Vlll 



sensitive receiver. The horizontal portion 

 of the wire was then cut off, leaving a 

 12in. vertical wire at each instrument. 

 Perfect signals were received on a much 

 less sensitive receiver. Experiments seem 

 to indicate that the section of the vertical 

 wire is unimportant, which I may state 

 is in accordance with theory. The distance 

 to which signals can be transmitted and 

 received varies with the square of the 

 height of the vertical wires, which is the 

 mathematical theory, and has been verified 

 beyond a doubt by actual experiments. The 

 transmitter is an induction coil and gives 

 sparks which are delivered between two 

 spheres, one of which is to earth, the other 

 in space. These sparks set in motion the 

 Hertzian waves. These waves radiate in 

 all directions, but can be controlled in any 

 direction by means of a parabolic reflector. 

 At the receiver there is a kite or balloon 

 which collects the waves, and they 

 are then sent to a Branly coherer, 

 which has been improved upon by 

 Marconi. The coherer which I am 

 using to-night is simply a glass tube 

 loosely filled with coarse brass filings, and 

 closed up with corks, through each of 

 which a copper wire projects into the 

 filings. This tube is connected in circuit 

 with a relay and a source of current, so 

 that each time a spark occurs the tube' 

 becomes a conductor, the relay closes the 

 local circuits and the tapper. The latter 

 is thereby caused to strike lightly on one 

 of the springs, and shakes the coherer, 

 when the relay retui^ns to its initial posi- 

 tion, and is ready to receive a new signal. 

 There had been no serious attempts made 

 at signalling through space over consider- 

 able distances till Marconi went to England 

 and gave a practical demonstration of how 

 it was done; and if anyone else who claims 

 priority had thought they were so near 

 such striking- results they would have 

 been unceasing in their efforts to carry the 

 experiments a little further than they 

 did. At the same time, whatever may 

 be the commercial future of systems 

 of signalling across space, its development 

 may be said to be the minds of many, 

 although Signer Marconi, as I have said 

 before, was the true inventor of the 

 elevated electrodes, by means of which he 

 brought to light the signalling across 

 space to a considerable distance. 



The Chairman spoke of experiments 

 made in telegraphy without wLres by Mr. 

 W. H. Preece, Electrical Engineer to the 

 British Government, by whom messages 

 were sent across rivers and lakes, and to a 



distance of 12 miles. This was up-to-date 

 electricity, and this mysterious force was 

 progressing by such leaps and bounds that 

 probably a few years hence we should 

 know a great deal more about this mys- 

 terious agent. 



Mr. Self said he looked'u.pon Mr. Preece 

 as the father o£ signalling through space. 

 The system had been handed over to the 

 military for war purposes, and they might 

 be sure this would not be done if the systenr 

 was not already a success. 



Mr. R. M. Johnston offered some obser- 

 vations on the paper., 



"Excavations in egypt." 

 By Rev. C. R. Pollock, F.R.G.S. 



Rev. C. R. Pollock, F.R.G.S., delivered an 

 address on "Excavations in Egypt," illus- 

 trated by 50 lantern slides, Mr. N. Oldham 

 manipulating the lantern. The lecturer 

 said that the antiquities of Egypt 

 brought them back to the very horizon 

 of time, yet to a civilisation and culture, 

 artistic and domestic — to examples of en- 

 gineering and architecture and work in 

 metals — of which there were no examples 

 in modern times. Although, nominally, 

 Egypt was as large as two-thirds of Russia, 

 it really shrank to the size of Belgium. It 

 simply meant the Nile — the rest was arid 

 desert and rock. The Egyptian periods 

 were dynasties extending back 7,000 years 

 or 5,004 years before Christ, though the mar- 

 ginal note of the Bible gave the date of crea- 

 tion much later than that. But the mar- 

 ginal note was no part of the sacred text. He 

 showed a variety of views of modern 

 Egypt, and also a number of pictures of 

 the pyramids, and of statues and carvings 

 excavated in our own daj, as well as a 

 photograph of the celebrated stone in three 

 sets of characters which gave the key to 

 all Egyptian inscriptions brought to light. 

 He described in detail many of the Egyp- 

 tian marvels in architecture and sculpture ; 

 and speaking of mummies, said he looked 

 upon the very face of Rameses II., with 

 whom Moses conversed in the ages long 

 ago. This face was thrown upon the 

 screen. The address was throughout of a 

 highly interesting and instructive charac- 

 ter, and was manifestly appreciated by 

 those present. 



Votes of thanks were accorded Messrs. 

 Twelvetrees, Petterd, Self, the Rev. Mr. 

 Pollock, and Mr. H. V. Bayly, Secretary of 

 the G.P.O. and the Telegraph Department, 

 Mr. W. F. Ward, Government Analyst, also 

 to Mr. A. J. Taylor for granting the use of 

 his Rontgen Coil. 



