The Washington times., 1902-01-05

ana leICDhOne
Towering 157 feet above the earth's
surface, and erected on the highest ele-
Vation in the District of Columbia, stands
the mast of the Federal Wireless Tele-
graph and Telephone Company, from
which the news of the National Capital
Will shortly he transmitted by means Of
electro-etheric waves to all parts of the
civilized world where wireless telegraphy
stations have been established. Messages
have already been flashed from this sta
tion to the companys station at Balti-
more
The station, which is depicted in the ac-
companying illustration, is situated on
Galena Place. between Sixth and Seventh
Streets northeast, in the w. o. Denison
and J. W. Sands subdivision of Metropolis
View, District of Columbia. The loca-
tion was selected as the result Of dill
gent search for the highest possible ele
vation in the District.
Represents Outlay of $4,000.
The establishment OF the station repre-
sents an outlay of $4,000 The cost OF
the erection oil the mast alone which is in
three sections, buried TO a depth OF fifteen
feet and supported by numerous guy
ropes. reached the ST. 200 mark. The work
OF establishing the station was done un-
der the supervision of NJ. G. ". Pickard,
chief engineer OF the company The
operator who sent out the first message
from the station was Mr. Bertram Royal,
who will be succeeded by Mr. John Nicker-
son, of Boston, as soon as the station is
open for business.
In addition 10 the Metropolis View sta
tion. which will be the main station in
the District. substations viii be estab-
lisheG in the downtown districts. where
messages will be received and flashed to
the main tation, where in turn. they will
6e TRANSMITTED --"-,v'e station
at Baltimore. mo-.
known as Carroll .I .r end
on the Frederick
Downtown :. .pe -., H...-
The substations
tricts f the Nation. c. a5I. a- s--
tablished on the roofs OF Office buildings
and business blocks. Several locations
have already been favorably considered
by Mr.. Pickard. but the negotiations have
not as yet been coEsummated
The Federal Wireless Telegraph and
Telephone Company holds exclusive rights
through license for the States of New
York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania. Della
ware, Ohio Maryland. District ofColumbia,
Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina,
and South Carolina.
Stations Mt Other Points,
In addition to the stations at Metropolis
View and Baltimore, the company has al
ready established stations at Galilee. n.
j, from which the yacht races were re-
ported in October; at Atlantic City. near
the lighthouse; Barnegat Bay, ard Cape
May.
AS soon as the Metropolis View station
is open for business the company will i'm
mediately inaugurate the work incident to
the establishment of stations at Whining
ton. Philadelphia, Trenton, Newark and
New York City The establishment of
these stations will be proceeded with in
the order named.
Wireless telegraph Equipment,
The equipment of a wireless telegraph
station under the patents held by the Fed
eral Wireless T-Iesrapt and Tale.rgn.
l-t f--cu-iuca Undue
-=nr Oh. vat.h jig connected
-e 49, I areriaI wire .ss .set
ard grogns plates
Tie principle Of TIE system employed
consists Of Jhe aer!al wire beiu-, charged
g.. -4e coli and discharging into the air
creates an impulse or electro-etberic
wave. which is picked up at the distant
station by the aerial wire and conveyed
TO the coherer.
The cOherer is glass tube fitted with
two silver plugs. between which is placed
some nickel and silver filings. These i'm
pulses or electro -etheric waves have the
property of breaking down the normally
high resistance of the filings and Of al
lowing the current from local battery
to actuate polarized relay which in turn
makes dots and dashes.
The coherer is restored to its original
Resistance by tapping device which is
operated by the tongue of the polariZed
relay.
Messages to baltimore
The Metropolis View station can send
messages to Baltimore. and several have
already been sent. None has as yet been
received from Baltimore, however, as the
instruments are not in perfect adjustment.
As soon as they have been adjusted the
station will open for business. The ma
chimes at the various stations must be in
perfect harmony and adjustment, which
takes some time to do correctly.
Mr. Pickard's system of tuning which
prevents the messages from being stolen
by other stations, consists of aerial wires
of the same length. with inductance coils
and capacity inserted.
On transmitting a message by wireless
telegraphy the current Is taken from a
battery Of about fifteen volts and trans
ferred by the induction coil to a high fire.
quency or alternating current of several
thousand volts. This charges the aerial
wire.
Not MysteSy.
There is nothing mysterious about wire
less telegraphY. II has been recognized
and experimental with by scientists for
nearly fifty years. Prof. Dolbear OF
Tufts College. Boston, took out the art
or basic American patent on telegraphy
without wires in 1886. The Federal Wire
less Telegraph and Telephone Company is
licensed under this basic patent
The practical application of wireless
telegraphy, however, made by Prof
Henry Shoemaker. OF Philadelphia, TO