History · Level 2 · 161 words

Messages Across the Semaphore Towers

Original passage © Studio AM, written for Fluency.

Before electric wires carried news, France built chains of signal towers. In 1792, Claude Chappe demonstrated an optical telegraph. A tall mechanism on each tower had moving arms that operators could place in many positions. Each position stood for a number connected to a coded word or phrase.

An operator watched the previous tower through a telescope. When its arms changed, the operator copied the position for the next tower to see. In this way, a message moved across the landscape without one messenger traveling the whole route. The network later linked Paris with distant cities and served the government.

The system was fast for its era, but visibility set a firm limit. Fog, heavy rain, darkness, or a blocked view could stop the relay. Towers also needed trained operators and an agreed code. Chappe’s network joined mechanics, language, and a line of attentive people. Its moving arms carried information only because every station performed the same small act in order.

Comprehension questions

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4 questions
1. What is the main idea of the passage?

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B. Chappe’s optical telegraph relayed coded arm positions across connected towers, sending messages quickly for its era but depending on visibility and coordinated operators.
The passage explains the tower-to-tower relay and shared code, then identifies poor visibility as the system’s main limit.

2. Why did an operator use a telescope?

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C. To see the arm positions displayed by the neighboring tower across a distance
Operators had to observe and copy the previous tower’s arm position, so the telescope made that distant visual signal readable.

3. In this passage, what does “relay” mean?

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D. the passing of a signal from one station to the next
Each operator copies the previous tower for the next one, so relay means repeated passing along the chain.

4. In what year did Claude Chappe demonstrate the optical telegraph?

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A. 1792
The first paragraph directly dates Chappe’s demonstration to 1792.

Source: Written for Fluency. Original passage © Studio AM, written for Fluency.