When the race began, the cable company suspended work on all the
lines from London to New York and kept operators at the Irish and Nova
Scotian stations ready to transmit the letters representing the
winning horse immediately, and without having the message written out
in the usual way. When the race was finished, the operator at Epsom at
once sent the letters representing the winner, and before he had
finished the third letter, the operator in London had started the
first one to Ireland. The clerk in Ireland immediately on bearing the
first signal from London passed it on to Nova Scotia, from whence it
was again passed on to New York. The result being that the name of the
winner was actually known in New York before the horses had pulled up
after passing the judge. It seems almost incredible that such
information could be transmitted such a great distance in fifteen
seconds, but when we get behind the scenes and see exactly how it is
accomplished, and see how the labor and time of signaling can be
economized, we can easily realize the fact.
The humors of telegraphic mistakes have often been described; we will
conclude by giving only one example. A St. Louis merchant had gone to
New York on business, and while there received a telegram from the
family doctor, which ran: "Your wife has had a child, if we can keep
her from having another to-night, all will be well." As the little
stranger had not been expected, further inquiry was made and elicited
the fact that his wife had simply had a "chill"! This important
difference having been caused simply by the omission of a single dot.
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