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Compiled by
John T. Ratzlaff







r-,
'~
.«
TESLA BOOK~,COMPANY
«,
<,
MILLBRAE, CALIFORNIA
1984



Published by

TESLA BOOK COMPANY
ll::Qn M",,,..,,..l';,,, 1\,...., ,..
"'"''' '~~' 'v .... '" , ... '"
Millbrae, California 94030










L'brar~ ot congress catalog car(l Number
83-72252
ISBN
n_olLL1,Q_nn_l

-..
copyr i qnt \SJ I Y~4
by
.lnhn T Ri'lt71 a f f
All rights reserved. Page vii ix

, CONTENTS

Acknowledgements Introduction

The Tesla Alternate Current Motor

requency

ormers

xpenmen s Alternate Current Motors

Electro-motors

Phenomena of Currents of High Frequency The "Drehstromll Patent

The Ewing High-Frequency Alternator and Parson's Steam Engine

On the Dissipation of the Electrical Energy of the Hertz Resonator

Mr. Tesla on Thermo Electricit

7

9

15 16 17 19 20 22

29

The Age of Electricity

Tesla's Latest Advances in Vacuum Tube Lighting Tesla on Animal Training by Electricity

My Submarine Destroyer

Letter to Editor

Tesla Describes His Efforts in Various Fields of Work

articles by noted scientists) A Striking Tesla Manifesto

Letter From Tesla (Refers to subway system) Electric Autos

iii

31 36 39 40 43 43

59

72 74 76

angers

7

Page

Furthering Peace

r

Edison

88

Signalling to Mars - A Problem of Electrical Engineering

92

m ng

94

Tesla's Wireless Torpedo

96

Ni(c)ola Tesla Objects

97

98

Mr. Tesla on the Wireless Transmission of Power

102

Sleep From Electricity

105

Possibilities of "Wirelessll

1 06

Tesla on Wireless

107

The Future of the Wireless Art

108

Nikola Tesla's Forecast for 1908

111

Mr. Tesla's Vision

112

Tesla on Aeroplanes

114

How to Signal Mars

115

What Science May Achieve This Year - New Mechancia1 Principle for the Conservation of Ener

119

Mr. Tesla on the Future

121

Nikola Tesla Plans to Keep IIWireless Thumb" on Ships at Sea

126

From Nikola Tesla (Tribute to George Westinghouse)

127

Patent Wrapper, Patent 1,329,559, Valvular Conduit

132

Wonders of the Future

161

, ,

Acceptance Speech on Receiving the Edison Medal

Famous Scientific Illusions

192

Page 200

Page 78

87 88 90

Tesla Answers Mr. Manierre and Further Explains the Axial Rotation of the Moon

The Moonls Rotation The Moonls Rotation

Nikola Tesla Tells How We May Fly Eight Miles High at 1,000 Miles an Hour

202 204 209

222

98 Mr. Tesla Speaks Out 227
102 Letter to Editor (On Marcon; IS feat) 229
103 On Future Motive Power 230
105 Dr. Tesla Writes of Various Phases of His Discovery 237
106 Statement of Tesla Relating to Force and Matter 238
107 Chewing Gum More Fatal Than Rum, Says Tes 1 a 239
108 Mr. Tesla Writes (Refers to J. P. Morgan) 243 250

114 115 119

121 121

Tesla Sees Evidence Radio and Light Are Sound Radio Power Will Revolutionize the World Tribute to King Alexander

German Cosmic Ray Theory Questioned

Nikola Tesla Tells How He Would Defend Ethiopia Against Italian Invasion Prepared Statement of Tesla (For interview with press on 81st

birthday observance)

161 165 167

190 192

Predicted by Dr. Tes1a on Birthday

Story of Youth Told by Age Mechanical Therapy

The New Tesla Electric Heater

Teslcls New System of Fluid Propulsion

258 261 267 268 269 272

276

281

283 286 288 289




ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

,
Burlingame Public Library, Burlingame, Calif.
California State Library, Sacramento, Ca 1 if.
Columbia University, Rare Book and Manuscript Library, New York City
Mechanics Institute Library, San Francisco, Calif.
San Mateo County Library, Belmont, Calif.
Smithsonian Institution, Oiv. of Electricity & Nuclear Energy, Washington, O. C.
Stanford University Libraries, Stanford. Cali f.

A. L. Lez, San Anselmo, Calif.
Thorn L. Mayes, Saratoga, Calif.
Mildred Ratzlaff Mi 11 brae. _C_a]_; f

EZectrioal WorZd Magazine
Soience News Magazine
.c:,..",r~n+",rf''J~{,> Am~Y''J'{'>nn Mi'lOi'l7;np
u ~









vii Tesla's own words; it is the most comprehensive single volume of Tesla's writings presently available. A period of over a quarter of a century has elapsed in gather-

Mr. Tesla speaks for himself and the reader is enabled to make first hand judg-

in chronological order and includes a wide range of interesting and important in-

of alternating current power ~eneratio~ and transmission, high frequency and high

world-wide technological growth. Power transmission in small and large quantities without wires included plans for transmission of sufficient energy to make a light

mining his credibility. In fact, there is now a systematic

our present space program.

ether therefore are significant and differ from It is unfortunate that one of the major hurdles in

lscoverles lS

His thoughts encompassed the widest possible range, extending from treatises on

1

application aimed at providing defense mechanisms to make war impossible.

, "

weight is today a commercial reality. At the time of development, successful demon-

strations b the inventor were well received onl in technical ·ournals and news

accounts.

The name of Nikola Tesla as a leader in the electrical fiEld was well recognized in this countr and abroad in the l890's and for a few ears after 1900. The rea-

sons for his fall into obscurity are numerous, but a major point that seems to be commonly overlooked is that a struggling inventor, several times on the verge of

tion of the true value of the Tesla alternating current motor and generator patents. The crash of 1901 was the most devastatin to Tesla and also to his backer J. P.

Morgan, and prevented completion of the Wardenclyffe, Long Island, installation.

It should be pointed out that Tesla was only complimentary of his financial backers.

It is intended that the information resented will help in clarifying many mis-

sing details and, for the first time, make available some of Tesla's basic thoughts and ideas in areas which are in need of further development for the benefit of

JTR

The EZ ctrical E ineer - Lo don

June 22, 1888. pp. 583-585

electrical literature is so great, and the subject is so important, that we do

the subject from Dr. Louis Duncan, of Johns Hopkins University, appeared in our American contemporary, the Electrical RevieW, to the effect:

in which the armature coils are unsymmetrical with respect to the poles, and which, therefore, give a practically constant torque, and alternating motors, in

W lC e arma ure COl s are symme rlca Wl respec 0 e po es, an w lC , therefore, give a torque varying both in magnit~d~ and sign during a period of

u ion through the armature circuit for a small angular displacement, multiplied by

depends

changes in the field currents; (2) the motion of the armature. The current deends on these E.M.F.ls, and on the reduced self-induction and resistance of its

circuit. The motor can only do work when the first cause of E.M.F. is the

,

tion of the motor, the output wil-l be a maximum. Now I Ithere is no difficult whatever attendant u on startin

I cannot reconcile this with the above facts. That the torque for a smaller

number of revolutions than ordinarily used, might be greater, one can readily see, since the counter E.M.F. is less in proportion to the induced E.M.F., but

. ..

to stop the motion; how the motor is to pass these critical speeds I do not see.

ai if he m ximum load is udd nl thrown on while the m or is r nnin at

its proper speed, then, if the inertia be great, the motor will fall behind its

point of maximum work, and either stop or take up some slower speed.

IIWhat the ossible efficienc and out ut of the motor rna be onl

will tell. I have shown* that the output of an ordinary alternating current

motor is equal to that of a continuous current motor, supplied with a corresponding

efficiency can hardly be very high.

to

simple though misleading assumptions ordinarily made, the ~Inst. EZec. Engineers, Feb., 1888.

, ,

determine its value, and on~ properly conducted and in!erpre!ed set of experi-

ossible form. I cannot see

issue of this journal the load as satisfactorily as

of a suddenly varying

To the above Mr. Tesla replied on June 2 as follows:

"As I see that Dr. Duncan has not as yet been made acquainted with the real

ious criticism, and would think it unnecessary to respond; but deSiring to express my consideration for hill1 and the importance which I attach to his opinion,

"The principle of action

understood

lng: y passlng a gising circuits in

which should exist in order to secure the most perfect action.

II

,

proper order to two independent circuits of an alternate current generator adapt-

ed for this e of the currents throu h the coils roduces

N

theoretically a rotation of the poles of the ring, and in actual practice, in a series of experiments, I have demonstrated !he ~omplete ~nalo~y ?etween such a

,

one designed for constant and the other for variable load. The misunderstanding of Dr. Duncan is due to the fact that the rominent features of each of these two

forms have not been specifically stated. In illustration of a representative of the second class, I refer to Fig. 1, given herewith. In this instance, the arm-

. . .

great number of dia-

currents will be most intense at or near the points of the greatest density of

those of the ring. Of course there will be other elements entering into action

unconsidered.

and the ring, a continuous rotary effort, conthe same as in a continuous current motor with

owe 0 urn, 1 W1 reinduced current dimin-

volve

rotation. If, instead of rotating the ring by mechanical power, the poles of the same are shifted by the action of the alternate currents in the two circuits, the

In the latter we

,

In view of the fact that these devices are entirely unessential to the operation, such alternate current s stem will - at least ;n man res ects - show a com lete

similarity with a continuous current system, and the motor will act precisely like

a con 1nuous current motor. e oa 1S augmente , t e spee 1S

the rotary effort correspondingly increased, as more current is made

.. .

, , , ,

and consequently the effort, ;s lessened. The effort, of course, is greatest when the armature is in the state of rest.

"

, ,

rent passing through the circuits when the motor is running without any load? one will naturall in uire. It must be remembered that we have'to deal with alternate

currents. In this form the motor simply represents a transformer. in which currents are induced by ~ ~ynamic.action in~tead of by reversals, and, as it might be ex-

,

as in a transformer, and. by observing it may be reduced to any

sired uantit. Moreover the current h the motor when runnin

is no measure for the energy absorbed, since the instruments indicate only the numerical sum of the direct and induced electromotive forces and currents inst~ad of

. .

"Regarding the other class of these motors, designed for constant speed, the objections of Dr. Duncan are, in a measure applicable to certain constructions, but

,

with a very light load; and, if so, they do not, when properly constructed, present

. .

bined in a motor, and any desired preponderance may be given to either one, and in this manner a motor may be obtained possessing any desired character and capable of

to Dr.

,

iod, and with an assiduity such as only a deep interest in the invention could in-

vestigation, I do not wish to claim any other merit beyond that of having invented it, and I leave it to men more competent than myself to determine the true laws of

4

vestigations will be the future will tell; but whatever they may be, and to whatever this principle may lead, I shall be sufficiently recompensed if later it will

be admitted that I have contributed a share, however small, to the advancement of

sClence.

May 25, 1889, pp. 297-298.

the American In-

ternate curnever fail to

,

ican generosity, for which, on my part, I am ever thankful, a great deal of praise throu h the columns of our esteemed a er and other 'ourna1s has been bestowed

upon the originator of the idea, in itself insignificant. At that time it was im-

possible for me to bring before the Institute other results in the same line of thought. Moreover, I did not think it probable - considering the novelty of the

. ... .

one of the most curious coincidences, however, Professor Ferraris not only came '

. "

the discovery of the principle exclusively my own, I have been excessively pleased tO,see my views, which I had formed and carried out long be!ore',c?nfirmed by this

, ,

whom, ever since the knowledge of the facts has reached me, I have entertained

. ,

which have later been indicated by 0, B. Shallenberger, who some time before the publication of the results obtained by Prof. Ferraris and myself had utilized the

'nc' ,

at a still later period by Prof. Elihu Thomson and Mr. M. J. Wightman.

,

fecting has been carried on indefatigably with all the intelligent help and means

in every direction. It;s therefore not surprising that many fact, in expressing their views as to the results obtained,

find a communication from the electricians of Ganz & to certain results observed in recent experiments with

say ln regar 0 gentlemen on any

. ..

issue of Electrical WorZd.

5

erroneous views are indorsed and some radically false assertions made, which, though

ial interests.

, ,

time ago. The main stress being laid upon the proposition between the apparent and

dir on he ratio of th ener a a-

ently supplied to, and the real energy developed by, the motor, I will here submit, with to your readers, the results respectively arrived at by these

Ratio of energy

supplied in watts. watts.
Ganz & Westing- Ganz & Westing-
Co. house Co. Co. house Co.
18,000 21 ,840 11 ,000 17,595
, ,
...... 56,800 . ..... 48,675
...... 79,100 . ..... 67,365 to the real energy

Ganz & Co.

Westinghouse Co.

0.611

0.805

0.856

0.851

we compare t ese 19ures we Wl ln a

Co's motor is 0.761, whereas in the Westinghouse,

, ,

withstanding this, the conditions of the test were not such as to warrant the best ossible results.

better determined by a proper construction of the motor and observance of certain conditions. In fact, with such a motor a current re ulation may be obtained which,

for all practical purposes, is as good as that of the direct current motors, and the only disadvantage, if it be one, is that when the motor is running without load

3,000 90 h.

certainly not very much for a machine capable of developing the amount could have been reduced ver likel

watts

lustrated best by the following experiment performed with this motor. The motor was run empty, and a load of about 200 h. p., far exceeding the normal load, was

rown n u en for an instant, the belts slipping over the pulleys, whereupon both came up to the

. .

being sufficient, I have been enabled to throw on a load exceeding 8 to 9 times that which the motor was designed to carry, without affecting the speed in the

6

This will be easily understood from the manner in which the current regulation

1S effecte. Assum1ng the motor to be runn1ng w1thout any load, the poles of the armature and field have a certain relative position which is that of the highest

ished and more current passed through the stationary or movable armature-coils. This re ulation is ver different from that of a direct current motor. In the lat-

ter the current is varied by the motor losing a certain number of revolutions in proportion to the load, and the regulation would be impossible if the speed would

tical impossibility to throw such a motor out of synchronism, as the whole work must be done in an instant it bein evident that if the load is not sufficient to

make a motor lose a fraction of the first revolution it will not be able to do so in the succeeding revolutions. As to the efficiency of these motors, it is per-

•

The results above given were obtained on a three-wire system. The same motor has been started and operated on two wires in a variety of ways, and although it

,

60 h. p. it gave results practically the same as those above-mentioned. In fair-

not make due allowance for this difference, as the diameter of the armature other particulars of the Ganz & Co. motor were not given.

The motor tested had a weight of about 5,000 lbs. From this it will be seen that the performance even on two wires was quite equal to that of the best direct current

, ,

start and was capable of starting under fair load.

Finally, in order to refute various

e ore1gn papers, W1 a eel

tics the fact that since the discovery

. .

special kind of work, so that while one may be preferable on account of its ideal sim licit another mi ht be more efficient. It is evidently impossible to unite

all imaginable advantages in one form, and it is equally unfair and unreasonable to

JU ge a 1 eren orms accor 1ng a a common s an ar. 1C orm 0 e eX1S - ing motors is ~est, time wi~l show; but.even in,the present state of the art we are

Nikola Tesla

The EZectrical Engineer - N. Y.

prl , p.

THE LOSSES DUE TO HYSTERESIS IN TRANSFORMERS.

recent meeting of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers on the subject of hysteresis you make the statement: "It;s this constancy of relation that, as Mr.

es a pOlnte out may u t1mate y esta lsh the correctness 0 the hypot eS1S

advanced, that in reality there is.no loss due to hysteresis, and that the ~hanges

I do not recollect having made such a statement, and as I was evidently misunder-

,

press the idea I meant to advance:

formers, by Fleming, static hysteresis is explained by supposing that lithe magnetic molecules or molecular ma nets, the arran ement of which constitutes ma netization,

move stiffly, and the dissipation of energy is the work done in making the necessary magnetic displacement against a sort of magnetic friction." Commonly it is

Now it is difficult to reconcile these views with our present notions on the

gether by anything but elastic forces, since they are separated by an intervening

. ... ,.

ecules out of their original position an equivalent amount of energy should be restored by the molecules reassuming their original positions, as we know ;s the case

. . .

energy should be wasted by the elastically connected molecules swinging back and

. . .

The losses cannot be attributed to mere displacement, as this would necessitate

the supposition that the molecules are connected rigidly, which is quite unthinkable.

than on the ascent.fo~ t~e ~ame values of magn~tizing force s~rongly points to.the

in the molecules individually or in groups of them through the space intervening.

constant.

1ncrease 0 prlmary an secon ary curren 1S not sufficiently expressive, for not only is

mass - must be in amount proportionate to the difference of the inductive effect of the primary and secondary, since both currents add algebraically - the ratio of

windings duly considered, - and as this difference is constant the loss, if wholly

8

, .

formers under consideration, that is, those with a closed magnetic circuit, and I

erally it will be the more pronounced the closer their inductive relation.

the electromotive force. Again this ought to be so, for an increased electromotive force causes a proportionately 1ncreased current which, in accordance with the abov!

Certainly, to account for all the phenomena of hysteresis, effects of mechanical vibration, the behavior of steel and nickel alloy, etc., a number of suppositions

u can, no e assume a, or ins ance, ln e ca e 0 s ee am

the dissipation of energy is modified by the modified resistance; and

the particles of which it is composed.

New York City

to reduce the weight of the iron core to one-tenth and subject every unit length of the same to the same magneto.

o iva r I hi her a neto-motive force is used tho

" . .

since, according to him, the wires are of larger section, his

transformer can hardly be an improvement ill that direction,

.. ., ..

9

magnetic circuit. In this case tho amount of iron and coper would remain the same but an advantaee will he

The Eleotrical Engineer - N. Y.

gained as the total magnetic resistance will be d.lrnl!IIS 1(, • The foul' transformers will now demand less excitauou and since--r nder otherwise e ual eondit.ions-c-the ain de xmds

that the cor~ of such open circuit transformer should be very short, by far shorter than it appears from the cut in

SWINBURNE'S" HEDGEHOG" TRANSFORMER.

NI TESL •

on transformers which have elicited eome comment, In THE ELROTRlCAL ENGINEER of ~ept. 10. there ·are brought

out furthe r 0 h is •.

sistancc, which bas little to do with efficiency. If (\ ring be made Of, say, 10 centimetres mean length and 10 square

. .... _.

he calls it, "hedgehog" transformer, claiming for this type a ~igh?r average efficiency than !s attaina~le with the

the primary and secondary wires, it will be found that it ~iIl give the best r?8ul~ with a certain number o_f altc~na-

centimetres section It WI gIve agaul t e est, resu tWIt the same number of alternatiom, and the efficiency will be tho same as before, rovided that tho rin jK wound all ovr-r

WIth the primary and secondary wires. e spa-ce ms: l~ of the ring will, in thQ SeC?nd case, he increas~d In pro}~o~. tion to the s uare of the diameter and there WIll bc no (hili"

mates, and perhaps Mr. Swinburne would be very much embarassed to ci~e nam~!r on. behalf of his ~rg~meDt. lIe

capacity made, as long as the ring is completely

by the pri~ary ann 8econ~ary wir~B. .'

diameter will give a. better result, and the same will he the ea,se if a certain fraction .of the ring is not covered by

enclose the transformer in a casting, if suoh a ring be made, it would have to be protected with a layer of laminated . . . h·

inclosed in jars of some insulating material, :18 Mr. Swin-

burne. does, hut. this is less practicable. .

is under one per cent. of the full load, while in the closed circuit forms, i~ is, according,to bim,.l0 per cent. It

b' !

regnlatioll. Mr. Swinburne states that in his transformer

the loss in iron is under one per cent. o~ the full Ioad ; all

dispensed with altogether. 1\11'. Swinburne docs not appreciate fully the disadvantapes whi~h the open circuit form,

, .

in the iron should be reduced to one-tenth it is necessar

besldes it

increases the resistance of the wires by a

where 8 is the total oross-sectiou of the core and 81 the section of the 'iron wires. There is one important point

. , .

loss in the core will-within certain limits, at least--he proportionate to tho square· of the magneto-motive

r , , • I l' e " . f t11 iron

F. > F. If the iron of the open circuit form is made up in s closed ring the advantage will be at once apparent, for, since 'the ruagnetic resistance will bo much reduced, the magneto-motive force required will be co-rospondmgly

stnternents

1'!11J3 er. If> pro a e rat, say, our win urn 1'< 1\>1-

, formers may be joined in such a way as to form a. closed

I

344

THE ELECTRICAL ENGINEER.

[Sept. 2., 1890.

Notice to Correlpondente.

PITTSBURGH.

w~ 00 Me hold cmr8elv68 J;e.<pon.f!b!e or the optnionl of our correspondmU.

The Editor respectfully requests that all communication.! may be drawn up as brl<ftll an(l as muck to tne point as possible.

