Page:The World's Famous Orations Volume 10.djvu/282

 THE WORLD'S FAMOUS ORATIONS

distances in a shorter space of time and with more ease than was ever dreamed of by the fathers. Isolation is no longer possible or desir- able. The same important news is read, tho in different languages, the same day in all Christen- dom.

The telegraph keeps us advised of what is occurring everywhere, and the Press foreshadows, with more or less accuracy, the plans and pur- poses ot the nations. Llarket prices of products and of securities are hourly known in every com- mercial mart, and the investments of the people extend beyond their own national boundaries into the remotest parts of the earth. Vast trans- actions are conducted and international ex- changes are made by the tick of the cable. Every event of interest is immediately bulletined. The quick gathering and transmission of news, like rapid transit, are of recent origin, and are only made possible by the genius of the inventor and the courage of the investor. It took a special messeiiger of the goverment, with every facility knowix at the time for rapid travel, nineteen days to go from the City of Washington to New Orleans with a message to General Jackson that the war with England had ceased and a treaty of peace had been signed. How different now! "We reach General ]\Iiles, in Porto Rico, and he was able through the military telegraph to stop his army on the firing line with the message that the United States and Spain had signed a protocol suspending hostilities. We knew almost 94.^

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