Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-05-03

~ year, mas reached one hating place. The
antagonists are the Peoples Telephone COM
pany and the Bell Telephone company. The
former company, when 1t commenced operations
less than two years ago, was enjoined from
further proceedings, on the application of the
latter on the ground of alleged infringement on
certain patent rights. An order of the court
was obtained for the taking of testimony to show
why that Injunction should be dissolved. and Com
missioner +. NJ OFT has presided at the taking Of
the testimony OF 100 witnesses. completing late
~ the hearing OF all that the Peoples company
had to offer. Time is now allowed for the Bell
company to prepare testimony In rebuttal.
the witnesses thus far heard all sustain the
averment OF the Peoples company, that the
original inventor Of the telephOne-not simply
OF its principle, but of every important or valu-
able feature or detail about it. as far as under
the name of anybody it has been made known
was Daniel Drawbaugh. poor mechanic. liv-
ing at Eberly's mills, Pa. More than fifty per-
sons testified that they had talked and heard
answers through his talking machine" as
was heard Of elsewhere. In fact, 1t was known
to everybody in that part Of the country. but
was so universally regarded as simply q
curious but useless toy that he could find no
one who would back him with sufficient means to
get a patent on it. And he was in such chronic
state of impecuniosity that he could hardly get
bread for his little family and buy materials
for his experiments. The battery cell for his
first talking machine" was made with coffee
cup In 1855, and that for his second with q
tumbler in 1859. His first attempt at the con-
structiOn OF q receiver" was made with part of
an old tin fruit can. one end of which was open
and the other covered with a diaphragm made
out OF a hogs bladder, with an armature fas-
tened thereto, an electromagnetic placed before
1t. and tension spring on it, But peculiar
novelty OF that early apparatus was the STRAINS
mitter," the glass tumbler, lined with plaster of
Paris, covered by wooden mouth-piece and
diaphragm OF tin, carbon-holding cup of
wood, two metallic plates from which wires
ran up as adjusting and connecting posts. be-
tween the plates powdered carbon, and q con-
Quoting rod from the upper plate to the dIa-
phragm. The powdered carbon is the distinc-
tive feature of the loud telephone recently
heralded from Boston as new discovery, yet
Drawbaugh was employing 1t as long ago as
1858 And 50 well did that crude trans
mitter work that. when tried in connection
with one Of Mr.. Drawbaughs receivers made In
1874, 1t transmitted sound even more loudly
than the approved telephone in general use at
the present day. This was demonstrated In
the presence OF the commissioner In the course
OF the recent proceedings, when nearly q
column Of newspaper was transmitted
through it, between distant parts Of large
building. The receiver used in that demonstra-
ton was. by the way, peculiar. 1t was simply
plain wooden box, four inches In diameter,
with q diapraghm Of thin black walnut wood.
yet sounds came from it so perfectly that words
received by 1t could be heard distinctly when 1t
was held at arms length from the ear Of the
person addressed through it.
An interesting exhibit In the case is the COL
lection OF thirty or more separate and distinct
telephone apparatuses, marking the successive
stages OF development of the idea in Draw
baugh's mind. Although all are made with neat
ness and care, the poverty of the materials
employed and the ingenious make-shifts suggest
the long struggle Of genius with adverse cir
cnmstances. When the man was working out
his idea he was in the direst poverty. it has
been testified by q number Of witnesses. vet
everybody respected and liked him as ian honest
man. one who would pay every dollar he owed
witness said. .'that his family did not need for
food went to buy Materials" and 1t Is related
that when his father died a little distance away. he
was too poor to attend the funeral He went to
the sheriff, In whose hands were then number
OF petty judgments of from two to ten dollars
each against him, and asked the loan of 95.
That's barely enough tor you to CO." said
the shsrih;'"better have $40 and take your wife
INC" replied Daniel, 81 can't afford It. The
I'VE dollars l can hope to pay, but theten could
Nobody about him sympathized with him in
what he was trying to do. He employed as his
assistant to test the apparatus = speaking
through it and making sounds at this little
daughter ossa then between 8 and7 years old; be-
aud was the only one who did not laugh at me-"
Not only did witnesses testify that they had
held conversations through Daniel Drawbaugh's
talking machine" between his house and his
shop, two hundred feet distant. between 1855
and 1874. covering all the time while his expert
mental work was steadily going on Int arti-
Fans were produced who testified that they had
made certain parts Of his apparatus for him, had
seen them used In his talking machine" and
recognized them again In the exhibit before the
commissioner. A wood turner who had made
mouthpiece for one of his tFansmitters In 1868
and blacksmith who hammered out curiOusly
shaped piece of thin iron for Vim few months
later, were corrob0rative witnesses.
The anal testimony given on behalf Of the
Peoples company was that Of Park Benjamin
who, appearing as an expert. pointed ont in
The several Drawbaugh instruments all the es-
sential features employed later In the Bell tele-
phone.
"Beautifgi mornin', beautiful morriu'." said
, NeT hxyens gentleman to his relghbor, "a. he
stepped out of the front gate
Hee. yes. Nice, even kind Of q mOrnin'
Wouldn't It be fine It q woman's temper was @
sven and pretty as mornins like this7''
certnly Isn't your wIfe's temper
S. slaaIIs - aAss o. q &