In order to J"acUitate r~erence, correspondents, IOMn r(ferring to any letf~ pre»; oll$lV inserted will oolige bV rnmiioning the aerial nu~r oJ /luck leiter, alill oJ

An Elelltrlo Pro. ell ~or Jl[llkl_DJI: .~ Wrought" Iron-RegulatlDg the WIre ••

puddlingisiOM:'9f' the',discoveries made by, Dr. Emmens, of Grt'ensburg,'nenrthis.'city., Thedoctor accomplishes his object. with the aid of electricity. He takes _n. vat which is filled with a

" ,

SUlCI_and d1'fJwings for uiustrauon« 8MuJd be on 8tpnrate pUcu Q/ paper.

AU communtcaiion8 sil.oulc! II" nddre8aea EDITOR 01' 'fa>: EI.£CTRlO.a.L i!;HoIHlllln. 100 Broaawa7l, New rork cuu.

umns o' your esteemed journal a few words ill regard to an art icle which appeared in Industries of August 22, to which my attention has been called. In this article an attem t is made to criticise

some of my inventions, notably those which you have described in your issue of August 6, 1890.

The writer begins by stati~g: "T~~ motor ~ep~nds on.8. shift-

surprised mo to learn that 11 r. ,"Vright h'as not yet employed the principle in his meter, considering what, before its appearance, was known of m work on motors, and more articularl of that

of Schallenberger on meters, It has cost me years of thought to arrive at certain results, by many believed to be unattainable, Cor which. ther.e are now Dl~loerou8 claimants. and t!10 num ber-of these

more in the fino iron wire until finally the same becomes saturated, or nearly so, when the shielding action of the iron wire ceases and free poles appear at the ends of the Cour protected

cores. e -er oct 0 e Iron wire, as wi e seen, IS two- 0 • First it retards the energizing current; and second, it delays the appe~nmce of the freo poles. To produce a still greater difference

. . . ,

railway is the invention of E. M. Turner, of Texas, and is an elevated electric railway having only one rail. A motor car propelled by a one h. p.' Sprague electric motor iii now in operation

iron wire is preferably wuund or ~onnected ditfe'rentially, ~fter the fashion of the resistance coils in a. bridge, so as to have no apreelable self-induction. In other cases I obtain tho desired re-

It e ex POSt Ion. , '

TbE' McKee street railway syndicate have closed a contract with .the' Short Electric Railway Company for 1,000 motors, This

tardation in t e appearance of t ie ree po es on one Bet 0 cores by a magnetic shunt, which produces a greater retardation oC the current and takes up at the start a certain nu~ber ot: th~ ,linos ~et

. . ,

A primary conductor is surrounded with a fine layer of laminated iron consisting of fine iron wire or plates properly insulated and intc~u ted. As Ion as the current in 'the rimar conductor is

so small that the iron enclosure can carry al the lines of force Bct up by the current. there is very little action exerted upon a seeondary conductor placed in vicinity to the first; but just as soon as the iron enclosure becomes saturated, or nearly so, it loses the virtue of prot~cting the. secondary and the inducing actio~ of the

• • I

the change being made merely to quiet a general dissatisfaction _hl"h h<l" A.,..I"t"rl ..;n,.... 'Mr, 1I.f"t1""'k',, Annointmpnt OYi'r A. VAlI,r

with the" old f~l1ncy of IIdreening?'" .,

"tXTah n ........... o.~n. ",h';cul'h::;n "1:11 Dottr_t-h 0 iO.nntn~l"nti(\n t"f u:rhi",h wnnld

I I

nections left undisturbed. The armatures of the generator" may, be rewound, whereby the output of the machines will be increased' about 35 per cent., or even more in machines with cast iron Held magnets. If"the machines are worked at the same capacity, this means an increased efficiency. If power is available at the station,

lead me too far-an arrangement was shown in THE ELEOTRIOAL of a direct current motor. If, on the oontx:ary, the arma-

. .. . ~ " .

speed, two-pole mnchines will give the best results-e-is wound with two circuits, a motor is at once obtained which posscsaea surficient ~o~que t<,> start under considerable load; it runs in ~bsolute

laminated iron is wound with a secondary. It is then encase: in iron laminated in the wrong direction and the primary is wound outside of this. The layer of iron .between the prhnary and sec-

you or that." "Dut, sir," retorted the "they hare

imprisoned me," It may not screen, in the opinion of the writer in Industrie8,. bU,t just the same it does. According,to tho arrang-e-

ternating system, I am of an opinion quite contrary to that of the author of the article in Industries, and think that it can fIuite successf.ully stand the competition of any di~ect cu~ent system,

same, therefore, so fa; a~ its quaiity of screening 'i~ conc~rDed,

, . ,s .e ra 10 wou

want considera Ie information about the time lag in the magnetization of the different parts of n core, and an explanation

wh in the transformer he refers to he re .

in the. wrong direction. etc.-but the elucidation of all these points would require more time than I am able to devote to the Bu~ject, It. is distressing to find all this in the

, is no object in using them, as a direct current motor can be run instead with advantage."

No .man of broad views will feel certain of the success

to be cheap, and the cardinal requirements are then the reduction of the cost of the 'leads, cheapness of construction and mainte- . nance of machinery and c~:)Ostant speed of the motors. Suppose

plated with the object of running lights or other devices at constant potential. It is true that the condition may be bettered by employing proper regulating devices, but these will only further complicate the already complex system, and in all probability fail to secure such erfection : as will be desired. In usin an

t e gam III current may e use In mo or". o~~ W. 10 0 jeo 0 the third wire, may remember that the old two-wire direct system is almost entirely superseded by the three-wire system, yet Illy

o mary smg O-:CU'CULt a ternato current motor the disadvantage is that the motor hag no starting torque and that, for equal weight, its output and efficiency are mora or less below that

346

[Sept. 24, 1890.

THE E L E CT R J CAL ,EN GIN E E R.

greater advantages, than the three-wire direct possesses over the two-wire. Perhaps, if the writer in I1ldu8tries would have taken all this in consideration he would have boon less hast in: his

BRUSH ELECTRIC CO. VS: SPRAGUE ELEC. R'Y Be MOTOR CO.

conclusions. NIKOLA TESLA.

transpires that arrangements have been made between George Westinghouse, Jr., of Pittsburgh,' and George M. Pullman, of Chicago. by which ~he Westinghouse Electric Mf . Cornpan will

fit Pullman. Ill., and the agreement reached, it is understood, i~ that the Pullman company will purchase all of their electric railwa motors from the \Vt'8tingholltle concern. The works to be

DIVIDENDS.

TilE EDISON GENEHAL ELECTRIC Co. has declared its fourth quarterly dividend of.2 per cent.

TELEGRAPHY DURING THE COMMUNE.

One of the first things to be done after the recent disastrous

'" om an was

OCKS AND BONDS.

QUOTATIONS ON ELECTRICAL STOCKS.

?tIr. F. Z. lIIaguire, Electrical Securities of 18 Wall street this city, reports the following quotations of September 19th from New York, Boston and Waslungton :-

(;"ntl. .£ 1:\0. Anlt'r .•.... :::

l\ltoxicn.n. .. .• .. . .•

COllI. L~lIl~ Co .•.•...• '"

l'""tal Tel, Cable .

NEW YORK.

nrn,

l"H~:-;OL'lt ~:l~~c. Lt. CI..) :::'.'

":<li"", IUn'go Cu. N. Y, .

U. 8. El"c. Lt. Co .

~1JI'rh AIH. Phouo ra h .

DID.

00

35 so

~d!son Gen. Elec. Co .....

BOSTON.

lllD.

Trop. Amcl'j";'D :::::: :::::

Edison Pnon' )h Doll .....

DID.

ouston .

l'ref'd .

" Setjc~ C .••••

.. IJ .....

Ft. Wayne Co .

Am. llell ..

J~rle ..••.••.•.•••..•••.•.•.

New Jt:ngla.nd ••••.•••.•...

"

Thomson Weldillg Co .

'I'horuson Eu. W elding ..

WASHINGTON.

which are insulated from one another and connected to the leads, current being obtained by two. rubbing contacts attached. to the

Peuna. Telephone .....••.•

Che~. & Pot. Telephone .

AIl1l'r Oral'hophoDe .

BID.

U. S. Elec. Lt. (Wa.qh) ..... E<:k. & Sold. IIome

Elcc. Hy .

JIlD.

..

ment to be raised and lowered without difficulty and without interrupting the observations. The erygmatoscope as at present arranged gives excellent results down to a depth of over 600 feet, and with a more powerful lamp it could be used at still greater

. .•. ]I m-

25 71 ]6~

170 68

PITTSBURGH.

Westlnghouae Electric and MlIlluractqriDg Co ..

bique coast by th~ Portugues,: government, to 8~arch . for coal beds a.nd other jnmeral deposits, has been suppliediwith eryg·

matoecopes, .

BW. 37.

THE ELECTRI(ZA,~ ENGINEE·R.

BY·

doubt that it is simply a question of power. .A very sbort ar~ m,ay be silent 'Yith l~,OOO pe: second, but jus~ as ~oon

OF iUGH FREQUENGY.

the same ine, I was not quite unprepared to ear this, as a letter from. h~m ~as app'eare~ in the Electrician a few

"

machine which was capable of giving, I believe, 5,000 al. quency would possess this and other desirable features.

ternat~0~8 per .sec~nd. from which_Ietter it likewise appears ,One?f my objects in this ~irection has been to produce a

gas whtmthe ',bulb was immersed in water, "rendered slightly conducting by salt dissolved therein," (?) and a otential of 1 000 volts alternatin 5 000 time a second a -

plied to the oarbon strip. Similar exp.eriments have, of

date.

Prof. Thomson describes an experiment with a bulb' encloaing a .carbon filament which was brought to iucandes, cence b the bo bardment of the molecules of the residual

second, conduction still takes place, but the condenser effect is prepo~derating. It goes, of course,. wit~Ol~t saying that

lights are operated and the resistance is small, the lamps are unsteady, unless a type of lamp is ~mploy~d in which

the bombardment of the .molecules, partly also to leakage or conduction, butit is an undeniable fact th~t the glass

further influence upon the' feed, the feeding being effected by oan independent mech~nism; but even in this case t.be

xperrments 0 .t e 10

for a long time with some practical objects in view. In connection with the experiment described by Prof. Thorn-

wou 19 t up w en rong neal" to an 111 11cll011 COl, and that. it could be held in the hand and the filament brought to incandescence,

I have used in my experiments, one may see the dull red fiIa?lent, 'mr~ounded by. II very luminous 'globe. around

,

since resistance is loss, we can advantageously replace resistance in the machine by an equivalent imp~!ienc~. BIlt.

lamp If a lamp be.immersed.in water as far as practicable and the filament and the vessel connected to the tormi-

. ' ,

it is necessarv to have self-induction and variation of ' current, and the greater the self-indu?tion and the rate of change

may alao be due to a. " dark space;" at any rate it is so pretty that it must he seen to be appreciated.

Prof, 'I'homson has misunderstood m statement about

,

while the ohmic resistance rna be vel' small. It rna

also be remarked that the impedeuee of the CIrcuit external to the machine is likewise increased. As re¥aJ·ds the increase in ohmic resistance in conse uence ot the

William Thomson. There was absolutely no stress laid on the precise Dumber. The popular belief was that some-

variation of the current, the same is, in the commercial machines now in me, very small. Clearly then a great advanta e is ained b irovidin self induction in the rna-

the limit of audition. I was perfectly well aware of the bet that opinions differ widely on this point. Nor was I sur rised to find that arcs of about 10 ()OO im ulses ier sec-

ond.ernit a sound, My statement" the curious point is," etc.

. ... .. .. .,.

, ,

by one which has no more than 2 or 3 ohms, and the light!! wil~ work even s~eadier: I~ seems t~ me therefore, that ~y

~)g ie, 0, 011, I , 0, ;

at, the utmost was the limit. FOI' my argument this was immaterial. I contended that sounds of an incomparably greater number, tba~ is, many times even the high;st num-

s Y f 0 0 06 d Wh . '11

success 0 an arc system IS justi e . at IS stl more

important, such a machine will cost considerably less. But to realize. fully, the benefits, it is preferable to employ an

ine i thi Be r r r

cient.power, My'statement was only speculative, but I ha,Y-8 devised mea,ns which I. think may allow me to, .Iearn

change in the current is obtainable. J nst what the ratio of resistance to impedence is in the Brush and Thomson

of lamps; among them being a derived circuit lamp such as Prof. Thomson refers to. I conceived the idea of such

poles, from which it is possible to obtain about 30,000 alternations per second, and perhaps more. I have also

WRIGHT AND

in fact, I think that theydo not at all lamp.

TOE accompanying illustration represents a device for which the inventol'~, Messrs. Thomas F. \Vright and ~d.

Charles F. Brush on these points.

Prof. Thomson states that he has

simply augmented the irnpedence and prevented the great variations, occurring at large time intervals, which take

WRIGOT :AND 'WILSON'S INDUCTIO'N PREVEl'."TER.

provided wi a central projectim . t and within the ear.

on. are transmitted th

rna . ce himself easil

holding a thin plate of nst the magnet.

, In regard to the physiological effects of the' currents I may state that upon reading the memorable lecture of Sir William Thomson, in, which he advanced his views on the

wou with a coil

driven into the spool, while the free end terminates irnrm diately in front of, hut out of contact with, the diaphragi

of the tele receive)'.

occurred to me that currents o high frequenhp lAAR in;nr101lR. 1 have been lookinz for a

hook attached to the casing whic upon the end of the receiver.


The Electrical Engineer - London
April 3,1891,p. 345
ALTERNATE CURRENT MOTORS
c.;", T~ " ... IV> ';C'C' ''''' ,....~ M",,,..,..h c:. T ~;nrl +h,... n::>r-c-"'n rv » "M", V:>nn rl ...... "" .; ,.I . ~ ~ ~
• JV~ ~~~ ,~w v. '~v '~t'~~~~:::J'-' •• '~t't' ~~.J'- ..,~u <- ,e; !-,el':>
ition as it ax i s t.s He showed how Ferraris first of _all _noin_t_e_d__n_u_t___tbe_ r i nh+ wa v
to get an alternating-current motor that was self-starting, and how Tesla and others
had worked in the direction indicated by Ferraris," etc.
I would be very glad to learn how Mr. Kapp succeeded in showing this. I may call
his attention to the fact that the date of filing of my American patent anticipates
the publlcatlon of the results of Prot. Ferrarls ln Italy by something like SlX
montns , i ne cate o r Tiling o r my afJ~lication is, tnere ror'e , we Til~St putrrtc record
of the invention. Considering this fact, it seems to me that it would be desireable
+ha+ MY' k'ilnn c hrru l rl mo d i f v hi, ,trih:>mpnt _ Vnllrc: ptr
J ,
NIKOLA TESLA
1\1"\,, v"V'v 17+h M;IV,,...h 1 QQl
, , . , .

possibility of using a properly-constructed generator, which is, the only way of obtaining t~c required difference of phase

16

Review - London

Electro-motnrs,

b~ )

n motor could not he operated without the IlSC of brushes and COmm!ltutOI'!!, or mcchunioal tneans of 801 lie ,kind for corn-

Fifteen or sixteen

Arter years of persistent thought J fi nally arrived at 1\ solution. I worked out th? theory to, tile hu;t detail, and

, -

Recogniflillr" the value of the invention, I aprJ ied myself to the work 0 perfecting it, and ~rtcr long continued labour I

when scientific and practical men alike considered thif! result unattainable. In a!l civilised countries patents have t~;en

"

Ie nove y 0 e mven Ion. Ie Irs pll I~ IC( C:~S:lJ'-

an account of some laboratory experiments by Prof. Ferraris -waH published in Italy six or Beven months after the date

o tng 0 my applications or t e oun ution patents. I he date of filing of my patents is thus the first public record of the invention. Yet in our issue of !liarel! 6th I read the

acknow-

assage : "For several years past, from the days of Prof.

:'t .,. •• •

,

having been the first to produce a practical rnotor , for Prof. I:erraris himself den.ies, in his c;say the v alue o~ the invert-

sidcrablc losses, the cost of the condensers not considered, Thus, in ~he most essential fea_tur~ of th? sY,st~m-the

'" ,

the three-wire system, the closed coil armature, the motors

with direct current in the field, &c,-I w?uld stand alone,

aro.

As regards the most; practicable form of two-wire motor, n,amC,ly, one with a single encrgising cin:nit and i~duc;xi

stand alone,

'Most of these (ncts~ if not nil, nrc perfectly well known. in

vorxc 10 t c irection In ica y rof. crraris, and in your issue above referred to it seems. I am called an imitator.

Now, I ask you where is that world-known English fairness? I am Il pioneer, and I am culled an imitator. I am not an imitator. I produce original work or none at all.

New York, J[nrch vut; IS!)},

April 8, 1891.]

THE ELECTRICAL ENGINEER.

425

in your issue of April 1, although I dislike very much to engage in a prolonged controversy. I would gladly let Prof. Thomson have the last word, were it not that some of his statements render

have misunderstood his 8tate~~nt about the limit of audition. He says that 10,000 to 20,000 alternations correspond to 5,000 to IO,O()O;ornplete waves of Bound. In my first re I to Prof.

, i your Issue 0 arc 18,) I avoided

pointing out directly that Prof, Thomson was mistaken, but now I Hee no way nut of it. Prof. Thomson will pardon me if I call his attention to the fact he seems to disregard, namely, that 10,00U to 20,IJOO alternations of current in an arc-which was the subject

under discusai ~

~nJI(>() complete waves of sound.

He ~a~'" that I have adopted or suggested fiR the limit of rl1.lliitil)u

NIKOLA TESLA.

the statement beginning; "In tho communication from Mr. Swinburne a few days after the publishing of my articl.o, Mr. Swinburne, etc." It should read us follows: "In a communication

, '.

realize fully the ben~fits of the

current the release

to the classification of the subjects treated.

I have pointed out before.

. In regard to the physiological effects, Prof. Thomson says, that in sll~h ~ comparatively poor conductive material as ani';llal tis~ue

advances made, and does' not burden the reader with It long and profitless review of what has been done during the last fifty years, Th,e book is a~mira!)ly printed and illustrated, and the nutl,lOr has

enterprise

NIIW YORII;, ApriJ4, 1891.

r» I per CPU .:

allowing that this 40 percent. is correct, the com parative leakage current in the open and 'dosed types of transformers is approxl-

matel '10 to 1." WM. fiTANJ.~:Y .ru.

TIle Elenymts of Dynamic Electricity and Magnetism: By Philip Atkinson, A. M., Ph. D. New York: D. Van Nostrand Co"

.x' es; a s, '

l'J'l'TSFIELD, l\fASB.

While there is no lack of books on the elements of electricity and mag~etism, there has of late arisen a demand for a c1as~ of

been made to demonstrate tile posaihility of tranamiuting l'lt;ctric;~l energy between Lauffen and Frankfort, in which potentials of ?ve,r 30,000 volts '_Vere employed. These experi~enls app .. ared to

it. The relation of electricity to light forms the subject matter of Chapter XI, in which the various phenomena of the effects of light _on ~elenium are described, together with the map-neto-optic

parall~1 conduc~rs at 26,000 watts, then we come to the condu:

s" ,

will get in Frankfort about 37 h. p.

"'fhere must he taken into account still further, about 6,000 uare metres of condensin surface of the conductors and insu-

and the telephone, to each of which a chapter is devoted, end the volume.

While we are not prepared to agree entirely with all the views expressed by the author, especially on points of theory, the present unsettled state of the latter mizht be easily made to

lators. .1 have measured the sparking distance with 20,OOv volts alternating current at 100 reversals per second, without any condenser, and found it to be 46 mrn.; and when a condenser of 15 sq. mm. surface was included, the sparking distance WIlS more than 80 mm.; but how gr~at the sparking distance is with 0,000 s'l'mr"

ac oun or rvergences, we maya so J a owe 0 sug , we think that the work in further editions, which will undoubtedly be called for, might be improved by a more rigiJ adherence

til; b.l.i3 'of thes s 'truth3 il; i; ~c\3il; seen thlt the whole pro "j~~t i3 a technical Impossibility,"

e

The Electrical World - N. Y. Oct. 8, 1892, p. 222.

The If Drehstrom" Patent,

WORLD I find an

article on my "Drehstrom ,,' patent which appeared originally in InduBtries, and is, I believe, f'rom the pen .of the

are such as to cause an erroneous opmion to gain ground, which T deem it my duty to prevent=-a disagreeable one I

no matter what theory is adhered to. The writer says that in the case of two separate structures there is really nothing

. '...

