New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1877-03-31
A TELEPHONE FUNNEL.


go on q sultry Sunday morning hotter according
TO the thermometer than any day before ii last year.
small group of gentlemen entered tic Main Bulld-
ing and stationed themselves in the gallery ut the
east end. The party divided and half went to each
end of the gallery. The great organ was between,
and neither half of the party could hear or see the
other Then Prof A. Graham Bell brought out his
telephone. Wires for telegraphing were laid along
the gallery; battery was set at work, ana conth-
uous current was sent along the line. The stations
on this line were only two; one at each end of the
gallery At each station there was little ordinary
alcctro-magnet, such as people see usually on tho
liable in a small telegraph Office and are in general
Familiar with. Beside the magnet there was nothing
.xcept few tunnels. These of different shapes.
but they agreed in each having one end covered
with stretched parchment, like drum head On
The center of each of these drum-heads, outside
small plate of metal, G. was ccmented fast The
diagram shows more elaborate form OF the funnel,
one that is provided with movable ring or hoop
(below the letter AZ which can be adjusted by set
screws. II, II. BY these means the parchment, F, +,
- over the end of the funnel, can be made tighter or
looser. la the earlier stages of the invention the
tunnel was used for receiving well as for sending
sonnd The instructions for Use were very simple.
THE sender of message to talk into one funnel;
The receiver was TO apply the other funnel 70 his ear
Each was to hold his funnel so that the parchment
would be opposite the poles of the electromagnetic
and very close to them jrst so that the little piece
of metal G. mounted on the parchment should not
quite touch the poles.
TIE WIRE SPEAKS WITH HUMAN VOICE.
The Emperor OF Brazil, who had joined the party
by special invitation, was offered the opportunity OF
leading Off in the experiments but he coarteously
waived the precedence. Among the first to make
himself heard and recognized through the wire was
Prof J. T. Hilgard. The friends of that genial pro-
Tcssor will readily imagine how his eyes twinklcd
ms he nut the funnel to his lips and uttered In 1t the
words
OR Draper! Dr. Draper! Do you hear me"
Or. Draper was standing at the other end of the
gallery, holding funnel to lis oar
"Whyw he exclaimed. " That's HiiGards voice.
%now il by the accent"
"A fact pecuiiaritcS of accent and infections OF
,,ice were given mt least quite as plainly rs syl-
tables The Scotch pronunciation OF SIR william
Thomson was recognized at once; Prof. Watson,
.bc able-bodied astronomer of Ann Arbor carried
mn n vigorous conversation with HIN. Prof. Nor
-ou of Hoboken obtained hearing without difficulty;
-,hetber Prof +. A. =. Barnard did, is moro than
doubtful. There had been many different opinions
among these experts to the possibilities OF the IN
strumcnt Some of the professors Thought 1t would
only give tones and intervals of speech one was quite
sure that il would fail with certain voWels; ahother
c0udllV certain that IL WOulu Dt tTppcu UP ny
.onsouants Nobody expected it TO do what actually
.Iid-to give the whole sound OF voice aud words
naturally Sir William Thomson tested it carefully
on these points. One of the party took from MS
7ockct TRIBUNE and read from it, into the tunnel,
ar.ous paragraphs. II the paper OF the previous
Monday June 90. The Democratic Convention was
rben in session at ST. Louis. One of the paragraphs
vas from the ST. Louis dispatches of THE TRIBUNE,
and began "S. s. Cox has arrived" The sole ad-
verse criticism of Sir William Thomson on this read
ing was that he did not hear the s. s." distinctly
Another paragraph which was plainly heard through
ont. was from the Foreign Summary Ill the same
naper containing the words 1.-The Americans IN
london are preparing to celebrate the Fourth Oh
.ulyD 1t is not necessary to repeat here the COM
ailments to Dom Pedro that were waited on the wlre
nor his amable replies. Neither would 1t be prohta-
BILE 10 report the chat which passed between the
professors such as:
"when you go home you can tell o fun on the
telephone"
mo more O. that, Hal! Already this thing takes
nv breath away"
Il may be hoped that the whole party, after TINS
dip into the mysteries of nature, turned more
heartily to those of gon and spent the afternoon
in church.