Messaging – Ways We Use To Do It
PHOTO: The cow bell was a means of messaging in those days of old.
by Robert Hanaford Smith, Sr.
Weirs Times Contributing Writer
How did we ever survive in a world without a smart phone in our possession at all times?
Last week I wrote about using a telephone when it was in its infancy, but in these days we’ve come a long ways from that and now send our messages in a variety of ways by phone and other means.
So first remember that messaging was, in the past, not done in the same way as today. Secondly, our telephones had to be attached to wires to work, they didn’t carry text messages, say nothing about images, and our shouts had limited carrying capacity, so, in many circumstances we used other means, or we just got along without trying to message. There was no world-wide web. We weren’t always in such a hurry to communicate.
Down through the ages mankind has used many means to send messages, that is, to communicate with others. As a child I was intrigued with echoing. If the location was right, and the air was still, I could yell “hello” and hear an “hello” in response. I read that years ago when visitors to the Old Man of the Mountain would shout their message at Echo Lake they would say that the echo that came back to them was God answering them.
There were times at our country home when the most effective way of receiving a family member’s attention at a distance was to raise our voice and shout our message. So came Mother’s call to get up in the morning, to come to lunch, or some other summons. With no phone to carry a call to come in from the barn, field, garden, or woods had to come by other means.
One signal device that we had was a shaker horn made of metal that when blown emitted a sound that I believe could be heard for a mile. It eliminated the need to shout to call someone to lunch or alert them to the fact that something had happened that demanded their attention. It is a messaging device that has served for decades, probably over a century now, maybe two.
The cow bell was a means of messaging in those days of old. There was a time when there was an extensive pasture on the old farm, and if the cows didn’t come home on schedule they could be located by the sound of the bells that were attached to their necks. The cows could communicate by voice, too, particularly if they didn’t get fed on time, or they could be called by a voice command or invitation to come home. The pigs and the chickens could also get vocal if their dinner was late in arriving or they were startled by some unusual event or noise. And the cats, I must not forget the cats, which caught the mice, but also could communicate their sometimes annoying request to be fed with some milk immediately after milking time on the farm. The dog would bark to announce the arrival of any visitors, and I recall the dog being stationed at the outside corner of the house constantly barking in response to some distant messaging it detected. Part of a dog’s responsibility is that of a detective or watch dog to protect the premises and sound alarms.
Messaging devices in the days of the one-room schoolhouses included the school bell rung by the teacher to summon the pupils inside to begin the day’s instruction or to communicate that it was time for recess to end and study to resume. The United States mail or postal service has, since the early days of our country been a vital means of communication, and that has not changed, though some of its functions are now at least shared by other means of communication, mainly the fax machine and now the internet. Gone are the days, it seems, though, when a message sent by mail by train from Laconia in the morning of any particular day, could be replied to by a letter in response which would be delivered to a Laconia resident or business on the same day. Speed of delivery seems to no longer be a priority of the United States postal agency because urgent messages are sent by text over the phone or by e-mail.
I have benefited through the years by the mail service, however. When my Dad was away on a business trip for a few days he would send picture postcards back home; I still have one he sent to me just signed as Dad and no other message, but an appreciated message, nonetheless. When I was in college and even when my children were in college there was no daily correspondence with parents. When I went to college and after almost all of my contact with my parents while I was at school was by letter with an occasional phone call.
Not too many years ago when my daughter’s car broke down on an interstate highway, having no cell phone or ham radio, she walked to a service area to get help. Back in the day, the walkie-talkie was an item of great interest in improving communication with someone else. A walk in the woods or on a mountain trail might include the possession of a battery operated (as our cell phones) two-way radio to enable the hiker or hunter, etc, to keep in contact with another person, but these have their limitations. Most of the former ways of communication are still in use today with many of them being improved and all of them supplemented with other means.
To keep up to date on what was happening in the world many in the past relied upon the local newspaper. As I read some of the old New Hampshire newspapers, published well before my time, I am struck by the use of small print, allowing for more news, and the openness of the content. There was no beating around the bush concerning what was happening. The news not only told you that someone in town was sick, it told you if it was thought they were dying. If someone died by suicide the newspaper told you, sometimes in detail, how the deed was carried out. If there was a divorce the paper was apt to tell you why the divorce was granted. You knew who visited who in the neighborhood, who worked, at what and where, when they harvested their hay, etc. as well as a summary of state, national and international news, and with a lot of editorial commentary.
In those days of old, family messaging might have included written notes, and, if there was something a neighbor was thought to be in need of knowing a kid might be sent to convey the message or request to them, either vocalized or by a written message. A neighbor might have called and at this time of year collecting money for the Easter Seals fund-raiser or with folders with slots for dimes to be collected for the March of Dimes.
I could add more, and though now it would appear that we were in the past severely limited in the means of communication (no TV even!), It would also appear, that if a message needed to be told, somehow “the word got around.”