, ' ,

such thing, when the two structures are merged in one? Is

it not in accordance with' accepted notions to conceive the imaginary lines as' surging simply in the ole ro iections in exact! the same manner

in both the arrangements? Irrespective of the view taken, be it even the more unfair to the invent Dr, no one

. .

,

especially if it is my own.

It may be, as the writer states, that the theory of the action- of my motor advanced in my paper before the American Institute in lIa 1888 is a clums one, but this

such 8 case, for theories and interpretations of his mven-

tion. heories may come an go, ut e mo Dr ~Dr ,a practical result is achieved and the art is advanced through his pains and efforts, But what I desire 'to point out.

theory was formed by me a number of years before the practical results were announced, the patents being applied f 1 r i w und ubtedl demonstrated that the

motor could fairly compete in efficiency with the direct

curren mo or, an a e mven Ion was one 0 com mer('131 value. These patents were taken out with the help of some of the ablest attorneys, in the United States, well

principally is that in the article above referred to the writer is only assuming a case wbich cannot occur. He is evPently iud in the state of thin s from m short a er before the

Institute, and 1 was even to those features

unable to do full . justice upon' .wbioh, as employe of

versed in electrical matters; the specifications were drawn up with great care, in view of the importance of the invention, and witb ro er regard to the state of ' the art at that

period, and had the patents been carefully studied hy

, .

system reinvented, and several inventors. would have been spared at this late date a ben disappointment.

of the motor, the invention is not represented as dependent entirely on that theory; and in showing a three phase

. . .. .. .

men, and it does not require much technical knowledge to convince one that it is the same whether two belts driving

think that it is necessary for the honorable judge to be a partisan of the armature reaction theory in order to recog'yo

,

consistent with the accepted popular ideas to assume the "lines of force" as simply surging in the projecting pole

"The variations in the strength and intensity of the currents transmitted through these circuits (lines and arma-

ily progressive shifting of tlw·r(,81litCl11t uttrudit,€ force exerted by the poles upon the armature and consequently

. '." ..

, ,

. stance, no uestion of a rotatin field in the common ac.

ously doubt the sincerity of a man capable of clear conceptions were he to uphold that the arrangements

ceptance of the term or the 'resultant attractive force; there is a question simply of a diagram of force, and it is immaterial for the 0 oration whether 'the fields are close

stand exactly aa he assumes by way of illustration of " puzzles likely to arise." For where is there a difference?

-

are two sets of field 11J1I~ nets, one at the neutral parts of

the ot lu-r, One of tile sets, therefore, might a;; well he removed and placed a distance sideways, but long exper ience shows that in out ut efficienc cost of construction

and in ),!;enerai mcchunical respects such an arrangement is inferior. The two sets are connected induct ively through

together or far apart, or even whether, or not, they are inductively connected.

is proverbially strict in upholding the rights of the in-

ventor, an legitimate an unfair appropriation 0 the invention by others will be tolerated by the courts.

Reprinted with Permission.

from Oct. 8, 1892, of

Reprinted Electrical

tmg up III uction curren s, w c ClrCI! a e In t ie e of force of the other set, which may be looked upon as a motor. Part' of the period again, the second set be-

comes the generator and the first the motor, the action being at the same time such that the generated currents are alwa sassed in a definite direction with res ect to the

field;' they are commutated as it were, and a tendency to

. . . . ..

Now place two fields side by side and connect properly. the armature windings. Are not the fields again inductively

connee e cause currents to circulate in the other, and is the action not exactly the same in both cases? This is a fact,

20

ec rician - Dec. 17, 1892, p , 391.

In your issue of November 18 I find a alternator, which has pleased me chiefly

. .

, , ,

erties of high-:requency currents. With

Ewing's merit if I state the fact that for a considerable time past I have likewise thought of combining the identical steam turbine with a high-frequency alternator.

,

and had my attention not been drawn in a different direction. As to the combination

advantages

ine used in my recent experiments the weight of the active parts is less than 50

,

ether hand, it is impossible to work with a very small clearance.

poles.

iron and vary the induction around that point. But I found that with a very great number of pole projections such a machine would not give good results, although

ability, and also specific inductive capacity, must undergo considerable change when the frequen~y i~ varied within wid~ l~m;ts. Th~s would render very d~ff;cult

of magnetization, and of that in con~uctors and con~ensers, b~ very guick.rev~rs~ls

inations. The results of Prof. Ewing's systematical research will be awaited with great interest.

It is gratifying to note from his tests that the turbines are being rapidly im-

proved. I am aware that the majority of engineers do not favor their adop-

,

motors, by means of which it is easy to obtain a constant and, in any desired ratio,

21

generators, as the commutators must be a source of some loss and trouble, on account
nf thl:> I/prv nY'l:>i'lt c::nI:>Mt· hilt with a n i'lltprni'ltnr thpY'p;c:: nn nhiprtinni'lhlp fpi'ltllrp
whatever. vNo matter how much one may be opposed to the introduction of the turbine,
he must have watched with surprise the development of this curious branch of the
industry, in which Mr. Parsons has been a pioneer, and everyone must wish him the
• • ·1 •
succes s wn I en rn S ::iK I I I ne s ue s erveu .
N'i kn l a Tpc::lrt .

uent ex eriments showed that when the diameter of the

22

THE

VOL. XI .

DECEMBER 21, 1892.

No. 242.

ON THE DISSIPATION OF THE ELECTRICAL EN. nations, and increases very rapidly when the diameter of

ERGY OF THE HERTZ RESONATOR. the wire is mad~ exceedingly small. On the latter poi!lt

nected to a source of rapidly alternating potential. So in the experiI?e?t cited, a thin h~t ,,:,ire is found to be caps-

surface. I do not recall any record of experiments intended to demonstrate thi~, yet this effect, though probably very

,

follow rna serve to ex lain in art the results arrived at in

, .

A number' of observations showing the peculiarity of very thin wires were made in the co~rse of my experi-

as they agree with the tbeories put forth by the most advanced thinkers. There can not be the s1ighest doubt. as

. , ,

Crookes instrument the mica vanes are re eUed with com-

a different manner; an With this object in view I venture to call attention to a condition with which, in investigations such as those of Prof. Bierknes the ex erimenter is '

paratively greater force when the incandescent platinum wire is exceedingly thin. This observation 'enabled me to roduce the s in of such vanes mounted in a vacuum tube

confronted,

The apparatus, oscillator and resonator, being immersed in air or other discontinuous medium there occura=-a

when the latter was placed in an alternating electrostatic field, This however does not prove anything in regard to radiation as in a hi hl exhausted vess 1 the henomena

are 'principally due to molecular bombardment or con-

the latter, Owing to this dissipation the period of vibration of an air.condenaer can not be accur~t~ly determined,

These waves are propagated at right angles from the c1,la~ged. surfaces when t~eir cbarges are alternated; ~nd

did not succeed. It then occurred to me that it would be ~esirable to have the surface of the w}re as large a~ pos-

, ,

exceedingly thin wire of a bulk about equal to that of the short but muc~ thicke~ wire. On turning th~ current on

wire was exceedingly' small .. considerably. more AOt;;rgy would be dissipated per unit surface at all degrees of exha stion than was to be ex ected even on the assum -

tion that the energy given off was in proportion to the square of the electric density. There iR likewise' evidence

, si r in a r

qnantitati ve determinatron, 1S nevertheless reliable because

i 's e a y " ,

with the increase of the density the dissipation is more rapid for thin than for thick wires.

e e ec s no e ID ex aus e vesse S Wl 19 - re-

quenoy currents are merely diminished in degree when the air is at ordinary pressure, but heating and dissipation ,oocur~, as I ~a,ve demonstrated, under the ordina atmo-

[Dec. 91, 1899.

THE ELECTRICAL ENGIN:E!ER.

an appreciable amount of energy. v.ery gr~at, the te~perature of the

small. The experimenter may feel the impact of the air at distances of six feet or more from the bar, especially if .he

would be in a practically continuous medium, for instance, oil. 2. Th? dissipation owing to the. presence of air re~·

follows from tb.· al ways the same

and that the magnetism of the metal increases the impedance of .the circuit. A !es0!la~r of magnetic ,metal

Taking the above views, I believe, that in the experiments of Prof ", Bjerknes .w~ich lead him to undoubtedly

ether. These waves cannot be entirely stopped by the interposition of an_ i1_lsulated metal plate.

if not more so, than the resistance of the metals.

capable of free

of the air between or Dear the charged surfaces.

W~en ~ disruptiv.e ~ischalge coil is immersed in oil

,

oil is .agitated. This may be thought to be due to the displace~ents produced in t~e oil by.the changing s~resse~, b~t

itself woul remain at rest, he ISP acements produce m it by changing electrostatic stresses are insignificant; to such stresses it rna be said to be com resaible to but a

'very small degree. The action of the air is shown in a curious manner for. if a pointed metal bar is taken in the hand and held with the oint close to the oil a hole two inches

The preceding statements may have a general hearing upon investigations in which currents of high frequency, and

,

bearing uy-on the experiments of Prof. I3jerknes which arc here co~sldered, nam~ly, the "~kin effec~," i.s increase~ by

STATISTICS OF ELECTRICAL MANUFACTURE IN

to the years 1890 and 1891, :were recently given by the Elektroteclmische Zeitschrift on the authority of Herr Fr.

. ~

17~ h. p. respectively. Accumulators are being rnanufsctnred and sold in Germany to the amount of $1,120,000 r:r

.

,

value being about $;500,000. The arc-light carbon produrL amounts to nearly $400,000 per annum, and the incandes-

, .

annual electrical out ut of all sorts is laced at $6,600,00(1

or $6,700,000. he number of persons employed in e ee-

trical factories is about 15,000.

MAXIMUM SPEED ON ELECTRIC RAILWAYS.

frequency and potential difference, the greater will be the curr~nt which will find its way thr~ugh ~he surrounding

obtained by Prof. Bjerknes are affected by the presence of air in the following manner: 1. The dissipation of energy

garding high speed OIl electric railways, and pre~entlllll array of formulas for calculating the effect of air prcA~urt',

r • • iblt

speed. He thinks that 500 kilometres per bour i~ ,be highest speed yet attained by experiments made o~ •

trucks and the fuel used reduces this to about 150 kil·

corresponding to about 125 miles per hour-quite a promiJ. ing figure •.

tss

Feb. 11, 1893

'tHE' -ELE.CTRICAL ENGINEER.

[Vol. XV. No. us.

LLANEOU

THE PHYSIOLOGICAL AND OTHER EFFECTS OF

HIGH. F~EQUENCY CU~RENTS. 811'

they (high frequency currents), produce more or less powerfui effects, and may cause serious injury, especially when used in conjunction with condensers." This refers to currents of ordinary'

quite clearly on more than one occasion. For instance, I stated tbat "the higher the freqnency the greater the amount of ele?trical ~mergy which may be passed through. the body with?ut

This clock mechanism can be combined with any indicating device; It.Is only necessary to supply the connection which shall c~u8e the indicator t~ ma:rk the paper, and draw ~ crooked, line.

"high frequency currents it's possible to obtain effects with

exceedingly email currents," etc. .

~n regard-to the experi~ents. with lamp filaments, I.ha:ve, I

the paper, but the friction introduced by this device was Iata to accuracy. A glass pen has been substituted for the pencil with better,results. but e,:en this c.aus~ too much friction. The photo-

communication unduly.

'e, s v . . e r s y

was included inthe path of the discharge. are, in my opinion, not impedance, but canacity. 'phenomena. The spark between the hands is th h t e 1& t surface of the bod and no

atoly released by the cessation of energizing current in the electromagnet. Thus, the paper when removed, will have a continuou m rkin of unc ures tantamount to a curved line. This

at fixed periods of say, one, two or five minutes, the pointer is

rawn s arp y own pa, " , " '_

current is of ~nsiderOOle "strength, as lor instance when, like in the Farada" experiment or some of-Dr. ~dge's. a heavily-charged

device' presents practically no friction, and is more or less simple and easy to carry out. The make-and-break necessary for the electromagnet. is easily actuated by the clock movements, But we may say of these forms, as well as of. the forms of clock meter which are to follow, that there is one serious obj ection to them

spark whatever would.ibe -obtained if the surface of the body were sufficiently large.' .

. I would here Point out that one'ia apt to' fall into the error of supp08ing,tbatthe spark which is produced between two points on a conductor, not' very 'distant. fro~ each pther, is due to the

ma.y modify this statement by ~ying that many of these d'evices have .an .electrtcef.attechment which makes them self-winding,

The Detroit Free Press

FROM NI(C)OLA TESLA - HE WRITES ABOUT HIS EXPERIMENTS IN ELECTRICAL HEALING.

trical oscillations as observed by the eminent scientist, Ni(c)ola Tesla. So much interest was shown in the subject that Mr. Tesla was appealed to directly and in

Houston Street

the same

, ,

in acknowledging t~e.receipt, and also for addressing this general communication in

answ r l'

which have

,

ful echo than a promise held out to improve the condition of the unfortunate ones.

eep y

the pain, might

this brief statement of the actual fa

Some.journals have conf?unded.the ~hysiolo~ical .effects of electrical oscilla-

.

effects of purely mechanical vibrations which I have more recently observed, have

. .

Mechanical vibrations have often been employed locally with pronounced results

not been noted at all or if so

insufficiency of the means which tions.

in the investiga-

While experimenting with a novel contrivance, a vibrating mechanical system, in which from the

app 1e orce 1S a ways 1n resonance Wl

. .

large as desired, and the applied force used be very small, great weights, half a

small apparatus.

promoting the experienced in

feeling of distress, of the organs

e process.

lver, causlng 1

,

glandular system, noteably in the limbs;

and bladder, and more er eriod the roduce

induced.

The excessive tiring of the body is generally accompanied by nervous relaxation, ms to be besides a s ecific action on the nerves.

These observations, though incomplete, are, in my own limited judgment, never-

. . . .. hi s and of the im ortance of

a machine with suitable adjustments for varying the frequency and amplltu e 0 t e vibrations, intendi~g to give it to some medical faculty for investigati?n. This

t~ough they may have been made with good intent,

giving

Yours very truly,

TESLA'S LATEST RESULTS

HE NOW PRODUCES RADIOGRAPHS AT A DISTANCE OF MORE THAN FORTY FEET.

e in your lssue 0 ar. talent, while the ribs

11

my communication, I described as clearly visible, were kept modestly in the background. I also regretted to observe an error in one of the captions, the more so,

as I must ascribe it to my own text. I namely stated on page 135, third column,

seven lne: Slml ar lmpreSSlon was 0 alne roug e 0 y 0 e experl-

menter, etc., through a distance of four feet. II The impression here referred to

. . .

,

above, a distance of fully 60 feet, from being spoiled by long exposure to the stray ra s. Thou h durin m investi ations I have erformed man ex eriments which seem-

ed extraordinary, I am deeply astonished observing these unexpected manifestations,

and stl more so, as even now I see be ore me the posslbl lty, not to say certltude, of augmenting the effects with my apparatus at least tenfold! What may we

. . .. . .

, ,

er, and the inquiry into its nature becomes more and more interesting and important.

27

the usual kind of tube is employed, and I have already observed enough to feel sure that great developments are to be looked for in this direction. I consider Roent-

gen's discovery, of enabling us to see, by the use of a fluorescent screen, through

an opaque su s ance, even a more eau 1 u one an e recor lng upon epa e.

Since my previous communication to you I have made considerable progress, and

can present y announce one more result of importance. I have lately obtained shadows by ref~ected rays onZy, thus demonst~ating beyond doubt that the Ro~ntgen rays

holder containing a sensitive plate, protected by a fiber cover as usual. Near the open end of the copper tube was laced a thick late of lass at an an le of 45

degrees to the axis of the tube. A single-terminal bulb was then suspended above the glass plate at a distance of about eight inches, so that the bundle of rays fell

shadow of a metallic object. This shadow was produced by the reflected rays, as the direct action was absolutel excluded it havin been demonstrated that even under

the severest tests with much stronger actions no impression whatever could be produce~ upon the film thr?ugh a thickne~s of copper ~qual to that of the tube. Con-

,

were reflected from the glass plate in this experiment. I hope to be able to report shortl and more full on this and other sub"ects.

In my attempts to contribute my humbl~ share"to the knowledge of the Roentgen

tion through the glass takes place seems evident from the process of exhaustion, which I have described in my previous communication. An experiment which is illus-

" "" , " in e , " " ,

attach a fairly exhausted bulb containing an electrode to the terminal of a dis-

the vacuum is impaired; but, if the other provision is made to prevent

a pOln, 1 0 en occurs a

bulb, producing a fine hole. Now,

may grow very hot - to such a degree as to soften; but it will not collapse, but rather bulge out, showing that a pressure from the inside greater than that of the

atmosphere exists. On frequent occasions I have observed t at the g ass bu ges out and the hole, through which the streamer rushes out, becomes so large as to be

28
perfectly discernible to the eye. As the matter is expelled from the bulb the rare-
faction increases and the streamer becomes less and less intense, whereupon the
glass closes again, hermetically sealing the opening. The process of rarefaction,
... ...... . ...
r~~ve~(,r:~le:::,:::,~. L:Un('lr~~e:::".h:::,(,n::dlller·:::, uelrlY :::'(,111 VI:::'IUle uri crre ne~(,eu p i e ce un t t i
+.,,.,. ,-i,., ,nc-+ nn"' .......... '"' n ," ,C-+;I"\V\ ;c- ",,...,,,..h,...r! .,1-. ..... "',... ,1""\,",'" +1-.,... "", 1;""1""\1""\""" u,....,...
., ,~ ::l '~v" ~~::l ~~ ~ ~. '~~v" ~ v ~~~ ,~~, '~~~I:'~ ., '~J '''~J ~ w~t"t"~~. , ........ ,
then, we have a positive evidence that matter is being expelled through the walls of
the Qlass.
When working with highly strained bulbs I frequently experience a sudden, and
sometimes even Dainful shock in the eve Such shocks mav occur so often that the
eye gets inflamed, and one can not be considered over-cautious if he abstains from
watching the bulb too closely. I see in these shocks a further evidence of larger
particles being thrown off from the bulb.
Nikola Tesla.
new rorx , narcn 1'+. 29

Mining and Scientific Press

III order to produce the most intense effects, we ha~e first to consider that,

necessarily on the intensity of the cathode streams. The~, again, being

, ,

ably of a disruptive discharge coil .. If we put two electrodes in a bulb, or use

. . .

. or possibly for a. moment the glass becomes phosphorescentt if the bulb bas o

To obtain high potentials we may aV,ail ourselves o~ an ordi~ary induction

any rate, the phosphorescence generally subsides quickly and the white Ii ht settles around the electrode

trode, we limit the potential, for the

whereupon a dark space forms at some

presence no on y 0 e ano e, u 0

any conducting Object, has the effect of red~cing the practicable potential on

afterwards the light assume's a reddish col?r and. the terminal &,rows very hot.

" -

suIt aimed at, one is driven to the ac-

ceptance o~ a single electrode bulb, tbe

, ,

with powerful apparatus. It is well to watch the ,bulb ca~efully and regulate

subsides, the streams becoming ao-ain white, whereupon they get weaker"'and

,

until they finally disappear. Meanwhile, the pbospbor~sc,ence of the glass

actually ice-cold to the touch, The gas in the' bulb bas then reached the re-

. ' .

Though this result can be reached by the use of a static machine, as well as 01 an ordinar induction oil ..

sufficiently bigh potential, I bave found that by far tbe most suitable aparatus and one which secures ',the

qu!ckest action, is a disruptive coil. It

is not only valu-

screening.

A valuable evidence of the nature of

. .

tion coils, but by actual projectton, tbe forma tion of streamers being abs?-

to be noticeable, sud the effects produced are the strongest when the rocess of exhaustion is most ra id

even though the phosphorescence might not appear particularly bright. Evidently, then, the two effects are closet

seems to pass away quickly. There is a general soothing effect, and I have

. r t i r

with It stream. of material particles, which strik~ .the sensitive plate wit.h'

the estimate of Lord Kelvin on the speed of projected particles in a

Crook s' bulb we arrive asil '

part of the head. An assistant independen tly confirmed the tendency to slee and a uick la se of time. Should

meters a second.

I~ may not be known t.hat even an

,

I shall still more firmly believe in the ~xistence of material.streams penet:at-

,

denly and under grea.t pressure from the terminal.of a disruptive coil, asses

to project a suitable cheinical into any part of the body.

eries I have made considerable prog-

, res are

practicable which will project the particles it;l straight lines even. u~der

ress, an can pres en y announce one more result of importance. I have lately obtained shadows by reflected

distinct impressions in free air, not by strea.me:s, as s0D?-e exper~menter~ have

r ny, 1 e

doubt that the Roentgen rays possess this property. 9ne of the exp~ri-

tive to mechanical shock or impact. There are chemicals suitable for this,

an h v ....

fleeted rays, as the direct action was absolutely excluded, it having been

verest tests with much stronger actions, no impression whatever could be r

tensity of the action by comparison w:itb an equivalent effect due. to the

,

two per cent of the latter were reflected from the glass plate in this experiment.

