The Word “Telegraph”

Abstract

THE word “telegraph” appears to have been naturalised in our language at a much earlier date than that given by Mr. Warren de la Rue in his letter in NATURE, vol. xxi. p. 226. There are several references to the apparatus in the Gentleman's Magazine for July, December, 1794, and the next three volumes. At first the word appears in its French form with the final “e,” but the sign of its foreign origin soon disappears. Under the date January 28, 1796, we find amongst “Domestic Occurrences” a paragraph stating that “a telegraph was this day erected over the Admiralty”. This, I think, was removed about thirty years ago. In case your correspondent should wish to verify the references in the indexes to the Gentleman's Magazine, I may point out that there are two pages numbered 106 in the volume for January to June, 1795, and that there is an article at p. 1176 of that for July to December, 1794, not mentioned in the index.