East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1906-06-21
Early Struggles of Tele-
phone Inventor

In view of the widespread use of
the telephone throughout the world
the following entertaining account of
the early struggles of DR.. Alexander
Graham Bell inventor of the tele-
phone, will be interesting. The article
is from the Scrap Book, and is as
follows:
Alexander Graham Bell, whose dis
Coveries contributed largely to the
commercial success of the telephone,
had been known only as teacher of
deaf mutes previous to the time he
took out his telephone patents. He
had been a teacher in Scotland, his ma
tive country. and when he emigrated
to America 1t was with the intention
of continuing to teach here. The sys-
tenn he used was of his own, and from
the first he got good results from the
most difficult cases.
Important as his work was. he
could earn nothing more than
scanty living. Soon even this income
was threatened, for he began to devote
more and more time to the study of
sound transmission, and in order to
make living at all by teaching 1t was
necessary to devote his entire time to
ii.
At the Centennial exposition in Phil
adelphia. he showed a crude model of
telephone, but 1t attracted only pass
ing notice from capitalists. though
eminent scientists predicted a future
20 hn ID
looked for, but he took up the work
again, made some improvements and
took out patents covering the princi-
pal features of the telephone as II Is
today.
Three hours after he filed his ap-
plication. Elisha Gray filed caveat
for his telephone.
On February /, 1877. Bell went to
Salem, Mass, and gave his first public
exhibition and lecture. 1t aroused
some curiosity, but drew no financial
backing. On May 10 he lectured be-
fore the Boston academy. and there,
apparently, the results were little
more encouraging than they had been
at Salem.
Thought Telephones Toy.
The general opinion expressed was
that the telephone was a remarkable
clever toy. but that it was nothing
more. Investors took this view of it,
and Bell, who had been reduced to
poverty by the expenses of his ex-
periments, went from one financier
to another offering stock in the COM
pany he had formed. Financers did
not care to have anything to do with
a machine designed to accomplish the
| impossible feat of making audible the
voice of person many miles away.
Dcpcw Missed IA Big Fortune.
! The reception he met did not in
the least shake Bells faith in his
work, but he was sorely in need of
money. He resolved on a desperate
move, and he went to Chauncey NJ.
| Depew and offered him a one-sixth
/ interest in the company If he would
loan 10000 to put the company on
its feet. Depew took week to con-
slider the proposition. At the end of
the week he wrote back that the Incl
! dent might be considered closed. The
telephone was clever idea but it was
utterly lacking in commercial posi-
| bilities. and $4,000 was far too big
a sum to risk in marketing an instru-
ment that at best could never be more
| than Il source of amusement
Thus Darrw let slip an opportunity
10 acquire foi $4,000 IN interest that
today could not be bought for less
than s25,OOO.O0O.
Bell was being hard pushed, and
he determined to make a last offer.
| Don Cameron, of Pennsylvania. was
then one of the leading figures in the
United States senate, and his influence
throughout the country, was very
great. Bell went to him and offered
him, for nothing. one-half interest in
the invention If he. would endeavor to
have It introduced to the public.
Cameron would not even consider
the proposition and gave orders that
"Bell and his fool talking machine be
thrown out" If he again attempted to
get an interview.
Worlds First Telephone Line.
While Bell was Intellectually strug-
Cling in this direction, a few men in
| i0OSlOll' NIlO Ildu Dttll IlNtltSltu ny
the exhibition before the Boston acad-
emv, determined to give the telephone
a thorough test A line three miles
long was built from Boston to Som
erville. ard this, the first practical tel
ephone line in the world, proved so
unequivocaly the utility Of the tele-
phone that there could no longer be
any question Of its success.
The pioneer line. three miles long,
cost few hundred dollars. In less
than 30 years the number of miles of
wire has increased to nearly 100000
and 10000 persons are regularly en-
ployed by the telephone companies. In
the United States alone there are each
year 5000, 100000 telephone calls, and
the American (BelD Telephone com
! popv ig "a anit1lizpd at S15S6G1 900