The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1908-06-16
THE BELL IN THE SEA
How Ocean Liners Hear Their
Way In Thick Weather.
FOG SIGNALS UNDER WATER.

Method by Which the Submerged
Gong 10 Operated and the Apparatus
by Which tho Sound 10 Picked Up
Miles Away--Port and starboard
Lights.
TO those who so down 70 the sea In
ships probably no discovery In recent
times has been OF more Importance or
tends more 10 save life than that Of
the possibility OF signaling from ship
to ship and from ship 70 shore hy
sound writes Sidney r, Walker IN the
London Mail 1t literally, when fully
developed, win enable steamers to
"hear" their way under all conditions
of weather and particularly In fog Just
as well as they now see their way on
clear nights by the aid Of the lights
that each ship carries and those dis
tributed round the coast OF every civ
ilized country.
The whole apparatus hinges upon
the fact that water is q good conduct
or OF sound. The readiest example
OF this OF which the writer is aware Is
to be found usually at mineral baths,
There Is nearly always pumping going
on In connection with the baths, but
under ordinary conditions the pump is
not heard. When undressing for in.
stance, to enter the bath one can very
rarely hear the pump. but Immediately
one is In the bath II one places ones
head under water the pump is almost
painfully evident, and an engineer
could easily count the strokes had he
watch at hand,
For signaling purposes bell Is EN-.
ployed, immersed some distance under
the water and inclosed In chamber,
the hammer being worked by com.
pressed air operated from the surface.
The sound OF the strokes on the bell
Is transmitted to a distance OF several
miles and can be heard by suitable ap.
paratus. The hearing apparatus con-
sists of a microphone. modification
Of that we use every time we speak to
the telephone, inclosed In chamber
inside the ship and connected with the
bridge by wires In the usual way.
The mlcrophone chamber Is filled with
special liquid which the inventors
have found to answer the purpose
best, and there are, as at present ar
ranged, one chamber and one micro
phone on each bow below the water
line. In the chart house on the bridge
are a pair Of telephone receivers, sim
liar to those We put to our ears when
we talk through the telephone on shore
and switch, enabling the receivers
to be connected to either OF the two
microphones.
Several of the lighthouses on the
coast OF America and some, the writer
believes, on that of the United King
dom are fitted with bells as described
above, which are rung at certain inter
walls, each lighthouse having different
number of beats, so that any partIcu-
lar lighthouse is distinguished by Its
bell, Just as In clear weather It is dis
tingulshed by the arrangement Of Its
lights. An approaching ship can tell
within a very close approximation, as
mathematiclans would say, how 1t lies
with regard to the lighthouse, because
the bell will be heard loudest In that
microphone on the side Of the ship on
which the lighthouse is, and the officer
Of the watch can steer accordingly.
All ships carry a red light at nigh
on the left hand, or port. side and
green light on the right hand, or star
board side, while all steamers carry
In addition a white light showing or
both sides. Neither Of the lights cal
be seen astern or for some distance
toward the bows, the limit being wha
sailors call two points abaft the beam
a little astern of her middle point, sC
that when approaching ship from
astern no lights are visible to the ap
preaching ship, but her full lights ar'
visible from the ship approached.
When two ships are approaching
each other from opposite directions en(
on, each ship will see the others TIVE
or three lights and can easily steer Il
keep out Of each others way. There
is a simple rule for this, and incidental
ly 1t may be mentioned that the dan
ger is least In this case, provided tina
both ships are properly handled. The
danger of collision arises principally
from ships crossing each other, and fo
this also there are simple rules gov
erned by what Is called the rule Of tht
road. Leaving out the question OF sail
ing ships for the moment. the shiT
which has the other, the crossing ship
on her own right hand (starboardD side
has to keep out of the way, and it does
so by turning slightly to the right ol
to starboard. presenting her left side
to the other ship.
Whenever a ship has to give way tC
another the color of the light Of the
other ship is on the same side as thai
to which the helm must be moved
Thus when a red light is seen on the
right hand (starboard) side the helm
Is put to port. the side Of the light
seen. Similarly when sailing ship is
crossing from port to starboard, show.
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