The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1914-01-31
|1."-- ""1--"- 49, - "H.-U-e ~ ~, =.
900 bushels oats. No export sales were
reported at the seaboard. .. 49,.
-. 1892. @ Inter Ocean
TALKS OF
WORLDS PROGRESS

New York, Jan. 31.-Thomas A. Edi.
son is n Of the worlds most difficult
men to interview. He always replies
he Is too busy to talk. He has, how
ever, t~houghtfully replied to a series Of
questions submitted by The New York
Independent as follows:
What is the trend Of invention?
Application of electricity to al
moving things. 4.
1913? ..-
NJ ..nufacture of ammonia from nj
trogen and hydrogen.
What work of our own during the
last year j. most important?
"Perfection Of the recording Of mu-
sic by the new disk monograph.
What of the flying machine?
Don't know.
"What of setting off explosives by
wireless?
1T has been Of no value, except for
military murder.
rs radium to be harnessed?
ITS driving a clock in Paris. Ra-
dlun, so far, has only a scientific
value. No n can predict. There are
enormous possibilities.
What of new sources of power?"
Sun engines Of considerable power.
twenty to thirty horsepower, are
working in Africa and Arizona. There
are many inventors working on the
problem. Burning coal at the mouth
of the mine, converting the power into
electricity, and transmitting the power
over long distances, has already been
TT into effect in Nova Scotia and
England. Forming producer gas by
setting the vein of coal On fire and US
ing the a in gas engines has not to
my knowledge been applied. 1t is in
my opinion possible, especially when
coal advances in price. The smaller
and deeper veins, from which it is i'm
great expense, could be worked in this
way. TIL unavailable coal in these
veins is enormous. Tapping internal
heat Of the earth is out of the question
until coal gets more expensive.
How soon will ships be driven by
new power?
Until we find a practical method
OF converting combustible matter di-
rectly into electricity, steamboats, will
ternal combustion motors.
Is communication with possible
habitants of other worlds in sight?
Have no opinion.
Are not social machines displacing
individual machines; that Is, the pub
lie laundry against the domestic wash
ing machine?
AHc 4HulVIGudL washing machine
will hold it's w for a while. Elec-
tric-driven washing machinery suit
able for the small house is rapidly
coming into use, and the labor is re-
duced almost to nothing.
Does not invention follow social
opportunity and need; cannot society
now ordain its Inventions?
"Socie!y is never prepared to re-
celve any inventions. Every new thing
10 1 nd n~l : IL e.. 49,
inventor to get people to listen to him
and years more before it can be intro
duced, and when it is introduced our
laws and court procedure are
used by predatory commercialisms to
the inventor. They don't leave
him even enough to start a new inven-
ton.
Might not a staff of governmental
inventors p~rofitably work on safe
guarding machines?
1t doesn't need a government staff
inventors to invent devices to pre-
vent people getting killed by machin-
cry; 1t wants plain, unmiStakable laws
the subject a commission to-
see the laws carried out
d you agree with Roger w. Bah
son that capital and labor are irrec-
oncilable foes?
There should be no irreconcilability
between capital and labor. It's be-
tween capital dishonesty acquired
md labor. Labor is not we'll informed
and hence it classes all capital alike.
The fruits of n generation of labor
oecomes the capital of the next gen.
Has not invention put it in the
power of labor, or any small group of
hose discontented with present condi-
to checkmate, if not wreck, cur
we shall always have this trouble |
until our school system discards tradi- |
lonary methods of teaching the child
md turns out young men thoroughly
familiar with their natural environ,
and with a capacity for sound
thinking"