The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1914-10-10

tne pat Inc extremely delicate nature of the
20 "iiiss, tosetheF with the sensitiveness of
us sixth sense contained in its delicate face
nerves enables the bat to judge the distance of
any object by the lapse of time between the send
lug OUT ana the receiving of the waves. It is
ms eNcep!lonal mechanism, and not any faculty
VI seeing III the dark, which enables the bat to
ny unerringiy without the least light to guide it.
l MS was proved hundred years ago by the Able
opalIanzanl, who made experiments by blotting
out the eyes of bats with red hot irons and found
that they got along just as well without ewes as
with them Other experiments, without cruelty
may be made to show the same thing
we all know that if we capture wild bird and
hberate it in a large with closed windows,
1t makes a wild and furious rush for what its
senses tell it is an opening through which it can
escape. Its eyes do not reveal the presence of
the glass, and the result is a broken neck A
bat liberated under similar circumstances makes
the same dash for freedom. The Tapping of it's
wings however. brings its sixth sense into action
and it soon perceives that it is face to face with
a solid wall and stops short before it touches
the glass.
Sir Hiram proposes to apply this sixth sense to
sea going vessels. His apparatus will produce
mospheric vibrations of about the same frequency
those produced by the bat, but of energy at
least three hundred thousand times as great.
These will not be audible, but they will travel
at least twenty miles, that they could be
ceived and recorded by suitable apparatus at
that distance and would be able to travel at least
five miles and return back to the ship reflected
echo that would be strong enough to be detected.
In describing his invention Sir Hiram states
that it might be considered artificial The
apparatus is provided with a large diaphragm
tightly drawn over a ,drum-shaped cylinder, and
so arranged that the atmospheric pressure is al
ways the same both sides, quite irrespective
of any air blast. It is therefore always able to
vibrate freely in response to the waves of the
echo and its vibrations made to open and
close certain electrical circuits which ring Sc
res of bells of various sizes If for example, the
object is very small at a very great distance
from the ship, a very small bell rings, while
large object at a distance of two miles would
ring larger bell and a very large object a
still larger bell. The apparatus gives an audible
notice if anything is ahead of the ship
Another apparatus, similar to the first, is pro-
vided but instead of ringing bell 1t produces
diagram of the disturbances in the air-that is,
when there is no noise except that due to the
action of the ship or the sea waves, a wavy line
is produced on paper but whenever the vibrations
sent out by the vibrator strike object and re-
turn the wavy line on the paper becomes very
much increased in amplitude to be easily
observed and the distance that the object is from
the ship can be measured by the length of the
paper strip between the$giving OF of the vibra-
lions and the receiving of the echo. In this way
the distance of the object can be determined with
a considerable degree Of accuracy, and the size
Of the object may be determined by the amplitude
Of the waves that return.
The apparatus To- producing the atmospheric
vibrations should be placed well forward on the
main deck in any other position where it can