The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, August 2, 1896, Page 29

THE SAN FRANCISCO' CALL, SUNDAY, AUGUST 2, 1896. 4 -'THE CORONA, as Seen July 29, 1878, .Sin Was Situated Nearly in the Same Part of the Heavens as It Will Be *in the Coming Eclipse. During the Solar Eclipse, Wherein the ,»\;('Lléll Path ‘of the Meon’s Shadow Over of August 8 and 9, 1896. the Earth During the Coming Eclipse == LI AS GHEAP- AS DAYLIGH HAS BEEN Tt is less than twenty years ago since the | introduction of the- electric light, and nventive genius has been busy de- i ;' many improvements in the neces- mechanism of electric production and | on yet such improvements have given to the public cheap light. ! When, in 1877, the newspapers published | tire statement of Mr. Edison, that “he | would be able to produce within a year | eléctric illumination for domestic use ata Jesser cost than that of gas,” many of the | small holders of gas stocks sold their holdingg at a very low price, because they | thought that gzas was to be supplanted by the new light. Alas for our hopes! The | ‘beautiful and brilliant electric light is not | acheap illuminant, | There has now been discovered a princi- | ple in magneto-electrics that upsets all | previous theories and bids fair to soive | the problem of cheap lighting by render- | jng it possible to produce the etectric light | (as well as electric power) at a ridiculously | low cost. Recent investigations and experiments | phenomenon to the production of light a | show it to be practical toapply the newly | discovered principle to present systems | and reduce the cost of the light to less | than 1 per cent of what it now costs. | If we wrap some insulated wire around | fhe ends or poles of a magnet, then any change which may take place in the| ‘strength or intensity of the magnet will | produce a current of electricity on the in- sulated wire, and this current may be con- veyed to a distance by the use of conduct- ing wires. . If at any place or places in the conduct- | ing wire we insert a substance which offers a greater Tesistance to the flow of the cur- rent than does the wire, the substance will | get bot, owing to tne energy of the current | being expended at that place in overcom- ing the resistance, and so producing heat. | Now, the electric lamps which we use at | the present time consist of resistances, which are extremely great as.compared with the resistance of the conduncting wire. In"the incandescent Jamp a filament of | carbon is used, while in the arc lamp the | carbon pencils are kept separated, and the | air between the points of the carbons is employed as the resistance. The current .. .of electricity when it arrives at one of these ", points of resistance converts its energy into heat of sufficient intensity to render . the resisting substance luminous. The electric current is produced by rap- idly revolving the armature of the dynamo in close contact with the poles of the dy- namo magnet, which are wrapped with in- sulated wire. Each revolution of the ar- -mature weakens and strengthens alter- nately the intensity of the magnet, and so ‘produces a current of electricity on the in- sulated wire. Now the work of rotating the armature .calls for the expenditure of power, and here is where the cost comes in. The cost of the'electric light must always depend ‘upon the cost of the power employed. ‘Where coal is used as a power producer, the cost must necessarily be high. Again, - the present crude and faulty construction of the resistance poinis, i. e, the lamps, renders it impossible to convert into light all the electrical energy developed; by far | ‘the larger portion is always non-luminous | heat. With an ideal lamp, ten times the nember of Jights conld be lit by the same amount of electrical energy that is now re- quired to maintain one lamp. 2 « The law of magnetic attraction, as laid dowp in the textbooks, is that “Like | poles repel; unlike poles attract.’”” That . is, the north pole of one magnet will at- " tract the south pole and repel the north “="pole of another magnet. The discoverer of the curious phenom- enon I am about todescribe was experl- - menting with a couple of ordinary steel magnets placed with opposite poles in po- - pition, and consequently exercising an at- traction for each other, when it was found ihat the introduction of a thin sliver of soft iron between the poles of ‘the two magnets completely changed the nature of their power ; the like polesattracted and the unlike ones repelled. ‘Diagram A will help to explain the phe- nomenon. The magnet *‘A” isrigidly fixed GHT FOR A CENT A YEAR THE NEW MAGNETO-ELEGTRIG ILLUMINATION WILL BE ALMOST | | nected by the supporting cord in such | current, and it may be taken from the and magtiet *B” is pivoted upon a horizon- tataxis, sothat is'may oscillate. A piece of b T AFTER THE: PLANT PAID FOR thin, soft iron is suspended so as to pass freely between the ends of the two mag- nets, The gord supporting the soit iron passes over & pulley and is attached to the end of magnet *‘B.” Without the presence of the soft iron the poles of the two magnets exercise at- traction, and the magnet “B” is held in a horizontal position. When, however, the piece of soft iron drops in between the magnets the attraction is immediately changed to repulsion, and the end of mag: net “B,” which is free to move, is forced downward. The piece of sofs iron is con- manner that, when the end of magnet “B' drops, it raises t'e soft iron and thereby permits attraction, causing the end of “B” to then rise: but, in so doing, it drops the soft iron, the presence of which causes repulsion. A series of alter- nate attractions and repulsions is thus produced, communieating to magnet *“B” | a motion of rapid oscillation. To make practical appiication of this machine is constzucted, as shown in dia- gram B. The magnet A’ is rigidly attachea to a support, and magnet ‘‘B” pivoted on a horizontal axis, so thatits poles are free to revolve in a vertical circle in ‘front of the poles of magnet “A.” The strip of soft iron is suspended from an eccentric that isdriven by means of a cord which passes around a pulley fixed to the spindle of magnet “B.”” Once started magnet *‘B’’ must revolve, and at each revolution it changes the mag- netic intensity of magnet “A.”” A spool or helix of insulated wire surrounds each pole of magnet ‘*A,”’ and this wireis charged by a current of electricity gener- ated in precisely the same manner asis the current created by our present form of dynamo. Itis,in fact, the same kind of spools and conveyed away and used, as is Diagram A—Ilustrating the Principle of the Magnetic Motor. Before the present week has passed as- tronomers will have gleaned some further knowledge about the mysterious surround- ings of the sun, which for centuries have ; been a cause of wonder and investigation when revealed to view for a few minutes by a total solar eclipse, The intensity of sunlight is such that it is only on the rare occasions when the moon acts as a screén, by passing between the earth and sun, that the solar append- ages, the chromosphere, the prominences and the corona can be most advantage- ously stuaied. The latter, indeed, has rarely if ever been discerned at other times, Thisis the incentive that has led astronomers from all parts of the globe to travel to those favored spots that lie in the track of the moon’s shadow, with in- struments devised years in advance and plans prearranged so as to forestall any obstacles that might interfere with their aims. . California has not forgotten the view of the sun’s corona obtained January 1, 1889, and her astronomers are foremost in the expeditions that huve been prepared to observe the eclipse occurring on the 8th of this month in far distant lands, for the sun has set on the Pacific Coast before it commences. They are fully equipped with the best portable instruments, and all expenses including that of a journey to Japan, have been defrayed by the generosity of Colonel C. F. Crocker, Mrs. Phoebe Hearst and the Hon. William M. Pierson. As may be seen from the diagram rep- | resenting the theory of total solar eclipses, | a tapering shadow projects from the moon | to the earth, and though correct reiative sizes and distances are necessarily ignored |it may be seen that the dark shadow meets the surface before the cone is ter- minated, which occurs when the earth’s | satellite is at or near perigee and alsoat | !or very near its node. It will then be | some thousands ot miles less than its | mean distance of 238,800 miles from the | earth, and its disk, being nearer than usual, will seem slightly larger than that of the sun, and will cover that luminary completely for a few minutes. The lighter shading in the diagram is the penumbra, which extends around the darker shadows or umbra, and falls on a much larger area, in which the sun is seen more or less partially eclipsed; but these | | views nave not thescientific importancc of | the few minutes of total eclipse with | which a limited area is favored. These valaable minutes will be weli | utilized by the dozen or more parties who | have traveled afar to waylay the small | | shadow as it flits over the path marked on | the accom panying map,commencing in the | Arctie seas near Norway ‘and terminating | in the North Pacific Ocean. This path of totality on the present occasion, as may be seen, lieg far from the centers of civiliza- tion and the radiance of the corona will glimmer unseen over the wilds of Siberia and be mirrored only in the heedless waves for many thousands of miles. It is to be hoped, however, that many of its choicest rays may fall on the object glasses that have been sent so far to re- | flect its marvelous structure. While the | features of the solar disk may be observed | at all times with magnifying power, all the strange sarroundings beyond it are invisible to observers in general. Close to | the limb or circumference of the sun lies the chromosphere “like a prairie on fire,”’ though luminous heat there, even when red and fire like, is far beyond the mere burning stage, all parts being fused and vaporous to an intensa degree unknown on this earth. At intervals much higher appendages appear of the same glowing hue, which is due to hydrogen, the chief constituent of these two phenomena. These high prominences, often treelike or cloudlike in form, varying in height from thousands to hundreds of thousands of miles, are probably jets of the lighter solar substances thrown out by the violent activily within the intensely heated sun. | The chromosphere and prominences can be s:en fairly well at almost any time by means of a spectroscope, though the ab- sence of sunlight considerably facilitates observation of details, but the corona which extends far beyond them is the main object of attention during totality. It is then clearly visible to the naked eye and has beer observed since the earliest ages with wonder and admiration, As the body of the moon, in passing between the earth and sun, first encroaches on tue Future. the current we now employ in present systems of electric lighting, A number of inventors busily en- gaged in the development of a lamp based upon the known characteristic of electri- caldischarges to become luminousina par- west side, theorb of day assumes a strange gibbous shape and gradually diminishes in | be visible in a more westerly THE MOON WILL CAST HER SHADOW ON THE EARTHS LOMINARY. TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE SUN ON THE 9TH OF AUGUST TO BE OBSERVED AT YEZO BY LICK ASTRONOMERS area until reduced to a slender crescent white and brilliant, but yielding a light that is neither that of noon nor sunset. Then a luminous halo seems to glimmer into existence around the dark moon, and raaiates into wonderful beauty when the sunis entirely obscured. This coronal phenomenon has been variously depicted and described, but the following descrip- tion by Professor C. A. Young accords with general impressions: The portion of the corona nearest the sun is almost dazzlingly bright, with a greenish pearly tinge which ;contrasts finely with the scarlet blaze of the promi- nences. It is made up of streaks and filaments which on the whole radiate out- ward from the sun’s disk, though they are in many places strangely curved and inter- twined. Usually these flaments are longest in the sunspot zones, thus giving the corona a more or less quadrangular figare. At the very poles of the sun, how- ever, there are often tufts of sharply de- fined threads. For the most part“the streamers have a length not much exceed- g the sun’s radius, but some of them at almost every eclipse go far beyond this limit. In the clear air of Colorado, during the eclipse of 1878, two of them could be traced for five or six degrees—a distance of at least 9,000,000 miles from the sun. A most striking feature of the corona usually consists of certain dark rifts, which reach straight out from she moon’s limb to the extremest limit of the corona. The corona varies much in brightness at different eclipses, and, of course, the de- tails are never twice the same.. Its total light under ordinary circumstances is at least two or three times as great as that of the full moon. The eclipse of this week would in the classification of ancient as- tronomers be called a revetition (saros) of the eclipse of 1878, because it occurs under the same general conditions and in nearly the same part of the heavens after an in- terval of eighteen years ter and a third days. The fraction of a day causes it to region. Though not a repetition, the two are con- secutive ec¢lipses of the same series, which extend over many centuries. This relationship, however, affects chiefly the duration