Daily Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1876-1884, 1878-03-01

scientific American |

lScientiho American
Mr.. Thomas A. Edison recently
exhibited his talking phonograph
before the Polytechnic Association
of the American Institute in this
city. This was the first public
showing of the instrument, and,
although much yet remains to be
done to make it fulfill the design Of
the inventor, it's capabilities have
already been considerably advanced
beyond those which it possessed
when displayed to us in this office
shortly after its origination. The
mechanical construction, that is,
the rotating sliding cylinder, the
vibratory membrane and the tin
foil strip which receives the inden-
tatiOn and in turn transmits the
puisa to the receiving dia-
phragm, have not been materially
modified, but by the use of reflect
ors Mr.. Edison las succeeded in
magnifying the sound so as to ren-
der the same quite audible through
out u large apartment. The scien-
fists who assembled to hear the
photograph manifested genuine
uSIOulSuIhcutt duu IbC iHSti uulcut
itself, apparently on its good be-
havior, did its best to
strengthen the impression. 1t
proved it's capacity as u linz
guist by repeating sentences spoken
to it in English, Dutch, German,
French, Spanish, and the Hebrew.
1t initiated with marvellous fidelity
the barking of dogs, growing of
cocks, etc., and then taking Sc
we're cold, coughed and snet zed and
wheezed until the physicians in
the audience instinctlvely began to
write prescriptions. After the i'll
ventor had exhibited its reproduce
ton of his remarks, his auditors
wanted the machiue to initiate
theirs also, aud for long time the
apparatus was the recipient proba-
bly, OF all the different sounds that
the human voice could produce or
scientific ingenuity devise. 1t
withstood the test triumphantly,
and remained in modest silence
whi'e praises were lavished upon
it and suggestions iunumerable
made as to its future uses. Anuth-
er proposal was to reproduce fig
ures Of popular speakers in life
slze-electrotype Mr.. Beecher,
for instance -reproduce his speech
in tin foil, put phonograph, run
by clock work, inside of him-the
statute, not the man-and stand
him Oh platform to repeat the
new lecture on the WASTES and
Burdens of Society" Another sug-
gestion WAS, that public speakers
might repeat their speeches to pho
nograph, and then twenty-tour
hours later have the photograph
repeat the words to them. They
could thus prevent themselves
from making rash or overheated or
silly remarks. An irreverent indi-
vidual "dIdn't see but that now,
with the talking photograph and
singing telephone, clergymen and
choirs were out of date. The phos
nograph could repeat service every
Sunday and run Off old sermons
with wonderful accuracy; while. by
having enough telephones, one
choir would supply music to all
the churches in the CITY," An
amendment to this was the sugges-
ton to use only the photograph be-
cause it could sing M well as speak,
and thus it might do the duty of
both preacher and choir. An indo-
lent listener to the fore
going wanted to know if
a monograph could not be COM
bined with a clock so as at the
proper times to remark, 81 O'Clock,
time to get up;n "l2 O'Clock, go to
dinner" and so on. The audience,
some of the members of which were
at first rather doubtful as to the
foundation for all we had said re-
garding Mr.. Edison's invention,
left we'll convinced as to its Won
derful capabilities. Meanwhile the
inventor is relaxing no effotts TO
improve it, and we shall be much
mistaken if before many months he
does not astonish us with ma
chine able to do much greater
things than those already accom-
plished.