Omaha daily bee., 1895-12-15
SOMETHING ABOUT THE sun
Chat with Secretary Langley Concerning
His Wonderful Discoveries.
NOT ALWAYS ON TIME FOR DINNER HOUR
Enormous Heat Generated Accurately
Observation-Disclosures for Apply
ing 1t MechnnicaIIy-Study of
Flying Machines.

Copyrighted. 1895, by Frank G. Carpenter.)
WASHINGTON, ID. C. Dec. 14.-For years
the Investigations Of Mr.. S. p. Langley, the
secretary of the Smithsonian institution, have
been watched with absorbing interest by the
scientists of the world. What Edison, Telsa
and Bell are TO general invention he is to
scientific invention. He has created nsw
methods in the study of the heavenly bodies.
He has to the largest extent measured the
heat Of the sun, inventing for the purpose
the bolomtter, by means of which the tenn
perature of a sunbeam can be tested to the
millionth of a d. gree. He has given us our
best idea of the wonderful spots on the suns
surface, and has best shown how this great
body may practically affect the earth and
eventually be better used TO its advantage.
1t was Mr.. Langley who originated the sys-
tematic time servica by which the clocks
Of our cities are now regulated from the
observatories Of the country and by which
the railroads still run their trains without
danger Of accidents through varying time.
IL is he who mas made some of the greatest
advances in the study of the problems Of
the air, and Of the physical principles upon
which aerial navigation, II 1t is ever I; allied,
must rest.
Tbs most OF these experiments and observa-
lions were made by Mr.. Langley while he was
the head OF the observatory at Pittsburg,
though he was then constantly supplementlng
them by others which he carried on at high
attitudes all over the world. In the plains
of Spain, on the edge of the crater Of Mount
Aetna, in Sicily, upon Pixies Peak, in Colo
RADIO, and on the snowy SUBMITS of the Sierra
Nevadas, I'm California, he has been, not as
a tourist for an hour, but spending long days
and nights studying the heavens, catching the
changes on the suns surface, and trying to
learn their practical applications for the uses
Of mankind. He is in a minor degree car
.l,.. go ahanRNatfN, md ~. IA.
though his time and energiss are necessarily
almost wholly devoted TO the administration OF
the great institution OF which he is the
head,
CHAT WITH SECRETARY LANGLEY.
This man is now 81 years young. His life
has been packed with the hardest Of work,
but his eye is bright, his step is firm, and he
has today as much vitality as any of the
younger officers OF the institution. He Is, /
believe, the busiest man In Washington, for
he carries on his scientific experiments only
In the intervals Of his administrative work,
and 1t required a special appointment made
some time in advance for me to secure a
chat with him. ! found him a charming
talker, full of good nature and overlooking
with apt quotations and fun. There 10 moth
ing pedantic about him. lie dropped for the
time all technical language, and in every
day words, at my request, tried to convey to
me some idea Of his wonderful work. l
aoked him q number OF questions about him
self. lie did not like to answer these. He
wanted to put himself in the background,
but ] feel that the people will be interested
in his personality, and in the story Of how
an ambitious boy 'hitched his wagon to the
stsrs" and got there. Upon my asking him
when he was first attracted to the study OF
the heavens, he replied:
Il cahnot Remember when I was not in
terested in astronomy. l remember reading
books upon the subject as early as at ., and
when | was quite a boy l learned how 10
make little telescopes, and studied the stars
through them. Later ! made some larger
ones. and though they were. OF course, moth
Ing like those We use here, ! think myself
they were very good for a boy. oae OF the
most wonderful things TO me was the sun.