of the eclipse, and, beyond the visibility of the coronal rays, | will not influence their general contour. Some of the same fixed stars will come forth to bear witness to the absence of sun- light, and as the sun is in the constella- tion of Leo at present, Regulus will min- gle its white light with that of the corona. | An interesting feature of the coming scene will be the brilliant light of the three planets, Jupiter, Venus and Mercury, on the east side, within a few degrees of the sun. The results© ‘ofthe earth within the shadow will be scarcely less impressive. First comes the strange dark- ness, that unearthly shadow that may never revisit the same landscape, speeding with such velocity from the west; the sud- den twilight that is neither dawn nor dusk; the unwonted violet tints in the upper atmosphere; the yellow gleams from the distant illuminated stratum near the horizon, and then the weird vanishing of all the marvels just as we commence to realize them. What is the corona? is a question that has been asked for centuries. 1t is one of the unsettled problems of solar physies, and for that reason the as- tronomers have gone forth to try and bring back a satisfactory answer. The neighborhood of Varanger Fjord, to which a well-equipped expedition has .been sent by the Royal Astronomical So- ciety of London, isa wild, mountainous land, an Arctic wilderness, where reindeer moss is the only vegetation excepting a scant herbage in the vatleys cccupied by the Norwegian fishermen. This has been selected as a desirable station by many European parties, though the eclipse takes place in the early morning hours before the sun is far above the horizon and the duration is less than two minutes, Among the icebergs on the bleak coast of Nova Zembla a party of Russian scien- tists have sought a footing; but the rug- ged Northmen will cheerfully withstand the chill of any surroundings except an enveloping fog, which is too likely to be their only sky view. Another important Rassian station is near the river Amur in Siberia. The shadow, passing in & southwest di- rection, lingers here nearly twoand a half minutes, For about the same length of time it envelops the main portion of | Yezo, the northern island of the Japanese L] empire, at 3 p. M., August 9, which corre- sponds with 9:40 p. M., August 8, here, as Japan leads in date, being near the inter- national date line on the west side. Bev- eral English and American expeditions have selected Yezo as an observing sta- tion. Near the east coast Professor Bchaeberle of the Lick Observatory will again use the telescope forty feet in focal length with which he obtained the beauti- ful photograph represented in theillustra- tion. From this and previous ones taken in Cayenne December, 1889, he discovered ‘| features in the corona mnot clearly dis- cerned before and was led to form his famous theory of its probable cause. At the same station Mr. Burckhalter of the Chabot observatory will for the first time practically test the ingenious ap- paratus that he invented for photograph- ing the fainter outer coronal rays with the fullest exposure, while the brighter inner parts are protected from over exposure by a rapidly revolving screen composed of tapering extensions united near the base of the inner corona. If this excellent design is successful it will save future astronomers from studying the entire appendage from fragmentary pictures sup- plied by instruments of different powers. Observations and photographs will also be taken in Yezo by other local and East- ern parties, among which are to be found Dr. G. E. Shuey, Louis C. Masten and Professor Todd, who has observea many eclipses on other occasions. Two English expeditions have been equipped with recently revised coelastats adapted to eclipse observations by the ex- perience and skill of Dr., Comman, presi- dent of the Royal ' Astronomical Society. As shown by the illustration it con- sists of a large mirror which refiects the heavens toward the tube of the telescope in the adjacent shed. Excellent results are expected from this instrunient, which has been on trial for some time at Oxford University. As nearly all the accessible positions where favorable weather could ‘e expected are occupied by one or more parties, it is highly probable that satis- factory results will be obtained by some, and that these scientific expenditures will have brought new light and knowledge before many days have passed. Rose O’ HALLORAN. The Astronomical Expeditions. The expedition to Japan for the purpose of observing the total eclipse of the