Evening star., 1924-05-23
IN TODAY'S SPOTLIGHT
BY PAUL y. COLLINS

The Senate committee considering
Henry Ford's proposition to take
over Muscle Shoals for a century,
voted last Monday, 10 to 6, to re-
ject the offer. Then some member
called attention to the fact that the
committee had not concluded it's
hearings, and it was decided to recall
the decision and "listen-in" another
week.
All that was prior to the practical
demonstration, on Wednesday eve
ming. of how the electricity possibil-
tiles are widening and their future
becoming illimitable. Though "the
mill will never grind again with the
water that is passed" more water is
coming. and far greater grinding
power is being discovered overnight.
What will be the electric power of
the next decade? What would the
government now blindly give away?
to surprise. No scientist can explain
it, but the yeriest schoolboy can
operate il. Now comes the instanta~
neous sending OF photographs by tele-
phone, unlimited distances and even
by wiz eless. And not only "still-life'
while a singer, a thousand miles dis
tant, is heard distinctly, by wireless,
upon a miniature screen attached to
the receiver the singer is actually
is carried through the ether, along
with the sounds of her music. Can
miracle go farther? Not unless the
perfume of Araby may be similarly
carried around the world.
Until four or five years ago, prob
ably no oratory had ever reached an
audience exceeding 10000 or $4,000
people, 80 as to be audible to all.
Last Wednesday evening, Secretary
of Commerce Herbert Hoover and
Senator Arthur Capper. 500 miles
apart, each, in turn, addressed the
same audience of 100000 people,
and If they had dropped a pin every
man ana woman in that audience,
thirty states, would have heard it.
Mr.. Hoover protested that talking
into such a broadcastinE apparatus
was no more inspiring than cur
5. OO0, 900 Iisteners-in smiled (though
not audibly) as they heard his deep
breathing and his somewhat nervous
clearing Of his throat, and wondered
whether the orator was slipping water
while waiting for expected applause.
Between the speeches-one from
Washington and one from the Million
Dollar pier, Atlantic City, N. ia
famous violinist earned $4,000 by
PLAYING four or five selections, and
the tuning Of the instrument as well
as the most delicate1y rendered high
c." staccato, was audible in Texas
and Maine, Florida and Idaho, as
clearly as it was in that famous sea-
side hall
The occasion of this oratofy was
an annual meeting Of the National
Electric Light Association, and was
for the serious purpose OF surveying
the recent developments, present
status and immediate future Of cleo
tricity in the United States.
Senator Capper, who spoke in At
lantic City, stated that already 500,-
600 farms are equipped with light and
power currents, half of them having
their generating plants. He pointed
to the unreasonable future general
"Eyen before the pinch OF economic
disaster had taxed the farm morale" )"
said Senator .Capper. o"even before
bankruptcy had begun to drive farm
folk from the soil, the question, f1ip-
PANTY put in the, song, How you
gonna keep 'em down on the farm?
had become one of serious concern
| to economists and sociologists alike.
"For the most part" he said, "the
farm home is lighted with the oil
lamp. The farm wife and daughter,
each year, carried literally tons OF
lWatef. The farm wife u denied these