ENGINEER and INVENTOR TAKES
QUEER LIBERTIES WITH NATURE
TO &ZJ?P?J?S& O&AVrATON
A FEW days ago a New York en
gineer and -Inventor, Edward S.
Farrow, suspended a book from
pair of scales In his laboratory and
weighed it The volume tipped the
scales at 18 ounces.
To the book he then attached a me
chanical device in the shape of a small
rectangular bo"x, which he calls a "con-
- flensing dynamo,'' and applied power
' from a neighboring electric switch. As
the current set the wheels In the dy
namo whirring, the Indicator of the
scales slowly receded until it stood at
15 ounces. Apparently the book had
lost three ounces of its weight. In
other words, one-sixth of the power of
gravitation between the book and the
earth . had been overcome. A law of
nature had to all appearances been
nullified.
The discovery of a mechanical means
to suppress gravitation is, of course,
of the first Importance.- It is revolu
tionary even sensational tobe com
pared with the formation of the law of
gravity itself, as Newton saw an apple
fall from a tree and reasoned out the
i why and wherefore of it
If all of Mr. Farrow's claims for hie
Invention are borne out by future tests,
he will stand as one of the great in
ventors and scientists of all time; he
wilt have solved the most perplexing
- problem connected with aerial naviga
tion the suspension in air of an aero
plane after its engine, through accident
Dr other means, has ceased to worW.
That the claims of Mr. Farrow for
his condensing dynamo are being given
the most serious consideration is evi
denced by the fact that United States
Government engineers are now con
ducting experiments with a view to de
termining the value of the invention to
the Army and Navy. The result of these
experiments will be announced In a
short time.
Mr. Farrow himself believes that by
the use of his dynamo the air craft in
warfare would be removed from the
Tield of uncertainty and danger to
positive safety and mechanical effi
ciency. If a war balloon, floating over
a hostile camp,
M ! 4 . ,i I I il I . I It . ' .
f V': " I tl - - ' -r. I It -
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1
waves through suppositious ether
there will develop components In all
directions. If this force or motion acta
vertically. It will, by the law of re
action, diminish a force such as gravity
acting downward toward the earth. For
learned that by. doing this a parallel
and corresponding intensification oc
curs with the vertical force which con
trols gravitation. Thus buoyancy is
added to an object held to earth or pro
pelled toward it by gravity.
Hertz demonstrated that a very rapid want of a better name Mr. Farrow calls
oscillating discharge of electricity, this force, when acting upward, a "ver-
such as that which may be established tical component."
between two knobs, produces a dis- Mr. Farrow discovered that an tnten
turbance in the surrounding ether sification of the Hertzian waves caused
which takes the form of electric waves a corresponding Intensification of the
penetrating space with the velocity of "vertical component." Supposing that
light. Previous to this discovery, which .a Hertzian wave has a force of, say,
was announced about 40 years ago, 10,000 and that this la increased to
scientists had known of electric cur- 20,000 or more, the force of. the ' Over
rents passing through the air without tical component" would be correspond-
a Vififble MTlfllirtnr ntiri na tha Mcp-t,-- inclv fncrPAHPd. An if t Vl i a vatHm!
was becalmed at an al- nln? or tho Bparks between the poles component resisted the force of gravir
inge of the new aerial r ,.,, tM
muae wnnin range oi tne new aenai of a Dattery. But ,t waa not untu taUon, then the latter would be partly
guns, the latter could make Its de- xrort .. , or whniw nmitrihi t ,,r.
etruction and the death of its occupants
a practical certainty.
proportionate resistance ' to
expressed In a well-known algebraic gravitation and the force of the. latter
equation. The formula means that ac- Is reduced, thus giving buoyancy to
tlon and reactfon are equal, simultane- any object to which the condensing dy-
factory explanation was given of such The condensing dynamo invented by
Owing to lack of wind, insufficient tlon f the Hertzlan tneory led to tne Hertzian wave, and this Increased
ballast or depleted gas supply, it could perfectlon of the wlreiesB telegraph. power Is transmitted to the vertical
not be removed from its dangerous Farrow's Investigations were component. The latter thus intensified
puen.uii. wilu mo conaensms based on a fundamental. idea of creation offers
oynamo aitacnea, -11 couia oe snot up
beyond the range of the aerial guns
and floated away to safety on upper
b.i . ous and contrarily opposed. Thus in
suffered an accident to its engine or pushing a book across a table there
other parts could be sustained in the j8 resistence from the table as well as
air and floated away in the same man- from tho opposing hand. If we call
ner- the pushing the action, then the resist-
Mr. Farrow and his associate. Gen- ance of the table is the reaction, and
eral George O. Eaton. TJ. a Army, re- both occur at the same time. In equal
tired, have filed their claims for a pat- nronortion and It, nM.ltln, t
other. To this he added other theories
regarding electricity and gravitation.