sun, which occurs on the 9th inst., is the third which has been sent out under the auspices of the Lick Observatory for this identical oBject. The first expedition was organized in 1889, and consisted of 8. W. Burnham, who is now with the Chicago University as manager of the great 40- inch Yerkes equatorial, and J. M. Schaeberle, who is chief of the Japan ex- pedition of 1896. The total eclipse of December, 1889, was observed by the Lick expedition at Cayenne, French Guiana, and its expenses were defrayed, as in the case of that of this year, by Colonel Charles F. Crocker, whose liberality en- abled the Lick Observatory to organize its expedition under the most complete auspices, re-enforced by instruments of the highest power and effectiveness. The scientific results of the Cayenne expedi- tion fully justitied the anticipations of as- tronomers. Photography enabled the observers to secure for all time visible reproductions of solar phenomena of the eclipse, and the astronomers from the great California observatory achieved results which greatly added to the reputation of the Lick among the scientists of the world. It was dur- ing the observations at Cayenne that Schaeberle advanced the proposition of “A Mechanical Theory of the Solar Corona,” a theory which greatly startled astronomers at the time, but which Pro- fessor Schaeberle demonstrated almost be- yound a doubt in his subsequent publica- tions. The second expedition undertaken by the Lick Observatory was one to observe the total eclipse of the sun of April 16, 1893, which was visible over the greater portion of the inhabited sections in the southern hemisphere. Chile was selected as the most favorable location for observation, and a little mining station of Minas Bronces was chosen on account of its favorable atmospheric conditions. The expenses of the expedition were defrayed by Mrs. Pheebe Hearst, which was equipped with the best instruments that were avail- able. tial vacuum. Crookes tubes ‘are well- known examples of this phenomenon, In the pew lamp there is no filament of car- bon. The electrical energy is not called apon to expend itself in the production of heat. There is nothing to bar its prog-- ress. The lamp is simply a glass tube from which the air has been nearly all extracted, and in the opposite ends of the glass are blown wires which terminate just inside the tube, The incandescent lamp now in useis a very clumsy affair. It seems to have been based on the idea that tnere is consider- able warmth in a fight; for it offers fight to the electrical energy that attempts to overcome the great resistance of the car- bon filament, and compels that energy to expend itself in the battle, mainly in the exhibition of useless heat. The vacuum lamp affords the elecrtica! energy an opportunity whereby it may, for the time being, change its dress, so tc: speak, ‘without loss of it vitality, ana masquerade under the guise of light with no t diminution of energy, every par- ticle of electricity manifesting itself in luminosity and without heat, - There are no known physical or mechan- ical difficulties in the way ot pmdncl:g illumination on precisely the lines here laid down. That such a mode of lighting has naot yet been made public does not preclude its availability, 1t has passed out from the realm of possibility, for it is now within the domain of probability. 1t is both feasible and practical. The cost of light produced by such a system as herein described would be a mere bagatelle as compared with what the present expense is under existing systems. The entire ex- penditure would be in the first cost of plant and installation. Maintenance would be extremely little. A 16-candle- power lamp would: not cost 1 cent per year. FraNk M. Crosg, D, Sc. 1 An Invention for Raising Sunken Vessels by Means of Inflated Truss Bags. THE CORONA, as Observed In Chile During the Last Total Eclipse in April, 1893. Toward the Tube of the Telescope in the Shed. The Observer Is Adjusting the Mirror by Means of the Theodolite Attached to It. TO RAISE SUNKEN VESSELS - THE BLAIRMORE WOULD HAVE BEEN QUIGKLY FLOATED WITH' THIS IMPORTANT DEVIGE INVENTED BY A : GHIGAGO MAN. : Had the invention of Charles Cum- mings of Chicago, IlL, been available a few months ago it would mot have been such a prodigious task to raise the sunken Blairmore. That is, of course, provided the idea works as well in practice as it does on paper. But really it is so simple there is absolutely no reason why it should not work. Ithas been tested and found to work to perfection on asmall scale. The Cummings apparatus