Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1899-05-28

1.-THE progress made Between the respective
discoveries OF Franklin and Narconi e..
Franklin believed that electricity was
a TANGIBLE but unknown substance which
had two distinct and opposite properties,
| which. II separated by chemicals or other
means would tend to reunite and restore
the normal equilibrium the moment q
suitable return path was provided.
This has been proven TO be an error. He
thought also that electricity flowed
through Il wire. whereas now we know
I that the wire merely acted as a guide 10
! the waves OF ether surrounding the wire.
which are set In motion and formed by
| chemical action in battery cell or other
/ gCncrative source OF electricity. To Illus
trate: If you throw a stone into a lake.
I II viii produce a ripple or wave on the
! surface. which repeats and extends it.
self until 1t reaches the opposite shore.
The wire acts just as the surface of the
/ lake. merely as the conductor for the
waves. 1t is. therefore, clear that the
Z greater the cause for disturbance, the
greater Will he the agitation OF the
+ ether and the consequent rapidity of the
waves
BASIS OF TELEGRAPHY.
! IL Is now clearly seen that the basis Of
all biography, wireless or otherwise, IS
undulation or vibration. We have known
I for long time a method Of transmitting
signals from point TO point for the purpose
/ Of expressing our thoughts without the
use OF wire: First, by means OF luminous
vibration, which we will call optical teIe-
graphy. II you please: second. by means
/ of the human voice, with its sound-wavcs
/ of vibration, or acoustic telegraphy.
+ Now, the wireless telegraphy Of Marconl
Is a continuance or extension of this
same principle. by means OF which we
can communicate TO distances where the
powers Of the human ear or eye would
fa:i
+ For example, the manifestations Of the
respective forces upon the human system
4 are produced by the impression conveyed
/ 10 our different nerves, each of which is
, attuned to some respective wave motion.
| For instance. sound is produced TO the
| auditory nerves by waves of ether pos
sessing impulses of a frequency ranging
between 5000 10 10000 per second. Pulsa-
tions below or above this limit fail to
produce sound.
Having laid down the primary principle,
1t is necessary to explain a secondary
principle. which is a most important fac
tor i'm this system. A most natural ques-
ton TO the ordinary mind will be- "With
countless wireless transmitters and re-
Ceivers in operation how can the sender
insure the sound made by his instrument
be transmitted to the receiver whom he
desires TO reach?' The answer is, that
waves Of different rapidity produce cor
responding differences in forms of force.
Beyond 10000, and until these unseen
waves attain the immense rapidity,
twenty trillion per second, where the
sense Of touch asserts itself there Is no
responsive chord. The wonderful camera
OF Che eve records its impressions between
frequcncies of three hundred trilions
and seven hundred trillions. other than
these there is no known impression upon
the human brain. The Marconi system,
therefore, means the operation of in
struments so attuned one TO the other
as TO mechanically record distant i'm
pulses in similar manner.
The conclusion Of a body causes the
air to vibrate, and produces therein an
infinite number of undulations. which
traverse and disturb space; and when
such vibrations meet with the proper re-
ceving apparatus, they strike IL and
cause it TO Yibrate in turn.
Just as light or sound vibrates, so is It
in eleCtriCity-these electric vibrations
travelling at the rate of 10000 miles per
second will pass through walls. brick
wood. &C, but will not pass through me-
tallic substances.
At this juncture 1t will be necessary to
give an illustration of the sending appa-
ratus: