The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-08-25
rEsrs WITH THE BIG MAGNET.
Franks of lnaninate Things When the
Eerth's Attraction ia Overcome.

Esrsh's Attraction is Overcome.
FTosx the Flushing Journal.
Through happy thought of Major W.
% Ying. tao commandment at the Willet's
Point military post, the post now boasts
one of the largest and strongest magnets
i, the world This magnet has already
len referred to in the Journal, and some of
The more recent experiments of its power
made cannot fail to be Of interest to our
readers. together with a short history of
this wonderful instrument itself.
How the magnet came to be made was
In this manner: Last December Major
EinQ happened to see two large 15-inch
bahIgren guns lying unused side by side on
the dock. He conceived the idea that a
magnet Of enormous power could be con-
Str1icted by means of the cannons with sub
marine cable wound about them. The ex-
periment proved very successful. The
magnet, which stands about ten feet from
the ground, Is eighteen feet long, and has
eight miles of cable wound about the upper
part of the guns. Some faint idea OF its
hover may be conceived from the fact that
It's takes a force of %, 1000 pounds to pull off
TIE armature.
The tests to demonstrate the enormous
mower of the magnet were made in the
presence of number of the officers of the
United States engineer corps, and were
highly successful, A crowbar which was
anplied to the magnet required the com
bined force of four strong men to tear it
sway. A handful of pins thrown in the OPP
posite direction Immediately flew back aud
attached themselves to the magnet. A
seemingly impossible experiment was per-
formed with some Is inch cannon balls
The balls were solid and as much as a
strong man could lift, yet the magnet held
several of them suspended in the air, one
under the other. '-''..-
The most interesting experiment, and the
one that was regarded with the greatest at
tention, was the test made of an Americ IN
non-magnetic watch. Ever since the great
railroads of the country have compelled
their employees to provide Themselves
with timepieces that would not be affected
by the magnetism generated by the car
trucks there has been much speculation as
to whether such watch could be made,
and sharp rivalry has been going on be-
tween the American and Swiss manufact-
urers The test was highly satisfactory,
and once more proved that whenever a new
invention was imperatively demanded,
American genius could fully hold its own
against the whole world. Major Kings
magnet was so powerful that an ordinary
watch was stopped stock still as soon as it
came within three feet of it. Before the
test was made there was quite diversity of
opinion among the experts present as to
how far it would prove successful. Those
who believe that while q watch might be
constructed that would resist magnetic in
huence under ordinary circumstances, were
also of the opinion that when it was sub
jected to the most powerful magnet in the
world the steel pinions would jar so on the
working parts that the watch must neceS-
Sal.ily stop for ten minutes The watch was
held in front of the magnet. 1t did not vary
the huudredJh part of a second. The man who
held it said that he himself was conscious of
the influence Of the magnet. He could feel
as he held the watch by the chain that
some other power than his was keeping it
suspended.
The most amusing experiment was made
with a Sledge hammer. When one tried TO
WELD it III q direction opposite to the mag
net he felt as though he were trying to hit
a blow with q long featherin gale of wind
There is nothing in the world that could
take the conceit out Of a strong man so
much as this simple experiment. Another
amazing test was made with a number of
carpenters spikes. A spike was put length
wise on the end Of the magnet, then another
spike was attached to the first, and so on
until line OF them stood straight out from
the magnet at least four feet in length.
Aside from their interest to science, the ex-
periments were so novel and startling that
they were entertaining even to those who
were not interested in the wonderful devel-
Opments of electricity.