In the days when my father learned Morse at Age 15 in 1908, many, many young men like him chose Morse as a career and did chores- cleaning up depots, loaded cream cans and other heavy Express or baggage for the station agent in exchange for being taught Morse and station accounting. When his father died in 1909, Dad at age 16 was able immediately to find a job on the old Missouri & North Arkansas and was sent to an OS job at Arlburg, Arkansas.
Telegraphers were in good supply until the 1923 RR Strike. The Big Depression beginning in 1929 dates the decline in telegraph students, hence supply. Hundreds of Morse men found themselves out of work. I did not obtain work as a telegrapher until July 17, 1937 (At Romeo, Colorado on the D&RGW).
Train Orders
Rules specified the operator had to hand up one set of orders to the headend (engineman), and two sets for the rear end, conductor and hind trainman. On the Narrow Gauge in helper engine territory, the engineman on the second, third, sometimes even fourth engine had to have copies. The dispatcher gave you a tip as to how many engines there were by (for a single engine train) sending, "CY 4 East (or West)" or "CY 5, 6 or 7 East or West). But even that demigod, the dispatcher, did not know where the additional engines would be placed in the train. You just had to stand there with the hoops in your hands and figure out where the next delivery would be made and pray to God you did not pass up the hoop with the 2 sets for the rear to a helper. This was doubly hard because the helpers ran with extinguished headlights. Wintertime this hell at hill jobs - what with snow falling or being driven by a cold wind.
On the standard gauge at wayside train order offices when the big power came it soon became apparent that some mechanical delivery devise was mandated. It was bad enough with the small power to toe the safety clearance mark, hold up the hoop with one hand as high as possible and the hoop at an angle for the recipient to make the pickup. With the other hand you were holding an oil burning lantern to illuminate the hoop, while trying to keep from dropping the hoops for the rear end (or cut-in helpers.)
The type of hoop used before and at the time I was employed as an operator were of cane staves bent at the small end to form an almost round end; a clip was at the point where the tip crossed and was fastened to make the hoop. The orders to be delivered had to be firmly and neatly folded so they would not become dislodged at delivery. The recipient stuck his arm thru the hoop, stripped it of orders and threw the hoop off. The operator had to go find them in the weeds or snow and return them to the office - all the while slipping and sliding on mud, plowing thru snow and wet weeds - and damning the fireman, engineman or trainman for throwing them so far from the track.