is to
every pai-bon Iio.ihtiR- loffitinuito cluiin
ngainst the trovornnioiit the iidvuutii a
oa residence in Washington , whether
ho live In Texas or Alnsku , 11 does
moro than thnt. Nino-luntlia of tlio
population of Washington would ba
helpless if nslccd how to fjo to worlc to
secure their rights through tlio dopirt-
incuts. Tun Uin ; Burjau of G tiinu
gives the advantage , not only of per-
BOiinl residence , but of thnro'igli fainil <
iurity wita u 1 the nmuliinory of thu
government. It oilers
Absolute Security.
You do not , know whether thonvonign
\Vnnhiugtoiicliiiin agontwill chant. y > u
or nol , although on general prlnclplei
you would naturally suppose that ha
would. Hut you know that the San
Francisco Examiner , the St. 1'iuil PJo
ncer press and the Omaha UKI : cnniioi
afford to uhuat you. They gti irantou
this Bureau , nnu their reputation U
staked upon the honesty and ability ol
itsinnnagomont
The bureau employes nttornoyd who
Expert Specialists
for oaoli of Its departments.
Its Indian depredation U.IHOS are care-
ully vvo-lcod UD , with all tlu ovidonuo
required by law , and argued buforu the
court of claims In HUCI ! a manner as to
jringouL mm fuvor.iuly all tlu esBuii
tial points.
Its land cases are handled In sit-lot ac-
corduncn with tlio rules of the Goner il
MIOlllue \ ( , bo th it no delays or com-
illcatloin ensue In the orderly settle-
incut of the claimj.
Its p ttoiit o noi ire so n itwje 1 n < i
Insuio the utmost , poaaiblu bunelU to'.tho
nvuntor , by giving him tlio broadodl.
proluotlon his ideas will Justify.
Us pimaltm c.isos are ilhpojul of with
Uiu least posdblo delay and oxpunso to
thn vote rails ,
Don't nifriiln from cnnsultlng lbo
bin euu liticaiise you are afniid of the coil.
Us uo.iU nothing to tret Inforinuliou.
Ankas many questions as you please ,
aud they will bu utiBworol promptly
chuorfully and accurately , without V
charge.
THE
Bee Bureau of Claims
Room 220 ,
Bee Building ,
Omaha , Neb.