Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-09-06

from the city. Here is evidence that the Illegal
station sending broadcasts out to sea is located
somewhere in the City of Philadelphia. The
question is, where? Some shore station Is per-
haps, keeping liquor smuggling ships informed
OF the time to come in; some liquor-laden shin
tossing out on the Atlantic Is radioing in is
cargo and the spot where it Is to be met. FL.
where in the city Of millions is the st"
hidden?
The radio detective with his car gets b.
in the city as he has been in the country sine
he left Baltimore. He picks up the broadcast
again on the city's paved street. in the hurlv-
burly Of trafic and the press of hundreds Of
thousands Of human beings.
AT the same time agents Of the Department
Of Justice working secretly on the Informal
ton already cleaned by the radio detector:
The broadcast gradually narrows down to a
certain section Of the city. 1t comes closer It
draws down to a certain block in that section
Government agents swarm the block. Soon
there Is quiet announce Tent that a rum ring
mas been unearthed in Philadelphia, that ar
rests have been made. that a radio station
operating illegally has been discovered and dis
mantled
The capture CT an illegal radio station some
times takes several months 1t is slow tedious
process. The job is a typical shoestring one
TODAY there are about 60 illegal statsons
for the most part along the Atlantic Coast
and the Gulf Coast, that the Government Is
cut to silence. How many of these are rum
runner stations is hard to say. About all that
Uncle Sam knows is that they exist and that
be Is determined to silence them. That is one
reason why he has built his great detector
station-or monitoring station-at Grand
Island, Nebr.
This station is built on the prairie far from
the habitation Of man. It IS seven miles to
the nearest city, Grand Island, and covers a
5o-acre site. July saw it placed in full opera
tion The reason why the lonely prairies Of
Nebraska were chosen for the site of this most
the best reception the loneliest spot must be
chosen. Grand Island won over other sections
because little or no man-made interference
was there, no telegraph, no railroads, power
lines or residences within three miles of the
station. And further. because at this point
foreign stations, as well as American, were
regularly received in preliminary tests without
difficulty. The station is capable of measuring
all the disable frequencies in the radio spec
trum.
During tests more than 300 broadcast sta
tions were received at Grand Island as well as
q great number Of other services in the United
States. Foreign stations received were from
Chile Canada, Cuba, Portugal France, Eng
land. the Philippine Islands, Hawaii Argen-
tina, Peru, the Netherlands, Brazil, Panams,
Costa Rica, Nova Scotia, Russia and elsewhere
Throughout the world.
All Of Uncle Sans radio activity does not.
however, have to do with ferreting out illegal
stations engaged in smuggling operations. A
great part Of it, the greater part. has to do
with keeping the "old home set" getting the
local station every night.
All broadcast stations in the United States
are licensed-or should be. Those that are not
we have just dealt with. Those that are-well.
they are supposed to stay in the radio channel
assigned to them. But, like watches, they get
on occasionally. The business Of Uncle Sam,
therefore, with these stations Is to get them
back in their channels ..a.--e ID
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