Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1895-07-05
SUN TELEGRAPHY.
Heiiograph AN English Invention, Hut
Mnch Lmproved by Americans.

Much Improved by Americans
One of the most practical and useful
inventions of modern military science
is the Photograph. This is an instru.
ment by which signals are flashed from
one station To another by the reflec.
tiOns of the sun upon "A mirror, or sys.
tenn of mirrors, mounted on tripods.
The invention Of the Photograph be.
longs - England. and it Ia, been used
extensively In India and Egypt: but,
like many other inventions it has been
greatly improved by American genius.
SO that the instrument now in Use 10y
our signal corps is considered by cx.
perts the most nearly perfect in the
world
The west is the true home OF the
Photograph. and during Indian wars of
the past il has been, says writer
IN Kate Fields Washington. Of immense
service In flashing % headquarters
every movement OF the hostile red
skins. Not only did il communicate in
formation. but under the cross-frc of
these mysterious sun signals the super.
stitious Indians became paralyzcd with
fear and imagined that their opponents
were in league with evil spirits.
The reason the Telegraph has been
so successful in such places as Arizona
in this country and in India and Egypt
is because the atmosphere in these
parts Of the world is free If clouds al
most all the year roand The distances
covered by some of the Photograph sta
tions are remarkable, fifty and sixty
miles being considered nothing un-
usual There are in this country two
stations, one hundred aud twenty-five
miles apart, between which signals are
flashed with great accuracy.
The system used IN photography is
the Morse alphabet Anybody who has
any idea of the ordinary method Of tel
egraphing by electricity with this ear
alphabet will easily understand how
spaces of time may be employed To in
dictate letters and words by means of
the eye. The signals are produced by
causing the reflected beam To appear
and disappear or TO be obscured alter
nately at the distant point, the inter-
walls of appearance and observation be-
ing varied in length so as TO produce
the combination Of long and short sig
nails known among telegraphers as the
Morse alphabet. Tho speed OF the
Photograph is not so great as that Of the
telegraph instrument, ten or twelve
words minute being considered good
work. This, however, is vast inn
provement over the old method of sig
mailing by flags, with which from three
TO four words a minute was the most
that could be done.
In photography, il should be said,
there are two distinct ways Of signal.
Ing. In the first Of these, knowp as
siGnalihg by appearance, the reflect
ed beam or flash, is obscured from
the receiving station, except when a
message is being sent, the flash then
giving the signals, or dots and dashes"
In the other method, signaling by oh
scuration, the flash is kept continually
on the receiving station and only OBJ
scured for intervals 70 form signals
The first method is more easily read by
learners; the second is less fatiguing 10
the eye, and has the advantage Of en-
aiding the signaler TO correct the adj
hIstment Of his instrument at any time.
In the case Of city surrounded by
the enemy with no communication with
the outside world by means of railroad
or the ordinary telegraph the hello
graph would possess many advantages
over balloons and carrier pigeons Mill
tary authorities assert that were the
atmosphere always clear the Photograph
would furnish very certain means of
communication between the cities of
Washington and Baltimore in case the
national capital were besieged and en-
tirely cut off from the rest of the coun-
try