Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1889-01-31
The Future Photograph.
How the Bottling of Sound MAY be
Developed.
The Orator. the Author aud the Sing
er May Be Brought Conveniently
Home to Us.

"rhe future of the photograph is
something in which the world is more
interested than many things" said Mr.. E
5. Edwards, an ex-teiegrsph operator,
90 an Avalanche reporter the other day.
ever the most advanced scientists d.
not seem to have given the question that
degree of thought which the subject
merits"
rs rot Edison still working on its"
gu lied The reporter.
Yes, Edison, the greatest of all cleo
tficiaus. living or dead, is working on it,
and has brought it TO a degree of per-
lection that has attracted the leading
thinkers of the world. But unfortunate
iy, his country men do not seem to realize
its importance. In England, where they
have more time to think, people are TAX
ing to it kindly and scarcely mail goes
from Liverpool to London that does not
contain packages of imprisoned speech
destined TO become vocal and audible
waen put through the wonderful contri
vance at the eli of their routes
rs business transacted by this method
TO any considerable extenuf"
Eyes, sir, and the use of the phono-
graph is growing daily. New York is be
ginning to discern the advantages of the
system and soon the whole country will
fall in line"
"You think then that we will soon have
little use for newspapers and letter
writine?"
81 cannot say. Newspapers will not be
affected unless this step in science should
unfold another unthought. Letter
writing will be diminished or totally
discarded and books will be less general,
| am not of very speculative turn of
mind, but som etimes when [ have nothing
else to do l amuse myself by wondering
where this thing will end, what a
general change its use will bring
about, and how many of our dear Gus
toms of the present will fall into innoc.
uOus desuetude.' Think, for instance, OF
the novel of the present day! The copies
of them. A few copies will be prip tee
and then some splendid reader will read
If into photograph, and from this sheet
by the aid of sound magnifiers, thous-
ands and thousands of others will be re
produced. Reading will become a great
art then, because the voice will be trained
and its every infection will be preserved.
just think of lying on a sofa or lounging
on a divan and having little box read
Old Curiosity Shop, Les Miserables, Anna
Karin1na or the poems of the fathers and
scions of minstrelsy with the voices
of a Siddons or an IDgersoll! Think of a
little box repeat ing in the soft tones Of
some grand elecutionist James Whitcomb
Riley's 'Nuthin to Say or Little Orphan
Annie.' Dear me! [ can imagine how
And the COLLINS ill git you, eff you don't
watch out! would charm any one that has
rot raised a Chinese Wall between him
self and childhood. Then, too, think of
the operas! There will be no more
theatre tickets and Stop and mud; no
more hack bills and late suppers, for the
soft, soulful songs of Abbot or Patti, the
soothing solos of the famous
tenors or choruses of magnificent COM
binetions can be purchased for a triie
and listened to in solitude, if necessary.
just as soon as the monographs can be
made cheaply this will be the case. The
speeches of famous men will not have to
suffer by being reduced to cold type"
They can be heard again and again in all
their fervid eloqusnce. Booth and Bar
rett and Keene and Warde will have TO
| rough it over the country, but those who
for few cents can purchase Booths 'To
Be, or Not to be- will remain at home
and listen to it at leisure.
SIN wills and legal documents the
monograph will ct large figure and in
the subject of wills all uncertainty will
be removed. Put your little slip in the
box after hundreds of years and Il, John
Jones, do will and bequeath to my son,
Tom Jones, etc. There will be no gain
saying this"
'How about the letter writing? Will
each one be provided with a phono-
graph?"
'Not necessarily. There can be in T.
strum ents held by the communities or by
munich palities, or they may be had for let
and hire. Those who have them will
doubtless be pestered by those who have
not, ust as the telephone subscribers are
now, and it may be that regular Offices for
convenience of the public will be opened.
The young lady who receives vocal let
ter from her sweetheart can listen to his
tale of love without being Mortified with
his bad spelling or capital letters in the
middle of sentence. Even the aroma
of cloves and parched coffee would not be
present to betray him and show her that
the New Years swear-of didn't stick
Bless my soul! Just think of a breach of
promise case after few years. courtsh: pi
just think of how passionate girl would
talk into one of these machines when she
believed that no one bat her intended
would ever hear it!
1t would be better than circus! The
little girls who sing:
son, sister what did mother say,
When she to heaven was called awayf"
Can be answered by starting the crank,
and let the las words of the good woman
be god and bad results according, but I
believe the good will predominant. The
chances will beget others and so on ad
infnitum. No one can tell what the
photograph is going to do or where it is
going to stoc."