ent for their condensing dynamo, but
the mechanical details of the contriv
ance will not be announced until the
Government experts have completed
their experiments. It may be stated,
however, that the idea behind the in
vention is based on the intensification
of Hertzian waves, which are used in
the wireless telegraph. It has been
It has been found that mechanical
devices for controlling electricity also
apply to gravity, regulating orv inten
sifying the force of this attraction of
namo'may be attached. An aeroplane
equipped with one of these dynamos
of sufficient strength may be sustained
in air after Its motive power has ceased
to work. By turning on the current
of electricity there would be produced
a horizontal, circular, flat sheet, so
to speak, of Hertzian waves radiating
outward for a mile or more on every
side of the aerial craft The effect of
all this would be, in a measure, to sus
pend the craft by the edges of a thin
magnetic plane of Influence, a mile or
more in horizontal circumference.
Though an aerial craft in the center
foreign objects to the earth. By -In- of a wide, horizontal plane of magnetic
tensifying the motion of the electrical stress might be impeded In perpendic
ular movement, yet it appears probable
that as a horizontal movement would
cut fewer lines . of force, the ascent
and descent in an inclined plane would
be, perhaps, nearly as easy as a strictly
horizontal motion of the same craft
Devices can be employed for extend
ing the magnetic or Hertzian stress in
a horizontal plane of which the aerial
craft would be the center, also for
generating the energy to produce such
a plane of Influence.
Among- the methods for producing
the horizontal .magnetic plane around
the aerial craft, there can be employed
a horizontal row or ring of electric
interrupters or breaks for producing
Hertzian waves, the ring of electric
breaks extending in a horizontal line
around the sides of the aerial craft or
a similar line or ring of small electro
magnets laid horizontally with their
ends pointing outward, these magnets
being wound with any turns of very
thin, well insulted wire and supplied
with high pressure electric current
Magnetic or Hertzian wave impulses
have a speed equal to that of light, or
about 186,000 miles - per second. It
makes no difference that this speed Is
made in vibrations, if they are so pro
duced as to be a horizontal plane: and
It makes no difference, whether this
enormous vibratory speed be made In
the atmosphere or in the supposedly
all pervading ether. The effect will be
the same. These horizontal vibrations
being produced on the aerial craft and
being in the same plane as the similar
pulsations In the surrounding ether and
the resistance of all vibrating matter
to change In its direction of motion,
will tend strongly to diminish, if not
absolutely prevent the down pull of
gravity on the aerial craft.
This discovery has not been made by
a purely scientific theroist Mr. Far
row Is a practical man. He Is a grad
uate of West Point Military Academy,
and for a number of years was tactical
instructor at that institution. For eight
years he was chief of scouts on the
Northwestern frontier, having been
sent out by the Government to take
charge of this body of men directly
after the Custer massacre. Later he
became a consulting engineer, inventor
and .author. His "Military Encyclo
pedia," embracing the military knowl
edge of the world, ancient and modern,
foreign and domestic, la a recognized
standard authority on all military af
fairs. .
It was while a cadet at West Point
as a member of the class of '76, that
Mr. Farrow became interested in wave
motion, that complex phase of physics
which enters into the explanation of
many of the forces of earth and air,
and it was through the study of the
phenomena presented by this motion
that there was planted In his mind the
seed which was later to be developed
Into his remarkable invention.
During the eight years that he was
In command of the Indian scouts Lieu
tenant Farrow had ample opportunity
to continue his study of experiments.
One of the things that puzzled him was
the apparent defiance of the law of
gravitation by eagles soaring, immov
able, over the desert Similarly he had
observed other sailing or gliding birds,
such as hawks and buzzards, hang high
in the air, motionless, as far as the
human eye could tell, and unaffected
by the wave motion of the ether or
the laws of gravitation.
Even after the conquest of the air by
men the common explanation of the
extended wings of the birds acting
as aeroplanes did not seem at all log
ical or sufficient to Mr. Farrow. When
the motive power of an aeroplane
ceases while the machine Is in air, the
plane coasts downward, gliding to the
earth. But eagles, buzzards and hawks,
without motion of the wings and with
out a propeller to push them Into the
wind, rise to heights almost out of
sight sailing in great circles alter
nately going with and against the wind.
Mr. Farrow's thory is that Nature has
slowly evolved some kind of generator
of Hertzian or wireless energy In the
birds as Nature has in the electrical
eel and In the electric fish called the
ray or torpedo. As the substances,
which are insulators for common elec
tricity, are good conductors for the
so-called Hertzian waves, it is possible
that' the feather' points- around the
edges of the bird's wings polarize a
horizontal plane of Influence, magnetic
or Hertzian, In the atmosphere or sup
positions either, surrounding the birds,
thereby producing the same effect as
the "condensing dynamo."
