Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1905-12-01
THE WORK OF THE WIRELESS
Mysterious Force Unhlndefed by Great
Distance.
SIGNALS CLEARER At night Than DAY

SIGNALS CLEARER At night Than DAY
William e. Curtis, the Well Known
Correspondent Gives a Clear and
Comprehensive Account Of the Prog
ress and Achievements of the New
System Of Long Distance communi-
cation Over Land and Sea.
Chicago Record-Herald.
WASHINGTON, Nov. Doubtless
everybody has read the remarkable
stories that have been published con-
cerning the conversations that were
kept up between the cruisers of Ad-
miral Brownson's feet and the wire
the presidents trip from New Orleans
to Washington. 1t was altogether the
most successful and satisfactory test
Of this mysterious method of commu-
nication that has ever been made, and
demonstrated its value to the naval
service and to the merchant marine.
Only few days after, when Admiral
Evans was on his way to New York
with the North Atlantic squadron, the
officials Of the navy department re-
membered something they wanted to
ask him. They called him up by the
wireless apparatus at the Washington
navy yard when he was 200 miles
away and sailing northward off the
coast Of Maryland. He answered
promptly and conversation lasting
more than half an hour was carried
IN in which every message was receiv-
ed and every word was understood. on
both sides.
finding him. The operator at the
navy yard touched his key and called
for the battleship Maine, just as one
might shout from a window at a
crowd in the street, or bird might
cry for its mate. do not know how
it was done: 1t Is difficult for laymen
20 unde the mysteries of elec-
tricity. The operator was In coop
at the navy yard; Admiral Evans was
on the high seas; but the operator on
the deck Of the Maine heard the call
the moment 1t was uttered and sent
down to the admiraps cabin to tell
Fighting Bob" that the navy depart
ment wanted to talk to him at the
telephone. For 1t was merely tele-
phonic message. carried by invisible
wings across the sand hills Of Mary
land, Chesapeake bay, the eastern
shore and sixty or seventy miles of
salty ocean. II Calico had done that
in the fifteenth century what might
his fate have been?
But the tests during the presidents
voyage were even more remarkable.
The wireless instrument on the flag
ship West Virginia was In continuous
communication with the other vessels
Of the fleet and with the shore stations
all the way from New Orleans to Nor
folk, and one night with the flagship
225 miles west of Key West, the con-
versation between its operator and
the other vessels Of the fleet was read
at the navy yard in Washington just
as plainly as II 1t were going on In the
next room. There could be no mis-
take, for the messages have since been
compared and verified. That conver-
sation was heard at a distance of
1850 statute miles, through the air,
over land as we'll as sea, and 1t was
only a few seconds passing the Pied
mont country and through all of the
South Atlantic states. The New York
navy yard caught one message and the
DeForrest station on Manhattan Beach
caught another.
These remarkable tests are all made
at night. Wireless telegraphy does
not work as we'll in the daytime as 1t
does after dark, and ordinarily long
distant messages can be read at night
only. Experience shows that the
range at night Is three times as long
as that during the day. because of
reasons not yet definitely determined.
The explanation generally accepted is
that the rays of the sun ionize the at
mosphere. That Is new word-'fon-
ize"-and has been built to describe
certain meteorological conditions un-
der which the atoms Of atmosphere
lalx than
or are less in sympathy. which causes
species Of induction-that Is Ito
make 1t plainer). the atmosphere Is
not so good conductor Of electric
currents while the sun Is shining
through II as 1t Is after dark. 1t loses
certain qualities required for long
range messages and absorbs the elec-
trio fluid. The experts admit that this
Is a very unsatisfactory explanation,
but 1t Is the best one they have at
present. However, facts are facts,
and wireless telegraphy does not carry
its messages so far or so distinctly
during the day as 1t does at night.
The longest distance over which
wireless message was ever heard by
the operators Of the navy department
was on the night Of October 81, when
Manhattan Beach station on Long Is
land, heard the operator at San Juan
Porto Rico, 1900 miles away. The
operator at Colon. on the 1sthmus oil
Panama, a few days ago read mes
sages passing between the operator al
Key West and the steamer Concho OF
the Mallory line. running between
Galveston and New York. He was
1,2OO miles away. The Concho has
only a small outfit, but 1t acts perfect
ly. The operator at Colon heard the
operator on the Concho trying tC
wake up Key West. The signal was
very weak and the Key West operator
replied
Fix your spark. man; fix your
spark"
The Concho was silent for a mo-
| ment or two, after which the CONVEX
| sation was resumed and Colon heard Il
distinctly.
The operators at Newport and st
Augustine frequently talk at night, bu