South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1918-09-12
By Prof. Garrett P. Serviss.

x FEVER has civilized man. proud OF
M HIS achievements and confident in
= his continually developing power, re
ceived such a savage and unanswerable re
minder OF his absolute subsection TO the
vagaries or natural forces as that which
came to Us like an arrogant slap in The
face last Winter. The same catastrophe
will happen 10 Us again unless We make
provisions against It.
Al the great crisis in the worlds his
tory. when we needed to use all our pow
ers and capacities at their maximum OF
efficiency, we found ourselves held in the
merciless grip OF frost-ships tied up
railroads blocked, factories choked. high
ways made impossible. rivers and harbOrs
choked. reservoirs frozen, pipes and con-
Quits split by ice cities buried in snow
banks. communications broken. fleets and
armies arrested. industries paralyzed, and
a whole nation shivering with cold and
threatened with hunger.
We fight the cold by burning wood and
coal. But what will We do when the wood
and coal are exhausted? The situation
that will then confront us is wildly and
brutally presented BY the terrible dilemma
an which the simple arrest of the distri-
button of coal threw our industries and
our home life, 10 say nothing OF our ma
tional affairs II there we're no coal
whatever 70 distribute. even an ordinary
Winter would suffice 10 reduce MS TO
similar condition and there would be no
escape IrOm IL az the end OF few weeks
as at present Il would be a complete
freeze-oul every Winter except inside the
the tropics.
Just as he first burned up practically
bis whole supply OF wood. so now civilized
mantle child OF tempered Winters
burning up his whole supply OF coal. And
when that is gone he knows not where 10
go for something 10 take its place. But
he must find or invent that something. or
else not only will civilization perish but
three-quarters OF the human race will also
perish. since the tropics cannot hold them,
while untempered Winter in the higher
zones would freeze out their energies.
Two lines Of solution are suggested.
first the discovery OF new forms of fuel.
OF new methods Of producing thermal
energy. and second. the conservation or
heat already furnished by nature. Let us
take uD the last first To suggest BADLY
that We might COntrlNe something resem-
bling in its operation. though not IN IT'S
form a EiEau-iC tnermoS bottle. by means
OF which the solar neal OF ~tlLtllitt tNtIt'A
be stored up and released where and when
wanted in Winter cannot make much an
peal TO minds accustomed 70 deal only
with scientific realities but Il must have
a charm for the more imaginative tyne and
miEht De fertile. suppose for instance,
that we attack the problem IN this way.
When a gardener wishes 10 start his plants
before the Winter chill has left the air he
covers the ground n which they grow with
a mantle of glass
This le-s I'm freely me bright sunshine.
which warns the ground and az the same
time prevents the escape OF the obscure
heat waves from the warmed ground. The
result is that he makes a reservoir Of hea'
which has come primarily from the sun.
and thus he defeats the season which. but
for his ingenuity. would freeze his plants
So. I'm the Spring ne can artifcially hasten
the coming OF solar heat, and in The
Autumn he can prolong its stay-Over
limited area. Within that area he is mas
ter 0f The situation Even IN midNinter
9 room may be considerably warmed hy
lerting plenty OF sunshine enter thrOusl
large tight-ftting glass windows and i'm
prisoning IT'S heat there
Now take another step. guided bv facts
well known. As the glass OF the hot
house imprisons captured thermal rays de-
rived from the sun. so the earths atmOs