Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1914-10-07
RADIO STATION
IS FORMALLY
|NAUGURATED
First Radio Apparatus is Opened to Ser
vice by the United States War Depart
ment-Hears from Stations as Far
Away as Arlington.
SERvIC EPROM STATION WILL
COVER THREE TEXAS FORTS
Fort Sam Houston, Galveston and Browns
vile win Hereafter Exchange War De-
partment Communication by the Radio
Apparatus.

The fir~t radio station To he established
on the lower border by the United States
War department wa formally opened to-
day, according To an announcement by
Lieutenant C.. &. Culver. authorized by the
commanding officer Of the post. The in
auguration of the station into service was
marked by the exchange of communica-
tions between Brownsville and Galveston
and Fort Sam Houston and Brownsville.
and through an official communication
through proper channels 10 the Department
Of Comercc. Washington, under the iuris-
dlction of which all radio stations. public
and private. in the United States and in
American water. are operated. The De-
partment of Commerce will list the Fort
Brown station IN its directory, giving it,
power and other information of a technical
nature.
The radio at Fort Brown is described
n being a standard two kiIowatt ship set.
Of the Marconi design. It, machinery
being designed for ship service, is of a
compact nature, and has a normal sending
power Of 400 miles. Ii, however, l.
equipped with receiving apparatus that
enables 1t To catch signals from stations
a. far east a. Key West and the giant
Arlington, Va, station of the naval de-
partment. .
In speaking Of the opening of the sta
ton, Lieutenant Culver, who was super
VISOR of construction of the local plant.
said:
During the past several days We have
been hearing from IA number Of stations.
from ships AT sea, and from the station
az Key West, but today the apparatus was
IN shape for both receiving and sending
for the first time. The station will be
used tor handling a large pfrt Of the army
business between this point and Galveston
and Fort Sam Houston. for which purpose
u was originally intended.
'In the handling Of business through the
government radio stations the same
-ecrecy is observed with reference to mes
raye> sent by other stations that l. OBJ
served IN the telegraphic field: that i. no
information Is divulged other than that
authorized by the commander. The re-
ceivmg apparatus of the local plant i Of
the standard type which detects any sig
pals reaching this part of the country. The
Arlington station, being Of high power. l.
enabled to send its radn to very great dis
%tances, which accounts for its being heard
here. N
ut H. expected that the unfinished de-
tails OF the plant will be completed in
about a week. First Class Sergeant r. J,
zimmerman of the signal corps, has ar
rived in Brownsville from Fort Oclethorne.
Ga., and has been detailed a. operator IN
charge Of the plant. Two men compose
the normal force for the operation of the
station q. III. Lewis. the radio engineer
from Washington, who has been here m
connection with the installation of this
plant, leaves this afternoon for Fort Sam
Houston and the Pacific coast in connec.
ton with radio work"
referring to the speed of transmission
OF messages by radio, Lieutenant Culver
stated that except among sets constructed
Tor experimental and research work the
speed on the whole j. somewhat slower
than by wire telegraph. The equipment for
the local station was purchased by the
war department last spring when there
arose a crisis IN the situation between the
United States and Mexico. and the desire
for a quick delivery probably resulted in
= snip set being sent. II was bought from
the Marconi company.
q nv n = saaA~>@