In addition to its applicability to
aerial navigation, some of the prac
tical uses to which the new mechanism
could be put are these:
If a 12-ton girder was to be raised
to the top of a skyscraper with a der
rick of 10-tons capacity, the condens
ing dynamo would obliterate the two
tons of excess weight
Steamships could be made to ride
more lightly and easily on the sea by
making them "lighter," thus increasing
their speed.. Similarly, the speed, of
railroad trains, automobiles, streetcars,
and In fact all mechanically propelled
conveyances, could be Increased by re
ducing the friction of the wheels on the
tracks or road, and with the same
amount of power as at present used.
While Mr. Farrow has succeeded ty
means of his Invention in reducing the
weight of a body only one-sixth, he
has every reason to believe that he
will be able to reduce it still more. The
Invention is In Its Infancy, and the
possibilities which It appears to open
up are practically unlimited. R. M.
Crowding More Seat Space
Into Subway Cars
A remarkable design for subway
cars has been developed by the New
York Municipal Railway Corporation
one that will allow an increase In
passenger capacity per track of 25 per
cent as compared with the original
line. The present subway cars are 62
feet long and carry in the rush hours
169 passengers each. The new car Is
67 feet long and has a maximum car
rying capacity of 270.
The additional carrying capacity has
been secured not only by increasing the
length, but by Increasing the width
from 8 feet 6 Inches to 10 feet and
by arranging the seats in four groups
divided by three pairs of doors In each
side. One pair of doors Is at the cen
ter of the car and the others at the
quarter points. The wastefulness of the
end vestibules has therefore been elim
inated. An Interesting arrangement of both
transverse and longitudinal seats has
been worked out after most thorough
study, taking Into consideration the
proper proportion between standing
room and seats and the influence on
time of stopping of the distance the
passengers are from the doors. Engi
neering Record.
Equipping an Agriculturist.
(Washington Star.)
"How's your boy Josh doing?"
"WelL" replied Farmer 'Corntossel.
"Josh is a smart boy and mighty
willin', but I'm goin' to have to send
him to school, some more "before I can
depend on him for help on the farm."
"Why, he is a well-educated young
man."
"Yes, but hg's got to specialize. I'm
goln to keep' htm stndyln' geology
until he kin recognize a rock before
he hits it with a plow."
Guide
lo
HE
DINS
4 'F,d$. af&acylato
G
ENEVA, Switzerland, Sept 15
(Special Correspondence.) Just
before the breaking out of the
great war a brochure calling attention
to its dangers to European civilization
was on the point of appearing simulta
neously in all the capitals.
The wealthy peace society which has
the work in charge counts on making
its general publication immediately, if
still possible.
It Is entitled "Guide to the Ruins of
Europe" and. Is supposed to be com
piled in America a hundred years from
now for the use of American. Austra
lian and Oriental explorers in the style
of Macauley's New Zealander, "desi
rous to visit the piles of ruins that
were once proud capitals, cities blessed
with art industry and commerce before
the great war destroyed alike the pop
ulations and their centers and left
Europe a waste Inhabited by scattered
groups of survivors, without strength
or ambition to restore civilization."
We give herewith selections from the
chapter entitled "Paris."
Paris (Lutece: Ruins of) Ancient
capital of France. These ruins are ex
tremely Interesting. Under no pretext
- should the explorer neglect them. They
are more accessible than the ruins of
London, Berlin or Vienna, and still
preserve pathetic pretentions relics of
a glorious past to constitute the cen
ter of light of a vast and desolate ter
ritory Inhabited by the sparse commu
nities of savage shepherds and primi
tive cultivators which distinguish the
wastes of Europe.
A printing press exists in the Chall
lot catacombs connected with the an
cient subway inhabited in Winter by ,,, , , - '
the better portion of the population. "T ' f Wolf Ex"nction. Marquis distant as Berlin, Antwerp, Marseilles
Four books have been published in de Mt""ency, Trapper and Pelter; and Bucharest In August Is held the
I'aris lfl the past decade, an effort un-' gU'de3' Jorte"' sLTtfaJnB; Casoar- great fur mart, the traders carrying
equaled elsewhere on the Dark Conti- Blanc BoSa of "Jrthern Shepherds. back Parlslan prodocts. (See
nent They are "Our Fathers' Culture" Places of interest: Dog-Trains. Article-de-Paris, and Re-
( words of one . syllable, 100 reproduc- The Opera This grandiose mono- crudescence of Game in Europe.)
