84 ANNUAL OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY. 



iences and unpleasantnesses, which are otherwise unavoidable. 

 Opel has also shown the superiority which cable steamers possess 

 over paddle-wheel steamers, since the former cause no ripple. 

 This system has likewise an advantage in point of economy, since 

 a steamer working on a chain or rope can make use of from 90 to 

 94 per cent, of its steam power, while a paddle-wheel steamer can 

 only use 60 per cent., and even, in case of a strong current, only 

 30 per cent. As a rule, says the " Bearbeiter," the passenger 

 boat with a 45 horse-power engine must discontinue its voyage 

 at high water, while a towing steamer with a 14 horse-power en- 

 gine holds the navigation open. The cable system of navigation 

 can go on undisturbed in general so long as the sluices remain in 

 good working order. While, on account of the inundation, etc., 

 the towing-path is inaccessible, such hindrances, on the contrary, 

 form no obstacle to the steamer on the cable ; or, at most, it only 

 requires somewhat more coal, if the current be strong. The most 

 important argument, however, in favor of the introduction of this 

 system of navigation by means of a cable laid along the bed of the 

 river lies in the fact that a certain plan can be held ; the failure 

 of navigation lies principally in this, that the condition of the 

 weather, or the negligence of the captain, may cause an unpunc- 

 tual arrival of the cargo at its place of destination. The journey 

 from Magdeburg to Hamburg, by means of the cable system, 

 can be accomplished in 3 days, while now often 4 weeks are 

 required. Tremendous as the difference is, it is, nevertheless, 

 given as a fact by the above-named paper. There are two diffi- 

 culties which present obstacles to the introduction of this system, 

 on some streams ; for instance, on the Rhone and Saone, in France, 

 this method of river navigation is not possible, because those 

 rivers convey with them too great a quantity of sand, and thus 

 clog up the cable. The other difficulty is the sharp bending of 

 streams, as in the case of the Saale ; but the impediment can be 

 overcome to some extent by attaching fewer boats to the tugging 

 steamer. The " Bearbeiter " makes the remark: "If we cannot 

 succeed so far as to see 30 boats dragged one after the other on 

 the Saale, as on the Seine, we must, for the present, be satisfied 

 to transport 3 or 4." On the Oder, also, this system is about 

 to be adopted ; but this river has, in one place, only a depth of 

 15 inches ; and it is, therefore, necessary to build the vessel 

 according to the nature of the stream. On the Elbe, with from 

 17 to 18 inches of depth, it succeeds well, and th'e investment has 

 realized from 9 to 12 per cent. In the Saale, at low water, there 

 is a depth of 28 inches, which, however, soon deepens to from 

 36 to 40 inches, which is a circumstance much in favor of the above 

 system. 



THE GUATTARI ATMOSPHERIC TELEGRAPH. 



This new invention is stated to consist of certain arrangements 

 and combinations of apparatus whereby ordinary air, compressed 

 and passed through a tube, is utilized as a means of communicat- 

 ing intelligence from one given point to another, effecting the 



