The Hartford herald. [volume] (Hartford, Ky.) 1875-1926, 1907-07-03
PHONOGRAPH IS OLD
1t was Probably Used by
Ancient Egyptians.
NOTHING new UNDER THE SUN
Copper Cylinders Which Re-
produce Voice Heard g.
900 Years Ago.

Probably the most astounding scien-
tific discovery of the age is that
made last week by Prof. Gadborus
Hammerdank, of Spellacy, which is to
the effect that the monograph was
used by the ancient Egyptians.
IL has been long known that the
Egyptians made it practice to In
scribe their hieroglyphics on the out
side of copper cylinders, small cylin-
ders about four inches in diameter
and the hieroglyphics on the outside
of these tubes have been deciphered
as have nearly all the writings of
this ancient people.
as stated liz most of the scientific
books, the metal of which these cylin-
ders are made is slightly rough" on
the inside of the tube, but no one ex-
cert Prof. Hammerdank ever thought,
so it seems,o f ascertaining any partlc-
ular motive to the making OF the in
side of the tube rough.
He has been a great Psychologist
for many years and has among his
collection several of these tubes, and
one day last week it occurred to him
to Investigate the inside construction
to see if it could possibly have any
meaning or purpose.
He placed inside one of these tubes
round block of wood, with dame
ter something less than the inside
ana placing it firmly In the exact
center he poured around it some melt
ed wax OF very firm, solid nature, but
MIXED with considerable quantity
of very volatile oil. Then as soon
us the wax had hardened, he drew
out the wooden plug and placed the
tube, with the wax inside of it. in an
oven, kept at such temperature that
the wax was almost but not quite, at
the melting point In this condition
thu volatile oil evaporated and the
Wa: grew smaller and shrunk in vol
ume until it shrank away from the
inside surface of the tube, so that 1t
could be removed without rubbing or
| breaking off the little points on its
surface that had run up into the tiny
holes ard irregularities in the inner
surface OF the tube.
it required very careful work and
many unsuccessful experiments to do
this properly hut at last it was accom-
plished successfully, and he had a hol-
| low tube with a roughness on the out
side like the roughness of the inside
Of the copper tube, matriX OF the in
ner roughness of the copper On eX-
animation however, ne discovered that
what he had taken for holes on the in
side OF the copper tube, were In reali-
! -, raised points, very close together
and that the surface of the waXen cyl
! Under, smooth as an entirely, was in
reality filled with small holes, very
close together ard running in fine
spiral line all around it from one end
60 the other He was almost speech
less with Amusement when he observ-
ed this, for 1t struck him in mo-
ment that this is the exact configura-
ton of a modern photograph cylinder,
and he Immediately sent out and
bought a good monograph and called
in an expert worker in metals to
make it fit the wax impressions he
had taken of the inside CT the an
Client relic of Egyptian art.
The work was soon done, The cylin-
der lut IL p!ace..Ao :e-dle lowered on
its surface AID the machinery started,
ana as It did so there thrilled out
through the room the soft, sweet, me-
lodlous voice of a woman, singing what
is undoubtedly an ancient love song,
or a song portrayirg some manner Of
tender sentiment in tongue that
has not leen heard on earth before
for 5000 years, and which no man.
even the most learned Psychologist can
understand, for the ancient Egyptian
tongue is utterly dead as to the sound
of it and is known only by the mean
ing of the written words.
Eut what was perhaps the strang-