The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-03-20

naval war any time soon, as the de-
signer of electrical appliances which
viii not only astound the world, but
will give the victory to the cause IN
which the best electricians are en-
listed instead of to the biggest ships
and heaviest guns
THE novel and startling uses to
which electricity may be put in the
next great naval war" said Mr.. Short
to the writer, are likely to play de-
cisive part in the struggle. Already
mines and great guns are fired, turrets
are turned, ammunition is hoisted and
searchlights, as we'll as incandescent
lights, are supplied by the electric
current. But war once declared, eX-
perts are not likely to be content with
that.
1T is possible that direct verbal
communication, without electrical con-
naction, may be established between
fort, or a flagship, and vessel miles
out at sea \ beam of light may be
pressed into service to carry the words
of the admiral in default of a tele-
phone cable. The same commanding
officer may equip a harbor or road
stead with an invisible battery of
magnets which shall seize a hostile
ship and hold her motionless, in spite
of the most frantic efforts of her crew,
right under his guns. He may even
SIT III d udLh lOolll anu ny Il CeAlltl Il
and mirror have her movements
photographed on the mine chart in
front OF him until when her miniature
sails over the paper map he shall by
pressing a button explode the mine
which at that moment must infallibly
be Immediately under the actual ship
herself. These are only a few of the
cOups his electrical experts may en-
able him to strike.
r-r--r,
LIGHT.
a 50-horse-power engine will gen
crate electricity enough for a search
light of 100000 candle power. No such
tremendous light would be necessary
however. TO enable the commanders of
two ships, or the commanders Of a
ship and a shore fort, to talk to each
other if the experiments with Selenium
already worked out practically on land
and on a small scale, shall prove to fit
the conditions of modern naval war
fare. We viii say that 4 is a fort, or
another ship of the same squadron
distant five miles from the battleship
=. On deck Of B a strip Of selenium,
D is mounted, fat side toward A, and
in q position where the operator at the
a end of the line viii know just where
to find it. 4 small battery, such as is
ordinarily used for telephone, is at
IacneQ TO an ordinary telepnOne re-
ceiver, c, connected by wires and
& with the selenium.
"a powerful reflector II, mounted on
the deck of the ship. or II the fort, A,
can be readily made TO pour AS search
light exactly upon the strip of selenium
five, or even ten, miles away, on b.
And this might be successfully done
even though a and B should be Slips
of the same squadron in motion. In
front of the reflector II, n lens, l, may
be placed to concentrate the search
light. IN front Of the lens, I, a metal
lie plate, or plates, X, X, may be set,
with n slit between them through
which the concentrated beam of light
must pass. The lower plate x, is fixed
TO the diaphragm of a telephone
mouthpiece, /. Now the sensitiveness
of the metal seienium is such that the
instant beam of light falls upon its
surface the selenium gives out a dis
tinct electrical click; its resistance has
been changed. When the beam of light
is removed, its resistance is, once more
changed, and the selenium gives out