The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-05-12
III HAS S0ME DEFECTS
Wireless System Will Not Sup
plant the Ordinary Methods.
RESULTS ARE UNCERTAIN
General Greeley Reviews the Progress
Made by Marconfs System OF
Wireless Telegraphy-Wor
Is Not Secret.

Washington, May l1.-General Gree
ley to-day made the first authoritative
statement as to the progress made in
wireless telegraphy under the auspices
of the United States signal corps. The
conclusion is reached by General Gree
ley that the wireless system is not like
ly to supplant the ordinary method of
Geographic communication. The results
SO far obtained have been uncertain.
General Greeley's statement is as fol-
lows:
tSince the. announcement of the tests
in space telegraph by Senior Marconi
two years ago. the subject has been I'M
der consideration by the signal corps Of
the army and recently experiments
have been begun with the object of
thoroughly testing the value of their
means of communication for military
and other governmental purposes.
special apparatus has been designed
and constructed for these tests which
have already shown sufficient promise
to warrant further and systematic
trials. In view of the great public in
terest and in order to facilitate expert
| ments by other scientists in the United
States, it Is deemed proper to put forth
this statement of operations to the
present time. In the experiments thus
far, several forms of transmitter for
the generation of Hertsian waves have
been used and much promise has been
realized from the use of a large alter
| mating current coil in oil as generator
| instead of the ordinary Rhumkorff coil
employed by Marconi. This coil is ener-
giZed by a three-horse power rotary
| transformer, furnishing 125 volts alter
| mating potential, and this arrangement
| makes a powerful and efficient source
| of Hertsiah radiation. The former re-
| ceiver used has been substantially the
Brankey Coherer, discovered in 1891,
| and the signals transmitted are record
| ed upon a receiving tape.
THE tranSmitter has been mounted
! upon the west elevation of the state,
war and navy building utilizing the
| present wooden fagpole as the vertical
wire for the transmitter. The receiver
was first placed at the old naval OBJ
servatory grounds. about three-quar-
| tiers of mile distant and a later moved
| to the signal corps station at Fort Mer-
| Ger, Va
During the experiments constant
| communication by heliograph and flag
between the transmitting and receiving
4 stations has been kept up by the train
ed men of the<regular signal corps and
| this has greatly facilitated the work of
experimenting. Signals, letters and
words have been transmitted and re-
| ceiyed between these stations, but the
| great delicacy and constant adjustment
required in the present receiver have
| made the transmission of regular mes
sages as yet unreliable and uncertain.
The presence of large buildings and
large masses of iron and metal neceE-
sarily present in cities makes such
places undesirable for carrying on ex-
periments of this character. The dis
i lance over which signals may be trans
/ nIttRd 20 f1lS iS fin
ton of the height of the vertical wire
used in either end and this has natur-
ally suggested the use of small gas
balloons, such as have already been
used for signal and other purposes by
the signal corps. A supply of these
balloons have been obtained and will be
used for this purpose in the near flu
| ture
THAT there is a field of usefulness for
space telegraphy is undoubted, but that
1t will supplant to a great extent the
use of wire for ordinary commercial
biography is not believed.
THE use of metal refiectors to aug
ment and direct the radiations to par
ticular points has already met with
partial success and should be thorough
ly Investigated, At present the radia-
| ton proceeds from the transmitter in
all directions and the same message
can be received at any point within the
proper radius at which a receiver is
placed. A satisfactory directing re-
Hector and receiver of the proper cleo
| trlcal capacity, or, in other words,
tuned to the vibrations of the particu-
lar transmitter would make a great adj
vance in space telegra ply and do much
toward the extension to it's field of
practical use necessary
while the secrecy of transmission is
among the probabilities, the present
stage of experiment does not justify it's
positive prediction"