31

December 23, 1896, p. 655

a 0 nquirer, subject of the

e transm1SS10n 0 power as lntereste me not on y as a tec nlca problem, but far more in its bearing upon the welfare of mankind. In this sense I have ex-

ransmlsslon 0 energy 1S a process muc more econom1ca t an it necessarily must play an important part in the future, no

any

tion of a waterfall seems to be the simplest and least wasteful. Even if we could, b combinin carbon in a batter convert the work of the chemical combination into

electrical energy with very high economy, such mode of obtaining power would, in my

oplnlon, e no more t an a mere makeshl t, ound to be rep aced sooner or later by a more perfect method, which implies no consumption of any material whatever.1I

March, 1897, pp. 378-386.

by Ni ko l a Tesla

The commemoration of the recent introduction into the city of Buffalo of electric

power from Niagara Falls was made the occasion of a banquet, held at the Ellicott Club, at Buffalo on January 12, 1897, the hosts being the Niagara Falls Power and

. . . . . .

, "

ness and engineering talents the world owes the remarkable Niagara undertaking so

honoured than Mr. Nikola Tesla whose electrical researches and ractical accom-

plishments have been the talk of the world, and whose polyphase alternating current system was the one eventually adopted in the work at Niagara Falls. After the ban-

, ,

various sciences, with special reference, naturally to electricity, and from his

the whole human race, in fact, as he himself

tical purposes, except in very few instances, the piston was connected to a crank, and thus rotating motion was obtained, which was more suitable and preferable,

though it involved numerous disadvantages lncident to the 'cru e and wastefu means employed. But until quite recently there were at the disposal of the engineer, for

32

than rigid mechanical connections.

ical motion, simpler by far, and also much more economical. Had this mode been perfected earlier, there can be no doubt that the majority of the many types of

engines would not exist, for just as soon as an engine was coupled with an electric generator a type was produced capable of almost universal use. From this mo-

.

trate all his efforts upon one type, to perfect one kind of engine - universal, the en ine of the immediate future; namel , the one which

the best, the is best suit-

able for the generation of electricity.

T firs fforts in t is dire

the reciprocating high-speed engine, and also to the

latter was a

type of engine of very limited practical usefulness, but became, to tent, valuable in connection with the electric generator and motor.

. . . . . .

a certain exSti 11, even

, , ,

and even now has the same objectionable features and limitations. To do away with

m' . .. ..

favourable conditions for economy are maintained, which expands the working fluid

with utmost rapidity and loses little heat on the walls of the engine stripped of all usual regulating mechanism - packings, oilers and other appendages - and form-

faith.

,

turning his energies more and more in this direction, being attrac-

o 1 i r rmod mi ffi i M

The engineer is r

engines are now type of engine,

being built, the construction is constantly improved, and a novel best suitable for the generation of electricity, is being rapidly

evo ve .

electrical

We are coming gradually, but surely, to the fusion of bodies and reduction of all

departments great realisations are probable. Again, the economical conversion of ordinary currents of supply into high-frequency currents opens up new possibilities,

poun s; e'r y no e

To enumerate the many advances recorded is a subject for the reviewer, but I can-

not pass Wlt out mentlonlng t e eautl u lscoverles 0 enar an oen gen, particularly the latter, which have found such a powerful response throughout the sci-

a process of continuous cooling; the discovery of argon by Lord Raleigh and Professor Ram5ay, and the splendid pioneer work of Professor Dewar in the field of low

temperature research. The fact that the United States have contrlbuted a very

faction.

have particular reasons to mention with gratitude the names of contributed to this marvelous development of electrical

tates. e ,w 0, Y 1S a m1ra e 1nventlon ena lng great distances, has pr?foundl~ affected our commercial

benefactors of the age; Westinghouse, the founder of the commercial alternating system; Brush, the great pioneer of arc lighting; Thomson, who gave us the first prac-

tical welding machine, and who, with keen sense, contributed very materlally to the development of a number of scientific and industrial branches; Weston, who once led

. . . . . .

, "

of practical electrical railroading; Acheson, Hall, Willson and others, who are

creatin new and revolutionisin industries here under our ver e es at Nia ara.

Nor is the work of these gifted men nearly finished at this hour. Much more is

still to ome for f 1 most of them are still full of enthusiasm and vi -

gions and opening up unsuspecte and promls1ng le s. ee y, 1 not dal y, we learn through the journals of a new advance into some.unexplored region, where at

tasks.

, , .

others in importance - one which is of the and welfare not to sa

comfort electrical

afterwards, assigned men

grander than that marked by the advent of the steam engine.

thoughts and tendencies. It is a monument worthy of our scientific age, a true monument of enlightenment and of peace. It signifies the subjugation of natural forces

our legislators may make wiser laws and

reduce poverty and misery, if we want to give to every deserving individual what is needed for a safe existence of an intelligent being, we want to provide more machin-

ery, more power. Power is our malnstay, the pr1mary source 0 our many-s1 e ener-

g1es. 1 su icien r u .

offer a guaranty for safe and comfortable existence to all, except perhaps to those

The development and wealth of a city, the success of a nation, the progress of

34

ower available. Think of the victor-

the qualities of the race, which have been of the world to - coal. For with coal they

and labour is getting

clear to everyone that soon some new source of power supply must be

the carbon in a battery; but while the attainment of such a result would be hailed as a great achievement, it would not be as much of an advance towards the ultimate

n e m nen me 'non we as me en i eer e 0 'e. y

reason both of economy and convenience we,are driven to the general adoption o~ a

of this universally accepted method are certainly so great that the probability of replacing the engine dynamos by batteries is, in my opinion, a remote one, the

more so as e 19 -pressure seam eng1ne an gas eng1ne g1ve prom1se 0 a conS1 - erably more economical thermodynamic conversion.

,

veniences and drawbacks. Very likely the carbon could not be burned in its natural

ro at1ng drawback. Furthermore,

present. We might, of course, place the batteries at or near the coal mine, and from there transmit the energy to distant points in the form of high-tension alter-

nating currents obtained from rotating transformers, but even ln th1S most avourable case the process would be a barbarous one, certainly more so than the present,

. ... .

As to the energy supply in small isolated places, as dwellings, I have placed my confidence in the develo ment of a light storage battery, involving the use of

chemicals, manufactured by cheap water power, such as some carbide of oxygenhydrogen cell.

But we shall not satisfy ourselves simply with improving steam and explosive

engines or inventing new batteries; we have someth1ng muc etter to wor or, a greater task to fulfill. We have to evolve means for obtaining energy from stores

,

and waste of any material whatever. Upon this great possibility, upon this great

i f hi means so much for humanit I have m self

concentrated my efforts for a number of years, and a few happy ideas which came to

me have inspired me to attempt the most difficult, and given me strength an courage in adversity.

Nearly six years ago my confidence had become strong enough to prompt me to an expression of hope in the ultimate solution of this all-dominating problem. I have

this

35

made ro ress since and have assed

rived from a diligent study of known facts, feel sure that the realisation of that idea

ere an

Having examined for a long time the possibilities of the development I refer to,

, n in aye energy

of the medium, I find that even under the theoretically best conditions such a

of the latter in the form of Provided, therefore, that we can

enslon, a wa er a a or s us the sun sufficient for all our

. .

very great, but chiefly because of its

safety and welfare.

unsuccessful, for I have devised means which will allow us the use in power transmission of electro-motive forces much higher than those practicable with ordinary

apparatus. In fact, progress in thlS field has given me fresh hope that I shall

u . ens reams; na e y, e ransmlssion 0 power

from station to stati?n w~thout the.employment of any connecting wire. Still, what-

will remain an important advantage.

as with dizzy heights. At first they cause you discomfort and you are anxious to get down, distrustful of your own powers; but soon the remoteness of the turmoil

of life and the inspiring influence of the altitude calm your blood; your step gets firm and sure and you begin to look - for dizzier heights.

e

mercla eat, ut ar more, a glant strl e ln t e rlg t lrectlon as lndlcated bot by exact science and philanthropy. I!s s~ccess is a sig~al for. the utilisation.of

,

incalculable. We must all rejoice in the great achievement and congratulate the intre id ioneers who have 'oined their efforts and means of brin it about. It;s

a pleasure to learn of the friendly attitude of the citizens of Buffalo and of the

encouragement given to the enterprlse by the Canadian authorltles. We shall hope that other cities, like Rochester on this side and Hamilton and Toronto in Canada,

• I'"

lated. With resources now unequalled, with commercial facilities and advantages such as few cities in the world ossess and with the enthusiasm and ro ress;ve

spirit of its citizens, it is sure to become one of the greatest industrial centres

of the globe.

36

Eleotrioal Review - N. Y.

TESLA'S LATEST ADVANCES IN VACUUM-TUBE LIGHTING.

To the Editor of Electrical Review:

ew years ago egan a serles 0

applicability of the light emitted by

to ordinary pho-

exposures tube to a

be reduced at will by pushing the persons were likewise obtained at that

t1me an kind of

e 1rs 1 enesses pro uce W1 1S

facts, not pertaining to the subject

. .

developments which have taken place

my goo 1 abors

making observations as to the efficiency or any peculiarity of the vacuum tubes, the photographic plate was found to be an excellent means of comparison, note being

ta en 0 the 1stance an tlme 0 exposure, c aracter 0 t e p osp orescent 0 y, degree of rarefaction and other such particulars of the moment.

A rather curious feature in the photographs obtained with tubes of moderate il-

umlna lng power, as a ew can es, was a e 19 s an s a ows came ou re-

markably strong, as when very short exposures are made by flashlight, but the out-

. .. .

much greater candlepower, a notable improvement in this respect was effected, and this advance rom ted me to further efforts in this direction, which finall re-

sulted in the production of a tube of an illuminating power of equal to that of

hundreds, and even thousan s, 0 or 1nary vacuum tu es. at 1S more, e leve

that I am far from having attained the limit in the amount of light producible,

house d

probably will be considered the oddest and most unlooked-for b .

efficiency of the light produced. A few words on this point might not be amiss, considerin that a 0 ular and erroneous 0 inion still exists in re ard to the

power consumed by vacuum tubes lighted by ordinary means. So deeply rooted is this opinion which, I will frankly confess, I myself shared for a long time, that,

rye .

the incandescent system of lighting. The enterprise, which was commented on in

h hni a eriodi als was commendable enou h but it was not difficult to

foretell its fate; for although the high-frequency currents obtained from the alternator yielded better economical results than interrupted currents, and although

cent lamps. The reason for the great consumption, which may often be as much

fran ival nt amount of

light, are not far to seek. A vacuum tUbe, particularly if it be very large.

37

offers an immense radiating surface, and is capable of giving off a great amount

.

sipation of energy is the high temperature of the rarefied gas. Generally it is

. .

tion from the amount of matter contained in the tube, leads to results which would

seem to indicate that, of all the means at disposal for bringing a small amount of matter to a high temperature, the vacuum tube ;s the most effective. This obser-

. .

,

line of experiment to this end was suggested to me recently by Dr. Geo. E. Hale,

. .

tures. These difficulties have been recognized by me early, and my efforts during the past few years have been directed towards overcoming these defects and have

improvements, the increase of candle-power as well as degree of efficiency, have been achieved by gradual perfection of the means of producing economically harmon-

prlnclp e lnvo ve

is and it features of the system in

The purpose of the present communication is chiefly to give an idea in how far

having a radiating surface of about two hundred square inches. The frequency of the oscillations, which were obtained from an Edison direct-current su 1 circuit,

I estimated to be about two million a second. The illuminating power of the tube

approxlma e a ou. one ousan can es, an e exposures range rom wo 0 lve

seconds, the distance of the object being four to five feet from the tube. It

. ... . .

,

be instantaneous. I would not undertake to satisfactorily answer this question, which was ut to me recentl b a scientific man, whose visit to m laborator I

still vividly recollect. Likenesses can, of course, be obtained with instantaneous

exposures, u 1 as een oun pre era e 0 expose onger an a a greater lStance from the tube. The results so far obtained would make it appear that this

. . .

,

will be able to exactly adjust the conditions in every experiment so as to secure the best result which is im ossible with ordinar 1; ht. He will thus be made

entirely independent of daylight, and will be able to carryon his work at any

hour, night or day. It might also be of value to the painter, though its use for such purposes I still consider problematical.

I anticipate that much detail will naturally be lost in the reproductions through the half-tone process and press work, however good, but I hope that enough

In conclusion, I wish to thank Mr. R. L. Newman for kindly consenting to the use

NIKOLA TESLA

38

PHOTOGRAPH OF THE EXPERIMENTER'S HAND MADE BY THE LIGHT OF A SINGLE IMPROVED VACUUM TUBE OF 1,000 CANDLES. EXPOSURE TWO SECONDS; DISTANCE

PHOTOGRAPH MADE BY THE LIGHT OF A SINGLE VACUUM TUBE, AT A DISTANCE OF FIVE FEET; EXPOSURE, FIVE SECONDS.

Feb. 6, 1898

TESLA ON ANIMAL TRAINING BY ELECTRICITY.

Ni(c)ola Tesla Writes of the Interesting Possibilities of This New and Successful

. . . .

To the Editor of the Journal:

It seems to me that there are

od seems more humane than those I believe are in use - the whip, red hot irons, and dru s which are likel to do ermanent in'ur while the h sical effects of an

electric shock are soon gone, only the moral ones remaining.

The subjugator referred to will do the work, but I think an apparatus could be desi ned that would be less dan erous to the man. I do not desire to be understood

as giving the matter deep thought, but believe that if, instead of the armored backpad, the trainer used a wand, with two prongs at one end, better results would fol-

. . .

.

as the subjugator here illustrated, the two prongs supplying the positive and ne ative oles of contact found in the flattened wires. With this wand an anim 1

could be simply shocked, stunned or killed, as required.

stretched between the trainer and his sub'ect, the wires to be alternatel

and negative, and connected through the regulator with the dynamo. After of springs which would hurl him half insensible back into his corner, the

[The follo~ing article appeared ~ith the above.-Ed~

Pra ue Jan. 22.

Science has come to aid the lion tamer in subdoing the wild beast. The red hot f

surcharged with electricity that baffle the lion's fiercest assaults, and burn and maim him badly have taken the place of the lash and scorching iron. A lion tamer

Koemmenich has invented what he calls the electrical subjugator. This is a

used

was in

T e ynamo lS operate y an asslstan e cage.

Should a lion show a disposition to leap on Koemmenich, he invites attack by

deliberately turning his back to the lion and apparently encouraging the onslaught.

When the beast springs his paws come in contact with the electric shield, and he receives a shock of 1,500 volts from the dynamo.

The operator can, -if necessary, increase the voltage so as to shock the animal to death.

on

40

Thus far the device has worked

One dose of lightning is sufficient

u no anlma as volts from the electric

of.the cage, and never need any further punishment.

MY SUBMARINE DESTROYER - by Nikola Tesla

Journal exclusively the news of his

ter fa-

lives to risk, but can be directed at a distance of miles from on shore or from the deck of a war shi . The ower to do this will be the electric vibrations of the

air used in wireless telegraphy. By this means a whole flotilla of submarine de-

stroyers can e turne agalnst a hostile fleet, and perhaps destroy it, without the enemy knowing how they were attacked. This seems almost incredible until the

the following statement.

time on.

clusively demonstrated in the recent war. Neither the courage and skill of the

tor edo boats into successful action. These frail craft, of which so much was ex-

pected, simply made an easy target for land batteries and rapid-fire guns of opposi~g war ships.

"The submarine boats, on the other hand, which have up to this time been built to carry torpedoes have proved death traps for men and were consequently ineffect-

. ,

an enlarged torpedo shell, thirty-six and a half feet long, loaded with other

. . .... .

wonderful evolutions it will be under the absolute and instant control of a distant human hand on a far-off headland, or on a war ship whose hull is below the horizon

41

ItI am aware that this sounds almost incredible and I have refrained from makin

t 1S 1nvent10n pu llC t1 I had worked out every practical detail of it. In my

l~boratory I,now have such a model, a~d,my ~lans an? description at the Patent Of-

The first propell er.

,

same principle that an ordinary vessel is now steered by steam or electricity. Be-

sides these there are still other stora e batteries and motors f .

signal lights. But in order that the weight of the"machiner shall not be too

great to destroy the buoyancy or make the boat go too deep in the water compressed air motors will also be used to perform certain functions. such as to fill and

. . . .

ed wa

These wi 11 be

vertically in two rows in the bow. As one torpedo falls in-

, .

leaks through each time is caught by drain pipes and a compressed air pump instant-

cocks and let enough water in the ballast tanks to make the buoyancy uniform and keep the boat at the same distance beneath the surface.

the largest destruyers now in use. Those vessels of five hundred tons each which cost the Government $500.000, carry but three or four torpedoes, while this simple

or.; , ,r ess, wi carry

It will incalculable advantage of being absolutely

. .

IIAll that is necessary to make this submarine boat subject to perfect control at

button here rings a bell, a lever there turns on the lights, a hidden wire somewhere else sets off a burglar alarm and a thermal device give a fire alarm.

It

instruments employed. To the propelling device, the steering gear, the signal apparatus and the mechanism for firing the torpedoes are attached little instruments

w 1ch are attune to a certaln e ectro-magnet1c sync ron1sm.

"Then there is a similar set of s nchronistic instruments all connected to the

little switchboard, and placed" either on shore or on an ordinary war ship. ~y mov-

1ng t e ever on e SW1 c oar can glve e proper lmpu se to t e su mar1ne

boat to go ahead, to reverse, throw the helm to port or starboard, rise, sink,

that some great power would be necessary to be projected

is needed to affect the synchronistic instruments is a rents. which can be roduced b m oscillator attached

uated on shore or on a war ship.

42

~How such an.appa~ently complicated ~echani~m can be operated and controlled at

found in almost any office.

This is a little metal box with a lever on the outside.

. .. .

crank a third further around the dial and it buzzes still longer, and pretty soon a.policeman appears, s~m~oned by it~ mysterious call. Aga~n, move the crank this

recoil sounded when the city fire apparatus dashes up to your place at its call.

submarine boat, for I make use of the now well-known principle of wireless teleg-

dial I cause a different number of vibrations each time. In this case two waves go forth at each half turn of the lever and affect different parts of the distant

estroyer s mac 1nery.

"How such submarine destroyers should actually be used in war I leave for naval tacticians to determine. But it seems to me that they could best be operated by

ta 1ng a num oar a arge as aUX1 1ary cru1ser 1 e e OU1S or .

Paul, launch several at a time, like life boats, and direct their movements

o •

tion

will carry hooded lights.

Starting these little destroyers out under direction of a man with they could attack and destroy a whole armada - destroy it utterly

and the enemy never have a sjght 0 them. A big auxiliary cruiser, used to carry these submarine

"She could carry the gun cotton and other explosives needed to load the torpe-

• 0

be

II

,

good point on which to establish a station and have the destroyers laid up at docks below read to start.

"That is the whole story of my latest invention. It is simple enough, you say. m of 0 m k a h one of he details

the electric ticker in a stock broker's

43

- N. Y.

New York, Nov. 18, 1898

recent contribution to the

valn attempts injury. It has cost me

will have no opportunity for inflicting a similar one, as I propose to take better care of my papers in the future. In what manner you have secured this one in ad-

vance of other e ectrica perio lcals who had an equal rlght to the same, rests with the secretary of the society to explain.

Your editorial comment would not concern me in the least, were it not my duty

n more an one occaSlon you ave 0 en e me, u ln my Christian and.philosopher I have always forgiven you and only

, ,

previous ones, for you have dared to cast a shadow on my honor.

a bearer of great honors from a number of American universities, it is my duty, in view of the slur thus cast upon them, to exact from you that in your next issue

you produce these, ,together with this letter, which in justice to myself, I am forwarding to other electrical journals. In the absence of such proofs, I require

me.

,

yourself in your future attacks to statements for which you are not liable to be

Electrical Review - N. Y.

(From The Sun, New York, November 2l, l898)

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN - Sir: Had it not been for would before this have acknowledged your highly

ulation, discovery and invention are a powerful stimulus, and I am thankful for

those who are competent to judge have faith in me.

44

Hertz and Dr. Lodge, in my efforts to produce a practical and economical lighting system on the lines which I first disclosed in a lecture at Columbia College in

.

