The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1905-01-20
CHR0NOMETERS ON ICE
1--WE OF THE REMARKABLE
THINGS SEEN AT THE NAVAL
OBSERVATORY.

-
one hundred ships chronometers
ep' IN cold storage is one of the
many remarkable things to be seen at
ne united States naval observatory at
washington. To the layman it would
appear that the authorities were APP
prenenslve that the timepieces would
spoli' One more experienced would
ieason mat the process had something
~ 10 with regulating their time keep
ing qualities. Neither surmise is cor
rect The fact of the matter is the
cnronometers are allowed to go tick
ins merrlly on in their own way and
1Ae' No one hurries them, and no
one tries to diminish their speed.
ret so important is absolutely cor
rect time on shipboard that a differ
ence of four seconds means a mile in
longitude or latitude. And a mile in
longitude may mean warship on the
rocks.
"nlle no one corrects the running"
OF these thermometers a most ac-
curate record is kept of their manner
oI running under different tempera-
lures This why they are kept on ice.
Inc regular annual chrnometer trial
oeglns on January and ends June
~ and during this period there is
scarcely minute of the day that the
Cline-keepers are not under the closest
observation of experts who can tell
Inelr variations to hairs breadth, all
Oh which are carefully noted on rec
ora, and, at the completion of the
test, handed to the commander of the
vessel to which the instrument be-
longs.
Inc temperature varies at different
times OF the test from SO to 90 de-
grees and the losing or gaining
qualities of the chronometers under
these conditions are accurately kept.
Thus with a chart expressing in
curves just what he may expect from
MS chronometer under different condi-
tons OF climate, and, with his thermo-
meter and barometer close at hand,
the sailing master may calculate to
nicely the correct time and get his
location to a certainty.
The importance of a central station
where navy chronometers and other
navigating instruments may be stand
ardized is not appreciated outside of
those directly interested, despite the
fact that millions of dollars and thou
sands of lives are wholly dependent
on the efficiency 0 fthe service in this
line OF work. 1t is essentially neces-
Sary that chronometers should be re-
gulated by common standard, and,
In order that this may be done sue
cessfully the same person who trans
mits all over the country the standard
time should have charge Of them
In other countries there are several
naval authorities that do the work
which the Washington observatory is
practically doing alone. In France
there is a great central observatory
at Paris, with branch naval observa-
tories at Toulon, Lorient, Cherbourg
and Rochefort. The same method of
dividing the work is adopted in other
countries.
The policy of the United States,
however. is to combine all the en-
ergies and talent at the central obser-
vatory, for instance, between $4,000
and $4,000 worth of thermometers are
tested during six months each year,
and many others all the year round.
The tests are made by the most ex-
perienced men in the government SER
vice, and the room was constructed
after years of study and experience.
There are transit-house and a clock
room, which are considered the finest
in the world. To establish duplicates
of these arrangements in four or five
different points along the coast would
nearly quadruple the first cost of the
plants, with a proportional increase
for maintenance, and at the same
time would abolish that exact COM
narrative test and standardizing of in
struments which is today one of the
strongest points of the present sys-
tenn in this country
1t is recognized, however, that the
great area covered by the United Stats
is too vast field to be attended to ex-
clusively at one point. A small naval
observatory has, therefore, been con-
structed at Mare Island, California,
from which the naval vessels in the
Pacific receive their supplies of navi-
eating instruments--all of which are
first standardized at Washington
and receive the correct time. 1t is
probable that before long another sub
division will be established at Tutuila,
Samoa, to facilitate the work of navi-
gators.
The test of chronometers is based
on purely scientific principles. The
+emperature room is constructed SO
carefully that the thermometer does
NOT vary one-half of a degree in a.