When Autocar met the inventor of the death ray

Nothing astir the 18 April 1924 contented of this mag seems unusual.

On the cover, a colourful coating advertizing Wolseley’s caller Fourteen touring car.  In the leader, a plea for drivers to instrumentality other attraction successful the Easter vacation traffic. In the roadworthy test, a caller four-cylinder saloon from Vauxhall. The main feature, a preview of the British Empire Exhibition, to beryllium held astatine a expansive caller purpose-built stadium successful Wembley.

And successful the news, the invention of the invisible decease ray. Woah, bent on. What?!

“To halt an interior combustion motor without immoderate disposable bureau is the uncanny accomplishment of astatine slightest 1 British electrical engineer,” we reported. 

“Clearly the worth of this startling improvement lies solely successful its usage successful wartime. Accordingly, Mr [Harry] Grindell Matthews tin hardly beryllium expected to disclose the means whereby helium attains the striking result, and we are, therefore, constricted to describing the demonstration.

“On a seat astatine 1 extremity of the inventor’s laboratory, determination was placed an ‘Auto-wheel’, which consists of a tiny self-contained [ICE] with a high-tension magneto serving for ignition. This we were invited to analyse thoroughly successful bid to guarantee ourselves that it was modular and that the magneto was not connected to thing but the sparking plug.

“Having satisfied ourselves of this, the motor was started and allowed to tally up to a bully speed. Mr Matthews past brought his invention into enactment astatine a region of astatine slightest 45ft from the [ICE], which instantly ceased firing and rapidly slowed down arsenic it mislaid its momentum. Just earlier it stopped, the powerfulness [was switched off] nether his control, and with a flimsy spluttering from the carburettor, the [ICE] commenced to occurrence erstwhile much and rapidly picked up speed.

“To get this effect, electrical vigor to the grade of 1kW was employed, and, broadly speaking, the invention whitethorn beryllium described arsenic the transmitting of electrical vigor astatine highly precocious hostility by means of a projected ray which really acts arsenic a conductor. Of the quality of the ray, we tin springiness nary inkling. 

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“It is not visible, and we are informed that shielding the motor by means of insulating material, specified arsenic heavy solid oregon metal, makes nary quality to the power of the motor done the ignition.”

We considered: “Imagination is staggered astatine the aboriginal possibilities of specified a potent weapon. It has been said that the adjacent warfare volition beryllium astir wholly a warfare of machinery, but successful the airy of these experiments, it is questionable [if] determination could beryllium immoderate aboriginal war.”

So conscionable what was going on? It’s intolerable to say. Matthews was acold from unsocial successful claiming specified an invention, and you whitethorn fishy helium was simply a clever, convincing con man. 

But past helium had invented, and would aboriginal invent, utile things. His sanction archetypal appeared successful Autocar successful 1912, arsenic helium was investigating a strategy of wireless connection transmission betwixt vehicles and aircraft, seemingly with a scope of up to 150 miles – which helium would aboriginal show to the Queen. 

During World War I, Matthews was fixed a £25k authorities declaration to enactment connected the distant power of ships. In the 1920s, helium would assistance Warner Bros pioneer talking movies. 

The large occupation was that Matthews wouldn’t explicate however his decease ray worked and did not person authorities officials with his objection of it.

His absorption was to tally distant to France to merchantability his invention – with the added play of lawyers representing 2 of his investors dashing into the aerodrome arsenic his level was taking off, brandishing an injunction that forbade a sale.

He soon returned and allowed British Pathé to movie his decease ray igniting gunpowder – but thing else. He adjacent refused a £1000 Air Ministry connection to show it, contempt reputedly being penniless.

Moving into a ample bungalow surrounded by an electrical obstruction successful agrarian Gower, Wales (paid for, 1 suspects, by his caller wife, a affluent opera singer), helium continued to enactment connected fishy ‘inventions’, including a philharmonic instrumentality that worked utilizing rays of light, a entity projector, ‘aerial mines’ and a submarine detection system. Matthews died of a bosom onslaught successful 1941, aged 61.

Did Matthews truly invent the decease ray? Was helium a genius, up of his time? Or was helium a con man, a charlatan? His biographer believes the former, but we volition astir apt ne'er cognize the full truth.