Lodge is probably responsible for this error, which I have pointed out early by

. . ... ..... .

lower or fundamental tones. On purely theoretical grounds such a result is thinkable, but it would imply a device

. ,

present this proposition as being impossible. We can not produce light without

, , ,

incandescent lamp, which, though a beautiful invention, is sadly lacking in the feature of efficiency. As the first step toward this realization, I have found it

necessary to invent some method for transforming economlcally the or lnary currents

urn' e ro e' , c'rcu" c 'ca " e r '

fulness.

the rotating magnetic field that it took a firm hold upon my mind. In assailing the problem I found two possible ways of solving it. Either power was to be de-

vel oped on the spot by converting the energy of the sun s ra latlons or t e energy of vast reservoirs was to be transmitted economically to any distance. Though

, ,

material. of these

arrived at two solutions, but on the first to the develo ment of power in any locality from

the sun's radiations, without wires, in the

. ,

I can not dwell at present. The system of power transmission form in which I have described it recently, originated in

,

ment of creatin

in the earth, I undertook to construct a machine suited for dis lacement as ossible of the earth's electricit .

This machine was simply t~ charg~ and discharge in rapid succession a body inrl 1 in h arth

mechanics is a pump, forcing water from a large reservoir into a small one and back ag~in. Primarily I cont~mplated only th~ sendi~g of ~es~ages to great distan~es in

, ,

the imp~rtance of ascert~ining certain electr~cal conditions of,the earth. The

were not for certain losses occurring, chiefly in the atmosphere. As all my previous 'ideas, this one, too, received the treatment of Marsyas, but it forms, never-

e ess, e asis 0 wi' ,

will bear rigorous examination, but it is not made with the intent of detracting

45

nowledge the early work of Dr. Lodge, the brilliant experiments of Marconi, and of a later experimenter in this line, Dr. Slaby, of Berlin. Now, this idea I extended

transmitted in this manner, but he doubted that I could ever produce an apparatus ca able of creatin the hi h ressures of a number of million volts which were re-

qu;red to attack the problem with any chance of success, and that I could overcome the difficulties of insulation. Impossible as this problem seemed at first, I was

,

ly, at once ?bserved that the air, w~ich is a perfect insulator for currents pro-

f h m 'm-

proved machine, giving a tension of something like 2,500,000 volts. A further investigation in this direction led to another valuable fact; namely, that the

,

which, without such results as I have obtained, would be nothing more than a dream,

.. .. .

practicable to transmit, under conditions such as exist in heights well explored, electrical energy in large amounts. I have thus overcome all the chief obstacles

to my latest

wish

anlsm, an e res

from the scientific point of

I wish that I had never made the invention. The future mayor may not bear out my present convictions, but I can not refrain from saying that it is difficult for me

to see at present how, with such a prlnclp e broug t to great per ectlon, as 1 undoubtedly will be in the course of time, guns can maintain themselves as weapons.

. . .

explosive charge, we shall be able to submerge it at command, to arrest it in its flight, and call it back, and to send it out again and explode it at will, and,

more than this, it will never make a miss, since all chance in thlS regar ,1 Itting the object of attack were at all required, is eliminated. But the chief fea-

. .

,

an arm is produced, it becomes almost impossible to meet it with a corresponding de~elo ment. It;s this feature, erhaps, more than in its power of destruction,

that its tendency to arrest the development of arms and to stop warfare will reside. With renewed thanks, I remain,

Very truly, yours,

N. TESLA.

imagination there were

46

EZectricaZ Review - N. Y.

899, pp. 1 5-197, 204.

SOME EXPERIMENTS IN TESLA'S LABORATORY WITH CURRENTS OF HIGH POTENTIAL AND

HIGH FREQUENCY.

To the Editor of Electrical Review:

,

labors in a number of lines so seriously, I have had but little time to devote to the fulfillment of a dut which next to that of turnin his bes fforts to di i-

gent inquiry in the fields he has chosen, is the most important to a scientific man;

name y, t at of glvlng an exact record of the results obtained. I realize with sorrow every day that,.despite of all pains taken to this end, I am.gai~ing.but very

. ,

ently without much exertion, but it is the working out of the many harassing details

and u tin i 0 a r s n bl f rm . . r .

sible to abandon research in new directions, in which I have felt myself irresist-

ibly drawn, and it was equally impossible to do full justice to the work partially com~leted, an~ I ~an only hope to gradually re~rieve my losses by the only expedient

, . ,

fess, and is in radical opposition to the kindly advice given to me to the effect

.. . . I

that it is not this mode of life which is res onsible for the dela

cial introduction of my system of vacuum tube lighting, as has been asserted by some people who have found a singular satisfaction in dwelling extensively in their

,

ground, and which was to be built for the purpose of catching the sun's rays; on my

. .. ...

At that time, still painfully remembered, my energies were taken up principally by some mechanical problems of great importance, and the few observations in elec-

,

wanderer is well-nigh exhausted. He longs for more sweet berries, and anxiously

II • • ?II

It was chiefly in three directons that elec~rical investigatio~ was attractive

formations seems to be more needful than instruments, if one is to judge from statements frequently made in technical periodicals on a variety of subjects. An experi-

menter, for instance, measures the current through a make-and-break device, and, finding it small, he infers that the conversion ;s economical. Another suggests

47

method.

W 1C e erm1nes e amount 0 ea genera e , 1S no measure w a ever 0 e energy of the w~ve. T~us, certai~ well ~nderstood cases excepted, the only method at pre-

source of supply. This remark alone will show that the economical conversion of currents b make and break devices is a much more difficult roblem than it a ears

to those who have studied it superficially. Not only must the devices used in the

trans ormat10n possess certa1n c aracterlst1cs, ut t e ent1re C1rcult mus e properly designed. One can not help admiring the confidence and self-possession of

• •• I

, "

not to say hours', experience with a device, apparently unmindful of the respons-

'b' i f sand dvan their im erfect re ults and 0 inions hastil

formed. The sparks may be long and brilliant, the display interesting to witness,

and the audience may be delighted, but one must doubt the value of such demonstrations. There is so little novelty in them, that one mi~ht eas~ly perform a practi-

, ,

periments and theories, th~s pl~cing.him.in an awful predicament. Though such a

are responsible for much evil, one of these being the erroneous idea which they create in scientific circles as to the importance of an advance made. It grieves

" ,

he turns out with clock regularity, is scarcely commented upon in the technical

" .

suitable for the amusement of small boys, who are beginning their electrical experience with Leclanche batteries and $1.50 induction coils, is hailed as an im-

por an . c ry. '

tiently contented to lose the credit for advances made rather than to

, .

The importance of the.task of providing prop:r implem~nts for resear~h in ~hese

would be likely to be most profitable. vestigating high electrical pressures,

A little thought showed that it was in infor these were needed in most instances.

o ran in as ar 'n p , r' u

were experimented upon, and some new ones designed, to which

, .

I hope to revert some

experiments was a method of conversion which I have described, and which enables the

o eration of an kind

of devices of low tension from such a high-pressure source

with perfect ease and

safety, no matter how high the tension. Soon, however, it was

recogn1ze a Wl

entirely impractical,

e a ove 0 Jec 1n V1ew genera ors 0 s ea y pressure were quite apart from their incidental limitations. It was exactly

. . . .

pressure, This would require cumbersome and powerful machinery, and would be very

48

ing violent blows such a case the motion of the hammer on the point of impact, which is all

, ,

bya.small.blow. Hence one is f~rcibly driven t~ the use of a transformer o~ i~-

,

is practically no limit as to the pressure obtainable.

core rans ormer, one eaSl y recognlzes 1 1S

of the object in view for obvious reasons. Neverthe-

practicable by means of such an arrangement, which involves the use of independent and entirely insulated sources of supplying the primaries, as will be understood

rom an 1nspectlon 0 t e lagram wlt out urt er exp anat10n. e eVl ent 1mlt-

ations of the closed-core type in the way of insulation, rate of change and fre-

modifications as they were gradually made in the manner of insulating and winding of the coils. In diagram 2 the old, primitive method of insulation is indicated. In

diagram 3 the succeeding layers are insulated by material increasing in thickness gradually from one end to the other, being thickest on the place of greatest dif-

impracticable to pile up many layers in the manner illustrated in diagram 3, naturally the modification illustrated in diagram 4 was made, which led to a further im-

provement, indicated in diagram 5. It was recognized, however, that there was no advantage in winding many coils, and that all that was needed were two secondary

, ,

coil and gain other advantages, the relative customary position of the primary and secondar windin s was reversed and the coil as shown in dia ram 7 roduced, the

two secondary coils being joined on their outer, instead of on their inner ends, as before. This construction was considerably better than that illustrated in diagram

. ....

the spark length, and then two insulated cores, one in each coil, which were finall discarded and so the coil shown in dia ram 8

several occasions and which, of all other conthe obtainment of the highest possible tension with a two-

ace.

But even in this perfected type it was not possible to go beyond a certain potential difference, and a further investigation led to a new type, which I have cal-

. .

,

known. In this coil the adjustment is so made that the secondary is nearly equal

. .

diagram 8, improving the same materially.

in the breaking down of the insulation, and by adopting proper methods for the exclusion of gaseous matter, I was able to increase the electro-motive force to more than 10 times the value without breaking down the secondary. I have described this

49

method since, which I am usin in the manufacture of coils and condensers, and

without which it would be entirely impossible to reach any such results as I have obtained. The industrial world has profited by the recognition of the action of

electro-motive forces with ordinary apparatus used in power transmission, but I see that no attem t is et made to overcome the streamers b a suitable construction of

the cables, as I have indicated, and thus make higher electro-motive forces available.

to, finally led step by step to the adoption of a coil of large dimensions, which, in two typical forms, is illustrated in diagrams 10 and 11. With such a coil I found

. .

,

that I.dis~ove~ed the most important of all facts arrived at in the course of my

motive force producible by such coils and suitable accessories. So great is the conductivity of the air, that the discharge issuing from a single terminal behaves

as 1 e a mosp ere were rare 1e. no er ac 1S a 1S con uc 1Vl y increa -

es very rapidly with rarefaction of the atmosphe~e and augmenta~ion of ~he electri-

perienced a fear that the Sir William Crookes, with

knows but such a ca amlty 1S posslb e? periodical cessations of organic

. .

unaffected in contact with oxygen, but the combustion once started, the process continues as lon as there are elements to combine.

While improving the construction of the transformers, every effort was made to erfect the a aratus for eneratin the currents. The ob'ective oint from the

outset was to obtain the greatest possible rate of variation. High-frequency al-

ternators were first used, but their llmitatlons were soon apparent. t en turne

again and again to make and break devices, chiefly with the ob~ect of usin~ them in

, ,

which is now well known and understood. In its original form, as I first showed it,

. .. dw 1 on be ond sa in that

one of the characteristic features of such an instrument is the energizing of the

primary of the induction coil by the rapidly succeeding discharges of a condenser. In a more recent type, specially adapted f?r ordinary supply circuits, which I

,

comprises, as indicated in diagram 13, three coils, there being, in addition to

circuit, and is designated the charging coil. Preferably the latter is not in inductive relation with the ~ormer. On a ~umber of occasions I have described high-

devices

50

I called attention early, still confronted me. It lay in the which erformed the function of char in

such devices, based on a variety of principles, carried on with the aim of doing away with this

,

Incidentally, some useful results were secured with

. .

ceeding impulses were obtained.

and the production of rotating fields moving with constant velocity; but, interesting as these simple devices were, they naturally precluded the possibility of eco-

" ,

scientific and economical principles. A number of these were recently described

. ..

u u

and for many other useful purposes. Thus, after a continuous

difficult duty high frequency

hard and important task to a satisfactory end.

change obtained in the current, a vacuum held in front of a coil of four turns of

repellent action, but when the frequency of the impulses is low, closed conductor~, as washers of conducting material, are thrown off with a force of a magnitude which

can be only explained on the assumption that the currents have maXlmum va ues of many hundred thousand amperes.

The remaining photographs will be understood from the titles, which are made ex-

pllClt for thlS purpose. hope to have 1n the near uture an opportunlty or es-

cribing more of such experiments, and dwellin~ in detail on the apparatus us~d.

, ,

tions used in most of them were from 400,000 to 800,000 per second.

, , .

vances indicated, and a number of others, have resulted from the application of the beautiful rinci le u on which the a eration of this a aratus is based. Scientific

men have honored me by identifying it with my name, and I have earnestly endeavored to ~how myself ~orthier of t~is great distinction.by devoti~g to it ~uch of my en-

, "

naturally, as a compensation for valuable services rendered to science and industry.

o h sin ifi x rts who ar familiar in theor and ex eriment with electri-

cal vibrations, the results here shown will, I believe, speak in eloquent language. But those readers to whom they are naturally less intelligible will ask: What are

1

CURRENTS - PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN BY THE LIGHT OF

52

.3

9

••• , ..!.. ,._ 4_,. , .

;'r!::: ~:~ ::~~ .:.rf.)~t'~ ~??:::: :-::

10

7

6

s

ENABLING THE PRODUCTION OF ELECTRO-MOTIVE FORCES OF MANY MILLIONS OF VOLTS.

53

RESONATING COIL SUPPORTED ON AN INSULATING

REMAINING TED

ILLUMINATED BY THE

IN THE RESONATING COIL IS OVER HALF A MILLION VOLTS.

DESCENT LAMP LIGHTED BY A SYNCHRONIZED CIRCUIT COMPOSED OF A WIRE LOOP

DESCENT LAMP LIGHTED BY MEANS OF WAVES TRANSMITTED THROUGH SPACE TO A COIL WITH-

AND CONDENSER, AND ENERGIZED BY WAVES TRANSMITTED FROM A DISTANCE.

OUT A CONDENSER.

FIG. 6 - EXPERIMENT ILLUSTRATING THE ACTION OF

A SYNCHRONIZED CIRCUIT ENERGIZED BY

WAVES

TRANSMITTED FROM

OSCILLATOR

THE

EXPERIMENT SHOWING A COIL ENEROSCIL-

FIG. 9 - THE OPERATOR'S BODY,

IN THIS EXPERIMENT, IS CHARGED TO BY

A DISTANT

AND A LONG GLASS

IN THE HAND IS LIGHTED THE ELEC-

FIG. 10 - IN THIS EXPERIMENT THE. OPERA-

56

FIG. 11 - PHOTOGRAPH OF AN ACTIVE TERMINAL OF AN IMPROVED OSCILLATOR,

THE PRESSURE ON THE TERMINAL IS ABOUT EIGHT MILLION VOLTS.

they good for, and what do they or have they demonstrated? To them it may be said

be transformed with h gh economy into electrical vibrations of any pitch, which needed in marry novel arts; they have shown that electrical energy in great am-

, ,

and operation of bodies and machinery carried by the same can be controlled from a

water power, and that ight, diffusive like that of

an econ reater than obtainable in the usual wa

produced with

s that never con-

sume.

N. Tesla.

New York, March 26, 1899

57

New York Sun

Jan. 30, 1901

TESLA'S NEW DISCOVERY

Not Constant, and Formulas Will Have to Be Rewritten - Capacity Varies With Abso-

Nikola Tesla announced yesterday another new discovery in electricity. This

about electricity, scientific men have taken for granted that the capacity of an electrical conductor is constant. When Tesla was ex erimentin in Colorado he

found out that this capacity is not constant - but variable. Then he determined to find out the law governing this phenomenon. He did so, and all this he explained

"Since many years scientific men engaged in the study of physics and electrical ~esearch have taken it for gran~ed that certain quantities, entering continuously

,

m~nation ?f these quanti~ies being of particular imp?rtance in e~ectrical vibra-

which have finally led me to the results now attracting universal attention. These observations, with which I have long been familiar, show that some of the quantities

. . .

literature is defective.

,

I shall endeavor to convey the knowledge of the facts I

weight attached to it.

Such a spring vibrates at a definite rate, which is deter-

. ..

Similarly an electric circuit vibrates, and its vibration, too, is dependent on

two quantities, designated as electrostatic capacity and inductance.

have taken it for granted that the pliability

r i c i ans a conducting body,

. .

are dependent on this assumption. Now, I have discovered that this capacity is not fixed and unalterable at all. On the contrary, it is susceptible to great changes,

so that under certaln con ltlons lt may amount to many tlmes ltS t eoretlca va ue, or m~y even~ually be smaller. Inasmuch.as every electric~l cond~ctor, besides.pos-

that tend to modify the capacity. These facts I discovered

. '"

dependent on the capacity and inductance in each case, I obtained discordant values.

58

"Far more iryteresting, however, for men of science is the fact I observed later,

,

minimum in winter. In Colorado, where I continued with improved methods of investigations be un in New York, and where I found the rate of increase sli htly great-

I furthermore observed that there was a diurnal variation with a maximum

e n1g ur er, oun a sun 19 causes a s 19 1ncrease 1n capa-

The moorr also produces an effect, but I do not attribute it to its light.

The 1mportance of these observat10ns will be better appreciated when 1t is stat~d t~at owing to ~hese changes ~f a quantity su~posed tO,be co~stant,an electrical

an elevation than when at a lower level. An oscillating system, as used in telegraphy without wires, vibrates a little quicker when the ship gets into the harbor

than when on open sea. Such a circuit oscillates quicker in the winter than in the summer, though it be at the same temperature, and a trifle quicker at night than in

. . . . ..

'Taking together the resu ts of my 1nvest1gat10ns I 1nd that th1S var1at10n 0 the capacity and c~nsequently of the vibration ~eriod is evidently dependent, first,

, , ,

relative height of the conducting surface or capacity with respect to the bodies

.. , f m nd 0

rotation of the earth. These facts may be of particular interest to meteorologists and as~ronomer~, inasmuch as pra~tical ,methods o! inq~iry may re~ult from these ob-

, .

shall perfect instruments for indicating the altitude of a place by means of a cir-

lilt was in the course of investigations of this kind in Colorado that I first

,

variations I first discovered by calculating over the r~sults I had pre~iously no-

clear that some who have ventured to attribute the henomena I

dinary atmospheric disturbances have made a hasty conclusion,lI

59

Feb. 2, 1901, p. 67.

his new experiMents on the

the aid of wires. Mr. Tesla

"This light is the result of continuous efforts since my early experimental dem-

. .. . . .. .

produce from ordinary currents of supply electrical oscillations of enormous rapidity in a simple and economical manner. This, I am glad to say, I have now accom-

P 1S e ,an e s s ow a W1 1S new orm 0 19 a 19 er economy 1S

practicable than the present il1uminants. The light offers, besides, many

. .. .

any artificial source.

II

,

ive to the best results.

peculiar construction and transforms the supply current, be it direct or alternating, into electrical oscillations of very high frequency. These oscillations,

coming to the metallically-coated ends of the glass tube, produce in the interio}' corresponding electrical oscillations, which set the molecules and atoms of the

rendered incandescent in the ordinary sense, for if it were so, they would be hot, like an incandescent filament. As a matter of fact, there is ver little heat

noticeable, which speaks well for the economy of the light, since all heat would be loss.

IIThis high economy results chiefly from three causes: First, from the high rate

of the electrical oscillations; second, from the fact that the ent1re light-giving body, being a highly attenuated gas, is exposed and can throw out its radiations

, , ,

light-giving body, in consequence of which they can be quickly thrown into a high

r f vi r i om ra iv 1 ittle ener is lost in the lower or

heat vibrations. An im ortant practical advantage is that the lamps need not be

renewed like the ordinary ones, as there is nothing in them to consume. Some of these lamps I hav~ had for years, and they are now in just as good a condition as

,

p~otometric method, about fifty candle power, ,but I can make them of any powe~ de-

n All

rights reserved.)

just exactly as the sunlight, an lt ozonlzes s 19 y can e regu a e a Wl . , . . ,

use are detrimental to

,

pain in the eye when these concentrated

"I have found that in

almost all its actions the light produces the same effects . s introduction into dwellings will

ed and many diseases, as consumption, for instance, successfully combated by con-

. .' m s. I have ascertained un-

a measure now impossible to estimate, the hygienic very powerful curative agent, and since this light

have the effect of improving, in conditions. Since sunlight is a

makes it possible to have sun 19 n1g ln our omes, i s

mistakably that the light produces a soothing action on the nerves, which I attribute to the effect which it has upon the retina of the eye. It also improves vision

amount importance, lamps may be designed which will produce just

. . . . of the

necessary, the ozone production can be stopped altogether.

are rendered still less expensive.

be

The chief consideration is, of course, in commercial introduction, the energy consum tion. While I am not yet prepared to give exact figures, I can say that, given

a certain quantity of electrical energy rom .

than can be produced by the ordinary methods. this system of light-

be 1 ed as

through

one wire alone, as I have shown in dispense entirely with the wires.

energy will be conveyed through space. The ultimate perfection of apparatus for i n of electrical oscillations will probably bring us to this great re-

II

61

Feb. 9, 1901, pp. 4-5.

Editor's Note. - Mr. Nikola Tesla has accomplished some marvelous results in electrical discoveries. Now, with the dawn of the new century, he announces an

achievement that will amaze the entire universe, and which ecl~pses the w~l est dream of the most visionary scientist. He has received communication, he asserts,

, ,

Lockyer are disposed to agree with Mr. Tesla in his startling deductions.

