Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1878-07-25
Communication.
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Our New York Letter
The aggravated" Railroads.&c.
tective Edison on the Track
The Custom House
Changes.


tective Edison on the Track
The Custom House
Changes.
New YoRK, July 20. 1878.
To the Editor of the O5sercer: i:
The Metropolitan Elevated Rail
road, although in running order
and doing a heavy business, finds
itself in no way through with its
troubles yet. Besides having va
Irious suits on It's hands, in one of
which damages are claimed to the
amount of $4,5O0,00O, certain
things about its operations raise
such hue and cry from the Sixth
Avenoodles as even a soulless cor.
poration dares not ignore. Out
ragged citizens complain that the
sparks from the windows burn
| them and their store awnings,
that gas, smoke and cinders from
the same source blind and choke
them, that oil from the running
gear drops down on their clothes,
and, worse than all, that the
ceaseless rumble and ciatter Of
the trains wears upon their nerves,
preventing sleep, land driving them
to the verge Of suicide. This for
midable arraignment is backed up
by vigorous public protest signed
by hundred or two physicians,
who state that in their opinion, the
road in It's present shape is del
eterious nuisance.
Thus beset, the managers are
casting about for means Of ap.
peasing an angry public The
sparks and cinders they think they
can control without much dilficul-
but how to deaden the noise which
is the annoyance most complained
of is u more difficult problem. To
aid in its solution the managers
have called into their council that
versatile and extraordinary man,
Edison, him of the phonograpb,
telephone, microphone, 1ropbone,
&c, Sc, and he has now been at
work for several days with some
of bis wonderful sound registering
machines, trying to find out what
particular points OF the train and
track the main part Of the obnox.
ious racket is generated. When
this is done, says the inventor, it
will be comparatively easy to re-
duce tie noise. Meanwhile the
growlels have become temporarily
quiet, their curiosity over Edison 5
performances overcoming for the
moment their sense of annoyance.
New York merits and possess
es, too, the reputation of origina-
ting more, and more eXtraordiha
ry journalistic enterprises than
any two cities in America. Some
of these I have already referred TO
in my correspondence but moth
ing that has appeared since | com
menced to observe metropolitan
publishing compares in novelty
and originality with "Ihe 1dco-
cate" which, within the last two
months has Iun up in circulation
to over half a million of copit S
weekly. From its start the i'd
cocate has been a genuine sensa-
tion. It champions labor reform,
greenbacks, tie Grange, Quaker
ism, and Free Masonry. Il has
been pooh pooled and abused
without stint. It's existence has
been ridiculed, aud its immediate
failure predict, d-and y il goes
on undisiurbed, rolling up cireu-
lation absolutely unparalleled in
this country, and showing every
sign OF prosperity. Its publishers
violate every tradition OF Journal
i m by riAing blows right and
left with absolute learlessness. Its
editorials and news items are con-
d4nsed TO degree that would al /.
most drive John Russell Young
himself-to suicide, and everything
about its conduct indicates phe-
/. nomenal nerve and ability.
An unusual crime was commit
ted here this week, with an unu.
snal object A drunken wife, a
bused BY a drunken husband, liv-
: ing in extreme poverty in an East
side tenement house, became des-
perate through trouble and drink,
and procuring a can Of kerosene,
. saturated the room in which she
lived, set fire 10 it and left the
house in which were her own
J children, and some twenty other