Modern Practice of the Electric Telegraph 1892

 Today your humble editor received a real treasure!

A paper copy of Pope's "Modern Practice of the Electric Telegraph" written in 1892.
This magnificent book is produced in paperback form by the Leopold Classic Library from a scanned copy, made by Google I believe.
I have a PDF of the scanned copy of the 1874 edition from the Internet Archive but nothing compares (at least to me) to being able to peruse such old documents in paper form.

 Inside this book is a fascinating look at the state of electricity and electrical apparatus at the end of the 19th Century. There is practical advise on the design, construction, and use of the telegraph. Also trouble shooting tips for when things don't work!

There are 185 illustrations in this book that help to show not only the principles that Pope is describing, but are also a pleasant snapshot of the state of the technology at the time. 

I have perused the PDF file quite a bit but I have to say that being able to flip back and forth and wander around the book in it's physical form really helps me to cement my understanding and gives me a great appreciation for the technicians and craftsmen who created these globe spanning systems even when their understanding of the fundamental science was primitive in the extreme.

 

There were several editions of this book. The Internet archive has at least three that I have found one from 1866, 1874 and one from 1899.

All the PDF copies are in good shape with the scanned illustrations being very clear.

The paper copy I have was produced from the best scanned copy that was available and has the same detailed and clear illustrations.

Of interest to those of us struggling to lear the code and improve our sending and copying is a short section at the very end of the book with "Hints for Learners". Definitely worth a gander.

I found this page, the last page of the text, to be particularly apropos to me and the Heritage Park's gang of happy amateurs.
I have included a photo of the page.

Enjoy
73