The New York herald., 1921-01-06
Destruction by Wireless.
Captain Barber FOresees New Wal
Weapons but Not Disarmament.

To THE NEW YORK HERALD oscar J.
Crosby's excellent letter on disarma-
ment advocates an international tribunal
armed to enforce It's DEGREES. 1t is an
attractive idea-Admirai Goodrich made
an earnest plea for it many years ago
But Mr.. Crosby goes on to say that in
order that it may be successful other
national competitive forces must cease
to exist so that II cannot be opposed
and thus disarmament. This is abso-
lutely true and is exactly why such q
tribunal will never be created.
Mr.. Crosby says that the present agi-
tation. il successful can only result IN
the great Powers limiting the millions
they propose TO spend on armament
There is no other way of measuring it.
and. as he says, If you measure 1t In
that way the whole thing can be knocked
into ri by an inventor in one country
discovering something which Will dc
more damage for a dollar than any other
nation can do with ten dollars, and this
is also true.
IL can also happen that an idea may
be worked out which will instantly be
common 10 ali the world and will dc
more toward disarmament than anything
else IN sight-for time. Let me H.
lustrate:
In 1870 the French in Paris being shut
up by the Germans became alarmed at
the Diminishing supply OF black gun
powder and commission Of chemists
was formed under Professor Bertheloi
TO study other explosives. In the course
of their experiments they made the fol-
lowing discovery: Small quantities OF
illuminate of mercury, illuminate of cop
per- nitroglycerine. guncotton. picrit
acid and other explosives we're placed a,
intervals around the borders OF large
room then II minute quantity Of any
one explosive was detonated In the mid
die OF the room It would detonate Its
corresponding explosive at the border OF
the room and nothing else.
Each was susceptible to It's own wave
of vibration The sole exception was
illuminate Of mercury. to whose wave OF
vibration they were all susceptible. Still
moro strange was The fact that IL o
violin were played in the middle of the
room they would all be exploded one
after the other according as the proper
note was struck.
The discovery was Of no practical
value AZ the time on account of the linn
tied range of the vibration, though had
AN amusing correspondence with General
II. L. Abbot. then in command of the
army torpedo station at Willets Point
as TO the future possibility of a fiddler
sitting on a hill and destroying armies
on all sides Ivy exploding the cartridges
In the me-i's belts.
since then. however. we have made In
wireless tolegraphy tremendous progress
in the transmission of delicate viira.
tions Of ether quite around the world
But, more important still, all electricians
believe that we are on the ragged edge
OF the transfer of electric energy b,
wireless. and when we get that we vii
have the vibrations that will detorat'
INT or any other explosive at any dis
tance. whether In battleship or a sub
marine or a fort magazine or car
fridge belt. and universal disarmament
will be IN plain sight
But then there will come along an
other inventor with a patented insuat
| ing material through which these wire