The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1885-05-22
THE BELL TELEPHONE.
ONE OF PROFESSOR BELLS PUPILS
TELLS THE STORY OF ITS ORIGIN
First Suggestion of a Wonderful Invention
A Cautious Inventor and His My.-
terious Machine How Perseyer-
ance Led to Success.

Ii, Cor. st. Louis in Globe-Democrat.1
was one of Professor Bells pupils, at his
place in West Newton street Boston The
house was then kept as a private boarding
place Professor Bell hired some large, fine
rooms on the second floor, and boarded
there; and 1, with some other Of his pupils,
also boarded in the house. | thus had an
opportunity to be aware that our teachers
leisure time was mostly spent in scientific
experiments Coming of an old Scotch fam.
lily, which already numbered several scien-
tihc men and inventors of no mean attain.
ments-a family that had been scholarly
and scientific as long as the Bell family has.
it was no wonder that his mind had an in
ventive turn He was already interested in
experiments for the transmission of sound
before he came to the United States. Daily
occurrences in the school-room kept his mind
pondering upon the subject. Perhaps the
germ OF the idea which eliminated in the
telephone was this: Some of the other
pupils, and perhaps two or three outsiders
lone or moro of them may have been deaf
were assembled in Professor Bells sitting
room one winter evening.
FIRST SUGGESTION OF A TELEPHONE.
related an experience which had befallen
me that afternoon was out for a "consti
tutionaP on a much frequented and broad
street, up and down which horse cars were
running. The air was crisp and frosty, and
as walked briskly on, holding my hands in
my mutf, pressed in front of me, my atten-
ton was several times drawn to a peculiar
metallic vibration in the air, and noticed
that this occurred only, if, when street car
was passing, l held my muff closely pressed
to my body in front of me- | concluded
that what | felt was caused by the passing
of the wheels of the cars over the iron rails,
the vibration of which by some peculiar
property of the atmosphere and the condi-
tons in myself being also favorable, they
were transmitted to me through my chest
|, however have never since experienced the
same sensations-it was a sort of not un-
musical singing or humming in the air,
with metallic vibration in it.
THE ''S0UND-BoX."
When told of this, Professor Bell at once
| began some experiments upon us who were
| deaf He said he believed that a sort of
instrument. sound-boX he called it, could
be constructed for the u7e of the deaf, which
might be carried by them when walking
abroad concealed in the clothing at the pit
of the stomach or on the chest convenient
| places to wear it, and places where sound
is likely to strike deaf person. This was
for the purpose of enabling them to get out
Of the way of vehicles, ETC.; that might be
approaching unseen. He Immediately began
to search for material out of which to con-
struct such box which would give it the
highest power as a sound conductor He
made several boxes out of different materials
in particular, one covered as drum-head,
are covered experimental upon
another deaf pupil of his and myself in {
variety of ways This went on for severa
weeks, when finally the sound-box wa!
thrown aside. We heard no more Of it, anG
understood from few mysterious ut
terances that he had stumbled on a new
idea in connection with the sound box whicl
was to be Of great value to the world a
large knew that he was working on somt
sort of a machine, and once in a while w
two deaf pupils were made the subject o
experiments.