The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-11-08
OPERA FOR DEAF AND DUMB.
A MACHINE FOR CARRYING SOUND
TO THE EARS OF THE DEAF.

Enjoyed the Theater Can Spend a
Pleasant Season.
Copyright, 1896.
| New York, Nov. 7.-There is music for
the deaf! Prof. McKendrick of Glasgow
is its discoverer. He is to the ear drum
what Koch is to the lungs; what Pasteur
is to the hydrophobia patient The re-
storer of the normal condition!
With the aid of Prof. McKendricks in
vention deaf persons can attend the opera
and occupy their boxes in any part of
the house, however remote. They can
dress as others dress, converse as others
converse, do as others do, with nothing
conspicuous about them, differing thus
from other deaf-process treatment. The
invention of the professor is easily con-
cealed, and after short time would &C.
casion no remark. This applies to all
deaf people, and especially to the deaf
and dumb, who will, for the first time,
enjoy musical rhythem and hear the notes
| Of human warblers.
The invention is based upon several
others. 1t is a combination of them,
with original points added. The phono-
| graph, leleSIdpI anu lllC SiSSlAAC DoIeSAJ
are employed in transmitting sound.
| 1t has been noticed that deaf persons
hear music without enjoying it. You may
| ask a deaf person what tune is being play
ed and he will be able to tell you, unless
totally deaf But he will add that he
| does not enjoy it.
| He can hear, but he does not receive
| any sound vibrations, as it were. He gets
/, ffNrD ion hot iC
such a source of joy to those with normal
| hearing This, in the case of the march,
| is all that is beautiful. Yet the deaf per-
son does not get any of IT, though he may
| hear " the tune"
! The invention gives him rhythmic vi
| brations and allows him to hear as well
| as though he were in possession of nor
| NAL aural organs In many ways he
| hears an opera better than a person with
| good ears.
| The basis of the music-for-the-deaf ap-
| paratus is the photograph This is placed
| alongside the stage, as near 1t as possible.
| An immense photograph is used, and II
| there were no audience it would be placed
| in front of the stage or platform. The mu-
sicians would play directly into the phon-
ograph, and this instrument would contain
the sound, in it's appointed way AS it is
the photograph would stand at the side OF
the stage.
| The next step is to carry this sound to
the people in the box, or in the great au-
ditorium, hundreds of feet away. They
are watching the opera in progress, out
they fail to hear anything that is played
or sung. To listen to it after the perform
ance by the aid of the monographs repe-
tition would be but ilelancholy way OF
"hearing'' an opera. They must hear while
they see.
IT is at this point that the invention of
| Prof. McKendrick steps in. Connecting
| M nav nf
places highly charged electric wires. These
are carried directly to the boxes or to the
| seats in the house where the dear per-
sons are, and are ready to give forth their
sound if properly treated
This can be done in one of two ways.
If the wires are placed between the teeth,
protected by a piece of some harmless sub
stance. the deaf person will hear. But this
| is conspicuous and deprives MIN OF the
mower of speech, or Of moving around,
while the music is going on. There would
| be, therefore, dlsagreedple Aedtures cOH-
, | nected with it.
Rut the professors originality does away
, with this Taking dish of saline solu-
ton he orders the deaf to place their
hands in it The electric wires are now
passed into the basin of salt water, ana
| the result is sound.
This has been tried repeatedly and al
WAYS successfully. At a recent meeting
: of eminent English and Scotch special
lists doubters every one of them and dyed
in-the-wool conservatists, several almost
totally deaf persons were brought in and
= experimented upon. They were placed so
: far away from a piano that the notes
could scarcely be heard by the rest OF
the audience. The deaf could hear not
a sound.
/ The saline basins were then put before
q them and their hands immersed. AT
the same time the piano, with phono-
graph attached, started up. Instantly the
! deaf persons began to smile and to LOOK
around in pleased astonishment. 1T is
Lohengrinr' exclaimed they with one
accord. The tune was changed, and Sc
Y lection after selection played. The
q changes were Immediately recognized by
the deaf patients, and in medley they
were able to recognize the fact as one
air was being merged into the opening
!, | chords of another. This was with partial
ly deaf persons.
In bringing this to its perfection Prof
u NdcKendrick experimental with a pre-
y pared paper cyclinder He found 1t gave
into the photograph louder voice than
4 the wax. Using -one of his cylinders IN
t a photograph, he succeeded in getting
: the sounds of the different instruments
down so fine that an audience of doc
v tors-none of them musicians-easily
: picked out the banjo, the flute, the harr
i and the violin, telling which each was
t with unfailing accuracy.
= He also experimental with low sounds
A faint call to boots and saddles was play.
I ed into the photograph. This was ther
S repeated to the doctor-audience with the
result that the call was precisely as loud
I coming from the mouth of the photograph
as 1t was before in the original. In max
+ ing the deaf hear this same cylinder /.
e used.
/; There is more difference in deaf person!
}, than in any organic defect Deafness
|. means brain trouble. Any physician will
n | ax brain when q
y plains he cannot hear Delirious person,
% do not hear acutely, nor sick ones, gener
d ally.
The exception to this is the scarlet-feve
% deafness or its results. These people hav,
n nothing, necessarily, the matter with tn,
brain. But the deafness from blow upoi
d the ear is caused by brain injury and from
accident of any kind
y Scarlet fever deafness is easily penetra
- ted with this instrument for hearing
Even the totally deaf can hear with 1t
- And II is curious to note that deaf people