Tesla Declares He Will Abolish War

Magician of Electricity Announces That He Has Perfected an Application of the Current Which Will Make Possible the Destruction of Battle Ships at Any Distance from an Operating Base.

PROJECTS CONTROLLING IMPULSES THROUGH ATMOSPHERE

Exhibits a Working Model, the Propelling, Steering and Exploding Mechanism of Which Are Controlled at Will from a Distance Without the Intervention of Wires.

SAYS WILL RENDER USELESS THE NAVIES OF THE WORLD.

At the Paris Exposition the Inventor Intends to Exhibit a Model of a Vessel, All the Maneuvers of Which Will Be Directed by Him from His Office in New York.

WONDERS NIKOLA TESLA SAYS HE CAN PERFORM.

At the moment when all the world is ringing with rumors of an impending colossal conflict there comes from the laboratory of one of the great magicians of science the announcement of the development of a power which he believes is destined immediately to usher in the era of universal peace by the demonstration of Its ability to destroy, without the possibility of defense, the mightiest armaments of all the naval powers.

In the words of Nikola Tesla, uttered yesterday morning:-"War will cease to be possible when all the world knows to-morrow that the most feeble of the nations can supply itself immediately with a weapon which will.render its coast secure and its ports impregnable to the assaults of the united armadas of the world. Battle ships will cease to be built, and the mightiest armorclads and the most tremendous artillery afloat will be of no more use than so much scrap iron. And this irresistible power can be exerted at any distance by an agency of so delicate, so impalpable a quality that I feel that I am justified in predicting that the time will come, incredible as it may seem, when It can be called into action by the mere exercise of the human will."

Unlimited Destructive Powers.

In brief, Mr. Tesla's latest and most startling miracle consists in an application of electricity whereby, without the interposition of any artificial medium of communication, one man can control and direct, with absolute exactitude, the movements of any type of vessel, balloon or land vehicle, at any distance that may be desired. From a station on shore, or from the deck of a vessel under way, a torpedo boat equipped with Mr. Tesla's, controlling device may be propelled either on or below the surface, maneuvered at will in any direction, and finally brought into contact and exploded against the side of a hostile vessel at any point within the range of the vision of the operator.

More than this, assuming that it were possible to accurately locate the position of the vessel which it is desired to destroy, the torpedo boat could be directed to it, even if the whip lay in the harbor of Southampton and the operator were stationed at Sandy look. With such marvelous possibilities of destruction it is hardly to be wondered that Mr. Tesla firmly believes that the days of the supremacy of sea power are numbered.

Mr. Tesla told me that some months had elapsed since he had fully developed his device, for which he has applied for a patent. When it was learned that Admiral Cervera was bottled up at Santiago it was his intention to apply his mechanism to several launches and similar small craft loaded with high explosives and annihilate the fleet at anchor. Admiral Cervera, however, came out and met his fate under the guns of the American fleet before the necessary arrangements could be made. Then Mr. Tesla planned a raid on the Spanish vessels in Havana Harbor, only to be thwarted by the proclamation of the suspension of hostilities.

Ironclads Doomed.

While the most important application of the device is unquestionably in the direction of destruction, it will also have countless peaceful uses, and it is Mr. Tesla's highest pride that by making war too terrible it will render it impossible.

When I saw Mr. Tesla yesterday morning In his laboratory in East Houston street he said: "It gives me the greatest pleasure to announce to the world my last and my greatest invention through the medium of the Herald. My Imagination fairly reels when I attempt to contemplate its countless possibilities. Already I hear the knell of the battle ship and the monster gun. Their day has passed with the advent of a new and irresistible power, which gives to all nations an absolute power of defense against any attack. "England has until now boasted of her mastery of the seas, but her superiority has vanished and she is now no stronger than the weakest of the maritime nations, so far as her offensive power is concerned. England, who is now so diligently preparing for war, will awake to this unwelcome discovery tomorrow and will be utterly confounded, and France, against whom her armaments have been reported to be preparing, will rejoice in the discovery that she possesses an all powerful weapon of defense.

