The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-10-30
TO SEE FROM AFAR.
Tclectroscopc by Which Distant
ThingSWiil Re Brought Near.

from the AlDany Express.
That sooner or later an apparatus
would be invented by means Of which
objects might be seen at a great dis
lance, jus; as sounds are heard from
afar by means of the telephone. has
been considered probable for q long
time.
1t is a strange coincident that an
nouncement is made simultaneously
from sections of the globe far remote
from each other that the expected in
ventiOn has been made. One of the
inventors is Swedish physician.
Concerning the details OF his discovery
nothing has heen made public. The
other man who has discovered the Sc
cret of looking through wire" Is DR..
Frank NJ. Close. OF Oakland. Cal. lie
calls his apparatus "telectroscope"--
tn tais. an aDDartuS for seeing afar
by means OF electricity.
There are two boxes connected by q
line of wire. One of these boxes Is call
ed the receiver and the other the trans
mitter. In front of the receiver
piece of tourmaline of Iceland spar Is
placed. and opposite to this is the eye
of the person testing the apparatus.
In front of the opening OF the trans
mitter and directed upon some sort of
electrical device, the nature of which
DR.. Close does not reveal, 10 placed a
lighted candle. Immediately the eye
perceives the flame of the candle, al
though in an adjoining room or u long
distance away, the tourmaline of the
receiver is removed. though the lighted
candle remains at the transmitter, no
light Is seen.
The explanation Of this phenomena
DR.. Close marks by reference to the
transmission of sound by electricity
that is, to the telephone. Exactly
what happens when YOU talk into the
transmitter of telephone aud per-
son at the other end of the line hears
your voice is that the sound wave
striking upon the thin disk of the
transmitter set W. in the electrically
charged wire, or, to be u little more
scientific, impress upon the electric our
rent tOwing through the wire, a series
of vibrations which have the effect.
when an apparatus similar to that of
the transmitter is thrust into the cir
cult some distance away, to set up vi
bratiOns in a second disk which exact
ly reproduce the sound of your voice.
Now, a very accurate description of
just what happens when you see q Civ
en- object Is that the different parts of
the object variously absorb the differ
ent rays of light so as 10 give the object
its shading of light and color. and in
tHpTt lS SET w Ill ti1e ItlllllOnS
upon millions of nerve cells Of your
brain series of sensations. which,
when put together, give you an idea
or mental image of the things seen.
In case you see a given object In
mirror the only difference in the oper-
alton Is that the waves of light have
struck upon and been reflected from
the nonabsorbent glass and thus reach
your eye.
Now, supposing that the image Of an
object striking mirror or something
corresponding to mirror should be
made to set up vibrations in an electric
wire, just exactly as sound wave
striking on the thin disk of the tele-
phone transmitter sets up a series of
vibrations. it is not hard to UNDER
stand II there were a suitable appar-
atus at the other end of the wire to
reverse the process and reproduce upon
second mirror or screen the vibra-
tiOns excited to the opposite end, you
would be able to see through a wire
just as you now talk through 1t. In
other words, 1t would be possible to
transmit images for almost any con-
ceivablc distance.
Naturally, the apparatus Is still in q
very crude state just as nearly all in
ventions are at present. But inasmuch
as the means of the electrical trans
mission of light waves has been discov-
cred, the development and perfection
thereof will be merely a matter Of
time