Evening star., 1923-03-07

To radio and the powerful Ameri-
can broadca sting stations the crews
of the lightships. the outermost sig
nal stations of the country, are look
ing anxiously for the relief of the
monotony of their isolation. And If
the plans of George II. Putnam,
United States commissioner of light
houses, are carried out, those station
ed on many of the light vessels will
have the apparatus necessary to lis
ten in on the radio entertainments.
The lighthouse service maintains
light vessels on forty-nine stations.
twenty-five of which are on exposed
positions on the open sea A number
of them have radio receiving outfits,
so that the crews may receive the
broadcast programs but it is the in
tentiou of the lighthouse service to
extend this system to as many light
vessels as practicable, believing that
II will be valuable for instruction, as
well as relieving the monotony and
isolation of those stationed on the
light vessels, and also keep the men
keen and alert.
Putnam Writes of Service.
TO install radio outfits on the light
vessels, together with an interesting
and graphic description of how our
lighthouses use radio. are contained
in an article written by Commissioner
Putnam. appearing in the current is
sue of Radio Bro. .dcast, Il radio maga-
zine.
Congress long ago recognized the
isolated life of the lightkeepers by au-
thoriZng the supplying of small libra
M
Commissioner Putnam. This has been
done at little expense, as many of the
books have been donated. Although
the government endeavorS to give every
reasonable consideration to the men
on the remote stations and vessels,
the conditions are sometimes nee
eSSarily difficult. as these instances
show. The keepers of the Alaska light
houses at the entrance of Bering sea
remain three years on the stations get
ting leave only each fourth year. They
have been without mail for ten months
at a time. The experiment is now be
ing tried of installing radiophoneS at
these stations. At Tillamook Rock
light. south of the Columbia river
mouth. there have been intervals of
seven weeks when the tender was un-
able to reach the rock on account of
stormy weather. Landing is made on
this rock by means of crate swung
out over the boat from a long boom.
Radio Aids in Fog.
For many of the more isolated light
houses radio would be d great boon to
the keepers, as it is TO the men on the
vessels
The most important use of radio in
lighthouse service work, according to
Commissioner Putnam's article, IS its
use to protect ships III fog, through the
establishment of fog signals, which in
conjunction with the radio compass on
shipboard, give the navigator for the
first time a means of taking accurate
bearings on invisible objects.
Electric waves readily penetrate
fog and can be received at much
greater distance than light and sound
waves on which the mariner has here
tofore had to depend" the article
says. Fog and other conditions rem
dering objects invisible constitute
the greatest menace to safety of ship
ping, and demand every help that
science can give to vessels thus i'm
periled.
Provides Radio Signals.
''The lighthouse service on May l..
1921, placed in commission the first
radio fog signals in this country at
three stations in the vicinity of New