The Douglas independent. [volume] (Roseburg, Or.) 187?-1885, 1883-04-14
Coming Inventions.

"What more can be inyented?r asked
an enthusiastic citizen on Saturday. after
listening over the line from here to New
York.
"Wby, we have only begun" replied
a gentleman who had paid some atten-
ton to the subject. To talk 600 miles
or SO is nothing. Why. yon just wait
ten years and willtell you what you will
see"
.sWel1, let's hear you now.ss
I'm the first place the present Morse
system of telegraph will have entirely
passed away. Taking will be SO much
more rapid and accurate.
Eyes. admit that"
"Well, that is not nj. There will be
perfect network of telephone communi-
cation, and it will be very cheap. But
that will not be all. By the payment of
very small sum the father in Northern
4 Ohio can step to the telephone station at
the township center and call up his
married daughter, who many years ago
emigrated to Dakota. As he talks he
will look into a finely adjusted mirror
that stands before his face. and in that
mirror he can see the face of his beloved
daughter as she talks to him. She, at
her end of the line, of course, will OBJ
serve the countenance clearly and dis
tinctly also. The conversation will run
something like this:
You seem to be little pale to day,
father. Are you as well as usual?'
why. yes, guess am all right.
How are the babies?'
.tOh, Sally was sick all night and
don't seem to be just right this morning.
Here she is (holding her up to the tele-
phone). You must excuse her appear
ance. Her face is not very clean; have
been SO busy that I have not had time to
wash it, and she has been playing around
and got this apron very dirty, too"
rs lily is all right, amt she. little
one? How grandpa does wish he could
take her in his arms. He can see her
very clearly though. I thinks she looks
more and more like her mothers folks
as she gets older, don't you?"
"sYes, we all agree on that; William
has insisted almost ever since she was
born that she was mothers girl. But
here is Henry and John; both want to
see and talk with grandpa a minute this
morning.
BLESS their souls, grandpa wants to
see them, too. Let them come to the
phone"
And so the conversation will go on,
and all for ten cents.
"But that will spoil the United States
mail. What will be the use of writing
letters when we can talk that way?"
"There will be none at all. But this
telephone business will be run by the
government, and the price of communi.
cation will be kept down to the mini
mum. Wien we think -re can now talk
over line 600 miles long, and hear what
is said, do you think that is expecting
very much? Who would have believed
that such thing as telephone was pos
sible ten years ago? I tell you, am not
speaking at random in what have said
above. Through with wonders are wei
Why, man, we have only just begun.
We have got to study up some means OF
rarid transit by which newspapers oil
| any rate can be sent from one part of the
country to another much faster than
| now. News will get very old before 9
full description of it can be sent from
| one part of the country to the other by
| telephone. Men are now studying the
problem of electric locomotion and iI
ten years it will be an accomplished fact
| This is asfast age? All, hal This is ar
ox--team--and--covered--wagon OK age com
pared to what is coming. Twenty-Five
| miles per hour for an express train Bah
who will be willing to wait for that; We
shall spin along at least at the rate O
thirty or forty miles minute when ther.
is any necessity for so doing. Not posi-
BILE? Why, man, you are skeptic! any
thing is possible to the modern YanBe,
mind and genius. We can do anything
| we have mind to and we will"
The man who thought the inventor
had got to the end of their string walked
away in a reflective mood.-Clevelant
| Leader.