is called by the inventor an “inflatable truse bag.” The principle on which it works is easily explained, Suppose a common tin can was opened and relieved of all its solid contents. Ifasmall hole was then made in the bottom, or it was forced beneath the surface of a barrel full of water, it would soon sink to the bottom. Nowsupe pose that & toy balloon, d' flated, and with several feet of hose, one end of which was made secure at the opening so thnat it could be *blown up’’ at will, was made fast to the tin can while it wason the bot- tom of the barrel of water. If at this point of the proceedings air was forced through the hose the bailoon would begin to expand. When enough air had been forced into it to displace ar amount of water corresponding to the weight of the tin can the balloon would rise to the top, of course bringing the tin can along with it. The apparatus for which Mr. Cummings has just received a patent consists of sev- eral bage made of strong material, and with ropes and chains for securing them to the sunken vessel. The size used de- pends altogether on the size of the vessel to be raised. These bags are deflated and made fast to the vessel by divers, Air is then pumped into them from the machinery on the wrecking steamer until enough water is displaced to cause them to rise to the sur- face and bring the vessel with them. The position in which these bags are placed depends altogether on how it is de- sired to raise the vessel. If the vessel is uninjured and on an even keel they could be fastened around the bulwarks, and when the vessel was above water she conld be towed to a drydock. If the vessei had a holein her bottom the bags could be placed on one side until she turned over. Others could then be placed at tha keel until she was bottom up. By placing other bags in the proper places the vessel could be raised to the surface in this position and the hole repaired. By expanding or deflating the bags on the sides the vessel can be moved in any position with the utmost ease. Mr., Cummings has received patents on all parts of his apparatus. The bags are made out of a very strong material and provided with straps that extend across from side to side, to give extra strength. The method of fastening these straps so that they will not tear through the bag is also petented. An ordinary airpump of large size, driven by a steam-engine, can be used, but instead of forcing the air directly into the truss bags it first pumps itinto a receiver, where it is under the control of the operator, who can inflate or deflate a bag at will. ————————— The Red Sea Miracle. The Red Bea miracle receives strong cor- roboration in the report of Major-General Tulloch, who made surveys in Egypt for the Government of Great Britain. On one occasion, while surveying the borders of Lake Menzalen, on the Red Sea, a sudden and violent siorm arose, the force of which | was so prodigious as to eerry everything before it, including, incidentally, the - water of the lake. In a few hours the whole body of water had been abducted and naught remained save vessels, mua and-sand. The vessels moored In the lake © were stranded high and dry. with no water, in sight. = Parts of Holland are from ten to thirty feet below the level of the sea. 4 NEW TO-DAY. From U.S. Journal of Medicine, Prof.W. H. Peeke, . ® who maKes a special- ty of Epilepsy, has s without doubt treat- ed and cured more cases than any living . A Physician ; ; his success ure is astonish- * ing. We have heard of cases of 20 years’ standing cured by him. - He publishes a valuable work on this disease, which he sends’ with a large bottle of his absolute cure, free to any sufferer who may send their P.O. and Express address. We advise anyone wishing a cure to address Prof. W.H.PEEKE, F.D.,4 Cedar St.,N.Y. 0.000QOO“Ei: SVITALTY M )y Restoreds 2ili & Strength in Old or 8 Young Men can_be QUICKLY and PERMA- NENTLY o y me| 10 8 healthy, vigorous state. Sufferers from| Nervous Debility Weakness Varicocele and all wasting diseases, 1Y should write to me for advice. EBDOBIPGHEH of 'ness in men, the fact is, I was o sullerer my- 3E. e Bashtcd to seek the aid of older en or Topatablo phy:. Isicians, I investigated fhasabject deeply and ¢ simyia y ik oss rerarial — on nken, st d man to //,flfl/////ln or S T cak ; jbontit. T take personnt 70 one need hesitats to me, as all communl- G ig Y cations are held strictly jconfidential. Isend the recipe of thisrem ¢ \ S S oo lh‘ou.‘nhlix‘{ll’r - ‘cost. Do not ‘."" but wrice mo fally st once, yon o day 3o did 80, A0 ress, gt e e o oesoy k. { CELT0B9 85t