Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1897-01-28
a CLEVER DEVICE.



DR.. J. F. Babcock of this city. is the
inventor of an appliance which promises
to be one of the most famous inventions
+, of the period. 1t is a submarine
or sailing vessels when they. are APP
| preaching sunken rocks or dangerous
| shoals. and thus prevent shipwrecks and
loss of property and life.
The warning Is given by means of bells
on shipboard, which are rung by magnets
operated by an electric current, which Is
| formed by two wires passing from an
| cable, in which the wires are Insulated
from each other, and also protected from
| contact with the water. and into the up
by the cable. and made impervious to
water at either end.
An iron ball. with rod or standard
the cylinder by the rod passing through
hole in the bottom of the cylinder,
which is rendered water tight by a rub
Der cap that moves with the rod as it
passes in and out. and the rod connecting
with spiral spring inside the cylinder.
When the ball is suspended, there is q
space of about one-sixteenth of an inch
ends of the conducting wires, and when
the ball and rod is pushed up through
tnat space, the ends Of the wires are con-
nected, completing the electric circuit.
Now the theory Of the inventor is that
when the cylinder H. towed at the end of
the cable able, from the bow Of the vessel At
strike the bottom when the water has
become that depth shoaled, ana Be- raised
to make axe the the connection Of the Wires and
It is needless to say, for 1t will be APP
parent to every one, that il this device
will do what the inventor claims for 1t.
liable devices invented in this prolific
day Of invention. us value will be
counted in millions. .ss,s
United States and patents are now end
ling in England. France and GERMANY.
The sounder has been tried and IT worked
10 Rnh hos put o., on beard the
place on a day. when ice formed on every
thing that touched the water. The cables
and other parts of the appliance were
coated with ice. but that made no differ
enee with the working of the souhder.
and the trial was successful in every
particular.
The model of the sounder is now ii, the
storchouse of the Bangor & Bar Harbor
steamboat company and DIR. Babcock
would be pleased at any time. to show
it. In fact. it is well worth ones time to
examine the sounder 1t is interesting
and with the description of it's workings.
as given by DR.. Babcock. one cannot fail
10 be enthuSed.
DR.. Babcock has invented the sounder
after several years of study. and he says
that after the trial was made. there were
but one or two changes to be made upon
it. and those were not important.
Mayor Beal is interested with DR..
Babcock in the invention and a stock
company will be organized in the near
future. or as soon as the foreign patents
are adjusted. to manufacture the sound
ers. DIR. Babcock has interested various
mariners in his invention and he has
letters from them in which they all say
that 1t cannot fail to be great thing for
navigators. Capt. William II. Bennett.
OF the Ralph Ross. on which the trial of
the sounder was made. wrote DIR. Babcock
that he pronounced the sounder q sue
cess in every way.
1T was tested" says Capt. Bennett,
under very trying circumstances, being
late in the season. 1t was very cold and
there was a great deal of ice in the river
when the test was made. but 1t worked
to perfection"
Among the other we'll known gentle
men who highly indorse the invention are
Ruel Smith, Esq, who has examined
every part of it and whose Judgment upon
such matters is considered to be L.
Capt. F. Fl. Pevere of the four masted
schooner Annie f. Kranze. Capt. A. G.
Baldwin. of the steamer Bismarck, Capt
Geo. II. Barbour. of the steamer Sedg-
wick. Capt. c. w. Crocker of the three
masted schooner Annie Morse. Capt. Z.
w. Pendleton. of the schooner William
II. Sumner. Capt. A. l.. Kent of the
schooner Edward l.. Stewart, Capt
Charles Shute. pilot of the steamer Sedg-
wick. Capt. John +. Mcconnell. coast
pilot. Capt Ralph Morse, of the schooner,
r. f. Pettigrew. and others.-Bangor