The White Pine news. [volume] (Treasure City, Nev.) 1868-1906, 1886-02-20
CAUGHT ON THE FLY.
Edlson's New Invention OF Telegraph
ing without Wires.

A party Of some hIty gentlemen
including capitalists. electricians and
journalists, started at 2 p. m Monday
from Clifton, Staten Island, for Tot
tonville, fifteen miles away, on Feb.
3d. for the purpose o. witnessing the
uractieal working of Edison's latest
and most wonderful invention. viz, the
sending aud receiving of telegraphic
messages by railway trains while in
motion. This Is called telegraphng
by induction, or telegraphing by in
duced currents through the atm0s
phere. During the run of the train
betN cen the points mentioned large
number of messages were sent aDd
received. Messages written by the
gentlemen OF tie party. addressed io
themselves, were left AT Clifton, and
were received by the same gentleman
on the train while gazing nt inll speed.
The apparatus used consists of an
ordinary Morse key, "A phonectie re-
ceiyer, an electro mag net and a battery
No special or extra wire is used run.
nIug between or near tile ral.s. bui the
messages jump through the air be-
tween the TIN roof oi the cars and the
ordinary wires sirnag along by the
side at the raj, way. a distance OF from
twenty-five To- 100 feet. The farthcst
distance traversed without wire, WIS
sone forty or fifty feet. The metallic
ro0fs of the cars we're connected to-
gether Ly wires which communicated
with Morse telegraphie instrument
placed IN one of the cars. An opera
tor eat IN front of the instrument. and
though the noise OF the train rendered
the ticks indistinct, he read them
easily by means of telephone and
wrote out the messages as they were
delivered. Toanon. expert newspaper
man il seemed serie aud mysterious to
send a Iressags up to the roof of the
car on short wire, and have IL jump
thence and 20 the distant wire. select
ing the right wire, as II did NJ onday,
from tweuty-fonr different ones. Mr..
Edison was ON board, the subject of
many congratulations. lie said tha,
another train, coming behind, equip
ped with similar apparatus, could
pick the same message off the wire.
On the return trip from fottenvile he
sent the following message to lead
ing daily.
1--WE are now sending and receiving
messages on a moving train ON Staten
Island. THOMAS 4. EDISON
Just before the tram reached Clifton
message was received by Henry
Seligman from his brother, Jesse Selig-
man, the Wall street banker, giving
the latest quotations of Pacific Mail
and Lake Shore. Another gentleman
received the following message "If
| were a fugitive from justice, this
invention would interfere with nv
engagements" Gen. John Cochrane,
who was one of the party, sent mes
sage from the moving train to his city
residence as follows: "God made man
upright, but he hath sought out many
inventions"
The experiment was a complete sue
cess, messages being constantly re-
ceived aud sent by all on board with
out hitch or Interruption Gen. Coch-
rane said: "T0 capture fugitives, to
prevent accidents, and to enable all
travellers to communicate with their
friends, this system will be indispen-
sable" Mr.. Edison said that al trains
on every road could henceforth be in
constant communication With each
other, aud collisions would be known
no more. 1t is understood that ex-
periments will be made by Edison be-
tween vessels next summer, testing
the adaptability of the system to
marine travel. Mr.. Edison thinks he
can telegraph three miles by employ
ing merely the water and air.