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EUROPEAN ARMIES STRUGGLE FOR
SUPREMACY IN MILITARY SIGNALING.
Devices That the Next War Will Bring into Use.
C3
. Tn all European armies now great
attention is being paid to the sigual
oirpa, and each nation every now and
then vaunts itself over the others with
the announcement of the discovery of
some new method of signaling, says
the New York Press.
The really reliable systems of mili¬
tary signaling are few, and none of
them is exactly new. In our own
army the heliograph and the “wig¬
wag” system of flag signals are most
relied upon. The captive balloon at
Santiago was only a qualified success,
but it has not diminished the ardor
with which European powers are
seeking to solve the balloon problem.
The bravery and the eflicient work of
the signal service men in the war with
Spain received high praise from all
the foreign attaches and from our own
Government, but Europe seems loath
to take up our system of signaling.
With every nation on the Continent of
Europe military signaling is a military
hobby, and each rides its own especial
hobby bard, and spends great amounts
of money on it.
I All over Europe experiments are
going on constantly in military signal¬
ing. Every bright young officer and
©very crank regards the signal corps
a* the body which shall make his fame
and fortune by utilizing his invention.
And it would seem as if every King
and Emperor and every field marshal
lay awake nights to think up some
new invention for that branch of the
service.
No ‘matter what branch of the ser¬
vice has to go short on funds in a Eu¬
ropean army, the sigual corps gets
what money it wants. That the sig¬
nal service of an army is of the first
importance is not to be denied, and
our own corps will compare in ef¬
ficiency with any in the world. But
in Europe the corps is a fad.
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WIGWAGGERS OF THE FRENCH PIONEERS.
The German Emperor is credited
with having said the other day: “So
important will be the part played by
military telegraphy in the war of the
future that the army having the most
efficient system of signaling will hold
a trump card which may be of most
decisive influence on tbe conduct and
success of the war.”
* Another Germau authority says:
“Electric telegraphy, with and with¬
out wires, is a main branch of the
service, and not only with the
'pioneers,’ but with every troop, in¬
fantry, cavalry, artillery and railroad¬
ers. The German army, adhering to
its principle of meeting the enemy on
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THE UPPER PICTURE REPRESENTS FLAG SIGNALING BY AUSTRIAN MOUNT¬
AIN ARTILLERY. THE LOWER PICTURE REPRESENTS THE BRITISH ARMY
IN INDIA USING THE HELIOGRAPH.
the latter’s own territory, must needs
possess greater hlacritv in aud better
faoilities for building electric tele-
graph lines than the French and Rus¬
sians, the Austrians and Italians, who
might be eager enough to keep war
out of their own territory, but who
are behind Germany in the rapidity of
mobilization.”
Neither the German nor the other
European armies rely exclusively upon
the electrical telegraph, which may
fail for various reasons, the principal
one being that the ordinary com¬
mercial lines, as well as the field lines
established in their stead or for the
purpose of supplementing them, may
be destroyed by the enemy or the ele¬
ments, thus robbing the commanding
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LIME LIGHT SIGNALS IN THE RUSSIAN ARMY.
general of the means for com¬
municating with his subordinate com¬
manders.
The Germans, like other nations,
rely largely upon ojitical methods of
signaling. The favorite device of this
kind in the German army is the sema¬
phore, which is made more efficient
by Redi’s system of cones. The sema¬
phore proper is quite an ancient de¬
vice. It was first introduced by the
French in* 1794 for conveying in¬
telligence from Paris to the armies on
the frontier. As the illustration shows,
the German army semaphore is
similar is to our railway signal poles and
W 0 . 1..4 arms. There is also a
telescope in tu« e*s r — nin.b commands
the mast at the next station. *
mast can be inserted at any place. As
to the cone, each cue represents a
number, 1, 2, 3 or 4. If 1 and 4 are
down, that means 5, and similar ad¬
ditions are made with the other
figures.
Signals can also be given without
the cone by moving the arms
horizontally against the body, or by
placing them in any other position
agreed upon.
At night lantern slides of various
colors are placed in the ends of the
cones.
Personally the Kaiser has more
faith in the captive balloon than in
any other optical means for telegraph¬
ing. The German captive balloon is
furnished with means for photograph¬
ing, and the parties in the car com¬
municate with those on the ground by
means of the telegraph or tele-
phone. For telegraphing an instru
meat similar to the Morse apparatus,
arranged iu compact %in 1 is used,
The system is practically that used in
this country.
For the signal corps of the German
army the brightest men of each bat¬
talion and regiment are selected. They
are thoroughly drilled in all the man¬
oeuvres connected with the transpor¬
tation, the erection and operating of
the apparatuses. Each German signal
station is manned by five privates, a
non-commissioned officer and a lieu¬
tenant.
In the English army a similar num¬
ber of signal men are employed with
each company, squadron of cavalry
and battery. The French employ eight
instead of five men; the Russians think
four men of each company sufficient
for the service.