. ,

inventions are in practical use; notably in the harnessing of the Titanic forces Nia ara Falls and the discover 0 a new li ht b means 0 a vacuum tube. He

has, he declares, solved the problem of telegraphing without wires or artificial

conductors of any sort, using the earth as his medium. By means of th~s princ~ple he expects to be able to send messages under the ocean, and to any distance on the

he sees no reason why we should not soon be within t

,

of Mars or of

of what he expects to accomplish and how he hopes to establish communication with the lanets

The idea of communicating with the inhabitants of other worlds is an old one.

knowledge of the heavens, its hold upon our imagination has been increased, and the scientific achievements during the latter part of the nineteenth century. to-

w ,

intensified it to such a degree that it seems as if it were destined to become the

from idle curiosit

nor from thirst for knowledge, but from a deeper cause, and it is a feeling firmly rooted in the heart of every human being capable of thinking at all.

Whence, then, does it come? of nature's influences? Perhaps,

, , ,

rowful vibrations of the earth which began when it parted from its celestial parent.

be only two planets - Venus and Mars - capable of sustaining life such as ours; but this does not mean that there might not be on all of them some other forms of life.

C emlca processes may e

question whether chemical are

by consequent limitations. Why should a living being not be able to obtain all the energy it needs for the performance of its life-functions from the environment, in-

stead of through consumption of food, and transformlng, by a comp lcate process, the energy of chemical combinations into life-sustaining energy?

about them. Nor is it necessary to go so far in our assumptions, for we can readily conceive that, in the

, ,

ideas of life, are impossible. I will readily admit, of course, that if there

supposed to be, intelligent beings may still dwell,

SIGNALLING AT 1,000,000 MILES!

Then it is contended that it

their faith in the light-ray as the best possible medium of such communitheir immense rapidity of succession, can

less rapid, but a simple consideratlon wll

is ear an i c mpanBy way of illustration, let

possibly be within reach of the best telescopic vision of other world's - were covered with incandescent lam s, acked closel together so as to form, when illumi-

nated, a continuous sheet of light. It would require not less than one hundred mil-

10n orse power 0 19 lS area 0 amps, an lS lS many

motive power now in the service of man throughout the world.

But with the novel means, proposed by myse f, I can rea 1 y demonstrate that, with an expenditure not exceeding two thousand horse-power, signals can be trans-

. .

continued experiment and gradual improvement.

,

distance it was not at all necessary to employ a return wire, but that any amount

f n r mi h transmitted b usin a sin le wire. I illustrated this rinci le

by numerous experiments, which, at that time, excited considerable attention among

scientific men.

This bein racticall demonstrated m next ste was to use the earth itself as

the medium for conducting the currents, thus dispensing with wires and all other artificial conductors. So I was led to the development of a syst~m of. energy trans-

earth were very great. At that time I had at hand only ordinary apparatus, which I fo nd to be ineffective and I concentrated m attention immediatel u on erfect-

ing machines for this special purpose. This work consumed a number of years, but I finally vanquished all difficulties and succeeded in producing a machine which, to

,

thus creating ripples or disturbances which, spreading through the earth as through

s ref 1 attuned receivin cir-

cuits. In this manner I was able to transmit to a distance, not only feeble effects

these ow-

63

ies I made convince me that I shall ultimately succeed in conveying power without wires, for industrial purposes, with high economy, and to any distance, however

grea .

EXPERIMENTS IN COLORADO

ments, and the results were most gratifying to me.

. .

insignificant electrical pressures were obtained, while I have reached fifty million volts.

ticle I wrote for the "Century Magazine," may serve to convey an idea of the results I obtained in the directions indicated.

Many persons in my own profession have wondered at them and have asked what I am tr in to do. But the time is not far awa now when the ractical results of m

labors will be placed before the world and their influence felt everywhere. One of

e lmme la e consequences Wl e e ransmlSSlon 0 messages Wl ou Wlres, over

sea or land, to an immense distance. I have already demonstrated, by crucial tests,

. . .

globe, no matter how remote, and I shall soon convert the disbelievers.

,

assistants received an injury. When working with these powerful electrical oscilations the most extraordinar henomena take lace at times. Owin to some inter-

ference of the oscillations, veritable balls of fire are apt to leap out to a great distance, and if anyone were within or near their path, he would be instantly de-

ling, and some of them could not endure the extreme tension of the erils are now entirel overcome and the 0 eration of such a

erful, involves no risk whatever.

teresting results, and also one of great practical importance, was the development of certain contrivances for indicating at a distance of many hundred miles an ap-

e •••• •

, ,

likely to be valuable in future meteorological observations and surveying, and will

terious effects which have elicited such unusual interest. I had perfected the api Iud

feel the pulse of the globe, as it were, noting every electrical change that occurred within a radius of eleven hundred miles.

64

TERRIFIED BY SUCCESS

I can never forget the first sensations I experienced when it dawned upon me

of a great truth. Even now, at times, I can vividly recall the incident, and see

my appar~t~s as though it were actually.before me. observations positiv-

, n ~

supernatural, and I was alone in my laboratory at that time the idea

itself to me.

The changes I noted were taking place periodically, and with such a clear sug-

disturbances, as has been rashly asserted by some. It was some time afterward when

. .

to an intelligent control. Although I could not decipher their meaning, it was impossible for me to think of them as having been entirely accidental. The feeling

u c . c . ; i w Wl

this conviction that I announced to the Red Cross Society, when it asked me to indi-

. .

would probably be the confirmation and interpretation of this planetary challenge to us.

I have never ceased to think of those experiences and of the observations made in Colorado. I am constantly endeavoring to improve and perfect my apparatus, and just

as soon as practicab e I shall again take up the thread of my investigations at the point where I have been forced to lay it down for a time.

COMMUNICATING WITH THE MARTIANS

At the present stage of progress, there would be no insurmountable obstacle in constructing a machine capable of conveying a message to Mars, nor would there be

any great difficulty in recording signals transmitted to us by the inhabitants of that planet, if they be skilled electricians. Communication once established, even

and interchange of messages would be reached as soon as we could respond with the number "four," sa , in re 1 to the si nal "one, two, three." The Martians, or the

inhabitants of whatever planet had signalled to us, would understand at once that we had caught their message across the gulf of space and had sent back a response.

What a tremendous stir this would make in the world! How soon will it come?

Something, at least, science has gained. But I hope that it will also be demon-

65

VIEW OF THE ESSENTIAL PARTS OF THE ELECTRICAL OSCILLATOR USED IN THE EXPERIMENTS DESCRIBED.

EXPERIMENT TO ILLUSTRATE THE CAPACITY OF THE OSCILLATOR FOR PRODUCING ELECTRICAL EXPLOSIONS OF GREAT POWER.

66

PhiladeZ hia - North American

May 18, 1902

WRITTEN FOR THE SUNDAY NORTH AMERICAN

L?rd Kelvin's article containing the asto~ishing prophecy that windmills will

It is the only article that

Kelvin is beyond question the greatest scientific authority, as is shown by the rev-

is of the utmost importance to the world at large.

of motive hausted.

the supply of coal is exhe said, appear, upon their

energy requ1re 0 move e into insignificance. Once

land. This is not so unreasonable as at first it seems. The farmers in Iowa and Nebraska, where coal is scarce and very expensive, are even now burning their excess

e supp y rom t 1S source, W1 ,as e Vln pOlnts out,

limited, as years go by and the of the world increas-

years ago.

, ,

tist, agrees with Lord Kelvin that the world must one day fall back upon the force of the wind. Thomas A. Edison who in addition to bein the world's reatest elec-

ex auste. 1S ay e e 1eves W1 e excee lng y remote, es lmat1ng at e

South American ~orests alone could provide fuel, i~ wood, for f~f~y th?usand yea~s.

,

electricity which will turn a good portion of the world's machinery. It is suggested b Professor Lan le' in s eakin of Lord Kelvin's ro hec that the sun rna one

day share with the wind in furnishing power, if indeed it does not do all the work.

Admiral Bradford, who has been busy for the past ew years locatlng sltes or n1te S!ates coaling stati?ns at the four corners of the e~rth, takes the most optimisitic

(The only article written by Lord Kelvin during his recent visit to the United States

To predict that the world's industrial progress will one day be halted and then

Coal is king of the industrial world. The king's reign is limited. Sooner or

ted. The commission appointed to inquire into the all-important matter in Great

a-

67

Britain has even said that a few hundred years at the outside will see the last

basket of coal taken from the mines of England. In other quarters the supply is rapidly diminishing.

The enormous amount of coal required to run our great ocean steamships, our lev-

1athans of the eep, an the innumerable actor1es of our c1t1es 1S rna lng suc inroads upon the available store that nature cannot forever supply the demand.

Perplexed humanity confronted with the possibility of its industrial machinery

orial. Long before the days of the steam engine or the ocean liners, ships were wafted from shore to shore b means of the force that lurks in the air. The time

will come, unless man's ingenuity devises some means of replacing the exhausted coal supply with a fuel that will be equally efficacious - when the swift steaming

,

and once more the seas will be dotted with vessels propelled by the method that is

a iff n fr

the bowels of the earth will mark the passing of the magnificent battleship, the swift cruiser and the torpedo boat. The navies of the nations will perish in a day

, ,

question of which ocean liner can cut down time of the passage from New York to

on the favorable winds and the sailing capacity of the ship.

ac on es, blows and

while the world sleeps. Possibly the exhaustion of the coal supply of the earth may turn out to be something of a blessing when it is considered how difficult and

angerous 1t 1S 0 wres rom e groun e 1 en resources 0 na ure or use as

fuel, and how natural and easy it is to make the power of wind do the work now done

coa ess age see vas Each agriculturist will

tion

cultivation of fuel.

power it is not so tremendous. The tides cannot furnish any power worth speaking of; firewood must do much more.

ACHIEVEMENTS THAT HAVE MADE LORD KELVIN FAMOUS

Business Man and Able Politician

Kelvin. His fame is world-wide. The savants of all countries recognize in him the

to

1S own way

68

greatest of physicists, and the rare combinations of an abstruse thinker and a

. .

Merely to mention a few of the directions in which he has achieved success is to

His fame as an electrician almost equals his eminence as a physicist. ~ He is

an unequaled mathematician, the inventor of a hundred valuable devices which are in

,

cessful politician.

,

considerable fortune.

This was in 1857. The

had to be overcome before the

The result was the "siphon recorder", which is still in use throughout the world

where two or three were formerly the rule.

knighted. Twenty-five years later, in 1892, he was elevated Lord Kelvin.

to the peerage as

Even before his great success with the cable the young nized as a scientist of exce tional attainments. It is a

been recogthat he be-

gan doing great things when little more than a boy.

His chair as professor of natural philosophy at Glasgow he won when only 22 years of age. The attention of English scholars had been drawn to him at that time be-

cause of his mathematical prowess - he won ten prizes and wrote many important papers while at Cambridge.

For fifty-three years he held his chair at Glasgow, and the passing of the half

century was signalized by a celebration in which the scient1sts 0 pract1cally t e whole world took part. It was a great spontaneous demonstration entirely without

The distinctive feature of Lord Kelvin's activities, the keynote to his career,

,

are as simple as the alphabet to the ordinary layman, he has been the inventor of a le ion of the little thin s that men need in their ever da lives. Not onl has

he dealt in theory, but he has done things.

in

Among these, probably the i

best known is his magnetic compass for the use of mar-

im ro n on an existin instrument that it dis-

places the others, and still safety of ocean travel.

remains a factor of incalculable value in securing the

69

Another important invention much used on ships is a deep-sea sounding apparatus,

which permits what previously had never even been dreamed of, the taklng of soundings in 100 fathoms from a ship running 16 knots.

Many of Lord Kelvin's researches have dealt with the doctrine of the conservation

o energy. He was, ln ee , one 0 t e S1X or elg t men, w 0, lvlng ln 1 erent c?untries.an? working in entire independen~e of e~ch other, simultaneou~ly estab-

,

age of the earth, and his controversies with the extravagant claims of the geoloists are renowned.

, ,

thing which fills all space, has been in large part his creation, and his famous idea that what we call matter is merel vortices or whirl ools in this ether ma be

regarded as one of the most far-reaching speculations in modern physics. The mechanical principle by which we obtain liquid air - that a compressed gas expanding

So great an authority has Lord Kelvin become on all matters dealing with either

practicability of almost every important scientific proposition that comes up for

England from France were sent to him for a utilizin the ow r of

it for distances, it was of experts which passed

Lord Kelvin's achievements as physicist, electrician and inventor would have made at least three eminent reputations. His marvelous works have not only been

recoqm ze y rea r' i u e

their honors upon him. He a member of the Prussian Order pour le Merite, grand

. .

the Berlin Academy of Science, president of the Royal Society of England and many others. Fifteen universities have conferred on him the honor of their degrees.

EDISON, TESLA, ADMIRAL BRADFORD AND PROF. LANGLEY DISCUSS FROM THEIR POINTS OF VIEW HIS AMAZING PROPHECY

a

The power of the wind has been overlooked. Some day it will be forcibly brought

of generating power. Given a good breeze, I have estimated that there is as much as half a horse-power to every square foot of area exposed. Imagine what energy is

left unused with all this force at hand.

The contrivance that has been at the disposal of mankind from all time, the windmill, is now seen in the rural districts only. The popular mind cannot grasp the

power there is in the wlnd. Many lnventor as spent years 0 1S 1 e ln

endeavoring to harness the tides, some have even proposed to compress air by

. .

The fact is that the wave or tide motor would have but small chance of competing

,

greater amount of energy to be obtained in a simpler way.

70

Wind power has been in all times of inestimable value to man, if for nothing

else than for enabling him to cross the seas, and it is even now a very important !a~tor in transportation. But th~re are limitations in. this simple method of util-

,

plant. But there is no question as to its usefulness as a sUbstitute for the energy derived from fuel, and the fact that this ower is literall as free as air makes it

a wonderful factor in the future of the world of industry.

A art from the views ex ressed b L rd Kelvin re ardin the future when the coal

supply shall have been exhausted, there is need of more attention being paid to it

in the present day.

The man who cannot afford to have a furnace in his house ma have a windmill on

the roof. In this labor-saving age it is astonishing that farmers are the only citizens who call the wind thetr friend. Dwellers in cities toil up and down stairs

ply of the earth to be exhausted before enlisting the aid of this vast aerial ?

The power to run elevators, pump water to roof tanks, cool houses in the summer

. .

to do the work that he has considered part of the curse of Adam.

,

Langley, of the Smithsonian Institution.

power 1S pregnan 0

The

;s one that must engage the

The power that exists in the sun's rays will, in all probability, be the force

dous energy that is stored in these rays has long been known to science and several practical attem ts have been made to utilize them. As I have already pointed out in

my work, liThe New Economy," the idea is beg1nning to pass 1nto the regl0n 0 the

prac lca u 1 1 y, an lS e orm 0 e a es ac levemen 0 sever

young genius is ready for actual work on an economical scale. engine,

ably be capable of economical use for pumping water in the desert regions of our own countr. We must consider the rowin demand for ower in the world and the fact

that its stock of coal, though vast, is strictly limited in the sense that when it

lS gone we can get a so ute y no more. T e sun as for millions of years - so little and for so long

,

an enormous fund had been thus slowly accumulated in our favor. We are now drawing n his f nd like a rodi al who thinks his means endless but the da will come

when our check will no longer be honored, and what shall we do then?

The exhaustion of some of the coal beds is an affair of the immediate future, by com arison with the vast eriod of time we have been s eakin of. The En lish coal

beds, it is asserted, will be quite used up in about three hundred years more.

shall

saw a fair land of green woods and quiet waters, a land unvexed with noisier machinery than the spinning wheel. Because of the coal which has been dug from its soil,

, ,

of coal-driven engines, and its once quiet waters are churned by the wheels of

. .

compared with the

once more! To America, too, such a time may come, though at a more distant date.

become the seat of mechanical and hence of political

the vast sun power now wasteffect a reat-

He will once

EDISON PUTS OFF THE EVIL DAY FOR MORE THAN 50,000 YEARS - by Thomas A. Edison

nearness of time when the

There is wood enough in the forests of South America to su 1 the world with

fuel for 50,000 years. Wood as fuel takes up more space than coal, but it must be remembered that we are constantly economizing on the amount of fuel necessary to do

ler without reducing the speed of the engine. hausted it rna be ossible to burn wood with e

time the coal supply is exood results.

A windmill is a big cumbersome thing and I cannot

think it possible that progres-

much, except for pumping water. Wind power, as every schoolboy knows, can be used for generating electricity, but the horsepower thus obtained would not be adequate

,

turned into a means of providing electricity. Then, too, seamen will probably ex-

. ..

air. There are aerial currents that can be made use of by means of appropriate appliances for catching their force.

MAN'S WIT WI L SOLVE THE PROBLEM - b Rear Admiral R. B. Bradford

Rear Admiral R. B. Bradford, chief of the Bureau of Equipment, at Washington, re-

point.

72

1 n e 1 s

the motive power

strictly limited, and its consumption is increasing in almost arithmetical ratio.

II

our resources. But it is also true that unless something is discovered to take the place of coal and steam, we shall be com elled to fall back in the end u on the two

great forces of nature - the sun's rays and the wind. Both of these can be utilized

o genera e power, e rou e Wl 0 a ey are varla e.

IIPower cannot, of course, be generated from the sun's rays at night, nor on a

cloudy day, and we have periods of calm, when the wind is scarce y perceptlble.

"O» the other hand to sa what the ower of the future wi 11 be is ure s ecu-

lnto e prop eSYlng USlness. u 1 y years e ore t e lscovery 0 t e steam engine or the discovery of coal! who would have dared to predict the present mech-

"Something of the same sort may occur during the next fifty years. Some ingen~

,

throw their arms to the breeze, and the solar engines will pump our water and drive our factories.1I

MANIFESTO

herewith ;n

Falls and is devoted to quotations from various utterances of Mr. Tesla. The first of these is from his lecture delivered in 1893 before the Franklin Institute and

item

neership, in which he already has enjoyed an extensive connection here and abroad.

Reprinted with permission. Reprinted from Feb. 6, 1904, issue 0 Electrical World. © Copyright 1904, McGraw-Hill, Inc. All rights reserved.

Net;) York Sun

your issue of November 1, and relating to the electrical equipment of the newly opened catacomb in this city. Some of them are based on erroneous assumptions,

WhlCh lt lS necessary or me to correct.

"When I stated that m s stem was ado ted, I did not mean that I ori inated

every electrical appliance in the subway. For instance,.the one which that ill-

ate e ec rlClan was repalrlng w en e was 1 e, wo ays a er e ca acorn was ready for public use, was not invented by me. Nor was that other device on the

. .

" ,

also must deny any connection with that switch or contrivance which was responsible

for the remature death of a man immediatel afterward

which cut short the life of his unfortunate successor.

vlces, emp atlca y state, or any 0 t e ot er w lC and various troubles and were instrumental in the loss

, , , ,

ances of an intelligently planned scheme for the propulsion of cars. Referring to these contrivances it is si nificant to read in some 'ournals of the 8th inst. that

a small firm failed because their bid was too low. This is indicative of keen com-

petltl0n and sharp cuttlng 0 prices, and does not seem in keeping wlth the munificence claimed for the Interborough Company.

"I merely intended to say in my letter that my system of power transmission with three-phase' generators and synchronous motor converters was adopted in the subway,

. .

power. It has been extensively introduced allover the world because of its great flexibilit and under such conditions of use has been found of reat value. But th

idea of employing in this great city's main artery, in a case presenting such rigid requirements, this flexible system, offering innumerable chances for breakdowns,

accl en s an lnJurles 0 proper y, lS a oge er 00 a sur 0 19n1 y 1

. . .

,

closed coil armatures - apparatus unfailing in its operation and minimizing the dan-

r f ... r . r-

vent its ultimate adoption; and the sooner the change ;s made the better it will be for all concerned. Personally, I have no financial or other interest in the matter,

must forego this gratification.

occasl0n ~he palnstaklng sugges-

75

It; s

scientific men to present an original

eSlre to epart rom this establishsubway offers great opportunities,

tute: lAs a matter of history it is the Tesla principle and the Tesla system which have been the directing factors in modern electrical engineering practice. I There

are but a few men whose acknowledgment of my own work I would quote. Mr. Scott is one of them, as the man whose co-operation was most efficient in bringing about the

. . . .

,

spare time and energy I may ask the city authorities for power to investigate the subwa , and make a sworn re ort to them on all the defects and deficiencies I rna

discover, in the interest of public welfare.

