The Norfolk Virginian. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 186?-189?, 1896-08-05

/ lean inventors and with a like result to
! that produced in England.
AMERICAN CLAIMANTS wRANGLE,
| OVER THE ALLEGED DIS
COVERY.
In leading scientific paper in New
ork MI. sawyer. now dead. and very
well known electrician in his day, came
forward TO say that upon such and such
time he had made announcement of
The discovery OF the principle in ques-
ION. which discovery 1t would appear
by reference to the files of some paper
was made years before that of Ayrton
ana Perry. years before any claimant
VINO had up To date appeared in Eng
land.
This seemed to give a final uulet,s to
the case. But it was not TO rest here.
FOLLOWING Mr.. Sawyer's letter this sCien-
tine Journal entered the discussion TO
say that. highly as 1t esteemed the ia
lent of Mr.. Sawyer. IL was it's rcgrctta-
bic duty To announce that several
wears before the date assigned by tho
latter for his discovery young mnn
OF genius had fled with II plans. de-
scriptions and specifications of exactly
now to send an image through n tcle-
graph wire: and herewith this journal
republished in full the article TO which
Ii made reference. | am not sure wheth-
or the discussion died down al this
time or not. In all probability II did, for
it is clear that had 1t continued, the
actual data of the marvellous imRgea
bv wire would have soon retired to n
period before the food.
TIE FACTS IN THE CASE.
"All this YOU will understand was
about sixteen years ago. and in conncc-
ton with the matter ! point you to the
following facts. First: That / had
never UP to that time, so far as | can
recall. made any experiments whatever
upon the subject i'm question: second
| that the paragraph announcing that ]
was engaged in such work was the
result OF curious and absurd mistake.
| and third and finally, that the discovery
OF means to do just this thinE-to
| transmit images by wirc-haS not vet
been made. Hundreds upon hundreds
| of ingenus inventors and clever nves-
tiEators have | doubt not. been at work
on this problem without. up to the pres
ent time so far as l know, achieving any
result whatever
Nevertheless and in spite of these
facts. regularly and about once q year
the announcement is made by news
paper friends that my experiments I'm
this direction arc complete and that Il
should soon lay them before the public
Now. l VIII not say that | have never
made any such experiments: in point
of fact WINS forced To take up the sub
iect in sheer elf-defense 1t was oh.
viouslv absurd that | should give the
lneWSDnpers no justification whatever
for rciteratinE the immincnce of another
cIcal discovery Wnlcn ! was To make
in the realms of electricity. But | have
made no experiments whatever In the
last four or five years. whatever | may
have done in the way OF thinking about
the matter. Parcnthcticaily, In view OF
all the discoveries which they have
made concerning me. II has seemed 10
me not n little curious that these clever
newspaper men should never have sug-
Eested to some scientific investigator the
possibility that the new N-rays may
perhaps offer a solution to this intricat q
problem of the transmission of images.
] make this suggestion seriously and
commend 1t for consideration.
But all this aside. tho story which |
have related of the famous hoax is one
which has always interested me. for be
side it's personal bearing, II seemed 10
me not only Il curious tale but one with
point. Whenever l read of the claim
ants TO this and that discovery or cs-
pec'aily Ia some invention upon which
another man has got patent. whenever
| hear of the true diScovcrer of the
ISsen,gen rays or OF the electric light or
the telephone or some other useful de-
vice. recur TO my story of the host of
he honors of a discovery which I had
never even remotely claimed to have
made. and which has not been made Ia
this day."
, Which was tho moral referred to at
the beginning.
: