The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1919-10-30
The Island Of CAPRI Is Thought to
Have Been Wireless station Of
Caesars Rome, According
to Kinoman.
ANCIENTs HAD SIGNALS
They Used Beacon Fires and Smokes
Pigeons, Flags and Sometimes
SentineIs Would Shout to
One Another.

/ WASHINGTON, D. c.. Oct. 3d.
Wireless telegraphy is new; wire
less communication is as old as Bib
l1ical times"
| With this statement the National
7 Geographic society quotes from
communication by John A. Kingman,
who sets forth the interesting theory
that the island of Capri was an i'm
lperial wireless station Of ancient
Rome.
/ I'VE know that the ancients sig
nailed in various ways and over long
distances" he says. They signaled
by beacon fires, by beacon smoke, by
pigeons, by flags, and by shouting
from one sentinel to another.
! Lighthouses are as old as the
earliest chapters of the Bible. Bea-
con fires and beacon smoke were
commonly used by the early Greeks,
and there was no reason why the
more practical Roman should not
have employed improved methods,
such as heliographing.
| 1--WE do know that at the siege
of Syracuse by Marcellus mirrors
were employed by Archimedes; and
/ though we may doubt the burning
Of vessels from shore by mirrors. as
stated on that occasion, we can ap-
preciate the binding effect OF many
mirrors on the eyes of the naVigators
OF the attacking vessels. That is
what probably happened during that
conflict. At any rate, 1t shows that
| the great Archimedes. at least, had
found some use for mirrors other
than the usual one.
I'm imperial times the Romans had
mirrors large enough to reflect the
entire person; they even had mirrors
of glass backed by tin instead Of
quicksilver.
signaling was certainly common
military practice among the ancients
and ancient writer's, such as Virgil,
Aeschuylus, and Herodotus. fire.
lquently alluded to it
| IAN interesting case OF long-dis-
lance signaling by relaying Is men
toned by Herodootus, in which 1t ap-
pears that certain tidings were sent
to Xerxes in Asia by means OF line
of beacon fires arranged through the
Greek islands.
1.-THE ancients went further than
simply announcing some prearranged
message; they had codes and sent
long messages. The Greeks signaled
lon one occasion 100 miles at one
jump. This was from Mt Chigri,
1888 feet, to Mt. Athos, $500 feet.
"Gallup's Hand Book Of Military
Signaling states that under favor
able conditions the distance to which
messages may be sent and received
is only limited by the curvature OF
the EARTH also that square mirrors
are better than round ones only be,
at. Oh ~
more rejecting surface for the same
packing space Round mirrors are
used now Mirror signals have been
seen with the unassisted eye at dis
tances of 100 miles. While this L.
perhaps, record, and although there
is no statement as to the size Of the
mirror, it probably did not exceed
twelve inches square.
THE reasona bleness of the Capr1
wireless station theory tempts one
to speculate as to how much signal
ing was done and how it was done
1t will be remembered that Tiberius
the unpopular successor of Augustus
spent eleven years of his reign on
Capri, and without coming to Rome
directed most successfully the affairs
of the vast empire. He even foiled
the conspiracy of his trusted minister
Sejanus, who was supposed to have
general charge of affairs after
Tiberius retired to the island.
Though Tiberius went to Capri an
old man, he was the actual ruler
emperor in fact-and his heavy hand
was felt all over the empire until the
very end. With regular news bulle
tins and reports, received daily II
need be, containing confidential In
formation, he would be able to issue
instructions and manage affairs as
thoroughly az II he were in Rome.
Possibly the Publica Acta tSenate
Journa) and the Diurna Acta
(authorized news), were sent te