National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1886-02-13
ELECTRIC SCIENCE.
Paper No. OF a Series, by G. j. Kint-
ner, United States Patent Omce-The
Speaking TeIephone.

fhper NO. OF series, by Y. u. KNIT
ner, United States Patent Omce-The
Speaking Telephone. .
To arrive at correct understanding Of
the speaking telephones knowledge OF three
things is absolutely necessary, vizi
l. SO much Of acoustics as to be enabled
to know how sound is produced and trans.
mitted through space.
2. Enough OF the anatomy Of the human
body to realize how speech is produced in
the throat and mouth Of person speaking,
and how the delicate mechanism OF the
human ar is affected by the sound waves,
which are ulti matey reconverted into
thought In the brain Of the auditor.
y. Enough of the art Of electricity to know
now sound waves are caused to acttiate
telephone transmitter aud so modify or con-
troll an electrical current flowing over a
telephone line to receiving station as to
create electrical waves similar in form TO
the sound waves, thereby actuating re-
ceiving telephone in harmony with the
transmitter and reproducing sounds which
are the counter part Of those uttered at the
transmitting station. To this end we shall
devote this paper to q study Of sound, its
production and action on the auditory sys.
TEN, leaving the description Of the vocal
and auditory organs and the telephone
proper, together with the photograph, for
succeeding paper or papers.
All sounds are the result of motion or vi
bration; absolute silence means absolute alb
sence Of motion. Sound is produced
primarily by any force which produces mo.
tion or vibration, and lmpresses itself upon
the human ear by this motion being trans
mitted TO the parts located therein. Sound
only exists where there Is medium to
carry or transmit IL. No sounds exist In In
finite space, for there Is no medium TO carry
them. We are advised by Arctic explorers
that the absolute quiet Of that region Is pain
full to the ear, and were one to remain there
sufficient time in solitude the organs of
hearing would become very much dulled, II
not totally useless.
Sound possesses the following peculiari-
ties, which IL is necessary for us TO under
stand thoroughly before we can hope to
grasp the problems involved IN the trans
mission OF articulate speech when in or
binary conversation as usually exercised or
over telephone circuit
l. What is known as intensity or loud
ness.
2. Pitch or key, that is to say, high or
low sound when estimated by an established
scale, like the musical gamut.
3. Most important 81 all, quality or tone
by which we recognize peculiar or individ-
ual tones.
lHc intensity Ut lOuuUpkS OF bOunu is al
ways dependent upon the amplitude of
vibration Of the body which gives off the
sound, It being remembered that the vlbrat-
ing body always makes its excursions In the
same time, whether these excursions be
great or small, exactly as the excursions Of
pendulum are made. IL we stretch
tightly string between two points and set
1t in vibration by plucking 1t as one does
guitar string, IL will vlbrate In plane ex-
In hn In,
drawn. 1t will at first give of loud tone,
because its excursions are then at maxi
mum, and the sound will gradually decrease
as the vibrating excursions become less
and less, until 1t stops vibrating, when the
sound also ceases. II creates a tone or
sound because the particles Of air which lie
about 1t are set In motion by its vibrations.
| These particles of air lying against II are
| compressed, and In turn transmit their COM
preston to succeeding particles until the
| particles lying against the drum Of the ear
are affected, and the tone is heard. On re-
cession or back vibration of the string
these same particles are dllated or rarcted,
and counter effect is produced on the
drum Of TIE ear, being vibration In a re-
verse direction. This gives simple tone,
which the ear recognizes, as we will explain
IN our description Of the auditory system.
Now the pitch or key Of this tone depends
on the number Of vibrations which the
string makes per second.
II 1t makes 800 vibrations per second, and
| gives of known note, then another string
| Of the same diameter and quality will give
off note just an octave higher, when it
| makes 1000 vibrations per second, and is
| just hall. as long, II under the same tension.
| This string, as we have described 1t, gives
simple musical tone, appreciated by the
ear as some particular tone IN the musical
scale, as do. As q matter of fact, 1t is not
this simple tone that reaches the ear, but a
composite tone made up of sound waves
composed Of vibrations due to the impress
| made upon the ear by the whole string,
aud also of additional sets of vibrations
made by multiple segments of the string
| consisting of It's halves, quarters, cighths,
| &c.
As a matter of fact the string actually
| automatically sets its equal multiple sec
| tons above enumerated into vibrations, and
| each of these multiple sections acts like the
| parent or whole string to give off tones Of
| its own, but each an octave higher than
| the other, and hence the whole set of tones
is blended into one apparently, but in
reality the ear hears many tones making a
composite sound. These supplementary
| tones are known as harmOniCs of the first,
second, third, and fourth order of tones.
Everything which produces sound pos
sesses this popularity of rendering com
poS't I, 'pnes inuuo up oL the iuhuauleltal
anu ITO nur,ioLiics, anu ~ % Ihis com poste
IoHe quniIty Wnicn enaDSes US 10 ulstlh,
Sutsn onH person voice from another anu
ueovcJ uiGIeni l nus Instruments a.,
tnouSu plaS iii M, W t'lo SAINT MY anu NJ tnc
imnortant factor In articrIote snnech and
has much, very much. TO do Win tbo mr..
ticuIatinc tclcnhonn as wc shall SEQ ~
In acoSstics we reco@nize two Classes nj
tones viz, Musical and noises or dIscorJ
n The vibrations Of n sound. em ~ hnJv
occur in regular sequence and at a Certain
rate ner second. we rcco~njze n musicni
tone. Int n these vibrotions fail beInw hi
rate, or exceed n well.establIshed rate thew
no longer become musical INF arc recnc.
niZed rs noises
Musicians rScocnize this fact and IN thc
pjano we find The whole musical scale en-.
| 49,, ',,..',,.. ~ - $3.50 -.