L.P.M. : The End of the Great WarBarney, J. Stewart (John Stewart)
Science
L.P.M. : The End of the Great War
Barney, J. Stewart (John Stewart)
World War, 1914-1918 -- Fiction
“Ladies and Gentlemen,” he said, after addressing the King,--for from
the gallery had come sounds which showed that, as Colonel Stewart had
suggested, some of the ladies of the Court were taking an interest in
the exhibition,--“I shall not trouble you to listen to a long,
scientific discourse on the theory of my discovery, nor how I have
made practical application of it. I shall simply throw the pictures on
the screen, letting them speak for themselves; and then, with His
Majesty’s kind permission, shall be glad to answer any questions that
may be put to me. The first picture I shall show you is one of my
workshop in New York.”
There appeared on the screen a dark, somewhat indistinct interior,
which seemed to have been photographed from high up and looking down
through a long, shed-like building lighted from the roof. The immense
height of this roof was not at first apparent until it was compared
with the pigmy-like figures of the workmen who were busily engaged
about a great, black, cigar-shaped object, which had the general
appearance of a Zeppelin. In the dim light, there was nothing about
its aspect to distinguish it from the latest models of the German
air-ship, save that it seemed to be of heavier construction, as shown
by the great difficulty with which the men were moving it toward the
farther end of the shed, which was entirely open.
“I would especially call your attention to the track upon which moves
the cradle that carries the large black object in the centre of the
picture,” said Edestone. “The tires are made of hard rubber, and the
rails which are of steel rest on glass plates attached to each of the
tires. Thus, any object placed in the cradle becomes absolutely
insulated, and has no electrical connection with the earth, which, as
I have explained, are the requisite conditions to permit of
‘Deionizing’ by the use of an instrument similar to the one I have in
my pocket. Of course, though in actual operation we use a much larger
‘Deionizer’ than the little model I have shown you, and run it with a
hundred horse-power motor, instead of with a small spring and
watchworks. This track and cradle at which you are looking, although
they weigh many tons, can be easily taken apart and transported in
sections, as I stand ready to demonstrate.”
The film ended as he finished, and for a moment the screen was blank;
then with a little splutter from the cabinet, another picture
appeared.
This was of a great open space, the most desolate and lonely stretch
of country that could well be imagined, a broad, open plain that
stretched on for miles and miles, perfectly flat, treeless and
uninhabited. The wind apparently was blowing violently, judging from
the way it tossed Edestone’s hair about as, hatless, he walked back
and forth in the near foreground, shading his eyes from the sun with
his hand while he looked into the lens and called his directions to
the man who was working the camera.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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