Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1919-05-29
.gRGT. NO C. FELL
TALKS ON WIRELESS
Tells ST. johns Student Body Oil
Wireless Telephone Used
In Signal Corps
OUTLINES ITS FUTURE

One of the most interesting and in
structiye lectures 81 the series given
ITO St Johns audiences by prominent
men this year was that Of Sergeant
John C Fell which he delivered In
mcdowell Hall this morning Ser
geant FeII's military experience was
In the specialized branch OF wireless
telephony I'M the signal corps of
u. s. Army.
In opening his talk Sergeant n
said that there was peculiar fas
nation to be found III wireless teiI
phony when one remembers that by
It's means conversation can be held
from beneath water, in the air. or be-
low ground. Continuing. he said that
for years. up To 1916 lii fact. II had
been found impossible to receive by
telephone the electric oscillations By
which the sending Of all wireless Is
made possible. When the means was
found, however, experiments III long
distance wireless telephony soon foi-
lowed The first real trial was made
Paris This was carried out by the
cooperation OF the Western Electric
Company and the American Telephone
Company. ii was found impractica-
lble. because of the cost. to continue
these experiments. and the next real
impulse was given 10 this great scien-
stific work when America entered the
war.
One of the great uses to which It
was put during the war was that Of
communication between airplanes and
ground stations HI the airplane the
radio outfit Ii mounted Ii the cockpit
in front OF the observer The genera
tor. instead nf being operated by the
motor, as one would suppose Il driven
by its own air propeller A special
device is used to keep the. current
steady without regard to the speed Of
the machine. Between the ohseryax.
land the pilot, Wh0 has nothing to do
with the radio, communication is made.
by common telephone system. The
headgear consists of a leather helmet
with soft rubber earpieces 50 design
ed as to cut out engine noises.
The antennae are strung in trians
gular fashion between fhe tail and
the tips of the planes. In the bombing
plane it is lowered by wheel on the
side OF the machine, and is raised
when the conversation IS finished.
This system would be impracticable
on the smaller planes where loops and
spins are often necessary In maneuy
ers.
Sergeant Fell said that the instance
which seemed to him most illustra-
tive or the practical worth Of the wiTe-
less telephone was its use after the
tornado which destroyed practically
all buildings at Guerstner Field. La,
last year while he was stationed there.
After ali systems of communication
had been put out Of commission the
wireless telephone was set up. With
iii an hour after the tornado ended
communication with Washington had
been re-established by this means. As
ii was found Impossible to continue
training at the field their orders were
asked for and two days later the sig
nal corps was ordered to France.
on the arrival Of the wireless teie-.
phone branch iii France the French
ofTleers were unbeiieying, for the de-
velopnent of this novelty had been
unheard of By them The course ofs
training was followed there as in the
United states The course consisted
Of ground work. bombing. and fornla-
tion flying. Tia the formation fight
the best bomber ii in charge oE the
leading plane and bombs are dropped
from all OF the planes on his signal.
The greatest dangers of the wireless
81 airplanes come from the conbusti-
ble character Of the plane itself and
The hirh voltage of the current used
II is necessary that all insulations be
without leakage. DifFiculty was met,
100. id adapting i standardized wire
less apparatus to different types Of
machines, considering the fact, too,
that there III little spare space IN any
of them for extra equipment Some
idea of the aifSiculty may be gained
from the knowledge that some Of the
machines which are fitted Yith the
wireless telephones have spread 81
ninety eight feet Mandley- Page
bombing planesl, wlsfle Others Of the
(continucd On Page Tnree.l
! NpprpoupcA GOO d % 90 pr-