Omaha daily bee., 1908-09-27
IN THE FIELD OF ELECTRICITY
Some of the Possibilities Of the Wire
less Telephone Explained.
ELECTRIC HEATING IN THE HOMES
Progress that IL bringing the Force
within Range of Economical
Unity for Domestic
Purposes.

The report Of the progress said to have
been made by Valdemar Poulsen in his de-
veiopplent of the wireless telephone, while
lacking confirmation. has served to renew
interest in this recently invented method
of communication Poulsen is reported as
having maintained communication over a
distance Of 300 miles.
II he has actually accomplished that feat.
reports the New York Times, he has out
done anything that has been accomplished
on this side OF the Atlantic with the wire
less instrument, and those who have been
developing It here believe that they have
accomplished much. The American record
50 far is the successful transmission of
a message from the laboratory in New York
to the steamship Montgomery of the Ward
line, outward bound for Cuba. Communica-
tlon was maintained until the vessel was 15
miles out from port.
Although many Of a scientific and Of a
practical turn Of mind had been working
on this offshoot of wireless telegraphy.
very little had been heard of the wire
less telephone until the navy adopted the
system and installed it on the sixteen bat
tleships which Admiral Evans led to the
Pacific. The chief engineer Of the COM
pany made the ocean-to-ocean trip, and in
a letter to the general manager says ex-
uberantly:
I'VE, or rather the boys in the fleet, have
made some dandy records with the sets.
On the morning of May 6, before coming
up the bay of San Francisco, the operator
on watch on the Connecticut talked to the
Pacific fleet, lying at Mare Island, a dis
lance Of thirty-five miles. with about
eighteen miles Of land included. Yerba
Buena Island also reported hearing the
Connecticut loud enough to read and I'M
derstand every word spoken. This distance
is about fifty miles from where we were
laying.
II now have a station installed at ferry
terminal, San Francisco, and have eight
navy operators to stand watches, from .
a. m, to 9 p. m. every day. These men
were detailed by the chief Of staff United
States Atlantic fleet and approved of by
Admiral Thomas.
There are to be some changes made In
the fleet. and If the Maine and Alabama
are left behind their telephone sets are to
go on whatever ships take their places.
And 1t is probable that II the torpedo boats
lay up In the Mare Island navy yard their
sets will be taken off and installed on ships
of the Pacific fleet, so as to be of use
both for practice OF the operators and com
munication."
The Ellsworth company, which is ener-
getically pushing the system, promises to
be in a position next spring, when an east
ern man wishing to communicate with a
friend navigating the Great Lakes, may
apply to the nearest long-distance tele-
phone booth and in a few minutes be In
direct communication. The telephone peo-
pie would at first ascertain the neighbor-
hood of the vessel, and would then switch
the connection to the nearest wireless tele-
phone station. and that station would make
connection with the steamer.
Negotiations are also under way looking
to the equipping of railroads with the de-
vice. Mr.. Gaunt, the assistant general
manager of the Sante Fe, is now in San
Francisco investigating the work done by
the Instruments on the voyage of the fleet
from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
One feature of the device which does not
seem to be generally understood is that a
vessel equipped with a wireless telegraph
apparatus may communicate with one
which carries only a wireless telephone in
strument, and vice versa. Another popular
misconception is that the wireless phone
can work only over water. But recent ex-
periments have shown that 1t is equally
adaptable for land. The reason so little has
uttn lltdlu VI ~ ny luoAi 10 hHoN NN
land field is already so fully occupied by
the telephone companies whose messages
are carried by wire.
Meanwhile the wireless telegraph people,
particularly the Marconi company, are
making constant strides, and day by day
increasing the celebrity and certainty OF
aerial messages.
The transmitting apparatus, the sensi-
tive receiving device, and last but not least
the directive arrangements whereby i'm
pulses are transmitted in a given direction
invented, worked out and patented by
Marconi. are chiefly the means whereby
these wonderful results have been obtained
Electric Egg heater.
A Jersey City inventor has produced an