Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1878-06-26
THE OFFICIAL HISTORY
EARS FOB THE DEAF.
What the Wizard of MEMO Park Will
DO Next-Surprising Experiments
Open sir Conversation at
Two Miles Distance.

New York Graphic: 1t was yesterday at
ternoon that few of Mr.. Edison's enthusi
astic assistants and friends gathered around
him at Menlo park, to witness the first trial,
in the presence Of witnesses, OF the new ear
trumpet the inventor had evolved from his
inner consciousness.
Mr.. Edison revealed to the Graphic, some
two months ago, the fact that he was en-
gagged in the construction of highly suscep.
tible ear trumpet, and our readers will recall
the letter in which he promised, without hes
itation and without reserve, that he would
make an ear-tube by the use of which the
deaf could hear. AS Mr.. Edison is himself
SO deaf that he hears only when quite near
and with considerable vigilance, the utmost
confidence was reposed in mis- purpose; and
his marvellous success in developing the one
hundred and sixty inventions which now
stand in his name on the books of the patent
Office generated wide belief that he could
really do what he had set his hand to. This
confidence seems now to be justified and re-
allied.
AS Mr.. Edison and his friends stepped out
of the long laboratory where his wonders are
born to the open porch at its front, looking
south, they bore half a dozen ear-trumpets
with them. These implements looked eX-
ternally much like ordinary ear-trumpets,
only they were five or SIX feet long.
81 stood here the other day, )" said Edison,
turning his eager gray eyes upon the Graph
&c, land | put one of these to my ear.
heard several things very Distinctly. heard
child cry; | heard the instrument tick down
at the station, one thousand feet away; aud
heard one curious, softly grinding sound that
| could not identify till | followed it up and
found it to be a cow biting off and chewing
grass, two thousand feet distant-two-fifths
of mile"
There were present on the porch, Edison,
fa,1 and
war letters; Urlah Painter, a noted Wash
ington journalist; w. X. Applebaugh, presl-
dent of the photograph company; Charles
Bachelor and several other gentlemen eager
to see the experiments. They had waited for
pleasant day.
to express 81 heard" and 81 do not hear" by
waving the hands in peculiar way.
Then Mr.. Bachelor and Urlah Painter
took one of the ear-trumpets and went
forth, across the field, to a store SIX hundred
feet distant.
One of them then said: "Do you hear me
now?"
"Yesr' shouted they in the porch, with
a laughing accom- paninlent, for the voice
was distinctly audible to all with the naked
ear.
''Do you hear this?" he repeated, in a
lower tone, scalcely audible.
Again he was answered In the affirmative.
The question was repeated over and over
till the ar-trumpets had to be used. At last
came to the ear of the lIstners, Il am whis-
pering now; do you hear me?" Mr.. Painter
was six hundred feet distant yet his whis-
pers were perfectly. distlnt. Bachelor walked
away from him fifteen feet and signaled that
he could not, with the unaided ear, hear his
companion S whispers, which were audible
to us in the porch As six hundred is to
fifteen, so is Edlson's ear-trumpet to the I'M
aided ear-twenty to one!
But the experiments were scarcely begun.
Bachelor and Painter walked off across the
fields till they We're a mile distant. They
crossed many undulations-up hill, down
dale now vanishing, now reappearing, till
thew finally stood forth on a hiliock in plain
sight, but diminutlve and boy like in size.
Signals were exchanged. "All ready"
One at each end put the trumpet to his
Perfectly distinct" said Redpath. 'He
says John Browns body lies molderling in
the grave.
Then he spoke toward the figures on the
distant hill, 81 heard that distinctly. How
loud are you talking?"
''In an ordinary tone Of voice. came in
respone to the man with the trumpet;
scarcely louder tnan l would speak in a
parlor.
very strange and uncanny to hold a CONVEX
sation in an ordinary voice, with man a
mile off, without a speaking trumpet, and
with no wire or electrical assistance what
ever.
This is really telegraphlng without tel
egraph," exclaimed Redpath.
As we could plainly see with our opera
glasses that the man on the hill had his
trumpet ''in position" Mr.. Edison stepped