Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1883-11-21
A NEW WORLD.


What One Will See on the Earth Hundred
Years Hence. Modes of Travel and Habits and
Customs of The PeopIe--The Telegraph Dis
carded-
A prominent scientific gentleman of
Cleveland prognosticates the condition
of affairs In the world one hundred years
hence, alleging that the following things
were revealed to him while he was in
mesmeric trance. 6 was, 1t seemed to
me, i'll the city of Havre, France" said
the gentleman toa Leader reporter, "pre-
pairing to take my departure for New
York. A friend of mine accompanied
me and we walked together down to the
stone quay alongside of which lay our
vessel. My friend and I descended the
broad flight of steps leading from the
quay to the side of the vessel, and
boarded her. We passed along between
two iron ratings, and, after taking our
last look of earth and sky for some
hours, we passed down the main stair
way and made ready for our voyage.
Before our boat started [ hap ample time
to examine her, the captain very kindly
answering all of my questions. l learn
ed that all passenger traffic was conduct
ed by means of submarine vessels, the
one upon which l was then being a sam
pie. She was about 400 feet long, built
entirely of steel, and consisting of two
bulls, one inside the other. The hulls
were braced by means of st irons,
which made them as solid as any, with
the additional advantage of hghtness.
At regular intervals along her sides were
large plates of hardened glass about
twelve inches thick, but as clear as crys-
tai, which served as windows. This glass
was made by peculiar process of tenn
pering, and was more difficult to break
than the same thickness of steel. The
shape of the vessel was Yery much like a
cigar, both ends being pointed. At one
end was the propeller, which was work
ed by electricity, and capable of giving
the boat a speed of one hundred miles
an hour. Her interior was Illuminated
by electricity also, and one powerful
light in front was reflected by a silver
paraboIic mirror to the distance of two
miles, which made her watery course as
bright as day for the pilot. This light,
as well as the front of the pilot house,
was, of course, protected by glass, both
being nearly flush with the hull, thereby
offering very little resistance. l have
forgotten now just what elements were
used to produce the electric current, but
[ recollect that the sea water was the
principal clement. The lamps, remem-
Der, were all incandescent, even the pow
erful one in front.
"In all my travels afterward I did
! not find an arc-lamp anywhere, and the
people said that they had never heard
of one. Large chambers of compressed
air supplied our vessel with plenty of
| the necessary fluid, while other CHAM
| bers were used forpumpIng water In and
out, whereby we could lower or raise
ourselves with the greatest ease. We
were also facilitated In this latter par
| ticular by means of lateral planes, which
could be inclined either upward or down
| ward. Well, we made our trip across
! the Atlantic to New York in something
more than twenty eight hours, part of
our Journey having been made on the
surface of the water, and, when stormy,
underneath. All freight was transport
ed across the ocean by means of vessels
| built almost entirely of aluminium, a
| cheap way of extracting that light, but
very tenacious, metal having been dis
covered a generation ago. In fact, it
had superseded iron almost entirely. In
some cases these freight vessels were
run by electricity, but generally the mo-
tive power was gas, the engines confn-
| ing the same being constructed some
thing on the principle OF the Kelley mo-
| tor.
"Soon after arriving in New York I
had occasion to take a railroad trip of
several hundred miles into the country
7 4O bn
found it situated about eighty feet above
| the ground upon a network of trestle.
| The reason for this, [ discovered, was
| that all the railroads ran over the coun-
try on trestle-wOrk, which was built of
steel and aluminium. 1 asked a gentle
man with whom I sat in the car, the ad-
vantage Of building railroads this way,
and he, laughing at my innocence, told
me that it saved great deal of trouble
| In leveling off hills, and cutting away
entertainments, besides lessening the
! chances of accident. In addition TO this,
| he informed me that as the train was
run by electricity, 1t was more conven-
! lent. The trestle-work rested, all along,
on glass cushions, which insulated it
from the earth. The electricity, which
was supplied through the rails from sta
tons, eacl twenty miles apart, passing
over the wheels underneath the cars
with powerful electro-moto, and then
sent to the opposite wheels and into the
opposite rail. There was no engine con-
| nected with the train. as each car was
an engine in itself. The men in the sta
tons had control of the train, and while
it was passing over his division, he could
tell at any moment the exact position OF
| the train by system of dials.
"Well, we passed along very noise
lessly at the rate of $50 miles an hour,
and 1 was soon at my journeys end.
The cars were all built of aluminium,
there being no wood used in their con-
struction, whatever. Oh, yes, the train
| ruon nall Eorh4od NTH innandascant