The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-03-20
WITH GLINTS OF SUNLIGHT.
The N. G. C. SIGNAL CORPS TO
SEND MESSAGES TO SAC
RAMENTO.
FROM THE Top OF MOUNT D1ABLo
BY MEANS OF THE Hello
GRAPH.

Arrangements have been perfected by
which the next time the weather man has
good reason to believe the sun will rise in
clear sky, next day on any given day
message will be flashed by its light from
the summit of Mount Diablo to the Capt.
tol building at Sacramento, distance of
thirty miles.
G. ]. Atwater, an officer of the Fourth
Brigade N. G. G. Signal Corps, was in the
city yesterday comforting with Captain A.
A. Hanks concerning the matter and the
arrangements were completed. The corps
is enthusiastic over its system of tele-
graphy and is taking every opportunity to
test and perfect it. A four-inch Telegraph
will be employed. Speaking of the pro-
posed experiment yesterday, Captain
Hanks said:
eff we succeed-about which there can
be only the question of weather-it will be
the longest signaling that has ever been
done in the State. But that is not saying
much, for, with an eight-inch Telegraph,
signaling has recently been done in Ari-
IONA for stretches of 100 miles straight-no
intervening station.
"The helograph is simply a mirror
arranged with adjustable screws on tri-
pod with a shutter in front, so as to inter
rupt the light at pleasure. 1t is adjusted
to reflect the suns rays toward the distant
station and then the shutter is operated so
as to throw short and long flashes, which
I form code of letters as do the dots and
dashes of the telegraph instrument.
when we are assured of good weather
! for the following morning detail Of eight
men will leave San Francisco some day at
noon, reaching Pine Canyon, four miles
from Walnut Creek, the same evening.
h j
for the summit In time to reach it by sun
| rise. From the summit Sacramento is a
! fiat thing in the far distance.
! 1--WE know that it lies 20 degrees east of
north, but we do not know the location of
the station there nor the depression to be
worked to, but as the sun rises the gilded
dome of the Capitol catches and holds it's
| light, and we can adjust our instrument to
1t, for the Sacramento station is to be
| located there. Then we can talk to them
by the flashing of our heliograph-only a
four-inch bit of mirror-iust as two tele-
graphers may do over the wire.
THE Photograph is an American inven-
ton, having been used during the latter
| part of the Civil War. 1t afterward did
conspicuous service in the trouble with the
Indians, and especially in the capture of
Geronimo. This is another illustration of
the irony of fate, too, for the idea was
really stolen from the Indians.
1.-The efficiency of the heliograph in the
matter of speed, distance and the certainty
of its methods is heightened greatly by the
fact that persons outside the line of its
communication cannot see it. With flag
or fire signals any one in all the country
round who can see the flagman may inter
| pref the message. The flash of the hello
graph spreads only fraction above forty
nine feet in mile.
1.-The signal service of the National
Guard at present consists of four corps;
forty in San Francisco (the oldest corps),
twenty at Los Angeles, ten each at Stock
ton and Sacramento. The new National
Guard law reduces the number of corps to
three, but strengthens the numbers of
each.
"Who pays the expenses of these expert
ments? Practically the men themselves.
There is a small quarterly allowance, and
if we can save anything out of the allow
ance for armOry rent or otherwise we are
permitted to use that, but it is insufficient
for practical experiments of this kind and
the men have to pay the deficiency them
selves"