The Romance Of The Telegraph

A good deal of romance hovers around the means by which the world's news is gathered. The speed and accnracy with which telegraph rnessages are transmitted between the utterruost parts of the earth is niarvelous when the conditions tmder which tbey are sometimes transmitted are considered. The Indo-European telegraph line offers a goodillustration. It runs from London to Lowestoft on the east coast of England. It then dips under the sea to Emden, on the Germán coast, whenee it passes through Germany to the Kussian frontier. From this point the wire passes by -way of Warsaw, Rowno, Odessa, the Caucasus, and Tiflis to Persia.and by Tauris to Teheran, the capital of the shah's queer domain. There ifc joins the Indiangovernment line which runs from the Persian capita] to Bushire on the Persian gulf. Thence the wires run through Baluchistan, aDd complete the route by connecting at Karachi, in northern India. The operation of this immense stretch of line, passing through countries of such varying climates and general characteristics, is obviouslv one of much difficulty. On the snow swept steppes of Russia the wires are sornetimes snapped like thread by the rapid flight of flocksof wild geese. The poles are cut down and made iuto firewood by the notaad tribes of the Caucasian districts, and the cunning iunkeepers of Georgia seek to boom their post horse trade by deliberately oreating faults in the wires. In certain parts of the mountainous regions of Asia the mainteriance of the solirary line involves no little personal risk and hardship to the staff hands. Comrnunication is of ten cut off by avalanchas in the monn tain districts, and the work of repairin after a snowfall of five or six feet i no light matter. These mountain stations are provi sioned with several months' supplies be fore the winter sets in, as the stafl' wi! be in touch with the rest of the worlc by the wire only until the spring weather opens out the passes. In thes supplies are always included a libera allowance of books and games wherewith to relieve the monotonv of the tedious winter exile.-