Talk with Lord Kelvin

“It ought to be easy to manufacture the Diamond,” the Scientist says.

USES CAMERA AT FALLS

LAUGHS WHEN ASKED WHETHER WIRELESS TRANSMISSION OF POWER IS POSSIBLE.

Special to The Buffalo Express.

Niagara Falls, April 27. — Lord Kelvin, who is considered by many well-informed people as the greatest living man of science, visited Niagara Falls for the second time yesterday and to-day. Lord Kelvin has been greatly interested in the power development at the Falls since the inception of the great scheme, for he was one of the men consulted preliminary to attempting the work of harnessing the waterfall.

In 1897 he first saw the result of the labors of the picked men who formulated the plan and at that time he wrote in the visitors’ book at the Niagara Falls Power House: “I am very much pleased to see the great success here achieved as a result of courageous undertaking and originality of invention and skillful design in construction.”

To-day when an Express reporter asked him if the changes at Niagara Falls had exceeded his expectations, Lord Kelvin replied: “I’m sure I don’t know. They are very wonderful, but I expected wonderful things.”

Lord Kelvin is a kindly faced, benevolent-looking old gentleman. His many years weigh but lightly on him, and his mind is still the clear, perceptive mind that made possible the Atlantic cable, that propounded the “vortex-ring” theory of matter, and that has aided science and humanity by hundreds of inventions, suggestions and theories. He is the only Briton who was ever honored by the peerage for scientific work. But this honor rests small among his laurels, for Lord Kelvin is, first of all, a utilitarian. Because he sees in the use of things the cause for which they were created, he spoke to a big audience at Columbia University the other day, saying that were the water flowing over Niagara Falls diverted to turn turbines and a wall of verdure came in the place of a wall of water, mankind would benefit more largely.

He told a friend at Niagara Falls to-day, “The great thing that has influenced me in my work is to obtain that wonderful joy which comes from scientific research and the benefit that results to humanity.”

He was asked what practical benefit would result to the world from the recent discoveries of the “infinitely little,” the ions and electrons, whose existence was not thought of a few years ago.

“We must wait awhile for practical results,” he said. “Yet they will come. Many a thing first foreshadowed as a theory and many a fact which at first had but a purely scientific bearing has later been utilized to the great benefit of the world.”

With Lord Kelvin yesterday were Professor F. B. Crocker of Columbia University, C. S. Bradley, whose work at Niagara Falls is attracting world-wide attention; Calvin W. Rice, the well-known electrical engineer, and W. B. Rankine, vice president of the Niagara Falls Power Company, whose guests Lord and Lady Kelvin are.

An inspection of the very wonderful work done at the Atmospheric Products Company and the Ampere Chemical Company was made. Lord Kelvin was vastly interested with what he saw. The work done at these concerns is largely in an experimental stage, the aims and intents of the inventors being closely guarded until they have become actualities. But at the Atmospheric Products Company Lord Kelvin saw to his delight a wonderful process whereby nitric acid is made from the air. This is practically the long sought after solution of the fixation of atmospheric nitrogen and is one of the marvels of the new century which will not quickly be excelled. Mr. Bradley and Professor Crocker are interested in this company and Lord Kelvin was shown some of the mysteries. The Natural Food Company’s big plant was the only other visited.

“America has a great opportunity in her many great water-powers,” said Lord Kelvin. “England has very little with which to compare the great work along this line that is taking place in America.”

“At the falls of Foyer in Scotland,” said Lord Kelvin, “we are making very advantageously quantities of aluminium.” (Lord Kelvin uses aluminium instead of aluminum which is generally used in this country.) “But we have no such water-powers as America can show all over the country.”

“You think out scientific matters and over here we put them to a commercial use,” said Mr. Bradley.

“Yes, yes,” said Lord Kelvin, “that is it.”

The subject of the very high temperatures attained at Niagara interested Lord Kelvin very much. “There is practically no limit to the temperature the electric furnace can get,” he said. After a pause he said when told of the process invented by E. G. Acheson whereby amorphous and almost valueless carbon was turned into valuable graphite, he added: “It ought to be easy to manufacture the diamond.”

Those with him coincided and said that the commercial manufacture of the diamond was a comparatively easy matter for scientists to solve. “Will we ever have wireless transmission of power?” asked a bystander. Lord Kelvin laughed. It was as far as his incredulity cared to go.

“Not more than a month ago Tesla told me,” said Professor Crocker, “that he would within a short time be running tram cars in London by power generated on Long Island.”

Lord Kelvin laughed again, but there was more incredulity than in his former laugh.

The ennobled scientist was greatly interested in an account of a 50,000-volt current sent over an aluminum wire at Telluride, Col., which was given by Mr. Rice. Mr. Rice said that at night the aluminum wire became luminous and that riding under it he felt extremely uncomfortable as the current radiating from the wire struck him.

“Oh, America, with her many opportunities, should show marvelous developments within a few years,” he said.

But Niagara interests him more than any other point, because it is at Niagara electrical development is brought to the highest perfection. He, like most scientists, will venture no specific prophecy, because so many things are possible when once the right trail is struck. Lord Kelvin believes, however, that very shortly Buffalo will not be the only city getting Niagara Falls power, but that New York is sure to receive it in a short space.

Lord Kelvin took many snapshots of the falls with one of the cameras made by Lord Kelvin’s English Kodak company. He is the head of the Kodak manufacture in England and his visit to America at this time is caused by his connection with the Kodak interests, Rochester being his objective point. He left for Rochester to-night on the private car Iroquois, in company with George Eastman. At Rochester he will spend some time and will favor Cornell with a visit next Friday.

He received an invitation to attend the banquet of the Canadian Club at Buffalo to-morrow night, but he was obliged to decline.