tions of pen drawings made In New ment of the past destroyed along with Avenue de l'Opera- (Called the Jungle
York and gratuitously distributed In the Church of the Madeleine and the of Paris). Unsafe for any but armed
all the pleasure resorts), by M. Isaac Opera quarter (see Avenue de 1'), in explorera Parties can buy protection
Blumchen, President of the republic; the second bombardment by the Ger- from Boss Balao or M. Salomon Bob-"Hair-Growing
as Good as Clothing" mans in 1914, has been conceded to Miss ownlkoff,' Minister of War. or Miss
(brochure, 44 pp.), by M. Samuel Rice- Annie Bloomfontain and her Troupe of Annie Bloomf ontain. (See Trout Fish
hendatate, of Bucharest Minister of Blondes. Variety show every after- ing). Inhabited by the Bourgeois Tribes
Football; "The Paris Song Book and noon on the Grand Stairway from June and Hungry Moufha (See Historical
New Dances," by Raoul de Sancy (out to October. The crumbling - interior. Chapter and Ethonographical note),
of print new edition preparing), and overgrown with wild vegetation, Is un- The Avenue de l'Opera Is considered
"My Pets." by Miss Annie Bloomfon- safe. (TheWild Dogs of the Opera, the most grandiose example of 20th
tain, tfae beautiful young South Afri- which formerly made It their lair, were century destruction, in which the Ger
can dancer who took the Parisians by destroyed by the Roosevelt expedition man artillery marked Its high point
storm in the year 2001. (Explorers In 1982.) In no one section of the ruins of Ber-
regularly purchase these unique works Market of the Madeleine The chief lln or Vienna are the ravages of French
in quantity to encourage the natives, place of barter of the natives, among or Russian artillery -so complete. Un
Bee Barter System. Any article ot the broken columns. (See Historical ter den Linden crumbled, as a mass
adornment, such as single eyeglass. Chapter.) Twice a week it is the scene only after the great thaw of 1930
string of beads or pair of 8-ounce box- of the greatest animation in the Dark Eiffel Tower Originally it stood up-
ing gloves, etc, will provide the visit- Continent the native women here ex- right Overthrown In the first Ger
or with a pocketful of leather money), changing finery which Seta the fashion man bombardment of 1914. Construct-
Great Hunts M. voa Hundspfote, among the atmpis populations as far ed entirely, of steel, it contains 2,574,-
?Ae future wvfet? h&r rJ's Mi?''fo&eidn.
: .i O J&b gfiskT order of intelligence
The countrysides.
by
So run pages of the chapter "Paris"
of the "Guide to the Ruins of Europe,"
which was prepared to warn, the na
tions against the great war. ' It was
not issued in time. The great war
broke out too soon.
They still hope that it may put lead
ers and people on their guard; but
now that the elements of destruction
are unchained. It is the very thesis of
the brochure that no human power can
stop them. City after city will be de
stroyed. Some 10.000,000 combatants are being
i thrown on the battlefields of Europe;
and 10.000,000 more reservists and ter
ritorials are being armed to follow
them.
war and neglect, will no longer have
food for their own populations. In the
cities, crumbling and decimated by
bombardments, the old men, women
and children will riot In famine. All
provisions will be with the armies; and
the armies will continue fighting to
kill each other off, and get possession
of the precious foodstuffs!"
Such Is the black picture of the
- Brochure.
Evidently it Is to prevent these
things arriving. But who listens?
STERLING HE I LI G.
The Jewlshi Immigrants.
Century Magazine. ,
The Jewish immigrants cherish a
In France every valid male from P"". close-knit family life, and the
16 years to 60 is being called out Never position of the woman in the home Is
was the machinery of death so gigantic one of dignity. More than any other
or its material so wholesale. Immigrants they are ready to assume
At least $80,000,000 per day is being the support of distant needy relatives,
spent In transports, equipments, arma- They care for their own poor, and the
ments, soldiers' food, etc Superhuman spirit of co-operation among them is
efforts ,are being made to prevent the" very noticeable. Their temper is- sensi-
bases of finance from crumbling: but tive and humane: verv nmii i. o
650 separate pieces and 7,540,000 rivets, public. (See Dried Fish). Salmon be- this brochure foresees a time when gold charged with any form of brutality
Beneath It flows the Seine, with the gan coming up the Seine in the year itself will be worthless in Europe. There is among them a fine elite which
Trocadero Marshes to the right, inhab- 1978, shad In 2003. At first It waa "All factories will be closed," Its responds to the appeal of the ideal
Ited by fishing tribes, 60 per cent of feared that they might mutually and preface runs; "all railroads will atop and is found in every kind of ameliora-
whose catches are claimed by the re- reciprocally exterminate each other, running, all commerce will be para- tlve work.
A