Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1915-07-01
FINAL TONE Of
LIBERTY BELL?
What Is Believed to Be Its Last
Ringing Is Said to Have
Recently Taken Place
at Philadelphia.

What may prove to be the last ring
Ing OF the historic Liberty bell took
place In Independence hall at Philadel-
phia recently. -s@.
II was decided to transmit the tones
of the bell across the country to San
Francisco over the recently completed
transcontinental telephone line. partly
fulfilling In q literal sense the prophets
ic words cast on the bell, Proclaim
liberty throughout all the land. unto
all the inhabitants thereof" The bell
was struck three times with mallets at
intervals OF five seconds. BY an ar,
rangement of three very sensitive
transmitters. which were suspended
beneath 1t on rubber bands. so as to
exclude all foreign vibration. the
tones were caught and clearly heard
over the telephone wires on the Pa
citlc coast. At the same time pho
nographic record was made Of tha
notes 30 ~ to preserve them for pos
terity.
This ID the first time that the great
bell has been sounded since It was
cracked In 1886 while tolling the death
OF John Marshall. the first chief JUS
tice of the United States Supreme
court. The reason that 1t may never
again be rung Is that new crack.
more serious than the old one. has de-
veloped in 1t.
II has been found that the bell II
afflicted with the disease OF metal"
This Is partly responsible for the APP
pearance Of the latest assure and has
made II necessary to support its
weight on padded props in order to
relieve the stress which has gradually
been pulling II apart.
The new crack Is now plainly Wis
ible. while only short time ago 1t
was microscopic. II begins at the up
per part of the original fracture. ex.
tending from the letter "P" In the
philadelphia" diagonally quarter OF
the way around the circumference. to
the letter ~" in Liberty" near the
top. II Is believed that the new crack
might not have occurred had the bell
been allowed to remain at rest after
1t was first broken. 1t has, however,
been shipped on different occasions to
New Orleans, Chicago, Atlanta.
Charleston, Boston and st. Louis. That
1t Is actually suffering from a malady
known as the disease OF metal" Is
the description of its ailment In the
technical phraseology OF the metailur.
gist. and Is not a popular figure OF
speech, The reason for this distemper
Is to be found In the history OF the
bells casting.
1t was originally made by Thomas
Lester at London, In 1T52. and shipped
to Philadelphia When 1t was hung to
try the sound 1t was cracked by the
clapper At first 1t was intended to
return II to England. but subsequently
two workmen. Pass and Stow. neither
| of whom was experienced In the art.
undertook the recasting In Philadel
| phia. Obviously the bronze was too
| brittle, and In order to tougher h
they added approximately ten per cen,
| OF copper TO the original metal. When
the bell was later rehung 1t was found
that too much copper had been used
and, to the chagrin Of everyone, the
tone was destroyed. The same men
again undertook the work. and this
time are supposed to have added tin
to restore the tone The third bell
was accepted, bat too much tin had
been used, and the tones were % high
| ly resonant that II was seldom runx.
/ Popular Mechanics.