New-York tribune., 1907-12-18

interest At the dinner his honor given by the
American Institute OF Electrical Engineers and Co.
lumbia University IN 1902 he publicly and cordially
praised Mr. Edison. VINO sat beside him. for per
fecting the tncandescent lamp few months later
George Westinghouse held reception in London
largely for the purpose OF exhibiting an Invention
OF Cooper Hewitt. the so-called current rectiher
Lord Kelvin evinced much delight with the appa-
ratus. that occasion. by the way. that
he commended the Introduction to England OF GER
tain American business methods. of which he re-
garded his host a fine exponent. AS might have
been expected, he showed a much more syrnpa-
thetio emotion than curiosity when Marconi began
to attract attention in England The first COM
rnercial messages transmitted in England were
dispatched Gn 1899 from Glum Bay Isle OF
Wight. by Lord Kelvin. One went to Sir George
Stokes, in Cambridge. second to his assist
ant in Glasgow, and q third TO Lord Rayleigh
and Sir William Preece IN London Shortly after
the opening of the twentieth century much was
heard about the composite nature OF the atom
The latter instead OF being ndivsible, Is believed
by q number OF experts TO be e collection OF tlny'
negatively electrified particles SO small that
thousand would be needed to equal the bulk OF
hydrogen atom. Professor j. J. thomson. OF Gam
bridge Cwho Is no knsnan OF the Glasgow scholaF'
has been a. conspicuous advocate OF this theory
One of the first whose opinion was worth con-
sidering who admitted its cred!biltty was Lord
Kelvin though he was careful not to commit MIN
self fully on the subject The expression was the
more notable because he had once fanc1ed 'haI an
atom might have construction and an internal
motion like those Of a ring OF SMOKE eJeo'eu i4
a locomotive smokestack-
In the recent Investigations IN regard 10 fioiuii
and radio-a ctivity, Lord Kelvin took a deep ana
lively interest while maintaining q consistently
o--a.,r. s.and When Professor Soddy re-
,or,ed and Sir William Ramsay by later expert
roenfs confirmed, the apparent transformation oI
a gaseous enanation Of heliun into raaluni, hoio M
xaI,.n would not assent the theory, based upon
.hosa exneriments that element couio De
o,ue5 from another He also refused TO accept
the theory lately advanced. that the neat ol .ne
sin or the earth is due to radiun' asseinns .'a.
-o4h,ng SO far brought forward was sufhcen' 10
controvert the older theory that the neat u ~
,o5ies was due TO graUtation-
zo,,-.,oa,- of work which appeals less strongly
20 ,he nopular mind than TO trained sclenus'S -
Professor Thonson's development Oh 'ti ~
which exists between heat and nechailcal p""
Tho neriod that lay between 1S4o and 1850 may ne
= =. t,,,a ,oarked the dawn of definite ideas on
.bt s,,biect but it also Witnessed a lively coiic'
,,et.een the views Of Joule and Carnol lhoii'S0i
ov-n study of the matter enabled MN 10 itcoi'O4
these doctrines and he co-operated with Joule IN
,orts which aided in dispelling the uncer-
+airtv These related thermal effects IN hnldS.
and their results were communicated 10 lIie iNoS
cociety in 1862 In one OF his early papers FRO
,essor Thomson gave an instructive table OF the
eF7ciencieS OF the pest EIecin tAbiA'S0 @''0
Of that day. comparing the actual duty periorhieu
With that which theory required. AS early as
1913 he published an article on an apSolu'e
,berrnornetric scale and in 1854 he modlhed MS
rorosition Two long articles from his pen III
tho ..ISncyclopsedia Britannica have been Iepun
,t,.6 under the title "'On Heat and Electricity
In 1861 the first volume Of "A Treatise on Natuf ai
tobfIosophy" the joint work OF himsef aho fro-
60 TAFT appeared, and second edition was
issued in 1879 This work, in which the effort was
-. IN hase a complete theoretical analysis upon
the doctrine of the conservation OF energy was
never carried beyond the division OF mechanlcs'
but IT contains much material Of the hlshest value
Lord Kelvin's other published writings are com
,r;s.5 ,- .r,lectrostatics and Magnetism Zone vol
une, Mathematical and Physical Papers 0hree
vol,,rnesl. Popular Lectures and Addresses" ohree
volupes) and Baltimore Lectures 'deH'eleu d.
Johns Hopkins University. in lSai).
W., .fter his inheritance of intellect ana pas
.., On, Tho investigations of natural phenomena
nerhans Lord Kelvin's most helpfal oualitS was h'
fine mastery of mathematics This not oiiiy eae
h,r, nrecsous instrument Of research out IL a1So
promoted close reasoning
SEVERAL VISITS TO AMERICA
Two OF several visits to America were mo- ~
Lord Kelvin in order to attend Hlee'iie' "a C.,
british Association for the Advahcefhen' Va
.noa Ordinarily those gatherings are heio Oh Ne
-, IA. IF the Atlantic, but every now eho theii
C.aa is honored. The meeting OF 1874 ""S "
Montreal and thar of 1897 In TORONTO oi'
-.gartists he unfalllnS III MS a.
-. or the annual assemblies or such organ
-, ,o,e sfter n ceased to be in their power 'o
80 arv distinction upon him. Ills Loyalty "as
..r.ved not only at home, put even ~"ei = "
,.s ,ba trouble and expense OF al ocean o''
,,,r,e,ate the honors and deootaeons pe
~ .,,s GREAT man would be almost irnpos-
NM He has had almost countess aesi
g. N,as,ng universities in Great Britain ana fA' |
.Ae - 80. heen elected president OF many scie"
.sa ho.5,e. among them the Royal Socie'S " -
- the British Association iof 'he
Cc,e,ce the Institution or ElecIrlc|'i Ing
NJ "a tho Roval Society OF LONDON ne o
me- ,,oned has since Newtons day' peeh re
ia7 - the highest to which Bfltlsh Soie"'i''
sai TIC lie was a foreign associate OF ihe
..,ny of Sciences, in Pdris' anu '
,,or Of other similar oreariza'iois-
ia - -scer of the Legion OF honor III ,
Eraiiu ~ Grand Cross of the Royai VICTORIAN
isnisn' -, of the Ordre pour lie Merite' OF Ger
- I'D a commander of the oroer VI Ap
many, - He was also a member OF the order
OF -. CLASS of the Sacred Treasure OF Japah'
" :. ,ne order of Merit estapiisneo pS i1
anu anu " ,ooa THAT he made peer by queen VIC
= -. " ~. onening of the year lSE was soui.o
'oi =. b,s scientific friends, who felt nor oiiiy
OF 's or,rir,ent was deserved. but also tfa' IL
.hd' - ~h,,c recognition of the value OF sclehco'
was -. time il involved the aoahoohiheiii
I Al w which has stil adhered to many OF me
Oh -. Inventions The new one was oeiiN -
ieeip ..ann the Kelvin. which ehipues iii'
iio =, GLASGOW and beside which the p'o
1 tiie - ,.,,,anre in that city stand