The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1880-01-08
How Far Bells May be Heard.

In billy locality, says the Scientific
american. a bell will not be heard half
as far as if the land were level, or nearly
so. A bell will be heard great deal
farther lengthways of a valley than over
the hills at the sides. 1t is frequently
the case that bedrooms are lower than
the surrounding buildings AID trees, and
these Instructions break the sound and
prevent its free passage to a distance.
1t is frequently the case, too, that CoW-
ers 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, man
ufacturing establishments, carriages, and
carts rafting over the pavements, etc.,
is so great that bells are not expected
to be heard at any considerable dis
lance, and this is the reason why, in all
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 mentioned. 1t is great mistake
to suppose that bells can be heard in
proportion to their weight that is, that
bell of two thousand pounds will be
heard twice as far as one of one thou
sand pounds. This is not so, for the
reason that the larger bell does not pos
sess any thing like twice the resonant
surface of the smaller one. What is
gained and admired in the larger bell
is its deep, majestic, dignifed tone,
which it is impossible to secure in the
smaller one, the weight of a bell in
variably governing its force. A bell of
one hundred or two hundred pounds, in
an open belfry, on a school-house or
factory in the country, is frequently
heard at a long distance, out of all pro-
portion, apparently, to one of one
thousand pounds in a church tower near
by; and instances of this kind frequent
ly cause no little comment in the way
OF comparison. The reason for this is,
that the small bell has a sharp, shrill,
penetrating sound, that must, of neces-
sity, be heard great deal farther, in
proportion to its weight, than the low,
mellow, g church going" sound of the
church-bell. The same principle APP
plies to the whistle of locomotive, and
it is heard long distance simply be-
cause its tone is shrill and penetrating.
When hung stationary and struck, or
tolled, bells will not be heard, as a rule,
half as far as when swung. The swing
ing motion throws the mouth of the
bell up, and not only carries the sound
off, but imparts to it a richness that is
absent when the bel 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 y of catching the
rope just right, particularly on the sec
ond "down pull The windows in
the tower should be as open as possible,
and the tower should be ceiled just
above the windows.