Honolulu Republican, Volume IV, Number 493, 10 January 1902 — A NEW THING IN FOG SIGNAL AT EGG ROCK [ARTICLE]

A NEW THING IN FOG SIGNAL AT EGG ROCK

BELL TO BE RUNG UNDER WATER To Be Hung Below a Buoy Which Will Be Moored in Fifteen Fathoms of Water —Will Be Struck by Elec tricity. A new thing in fog signals is being installed off Kgg Ro» k. Lynn—a bell to be rung about SO feet under water. It is well known that water Is a good conductor of sound, and this is to he taken advantage of by the submerged bell. The boll is to be hung below a buoy which is to be moored in fifteen fathoms of water by three or four mushrooms and guy chains, so that it cannot swing around and twist things up: and it will be struck by electricity from the Kgg Rock light s.atiop. where a power house is already established. The bell will be under the control of an operator on the island, who i an sound it whenever there is need The thoorv upon which th- plan Is to be worked out is that the bell, being under water, its sound may be heard by persons on shipboard at a much great er distance than if the bell was suspended above the water in the open air. while for the same reason its noise cannot be objectionable to the residents along the near-by shore. It is said that a person placing an ear against a planking in the hold of a vessel Will be able to hear the bell three to five miles away It is an idea that has been experimented with most satisfactorily, but nothing of the kind has yet been put nto practical service. Some of the exp* ritnects were made in Boston harbor last year, and if the Kgg Rotk bell proves a success it may be that others will be placed. It is believed by some that the ringing of the bell can be heard at a distance of ten or twelve miles and so this experiment w ill be watched by all mariners who are passing Kgg Rock.