Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1912-08-07
TO TALK UNDER SEA
Will Soon Be a Reality, Accord
ING to Prophets.
Submarine Link Between England and
France Was American Scientists
Invention-Prof. Pupin's In
spring Work.

Chicago.-Twice within comparative
~ recent times has the feat of tele-
phoning across the Atlantic ocean
been pronounced not only feasible but
within the probability of almost imme-
date accomplishment The first
prophecy was made thirty-five years
ago by Dr. Alexander Graham Bell,
soon after he, had invented the tele-
phone. But in a recent letter to Pop
ular Mechanics DR.. Bell said: Il may
say l am little more skeptical now.
| have no doubt, however, that
it will be done Some day" The sec
ond prediction was made by a former
president Of the American Institute OF
Electrical Engineers in an article on
the important researches of Prof. M.
l. Pupin of Columbia university, by
which the problem of long distance
telephony over land lines of hum
dreds of miles in extent was made
practical, and many other authorities
also concurred in this view. Now, as
DR.. Bell has said in his case, they are
more skeptical.
But, after all, the difficulties in the
way are only of practical nature and
probably will soon be overcome. Only
a few months ago the telephone en-
gineers succeeded in adapting Pupin's
invention to a submarine telephone ca
BILE across the English channel, be-
tween England and France, so that
telephone conversation can now be
carried on successfully between the
two countries. And this was in the
face of hostile criticisms by eminent
European and American telephone en-
gineers, that the practical difficulties
in the way Of this accomplishment
could not possibly be overcome. Yet
the thing was done in spite of the
doubling Thomases of the telephone
profession. Then why not a transat-
lantic submarine telephone? 1t is, of
course, much more difficult PROPOSE
ton, but the obstacle is one only Of
degree, and as the problem is theOreti-
cally possible it is quite likely that
eventually solution will be found.
Maj. w. A. J. OMeara, engineer in
chief of the work of connecting Eng
land and France by telephone, is con-
fident that transatlantic telephony will
come with continued advancement in
the means of increasing the range of
telephone speech. In q letter to Pop
ular Mechanics Magazine he says:
GAS to my views on the possibility
and value of establishing a telephone
such service would of course, be Of
considerable value, but such desira-
BILE contamination does not at present
appear to be in immediate sight.
Existing means or devices for in,
creasing the range of speech, both in
submarine and subterranean conduc-
tors, may be very considerably inn
proved in the near future and further
Improvements may be made both in
transmitting and receiving apparatus.
I'm view of the enormous strides
made III recent years in the direction
of increasing the range of telephone
speech, 1 think the prospect of trans
atlantic telephony is full of hope,
and l confess that / have great faith
in the ability of engineers to provide
eventually the means for closer inter-
course Of peoples separated by OBJ.
stacles which may be considered in
surmountable nowadays"
At first blush the layman will point
out that transatlantic submarine cable
telegraphy has been in successful OPP
Grafton for many years; so why not
transatlantic telephony? The answer
is that while telegraphy is pos
sible as long as the receiving station
is able to discern the difference be-
tween a short and a long electrical i'm
pulse, the impulse that constitutes an
electrical telephone message must be
transmitted and received with little
or no alteration in order to be recog-
nized as articulate speech at the re-
ceiving station.
Cable telegraphy differs from land
telegraphy on account Of the fact that
a submarine cable possesses in a high
degree what is known as Capacity"
that is, before it will transmit cleo
trical impulses in measurable amounts
it must be electrically charged in a
T