The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-03-01
A DRUMMER's USE OF RAYS.
He Invents a Little Machine which
Shows Him the Invisible.

Shows Him the Invisible.
From the Philadelphia Times.
While Edison and other inventors are
experimenting with the Roentgen light. it
has remained for me, a commercial drum
mer, to put it to practical use. The pos
sibilities which the new cathode rays
open up to commerce are so immense and
far-reachng that they threaten to work
revolution in the time-nonOred customs
OF the mercantile world. / consider it my
duty, therefore, to give my experience the
publicity they merit, modestly accepting
the oncomiums which an appreciative
world will no doubt shower upon my gen.
ius.
The day after first read about Prof
Roentgen's discovery l set about expert
menting. The result was an apparatus
which was as simple as it was ingenius.
1t consisted of a Photographic camera
supported with metallic bands in front of
the eye, so that the retina became the
Sensitized plate. In other words the pic
ture was photographed directly upon the
eye. A cathode tube on a sliding rod sup
piled the illumination, while storage bat
power. l purposely avoid all technical
terms in this description, as they are apt
to be confusing to a layman. The little
machine fulfilled all my expectations.
Before starting for the road-I am, as
you know, salesman for shoe house
l photographed my sweetheart's heart and
found that mine was the only image there.
Then / took the train for Pittsburg.
a little episode occurred in the car, which
slight as it is, will bear relating. When
the time came for making up the berths
the porter was nowhere to be found. The
conductor searched for him from end to
end of the train and finally decided that
he had been accidentally left behind. l
turned on my current and with my X-rays
peered into every recess of the car. 1
discovered the porter standing in the linen
closet fast asleep. The door was closed,
all but slight aperture sufficient for ven
tilation, but the solid rosewood was no
barrier to my penetrating light
Scarcely had 1 arrived in Pittsburg be-
fore l called on a customer He received
me with a budious smile of welcome.
You're too early" he said: Il haven't
taken invoice yet, and don't know what l
need. Haven't time to open up all my
boxes and drawers now to examine my
stock. Come next month again!"
There is no time like the present" re-
piled, and focusing my cathode tube
switched on the power, peered through
the cardboard boxes and the wood of the
cases, and in a twinkling had noted down
the contents of each.
There. now said. ''the job is done.
Give me the order"
course, gave me the order at once. Incl
dentally he asked me to look through the
floor and see what his two colored porters
were doing in the cellar, whittier he had
sent them to sort out rubbers. found
them busily engaged in playing craps, and
had the satisfaction of seeing them dis
charged before / left the premises Then
my customer asked me to look up to the
third story and see what his wife was
L
plea that my current was not strong
enough to penetrate further than fifteen
feet. 1t was none of my business.
next looked up Robbins, another Gus
toner, one whose patronage was always
little uncertain.
Sorry said the clerk, "but Mr.. Rob
bins has just gone over to the hotel with
your competitor, Mr.. Green"
l rushed to the hotel and sought Green's
room. The door was tightly closed, but
1 could hear Green's voice as he named
the prices of his wares. l turned on the
current hurriedly. The door disappeared,
and through its transparency l could dis
tinctly watch each of my rivals move
ments, see the styles he offered and the
effect his discourses produced. When he
got through l presented myself before
Mr.. Robbins, showed him my samples,
which was careful to offer considerably
below my rivals prices, and secured the
entire order.
In Wheeling I saw a letter addressed to
another competitor by his firm. Inspired
by a sudden thought, / adjusted my APP
paratus, and in a twinkling l had read
the contents of the letter. His firm adj
vised him to go at once to Akron, where
Sam Bartol was about to open new
shoe store. In five minutes l was on the
train to Akron, and by noon next day
l had sold Sam Barton enough shoes to
last him a year. In Cleveland l had
customer by the name of LaWless, who
was unpardonably slow in the payment
of his account. l visited him and talked
to him like a Dutch uncle. 1t was of no
avail. He pleaded poverty, and assured
me he would pay when he could realize
sufficient cash. He was called to wait on
a purchase and took advantage of his
absence to set my apparatus in place. and
turning on the current, l reflected the
rays towards the fire-proof safe. They
pierced the ponderous doors as though
they were celluloid and let up the recess
eS within. / saw several bags of gold in
an inner closet also peered into the
bank book through the pasteboard COW
ers and found a snug balance to his cred
it. Convinced that something was wrong,
l next directed the X-rays into bundle
of memoranda and discovered sufficient
evidence to show that the man contem-
plated fraud. l charged him with the
facts, which he at first denied, but he
finally weakened. Before l left forced
not only my account, but every other
debt he owed
At Bilgeville 1 retired to my room and
prepared to go TO bed BY accident my
disappeared. Instead of swearing in con-
ventional style, and crawling about on
my hands and knees in a vain search after
the unattainable, simply switched on the
electricity, and adjusting my camera l
looked through the bed, mattress, springs
and Stats. / found the button in the up
discovered other things in the bed which
caused me to settle up by hotel bill and
seek the hospitality of another inn.
An episode happened in the train going
that the Roentgen rays do not hesitate to
display their marvellous power, even for
the most trivial cause My attention was
attracted to an old lady who fused and
fumed, looked under her seat searched
her satchel and her pockets, and finally
settled back into her place with sigh
of intense sorrow. Have you lost any
thing" inventured to inquire.
Yes; / don't know what / did with my
spectacles. / am sure I had them when
/ left home, but they are hopelessly gone
In an Instant I had my light adjusted