Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-01-06
TO DIRECT WIRELESS
Roberts Bill for Telegraph
Board Finds Favor.
WOULD END ANNOYANCES
Delay and Even Danger in Interior
enee by Amateurs.
OFFICIALS CITE INSTANCES
Lives of Steamship Passengers I'M
periled by False Information-Two.
Cases in This City.
WOULD END ANNOYANCES
OFFICIALS CITE INSTANCE!

Enthusiastic Endorsements of the
Roberts bill for control of the air by a
wireless biography board of seven men,
bers continued to pour in from official
sources on the author of the plan, Repre-
sentative Ernest w. Roberts of Massa-
chusetts. chairman of the committee on
private land claims and an active mem
Der of the naval committee.
The revenue cutter service recently
contributed extracts from the logs of
several revenue cutters, all of which
showed frequent. annoying and often
times serious Interruptions with official
wireless work Today the War Depart
ment and the Navy Department indorse
Mr.. Roberts proposed measure and tell
of trouble their wireless men have had
with reckless amateurs.
Acting Secretary of War Oliver, i'm his
letter to Mr.. Roberts. says that most of
the wireless stations of the War Depart
ment are in Alaska, and consequently
there are few Interruptions during the
winter.
But in early June at the opening of
navigation" he says. when vessels
coming into Nome and are held up by
the ice. there is reported to be great
number of Interruptions by these vessels,
practically all of which have wireless
outfits installed. There also have been
Interruptions from time to time at Fort
WoTden, Washington. which is a station
open to the public service, from COM
mercial stations in that vicinity. The
wireless station at Fort Wood, New York
harbor, can be operated at rare intervals
only. on account of the high power sta
tions in the vicinity of New York city.
There have also been frequent Interrupt
ms 70 fhn yr-frn CT hof Iycr
which are used in connection with target
practice of the coast artillery"
Cases of Interference.
With his letter Secretary of the Navy
Meyer forwards the secords of a number
Of fragrant cases of interference with
wireless telegraph messages.
Some of these cases of Interference"
the Secretary says, have been by anna
teur wireless operators. others by oper-
ating commercial companies. still others
show general chaotic condition of wire
less telegraph communication along both
coasts of the United States.
The first case mentioned by Secretary
Meyer might have turned out most seri-
ously and cost the lives of hundreds of
passengers on the steamer Bremen of
the North German Lloyd line.
1.-The operator on board the Bremen
says the Secretary. called the Nantucket
lightship when the Bremen was at sea
some six hundred miles. A wireless tele-
tucket lightship, answered the Bremen
and gave that vessel false information
concerning weather conditions on the
coast. When the Bremen passed Nam
tucket shoals at 7 y. m. December Ii it
was found that the lightship was not in
her position, and on further inquiry it
was learned that the ship had sunk on
December II. This information. pur
porting to come from lightship that
could not have been on its station at
the time in question, endangered lives
and property on boaru the Bremen. for
had it not been that the commanding
officer of the vessel was sure of his
position when the lightship was not
considered his course very much out and
could therefore have made a fatal error
in making his landfall.
Another report to the Secretary tells of
interference with important messages
forwarded to President Roosevelt. and a
delay Of more than ten hours due to in
reference by commercial companies.
Malicious interference by a commercial
operator is reported from the naval sta
ton at Key West.
Instances in Washington.
Case No. strikes nearer home. This
is a letter from the Secretary of the
ney General, calling attention to an ag
gravated case of interference by amateur
operators in the city of Washington. in
which, says the Secretary, 1.-The party in
question not only persistently and inten-
tionally nterfered but made use of OFF,
cial calls and signatures of vessels Of the
navy.
Case No. & was also local. This is a
report from the head of the department
of equipment at the Washington navy
yard. dated July 10. 1907, in which a lad
sent messages to several points and en-
deavored to cause the impression that
they were from official sources.
Another case shows that wireless tele-
graph messages from naval vessels in the
vicinity of Mare Island, California, were
received by vicious amateurs and given
out for publication in sensational news
paper
this mass of favorable testimony and
data with reference to his bill, will push
it for passage at the earliest opportunity.