The Emmett index. [volume] (Emmett, Idaho) 1893-1925, 1913-10-09
WIRELESS WAVES
The Electric Voice That Speaks
Through the Ether.
SETTING UP THE VIBRATIONS.
This Is the Work of tho Oscillator,
Which Is the Electric Mouth, and It's
Message is Caught by tho Resonator,
Which Is the Ear of the Apparatus.

winch Is the Ear OF the Apparatus.
{ More truly than any other tele
I graphic device, the wonderful wire
:. less is speaking voice. 1t makes
= itself heard just as the human voice
: does by u series OF waves moving free
~ through space
, When | speak my voice is sent out
In fluctuations OF varying length and
, frequency through the air. When the
wireless speaks" its voice is conveyed
by nndulations In the ether. which is
more refined medium than air. carry
ing the waves OF light and electricity
as the air carries those Of sound.
The oscillator of the wireless is a
mouth" sending out fluctuations In
the ether as our mouths send out I'M
dulations In the air. and the resona-
tor Of the wireless is an ear" catch
ing the ETHEREAL waves as they i'm
pinge upon 1t. as our ears catch the
atmospheric waves that strike them.
We see nothing wonderful In vocal
sounds. because nature gave US In our
needs one instrument to produce them
and another to receive them. But she
left us to find out for ourselves how
to produce and receive vocal" waves
In the ether. Since we had to make
the instruments that deal with them
the etheric waves seem to us marvel
Gus. although they are In principle no
more marvellous than the waves of air.
Man began to use electricity for con-
veying intelligence by sending cur
rent OF II along wire. He pressed
| button at one end of the line. and the
electric current passing along the wire
induced corresponding motion in a
| Taper at the other end. 1t was IA
roundabout way OF employing an agen-
cy which we now know can be en-
ployed more simply and directly by
throwing away the wires and making
the electric waves speak" straight
through the ether.
1t is true that the language employed
does not consist of the words of any
spoken tongue. but 1t is one that can
be directly translated into any other
known 10 man.. and so II is the most |
universal of all languages.
Now. let us ,e how it is employed |
First as TO the electric mouth When |
a charge of electricity is accumulated
on condenser" a similar but oppo-
site charge is induced upon another
condenser placed near The air be-
tween them acts as an insulator be-
cause ii is poor conductor of electric
ity. But when the charge attains a
certain degree of intensity the strain
upon the air becomes too great, and a
spark passes between the two con-
densers, by which equilibrium is re-
stored between them.
The passage of this spark produces.
so TO speak. shock in the ether.
which. like the explosion of gun or
the utterance of a sound. sets up Il Sc ]
ries of waves in the surrounding me- I
dunn. which radiate away on all sides.
These waves in the ether produce the
electric voice" If the sparks are reg
llated in number and frequency the
waves are similarly regu- {
ated An instrument for the produc- I
ion OF such waves is called an oscila- I
or or EXETER 1t is kind of vocal APP j
)aratus for speaking through the ether
instead OF through the air
But just as we should have no knowl- 6
,dge of the passage of sound waves If S
We were not provided with ears to hear
hem. so the electric waves would go n
II we had no apparatus for
eceiying them.
The receiving apparatus Is called
esonator. or detector. 1t may be sit Il
lated hundreds OF miles from the os- Il
ilator. but 1t will catch the waves h
$ they undulate to II through the
Their. and 1t can be made to reproduce =
hem In an audible or legible form by q
ausing them TO operate a Morse dot So
nd dash instrument. as In ordinary d.
Biography by wire. el
But the electric voice and the cleo ci
lie ear are in some ways more man. p,
geable than the human voice and ear. :,
re can only produce and hear air
'uves OF limited range of frequency. ~
nd we can.,ot do much to alter that "
nit III
Sound waves vibrating less than TT
,rty times IA second or more than 40 sc
No times are inaudible TO us, But cleo r,
ic waves varying In frequency from T.,
few hundred up to hundreds of mill
pms second can be rendered per-
,ptibe, and il is also possible so to
instruct the instruments that they
i'll send forth and receive particular
nges of waves and be mute and
,af TO others
Then the distance over which the
ectric waves can be detected is al 81
ost infinitely greater than that of
binary sound waves Ii takes II
rong voiced man to make his voice Z
ldible acroSs "A little river. but. as \
erybody knows. the electric cry OF :
lip in distress can be electrically e
ard from the middle of the Atlantic n
can. And there are enthusiasts who a
edict that before very long we shall. n
able to speak by wireless TO some n
her planet. if only there is somebody
ere to hear and understand usi-
irrett P. Serviss in Spokane Spokes-
Thara 10 no aof hnryovor friyfoI brt