The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1879-01-10
Is EDISON A FRAUD?

A New York SYN reporter says he has
been interviewing gentleman well.
known in electrical science himself, md
possessed of intimate and lifelong knowl.
edge of DIR. Edison, his abilities, and his
achievements, and capable of judging
him fairly and dispassionately, and OBJ
tanned the following information about
the great inventor whose inventions come
so slowly into practical use:
Have you seen Edison lately ~ asked
the Sun man.
"Oh, yes" was the reply, within a few
days"
How is he coming on with the cleo
trio light ?''
He isn't coming on at ALL" was the
reply. "He has not made IL single point
beyond what has been done by other men.
He has merely gathered together all that
has been achieved by scientists and work
ers all over the world, and in company
with his assistants has been striving to
put into practical operation the theories
of other laborers, and the results of their
Investigations. In this he has not succ.
eeeded up to date, and there is not the
least prospect that he WILL
do you really think that 81 said the
Sun reporter, knowing that the gentle
man he addressed was a thoroughly
versed man IN electrical science, and per
fectly capable of judging and feeling the
importance of suchIa decision, from such
q source.
II know it, was the reply. "He is,
to-day, not one whit nearer a solution of
the problem than he was two months
ago.
GGIlut 800, lx,.o,,. 81. IL z-z. - r n ~
world are on him now, and If he fails, he
will, as it were, go up in the public es-
timation."
Then it will be go up, sure, was the
reply.
''Do you not have faith in Edison ~
was asked.
Edison" responded the gentleman.
lis vastly overrated man, and the news
paper men of New York in search of
sensations are in the main responsible
for it. No inventor ever took out
SO many patents of which so few were
any better than worthless He has tax
en- out about 300, only about 12 of them
are practical and useful and profitable
He is hard worker and his success of
late is owing in a great measure to the
conditions under which he labors. He
is at the head ofan institution organized
for the creation of inventions. The lab
ratoTy at Menlo Park is an invention
factory, and by receiving promptly from
all parts of the world the latest and
freshest results Of the labors of scientists
and inventors, combining and APPLYING
the same and experimenting, Edison as.
sisted as hhis by such geniuses as Batch
elor and others is enabled to utilize the
brains of all the inventors of the age.
and produce results ahead of what any
single person could do.
But about the electric light" urged
our reporter, THAT is the important
point
well. Edison has been furnished by |
The New York Edison Electric Light |
company with 100000, with which to |
prosecute his experiments. He has
used, / think, about $4,000 of this
money up to date, and has developed |
but promises, and none of them Wilt be |
fulfilled. You can put it down that no
great electric light revolution is to come |
rom Menlo Park for fifty years, at the
present rate of progress In the matter
here. What is done then will depend,
n great measure, upon what is the re-
'uit of all the investigation and expert
nenting going on all over the world, all
If which is promptly reported TO Edi-
on"