Mexico weekly ledger., 1896-01-30
EDlsoN's FIRST BIG CHECK.
1t Was for $4,000 While He Expected
Only $4,000.
From the New York Press.

Among the many inventions that
sprang from the fertile brain of Thorn
as A. Edison was the instrument gem
orally known as the ticker-the little
clinking glass-ccvered affair that one
sees nowadays in any pretentious
bar room, reeling of its yards and
yards of paper ribbon bearing on the
surface in clear letters the score from
the Polo Grounds, the result of speed
trials between the thoroughbreds OF
eastern tracks and much important
news. 1t is only within recent
years that we have had this develop
ment of the machine that was origin
ally intended to give to spectators
in stock markets a line on how their
money was going or coming.
Mr.. Edison, however, isn't collect
ing royalties on the tickers turned
out by the manufacturers, and to few
persons is the fact known that the
man who evolved the electric light,
the telephone, the kaleidoscope and
numerous other wonders of the CEN
fury is Identical with the inventor OF
the original ticker. This compare
lively Insignificant work of the wizard
was the means by which he obtained
the first money beyond his salary as a
telegraph operator. To a party of his
friends who entertained him one
evening recently in the rooms of the
Arion Society, Mr.. Edison related
how he sold the patent rights for the
ticker.
"When l came to New York to sell
my invention" MI. Edison said, 81
was largely in doubt as to its value.
l knew it a a useful continuance,
but it was with some difidence that l
entered the presence of the manufac-
turer with whom I opened negotia-
tions for its disposal. As a boy / had
often longed to possess $4,000, and 1
had a good mind to hold out for that
much money, though 1 felt secretly
that / would be doing we'll to get
$4,000. So when the manufacturer
asked me how much I wanted for the
patent rights / stammered and asked
how much he was willing to pay.
"sCome around in the morning. he
said, and I went home to dream about
that 5000 fortune / was going to get
When I saw him in the
morning he said with a take-that-or-
take-nothing air of determination:
"sWe have decided to pay you $40,-
0O0-not a cent more
81 almost tainted, but in less than
five minutes I had stuck my name to
a contract, and was out in the street
looking in a half dazed way at acheck
in my hand. Payable to the order of
Thomas A. Edison forty thousand dol
lars (s4O ,0O0).' Then I began to think,
and the forty thousand seemed like
forty millions, and I said to myself:
Tom, you've been swindled. The
check is not good.' And when I went
to the bank-I had never been inside
of one to do any business-and pre-
sented the check / was not surprised
when the teller scrutinized it, glanced
at me and pushed it back with a shake
of the head and a remark that was toe
excited to understand, but concluded
that my fears were confirmed. So
stuffed it in my pocket and went to
see a friend, to whom related my
experience.
"fLet's see the check he said. why
that's all right. You must be indenti-
fied.' And we went back to the bank.
The cashier knew my friend and the
money was soon counted out. Still ]
wasn't sure / was awake until 1 began
to feel and hear the snap of the new
bank notes. 1t was a big bundle OF
money,and I stuck some of it in every
pocket, so that almost everywhere !
put my hand I could feel it bullying
out.
"When 1 went to the hotel that
night do you think I took my clothes
off? Not much. 1 slept in them, 30 ]
wouldn't wake up and find that it wal
all a cruel dream"