RADIOPHONE TESTS.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19136, 2 April 1924, Page 5

RADIOPHONE TESTS.

STATICS AGAINST RECEPTION. LOCAL REPORTS DOUBTED. (From Our Own Correspondent.! •WELLINGTON, April 1. The Chief Telegraph Engineer (Mr E. A. Slirimptcn) considers that it is extremely unlikely that anyone in New Zealand who was “listening in” on Sunday night, with the exception of one or two persons, actually heard the broadcast of music and speech by the Chicago Tribune's radiophone station. He stated to-day that he himself was listening-in. and he considered that the statics were against the reception of Sir George Fenwick’s speech. If anyone in New Zealand heard the messages through their more favourable position or immunity from interferences in the atmosphere, \he thought they were most likely to be Mr O’Meara, of Gisborne, who, reported that he had hoard several snatches of the speech, and Mr W. K. Erne, of Motueka, It was possible that others might have heard passages of music from California. The time at which Mr O’Meara stated that he heard the broadcast would be about correct. Mr Shrimpton doubted very much the report from Timaru that Sir George Fenwick was heard to speak first on the suitability of Singapore as an Admiralty base, and later on about Mr 'Massey and the New Zealand Government. He tbougnt it very probable that what was picked up at Timaru was the result of a tost being conducted at the Wellington wireless station with a now telephone transmitter for the purposes of the test Mr Massey’s reply to (ho British Government on the Singapore question was used, and he suspected that that had been heard and had been mistaken for Sir George Fenwick’s speech. The Wellington station, moreover, closed down before tho Chicago messages were timed to commence. AUSTRALIAN CONDITIONS UNFAVOURABLE. Press Association—Bv Televraph—Copyright SYDNEY, April 1. Owing to the unfavourable atmospheric conditions, the results of the wireless telephone tests from Chicago are still doubtful. Some quarters report the reception of music, but until the reports come in from the country centres the result of the experiment will not be known. The intcr-State conditions also were unfavourable.