The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1881-08-19
The Future of the Photograph.

lFhlaoeipnla Ilmes.l
Down iu President Bentey's office, at the
headquarters OF the Philadelphia Local Tele-
graph Company, there is a queer cylindrical
apparatus, set apart by itself in quiet corner,
which nine-tenths of the visitors there would
take for pateut cora shelter President Bent
ley was asked:
What has become of the monograph"
"The phonograph?" says Mr.. Bentley, look
ing up and wheeling around in his chair and
facing the quiet corner; "there is the largest
photograph that was ever made.''
Then President Bentley went on to answer
the question, What has become of the phone
graph? The fact was the photograph had not
yet vindi Gated the object of its existence. Up
to the present time it stands upon the records
OF inventive annals as nine days wonder,
nothing more. Its use has never been demon
strated. Hence it was that within the past
year or two little or nothing had been heard of
1t. THE trouble about the photograph is"
said Mr.. Bentley, "that it has never had any
commercial use. When it first came out
company was formed in New York for the pur-
pose of manufacturing Them but it was soon
found that the business would not pay, as there
was no demand for them. There was no doubt
in my mind but the monograph has its use,
and that use will be developed in time.'
What was the monographs use? President
Bentley answered this question by pointing to
the ssucy telephone, and saying: GAS an at
tachment TO that instrument" In brief, he be-
heves the mission Of the phonograph is to re-
cord what the telephone articulateS. There
was every reason, in his mind for thinking
that this would ultimately be brought about.
AS it is now the telephone as well as the pho
nograph was in need of improvement. If a
person lost word or got word wrong in a
tain circumstances under which the response
bility for that error was of the greatest impor-
lance. The person who received the commu-
nication might swear that he had received it
in the manner in which it had been delivered,
ana the person who sent it might swear equal
ly strong that he had sent it correctly and
there would be no knowing to which party the
responsibility belonged.
"Here is an illustration" said Mr.. Bentley.
"A few days ago firm of this city sent an Or
der by telephone to a manufacturing establish
ment for q large supply of iron pipe. The order
was received, and after the pipe had been
manufactured and delivered it was found to be
quarter of an inch too small. Well, the man
ufacturers showed the order which had been
received by telephone and which called for
pipe OF the size furnished; but the firm insist
cd that that was not c,rrect and produced
their original order, which called for pipe of
different size. The responsibility for the error
lay, then, between the clerk who had trans
mitted and the clerk who had received the Or
der. The man who had received it was willing
to swear that he had written it down as it had
been sent, and the man who sent it was just
as willing to swear that he had sent it correct
ly. Here, then, there was no means of know
ing which was right. If the telephone could
be made to keep record Of what passes over
it there would be an end of the difficulty at
once. Now, think the photograph is des-
tined to supply the deficiency. and that, by
combining it and the telephone together,
there are great things in store for the tele-
phone"