WIRELESS DISCOVERY

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 84, 3 January 1920, Page 12

WIRELESS DISCOVERY

FRENCH SHIP MAKES TRIALS TESTING RECENT INVENTION A remarkable wireless, discovery, recently mado by a Frenchman, whose name lit present is withheld, is being tested by tho wireless expert, on board o the French war sloop Aldcbnran, now I lying in Auckland Harbour (stated the I "New Zoilimd Herald" of Wednesday's I date). Captain Ginuid, who is in com- 1 mand of the ship, gave an interesting < outline of tho scientific research work being: carried out. He stated that tho 1 Frenoh Government, acting on the ad- c vico of tho best -'experts in the country, had decided to • undertake a world-wide ' investigation into the wireless possibili- 1 ties of tho future. So far tho soheme I was being carried out by tho one ship, the Aldelmran, but shortly several others ! would bo sent- out oil tbos.amo mission, and it was anticipated that the inquiries would assume an international as- j pent of the widest possible naturo. | Captain Giraud explained that the j immediate concern of Lieutenant de | Vaissoau Guierre, who was superintend- j ing' the experiments, and who was tho ; pioneer investigator, was to meiusur© by j means of the new secret instrument ( and method the intensity of the reeep- j tibn of. French wireless messages in different parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. The oommander believed France was first'in tho' field, and cer- i tainly her equipment for tlie undertak- ■' ing was in advance of anything yet invented. Already they had made minute ' experiments in tho Indian Ocean and they proposed making even more exten- ; sive investigations in the Pacific. _ Twice daily wireless messages were being received from the important stations in France, such as those ut Lyons and j Nantes. The'instruments-on'board tho 1 ship were, of a specially delicate nature j and the rceults so far had been quite reniarkiiblo. While' Franco, was acting-ill tho mat- , ter partly for tho. sake of scientific research, sho had in view , tho'tabulating of the intensity of wireless reception . from French homo and colonial posts at ' various parts of the world. In . nil . probability the results would bo made public, so that they could be adapted to tho, use of other countries. Reference was mado to-a rumour, that the purpose of tho Aldebaran's visit to ' tho south was to establish p.. wireless station at Antipodes Island; which is a British -possession. Tho commander said be was amused at tho suggestion. His Government lmd certainly mentioned to the British Government its intention- to send tho ship to the vicinity of tlio island, but no experiments would be made there.' What was taking him thero was to make tests at'soa in tho vicinity of tho island,;the object being to ba as faraway' as possible, from certain stations, 'ihe nearest French post to Antipodes Island, ho remarked, was New Caledonia. . It was part of the scheme to develop tho French intercolonial set of stations, improving on the British typo if possible. The commander expressed his belief in the unqualified success of the expedition, aud stated that the results would rouse the greatest interest throughout the world whju thov becamo known. Ho expected to' return''to Auckland after his \isit further south, and anticipated making, this poi't his headquarters for a certain pc-riod. Tho whole tour is expected to, last two years, during which period thoy will inspect tho various French possessions in tho Pacific.