The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-08-20

when a whole nation was on the alert
in expectation OF an onslaught from the
enemy. Thus, in the book of the Prophet
jeremiah, we find the children of Bec!a-
min " armed to flee from Jerusalem. ia
blow the trumpet in PokOa," and to "set
up a sign of fire in Beth Haccerem. for evil
appeareth in the North. Among The
haunts Of the red man, upon the hill-tops.
are 10 be seen mounds of peculiar shape
SAID 10 he the remains of the beacon ares
which warned the trbesmen Of the ap-
preach of the enemy.
The utility of the beacon fire as a means
of biography was obviously restricted
since it could only convey Aone message,
previously agreed upon, without any
means of variation. In the rude DAYS
when civilization was in its infancy, when
warfare was the only art pursued by the
people-war the only cause of a politica.
crisis, and war alike the hope and the
menace of the nation--it is conceivable
that the single column of fire aarng IN
from the hilltop served its purpose as
satisfactorily according 10 the exigenc!es
of the age, as the more varied, if les.
brilliant columns indicated by Reuter- or
Dalziel. With the march of civilization
however. the necessity for some means of
communication sWifter than the rova1
mail and more explicit than the beacon
fire. began to be felt, and the inventive
faculties of scientific men were taxed to
the uttermost in this direction
Many were the dreams INDUCED in by
scientists who, in their search after the
truths revealed by modern science. how
cred on the very borderland of actual dis
coVery. Chimeras. which have since been
recognized as having a substantial exist
onee, or which appear by no means wild
or even improbable, in the light of modem
discovery, We're freely put forth by the
old-tme philosophers. OF these. one of
the most curious and suggestive is the
idea propounded by the learned Italian les
ult, Strada, IN poem-one of the Pro.
lusiones Academicae-hrst published at
Rome in the year 1911 In this work tha
author supposes the existence OF a snecies
of loadstoue or maguet of so now
erful nature that if two needles were
placed in contact with il and then balanced
on separate plVots II the one We're turned
in a particular direction the other womb
sympa thetically follow its movement no
matter what distance interviewed between
the two. Thus. If two f3cs imile dfals we,-a
made containing The letters Of the alpha-
bet with q Hide prearrangemant as TO the
hour for CORES pondeuce between The par-
ties possessing the magnates messaoes
could be sent from any distance in The
simplest manner possible by merely point
inc the needle TO the required letter IN
the dial, thus forming any word I'm the
language. each movement being inflated
by the maGnetlZed needle on the Other
machine Here we have system OF wire
less telegranhy, containing al least some
Of the elements OF me modern electro-mar-
natIc tclcgrnphy. although az that period
clcctro-m eueti~m was thing uudreamt
oG I'm spite ~ JOS purely ch.nerical ma
tlrc the JcsuiCs suggestion was taken
no so seriously ihat scientists of the period
found {. necessary 20 rcfute the claims OF
,oadstonU tcicsrapny In thcir trcltlses.
u tIf fn IA. In .I..I