The Cairo bulletin. [volume] (Cairo, Ill.) 1872-1878, 1877-11-13
THE PHONUGRAPH.


ANOTHER ELECTRICAL INVENTION, sTILL
MORE WONDERFUL THAN THE TELE.
ru0NE-THE TONES OF THE HUMAN
VOICE TO BE REPRODUCED YEARS AFTER
DEATH.
The Scientific american OF this week
contains the first announcement OF what
may be the most wonderful invention Of
the day.
Nothing could be more lncreditable
! than the likelihood of once more hearing
the voice OF the dead, yet the invention OF
the instrument is said to render this posi-
BILE hereafter. 1t Is true that the voices
are stilled, but whoever has spoken or
whoever may speak into the mouthpiece
of the photograph, and whose words are
recorded by it, has the assurance that his
speech may be reproduced audlbly in his
own tones long after he himself has turn.
ed to dust. A strip OF indentcd paper
travels through little machine, the
sounds of the latter are magnifed, and
posterity centuries hence hear us as
plainly as il we were present. Speech
has become. as it were, immortal. The
Scientific american says.
The possibilities Of tile future are not
much more wonderful than those OF the
present. The orator in Boston speaks,
the indented strip Of paper Is the tangi>
| BILE result: but this travels under a se>
cOnd machine which may connect with
the telephone. Not only is the speaker
heard now in San Francisco for example,
but by passing the strip again under the
reproducer he may be heard tomorrow,
or next year, or next century. His
speech in the first instance Is recorded
and transmitted simultaneously, and in.
definite repetition is possible.
The new Invention is purely mechanic.
al-nO electricity Is involved. 1t is a
simple affair of vibrating plates. thrown
into vibration BY the human voice. 1t
is crude yet, but the principle has been
found, and notifications and improve
ments are only matter of time. So also
are its possibilities other than those
already noted. VIII letter. writing be
a proceeding Of the past? Why not,
If by simply talking into
mouthplece our speech Is reported on pa
per, and our correspondent can by the
same paper hear us speak? Are we to
have new kind of book? There is no
reason why the oratiOns OF our modern
Ciceros should not be recorded and de.
tachably bound, so that we can run the
indented slips through the machine, and
in the quiet OF our own apartments listen
again, and as often as we will, to the elo-
quent words. Nor are we restricted to
spoken words. Music may be crystal
lied as well. Imagine on opera or an
grafton, sung by the greatest living yo>
calistS, thus recorded, and capable OF be.
ing repeated as we desire.
A description OF the photograph is con-
tanned in the following letter:
10 THE EDITOR OF The Scientific amer.
lean: In your journal of Nov. 3, page
273, you made the announcement that
DR.. Rosapelly and Prof. Marcy have sue
ceeded In graphically recording the
movements Of the lips, OF the veil Of the
palate, and the vibrations of the larynx,
and you prophesy that this, among other
important results, may lead possibly TO
the application OF electricity for the pur.
pose OF transferring these records to dis
tant points by wire.
Was this prophecy an intuition? Not
only has 1t been fulfilled to the letter.
but still more marvellous results achieved
by MIR. Thomas A. Edison, the renown-
ed electrician OF New Jersey, who has
kindly permitted me not only to make
public the fact, but the mOdus operandi.
Mr.. Edison, in the course of q series of
extended experiments In the production
OF his speaking telephone, lately per.
tected. conceived the highly bold and
original idea Of recording the human
voice on piece or paper from which at
any subsequent time 1t might be autom-
atically redellvered with all the vocal
characteristics Of the original speaker
accurately reproduced. A speech de.
livcred into the mouthpiece OF this aps
paratus may fifty years hence-long after
the original speaker is dead-be repro.
duced audibly to an audience with suffi.
cient fidelity to make the voice recor,
nizal'le by those who were familiar with
the original. As yet the apparatus is
crude, but Is characterized by that won.
dcrful simplicity which seems to be
trait OF all great Inventions
or discoveries. The principles are as
follows! There Is, first, speaking-tube
provided with mouthpiece, at the base
OF which is metallic diaphragm which
responds powerfully to the vibrations of
the voice. In the centre of the diaph.
ragm is secured a small, chisel.shapped
point. Below this point is a drum re-
yolved by clock work, and serves to
carry forward q continuous filet ofpaper.
having throughout its length and exact,
~ IN the centre raised V-shaped boss,
SUCH as would be made by passing q flllet
o. paper through q Morse register
| with the lever constantly depressed,
The chlSel.polnt attached to the diaph.
ragm rests upon the sharp edge of the
taise1 boss. lfnow the paper be drawn
rapidly along, all the movements of the
diaphragm Will be recorded by the In,
dentation Of the chlsel.point Into the do.
licate boss-it, having no support under.
meath, Is very easily indsnted; to do this.
little or no power In required to operate
the chlsel. The tones OF small ampll.
tude will be recorded by slight indeiIts.
lions, and those OF full amplitude Nv
deep ones. This hllet OF paper thus re.
ceives record Of tho vocal vibrations or
ar waves from the movement of the Ola.
phragm; and u IL can be made to contri.
bnte the same motion to q second dIaph>
rsgm' we shall not only see that we have