Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1914-01-10
PIONEER OF WIRELESS
A REMARKABLE CAREER
John Walker Wilkins The First
Railway Telegraphist Passes
Away.
WAS AN INVENTIVE GENIUS.
Visited His Daughter 10 Annapolis in
l90S-AB Memoirs Of Remarkable
Old Man.

| a. M, inst. =. f., also paid a trlb-
ute to Mr.. Wilkins's pioneer work in
ireless telegraphy in a communica.
Won to the Engineer of the i7h of
March. 1899, in which he said MIR.
Wilkins's suggestion of lSs9 was
the earliest recorded instance of a
worked-out method of telegraphing
without wires-or rather induetive
telegraphy. In 1868 Mr.. Wilkins took
out two English patents. one for i'm
proven ants in electric telegsaphs
aud the ether for improvements in
obtaining power by electro-magne.
tism.
That first visit to America in
1851 was destined TO be singularly
fateful, as it had the effect of com
pletely arrestiIg Mr.. Wilkinss me-
teoric career in the Geographic
world at a time when he might
easily have aspired TO and have re-
ceived recognition Of his services.
as in fact did few of his junior col
leagues. The dispute in which the
Contractor 0'Reilly soon became in
olved with the pstentees of the
orse system brought the works to
Vn abrupt stsndstill, and Mr.. Wilkins,
loath TO return t. England and to the
original Electric Telegraph Company,
whose services he had left for what an
peared to be very tempting opportu.
nifty, reverted 10 the protest. IN of
civil engineering, transferring his
services 20 the contractors for the
Ohio and Mississippi Railroad, and
later--from the end of 1S52-was en-
gagged over good part Of Europe on
railroad construction for the late
Thomas Brassey, the world-renowned
contractor, until two years after Mr..
Brassey's death in 1859. In 1873 he
became resident engineer or agent to
the contractors for the Cuxhayen
docks.
Mr.. Wilkins found the works bad
~ protected from the violence of the
North Sea, and Immediately urged
the-contractors to spend an additional
$40, 600 In Strengthening the temper
airy dam. His advice was unfortu-
nately ignored, and in the end the
North Sea broke in upon the works
and nearly ruined all that had been
done. This misfortune led Mr.. Wiki
ms 20 pay second visit to America
in 1874, where for four years he was
chiefly occupied in prospecting silver
mines, which were booming at that
time. Returning to England in 1878
with the object of forming syndi-
cate for the acquisition of sew sraI
valuable mining properties in Alaba-
ma, he found the economic conditions
in this country against the exploita-
tion of capital abroad. 1t was then
that be became associated with Sir
Henry Doulton, the head of the his
toric firm OF potters in Lambeth, to
which he was attached in a general
consultative capacity, visitiug many
countries in Europe and South Ameri-
ca in their interests.
Although his more active service
on their behalf ended on his return
from Buenos Ayres in 1898, the init
mate friendship which sprang up be-
tween MIR. Wilkins and the principals
OF the company lasted until his death.
with the result that occasional ad-
vantage was taken of his advice on a
variety of technical matters connect
ed with their business. In spite of
his age, so keen and active were his
mental powers, so Unsuitable his APP
| petite for scientific research, that
for some months past he had been oc-
cupied in experimenting on the utili-
sation Of so-called waste products
from Messrs. Doulton's factories,
with view to producing an improved
material for the manufacture of cleo
trio iusu lators and pipe ware.
For many years MIR. Wilkins was
frequent contributor TO several
technical publications, including the
Engineer, the Electrician" and the
English Mechanic and World of
Science. The range of subjects COW
cred by his articles and letters is
very long, but among the more i'm
portant may be Observation-Disclosures
matters gems rally, permanent way,
the application Of the boyle to the
locomotive, of which he was perhaps
the first advocate in this country,
waves aud currents, the Gulf Stream,
tue expansion and contraction OF
large iron structures, sanitary en-.
cheering, gases 10 the sun, electrici-
~ from coal, perps tual motion, the
Atlantic cable, fuel and work, spon-
taneous combustion, besides many
others dealing in psychological phen0-
mena, all of which are marked with
originality of thought and scarcely
yeiied contempt of slayish adherence
to accepted theories.
Ia one direction, as might be ex-
pected, namely, in the theory of cleo
tricity, Mr. Wilkins's specualtions
were far in advance of his time. II
is pity, having regard to the unique
ness Of his views of this subject, and
the manner in which during the last
decade or two these same views have
been promulgated by some of the
world greatest scientists, that Mr..
Il Wilkins's theory was NOT racard.d IN