Exotic
The Adventures and Perils of Living on Distant Shores

Telegraph men stationed around the world encountered many exciting new experiences. Men recorded and shared new worlds through photographs, diaries and articles in The Zodiac magazine. Tales of heroism and adventure were common. Such stories could hide the isolation and boredom of living for years on an island or in an isolated location. John Norman, a telegrapher in St Vincent, recorded in his diary: "After nearly five years out here of continuous service I feel dulled with the monotony and ceaseless strain".

New places also meant new dangers. Monsoons and earthquakes threatened their lives and the telegraph. Extreme weather conditions and especially heat were a daily trial. Exotic locations also held disease and death. Malaria and Yellow Fever could decimate telegraph stations and cable ships could be quarantined.

Company men: Traversing a Dangerous World

With stations dotted around the globe, telegraphers were often at the forefront of exploration and the edges of the British Empire. Whilst exploration and making new connections was important to expand telegraphic business and the empire, it was often a dangerous experience.

Earthquakes in Peru and the chaos that followed were recorded by James Golding in July 1881:

“Peruvians were just outside...[and] bang went the rifles and the firing commenced in earnest. The people rushed out of their houses and women crying, and a wild scene ensued...The house was soon full of soldiers and we determined to stay in our house occasionally popping our heads outside the door, not daring to expose ourselves for bullets were flying about thick, and with a horrid noise as they rushed through the air.”

Local political situations could also flair up, and proved highly dangerous for telegraphers. The 1882, Anglo- Egyptian War was largely concerned with controlling Egypt, but telegraphers were caught up in the violence. Mr Tenent, a clerk, was killed and staff abandoned the station to continue working on a cable ship off shore.

Enjoying the Exotic: Passing Time and Maintaining the Empire

When not working the cables, telegraphers had time to explore their exotic locations. Men recorded their lives abroad through photographs and diaries.

Local travel was another important leisure activity. Picnics and excursions were often recorded by telegraphers. At the station, dining at the 'mess' and amateur dramatics helped to pass the time. As women were often in short supply to play female roles in plays, the men dressed up.

Sport was an important aspect of their lives. Football, rugby and cricket were played and scores of matches were recorded and shared across the globe with men from the Eastern Telegraph Company.

Leisure activities helped to wile away the hours, but also promoted an inward-looking company culture. Such 'civilised' British pursuits also became part of the imperial project where British values and culture helped to maintain and empower the empire.

Exotic Places: Curious Diseases

Maintaining the health of telegraphers was vital when trying to keep the business running. The discovery of quinine to ease malarial symptoms had helped Britain's imperial project and, of course, the growth of cable companies, but telegraphers still died from untreatable diseases such as Yellow Fever. Local doctors were paid by the company to care for any sick or injured telegraphers.

Cable ship crews were also exposed to many diseases as they sailed around the world and into different ports. At times cable ships were quarantined in ports to prevent them spreading disease or becoming ill.

Back in London, the company had a Principal Medical Officer and a dentist who inspected men to see if they were physically and mentally fit to keep the cables working. Exotic diseases were not the only health concern, and the danger of Telegraphers' Cramp was ever present.

Whilst the symptoms of Telegrapher's Cramp included muscular cramps or spasms, the causes were described as being due to ' muscular fatigue' and inherent mental weakness. Concern over the efficiency of British workers would become a national issue after the First World War as the British Empire fell into decline.

Life Overseas: Tales of adventure in exotic lands

Exotic locations were sources for anecdote and storytelling between telegraphers around the world. Tales were passed around via the in-house magazine, The Zodiac. In 1913, writing of the hostilities in China, the death of an ex-employee, Mr Grant, was recounted:

"One Mongol described how Grant was bound before he was shot, and how he jeered at them because so great a number found it necessary to tie up a single man. The Mongols said they would soon stop him laughing, and twenty men were lined up with rifles. Grant continued to laugh at them and shouted just before the volley was fired at him, “You may kill me, but you can never frighten me.”