"A few more words in relation to the si ns. Wi hal du

opinion, I entertain quite a different view on that subject. Advertising is a use-

ful art, which is being lifted continually to a higher plane, and will soon be quite respectable. It should not be hampered, but rather.encourag~d. I ~ould gi~e the

,

as the artistic execution is concerned. A commission of capable men comprising a

. .. . .

I do not see why the public should object to them if they were regulated They will further business, make travel less tedious, and help many

,

will then deri ve a revenue from them. What is most important for the safety of 1 i fe

and proper apparatus should be

New

Nov. 26

Dec. 29, 1904, p. 583.

the Future 1n Mot1ve Power. (S ecial Cor. Manu acturers' Record.

New York, December 27

power-producers, through the internal-combusion engine, for use for transportation ur oses both b land and sea the followin si ned statement made b Mr.

Ni(c)ola Tesla after a discussion of a new type of auto-bus designed by Mr. Charles A. Lieb, mechanical engineer of the Manhattan Transit Co., will doubtless

New York, December 17

General Electric Co. and other concerns must have excellently fitted

There is no doubt that a highly-successful machine can be produced on these

merous

by me to this effect. In my artsubject: 'Steamers

applicat10n of steam power to

engines, by utilizing the electricity generated for the propulsion. A gain of 50 to 100 percent, in the effective energy derived from the fuel could be secur-

ed in this manner. It is difficult to understand why a fact so plain and obvious

1S no rece1v1ng more a en 10n rom eng1neers.

At first glance it may appear that to generate electricity by an engine and

then app y the current to turn a w ee ,1nstea 0 turn1ng 1t y means 0 some mechanical connection with the engine, is a complicated and more or less waste-

this idea will be extensively applied to railways and also to ocean liners, though in the latter case the conditions are not quite so favorable. How the railroad

companies can persist in using the ordinary locomotive is a mystery. By providing an engine generating electricity and operating with the current motors under

the best, the results he obtained were creditable and encouraging. I have calculated that a notable ain in seed and econom can also be secured in ocean

77

liners, on which the improvement is particularly desirable for many reasons. It is very likely that in the near future oil will be adopted as fuel, and that will

and motors.

,

would seem they offer the greatest opportunities for application of this principle.

lation, but the commutators and brushes are very objectionable on an automobile.

In view of this I would advocate the use of the induction motor as an ideally sim-

. .

.

asmuch as a very l~w frequency is pr~cticab~e ~nd more than three phases can

Yours very truly,

'J~ -r ."J ,

polonium, by Mrs. Sklodowska Curie, has likewise afforded me much personal gratification, being an ec1atant confirmation of my earry experi ,~, ,g. rations, 01 elec[rinea~-ur

78

El:e .4-""",' oal. World and Bnai.neer

January 7, 1905, pp. 21-24

.,..,.,.. •• ~'I:'I . .£· .1'1:' ..... , · .... rl ......

.& .& ~~ &'-~ ·6r .

out Wires As a Means for Furthering Peace.

By NIKOLA TEsLA.

, 1 NIVERSAL PEACE, assuming it to be in the fullest sense

U reanzanre, might not require eons tor its. accomplishment,

t .t:...· .... ' r. .-... ._

.. • .~ OJ .I"~ " ~'" "'l!I "I'

ceptibly slow growth of· all great reformatory ideas of the past.

Man, as a mass in movement, is inseparable from sluggishness and

• •• I ,.. •

y~'~'~' .~ In rns n re mam , OU[ H uoes not IOIlOW rrom rrus

that any passing phase, or any permanent state of his existence, must necessarily be attained through a slalaclitic process' of develop-

ment,

r.. .... .~.... .~ ••

or 'I" ~,

or changes in general, have been thrown in doubt of late. The very foundations of science have been shaken. We can no longer

.. .. ..

UCIlCYC III ule .. UilxweUliln l1y UI u .. u~, ... ;:.... CUle~-Ull. dulations and the literal truth of its corollaries. The practical utilization' of electrical vibrations, this most important field of

numan endeavor, partrcutarty In me aavancement or pnuamnropy -

.. n..! ft ,... "' :n .. n 11 .., r .. t .. r..! .. ,l h .. th l ,.;n .. t;n ..

r

illusion, which I since long hoped to dispel. I have noted with satisfaction the first signs of a change of scientific opinion. The brilliant

... : .1 ... • "... ...

orimarv matter or ·np~ .. ~ ... lar eman~tions (F"'~'~:~~1 Review. N~w

York, 18¢-1897), which were then received with incredulity. They have awakened us from the poetical dream of an intangible con-

.~ • 01. •• , ~ t. ' .1

OJ 'DJ, 'D' , 'T -p,-p

pable reality of a ponderous medium of coarse particles, or bodily carriers .of force. They have led us to a radically new interpretation

. . _.

UI Inc: .. ' ..... 6~~ .. JIll UilllS1u~milUUIIS we 1''', ..... "... ..,. .... IS ......... u uy this reccznition w,. cannot say the sun is hot. the moon is .. old the

star is bright, for all these might be purely electrical phenomena. If this be the case, then even our conceptions of time and space may

I. '~'n h ,,1;~ .,1

So, too, as regards the organic world, a similar revolution of thought is distinctly observable. In biological and zoological re-

.L L_I~' .rTT .11. r. . ~.

~~ uu ~ U ~ .. , , vun ~Ul'I'UI' 01. , U'~'

coveries, A heretic belief in such possibilities as the artificial oro-

duction of simple living material aggregates, the spontaneous natural creation of complex organisms and willful sex control, is gaining ground Wf!. dill hr ueh it aside, hut not with n~,l .. nt;,. rli~t!ain as

before. The fact is--our faith in the orthodox theory of slow evolution is being destroyed!

Th ~t .. t .. ". h .. ~~n I: u 1 A .. ~n .. ,l hu th TTn; 1

Peace," while a result of cumulative effort through centuries past,

might- come into existence quickly, not unlike a crystal suddenly forms in a solution which has been slowly prepared. But just as no effect can precede its cause so this state can never be brought on by

any pact between nations, however solemn. Experience is made before' the law is formulated. both are related like cause and effect.

Reprinted with permission. Reprinted from Jan. 7. 1905, issue of Electrical World.

© Copyright 1905, McGraw-Hill, Inc. An rights reserved.

79
So long as we are clearly conscious of the expectation, that peace i.
to result from such a parliamentary decision, so long have we a con-
elusive evidence that we are not fit for peace. Only then when we
shall feel that such international meetings are mere formal oro-
eedures, unnecessary except in so far as they might serve to give
uenmte expression to a common nesrre, Will peace De assured.
To judge from current events we must be, as yet, very distant
from. that blissful goal. It is true that we are proceeding towards it
rapidly. There are abundant Signs of this progress everywhere.
The race enmities and prejudices are decidedly waning. A recent
act of His Excellency. the President of the United States. is sig-
niticant in this respect. We begin to think cosmically, Our sym-
. "
"'Q"'~"'" U:CU,iCS n:""JI UUL IIILU llIC aUII ... " ............ .L JlC UOlClCUil
of the "Weltschmerz," are upon us. So far, however, univer-
sal harmony has been attained only in a single sphere of interna-
til,"al reranonsmp, 1 nat IS the postal service. Its mecnamsm IS
working satisfactorily, but-how remote are we still from that
scrupulous respect of the sanctity of the mail bagl And how
much farther again is the next milestone on the road to peace-an
• '.1 •. I! •• •• 1.1. .1. ••
The • ~ J wu ..... _. ~.- ............ ' .... "J ...... u~ .... U~ ...... _t'~~.- ..
coming meeting at the Hague, now indefinitely postponed,
can only consider temporary expedients. General disarmament be-
. . . . . . .
'~'K 'VI UIC 1" C~C"L CIIL" CIY UUL U' ~. , ... 1" VpUI LlVI .... C I euu,,-
tion might be recommended. The safety of any country and of the
world's commerce depending not en the absolute, but relative amount
01 war materrar, tms WOUIQ be evidently tne nrst reasonaeie step to
• .,L- .. 'n' • .,.". '.1 ,"~. n ... · no .1" h ., "'~n ...
less task to establish an equit:ble ba~is of adjustment. 'r
Population,
naval strength. force of army, commercial importance, water-power,
..
v, .... Y VLIl<:£ ""LU'~d' ,~c~vu.\.<:, .. uu'u VI t"~~<''''''''' 'c. 'lie :"'iU""Y u .. -
satisfactory standards to consider.
In view of this difficulty a measure suggested by Carnegie might be
adopted by a few strong countries to scare all the weaker ones Into
n. . t. . . _I. .,,,. ;.~
;ble. ~he beneficial effects of this h~7na:opathic treatme~t of the mar-
tial disease could hardly be lasting. In the first place. a coalition of
. . ...
me reanmg powers couro not [all to cr eare an orgamzeu VYI'",,,,,,v,,,
which might result in a disaster all the greater as it was long de-
ferred. The ultimate falling out of the virtuous, peace-dictating na-
nons, as cerlalHas the law of gravitation, should be all the more reck-
..... .1. .... . • ,,'" ~
..... - ~ ••• , ~~.. . ~ ._ ~~~. . ~""-'J -~ .• _ .,.. ''''., -"
means demonstrated that any combination of a few powers would
have sufficient authority.
.-
J. U _~. uy ~Ilee. lV'"'' '" U"'-Ul""1~ "", ... 0;;;1 'U'U ........ ". <;""3
day. Defensive is getting continuously the advantage of offensive,
as we progress in the satanic science of destruction. The new art
or controtlmg eiectncauy tne movements ana operations 01 mal-
.,;<1 .. .,1;.,. .. ,1 .,' ., '" ";"t.,n,... ,,,;thn .. t ..,;r ... ..,i" onnn "n.,hl .. !lnv
-
country to render its coasts impregnable against all naval attacks.
It is to be regretted, in. this connection, that my proposal to the
yr •• ... ~. "T . t . ... ,t;,t
~ .. ._ .- 'U'J .~ J . ~ ',,', .. .
not receive' the least encouragement. Also that my offer to Secre-
tary Long to establish telegraphic communication across the Pacific
. .
vcean uy my wireress system was rnrown In me naval waste
h,,~k .. t in W".hinutnn nl1;t ... <ntH Faron. At tha+ tim .. 1 had alr .. adv
announced in the Celltury Mogazine of June, 1900, my successful
"girdling" of the globe with electrical impulses (stationary waves),
..." .... .L'~ _,. . .... '0, .1.
'J 'U • J' .". ;'. f'
not the fault of the naval officials, for then these inventions 0 mine
were decried as bald, visionary schemes, loudest indeed by those
woo nave since oecome ..... rresuses or s: romise· in Jignl. storage
batteri .. s, "Ocean" t .. l,.nhnnv and "transatlantic" wireless telezranhv.
yet remained to this day-Sisyphuses of Attainment. Had only a
. few "telautomatic" torpedoes been constructed and adopted by
.1' .<'1. .~ ... I, ~
fully a~d most beneficially felt in the present E=stern complication. .... ,o··_ .~.~ ,

invariably result from misunderstandings in the broadest interpre-

80

Not to speak of the advantages which might have been secured

rnrougn me crrect ana mstantaneous transmission ot messages to our distant colonies and scenes of the present barbarous conflicts . . Since advancing that principle, I have invented a number of im-

provements, making it possible to direct such a torpedo, submersible

,. :11' t,.,,_ A: .L.I .L

, .,. . .. ~- .... ~ ~ .... ~ .a·6~~·

gun, with unerring precision, upon the object to be destroyed. What is still more surprising, the operator will not need to see the

.. .. .

" ... : .... u IC:II~U'IC: VI C:VIC:1l KIlVW 1<:. IVl,;aUUn, ana trre enemy Will De unable to interfere, in the slightest, with its movements by any electrical means. One of these devil-telautomata will soon be con-

structen, anu J. snail DrJng It to me attention ot governments. Tile A..!. .t ". th:a .... t .... ,~. "n"""'~A ... ,,,· ." ••

--:

expensive battleships as well as land fortifications, and revolutionize

the means and methods of warfare. The distance at which it can

:1. A ,I _L •• ." ..

, ,_ ••• ~ _ .••• -~ ••. ~ ... ~~~. ~. ~u~ .. _'(' ....... mA'

chine being for all practical purposes unlimited, the gun, the armor of the battleship and the wall of the fortress, lose their import and

. ,.- '"" ..

"'. • '-'"" " .. II ... ~"'''~~.1 \y ILU " .ud.UC." I,;UnnUellce rna:

skilled electricians will settle the battles of the near future. But

this is the least. In its effect upon war and peace, electricity offers still much greater and more wonderful possibilities. To stop w,"" hv th.. .1.' nf .. ",.;.,,.,, n( tt .. "trll .. t;"n "Inn.. ....:.,.ht ,."n ........

. . 0 ~

centuries and centurres, ther means must be employed to hasten

the end. What are these to be? Let us consider.

m~ 'A:'A"I, ~1 A

tat ion of this term. Misunderstandings are always caused by the inability of appreciating one another's point of view. This again

is due to the Izncrance of those A not so much in their'

own, as in their mutual fields. The peril of a clash is aggravated by a more or less predominant sense of combativeness, possessed by

h .n h, • ,.., '1"" roo.: .. ,f.,' '.f., 1: .• 1 ••

b . ~ . :0' 1 . . I .'0'£ ''''1 ,--J

est way IS to dispc Ignorance ot t IC doings 0 ot iers uy a Sy5-

tematic spread of general knowledge. 'Vitll this object in view, it is 1110st important to aid exchange of thought and intercourse.

~f IItll"! mnl'r.t:1.llciill .... wrurlrl h,. immcuselv facilitated bv the usc

oi one universal tongue. But which shall it be, is the great question. At present it looks as if the English might be adopted as

,. ... .,.

"" W"Ub" ~. v ". •• ." ~ ~~. ~ "u.~.

Each lancuace of course excels in some feature. The Enalish

lends itself to a terse, forceful expression of facts. The French is precise and finely distinctive. The Italian is probably the most

.1, A: •• • ... A n' • ••• I, ,..... '1"h.. <::1..;,. t, ,n",,,... .,.... , .... "

'0 .•

rich in sound but extremely difficult to master. The German IS unequaled in the facility it offers for coining and combining

nu"u", .. l" a .. " '... • " " , ., '! .. ~~ u~.

nerforce he found in times to come for it is manifest that by

adopting one common language the onward march of man would be prodigiously quickened. I do not believe that an artificial con.. " .. ti"n liJ.. .. V"hn"J.. ",ill "VI' .. lintt rm i v .. r,,~1 ,,,,,. .. nt,,n,. .. hnw .. " .. r

time-saving it might be. That would be contrary to human nature. Languages have grown into our hearts. I rather look to the

•• '.: • _I. T' ~.

p"~' OJ '0 •

basing myself in this conclusion on the Spencerian law of rhythm.

It seems unfortunate that the English-speaking nations, who are now fittest to rule the world, while endowed with extraordirm rv .. n .. r"v anrl nractical intelliaenee. are sineularlv wanting in

linguistic talent.

Next to speech we must consider permanent records of all kinds

r, . .t.. .L

a" .. ...~ ~ ,~ ~ _ .'" .,,~ •• ~. •• ,

edge of mutual endeavor which is chiefly conducive to harmony.

Here the newspapers play by far the most important part. They are undoubtedly more effective than institutions of learning, lihrari.... anrl individual corresoondence all combined. The

knowledge they convey is, on the whole. superficial anI sometimes defective, but it is poured out in a mighty stream that reaches

far and wide. Disregarding the force of electrical invention, that

are instrumental, mainly, in the furtherance of special thorough knowledge in our OW" fields, which is destructive of concordance.

ilar sources of information is very slow. As to individual correspondence, it is principally useful as an indispensable ingredient

.

material between heterogeneous masses of humanity. .It would be hard to overestimate the beneficial influence of the marvelous and

making force of all. permanent, printed or other records, resides not in themselves. It must be sought elsewhere. This is also true

Our senses enable us to perceive only a minute portion of the outside world. Our touch, taste 'and smell, require actual con-

reach beyond the sphere of our sense perceptions. We must transmit our intelligence, travel, transport the materials and transfer

. .. .

we now realize. forcibly enough to dispense with argument, that of all other conquests of man, without exception, that which is most

. .. . .

,

versa) peaceful relations is-the com lete ANNIHILATION OF

DISTANCE.

To achieve this wonder, electricity is the one and only means.

. ' .

powerful agent, the nature of which is' still a mystery. Our astonishment at what has been accomplished would be uncontrollable

... . ..

come. That one, the greatest of all, can be viewed in three aspects:

Dissemination of intelligence, trensportatio«, alld tratlsmissiOll of power.

Ref rrin r

telephonic communication are very limited in scope. The conducting channels are costly and of small working capacity. There is

which, moreover, .is too expensive: A vast improvement wiII be

effected by placing the wires underground and insulating them artificially, by refrigeration. Their working capacity' also could be

tc 11 'III ntcd I, resort in to the new ,.-illci rle of "in-

dividualizatiou," which I 1I:I\'c more recently announced, permitting the simultaneous transmission of thousands of telegraphic and

it not for the stolid indifference of the -leading companies engaged ill the transmission of intelligence. But new concerns arc springing

a f a ion

along these two lilies of invention. The submarine cables are subject to still greater limitations. Some obstacles to rapid signaling, through

matieian, O. Heaviside, and several able electricians following in his footsteps. have fallen into the singular error that rapid telegraphy and

1 • I

the use of induction coils. Inductances might be to some extent helpful on comparatively short lines with thick paper insulation; on long

, .,

electrostatic capacity and unavoidable loss of energy in the insulation . and surrounding conductors will always restrict the usefulness of

.. his

the transmission through artificial conductors is necessarily confined to a small number of stations.

It is therefore evident that the abollshmese oi all these draw-

n

as I have undertaken will be of the greatest

,

sible to operate from a single "world" telegraphy plant, an unlimited number of receiving stations distributed all over the globe.

. ...

,

years a simple and inexpensive device, readily carried about, will enable one to receive on land or sea the principal news, to hear a

the crying need for cheap transmission to great distances. more especially over theoceans. Tht small working capacity of the cables and

. . . .

dissemination of intelligence which can only be removed' by transmission without wires.

without the use of artificial channels are impracticable. As a matter of fact. nothing could be more erroneous. Ever since its first

. ,

system of signaling by Hertzian or electromagnetic waves, and my forecasts have been fully confirmed. It lends itself little to tuning,

tentous claims for this method of communication were made three years ago, but they have been unable to stand the hard, cruel test'

British electrical journal (Electrician, London, February 27. 1903), that some experimenters have abandoned all their own and have,

,.

roval and officiation. I was both astonished and

at the nonchalance and lack of appreciation of these men, pained at the inability exhibited in the construction and use of my apparatus.

.. .. ..

be realized. for I have ascertained that His Majesty the King of England, Hi. Excellency the President of the United States, and

by Hertzian telegraphy can only be conjectured.

Quite different conditions exist in my system in which the electro-

. .

