15 



equipped. This service failed quite often, however, due to summer 

 time static conditions and poor functioning of the sets. Such un- 

 satisfactory conditions caused the officials in charge of the patrol 

 Avork in 1925 to equip the ships with 2-kilowatt vacuum tube trans- 

 mitters, especially designed and manufactured by the General Elec- 

 tric Co. (See Ice Patrol Bull. No. 13, p. 51.) Communication by 

 means of these sets with the naval coastal station at Bar Harbor, 

 Me., was more reliable and satisfactory than at any time during 

 patrol history. Summer time static conditions even then, quite 

 frequently in June, necessitated an auxiliary service, communication 

 being effected via the patrol ship off duty in Halifax. Realizing the 

 natural difficulties which the patrol had met for several years with 

 ship-to-shore traffic, a new type of set was installed just before the 

 ships sailed in 1926. This set employs a short-wave, high-fre- 

 quency transmitter, 35 or 70 meters, and it represents a new 

 design which the United States Navy is manufacturing. In fact 

 the work was rushed in order that the patrol might be equipped for 

 1926. During the first half of the season minor alterations were 

 found necessary before the best performance was attained, but by 

 the latter part of the patrol the sets were operating satisfactory. 

 Direct communication with the high-frequency sets was maintained 

 with few exceptions the entire patrol of 1926 with the Navy Ex- 

 perimental Laboratory, Bellevue, Aid. The set is described as a 

 Navy model "XA," 500-watt crystal control, with a frequency of 

 4,205 and 8,410 kilocycles, and was manufactured at the laboratory, 

 Bellevue. 



The other radio equipment carried on board the ice patrol vessels 

 was the same as that in use during the 1925 patrol. (See Ice Patrol 

 Bull. No. 13, pp. 51-52.) Information regarding the weather was 

 broadcasted every night and morning by means of the 2-kilowatt tube 

 transmitter (C. G. model T-2). Also information of a general char- 

 acter as to the behavior and distribution of ice and currents were 

 "talked" quite informally this past year as the steamers approached 

 the ice regions. The officers of these vessels were especially invited 

 to come to the radio room and listen in and it was apparent that these 

 phone talks were of considerable value. It is human to forget with 

 the passage of time even the lessons learned through great tragedies, 

 and the mariner is no exception to this rule. It is, we believe, part of 

 the spirit of ice patrol, to educate by talks on the entire subject of this 

 danger eVery spring. The patrol has trained experts and it is certain 

 that their knowledge will be of interest and stimulate educational 

 thought along similar lines with the navigator. 



The amount of ice patrol traffic handled by radio is always inter- 

 esting and indicative of the amount of work performed by that 

 means. There were approximately 5,488 reports received from pass- 



