Evening star., 1923-04-29
BY JAMES A. BUCHANAN.

~ nee more has the Unhted
States given to the world an
invention that means much to
mankind, a device that will
be the means of saving many lives
and much property, an instrument
that will give the first real, accurate
idea of the depths Of the floor of the
oceans, a means by which the marin
ers Of the day can pilot their ships
away from treacherous reefs or wa
ter-covered mountain tops that
abound in the great seas.
If one were to catalogue the many
wrecks that have occurred during the
last fifty years, he would find that
countless lives have been lost and
that literally hundreds of splendid
craft have found last resting place
meath the waves because some jagged
peak had not been found by the old
time sounding devices that were en-
ployed for years. 1t was not that the
men who were entrusted with this
work were not painstaking, but be-
cause it was not possible to get prop
er soundings of all the dangerous
points. With the latest device that
has been given to the world many. if
not all. of these dangers are thing
OF the past.
For a number of years the officers
and scientists Of the Navy have been
experimenting in order that some
thing might be done to eliminate the
dangers that daily beset those who
sail the seas. They have been ever
striving to bring into being some
thing that would permit Of accurate
soundings and at the same time have
the work done quickly. for. under the
old method of taking soundings, in
order to get depth measurements, 1t
was a slow and by no means certain
work. Tides, currents, winds and
dozen other things had to be reck-
oned with, and while the sailor folk
did the best they could with the in
partially satisfactory.
About a year ago or, to be exact in
June, 1922, DR.. Harvey c. Hayes.
PhD., of the experimental station OF
the bureau of engineering, Navy De-
partment, completed the development
Of an apparatus for obtaining ocean
depths by an instrument called the
Sonic depth finder. 1t was not for
many months that either the inventor
or the department was entirely satisfied
with the results. They wanted to be
absolutely sure that the device was
accurate, for accuracy means accurate
with these men. They leave nothing
to chance. A thing to be accurate
must be just what the word implies.
and 50, for many months after the
completion Of the instrument, numer-
Gus tests were made, tests that were
carried out under the most trying
that left no chance of guesswork.
The Navy now has an instrument that
has proven its worth by recording the
depths of the sea from Newport, r. l.,
to Gibraltar. and from there to Ma
nila, P. I.
The result of this work marked a
great advance In the matter Of sound
ings and the subsequent work done
with the sounder gave to the United
SLatoS d bAtny n0t1C CndTl OIL the west
coast of the country from San Fran
cisco to Point Deccanso. Mexico. This
chart was made by the Navy at the
request Of tho Carnegie Institution of
Warrington.
The present method OF computing
depth In based upon q time-elapse
method. Tho design Of the Sonic
depth finder (sound bathometer} is
based upon the theory that a sound
impulse emanating from point near
the surface of a body of water will he
| reflected back to that point by any
submerged surface within its range of
propa cation.
This theory applies particularly to
the SEA- bottom. A vessel, equipped
with some form of sound transmitter
and receiver, passing over sea bot
tam Of great depth, may use this
apparatus ia measure the depth ap-
proximstvk BY sending -Sut an I'M
s.a -a