The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-03


Within the past five years the manu-
script volumes nave been condensed into
a series of digests, which have been is
sued from time to time in typewritten
journal, which DR.. Bell calls ''The Benin
Bhreagh Recorder" Benin Bhreagh Is the
name of DR.. Bells summer home at
Baddeck. Nova Scotia, and hence the
name of the journal. This journal is is
sued IN typewriting, and there are only
hVe copies One of these copies goes to
the records of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion, and the others are distributed In
different places, SO that there may be no
danger of loss by fire or flood
This digest has now been ISSUED for five
years and the work already comprises
l3 volumes, each of which is as thick
as the ordinary law book, having pages
as large as those of an old family Bible.
Each volume contains 800 pages, and
roughly estimated about 100000 words In
the WHOLE 13 volumes there are more than
100000 words, and these represent the
condemnation of the workings of DIR. Bells
mind for the past fire years only In
addition are the manuscript notes of more
than 20 years preceding, constituting al
together a mass of material the contem-
plation of which makes the mind of the
ordinary man buzz like an electric fan
| wish / could show you these books
The Is volumes comprise the working Of
Or. Bells mind after he had passed the
DR.. Osler period. Take, for instance,
volume II, giving the last three months
of 1909 The index to the volume covers
20 pages, and the subjects include, among
other things experiments on aerial navi-
cation, ideas as to the scientific breeding,
of sheep. and as to the utilization of
waste heat, suggestions for new metric
system for the United States, experiments
on preserving foods in paraffin. notes on
eugenics and the detailed biological his
tory of a cat.
AS I looked over this book, I asked Dr.
Bell as to whether his mind worked as
well now as in the past. He replied:
Il have never felt stronger intellec-
tually. My mind has greater power of
concentration than it ever had It seems
TO be quicker, and it does not tire along
the lines in which / am interested I
sometimes work for IS hours at a stretch
Later in the conversation asked Dr.,
Bell as to his habits of work. He follows
the same programme he has always used
His afternoons and evenings are devoted
to social and business engagements. and
II is only some hours after dinner that he
begins his intellectual work His best
work is done at night and he tells me
that his mind is at it's brightest from mid
night on. He is then free from INTERRUPT
tlons and can give his soul to abstract
thought and scientific invention. Until
very recently he has not gone to bed until
4 o'clock in the morning. and his present
time of retiring is little after 3. He
sleeps from until 10 or Il and finds that
this Is all that he needs. He sleeps out
of doors He has an open-air porch back
his library and uses this as his bedroom.
He has no trouble in sleeping, notwith.
standing the porch is right over a play-
ground where a little Montessori school
of boys and girls are making the usual
noises of children ranging in age from
to Years. He says that the noise af-
fects him much the same as that of a
sleeping car. One gets used to it and the
mind takes no note of it.
This programme for six days of the
week goes on regularly, except when
DR.. Bell becomes especially interested
in some subject. At such times he NAV
not go to bed at all. but will continue
his work until he has completed that
stage of his thought or investigation. He
may work far on into the day. going for
hours without sleep. and then sleeping
for many hours at a stretch to make 1t
up.