50 ANNUAL REGISTER, iim. 



ing-tnitnpet, be heard at any con- 

 ■siderable dislauce: and ay the firing 

 of cannon, or other loud noise, is 

 not susceptible of those variations 

 in v\'iiich the perlection cl the liu— 

 man voice consists, signals by means 

 of sound are never employed \v;th 

 sdvantacje, fXce])t when the intel- 

 ligence to be commumcated is sim- 

 ple, consisting only of one or two 

 facts, and where those facts and 

 comnuinications of signals and per- 

 sons arc previously agreed on. 

 The telegraph is an instrument, or 

 machine, intended to communicate 

 intelligence with accuracy and dis- 

 patch ; and is different from any 

 ©ther contrivance for making sig- 

 nals, in this, That it expi-esses not 

 words, but letters; so that any in- 

 formation that may be given by 

 ■R'riting, may be, given by the tcle- 

 gyaph. 



The telegraph, in so far as it re- 

 presents words, is a new, — but in 

 80 far it makes use of signs, is a 

 very ancient invention. There is 

 reason to believe that there was 

 some sort of telegraph in use among 

 the ancient Greeks. The burning 

 of Troy was certainly known in 

 Greece very soon after it had hap- 

 pened, and before any persons had 

 • ventured from thence. A Greek 

 play begins with a scene in vvliich 

 a watclnnan descends from, the top 

 of a tower in Greece, and gives the 

 information that Troy was taken : 

 " I hrtve been looking out these 

 ten years," says he, " to see wlien 

 that would hapycu, and this night 

 it is done." The Chineijc, when 



they send' couriers on the great 

 ci.nal, or whtn any great man tra- 

 vels there, make signals by fire, 

 from one day's jomney to ar.other, 

 to have every thing prepared : and 

 most of the barbarous nations used 

 formerly to give the alarm of war 

 by fires lighted on tlie hills or rising 

 grounds*. 



Tlie telegraph of the present day .. 

 is, hov.-cver, infinitely move perfect 

 than any mode of conveying intel- 

 jigence quickly from one place to 

 another, known to the ancients ; 

 and differs as much from former 

 signals, as the articulate sound of 

 the human voice differs from the 

 noises made by brutes. Many of 

 the brute anim.als, such as dogs, 

 horses, and others, can by noises 

 and signs shew what they want, or 

 give the alarm when frightened or 

 hurt. But farther than such a ge- 

 neral annunciation of a few very 

 common wants, feelings, Bnd events, 

 tiieirlanjjuage docs not extend ; at 

 Last as far as men can understand 

 them. 



Men who art deprived of the use 

 of speech make signs, and have 

 different motions or positionsforthe 

 different letters ; and, when pro- 

 perly taught, can communicate 

 every sliing they know with accu- 

 racy. And this fact it is that has 

 pi'obaliy led to the French inven- 

 tion of the telegraph, by Monsieur- 

 Chaope : for this machine has an 

 upright body, and two arms, like a 

 man, each of which arms has a joint 

 or elbow ; so that, were two men 

 to make signs to each other, at a 



* The ancient Gaii'is were an excentinn from this. Instead of lighting fires, 

 they gave great and continufti cries ; which woe repeated by ail who beard them, 

 until the whole country was alcrrpcd. This was but a slow and imperfect mode 

 of communicaion, when compared even v/ith sij;nals by fire. The ancient Gauls 

 or Cclis recm to hire been a": much behind other naijons in inii>iovemeai, as the 

 mtidern French are in iHany iustanccj bclort thvm. 



distance 



