Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1906-09-28
LIKE JULES VERNE YARN
Bell Deep Under Water, Sends Warnings
In Fog and Storm


warming bell come out of the sea; Dl
the same means to hear the throb OF {
steamships screw when the steamship
| c .nnot be seen, and by these sounds
to drive a vessel through fog or dark
ness, avoiding collisions and reefs, &C
knowledging signals and making port
as skipper would in broad daylight
savors of the opening chapter of
novel oy Jules Verne. Nevertheless
these things can now be done, and
they are made possible by the sub
marine telephone.
The signal is the invention of Prof.
Elisha Gray, of Chicago. and Arthur
j. Mundy. 1t is controlled by the Sub
marine Signal Company. Through the
courtesy of the latter representative
of the Times witnessed demonstra-
tion of submarine signaling yesterday
afternoon at Sandy Hook.
| A specially chartered tug took the
party that had been invited to see the
demonstration from Pier to the Sandy
Hook lightship. Here the lonely men
who run the lightship and are glad to
see anyone who will break the madden
ing monotony of their lives showed
them around.
The lightship was riding easily on an
oily swell and the crew was idllng on
deck playing cards and checkers. The
| only sound that broke the stiffness OF
the great ocean was the melancholy
, tolling of a bell. One tried to trace
the sound in vain. The big bell on
deck was motionless. One of the men
Was asked where the sound came from.
| He pointed down into the sea.
| Submarine, "said be.
Pong Pong |" was the sound that
came from the depths of the ocean.
! The captain of the lightship explain
ed that this was the bell from which
steamships fitted with the submarine
telephone took their bearings. 1t was
long from the keel of the lightship, he
said, and ships miles away. be the
weather thick or clear, could hear 1t
by telephone and know just where they
were
| The telephone was shown later, but
the bell was the first thing to be ex-
planned. Deep down in the sea 1t is
operated by compressed air. A wheel
turning in the engine room OF the light
ship marked off five seconds of silence,
then a notch, released enough COM
pressed air to drive the tongue OF the
submarine bell. The ghOstly note came
out of the sea twice with an interval
of a second and half; then there was
lapse of five seconds. Again the
double note sounded. Then there was
lapse of three seconds The continu'
ed repetition of the bell notes with the
alternate lapses of five and three Sec
onds constituted a signal which to
mariners spelled in the subm arlne sig
nal code SANDY Hook Light"
Although many ships are fitted witt
the telephone which receives the warn
ing note of the submarine bell, the
vessel used in the demonstration yes
rerday was a tug, in the wheelhouse 0
3 which there hung what looked like al
! ordinary telephone. The party re
turned to the tug to see the second an
: most important part of the Invention
On the way from the lightship to tn
tug the carrying power of water wa
demonstrated by the fact that Will
t the air did not carry the sound OF tn
deep-sea bell, the melancholy note
came through the cars and the woot
work of the rowbOat.
3. On board the tug, full speed was U
20 dered. The little craft travelled owe
n a mile to the west of the lightship. TT
oily smell continued, and when the tt
at last came to full stop absolute s.
ence prevailed, except for the voices
,g the passengers. The bell notes we
e. lost and the lightship itself was Il
to tie thing in the distance. Acting u
on the suggestion of an official repl
senting the Submarine Signal Comp
nv. the members of the party to-
turns at putting the telephone recel'
to their cars AS clearly, though u
80 loudly as before, the sonOrous b
no pealed out of the sea. The throb
the steamship Francesca's screw
ILL., also heald long before the vessel Cal
in sight cf the tug.
"Ghosts," said one member OF
party.
ZE The submarine telephone is exac
like any other telephone as far as
ari. general theory is concerned. 1t
,ou gins in the wheelhouse and ends in
oey bilges. Here. closely pressed agal
nm. the shell of the vessel is transmit
and case full of water, and into it is lns'
AN. ed microphone. The microphone
ans metal drum. The plates of the We
dis from the diaphragm. The we
transmits the sound to this.
lar Inc importance VI Uelbs d olc w VI
g q sound in daI kness or fog has alw
,ick been appreciated oy mariners. NJ
II good ship has gone to pieces thro
af. the inability of the master to do
kid The submarine signal settles this
.nti. ficulty.
feel On each side of a vessel having
nv lephOne aboard there is. receiver
find switch closes the port microphOne
and leaves the starboard open. as
pot might listen with one ear shut and
larlv other on the alert. Both receivers
WAS opened and shut in turn until
a IN made clear from which side the sc
,nds comes the lOudest. This part of
,ent. invention, the company hopes, wi
eme. much improved as time goes on
work that mariners will be able to ii
/, sound with perfect accuracy As
from a vessel with the submarine sigma
,nboe | paratuS need not approach With