The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1909-08-04
WIRELESS IN COLUMBIA.
COME FOR HUNDREDS
OF MILES.
Not for Commercial Use But to Give
Training to Young Men i'm Line of
Business Which Has Possibilities.

observed the tall pole erected on top
of the skyscraper building, that has
cop, from which extend short wires.
Mos people no doubt knew it's pur-
pose, some have wondered to what
use it is put.
| The rake-like apparatus with it's
antennae of wires is part Of a wire
less telegraph equipment maintained
on the 11th floor of the building for
the use Of local telegraph college
which teaches the wireless code and
method Of operating.
| The instruments used for receiving
and transmitting signals are not large,
but are indeed wonderful. The re-
ceiving apparatus is really marvellous
in its sensitiveness to vibrations elec-
trically transmitted, and the method
of adjustment or attunement is very
complex. A reporter Of The State
was recently favored with an exami-
nation of the instruments, and their
use was explained.
| In 1898 William Marconi began his
first practical experiments. and in
1897 gave his exhibition before the
king and queen of Italy.
| 1t must have been a triumph, in
deed for the youth to place before the
sovereigns of his land the evidence
of his successful achievement after
his application for assistance in de-
veloping the idea had been refused.
| Marconi was then a mere boy, and
his representations were considered
chimerical The British government,
however, had enough confidence in
him to render financial assistance to
him, thereby achieving a glory that
was lost by the land of the boys
birth.
The Marconi apparatus is portable
The entire equipment can be carried
easily by one person, and it can be
| fitted up in 20 minutes so as to be
used for military field purposes. The
| current for the latter is generated by
a small motor, which is driven by
bicycle wheel raised from the ground,
one man pedaling being sufficient to
work for 200 miles. The field wireless
is not alone confined to telegraph, it's
uses being made to perform any
function which wires can be made to
perform, and a thousand and one
things that have been impossible by
wire
Allusion was made to attunement
1t is by attuning the instrument that
it is made possible to avoid messages
interfering with each other. Unless the
instrument is tuned to the vibrations
| disseminated by an instrument attun-
ed to the same pitch" the message is
not heard.
Wireless tuning is difficult to de-
scribe intelligibly to the laymen un-
familiar with the instrument. To IL
lustrate the principles, however, take
a violin and balance piece of paper
about qaurter of an inch square
upon the e string by folding the pa
per over. Then put the finger down
the A string until it sounds E, and
draw the bow over it, 1t will be found
that the paper will fly away, while if
other papers are similarly balanced
upon the other strings they will not
be affected.
| The attuning of the wireless instru-
ment is much along the same lines,
though the Marconi system is the
only one said to have a real system
of tuning, as it is the only one that
can regulate the amplitude and pc
| riodicity of less than 10000 vibrations
| per second, the Marconi system works
| as we'll over land as over water; and
| by varying the amplitude of the wave
| can have dozens of pairs Of stations
| working together on the same wave
| length without interfering with one
another.
The instruments in the skyscraper
building frequently catch the mes
sages transmitted from hundreds or
| miles at sea- Under the contract of
| the school with the company supply
| ing the instruments, the school is not
permitted to accept commercial busi-
| ness, but to use the apparatus for prac-
| tice work in instruction in the art OF
using the equipment. AS it is believ-
| ed that the wireless system is, In time,
destined to supplant the wire tele-
graph system, the wireless company