The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-03-27
DON'T BELIEVE YOUR EARS
They are Often Deceptive, Especially
in Dense FoRs.
From tie Neu YORK TYmes

AAo4C SAAS H4ACcE " NEusLNOILnN bnAP-
masters that several Of the fog signals along
the Atlantic coast. particularly between
this city and ports TO the north and north
| east, have not been sounding properly in
/ bad weather. Instances have been re-
/ ported where very narrow escapes were had,
and Others where disasters actually oc-
| CURED, owing TO the failure of these aids to
navigation TO sound their warning signals.
IL the stories told by shipmasters in these
/ cases we're true, neglect OF q serious sort
/ would be chargeable TO several signal keep
/ ers along the coast, and the efficiency Of
/ this important branch Of the government
| service would be laid open TO serious doubt.
| Several Investigations have been made,
however, and Others are now being made
| by the lighthouse board, that go to
| contradict many of these complaints.
Among the erroneous notions that sailors
| and even practical men of affairs are heir
| 20 there IS none more falaciOus than the
idea that sound is always heard in all direc-
tons from its source according to its IN
| tensity or force and according to the dis
| lance Of the hearer from #. Instances Of
/ this fallacy have accumulated, and numer-
| GUS cases of shipwreck may be cited caused
| by the reliance of mariners on the infalli-
bility Of their ears Many good sailor to-
day accepts unquestioned the guidance of
that he would place on lighthouse in clear
weather. The fact is, all sound, and par
| ticularly the sound produced by fog signals,
| is subject 70 alterations of the most sur
| prising sort, and the man who places i'm
| pllcit reliance on such signals is a very poor
| pilot indeed.
The wreck of the steamer Rhode Island
| on Bonnet Point, in Narragansstt bay. sew
eral years ago, when 81 900, 900 in property
was lost, Is a case in point. The wreck was
caused, it was said, by the failure Of the
| fog signal on Beaver Tail point to sound at
that time. Thereupon the lighthouse board,
| which has charge of the ITO fog signals
along the coast, made an investigation,
| which showed that the fog signal was
| blowing its hardest when the wreck took
place.
The investigation brought out other facts
that, singularly, explained the cause Of the
disaster. 1t was found that, while there
| was no lack in the volume of the sound
emitted by the signal, there was often de-
cided lack in the addition OF the sound, so
much SO that it could not be heard at the
| intensity expected nor at the place expected.
| 1t could be heard faulty where it ought to
| be heard loudly, and loudly where it ought
to be heard family. 1t could not be heard
at all at some points near by, while at others
! more remote it could be heard with much
| distinctness. 1t could be heard and lost, all
4
was in continuous full blast. That was why
| the steamer was lost.
| On the night of May IL, 1881, the Galatea,
| propeller of ], 200 tons burden, with a full
load Of passengers and freight, bound
through Long Island sound from Providence
to New York, went ashore in dense fog
| and dead calm on Little Gull island. IL
was alleged that the fog signal, a steam
siren at Little Gull light, was not in opera
| ton at the time Of the accident. An inves-
LEGATION was promptly made by the light
| house board. The sworn evidence Of the
lfghtkeepers at Little Gull and others within
hearing distance, together with that of all
| government officers who were so situated
that they might have been within earshot,
| sh WED that tho signal was sounding at the
time Of the accident. Although the Galatea
| was only one-elghth of mile from the sound
| all her officers and crew swore that the sig
nal could not be heard.
The officer who made the reports con-
corning the fog signals at Beaver Tail and
Little Gull was Commander F. E. Chad
wick, United States Navy, woo now COM
mands the Yorktown. A Times reporter
learned, while the Yorktown was recently
in this port, that the results of Commander
Chadwick's observations have taken the
APE of number of rules perhaps sug-
ge'tions would be a better world that the
officer always puts into practice while cruis-
lug in the neighborhood of fogs and fog
signals. These signals are of interest to
every man who goes down to the sea in
| ships"
First of all, Commander Chadwick is of
the opininion that in order to pick up the
sound of the fog signal most quickly when
approaching IL from the windward, the
mariner should 60 aloft, and that when ap-
preaching it from the leeward the nearer he
can get to the surface OF water the sooner
he will hear the sound. No negative depend
ence should be placed on the fog signal /;
that is, because one fails To hear the
| sound it is not safe to assume that one is out
Of hearing distance. The mariner should
not assume that because he hears a fog sig
nal family he is at a great distance from It,
neither should be assume that lie is near it
because he hears it plainly.
The mariner should not assume that he
has reached given point on his course be-
cause he hears the fog signal at the same
intensity that he did when formerly at that
| point. Neither should he assume that he
has not reached this point for precisely
inverse reasons. He should not ass
sumo that the fog signal has
ceased sounding because he fails to
hear it within easy earshot. He should
not assume that the alterations of audi
bility that pertain to any one fog signal per-
tain also TO any other. He should not expect
to hear fog signal as well when the upper
aud lower currents of dir run in different
| directions that is, when his upper sails are
full and his lower sails flap, or vice versa.
He should not expect to hear it well during
| a time of electrical disturbance. He should
| not expect to hear it well when the sound
must reach him overland, as over point
| or an island.
These are all negative suggestions. but
they are the best that can be mad. Yachts
men, shipmasters and others will do well to
| paste them in their hats. II the law of
these alterations IN audibility can be
evolved and some method discovered for
their correction, then sound may be de-
pended upon as a more definite and accu-
rate aid to navigation. Until then the
mariner will do well, when he does not hear
the expected sound of fog signal to
assume that he may not hear a warning
that is faithfully given, aud then to heave
his head, resorting to all other means used
by careful navigator in determining his
position.