296 



KNOWLEDGE & SCIENTIFIC NEWS. 



[Dec , 1904. 



Science at St. Loviis. 



An exhibition on such a very grand and hitherto un- 

 equalled scale might have been expected to have intro- 

 duced some wonderful novelties to the sight- seeing 

 public, hut, as it so happens, no startling new inventions, 

 or specially peculiar constructions, have been forthcoming 

 to add to the attractions at the St. Louis Fair. While 

 speaking of this as an exhibition on an unequalled scale, 



but little attention from visitors. We shall hope to give 

 a separate and full account of this later on. 



On wandering through the vast buildings of Transpor- 

 tation, Electricity, Machinery, and Varied Arts, one 

 eagerly looks for some new and interesting object or 

 contrivance, but in vain. There are huge modern loco- 

 motives, interesting models of many old engines, motor 

 cars of all kinds ; there are enormous plants for generat- 

 ing electricity, turbine engines, and various methods of 

 electric lighting. Among the latter are two forms still 

 but little known to the linglish public, the Cowper- 



Composite J^icttire ot Iwn Mfreo>coplc Views. e.Tch 



^ H. '-^^.-^ 1^1, ill,'.. 



injr alternate stripes. 



^ortiun of Picture ilett hand top corner), enlarged to 

 <ihow system of stripes. 



we njay quote some figures as giving an interesting 



summary of the area under roof of shows of a similar 

 nature. 



London, 1851 .. .. .. .. 21 acres. 



I'aris. 1867 . . . . . . 37 •■ 



Philadelphia, 1876 .. .. (JS .. 



Paris, iSig . . . . . . . ■ 75 ■. 



Chicago, 1893 . . .. .. 200 ,, 



Paris, igoo . . . . . . I-5 ,, 



St. Louis, 1904 .. .. .. 250 ,, 



The total area of grounds occupied increased in an even 

 larger ratio, the acreage at St. Louis amounting to some 

 1240 acres. 



The excellent design of the buildings and laying out 

 of the grounds, and the vast number of exhibits render 

 this a truly notable exhibition, and it seems hardly likely that 

 it will be exceeded in the near fuUire. The immense cost 

 is said to be far above the actual profits, which does not 

 augur well for future rivals. Bad luck, or rather lack of 

 good luck, has proved very detrimental to the under- 

 taking, and, notwithstanding the offers of huge prizes for 

 airships and other attractions, no exhibits of special 

 novelty or interest have been acquired. To this statement 

 there is perhaps one exception, and that is in the great 

 solar-heat concentrator being erected by Prof. Himalaya. 

 Yet this apparatus, which may not even prove to be as 

 wonderful as the inventor anticipates, is, towards the end 

 of October, not yet completed, and therefore has attracted 



Hewitt and the Nernst. But these are hardly to be 

 classed as scientific novelties, and, indeed, are not exhi- 

 bited as such. The mercury vapour lamp, with its weird 

 blue effects, is to bs seen in each of the many photo- 

 graphers' studios, as well as among the illuminations of 

 the grounds. With many exhibits there is a notable lack 

 of proper labelling, and many an interesting object may 

 be passed by unheeded on thi.■^ account. For instance, the 

 new Edison storage battery is, of course, well to the fore, 

 but though there are a number of them exhibited there 

 is no descripti\e account to give particulars, which would, 

 without doubt, be widely read. 



A conspicuous feature in the grounds is the tower 

 forming the station of the L)e F'orrest Wireless Tele- 

 graph. But we are now getting so accustomed to this form 

 of cmmunication that it excites but little more interest 

 than would an ordinary telegraph office. In the Aeronau- 

 tical sheds are two or three strange aerial leviathans, though 

 experts seem agreed in not anticipating any very special 

 advance in aerial navigation by their means. Besides 

 various specimens of kites for meteorological work, shown 

 by the Governments of both the United States and 

 Germany, are the models of Prof. Langley's aeroplane 

 machines and a model of the Deutsch airship. 



In the Electricity Building are two diflerent instalments 

 of "Wireless Telephone " apparatus. One is the " Kadio- 

 pbone," by means of which sound is conveyed along a 



