The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1878-04-19
THE TALKING MACHINE.

| NEW 1oRk, April 6.-The other day
went out to Menlo Park, New Jersey, I'd
spent the afternoon in the workshopxof
Thomas "A. Edison, the magician, wf9is
making machines that talk. His laboratdky
is rs interesting as Monte Criste's cave, fpd
his achievements ma ke the tales of ArabAn
sorcery seem credible. saw the talki,,1i
machine, talked to it, and it talked back =
| fou have heard about it, of course, busr
story can not be an old one for 'yeen1 i
come, andS although the phonoarspk
simple as jack.kuife, it exoites tkS4J
the beholder as a telegraph sIks 4
Indians superstition. i sss !. u.
| nfenu rasxE3 -
this city towards Phaade eiphia. 3 HiSX Hels.
station, and has NO houses except xE3ison'
large laboratory and the houses Of Achens
lists, machinists and assistants 8eformtf
is great building, hundred feet loag, t}t4
lower floor occupied by machinery &tWcft.
ing In iron, and the upper as hcAiSA
and electrical laboratory. A Rsrsof
wires enter the roof, connecting w4kkaJwide
circuit of American cities, and there are
nine lightning-rods over the peak Of the
building. 1t is filled with clattef like d
rolling mill. !. ~.s,.s
found Edison up stairs talking with the
mouth piece of phonograph, which hears
and speaks with the same organ, a thin
sheet Of iron, which is tympanum when
it is spoken to, and diaphragm wheusb
talks. He was bent over it, and repeated
IN q solemn voice the sage apothegn, "IntI
mintra, cutra, corn, apple seed and apple
thorn, wire, brier, timber lock, three mice
ran up the clock"
That's wrong" <somebody said, and he
looked up and lausd9 and said he had for
gotten it. He then greeted us cordially,
but with diffident manner, as if not accus
toned to society, and turned to describe to
us the talking machine.
Thomas A. Edison is rather above the
medium height, unshavcn and unshorn,
slightly shabby, with pair of bright, ag-
gresive gray eyes, illuminating an otherwise
uuinteresting face. He is an Ohio man,
and is only thirty-cne. His conversation
has strong Ohio flavor. Indeed, in some
respects, he is provincial, for, if puzzled
about thing, he resolutely cxclaims, "Ill
git it yit"
has no electricity and no magnet about it.
1t is very simple piece of mechanism 1t
consists of brass cylinder three inches in
diameter and eight inches long, mounted on
an iron frame, and turned with crank
(Edison has substituted steam power) The
cylinder is reamed with fine spiral grove,
like tho thread Of screw. Upon it is laid
sheet of smooth tin.foil, against which
rests the needle which is vibrated by the
voice of the speaker. The sound waves
hal ho IL
the needle, and the needle makes small cor.
responding indentatious in the tin foil, as
the cylinder revolves. SO now We found
the tin, foil encirclcd by lines of minute dots,
which Edison said were "a photograph of
the atmospheric waves put in motion by the
voic
"Now see," he said. 1-' 81
And he lifted the mouthpiecc and needle,
turned tho cylinder back to the point Of
beginning, replaced the mouthpicce till the
needle was in contact with the foil, shifted
the belt on, and Immediately from the
mouthpiece came, in a high, clear voice,
"Intra, mintra, cutra, corn," &c, down to
"three mice" that assembled the household
timepiece. The articulation was perfect
The infections and emphasis were precisely
preserved. 1t was evidently human
voice.
Then he tore off the sheet and put on an
other.
"That sheet is uninjured, you see," he
sail. at might be made to repeat that
hundreds of times it might be sent to for
eign lands or kept to future ages, and it
would say it just as we'll, if put on cylin-
der like this"
Then he talked poetry into it; whistled,
shouted, whispered, barked, neighed, slut
tered, crowcd. Everything was returned with
perfect modulation, the only difference being
that something more than half of the vol.
ume had been lost. Then your correspon.
dent tried it satisfactorily.
A lady and gentleman sang round into
it by use Of double (forked) mouthpiece
"Scotlana's burning, Scotland's burning
Look out Look out Fire Fire Fire
Fire Pour on water Pour on waterw and
the machine sang it over after them three
times, with great spirit, sending the bars
upon each others heels in the most anus
ing hurry. The two tones Of a bass and q
contralto voice were also perfectly distin
guished. They had little metallic sound
but Edison said, 81 can remedy that easily
| enouch 7 must auhstitute n n,anhrana fn,