Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-07-05
Mid-Ocean Light Houses, Signal Sta
tiOns, Etc.

Nelr York Maritime Register.
\ short time ago the Maritime Register
pointed out the desirability of Mid-Ocean
Stations for meteorological reports 1t
showed that such stations would serve
the same purpose in securing storm warn
ings for navigation as the land stations
do now for the general public. The idea
was found to be a good one and its value
and Importance are readily admitted
The Register suggested that floating
stations We're among the possibilities Of
the future, 1t needing only demand to
call them into existence. This plan of
Mid-Ocean Stations has also been suggest
ed for another purpose. Mr.. w. c..
Anderson, of England, in a recent paper
read before the London Society of Engi-
neerS, suggested what seems to be prac-
teal plan for founding deep sea light
houses. His idea is to construct hollow
cylinder of riyeted iron work. 300 feet
long, To consist oftwo sectiOns-the upper
part to be 40 feet long, destined to rear
its head above the waves and fitted as an
ordinary light house, while the remain
ing portion of the tube is to be ballasted
so as to sink below the water line and
cOunteract the force of winds and waves
on the exposed part. The whole appa-
ratus is to be anchored in deep water by
heavy steel cables. The inventor claims
that it would be easy to tow such a struc-
ture to the spot selected for it, and then
by admitting water to the lower section it
would assume an upright position and
ride the waves like a bottle. Chambers
Journal for June, in speaking of the plan,
suggests the idea of utilizing it for found
ing a system of mid-Ocean floating tele-
graph stations. The New York Herald,
writing upon the same subject, says: The
idea of founding mid-ocean floating tele-
graph stations has long been discussed,
but no engineer has yet devised, unless it
be Mr.. Anderson, any structure which
would remain stationary, and if connect
ed with the Geographic cables
would not in stormy weather endanger
them. The depth of water to which the
agitation of wave reaches never bears a
large proportion to the waves dimen-
siOns. the motion diminishing in geome-
trical prOgressiOns as the depth below the
surface increases in arithmetical. "In
the case Of wave a quarter of mile in
breadth and 40 feet i'm height as Sir John
Herschel shows, S'the displacement of the
water at a depth Of l ,320 feet, in its pass
age over it. would be less than an inch,
and would be incapable of disturbing the
smallest grain of sand" AS Atlantic
waves seldom attain these dimensions, it
seems highly probable that the cOnstruc-
ton of deep sea floating station which
can in all weather be kept in place is not
a mechanical impOssibility. The success
with which gaslighted buOys have been
maintained on storm swept shoals on our
sea coast may be taken as evidence that
such a structure as Mr.. Anderson deyises
might be made with some notifications as
to shape and length, to stand moOred to
anchor blocks in deep water. If this
much could be demonstrated the work of
connecting the structure with one of the
transatlantic cable would be simple; and
the structure, thus serving the purpose of
a mid-0cean telegraph station, would be
an immense boon both to navigation and
10 meteorological science.