Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-11-26

of the past and wonders II anything re-
mains to be accomplished; but when ne
questions those engaged in the various
yocations of life, they unanimously oe-
clare there is still wide field for the
inventor. The flying machine man wants
a. more powerful engine. He says "nen
he gets his speed up to hundred miles
an hour he will not care "a fig for the
wind" and will travel as independently
of it as If his craft were railroad tram
that took no cognizance of winds.
The electrician considers wire a nui-
sance. He says If men are able to
transmit signals through the air and
actuate machinery which Will discharse
a dynamite blast. there is no reason why
some one should not find metnod VI
transmitting electrical power through the
air. He believes when once man under-
stands electricity Alright he will get much
more out of it than he does noW' ana
that the most wonderful things in cleo
tricity are yet to be discovered.
X +
The chemist admits there are still UNI
solved problems in his field. cabbage
plant, a tomato
Chemist Admits to plant, beet. a
Unsolved Problems. tato grow SIDE
by side in a garden. They are all III
the same soil, and amid the same sur
roundings, yet each grows differently ana
after its own kind. Here is the secret OF
life. Chemical change is the beginning
of life and it's support thereafter. once
the chemist penetrates that mystery he
has solved a thousand problems. Ihe
molecule of hydrogen is twice as large
as its atom, yet 1t is SO small that oo'-
OOO.OUO are needed to make an 1nch In
length when paced in row. Chemistry
is tired of having the atom continue as
nothing more than scientific abstraction.
1t wants to see atoms and 1eel theH'
fxzuratively speaking. Put salt into
water and no solid is visible. No one
knows what becomes of it, but the chem
list is proceeding on the theory that 1t
is dissolved into little particles, highly
charged with electricity, called ions. Lat
terry the chemists have had glmpses OF
+besa ions which promise great future re-
suits.
me solution of the problem of fuel
SUNNY is one which is calling for the
deepest thought of genius. Although To-
day the coal mined in the United states
in a single year will do as much woiA
as the whole human race could 40 III
MANY years. the methods of using 1t Tor
heat and power are tremendously waste
full The energy in a pound OF anthracl.e
IL equivalent to that expended by a moo
carrier in days work or ten nouIs
The portion of the energy utilized Is or,
dinarily less than the hodcarrier Would
expend in fifty minutes of work. piece
of coal weighing less than two POUNDS
has as mucn power in II as morse OK
ponds in pulling a ploW from sun 10 sun
If all the energy or the ccai were o.i
lied it would require only 800 tons OF
coal to drive a large steamer across the
Atlantic. 1t may be that the experiments
for making electricity direct from coal
win solve the problem. Or perhaps a
perfect combustion engine will DO II.
either one of these things Is possible
Rut suppose none Of them work but
and the present wasteful methods of coal
mining and use
Partial Solution in finally exhaust
the coal supply!
Solar Engine. win we then be
derived of the necessarily abundant
supply of motive power? The inventor
already has answered this question by
hrin YfnR out q SOldI C1SAAS' ~
onlv cloudless skies and hot climates
for it's successful operation. Along the
water fronts of the desert regions OF the
world may be found strips of land a mile
wide with an aggregate length of more
than 5000 miles. With solar engines
10 develop the wasted sunshine OF these
regions two billion horsepower could be
utilized through nine hours day
enough to turn every wheel in the world.
Thus mankind may return again to the
desert and there rear civilization OF
undreamed-of grandeur. With direct So
lar heat to drive his factories. to irrt-
gate his land and to move his commerce
he could also utilize 1t to cool his rae
tory. shop and house. With only a mini
mum of clothing required and all neces-
sary heat for cooking purposes supplied.
AN imaginative mind can picture the
possibilities of such civilization: II, In
marvel at our using coal, just as we
marvel at those German professors who
eravely declared some eighty years ago
4 tL.& Wh0 rode IN railroad