The attention of readers is called to the article under the above title which appears on Page 196 of this issue of the "North-China "Herald". The findings contained therein are the result of a tour of a special correspondent to Central China. 'A further contribution will apear in this journal next week. sufficient, as the. Zowieshan Light and the North Saddle Light Jare at extreme range when off ithe Amherst Rocks and can only be seen in clear weather. If this leon tention is good, then it would seem that under certain weather jeonditions mariners are without adequate navigational aids in the vicinity of the rocks in question. That an unwatched, light to a certain extent is unreliable may be true, But with ithe perfection that has been attained in such devices the; chances of a_ breakdown are infrequent, Consequently, it Jwould seem that with such a Hight in operation navigators) Jwould be in a very much better' position than they are at, the present moment, and even if at times it did fail they would be no worse off than they are now.
It is permissible to ask why! the wireless beacon system has Met been more rapidly developed. The beacon at North Saddle h Jnear future the Customs authorities contemplate establishing two more such beacons by radio Jeross bearings. Experience of this system on the west coast of the United States tends to justify the conclusion that its general adoption would make the entrance to the Shanghai harbour ed [ess of a perilous adventure than. it is claimed to be at the present moment. Obviously, with only Jone beacon station in operation Jon the North Saddle there is no opportunity of obtaining cross bearings by radio. Its efficiency, therefore, for navigational purposes cannot be much more than fifty per cent. Incidentally, Jwhen considering the case of vessels, using the North Saddle radio beacon, the element of fog, jin conjunction with the heavy traffic at the Yangtsze entrance, must not be lost sight of. In this connection it would appear [that when a certain number of vessels are converging on a ina small radius jospheric hampering their certain amount, of added risk through collision must attend their manwuvring. Again, ft must also be borne in mind that, in so far as coastal vessels are concerned very few of them are fitted with the necessary apparatus to use these radio beacons and, present trading conditions being what they are, it is hardly to be expected that shipping. companies would }willingly "incur the added expense of providing their ships with the requisite additional radio equipment. The establishment of two more such beacons is not only a matter of money, but involves a question of time, jand it is difficult to escape the lconelusion that until the wireless beacon system has been fully [developed there is some deyree of Jjustice in the contentions of masters sailing up and down [this coast that something in the nature of a light should be fixed to these very dangerous rocks. It does not appear to involve an insuperable expense fand, as has already been pointed out, with it in existence navigators would be very much better off, and should it at times fail' they would be in no worse situation than they very often find themselves at the Present moment,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.