Free trader-journal and Ottawa fair dealer. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1920-1927, 1922-03-30
AUTOMATIC DEVICE
RECORDS WIRELESS
CIPHER MESSAGES
ASSOCIATED PRESS INSTALLING
MACHINE THAT TAKES SECRET
MESSAGES. DECIDING THEM
AS THEY FLASH THRU THE
AIR.

Chicago, March 30. Secrecy in
wireless communication. absence OF
which has been one OF the drawbacks
to this form of telegraphy, may be at
tanned by the adoption Of the auto.
matte printing machines used on the
Associated Press and Commercial
Telegraph circuits In many parts of
the country, according to Sterling
Morton. president of the Morkrum
company, one of the pioneers in the
manufacture OF automatic telegraph.
ic equipment.
Experiments have been under way
for months in sending and receiving
messages with the automatic machine
Morton says and the system has
proven successful
The machine has a typewriter key.
board, a typist can average 100 words
minute. while the attendant at the
receiving end need only watch the
automatic printer. The machines
use tape in which n punching me.
chanism is operated by the keys OF
the typewriter keyboard punches
holes In various combinations Of five
positions. Electrical contacts, made
through the holes in the tape. dis.
patch the impulses which are received
and translated back into letters by
the automatic typewriter at the other
end OF the circuit.
The advantage Of the machines in
wireless lies in an almost infinite
variety of adjustments by which no
machines not adjusted to the sending
machine can receive the signals. To
all others, even though operating on
the same wave length as the send
ing apparatus, the signals would h.
only hodgepodge of meaningless
Characters Chinese laundry ticket.
Morton says.
The secret of the automatic prin-
ter lies in five little magnets which
in various combinations receive and
interpret the electrical. impulses and
cam shaft which translates their
Interpretation into typewriter action.
There are thirty-two possible arrange
ments of these parts and in agree
ment with the receiving stations. the
sending operator can change to any
one of the thirty-twO codes at will
II the sending and receiving appara-
tus is connected to make uhe punch
hole in the first row aCtuate the let.
ter "a" on the typewriter the Oper-
ator may change the adjustment and
have any one of the other four holes
or any combination Of two or more Of
them represent "a changing the
rest of the alphabet in the same way
In addition to the thrty-two comb,
nations thus attained an almost eX-
haustless variety of secret codes can
be had by simply changing the speed
OF the motors which drive the ma.
chine, the motors at the sending end
being adjusted to confer.
Before an authorized station can
''listen in on machine sent wireless
according to Morton, the operator
would have to find the wave length
used. the motor speed and then the
particular keyboard code employed.
At the receiving end the operator
can go away without leaving the ap-
paratns running. An endless screw
shuts off the operating motor if no
letters have been received for one
minute When flfe sending static
starts again the first electrical i'm
pulse trips a spring and the motor
starts again, continuing in operation
until another migIHte has passed with
out signal. -