These stories followed a British tradition seen in such novels as Rider Haggard's She (1887) that promoted the notion of the heroic adventurer. These ideas were also promoted at British schools that aimed to create the next generation of men that would sustain the British empire. Telegraphers continued to tell dashing stories into the First World War. The most famous of these stories concerned the German warship Emden.

Back to top

This magnificent scene is of Aden station in 1910. It shows the extent of the building work undertaken by the Eastern Telegraph Company in their quest to increase business and connect the world via submarine cables.

Click on the thumbnails below to enlarge:

    • This magnificent scene is of Aden station in 1910. It shows the extent of the building work undertaken by the Eastern Telegraph Company in their quest to increase business and connect the world via submarine cables.
    • Princess Thakambare, daughter of the Fijian Cannibal King. Her image was kept as an exotic and curious momento highlighting the differences between the 'civilsed' British telegraphers and local people or 'natives'.
    • View of Fanning Island, 1902. This island had no real population until 1855, when Captain Henry English settled there and began producing coconut oil. Captain English put the island under British protection, and it was annexed by them in1888.
    • Fijian storm. Extreme weather and natural disasters made life for telegraphers and cable ship crews difficult, but were part of life in exotic locations.
    • The Eastern and Associated Telegraph Company cable routes. The extent of the company's communication empire can be seen here. This complex system certainly helped suppport the empire. It is clear that the British government were aware of the importance of submarine telegraphy and subsidised some stratgic cables. £63,000 (£3.5 milion today) was paid to the Eastern and South African telegraph Company and £19,000 (£1 million today) was paid to the African Direct Telegraph Company in 1898-1899.
    • Being sent to isolated parts of the world, such as Aden, could be dangerous if trouble broke out. Telegraphers either had to fend for themselves, or wait for support from friendly countries or British troops. The wait could be a long one.
    • On the morning of the 9th November 1914, a landing party of the German navy under the command of First Officer Hellmuth von Mucke, took possession of the Eastern Telegraph Company Station on Cocos. Mucke's orders were "to destroy the wireless telegraph and cable station ...and to bring back with me, in so far as possible, all signal books, secret code books and the like."
    • Eastern Telegraph Company men take tea with a local lady in Bali. Whilst men did socialise with local people, much of their leisure time was spent with each other or by observing local life. This fitted in with the idea of the imperial project, that saw British life as more civilised than 'native' life.
    • This wonderful photograph of the telegraphers at play in St Vincent in 1900, also indicates another popular pastime - drinking.
    • As amateur dramatics was a popular pastime, the telegraphers took time to perfect their production. This image from the Cocos Islands in the 1920s, depicts 'The Sayonaras', and was taken from Mr H.R. Hillier's album.
    • The interior of a Superintendent's quarters in Lagos, Nigeria, 1914. The local servant stands behind Mr and Mrs Cummings as they take their afternoon tea on the veranda. The furniture that surrounds the Cummings was mostly provided by the company and shows that the company supported its employees. This lifestyle was typical of many colonial workers, who had a better standard of living abroad, than they did in Britain.
    • The crew of the cable ship 'Iris'. As they entered new ports, cable ships were often subject to quarantine as it was feared that they could pass on disease. On his journey to South America in 1881, James Golding wrote in his diary: "Early morning a small steam launch came off for mails. And our ship being in quarantine the men were not allowed on board. The bags were thrown onto the launch where one man was standing ready with a can full of disinfecting fluid which was poured on everything handed from our ship..."
    • Yellow Fever cemetery behind Comfortless Cove, Ascension. Yellow Fever was a very dangerous disease passed on through the bite of a mosquito. Telegraphers were susceptible to this and other exotic diseases and many died abroad.
    • Getting letters and parcels from friends and family was a real highlight for telegraphers in out of the way places, such as the Cocos Island, as this photograph shows.
    • Hunting was very popular with telegraphers, and indeed many Britishers working around the empire. Large scale hunts for big game were often seen as a rite of passage for young men. This tiger hunt took place in Bali.