Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1894-03-17
TO SEE MEN ON MARS.
Telescope That VIII Lay Bars Natures
Secrets.
LENS MADE IN SECTIONS.
Louis Gathman's wonderful Scientific Dis
covcries-Mcn Of Ordinary Means Can
Have Their Own Observatories.
(Chfcago Tribune.)

struct n telescope with an objective ~
feet in diameter. better in every respect
In proportion than the 40-inch SO,v~
Yerkes telescope and 10 finish II sooner.
For proportlonately larger sum VIII
undertake to construct telescope WIN
ar objective 100 feet in diameter more
efficient in proportion for every scienuhc
,,,nosa than the Lick or Yerkes tele-
scope. There Is no reason In telescope
science why we should not see the inhaoi-
tants Of Mars. and see to pick UP pin
on the moon"
This is the bold, but intelligent utterance
Of I.ouis Gathrnan, an amateur optican, az
tronomer, scientist, and inventor OF 'he
North side. Mr.. Gathman was born at
Rordorf. near the city OF Hanover III
Prussia. In 1875 lie received no scientfc
,,s,ruc,fon except at the Polytechnic
ccbool I'm Hanover. He came to America
4, 1854 and after remaining a year IN
philadelphia. took up his residence 'h
Chicago, where he has remained eve.
since. He was a mechanical engineer III
the employ OF others until 1872, ana since
.ho, ,i,,e has been manufacturer OF
milling machinery OF his own mveh''O",
He lives at the corner OF Lincoln anu
North-Park avenues.
Mr. Cathman's scientific career has peeh
something like that OF Edison anu rio
,ossor : II Burnham. That is. he mas
heen dependent on his own resources ai'"
has been an all-around inventor III auu'-
,ion to milling machinery. he mas III
vented toy-guns artillery sup-his'iii y,
s,,,1Ioe,s and artificial rain-producers, all
of ,,h,ch have been patented. But ne
bas taken the greatest interest of all III
notics and astronomy. lie mas hau 'eie-
- and has been a student of the
bcayans for fifteen years. Ten years ago
no erected an observatory In connection
,vith his residence, and placed III its uoiiie
a 1-inch telescope, with when ne aiiiusee
himself at spare moments. he makes ITO
pretensions. however to scientinc KNOW
ledge of astronomy.
DISCOVERS THE SECTIONAL LENS.
Mr.. Gathman has for twenty years
been possessed with the idea that great
Enforcement could be made in telescopes
lenses. especially in respect to size his
GENT need for a non-existing thing that
hing can be discovered Accordingly
h., has chafed a good deal under the ldea
that telescopes had reached their ultimate
size on account Of the impossibility or
casting large pieces of glass without DuD-
bles. as well az the other innrmitles ~
separable from glass in large pieces ms
dream has always been that lens couia
he constructed in sections. Two years ago
"a
working model Since that time ne mas
bent his discovery secret in order TO Sc
cure his patent rights. first IN Germany
ond then In this country. AS his German
natent has been issued, and as his Ameri-
can patent is as good as secured lie mas
had for some time no motive TOT secrecy
Mr.. Gathmans discovery Is. IN briei'
,hat a lens that is made in sections can
be made as correct as any other lsh,'
nrovided the sections are separated py uuii'
black partitions which prevent an inter
reelection Of light from their marsHls'
The sensitiyeness of d lens 10 such uis'uip-
ances "a well understood. single arr
hubble. however small In lens however
large renders 1t worthless, the reason De
ing that 1t splits and refracts certaii laya
az tpbt and causes confusion at the FOCAL
,,o,rt Mr. Gathman's theory is that IT
The hubble is bored out and the opening
tlled with dull. black material the iehs
win he nerfect again. But ne thinks 'here
e no use going TO this trouble "hen
i@oe,s can he made In small sections ana
IN. nerfection of each section assured pe-
fore 1t Is used
This principle has for many years oeel'
onuIied to renectors. There are not oiiiy
search-light refectors. but rehectors OF
.aao,ing Telescopes constructed in sec
tions ines. renectors have been FOUND
90 u. nc GOOD as any others and the WISH
has constantly been expressed that the
nrincInle were applicable to lenses anu
10 refracting telescopes. for rehectihs
4elescopes are comparatively WorthicAr
Rut OPTICIANS and astronomers were ~
well satisfied a prior that the prihcip,.
,,-os inanplicable to lenses that they wouiu
70, condescend to experiment WIN H.
Not so. however. with MT Gathmah' NJ
reasoned that II the interrenect'oh y,
light was the only obstacle that coulu
easily be prevented by ihterposhie Us
rejecting surfaces between 'ne s.e s''oO
oe the lenses. He tried 1t and was sue
ceSsful. A., ca,hr,an
,,i,,,aed nm his lenses into wedge-shaped
cections with a circular section AT inc
centre leaving no interstices, except from
the insertion Of a blackened metaiilc TIM
half an inch wide between them' SUM-
onentlv he found 1t better to leaVe W.
nren,I,es between the sections, the opJest
.p,nr 10 allow q free circulation or AIR.
which would equalize the temperature u,
front and rear Of the lens, ana III 'nae
way prevent sweating. In TINS way ne
was led to make the sectiohs c"eu,eI an
70 aieferent sizes. The 1-2-inch lens OF
-, ,a,ascoy,a which he now uses In his
ohooryatory Is made on this plan. IL mas
~ c,rcnIar section in the centre, six circu-
,ar sections of the same size ARRANGED
around It, and then six smaller cHcuiai
actions In the triangular spaces outs'ue
the larger six. The result Ii that opJee'"
seen through this telescope are prign'ei
and better defined than when It's opJec-
tive was a single piece.
This last lens il apt TO produce the I'M
rression that II Is an assemblage Oh siiiaii
lenses but that would DO obviously un
scientIfc, and is far from the fact. fach
section Is shaped exactly as IL IL hau oeei,
stamped out Of the large lehs' anu
that fact makes one curious at once to
Lnow how they can be ground accurately
70 AZ IN their several places. But that Is
a matter of no difficulty. Mr.. Gathman
takes a number Of pieces OF glass ana
polIshes them In any plane. so as 10 see
whether they are perfectly translucent
Then he gives them their circular outline
He next aIranges them within circle
of the desired size and pours melted sui
phur between them. When the sulphur
has hardened, the pieces of glass are held
firmly together in the positions they will
occupy Ia the lens. They are then all
ground at the same time, like a single
piece
IL is understood, of course, that the
objective OF telescope consists really or
two lenses, one In front OF the other. The
outer ono " double convex, and 10 made
Of plate glass; the inner one Is concavo-
convex and IL made Of crown-glass.
They fit together like single piece. Mr.
Cathman manufactures his concavo-con-
vex lens IN the same way as his double
convex lens. but separately, OF course.
IN one Of hts lenscs each section. though
looking liss single piece. has an outer
ana inner layer.
ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION.
The advantages OF Mr.. Gathman's in
yentlon are wonderful and incalculabie.
The first 10 that all limitation on the
size and power VI telescopes In completely
done away with. The manufacture of
the Yerkes forty-inch objective IL re-
uarded a. daring feat and a wonderful
success. which will probably mark the
ne plus ultra OF astronomical exploration.
The main reason is that the larger a lens
II made the moro difficult II becomes to
exclude air bubbles. But there are also
other difficulties attending large lenses