Omaha daily bee., 1888-05-27
ELECTRICAL DEVELOPMENTS.
A Visit to Edison in His New
Laboratories.
HIS NEW TALKING MACHINE.
What is Being Done by the Electro
clans All Over the world-Ex-
periments and Discover
ics-Electric Notes.
NEW TALKING MACHINE.
Another Edison Triumv n.

Edison's new laboratory and per-
fected photograph at Orange, N. j.,
says the New York Times, were thrown
open to representatives of the press yes
terday. The plant is purely for expert
mental purposes, and is one of the
largest in the world. An entire block
of land is occupied, and there are five
separate buildings of brick with hard
wood interiors. The main one is three
stories high, 200 feet deep, and 10 feet
wide. There is q combination Office
and library in 1T, besides a lecture
room, stock room, machine room, de-
partment rooms, and power room. The
structure is a model of its kind, and the
equipment appears to be complete. The
library and office is in the form of q hol-
low square, with three galleries rising
to the third floor. The cases contain
10000 volumes of choice scientific
works, but the capacity is $4,000 books.
-Four one-story buildings, each 100 by
80 feet, are used for ore milling, black
smithing, the manufacture of patterns,
etc. There is q capacity of 800 horse
power on the plant, and electric ity is
supplied for $50 lamps on the pre- misses
and in neighboring dwellings.
Edison entertained his visitors,
among whom were q number of cleo
trlcians, with some astonishing expert
ments on his improved photograph.
The talking machine of a dozen years
ago has disappeared, but the principal
remains n is now in the form of q
practical commercial invention as we'll
as a pleasing toy. There is a motor box
about IL inches square and the arma-
ture in it is only a horizontal ring or
wheel of metal with 10 pole pieces at
regular intervals on the rim. The
''%cat-power" battery is in u separate
case underneath. The photograph is a
separate arrangement, attached to the
motor box by two screws. There is a
small shaft four inches long, with 100
threads to the inch, which feeds what
looks like a pair of spectacles with n re-
ceiver and transmitter in one ring.
Then there is a recorder in the form of
a steel knife fastened to the diaphragm.
The receiver is a delicate metal needle,
which operates on a monograph
blank of white wax. This blank is hol-
low and tapers inside so as to bind by
friction in hot or cold weather on a
metal drum. A second shaft has a
coarse reverse thread, and is only used
Wnere fepeJltlOn Is desired. On Jne
surface of the little wax blank, which
looks like an ivory dice-box, can be re-
corded from l 900 to 200 words, or sew
eral musical compositions. A wax blank
can be automatically pared from fifteen
to twenty times for new record. When
in motion the monograph looks very
much like a turning lathe.
Edison's literary and musical expert
ments with the invention yesterday
we're wonderful. Not only we're words
and sentences reproduced. but the voices
of the readers were readily recognized.
The piano, cornet, violin and clarionet
were repeatedly tested, singly and to-
gether, with marvellous success. The
photograph has been so far perfected
that next week the work of erecting a
factory on the Edison plant will be
begun. The inventor expects within u
month to have the machine on the mar
ket for commercial uses. Its possibili-
ties are beyond calculation.