All About Inventions and Discoveries
The Romance of modern scientific and mechanical Achievements

i6 All About Inventions the lifeboatmen, in answer to the rockets, would have put out and have been surprised, upon reaching the danger spot, to have found no signs of a ship, or only to learn that she had reached safety. The utility of this installation drew the attention of Lloyd’s to wireless telegraphy, and they decided to install the system in their signal stations for the pur- pose of sending intelligence concerning passing ships from point to point. The first maritime connection of this description was that between Ballycastle and Rathlin Island, that wild corner of the North of Ireland. The maintained successes which Marconi’s inven- tion had achieved naturally attracted the attention of the whole world. What three years before had been regarded merely as an interesting laboratory experiment was now accepted as an indispensable commercial factor. While Marconi’s triumphs tempted many other inventors and toilers to enter the same field, certain Governments were anxious to acquire his system for their especial purposes. Among these was France, but they were anxious to ascertain from a conclusive demonstration of the system whether he could send wireless messages across the Channel. Marconi accepted the challenge, and the latter part of the year 1898 and the opening months of 1899 were devoted to the completion of the respective installations upon either side of the Channel. A mast was erected upon the Town Hall at Dover, while another lofty aerial was set up at Wimereux, near Boulogne. The distance to be spanned through the air was thirty-two miles. Incidentally it may be mentioned the French demonstration represented