REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE. XVII 



WIRELESS TEL EGKA PHY. 



The vast extent of our sea and lake coasts and the intimate com- 

 munication between the Weather Bureau stations of this Department, 

 which are distributed along these coast lines, and the vessels of com- 

 merce have induced me to authorize persistent and systematic experi- 

 mentation in etheric space telegraphy. Substantial improvement- 

 have been made during the past year in the Department's system. 



The line of research has been divided into three classes: First, the 

 perfection of a more powerful transmitter, in which the energy of 

 radiation shall be greatly increased; second, the devising of a more 

 delicate receiver — one that would be positive instead of depending 

 upon an imperfect and variable contact, as do all systems now in use; 

 and, third, the perfection of a system of selective telegraphy whereby 

 messages may be differentiated and only the receiver that it is desired 

 shall receive the message may become responsive to the waves of 

 ether. 



The first of these problems may be said to have been successfully 

 solved, and a transmitter devised capable of radiating all the energy 

 generated. The second is believed to be nearing a successful solution. 

 The third is thought to be well demonstrated theoretically, but has not 

 been fully tested in practice. 



While there is much experimental work yet to be done before the 

 present system is reliable for intership communication, or before any 

 two systems can work within the same field without each rendering the 

 other useless, such progress has been made b}^ the Government experi- 

 menters that, with no interference by private systems, stations can be 

 successfully operated over at least 150 miles of coast line, and they 

 are now in operation on the North Carolina and Virginia coasts, and 

 soon will be instituted between the Farallone Islands and the mainland 

 and Tatoosh Island and the mainland, on the Pacific coast. 



THE MERIT SYSTEM AND THE DISCIPLINE OF THE WEATHER BUREAU. 



The merit system of the Weather Bureau conforms to the letter of 

 the Civil-Service law and carries its spirit to a rational and beneficent 

 conclusion. The duties of this Bureau are exacting. It requires a 

 strict discipline to administer a service with such extensive ramifica- 

 tions and have every man at his post of duty at exactly the same 

 moment of time, and to do this several times each twenty-four hours, 

 as is necessary in the gathering and the charting of simultaneous 

 weather observations and in the rapid dissemination back to the coun- 

 try of the forecasts and warnings based upon the observations. 



A system of merit and discipline has gradually become fixed in the 

 Bureau. The system is fair. It enables honest and efficient officials to 

 agr 1901 II 



