Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-03-21
BY WIRELESS METHOD
Progress Made in the Trans
mission of Messages.
ADDRESSES ON THE SUBJECT
Practical Demonstrations of Possibili-
ties Of the System.
NAVY YARD STATION DESCRIBED
Work of Signal Corps in Maneuvers
Between Land and Sea
Forces.
ADDRESSES ON THE SUBJECT
NAVY YARD STATION DESCRIBED

Demonstrations ana DISCUSSIONS OF VIE
less telegraphy. its present development and
its possibilities. Interested large number
of the members Of the Washington Society
of Engineers at its meeting IN Hubbard
Memorial Hall. 10th and NJ streets north
west, last evening. Experimenters along
this line from the army and the navy de-
partnents of the government told of the
work Of the government in developing the
system Several kinds Of receiving instru-
ments were on exhibition in the hail. and
they were examined with much interest by
those present.
Mr.. L. d. Bliss. secretary Of the society,
gave the initial address the subject.
discussing the elementary principles and
the general workings of the system. Al
though much has been done, he said. what
is at present known about wireless teleg-
raphy merely touches the hordc:ltnd. The
system does not depend upon the transmits
sion of sound waves. but waves are r"opa-
gated through the ether. The rate
of propa gait of these waves through the
ether is about $4,000 miles per second, or
seven times around the globe between two
clicks produced by a clock pendulum. These
waves are sent out by the sending station
and are caught by the receiving station
that being the general theory of wireless te-
Biography. In order to generate these waves
an Instrument known as the oscilator is
used. Those waves, supplied by an electric
dynamo. are sent up and down the wire
which is extended high in the air. and they
cause waves in the ether. just as q stone
thrown in the water causes waves to 80 off
IN all directions.
Contact With Receiving Wires.
When these waves strike the receiving
wires similar waves OF current are pro-
duced in those wires and are read by the
proper instrument. On account Of the fact
that only a small portion of the force sent
out reaches the receiving wire the received
vibrations must be exaggerated by a proper
instrument There are several kinds Of re-
ceivels described by Mr.. Bliss. the one IN
general use now being that which utilzes
q telephone receiver.
One of the great troubles at present he
said. is TO send messages In the same. 10
calty without getting them mixed. Eff
sending Instruments so that they would
not be affected by others. but the efforts
have not been very successful.
Mr.. Bliss gave several demonstrations of
the operations of wireless teIegraphy by
means of a sending instrument IN the rear
of the hall. From that instrument were
sent electric currents, which were caught
by the receiving instrument In front and
made to ring bell, drop a weight, such as
the time ball on top of the State. War and
Navy building, or strike a light, showing
that 1t could be used for a lighthouse at
sea. Finally submarine cartridge was ex-
ploded by a current produced at the other
END Of the room
Mr.. R. NJ. Klein, electrical expert Of the
bureau of equipment Of the Navy Depart
ment. gave a technical description of the
length of the wave used IN wireless te!egra-
ply and Of tuning Instruments The dura-
ton Of the wave is One-millionth of i sec
Ond, he said
Navy Department Work.
Lieut., Commander S. S. Robson, L. S N.
told of the work Of the Navy Department
in wireless biography. The department
now has about thirN-fivc land stations
working. and about fifty stations aboard
ships Plans are being made for still more
Several years ago, he said board was APP
pointed to consider the question ana gave
Its Development to the Navy Department,
with an order to construct a chain of sta
tons along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts
of the United States. in the canal zone and
the Philippine Islands, and providing ships
with the apparatus That work has been
partially accomplished on the Atlantic
coast there are stations at Portland Me-
Portsmouth. Boston, Cape Cod Newuort
MontauK, New York navy yard Navesink
Annapolis. Washington. Cape Henry, Nor
folk. Diamond Shoals Point CharIeStsWn
st. Augustine, Key West Pensacola Cuba
Porto Rico, New Orleans and Colon On
the Pacific coast there are stations at San
Dlego, near Santa barbara, Farallone Is
lands, or the Golden Gate Goat Island in
San Francisco bay; Mare Island Three
or four others are to be built farther north
There is one at Honolulu one on the island
or Guam. and another at CaVite in the
Philippines. Others are designed so that
the commander of the Pacific squadron can
always be IN touch with his ships on the
ocean.
The local navy yard, he said, has been In
communication with all the stations on the
Atlantic coast. Several tests of instru-
ments have been made by the Navy De
partment. and the speaker said there was
little choice between American and Ger
man Instruments, as the Americans are
rapidly coming TO the front. The latest
American Instruments for ships were guar
anteed to send messages for $50 miles and
they have been up 20 the standard
What Tests Demonstrate.
Tests made by the department so far, he
said, demonstrated several things of a pc
culiar nature. Messages can be transmitted
n