The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1911-11-07
UTILITY OF AER0PH0NE
Success of Recent Experiments Indj-
Gates the Practical Utilization OF
the Century, Barring Nothing'-Ex-
perts Greatly Pleased With Tests OF
the Mathews InyentiOn-RepOrt OF
Consul General Grifiths at London
to Washington Government.

to Washington Government.
(By p. III. McGOWAN.)
Washington, Nov. 3.-Long-distance
communication without the use of
wires or other apparatus now needed,
Is one Of the certainties Of the neaf
future. Army and Navy officials have
just heard that experiments have been
made which will entirely transform
and revolutionize the p~resent-day
methods Of long distance talks In
fact if the experiments which nave
thus far been tried are put to prac-
teal use this step will undoubtedly
proce the most wonderful invention
OF the century-barring nothing.
Consul Grifith's Report.
Consul-General John l. Grifiths,
of London, has just made a report
to the Department Of Commerce and
Labor, in which he says: Expert
time past near Chepstow for the
transmission Of the human voice
overlong distances with the aid alone
of the natural elements.
The Mathews Invention.
The inventor, Mr.. Grindell Ma
theWS, it is stated, submitted his dis
covery recently to a severe test in
the presence Of a number Of experts.
He was placed in the strong room
Of a big London commercial house
and locked in. with 9 inches Of NJ
steel, 8 inches of fire brick and 6 feet
of concrete between him and the
outer world. By means Of his small
portable apparatus he carried on a
conversation with an operator in an
other room on the farther side Of the
building. So distinct and faithful
was the transmission that the ex-
perts in attendance were actually
able to hear the tick Of his watch.
Notwithstanding the almost impenetra-
BILE mass between the two inStru-
ments.
Tests Through Solid Rocks.
The inventor contemplates a fur
Their test through five miles of solid
rock between ChepStow and Tintern.
He is engaged in long distance tests
in connection with the War office, and
on September 8, 1911, spoke from
Beachley. in Gloucester, to a point
over five miles away near the Severn
Tunnel outlet on the opposite side of
the river. He intends to carry on ex-
periments between Chepstow and
Cardiff, about rs miles.
II he dies this successfully. he Is
to go to Aldershot to conduct some
final demonstrations with a view Of
concluding negotiations for the trans
fer OF his rights in the United King
dom to the government.
Speaking to a representative Of
the Western Mail, published at Car
diff, the inventor stated:
Vibrations produced in the air by
his apparatus did not taxi the form
OF the Hertzian waves, as in the Mar
conf system Of wireless biography.
In fact. they were not waves at all.
fnasmuch as the disturbances were
Of such high frequency that there
was no appreciate break between
them, and their action was rather
continuous than fitful and separate,
as in the case Of Hertzan waves. It
was this high frequency produced by
his apparatus that had made it pos
sible for sounds to be reproduced and
for all the fluctuations and intona-
tons OF human speech to be trans
mitted SO faithfully that the voice Of
the speaker could be recognized. AS
in a cinematographic picture. each
delineation ran so quickly into the
other that a continuous sustained re-
production was the result.
The AerOphone; Its Name.
The inventor has named his instru-
ments the aerophone. A complete
set Of instruments for a smile radius
would cost about $4S. It is possible,
through this system to carry on long
conversations, and each speaker can
distinguish the voice of the person he
Is talking with. No expert knowl-
edge. it is claimed, is required to ope-
rate the system as the box with tn
instrument would be ~self-contained
including the battery, motor, trans
former and everything else necessary
for Transmission.