"Hitherto," continued Mr. Tesla, "the only means of controlling the movements of a vessel from a distance have been supplied through the medium of a flexible conductor such as an electric cable, but this system is subject to obvious limitations such as are imposed by the length, weight and strength of the conductor which can be practically used: by the difficulty of maintaining, with safety. the high speed of the vessel or changing the direction of her movements with rapidity: by the necessity of effecting the control from a point which is practically fixed, and from many other drawbacks which are inseparably connected with such a system.

No Wires Required.

"The plan which I have perfected involves none of these objections, for I am enabled by the use of my Invention to employ any means of propulsion, to impart to the moving body or vessel the highest possible speed, to control the operation of its machinery and to direct its movements from either a fixed point or from a body moving and changing its direction, however rapidly, and to maintain this control over great distances, without any artificial connections between the vessel and the apparatus governing its movements, and without such restrictions as these must necessarily impose.

In a broad sense, then, my Invention differs from all of those systems which provide for the control of the mechanism carried by a moving object and governing its motion. In that I require no intermediate wires, cables or other form of mechanical connection with the object save the natural media in space. I accomplish, nevertheless, similar results and in a much more practical manner by producing waves. Impulses or radiations which are received through the earth, water or atmosphere by suitable apparatus on the moving body and cause the desired actions, so long as the body remains within the active region or effective range of such currents, waves; impulses or radiations.

Having explained to you some of the possibilities of the device," continued Mr. Tesla. "I will now give you a practical example of the workings of the model before going into electrical or a detailed description of how I am able to produce these results."

Illustrated by a Model.

Elevated on stocks on a table in the centre of the laboratory stood a model of a screw propelled craft, about four feet long and somewhat disproportionately wide and deep. Mr. Tesla explained that it was merely a working model which he had had made in order to exhibit to President McKinley, and that no attempt had been made to follow the usual sharp lines of a torpedo boat. The deck was slightly arched and surmounted by three slender standards, the centre one being considerably higher than the other two, which carried small incandescent bulbs, a third bulb being fired at the bow.

The keel consisted of a massive copper plate, the propeller and rudder being in the usual positions. Mr. Tesla explained that the boat contained the propelling machinery, consisting of an electric motor actuated by a storage battery in the hold, another motor to actuate the rudder and the delicate mechanism which performs the function of receiving through the central standard the electric impulses sent through the atmosphere from the distant operating station, which set in motion the propelling and steering motors, and through them light or extinguish the electric bulbs and fire the exploding charge in a chamber in the bow in response to signals sent by the operator.

"Now, watch," said the inventor, and, going to a table on the other side of the room, on which lay a little switchbox, about five inches square, he gave the lever a sharp propeller turn. Instantly the little bronze began to revolve at a furious rate. "Now I will send the boat to starboard," he said, and another quick movement of the lever sent the helm sharp over, and another movement turned it as rapidly back again. At another signal the screw stopped and reversed.

Will Abolish War.

"During the day," continued Mr. Tesla, his hand still on the lever, "we should steer our course by keeping the two standards in line." but at night we should depend on the electric lights, which would, of course, be screened so as not to be visible to the enemy," and at a signal both the tiny bulbs were illuminated. "Now we will assume that the boat has arrived within striking distance of the vessel to be destroyed , and the bulb in the bow will serve to show that the explosion has taken place."

As he spoke he touched the lever again and the light flashed and was extinguished. "Imagine, if you can," said Mr. Tesla as he went back to his desk, "what an irresistible Instrument of destruction we have in a torpedo boat thus controlled, which we can operate day or night, on the surface or below it, and from any distance that may be desired. A ship thus assailed would have no possibility of escape.

"I can apply this system of control, to any type of vessel and of any size. It is not even necessary to make a clone approach to the vessel to be destroyed. At the distance of 100 feet the explosion of 200 pounds of dynamite will exert a shattering effect on a battle ship. but there is no reason why we should not load a vessel with 200 or 300 tons, or even more, of dynamite, which, exploded even a mile or so away, would raise a wave that would overwhelm the biggest ship ever built.

"But I have no desire that my fame should rest on the invention of a merely destructive device, no matter how terrible. remembered as the inventor who succeeded prefer to be in abolishing war. That will be my highest pride . But there are many peaceful uses to which my invention can be put, conspicuously that of rescuing the shipwrecked.

