Tesla claims that in the future such glass tubes filled with rarefied air and placed in a field of alternating current will be an ideal source of light, because in comparison to the incandescent lamp these tubes produce very little heat so that almost all the electrical power is converted into light. While in America the use of alternating currents of only a few hundreds of volts has led to fatal accidents, and electricity is even employed for capital punishment, it is amazing to note that Tesla's extremely high voltages do not constitute any hazard to human life. “I felt,” Tesla said when he was about to try them out for the first time, “as if I were poised to jump from Brooklyn Bridge.”

From his numerous experiments, Tesla concludes that, in future, a method may be developed to channel the powers found throughout nature, and to extract them directly from the medium which carries them. “Everything around us,” he says, “is moving; a means must be found of harnessing this kinetic energy directly.” He further believes that through his experiments, ways and means will be discovered to convert electricity and other natural powers into radiation without the intervention of conductors - this he regards as more than just a vision.

Time alone will tell whether Tesla's ideas are correct. None the less this need not prevent us from voicing our admiration for his experimental talent, and joining in the recognition accorded to his merits by the most authoritative scientists, both in the Old and New World.