New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-06-09
WIRELESS TELEGRAPHY.

Washington dispatches last week relor.eu
that the national government was cohslue'ihs
the expediency of assuming exclusive contoi VI
WIRELESS teleeraphy along the coasts of the
United States. In justification or that course
il was said that the naval authorities anuci-
ted interference with communication between
war vessels and military stations on land II TOO
many commercial stations were In operation
there II was also said that perhaps lhe gov
eminent might put its own wireless equipment
at the disposal OF passing merchant ships max
ing no charge whatever for the TRANSMISSION Oh
messages Though these stories have not Deen
fully verified. and the attitude Of Secretary
Moody still appears 10 be underlined. there Is
little doubt that other officials-Rear Admiral
NIannev among them-are in favor OF the meas
u,es referred TO- No immediate action is prob
able because Congressional legislation is deemed
necessary to the execution of the plan II inc
latter should ever be approved by the admins
tration Still, the announcement has already
drawn out journalistic comment, most or II I'M
favorable TO the adoption OF such policy. "Ihe
Electrical World and Engineer" and THE Elec-
trical Review" of this city. for instance frank
" evince opposition thereto.
Though the danger which disturbs Admiral
Manney and other officers is a real one, per
haps a better method OF meeting it can be
devised than the one which has been sug-
gested. There can be no objection to a stern
suppression OF interference In time OF war on
the ground of necessity. The emergency would
amply justify the procedure. exactly as 1t did a
rigid censorship of press dispatches from Cuba
TO this country during the conflict with Spain.
When hostilities came to an end, though, the
United States government abandoned all super
vision of cable messages. In like manner It
may decide to restrict commercial wireless teleg-
raphy-which is peaceful and perfectly legiti-
mate industry-only while war Is actually in
progress. To prohibit an innocent service at
ether times would resemble the suppression of
balloons, signalling flags, guns and powder, be-
cause IN certain possible contingencies they
might be used by the enemies of this country.
OF course, the parallel is not exact. Even in
time Of peace various Inconvenience might be
experienced. Messages sent by war vessels TO
Newport for instance, might be picked up on
Cape Cod and Long Island also. If secrecy
were really important ii could be insured by
using code and by other means Again, it
might happen that Hertz waves would reach
the Newport station simultaneously from a war
vessel fifty or one hundred miles away, and
from one of the instruments employed to send
news messages from Cape Cod or Cape Breton
to ocean steamships There would be little
chance of confusion, however, unless with both
transmtters the same wave frequency were
adopted. Marconi had two receivers on the
Campania when he came from England last
month. One would respond only to passing
ships and the Siasconsett station, and the other
only TO Poldhu Interference Of this character
could be absolutely averted by amicable agree
ment, and even without the latter it would be
improbable. Until the resources Of friendly ne
gotiation are exhausted, therefore, the admins
tration may not feel obliged to insist upon abb
solute control when hostilties are not pending
There has long been a deep seated popular
prejudice in this country against making the
management of the old telegraph systems a gov
ernmental function The same feeling would
be excited by proposition to turn over TO the
national authorities the conduct of wireless
communication between merchant vessels and
land stations The number and length Of the
messages might become SO great that to receive
| them and deliver them to the companies which
| operate land lines would involve considerable
expense. To perform such a service without
charge would be open TO one set OF objections
To exact toll would provoke another class of
criticism. The best way out of the dilemma
would probably be to refrain entirely from
business which is, after all, strictly commercial