"It will be perfectly feasible to equip our life saving stations with life cars, or life boats, directed and controlled from the shore. which will approach stranded vessels and bring off the passengers and crews without risking the lives of the brave fellows who are now forced to fight their way to the rescue through the raging surf. It may also be used for the propulsion of plot boats, for carrying letters or provisions or instruments to inaccessible regions, for killing whales and for many other commercial or scientific purposes."

Controlled from Any Distance.

"Is there any limit," I asked, "to the distance at which the controlling device can be operated?"

"In the operations of war." replied Mr. Tesla, "the radius of control would usually be limited by the range of the vision of the operator, whether afloat or ashore, but otherwise there is no limit to the distance. In order to give a practical Illustration of this it is my intention to exhibit a model of a torpedo boat at the Paris Exposition and direct all ts movements from my office in New York, precisely as I have shown you the working of the model here to-day, except that in Paris I intend to exhibit it afloat in a tank."

Coming to the description of the details of his device Mr. Tesla prefaced his remarks by the explanation that the electrical disturbances proceeding from the centre of control were of an infinitesimally feeble character. and then made the startling statement that he believed that the time would come when it would be possible to bring them into play by the mere exercise of the will.

"But that time," he continued, "is probably far distant. I only mention the fact as illustrative of the delicate character of the impulses, and because the possibility of exciting them by mere will power is logically in accordance with the development of the system."

Continuing his description, Mr. Tesla said:- "An to that part of my Invention which involves the production of suitable waves or radiations and the conveying of the name to a remote receiving apparatus capable of being operated or controlled by their influence, It may be carried out in various ways which are at the present time more or less understood. For example. I may pass through a conducting bath, preferably enclosing a large area, a rapidly varying current, and by electro-magnetic induction of the same affect a circuit carried by the moving body.

Methods of Operating.

"In this case the action at a given distance. will be the stronger the larger the area enclosed by the conductor and the greater the rate of change of the current. If the latter were generated in the ordinary ways, the rate of change, and consequently the distance at which the action would be practically available for the present purpose, would be very small. but by adopting such means as I have devised-that is, either by passing through the conducting path currents of a specially designed high frequency alternator, or, better still, those of a strongly charged condenser - a very high rate of change may be obtained. and the effective range of the influence thus extended over a vast aren, and by carefully adjusting the circuit on the moving body an as to be in exact electro-magnetic synchronism with the primary disturbances this influence may be utilized at great distances.

"Another way to carry out my invention in to direct the currents or discharges of a high frequency machine or condenser through a circuit one terminal of which is connected directly or inductively with the ground and the other with a body, preferably of large surface and at an elevation. In this case, if the circuit on the moving body be similarly arranged or connected, differences of potential on the terminals of the circuit either by conduction or electrostatic Induction are produced, and the same object is attained.

"Still another way is to pass the currents simply through the ground by connecting both the terminals of the source of high frequency currents to earth at different and remote points, and to utilize the currents spreading through the ground for affecting the receiving circuit properly placed and adjusted.

A Sensitive Device.

"Finally. I may avail myself, in carrying out my invention, of electrical oscillations which do not follow any particular conducting path, but propagate in straight lines through space, of rays, waves, pulses or disturbances of any kind, capable of bringing the mechanism of the moving body into action from a distance and at the will the operator by their effect upon suitable controlling devices.

"In any event that is to say, whichever of the above or similar plans I may adopt - and particularly when the influence exerted from a distance upon the receiving circuit be too small to directly and reliably affect and actuate the controlling apparatus, I employ auxiliary sensitive relays, or, generally speaking, means capable of being brought into action by the feeblest influences, in order to effect the control of the movements of the distant body with the least possible expenditure of energy and at the greatest practicable distance, thus extending the range and usefulness of my invention."

In describing the device used for detecting the presence of the impulse from the controlling station, and transmitting it to the propelling and other mechanism of the boat Mr. Tesla said a great variety of devices for the detection of vibrations were known to scientific men and artisans, and mentioned. among others, the familiar lightning arrester in use in telegraph offices.

