Lab
Library
Journal
Shop
Sign in
to keep
Share image
1
281
Heroes of the Telegraph
·
John Munro
239
In
1857,
Professor
Hughes
leaving
his
instrument
in
the
hands
of
the
Western
Union
Telegraph
Company,
came
to
England
to
effect
its
introduction
here.
He
endeavoured
to
get
the
old
Electric
Telegraph
Company
to
adopt
it,
but
after
two
years
of
indecision
on
their
part,
he
went
over
to
France
in
1860,
where
he
met
with
a
more
encouraging
reception.
The
French
Government
Telegraph
Administration
became
at
once
interested
in
the
new
receiver,
and
a
commission
of
eminent
electricians,
consisting
of
Du
Moncel,
Blavier,
Froment,
Gaugain,
and
other
practical
and
theoretical
specialists,
was
appointed
to
decide
on
its
merits.
The
first
trial
of
the
type-printer
took
place
on
the
Paris
to
Lyons
circuit,
and
there
is
a
little
anecdote
connected
with
it
which
is
worthy
of
being
told.
The
instrument
was
started,
and
for
a
while
worked
as
well
as
could
be
desired;
but
suddenly
it
came
to
a
stop,
and
to
the
utter
discomfiture
of
the
inventor
he
could
neither
find
out
what
was
wrong
nor
get
the
printer
to
go
again.
In
the
midst
of
his
confusion,
it
seemed
like
satire
to
him
to
hear
the
commissioners
say,
as
they
smiled
all
round,
and
bowed
themselves
gracefully
off,
'TRES-BIEN,
MONSIEUR
HUGHES--TRES-BIEN,
JE
VOUS
FELICITE.'
But
the
matter
was
explained
next
morning,
when
Professor
Hughes
learned
that
the
transmitting
clerk
at
Lyons
had
been
purposely
instructed
to
earth
the
line
at
the
time
in
question,
to
test
whether
there
was
no
deception
in
the
trial,
a
proceeding
which
would
have
seemed
strange,
had
not
the
occurrence
of
a
sham
trial
some
months
previous
rendered
it
a
prudent
course.
The
result
of
this
trial
was
that
the
French
Government
agreed
to
give
the
printer
a
year
of
practical
work
on
the
French
lines,
and
if
found
satisfactory,
it
was
to
be
finally
adopted.
Daily
reports
were
furnished
of
its
behaviour
during
that
time,
and
at
the
expiration
of
the
term
it
was
adopted,
and
Professor
Hughes
was
constituted
by
Napoleon
III.
a
Chevalier
of
the
Legion
of
Honour.
Marker
Marker
Fine marker
White-out
Fine white-out
Circle
Paint
Unmarker
Hand
Scalpel
Dice
Sieve
Purify
Undo
Redo
Start over
