The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1900-12-05
LA PALOMA CHARTERED FOR
WIRELESS TELEGRAPH CO.
Expert Gray Will Visit Molokai La
mai, Maui and Hawaii Places and
Remedy Defects of System.

This evening or early tomorrow La
Paloma will start on a fifteen days
cruise about Molokai Lanai, Maui and
Hawaii in the interests of the wireless
telegraphy. Expert Gray who was sent
here recently by Marconi to put the
wireless plant in a working condition
will be in charge of the expedition.
He intends to stop at the various tele-
graph stations and make the necessary
changes in order that communication
between here and Mahukona, Hawaii
will be complete.
Mr.. Macfarlane the owner of the
trim little schooner has been busy for
the last few days getting his vessel into
sea going service. The supplies and
various paraphernalia for the eXpedi-
ton were put aboard today and it is
expected that the vessel can be got un-
der way without delay. Mr.. Gray will
take with him, in addition to the reg
ular sailing crew of the vessel, Captain
Rosehill the superintendent of con-
struction for the telegraph company,
and several riggers, to help make the
necessary changes in the stations.
Four places are to be visited and in
spected before the system will be on a
working basis. From Honolulu to Mo-
lokai is the first division of the line.
The second is from Molokai to Lanai;
the third, from Lanai to Makena, Maui
and the last from Makena to MANU-
kona. Communication has already been
secured over the first division. Owing
to the original mistake made in in
| stalling the various stations the sys-
! tenn was impracticabe and commune
| cation could not be secured. 1t took
Mr.. Gray about ten minutes to discover
| the fault at the local station and he
soon remedied the defect. He has not
visited any of the other stations as
J h11t hn c thn11Oht
practically the same with every one
! he does not anticipate any difficulty in
righting them. No operators are at
any of the remaining stations except
Molokai but he will place somebody in
charge of them as soon as the neces-
sary changes are made in order that
the tests can be recorded.
II am very sanguine over the result
of this trip" said Manager Cross this
morning "Mr. Gray will, l am GER
tain, put the system in working order
and when he returns it will be We al
think to announce that the wireless
teIegraphy is ready for business"
In view of the difficulties which the
local company has experienced in get
ting the wireless system to work ovel
even the comparatively short distances
between the various islands of thu
group, the following announcement
made by one of Marconi's "staff' II
a London dispatch or november q
savors a trile of irony:
'Signor Marconi has mastered hi'
mast difficulty remarked one of hi:
staff to a representative of the Daily
Express yesterday. According to rea
sonable calculation he added, ''w'
shall have America and Great Britain
upon speaking terms before the frs
Christmas of the new century.
ITO make this statement, however
was very different thing from max
ing known Signor Marconis secret. II
general terms though, the basis of hi
triumph may be indicated to a smal
degree Wires must be used one a
either end and about two hundred fee
long, called antennae or feelers. I'M
is obviously not a costly eXpedient bu
the new fact that obviates the necessit
for masts as high as Snowdon is tn
discovery of a means of controllin
their air waves.
"Signor Marconi's infinite capacit
for taking pains has enabled him t
construct an apparatus whereby ne ca
Ilengthen the air waves to an almos
r unlimited extent. Furthermore, by tn
same ingenious device, sound Will b
made to travel close to the surface c
2 the ocean over the whole distance
= thus circumventing the dreaded dltilcu
= presented by the curvature of tn
earth. Hence the masts erected a
Southampton and on Long Island nee
e not, it is now contended, be highe
than the roof of New York Sky
scraper.
n IAN this seems of vast importane
. to the commercial world, remarked II
e representative of the Express.
:. What it undoubtedly means is Una
e submarine cables will be superseded
S was the reply, and that at hur
{ dredth- -thousandth part of cost.