The French army employs as opti¬
cal telegraph flags and lanterns. The
flags are worked according to the naval
code and Morse alphabet. French
signalers are said to be able to execute
120 movements per minute. To sig*
nal the dot of the Morse alphabet the
French hold up one flag. Two flags
represent the dash 'of the Morse al¬
phabet. After each letter there is a
short pause, after each word a longer
pause, the latter being accentuated by
the flag being held over the head of
the signal man. If the telegram is
finished the signal man repeats the
last word three times. If the receiver
doesn’t understand the operator he
raises a flag with his right hand to his
head. Of course, flag signals can only
be used in daytime. employed
At night the lantern is
when search and flash lights are not
available.
Signal lanterns are bandied after
the fashion of the flags, dots being
maiKod bj- openuier and shutting the
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SEMAPHORE APPARATUS IN USE IN THE
PRUSSIAN ARMY.
slide respectively. A dash is marked
by exposing the flame four times
longer than in case of a dot. Thus
dispatches of twenty words can be for¬
warded in a minute.
The Austrians follow <the French
method of signaling in all but the size
and form of flags. To the standard
colors of black, white, red, blue and
yellow they add green. Green plays
also a part in the Italian flag, signals.
The English largely employ the
heliograph. By means of tho helio¬
graph trained signal men can commu¬
nicate with each other at a distance of
fifty miles, whether they have a tele¬
scope or not. General Roberts once
sent 1200 telegrams by heliograph in
a single day. That was in Egypt,
where the sun is very strong.
The English mode of signaling by
flags differs from the Frencli in minor
details, which are kept secret. But
this secrecy doesn’t amount to much,
considering other nations, that the Britishers, like
use the Morse alphabet.
The Russians have adopted the
French lantern system for distances
from one to two miles. These lanterns
are constructed on the lines of bicycle
lamps, having a bulls-eye lens, and
being fed by oil. On long distances
the Russians use lime light appara¬
tuses constructed as follows: There
are two tanks filled with oxygen aud
hydrogen respectively. The hydrogen
is lit and, the oxygen gas mingling
with it, produoes a colorless flame. A
lime block placed in the flame is ren
dered incandescent'and its light, re¬
flected from a mirror, is sent forward.
The resembling mirror is a yowilful parabolic,
in shape the end of an
egg. The concave portion is the re
fleotor. This apparatus is so con¬
trived that the beam light can he sent
in all directions. The telegraphing is
effected iu the same way as the tele¬
graphing with lanterns by the French,
All the apparatuses described are,
if possible, set up on natural or arti*
elevations. The sigual officers
must also be careful to find a suitable
background for their operations, side so
that the signals from the other
can be readily interpreted. There is,
however, one great drawback to all
these systems. As all armies use as a
basis for their systems the Morse
alphabet, friend and enemy alike are
capable of reading the messages sent
out.
CEMETERIES IN CUBA.
There is a Question as to Who Now Con¬
trols Them.
In most of the cities and towns of
Cuba there is a contest pending oyer
the control of the cemeteries. During
the Spanish regime the burial places
were managed and controlled by the
authorities of the church. The fees
from the cemeteries formed a consid¬
erable item in the revenues of each
parish church. It cost all the way
from seventy cents to $70 to secure
funeral services and a burial in these
consecrated grounds. Plots of ground
were assigned to such families as de¬
sired them on annual ground rent
terms, or else “ovens” in the ceme¬
tery walls, capable of containing a
corpse, were assigned upon an annual
rental fee. If the rent was not paid
within five days-of the expiration of
auy year the corpse was dragged out
and the remains, bones and ashes,
thrown upon the “bone pile.”
In the cemetery at Havana when
the Americans took possession of the
city the dump pile contained literally
millions of bones, and thousands of
whitened skulls. The American au¬
thorities have ordered these horrible
stacks of bones buried, and this par¬
ticular “sight” can £no longer be seen
in the island. Paupers have been
buried with the slightest of earth cov¬
ering. distin¬
Some of the cemeteries are
guished by beautiful tombs and pieces
of memorial imported from
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OVENS FOR CORPSES IN A CUBAN CEME¬
TERY.
abroad and erected by the richer fam¬
ilies of the communities.
Under the new order of affairs the
city governments are claiming the
®<wai.ataries the church as municipal property and
pressing their authorities title are tenaciously
to them as the
property of the church. In Cienfue
gos the commanding general has al¬
lowed the city authorities to take
charge of the cemetery and reform
the past abuses. General Brooke,
Governor of the island, has notified
both parties to the controversy—the
church on the one baud and the city
governments on the other—to submit
their claims and proof in eacji case,
and the decision will then be finally
rendered as to which is the owner of
the cemeteries and entitled to control
them.
Moose and Caribou Cemeteries.
The Forest and Stream contains the
following contribution from a Quebec
correspondent concerning the habit
moose and caribou have of going to
the same place, season after season, to
shed their antlers:
“The idea of the animals seeking a
definite place for this purpose was
quite new to me, but lately the effi¬
cient Superintendent of Game and
Fisheries at Quebec, L. Z. Joncas,
Esq., has told me that they do fre¬
quent such places, and that this habit
was quite well known to him. He
knew of many and mentioned several
places where horns could almost cer¬
tainly be found at any time. And not
only do they go to shed their horns,
but they go there to die. These
places are known as cemeteries, and
whole skeletons are occasionally
found. This,‘however, would be rare,
as the bones would usually be torn
apart and scattered by bears and other
carnivorse.
“Mr. Joncas instanced the case of a
gentleman going to a certain region
for geological exploration, who asked
for a permit to shoot a moose out of
season in order to get a good pair of
antlers. He was told that by diverg¬
ing a little from his route he might
reach a place where he would find
plenty of them. He did so and se¬
cured five excellent specimens.”
Big Sum* Paid For Horae*.
One hundred thousand dollars was
quite recently paid to Mr. John Gnb
bius, of Druree, Ireland, for his fa¬
mous horse Galtee More,which secured
the double event, by winning last year
the Derby aud the St. Leger. But,
despite bis great cost, Galtee More
was not the most expensive horse that
has ever been purchased. That honor
belongs to the famous Ormonde, u a
triple-ftrowned hero. This splendid
animal belonged to the Duke of West¬
minster, who sold him to a South
American gentleman for $105,000.
Shortly afterwards Ormonde was re¬
sold to Mr. Mactlonogh—a California
millionaire—for $150,000, realizing
the highest price ever paidfer a horse.
THE MEKEY SIDE 0E LII
STORIES THAT ARE TOLD-BY T*E
FUNNY MEN OF THE PRESS.
Anotlier Casey at the Bat—That Settle*
Him—A XVlse Little Boy—All]
Hut the Outline*—Quite Uaconscb a#
of HI* Condition—HI* Plight, Etc.,Ete,
With his bat upon his shoulder,—
He walked up to the plate;
His manly chest was bulging,
And lordly was his gait.
A boy rushed forth with flowers,
That the hero’s friends had sent,
And as he raised his cap the sky
With many a cheer was rent.
He turned and faced the pitcher,
And scorn was in his look;
He then pulled up his breeches,
His bat he fiercely shook.
The anxious people watched him—
But why continue here?
Of course you know what happened—
He lilt the atmosphere! —Cleveland Leader,
A Wi*o Little Boy.
Doctor—“Put out your tongue.” ■
Little Tommy— “Not on your life!
I did that to the teacher yesterday
and got a licking.”— Brooklyn Life. r
That Settled Him.
“Your dressmaker’s bills are too
high,” he said.
“Well,” she replied, “why don’t
you speak to her about it?”—Chicago
Post.
Quite Unconscious of Hi* Condition.
Coroner—“Was the victim conscious
when you reached him?”
Pat—“Yis, sir; he worr. But be
chune us, I don’t belave he knew ut.’*
—Philadelphia North American.
All Gone But the Outline*.
“How are your plants, Mrs. Mnd
ger?” isn’t single leaf
“Well, there a on
one of them, but otherwise they are
doing first rate.”—Chicago News.*
A Reason For Disarmament.
“You are in favor of this universal
peace movement, aren’t you, captain?”
“Indeed I am; what would I look
like in battle charging up a hill on an
automobile?”—Indianapolis Journal,
A Humble Example.
Ethel (of Boston)—“They say he 13
very rich, but intolerably vulgar.”
Victoria (of Chicago)—“You’re dead
right, there, my dear. He’s got a load
o’ dough, but he’s on the ‘hog’ every
other way.”—Judy.
Hi* Flight.
Hassit—“It’s strange you’re so hard
up, old man. I thought you owned
half of Swamphurst, and had lots to
sell?”
Haddit—“I have; but what I want
is lots to eat.”—Brooklyn Life.
MaUing It Easier For Pa.
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“Remember, Bobby, this will hurt
me more than it will you.”
“Say, pop, you try to be better and
I’il let you off this time.”—Life.
Wanted For an Understanding.
Dick —“I wisli we had a great big
dictionary in the house.”
Father (proud of his son’s thirst for
knowledge)—“Doyon something?” want to look for
Dick—“Yes; there’s some jam on
the shelf that I can’t reach standing
on the chair.
A Way to Be Brave.
Tightfist—“I’ve been as far as the
door of the dentist’s office three times,
but I can’t get up the courage to go
in.”
Watts—“I’ll tell you what to do;
send the money down in advance.
That will make you desperate.”—In¬
dianapolis Journal.
The Deep Refrain. v
And now, ’ said the horticulturist,
as he sallied out into his orchard with
iis knives, grafting wax, and tho
other implements of his calling ready
for use, I will take up my share of
the white man’s buddiu’.”
And naught was heard in response
save the deep-voiced bark of the trees.
—Chicago Tribune.
Real Rubbing It In.
Estate Agent—“A fine place,
and a splendid one for a golf course,
sir Does your family p l ay go lf?”
Prospective Buyer — “Does my
family play golf! My two sons afc
school have won all the intercollegiate
tho championships, my daughter wins all
women’s handicaps, uiy wife is
out on the links every morning before
. breakfast, ...
my wife’s mother has broken
all the club records, and the very first
word my baby learned to say was
lore. Does my family play golf! If
you can show mo a piece of property
with no possible hazards, no bunkers,
nothing but rocks, woods aud water.
I m your man!”—Life.