USES OF THE TELEGRAPH. 



to all the rest; the arrival of vessels in Queenstown, the result of 

 a market in Cork, or of a cattle fair at Ballinasloe, affording 

 intelligence for the whole of the United Kingdom, and vice versa. 



In order to carry out this system, the company employs paid 

 agents, news collectors, parliamentary reporters, &c. 



253. It is a fact well known that the electric telegraph is much 

 more extensively used for all purposes, political, commercial, and 

 domestic, in the United States, than in this or any other part of 

 Europe. Before the reductions which have within the last year 

 or two taken place in the tariffs, this might fairly be explained 

 by the comparatively small cost of transmission in America. 

 But since those reductions were effected, it may be questioned 

 whether there is any difference of cost sufficiently considerable to 

 explain the vast difference in the extent to which the public, on 

 different sides of the Atlantic, avail themselves of this mode of 

 inter-communication. 



We shall notice the question of the tariffs hereafter. Mean- 

 while, whatever be the cause, it is certain, that the practical use 

 of the telegraph is much more extended among our transatlantic 

 descendants. 



The tariffs vary on different lines, but it has been estimated 

 that the cost of a message of 10 words, exclusive of address and 

 signature, sent 10 miles, is about 5d., and for greater distances the 

 cost may be taken at about 0-035d. per word per mile. 



The classes of messages entitled to precedence, are government 

 messages, and messages for the furtherance of justice in detection 

 of criminals, &c. ; then death messages, which includes cases of 

 sickness when the presence of a party is sent for by the sick and 

 dying. Important press-news comes next ; if not of extraordinary 

 interest, it takes its turn with the mercantile messages. 



2c4. Commercial houses resort largely to the telegraph. For ex- 

 ample : a person purchasing goods in New York, gives his reference 

 to the merchant such reference being perhaps 700 or 800 miles 

 away from him. By the aid of the telegraph the merchant can 

 learn the standing of his customer, even before the purchase is com- 

 pleted. There are bankers, brokers, &c., that receive and send, on 

 an average, six to ten messages per day, throughout the year. 



255. The manager of House's line at New York states that some 

 ^commercial houses pay to the company as much as 2007. a-year, 

 and that the average annual receipts from twenty mercantile 

 houses amount to 1007. each. 



The directors of Bain's New York lines report that the tele- 

 tEelnai?. ' WL\Y^9J^S*dal^men to^almost^asj^at jm extent as 

 sent and received between cities whose commercial relations are 



89 



