Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-09-03
Naval Observatory Clock Will
Be Heard on Many Chimes.
FEATURE OF RECEPTION
PLANNED IN HONOR OF DELE
GATES TO GEOGRAPHIC CONGRESS
At Midnight Thursday Washington
Will Be in Telegraphic Communica-
ton With Nearly All the World.

Among the interesting events planned for
the entertainment of the great information
al geographic congress that will meet here
next Thursday is a reception at the naval
observatory that evening by the superin-
tendent, Rear Admiral Colby NJ. Chester,
U. S. NJ and his staff. Arrangements are
being made to close this reception with a
five minute series of time signals. ending
at midnight, seventy-fifth meridian time,
according to the plan followed daily at
noon. This will be followed by brief
message of greeting from the congress to
the nations of the world to be transmitted
voluntarily by the various connecting lines
of telegraph and cable. Through the
courtesy of the telegraph companies their
chief operators will be present in order to
send out the message following the signal,
and to receive any early messages that
come in reply.
Although when this plan was finally de-
clded upon 1t was too late to communicate
with European observatories by mail, yet
the principal ones on this continent have
been notified and invited to cooperate by
receiving and timing the signals. 1t is
hoped also that by means of the cordial CO.
operation of the various cable companies
press associations and European govern
ment telegraph systems informa ton of the
plan will be received by at least the most
prominent obServatorieS abroad in time to
secure their cooperation in view of the in
ternational character of this great scien-
tho congress.
Efficiency of Time Service
This demonstration of the efficiency of
the American time service as carried on
by the energetic voluntary cooperation of
telegraph, telephone and cable companies is
especially appropriate to the work of the
congress, inasmuch as the errors and rates
of ships chronometers obtained by means
of the time balls dropped by the daily noon
sigma! from the naval observatory are of
vital Importance in navigation and nau-
teal surveying work, which are essentially
geographic in character.
1t is estimated that a similar series of
time signals sent out last New Year eve
was transmitted. within very few sec
onds, over 100000 miles of wire so that the
transmitting clock was practically heard
from Sitka to Buenos Ayres and from
England to the Philippines. Australia and
New Zealand. Indeed, had it not been for
pressure of traffic account Of the dis
turbed condition of affairs in the far east
it might have been heard around the
world. and with the improvement of ex-
tension of the use of wireless telegraphy,
the time may come when such a signal
can be heard in every continent and over
every ocean, almost instantaneously.
Where the Signal Goes.
The New Year eve time signal not only
covered the continent of North America
but was transmitted by the Western Union
Telegraph Company through its connect
ing cable beneath the Atlantic to Eng
land; by the Postal Telegraph Companys
connecting cable to Honolulu, Midway,
Guam and Manila; by the connecting cable
of the Canadian Pacific railways telegraph
department to Tanning Islands, Fiji, Nor
folk Islands. Australia and New Zealand;
by the Central and South American Tele-
graph Company's cables, in loops along the
west coast of Central and South America
to Guatemala, Ecuador Peru, Chile and
finally overland to Buenos Ayres; and by
the government telegraph service OF the
dominion of Canada and the United states
signal service lines TO DaWson SitS anu
Sitka, Alaska.
II was accurately timed and the exact
time of transmission reported as follows,
in seconds and hundredths:
Lick observatory, California nNe one
bundredths of a second National obserVa-
tory. City of Mexico. one second and nine
teen one-hundredths; Royal observatory
Greenwich. England. one second ana thIty
three one-hundredths; Syoney observatory
Australia three seconds and hfty one
E1ndredths; Wellington observatory, New
Zealand, four seconds
Practically instantaneous.
1t thus appears evident that the trans
mission of the noon signals daily over land
lines is practically instantaneous, and all
the time balls along our Atlantic coast, II
they were visible from single point, could
be seen to fall at the same instant, when
the naval observatory clock marks noon.
Transmission over cables, involving manual
relays, is of course slower, and the world
circuit would involve sixteen repetitions,
namely New York, Azores. Lisbon, Gibral-
tar Alexandria, Suez, Alden, Bombay,
Madras. Singapore HcEgkong. Manila,
Guam. Midway, Honolulu San Francisco.
Some philosopher has said that the APP
probation of the value of correct time is an
index to the civilization of nation, and 1t
is gratifying to know that In this respect
the United States is among the foremost in
the world Standard time based the
meridian of Greenwich was adopted in this
country in 1888. is now established in its
most remote possessions, and has been ac-
cepted by seventeen nations, while no two
others agree. 1t is hoped, however, that the
need of common international standard
will soon lead all civilized nations to adopt
the Greenwich meridian as the basis of
their systems.