'ground having. itself, the effect of reducing the energy of these radi,,· tions to about ~ne-half. Unde; observance of 'proper rules and arti-

e and . r r-

cation of the principle of ':individualization," repeatedly referred to the messages may be rendered both non-interfering and non-inr,r!er-

.. ....

the human body: It was the outcome of long-continued tests demonstrating the impossibility, of satisfying rigorous commercial require-

. . . . ..,

selective quality is dependent oo',a single characteristic feature. In this later improvement the exclusiveness and non-interferability of

o erative association of a number of distinctive elements and

can be pushed as far as desired. In actual practice it is found that by combining only two vibrations or tones, a degree of

A~
hr"tinnfil "r .. rn..,hin,.it it ic ,."tr,.m,.lv itiffi .. nlt "v,.n fn .. " .. ),oill .. it
expert, to read or to disturb signals not intended for him, with four
it is a . vain undertaking. The probability of his .getting the secret
. . .
,,"vm. oiL LI"': III'"L ... ~ ... ~ ... ~ ""U III plVyC~ VI UCI, 1:0 mUL.1I
smaller .than that of drawlnz an ambo. terno or ouaterno reseectivelv.
ill a lottery. From experimental facts, I conclude that the invention
will permit the simultaneous transmission of several millions of
.. .r .••• I, A: ,.: 'N ;.1, ,hl ....... .. .hr. .~1. oh ...... h .. h; .. h
• ". I hO•• hi -"'.
strange y enoug , IS In t IS respect much superior to an artificial
conductor. This number ought to be sufficient to meet all the press-
.. .r· .... c.,
'''6 .. .......... 6~ .. ~~ .u .. ~ .... ~,......... g, ... -~. v .... ""'''W'.1
to come. It is important to observe that but one "world" telezraohv
plant. such as I am now completing, will have a greater working
capacity than all tile orea" cables combined. Once these facts are "
r .... n ... ni7 .. it thi~ n .. w "rt. whi .. h T am inallD'lIr"tin ... · will CUT .... " th ..
world with the force of a uragan.
In transportation a great change is now going on. The trolley
.I . .I 1. ... ~ .
~ u~, "6 .... ~,,~~~, ... ~ ~ ... ~ ... .~ .~ '''~~'''6 t"'~"~ ••
the electric motor. The ocean liners are adootinll the turbine.
Land travel is being improved by the automobile. The waterfalls
are being harnessed and the energy used in the propulsion of cars.
Th .. ,,<lv:'\nt:lD'''~ n( fird ... ,.n .. r"tinO' ,.I,.,.tri,.it" h" ,. nrim .. rnnv .... "nit
then applying the current to produce mechanical motion, are be-
ing more and more appreciated. To the majority,. this may appear
,1~h .l ,I,' • .1.' • • ..,1~ .1.
driving of a pulle; from an~;her by a belt. 'The idea is already being
applied to railroads, and automobiles of this new type are making
. their appearance. The ocean vessels are bound to follow .. An irn-
mense and virgin field will be thus onened un to the manufacturers
of electric machinery. Effort towards saving time. and money
is characteristic of all modern methods of transportation. In
.~ ,~ :1: .• .1 .~
high-tension mains by refrigeration . will be very useful. However
paradoxical, it is true, that by the use of this invention, power for
all industrial purposes can be transmitted to distances of many
hundreds of miles not onlv without anv loss but with aonreciable
gain of energy. This is due to the fact that the conductor is much
colder than the surrounding medium. The operativeness of this
m .. thnit ic r"ctrirt"tl tn th ... " .... nf " ... "."n"c r .. frinpr"nt nn knnwn
liquid permitting the attainment of a sufficiently low temperature
of the transmission line. Hydrogen IS by far the best cooling agent
to employ. By its use electric railways can be extended to any de-
sired distance. Owing to the smallness of ohmic loss, the objections
to the multiphase system disappear and induction motors with closed
coil armatures can be adopted. I find that even transmission through
a submarine cable as from Sweden to England of great amounts
of power is perfectly practicable. But the ideal solution of the prob-
tern 01 transportation Will ne arrived at only wll~n the complete
annihilation of distance in the transmission of power in large
amounts shall have become a commercial reality. That day we shall
j"'fad.e the domain of the bird. When the vexing problem of aerial
na v igation, which has defied his attempts for ages, is solved, man
will advance with giant strides.
Th;lt electrical energy can be economically transmitted without
WHes 'to llny rerrestrrar urstance, 1 nave unrmstakamy estaeusuec
11'1 nurnerevs observations, experiments and measurements, qual ita-
t,vc and quantItative. These have demonstrated that it is .practic-
al.le to distribute power from a central plant m unlimited amounts,
with a loss not exceeding D small fraction of Olle per cent.' in the
transmission, even to the greatest distance, twelve thousand. miles-
t" tbe opposite end of the globe. This seemingly impossible fcat
.0: .. . . r, '" ...
.... ,vn "" '~"U".1 I'" 'v, ... ~~ U~"".1 ~ ... ~ ...... "" .~ ...... ~. .. .. " ""';
design and construction of my "high-potential magnifying trans-
mitter," . the movt marvelous electrical apparatus or which I have
ICn(JWI('nl(C'. ell:tlJlinl{ rue proollctiol1 01 CIICCIS 01 IIl1limitc<I illtellsilics 84

in the earth and its ambiant atmosphere. It is essentially, a free1l_
vibrating secondary. circuit of definite length, very high self-induction
'and small' resistance, which has one of its terminals in intimate direct
nr innl1,.t;v .. i ... n ";ith 'hA ......... nA DnA th ... "th ..... urith D" .. lA,
vated conductor, ~nd upon which the electrical oscillations of a pri-
mary or exciting circuit are impressed under conditions of resonance.
To give an idea of the capabilities of this wonderful appliance, I may
state that I have obtained by its means soark discharges extendinz
. through more than one hundred feet and carrying currents of one
thousand amperes, electromotive forces approximating twenty million
.. "It. ~ha ;~" II. ., ,f "
'0 ~. -~-
square feet, and electrical disturbances in the natural media sur-
passing those caused by. lightning, in itensity.
Whatever the future may bring, the universal application of these
zreat nrincinl .... i .. fllllv lI!I!OlIr .. tI thnuah it mllv h .. Ian ... in eom-
ing. With the opening of the first power plant, incredulity will give
way to wonderment, and this to ingratitude, as ever before. The
• r r_ n' .. ,
life .~ ... " V' ._ •• " .. ,._.~, U~ ... _ •• ~
energy. So far only about three million horse-power have
been harnessed by my system of alternating-current transmission.
This is .little, but corresponds, nevertheless, to the adding of sixty
million indefatizable hoh" .. ,.rc urnrl-in .. virtuallv withn"t food ann
pay, to the world's population, The projects which have come to my
own attention, however, contemplate the exploitation of water-
nnw,.r. " . in .. IiI-A nn .. h,'n" .... "'---"Ln1i~~
horse-power. -~ Should they be~carried out in a quarter of ~ century,
as seems probable from present indications, there will be, on the av-
erage two such untiring laborers for every individual. Long before
this consummation coal and oil must cease to be im__Q_ortant factors
in the sustenance of human life on this planet. It should be borne in
mind that electrical energy obtained by harnessing a waterfall is
nrnh"hl .. f:ftv ti ... A e .,..n .... ":fr .. ,.ti" .. th"n f .... l .. n .. r .. v c:.in,. .. thi. i. th ..
-, rendering -g. available, the
most perfect way of the sun's energy
direction of the future material development of man is clearly
indicated. He will live on "white coaL" Like a babe to the
mother's breast will he cline to his waterfall. "Give us our daily
waterfall," will be the prayer of the coming generations. Deus
futurus est deus aquae deiectusl
Rnt th .. f",.t th"t .,."t;nn"rv w"",.. "r, nrnAII .. ihl .. in th .. ""rih
.is of special and, in many ways, still greater significance in the in-
tellectual development of humanity. Popularly explained, such a
wave is a phenomenon generically akin to an echo-a result of re-
flection. It affords a positive and uncontrovertible experimental
evidence that the electric current, after passing into the earth
travels to the diametrically opposite region of the same and re-
boundinz from there. returns to its ooint of deoarture with vir-
tually undiminished force. The outgoing and returning' currents
clash and form nodes ana lOOpS Similar to those onservanre on a
vibrating cord. To traverse the entire distance of about twenty-five
thousand miles, equal to the circumference of the globe, the current re-
quires a certain time interval, which I have approximately ascertained.
In yieli:ling this knowledge, nature has revealed one of its most pre-
cious secrets of inestimable consequence to man. So astounding_ are
the facts in this connection, that it would seem as though the Creator,
nimseu, nan eiecmcany IJesigneo wis planet JUSt lor me purpose
of enabling us to achieve wonders which, before my discovery, could
not have been conceived by the wildest imagination. A full account
01 my discover ies and Improvements Will be glv-en to toe wortd In a
special work which I am preparing. In so far, however, as they
relate to industrial and commercial uses, they will be disclosed in
patent specifications most carefully drawn.
, ...... ... -=
,n ...... "'u ,.. .. i ............ " ..... c \L;,o ........ " .... ".. "v ....... ,,, .. , ................... r
March 5, 1904), I have been since some time at work on designs
of a power plant which is to transmit ten thousand horse-power Qt:;
without wires. The energy is to be collected all over the earth
at many places and in varying amounts. It should not be un-
derstood that the practical realization of this undertaking is neces-
sarll» far off. The clans could be easilv finished this winter and
if some preliminary work on the foundations could be done in the
. '.' .~
meanume Ule luau, ml~'lt ue rcauy lor operatron U"'V." "'" ... u~ .. "'.
next fall. 'We would then have at our disposal a unique and invalu-
able machine. Just this ofle oscillator would advance the world a cen-
tury. Its civilizing influence would be fell even by the humblest
dweller in the wilderness. Millions of instruments of all kinds,
for all imaginable purposes, could be operated from that one rna-
chine. Universal time could be distributed by simple .iuexpensive
. .
"It'\:'" I"\I'"II"~. IlV iH'''llllUIl 'UIU <111111111);- w '" '''· ... 1 • 111 .. ' ............. ",
precision. Stock-tickers, synchronous movements and innumerable
devices of this character could be worked in unison all over the
earui. mstruments migm De provrceo lor mcrcaung tne course OJ
a vessel at sea, the distance traversed, the speed, the hour at' any
particular place, the latitude and longitude. Incalculable cornmer-
cral advantages could be thus secured and countless accidents and
..I' • A U. _, • _L L I~ .1
'. ~ •• ~ ••• ~ " •• ~~~~ ... ·b ... W~ "b""~~ ~. ~ ..... ~
other work requiring a few horse-power performed. What is far
more important than this, flying machines might be driven in any
~ .
VAil VI ""; "VllU. • ""Y "VLlIU u" rua u e 'V u a vel swrruy u<;""u"" Vl
their small weight and great motive power. My intention would be
to utilize this first plant rather as means of enlightenment, to col-
teet Its power 111 very small amounts, ana at as many places as pos-
~ihl" 'T'h .. 1.-""",,.<1,,,,. fl.,,,. .1".,." iQ • .hrnlt",h th.. .."rth
energy readily available everywhere. would ex~rt a strong stimulus
on students, mechanics and inventors of all countries. This would
.r .. t: .• _, 1\,... • 1. • 1 .. t • .'"
l" b' .~, ,~ ~-.~~.
and powerful incentive. Conditions, such as never existed before
in commerce, would be brought about. Supply would be ever in-
. .. ..
auequare to aemana. 1 ne mdustrres or Iron, copper, arurmnurn, 111-
sulated wire and many others. eoulr! not fail to derive I!'reat and
lasting benefits from this development.
The economic transmission of power without wires is of all-sur-
• • 'D. • L:I1' .1.
.. ... .," 'J .~ . o· 'r
mastery of the air, the sea and the desert. It will enable him to
dispense with the necessity of mining, pumping, transporting and
,
uu ...... ~ IU"., .... u :>v uv ........ Y WJlIl ..... ~ ... ~I"Ul" ..... u,,"" VI ""&lUI
waste. Bv its means he will obtain at any olace and in anv de-
sired amount. the energy of remote waterfalls-to drive his machin-
ery, to construct his canals, tunnels and highways, to manufacture
th" m"t .. rh 1~ "f hi~ w"nt hi .. rlnthina "n<l {non tn h .. at anrl liaht
his home-year in, year out, ever and ever, by day and by night.
It will make the living glorious sun his obedient, toiling slave. It
;11 I.. ~n 'h.
. ., r ..
Over five years have elapsed since that providential lightning
storm on the Sd of July, 1899. of which I told in the article
before mentioned, and through which I discovered the terrestrial
stationary waves' nearly five vears since I oerformed the Ilreat
experiment which, on that unforgettable day, the dark God of Thun-
der mercifully showed me in his vast, awe-sounding laboratory. I
thn .h+ th .. n ,h •• ;. , .1,1 .J,." ~ ." .. +n .. ot~hli~h ,."..,..,,, .. ,.;,,,11
'0 " Alas! my first "world teleg-
my wireless girdle around the world.
raphy" plant is not yet completed, its construction has progressed
but slowly during the past two years. And this machine I am
buildin« is but a nlavthinc, an oscillator of a maximum activitv of
only ten million horse-power, just enough to throw this planet into
feeble tremors, by sign and word-to telegraph and to telephone:
"UI. .,".11 T .,. .J ,I, +; .•• , .r nl .• + th· h~", ".,.;11,,_
tor which I am desi~~illg! r r .~
From which a current stronger than
that of a welding machine. under a tension of one hundred million
volts, is to rush through the earth I Which will deliver energy 86

at the rate of one thousand million horse-power-one hundred Falls
nf hl: .. "'..... ." .... h; .... rI· ...... ~ •• a,;, .1., • ",i.I. hI ..........
blows ;hat will wake from their slu;';;ber the sleepiest electricians,
if there be any, on Venus or Mars I It is not a dream, it is
a simple feat of scientific electrical engineering, only expensive-
blind faint-hearted doubting world I Humanitv is not vet
sufficiently advanced to be willingly led by the discove r er's keen
searching sense. But who knows? Perhaps it is better in this
nr .. e .. n • ..,n.,I" nt nI1"~ .h". " ... vnJ"tinn""" i",." n. inv .. ntinn inat .. ,."
~ f . ~~ ill-treated in its
o being helped and patted, be hampered an"
adolescence-by want of means. by selfish interest. pedantery. stu-
pidity and ignorance; that it be attacked and stifled; that' it pass
throuzh bitter trials and tribulations through the heartless stri fe
of commercial exisence. So do we get our light. So all that was
great in the past was ridiculed. condemned. combatted. suppressea-
nnlv to .. m,.r ..... ,.11 th .. mor.. .e, !Iv. all th ... mnr..· Iv
from the struggle. oS1ve through

June 24, 1905, p. 1162

TESLA ON SUBWAY DANGERS

The New York Sun of June 16 printed the following letter from Mr. Nikola Tesla:

way 1S a calamlty apt to repeat itself. As your readers occur for the first time last Sunday. Water, like fire,

relied upon under normal working conditions, any accidental obstruction to the flow may cause a pressure which no pipe or joint can withstand.

In fact, if we are to place faith in the gloomy forecasts of Commissioner Oakley, who ou ht to know such floods ma be ex ected to ha

e ectr1ca equ1pment w as been thrust upon the Interborough Company by incom-

petent advisers.

The subway is bound to be successful, and would be so if the cars were drawn by mules, for it is the ideal means of transportation in crowded cities. But the full

It is to be regretted that this important pioneering enterprise, in other re-

,

in its most vital feature. No opportunity was given to myself, the inventor and

Electric and Westinghouse companies consulted, the very men who should have been thought of first of all.

, .

der Fluch der' boesen Thut, das s;e fortzeugend Boeses muss gebaeren."

scarcely practicable to avoid it altogether.

subway appreciably above that which might reasonably have been expected in such a more or less stagnated channel. I have never doubted the correctness of that anal-

ysis and have assumed that oxygen is being continuously set free by stray currents

passlng roug e m01S groun. e a a amperage a e norma war ing curren

in the tunnel is ver~ great, and in case of f~ooding would be sufficient to.gene~ate

way operation the fuses must be set hard, in order to avoid frequent interruption of the service by their blowin out, in such an emer enc the current would be of

much greater volume and hydrogen would be more abundantly liberated.

Reprinted with permission. Reprinted from June 24, 1905, issue of Electrical World.

88

with a comparatively large volume of can convince himself by a

sim le calculation th t s

fore the danger is discovered, re

effect of such an explosion might be on life and property is not pleasant to contemplate. True, s~ch a disaster is n?t.p~bable, but the present electrical equip-

of the tunnel

.

for ventilation is imperative. But ventilation will not do away with the danger I

rent.

property should object to its employment, and the insurance companies should refuse the grant of policies on such property except on terms which it may please them to

e.

EngZish Mechanic and WorZd of Science

TESLA'S REPLY TO EDISON.

He says:-

In the course of certain investigations which I carried on for the purpose of stud in the effects of lightning discharges upon the electrical condition of the

earth I observed that sensitive receiving instruments arranged so as to be capable of responding to electrical disturbances created by.the.d~sch~rges at times failed

trical waves which were produced in the earth by the lightning discharges, and which had nodal re ions follow;n at definite distances the shiftin source of the

disturbances. From data obtained in a large number of observations of the maxima and minima of the~e waves I found their length to vary ap~roximately.from twenty-

the globe, and that be of still more widely differing lengths, the ex-

treme limits bein the h sical dimensions and ro erties of the earth.

Recognising in the existence of these waves an unmistakable evidence that the disturbances created had been conducted from their origin to the most remote portions

. .

,

ful purposes for which they are or might be found applicable.

89

This problem was rendered extremely difficult, owing to the immense dimensions

cles; u illations,

of lightning discharges and by means of this apparatus I

operation or control of remote devices which, for want of this knowledge and the absence of these means, have heretofore been entirely impossible. For example, by

the use of such a generator of stationary waves and recelving apparatus proper y placed.an? adju~t~d in ~ny other locality, however remote, i~ is practicable to

whenever desired the correct time of an observatory, or for ascertaining the relative osition of a bod or distance of the same with reference to the given point,

or for determining the course of a moving object, such as a vessel at sea, the distance traversed by the same or its speed; or for producing many other useful effects

A Bit of Sarcasm.

Permit me to say on this occasion that if there exist to-day no facilities for wireless telegraphic and telephone communication between the most distant countries,

,

connection I shall well remember the efforts of some, unwise enough to believe

. dv nab throw'n sand in the e es of the 0 le and re-

tarding the progress of invention. Should the first messages across the seas prove calamitous to them, it will be a punishment regrettable but fully deserved.

its

90

July 16, 1905

To the Editor of the New York Sun:-

of the generous donors who have aided hope that Peary's will be the

.

electrical energy without wires and aerial navigation, which has found in the novel art its ideal solution.

merely of possibilities. As a matter of fact, from the principles involved and the ex eriments which I have actuall erformed, not onl is the ractical success of

such distribution of power reduced to a degree of mathematical certitude, but the transmission can be effected with an economy much greater than possible by the pres-

It would not take long to build a plant for purposes of aerial navigation and geographical research, nor would it cost as much as might be supposed. Its location

,

Falls in Africa, without any appreciable difference in the power collected in a

, ,

the energy of such a plant would dissipate itself in all directions. This is not so as I have ointed out in m technic 1 ublications. Electricit is dis laced

by the transmitter in all directions, equally through the earth and the air; that true, but energy is expended only at the place where it is collected and used

, ,

ing machine, of, say, 50 hp operating in some distant place, the location being of

the plant to the rest of the universe. Although the electrical oscillations would manifest themselves allover the earth, at the surface as well as high in the air,

but a few horsepower. Apart from the transmitting and receiving apparatus, the

. .

netic waves, which can be reduced to any entirely insignificant quantity.

the transmitter and the earth to be two immense, both being connected by a tube

A pump is provlded for forclng t e Ul in rapid succession. Now, to produce a

to

such enormous size

greater task to construct is a way of accomplishing

vibrations of the bag are

conditions the ba is

and out with terrific ely undisturbed. Its

The second artifice is to so adjust the transmitter that it will furnish these

of vibration,

r n in 0 spasms is yet transmitted, and

Next let your readers imagine that at any place where it may be desired to de-

one through a tube. The third artifice consists in so proportioning the parts that the attachment will be responsive to the impulse transmitted, this resulting in a

To conduce to an understanding of the

that of "individualiza-

crude idea of the processes involved. But only when they realize that all these and many other processes not mentioned, and related to one another like the links

o a c aln, are comp ete ln a fractlon of a second, will your readers be able to appreciate the magical potencies of electrical vibrations and form a conception of

. .

the

larized by Santos Dumont. There will be no necessity of carrying a generator or store of motive ener and conse uentl the machine will be much li hter and smal-

spee Wl e conSl era y lncrease. ut a ew 0 suc machlnes, properly equipped

with photographic and other appliances, will be sufficient to give us in a short

• • I • •

,

however, that for the ordinary uses of a single person a very small machine of not

more than one- uarter horse- ower corres ond;n to wor f m

amply sufficient so that when the first plant of 10,000 hp is installed, the com-

modity of aerial flight can be offered to a great many individuals all the world over. I can conceive of no improvement which would be more efficient in the fur-

Harvard Illustrated March, 1907

SIGNALLING TO MARS - A PROBLEM OF ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING.

By Nikola Tesla.

, ,

had made shortly bef?re, and feeling that the time had come to prepare the world

tury Magazine of the same year. In order to correct an erroneous report which gained wide circulation, a statement was published

, e lnlng my POSl 10n ln genera erms. ver slnce, my centred on the subject, and my original conviction has

whon-

ell, described in a volume

astonishment, if not awe.

e

These questions will be answered definitely the moment all doubt as to the existence of highly developed beings on Mars is dispelled. The straightness of the

. .. ..

, , .

that a planet large enough not to be frozen stiff in a spasm of volcanic action, like our moon must in the course of eons have all its mountains leveled the

valleys filled, the rocks ground to sand, and ultimately assume the form of a smooth spheroid, with all its rivers flowing in geodetically straight lines. The

,

Morse, that this whole wonderful map produces the absolute and irresistible convic ion that these II analsll owe their existence to a uidin intell; ence. Their

great size is not a valid argument to the contrary. It would merely imply that the Martians have harnessed the energy of waterfalls. We know of no other source

the atmosphere, for this, according to our best knowl~dge, would require clumsy

extensive dams. While much less effective than our own, they could well furnish several billions of horse-power. It should be borne in mind that many Martian

e er

layers, may be considerably below the mean.

, ,

To a still greater degree this is