The Electrical experimenter

26 THE ELECTRICAL EXPERIMENTER May, 1917
Wireless Telegraphy
By E. B. PILLSBURY
General Supeiintendent,
Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company of America, New York
history of wireless telegraphy of such unqualified dis-
THErepeats once more the old story tinction as Lodge, Ale,x-
tliat is so often connected with
great inventions. The world being
possest of a new scientific
principle, many minds in many parts of the
world are simultaneously bent upon its
ander. Muirhead, Fleming,
Thomson and Rutherford.
Slaby, Atco and
Braun are the names best
known in Germany. The
practical application, with the result that French are represented
the fundamental principle finds embodiment
in various methods of accomplishing
a similar purpose. The startling nature
by Ducretet, Branly,
Rochefort and Tissot. besides
other men of lesser
of the discovery of electric waves was fame. Italy has contrib-
bound to give rise to unprecedented activity
in the field of experimental investigation,
utedject,
largely to the sub-
principally thru
and such experiments as were particularly
successful were bound to prompt investi-
Marconi, Bellini, Tossi
and Righi. Denmark is
gators to seek patent protection on their represented by Poulsen.
modifications, and this in turn gave rise to Spain, Austria, Bel-
several systems of radio-telegraphy.
A voluminous list of names could be given
of those who have contributed to the
gium and -Argentina have
all produced systems
which have been more or
advancement of radio-telegraphy in regard
to both theory and practise. Among the
less used in their respective
countries. The Jap-
best-known American investigators are Fesanese have also devised a
senden. Shoemaker, de Forest, Clark, Stone
and Massie. Each of these men las devised
a system which bears his name. In England
the work has been carried on by men
system that successfully
stood the test of service
in the Russo-Japanese
War.
Gigantic Oscillation Transformers and Tuning Inductances In
Marconi Trans-oceanic Wireless Transmitting Station.
Interesting View of a Bank of High-speed, Automatic Sending
Keys and Bus-bar Connections in a Typical High-power Marconi
Radio Station.
The development of
the art in the various
countries has been carried
on largely by representative
investigators,
and in many instances
the governments have
adonted a system exploited
by their subjects.
The I'nited States government,
however, has
experimented with most
of the prominent systems
offered, and, as a result,
the army and naxT equipments
are comprised of
quite a variety of apparatustors.
of different inven-
Wireless telegraphy
was the subject of earnest
experimentation as
early as 1838, but, as far as the public mind
is concerned, the science began when Marconi
sent his first message across the .Atlantic
from Cornwall to Newfoundland in
1902. This wonderful accomplishment had
so much of the spectacular element in it
that wireless telegraphy and Marconi became
famous at once and, measured by results,
he has eclipsed all other inventors.
JIarconi first interested himself in the
problem of wireless telegraphy in 1895. In
the following year he took out the first patent
ever granted in England for a practical
system of wireless telegraphy by the use of
electric waves. In 1897 he successfully
communicated across Bristol Channel, a
distance of nine miles. ."Kt the invitation of
the Italian government, Mr. Marconi subsequently
went to Spezia. where his system
was put to practical test on board two Italian
b attleships. .\ station was erected on
•International Cable Register Supplement.