Electricians Show Interesting Exhibits

Tesla Gives Demonstrations of His Latest Invention.

TRANSMITTING PICTURES BY WIRE

Test Fails Because of Induction, but Success Hoped for Today — Edison and John D. Rockefeller Present.

Of more than usual interest to the general public is the conversazione held yesterday in Columbia University by the American Institute of Electrical Engineers. Many new and important inventions were shown and original and interesting experiments were made. The exhibits fill twelve rooms and represent the work of fifty eminent scientists. Among them is Nikola Tesla.

Interest last night centred in an effort to transmit pictures to distant cities by wire. The receiving point was the University of Chicago. The test failed, so it was reported from Chicago.

The instrument, or electrograph, had worked successfully across distances of several hundred miles, but last night, owing to induction of the wires in New York, would not record the thousand of fine dots of which the pictures are composed. It was proposed to transmit between the two cities pictures of President William R. Harper of the University of Chicago, President Seth Low of Columbia and John D. Rockefeller.

PROMINENT FOLK PRESENT.

Thomas Mills, invertor of the electrograph, was in charge of the test in Chicago, while his assistant, H. R. Palmer, directed the operation of the machine in New York. In this city there were gathered men of worldwide fame, among whom were Thomas A. Edison, Nikola Tesla, Sig. Marconi and Dr. Pupin of Columbia.

The electrograph resembles in a slight degree a large graphophone. The paper on which the picture is reproduced is wrapped around a cylinder, on which a delicately sensitive stylus makes in ink dots corresponding in light and shade to the dots composing the half-tone illustration. Messrs. Mills and Palmer, in view of last night's lack of success, decided to delay further tests of the invention a few days or until the condition of the wires is more satisfactory.

TESLA DEMONSTRATES.

Nikola Tesla gave demonstrations with a new electric oscillator in Havemeyer Hall, and experiments of all kinds were in progress in the other departments. Among the most interesting were those conducted by Peter Cooper Hewitt in connection with high candle power lighting. His investigations are on the basis of the employment of hot gases or vapor, through which an electric current is discharged, and with an ordinary 115-volt current he develops 1,000 candle power in one of his single big tube lamps.

Waldemar Poulsen's telephonograph was also on exhibition, as well as the United States Army field telephone and telegraph kit, as used in the Cuban and Philippine campaigns. This, as well as demonstrations of wireless telegraphy raphy in operation, operation, were exhibited by Colonel Samuel Reber, U. S. A.

DR. PUPIN SHOWS HIS INVENTION.

Dr. Michael I. Pupin occupied two rooms with his exhibition of the original apparatus which he used in following out the recent invention for the improvement of long distance land and ocean telephony. The doctor himself was on hand to point out and explain the road he himself had followed, but though he pleaded guilty to having still further improvements under way, he refused to to discuss them.

William J. Hammer exhibited photographs by himself of Professor S. P. Langley's aerodrome, Sir Hiram Maxim's flying machine, Santos-Dumont's dirigible air ship and Count Zeppelin's famous balloon.

There were in addition many photographs of the balloon tests made during the Aeronautical Congress at the Paris Exhibition.