Waterbury evening Democrat., 1894-01-01


 report of the death Of Professor Tyndall had been published, and this American lit terateur, musing for a few moments, at last said:
 ''The English speaking race has just lost the man who has pointed the way to the most popular and successful writing, as I believe, of the immediate future. Pro lessor Tyndall not only did as much if not more than any one man to make science popular, and to cause scientific subjects no longer to be regarded with dread by those who are fond of light reading, but he made of science literature, and 1 might almost say of literature q new science. Before his time Faraday, Sir William Thompson who, after all, was contemporaneous with him-and some of the greater English scientists had attracted to their lectures and to their writings q considerable num- Der, but these were for the most part per sons seeking scientific instruction. Hum boldt had indicated what might be done with scientific subjects popularly treated, and Hugh Miller in his enchanting work, Old Red Sandstone'-a book which de- serves to be read far more nowadays than it is-had shown the English people that it was possible to write even of such ninty things as rocks entertainingly.
 ''Dut after all it remained for Tyndall to charm vast audiences with his lectures, written in such beautiful style that they were understood by those who were un- educated while enjoyed by persons of cul- tivation. Proctor followed the l:int that Tyndalls lectures furnished by writing and speaking upon astronomy most successfully pecuniarily. But astronomy, unlike most other sciences, has always appealed strong ly to the imagination even of rude and say age peoples. So I have been inclined to think, watching the development of liter ary tastes among the great masses, that the time Is near at hand when there will arise a great writer who will do for scientific lit erature what, for instance, Fielding, Scott and Dickens did for tales and romances."
 The manager of one of the lecture bureaus in New York is reported to have said re- gently that if Professor Tyndall had been willing to sign q contract to deliver a series OF two series of lectures in the United States, extending perhaps for period of six months, he would have been able to take back to England with him more money than any English reader, excepting possibly Dick ems, or than any English actor or singer, with the exception possibly of Henry Irving and Patti He had several propositions from American publishers to write a book upon any scientific subject that he might choose, and tic terms offered him were probably larger than those ever mentioned in any other contract made with an English writer
 Nicola Tesla discovered the cXtraordina- ry popular interest in science, and especial ly the strange and weird manifestations of it, when he delivered q lecture in London in which he explained and then illustrnt- ed by experiments his extraordinary dis covery that by 8 certain development of the electric current he was able to transmit it from one point to another without any oth- CT medium than the ether which is the nat ural medium of electricity, and standing in the middle of room through which such current was passing, holding up an incan- descent lamp, 1t was illuminated
 Tesla might have repeated that lecture in every considerable city in the United States, with a guarantee from lecture man. agers of a large sum of money for each ap- pearancc, and he has received propositions from editors of magazines and publishers for writing both short essays and longer works, for which he could have been paid at his own price lie is, however, very busy in the commercial development of his discoveries, so that he felt that he could not spare the time, since if he succeeds in this work he will have made for himself an enormous fortune.
 If Edison had consented to accept 8 prop osition made to him by a lecture manager, he might have made as much as $50, GOO for a short series of lectures to be delivered in some of the larger cities of the United States, and Edison would have furnished not only the interest which attached to his personality and the value which attends anything which he might say upon scen. tific matters but would have revealed a splendid, although not polished, English style. He writes with force nervous viSor, using strong iIiC-ns, but writes very clear ly. Edison might, too, have received many thousands of dollars for purely literary work and has been hcset for the past two years for contributions, but he, too, has no time for such pursuit.
 The popular interest in science romantic ally treated was illustrated by a work re- gently completed by Flammarion the fa- nous French astronomer. His book was not quite so well received in this country, since the subject, the end of the world as viewed from the possibility of science, was not a pleasant one. But it was we'll received in England, and in France commanded almost as much attention and excitement as did some of the romances of AleXandre Dumas when they were being published. The next famous writer, and one who will re- ceive great fortune, will be undoubtedly 8 man who can make scientific discoveries serve q literary capacity.
 E. J. EDWARDS.