The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1900-02-17
FLOATING BOTTLES.
Useful in Finding Out Direction.
and Speed of Sea Currents.

The United States photographic OfF-s y
tust beginning 10 realizs tangible results
n its attempts to find out TIE direction an.
speed u ocean currents The experiments
were begun some years aEo ana aye lust
heldnnirs 10 bear fruit, says the san Fran
cisco Examiner.
This most important maritire point "a
accomplished by means q floating bottles
4. thrown overheard. having inside the date
ana place where = was east into the sea-
The bottle paper. which is inclosed inside.
E-~ 4 blank form. IN the bottom for thu
finders name. date and locality printed N
SIN different Languages. with the request
who may recover the bottle whose apea--
ain'r is mace unusually conspicuous hy -
snare ana large lettering. having the nam
81 the United States photographic Office
stamped on the front o! the bOttiel 20 open
tn s.tmc and I'll! out the blank form. CIV
IUG IA" exact lautv:e and longitude where
J. Wa picked ~. together with The num-
bel of the bottle.
overheard. or the original bottle contain
tlE this record IS keGt until the first port
j. r~v"Ched,, when it il given to the Amer
#H consul for transiaiSS,on to the Hydro
.-raThlc Iffice in Washington. Here u full
iry Of each bottle. from its number. ~
at. giving tho time and place Of its var
Tin iine~. -, that the Office in Washing
.H- may know the direction taken by tho
i.'t." since first put into the sea or last
sl-at'a by som" passing vessel
Ir This WY the direction II has driftei
AND th" strength q; the current can he ao-
4 ttitl'tN ttt'l Utllt.. l&Nelf collectively fES
rlth> followed by these hoati,; and nom
ealaritI observers give a correct idea Of TIA
Drift currents Of the North Atlantic.
II is from the travels Of these bottles. as
Wei as tn reports and observations made
ty ~" numerous Captains who cross the
ocean. that the monthly Pilot Chart yhfrb
! the most vSiuabls Euife and authority 10
all S.t-Eu,H@ crafts. IS Complied.
S'In+ interesting rG!.ufns just made az
the Photographic Office show the good
WORK done hy these ever-driftinc lt;-''
mariu,rs. Some have Heated thousarI- O.
mics, and one has a record Of covering
-" miles In Ein,ty-two days This bottle
was tossed overheard from the steamship
Furrst Bismarck on May I. 1895. about So
yards southeast of CIpe Race. and Tccoy-
cred on Angus, I 81 The vicinity ~ GrIck-
~tadt, On the tlbe. The distance between
the two points. following the rout.
MILE. giving tweuty-six miles as the low
c~t possible estimate OF tae daily average
velocity with which the bottle Travelled
The longest distance made by any bottI.
Wa one thrown from the steamship E.leE-
triciau. which covered 500 miles IN a fris
over three years. OF an average of nearly
s'V miles a day. Another bottle travai.i
$3.50 miles in sf DAYS. or an average o.
eight knots. while stiII another made -aJl
miles IN - days. or au average OF l5G
knots q day. Another good record for q
t'iHe * ~ miles IN sixteen Gays. or AZ!
at' rage "i ~ KNOTS a Gay.
I'm conducting its experiments the Navy
t''fdrtmeEt mas had IN" cooperation Of the
EIsStan Government, which on the cruises
- w" of its vessels had thrown into tho
SD 1S bottles. OF which thirty have baar
recovered and reported. The motion OF a..
waters seems 70 be westerly, rs is evidence.
~ the destination Of tho numerous ha-,ie-
cast Hdrift between MADEIRA ana Ca,.. san
Rogue. All Of which ultimately found fH.ei-
way 10 the Windwdrd Islands. The Eahanas
cv tn the western shores Of the Gull OF
Mexico.
In the matter Of speed Of the ru-ron,a fl
has been ssr"rtaiued hy these bottles 70
have an average Of about twenty miles q,
day The branch Office Of the United States
HydogTJpiic Department in Ia. Nia-fffr.,
Exchange. New York. furnishes ioafiug
bottles and record papers Ia all maStevs auf
captains OF vessels who ask for the sane.
Some 80 arrive and depart y-eekIy an
many of the officers AID the work ~ In.
navy by casting overheard these fo3tin--
observers In midocean.