The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-06-07
THE WIZARD OF MENLO PARK.
How EdisOn's Residence Is Fitted Up-Mrs.
EdisOns Love for Her Husband.

An ABODE OF tne pufeSJ peace, the UfueSJ sym
pathy and the utmost domestic harmony is the
home of Mr.. Thomas A Edison, he who is com
monty known as the Wizard of Menlo Park, !"
and whose city residence is at No. 25 Gramercy
Park The house is rather oldfashioned and
without distinct individuality to exterior like
almost all New York houses, but the inside has
in every part brightness and airy pleasantness
| entirely its own. The hall is paved with marble
| and furnished with Turkish rugs and crimson
embossed velvet chairs and sofa. and has large
| hat-rack near the door, wherein hung a coat
| that bore the impress of the wizard himself.
| Three handsome parlOrs are en- suite, all thrown
| wide open and with large windows in front,
giving a pleasant outlook on the trees in the
park, and with other equally large windows
at the back letting in a flood of sunshine and
! giving view of a fine garden in the rear. The
| front parlor is carpeted with Persian rugs and
the rest with Administer carpets and the walls
are covered with pictures and fine engravings,
while every available spot and corner is made to
hold statuette, or vase or some other article of
| decoration. The pretty upright piano near the
window holds three statuettes of exceeding merit
and is covered with embroidered cloth OF
peculiar and effective design. Numberless bits
OF painting and porcelain hang here and there,
many done by the busy fingers of Mrs. Edison.
The other two parlors furnished much the
same, with palehlue satin furniture in carved
ebony wood and with easy chairs of every
design. and nearly all decorated with fancy
pleasant to see. Mr. Edison had just gone out,
and so l had long and delightful chat with
Mrs. Edison, who had particular grievance to
complain of, and thatis that the newspapers all
over the country had published such ridiculous
stories of her and Mr. Edisons courtship and
marriage, and she averred that they had made
her quite unhappy
'In the first place, she said. 81 never worked
in any factory, for Mr.. Edison, any body
else in any capacity, and therefore all the stories
about his passing along where | was at work
Monday evening and proposing to me and set
ting the wedding for Thursday morning hasn't
word of truth in it.
'rhe fact is just this was going home from
| school one afternoon with two of my compan-
ions, when it began to rain furiously and none
| of us had an umbrella, and so we stopped into
! the hallway of what proved to be Mr.. Edisons
| factory, where he was then making the stock
recorders gentleman whom we knew came
| out and invited US inside, and we went in to be
| out of the rain / was about fifteen and half
years old, and was tall FOR my age Mr.. Edison
was at work on one of his machines, aud this
gentleman, whom we knew, showed around
and | noticed Mr.. Edison particularly for two
! reasons. First, | thought he had very hand
| some eyes, and next, because he was dirty,
all covered with machine oil. ETC., and l spoke
to him about the little instrument he was at
work on. We talked a few moments and as the
rain kept up and even grew worse con
| Guided it was best to go home. The gen
| tleman brought his umbrella and took my
| two schoolmates, and Mr.. Edison got his
and started to accompany me- first pulling on
an overcoat that hid his dirty clothes When
we got to the house l saw that he was deter
| mined to go in, ard had to invite him, and when
| my mother came down she asked who that was.
| | told her and said that he had brought me
home and she went in. | was in mortal terror
lest she ask him to stay, but she did, and then
| he got up and took off his overcoat and stayed
till o'clock, and then when he went away he
asked permission of my mother and myself to
call again. When he got it he aYailed himself
of 1t to call almost eVeDinp and al last
after five months of constant visiting he made
his proposal in this way, which l tell you be-
cause it is so perfectly his way of doing every
thing.
eve had been out walking and were coming
home when he said:
Have you ever thought you would like to
be married MamieP
"'Why, no. I replied not yet, anyhow
We'll, 1 have, and l would like to, and
would like you for my wife
"'Oh, L couldn't, 1 answered.
well, and why not? Don't you like me
well enough? Think, now, anG try and not
make mistake l stammered out something
about the suddenness of 1t, and that I couldn t
marry so young, but he said: If you meant no,
you would say no, SO now I'll see your father to-
morrow night, and if he says yes, we'll be mar
| ried on Tuesday. This was Saturday On
Sunday he talked with father and mother and
wanted to be married ct once, but father said he
would give him an answer in a week Mr. Edi-
son took my hand and said: L love your daught-
er and I'll make her good husband. | am hon
est and am good, and 1 know how to treat
woman. I'll come next Sunday night He did
and father had, in the meantime, satisfied him
self tn at he need have fear, and so were
| married, and have been very happy with him.
and expect to be as long as l live for he is
good and true and so tender to me and the
children. We have three, Dottie, my daughter
and Tommie, my big boy and Willie, my baby
| Dottie looks iittle like me, but Tommie is like
his father, with the same shaped head and same
eyes. Yes, I'm little in love with my hus-
| bands eyeS-yes, in fact good deal.
This is his picture You see how he looks
He is tall and weighs about two hundred now. "
And saw strong, honest fearless face, with
lntentness of purpose and strength of charac-
ter most unusual and with closeset lips and a
deep line beCween the brows, not ii handsome
face according to the rules Of beauty, but one
| to like and trust.
Mrs. Edison herself is very handsome wo-
| man of about twenty five fair complexion, ad-
mirably proportioned, tall, and probably weigh
ing about one hundred and sixty pounds. She
dresses in exquisite taste, although now in
mourning, and it is her husbands delight to see
her dressed, and nothing is too good for her he
thinks. Mrs Edison has been called the most
| extravagant woman in New York as to
personal adornment, but it is a mistake, or
worse, on the part of those who say it. Mrs.
Edison declares she never feels neglected
| when her husband shuts himself up at Menlo
| Park for the purpose of making experiments or
| for invention and she just waits until he has
emerged from his seclusion, only taking pains to
gets self entirely, thoaa.8 ie never forgets her.
| She watches over him and cares for him like a
mother, and even has learned to like his smok
ing, which came hard at first, and she under
stands his business, and his plans and his inven-
tons as well as he does, and thus proves the
most valuable hepmeet, in discussing them
| with her he not infrequently solves problem
that has bothered him and of which the solution
always escaped In this house he has no labora-
tory other than his busy BRAIN which is always
at work. He is now at work OF. something
which is almost completed, and which will be of
the utmost Importance in telegraphy but of which
am not at liberty to speak, as it is not covered
by patent, and Mrs. Edison complains that the
patent laws here are so badly arranged that it is
almost impossible to be fully protected, even