The San Francisco call., 1896-02-18

vibrations in the ether we mean that they
are like sound vibrations, in which the vi
brations are back and forth on the line of
motion without crossing it. In sound vi
bratlons tie air goes out on a straight
line, stops with condensation and goes
on again. Sound is the only kind of longi-
tudinal vibrations we know anything
about.
ut has been recognized by physicists
that there is no theoretical reason why
there should not be longitudinal waves in
the ether, but it has been supposed that the
ether was so nearly incom pressibe that
the waves would have almost infinite
velocity and length and hence could not
be perceived. All elastic bodies, solid,
liquid and gaseous transmit longitudinal
waves, and as the ether is an elastic body
it would certainly transmit them too
Roentgen has discovered that his new rays
cannot be reflected, refracted or polarized
as we can do with all known kinds of ether
vibrations. so Roentgen thinks that he
has discovered a new kind of radiation.
What longitudinal ether waves would do
we do not know.
"Whatever Roentgen's discovery NAV
be 1t is an important find. Anything that
will throw light on electrical phenomena
is OF value to science. We are calling on
the ether to explain heat, light and cleo
trical effects, and probably all effects
which we class under chemical ard mag
netic attractions and repulsions, and even
gravltation, as far as we have anv hope of
explaining it,
''lt should be remembered that we have
before produced photographs with electrical
waves not luminous, and others have done
to certain extent what Roentgen has
done and without the aid of light, exec pt
we can refract and reflect the waves which
have been presumed to produce the effects.
In 1893 / produced photographs in the dark
with the use OF electrical waves and | have
attributed them to the Hertzian waves 1t
is barely possible that my pictures were
due to the x rays.
"a great general misconception about
Roentgen's discovery and its poss Utilities
would be corrected if it were remem bered
that his rays cannot be reflected by any
| thing or refracted by lens of any sub
stance. Hence no image can be produced.
The rays pass through substances trans
parent or translucent to them and cast
shadows on the negative which are fixed
there. 1t is wholly the fixation of shad-
ows. The bones of the hand being opaque
to the rays cast their shadow on the plate
when the rays pass through the hand. The
negatives used are prepared for the effect
OF light Negatives better adapted to these
rays may be expected to be invented"
Professor Sanford set up the simple ap-
paratus by which he photographed coins
and so on in the dark three years ago.
Two wires were run from an induction coil
connected with a battery A thin little
box was the whole photograph gallery.
One wire was passed into the box on each
side. One wire connected with medal
fastened to the side of the box. The other
wire connected with q metal plate facing
the medal. Between the two was slipped
negative shut up in a plate-holder and
the current turned on. The experiment
was not carried through, but if it had been
the plate, after fifteen or twenty minutes,
would have shown, on development, a fair
picture OF the medal. Sanford's theory is
or was that the Hertzian waves beamed
back and forth between the medal and the
metal plate, passing through both the mega
tive and its case, which were transparent
to these mysterious new Hertzian vibra-
tions. The medal becomes, as it were,
glowing with unseen Hertzian waves, to
which the wood is as glass. The raised
parts of the medal being nearer the mega.
tive, though ever SO little, would produce
deeper effect for that reason, and this
effect would be reproduced in the printing.
But then maybe it was longitudinal waves
in there.