River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1880-01-01
HEARING THE BELLS.
Some Facts as TO How Far They May BE
Heard.
scientific American.

In a hilly locality bell will not be
heard half so far as if the land were
| level, or nearly so. A bell will be heard
great deal further lengthways of q
valley than over the hills at the sides.
1t is frequently the case that bedrooms
are lower than the surrounding build.
! ipgs and trees, and these Instructions
break the sound and prevent its free
| passage to a distance. II is frequently
| the case, too, that towers have small
windows or openings, with the lower
| boards SO close together as to almost
box up the sound. In cities the noise
Of steam and horse cars, manufacturing
establishments, carriages and carts rat
! ting over the pavements, ETC., Is SO great
| that bells are not expected to be heard
at any considerable distance, and this is
the reason VIII, in all cities, several
bells are used for ire-alarm purposes, it
being impossible for one bell, no matter
how large it may be, to be heard above
the thousand and one noises incident to
every large place. The largest bell ever
made in this country weighed $4,000
pounds, and, before it was fractured,
hung on the City Hall, in New York.
On one or two occasions this bell was
| heard up the Hudson river thirteen
miles, In the night, when the city was
comparatively quiet. Water is good
conductor of sound, and aided materially
in making the bell heard as above men,
toned. 1t is great mistake to suppose
that bells can be heard in proportion to
their weight; that is, that bell of 1000
pounds will be heard twice as far as
one of 1000 pounds. This is not so, for
the reason that the larger bell does not
possess anything like twice the resonant
surface of the smaller one. What is
gained and admired in the larger bell is
its deep, majestic, dignified tone, which
1t Is impossible to secure in the smaller
one, the weight of bell invariably gov
erning its tone. a bell of 100 or 200
pounds, in an open belfry, on school
mouse or factory in the country, is FREE
quently heard at long distance, out of
proportion, apparently, to one of 1000
pounds in church tower near by; and
instances of this kind frequently cause
no little comment in the way Of COM
parison. The reason for this is, that the
small bell has a sharp, shrill, penetrat-
ing sound, that must, of necessity, be
heard great deal further in proportion
to its weight than the low, mellow
"church-going" sound of the church
bell. The same principle applies to the
whistle of locomotive, and it is heard
long distance simply because its tone
isshrill and penetrating. When hung
stationary and struck, or tolled, bells will
not DO heard. as rule, half as far as
when swung. The swinging motion
throws the mouth of the bell up, and
not only carries the sound off, but inn
parts to it richness that is always alb
sent when the bell is at rest and struck.
A great deal is to be gained by ringing
bell properly, throwing the mouth well
up, and not lazily jingling it. 1t is not
physical strength that is required in
ringing bell SO much as" getting the
knack" of catching the rope just right,
particularly on the second " down pull"
The windows in the tower should be as
open as possible, and the tower should
be ceiled just above the windows.