He had demonstrated, he said, the practicability of providing a large number of receiving currents of a special design - fifty or a hundred or more - each of which might be called up, or brought into action, whenever desired without the others being interfered with. This made it possible for one operator to direct simultaneously the movements of many bodies, each of which might have a distinct duty to perform, as well as to control the action of various devices located on the same body, such as the propelling. steering and exploding mechanism of a torpedo boat.

The Problem Solved.

"In regard to these sensitive devices," he said, "which may be broadly considered as belonging to one class, inasmuch as the operation of all of them involves the breaking down of a minute thickness of highly strained dielectric, it is necessary to make some provision for automatically restoring to the dielectric its original, unimpaired insulating qualities in order to enable the device to be used in successive operations. This is usually accomplished by a gentle tapping or vibration of the electrodes or particles, or continuous rotation of the same, but in long experience with many forms of these devices I have found that such procedures, while suitable in simple and comparatively unimportant operations, as ordinary signalling, when it is merely required that the succeeding effects produced in the receiving circuit should differ in regard to their relative duration only - in which case it is of little or no consequence If some of the individual effects be altered or incomplete or even entirely missed - do not yield satisfactory results in many instances when It may be very important that the effects produced should all be exactly such as desired and that none should fall.

"To illustrate. let it be supposed that an official, directing the movements of a vessel in the manner described, should find it necessary to bring into action a special device on the latter, or to perform a particular operation, perhaps of vital moment, at an instant's notice, and, possibly when, by design or accident, the vessel itself or any mark indicating its presence is hidden from his view.

Guarding Against Failure.

In this instance a failure or defective action of any part of the apparatus might have disastrous consequences, and such cases, in which the sure and timely working of the machinery is of paramount importance, may often present themselves in practice, and this consideration has impressed me with the necessity of doing away with the defects. in the present devices and of producing an apparatus which, while being sensitive, will also be most reliable and positive in its action.

"In this arrangement these defects are overcome in a most satisfactory manner, enabling thousands of successive operations In all respects alike being performed by the controlling apparatus without a single irregularity or miss being recorded.

"The apparatus by means of which the operation of both the propelling and steering mechanisms is controlled Involves, primarily, a receiving circuit, which, for reasons before stated, is preferably both adjusted and rendered sensitive to the influence of waves or impulses emanating from a remote source, the adjustment being so that the period of oscillation of the circuit is either the same as that of the source or a harmonic thereof.

"The receiving circuit proper comprises a terminal affixed on the central standard conductor, a sensitive device, and a conductor leading to the ground, conveniently through a connection to the metal keel of the vessel.

"The terminal should present a large conducting surface and should be supported us high as practicable on the standard.

How the Current Flows.

"The circuit, or path, also a part of a local circuit, which latter includes a relay magnet and a battery, the electro-motive force of which is so determined that although the dielectric layers in the sensitive device are subjected to a great strain, yet normally they withstand the strain and no appreciable current flows through the local circuit. But when an electrical disturbance reaches the circuit the dielectric films are broken down, the resistance of the device is suddenly and greatly diminished, and a current traverses the relay magnet."

The sensitive device which Mr. Tesla employs, and on which dependence is placed to effect connection between the impulses from the controlling station and the mechanism proper of the boat, consists of a metal cylinder, provided with insulating heads, through which passes a metallic rod. A small quantity of metallic grains of conducting material. consisting of particles of exactly uniform s se and carefully oxidized, is placed in the cylinder, which is placed in connection with a small battery and a train of clockwork.

This mechanism operates to turn the sensitive cylinder, end for end, after the passage of the impulse which has started the battery current. The normal position of the cylinder la vertical, and when turned over the grains in it are simply shifted from one end to the other. As they always fall through the same space and are subjected to the same agitation, they are brought after each operation of the relay to precisely the same electrical condition, and offer the same resistance to the now of the battery current, until another impulse from afar reaches the receiving current.

In addition to the mechanism described the vessel may carry any other device or apparatus which may be required for any special object and which may be set in motion in the same manner as the propelling and steering machinery. In practice the switch box by which the generation of the electrical impulses is controlled is similar to the one used by Mr. Tesla in his demonstration with the model, signals being conveyed by simple movements of the lever.