The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1915-02-05

Inventor OF the Telephone
moves long way ahead in the span Of
one mans life. On Monday afternoon,
January 18th, this same Alexander Ora
ham Bell, sitting in the Offices of the
American Telephone & Telegraph Com
pany. ait New York, talked to this same
Thomas A Watson in san Francisco,
over a wire stretching 3 400 miles across
the continent ana part VA "A system that
includes 100000 telephones, connected
BY 2l0000OO miles of wires.
In that same memorable year of 1875,
Dom Pedro de Alcantara, Emperor of
Brazil, visiting thu frst telephone exhi-
bition at our first great national show.
the Philadelphia Centennial picked UP
The receiver, listened as Professor Bell
talked at the other end Of the room, and,
amazed at the wonder VI tha thing, cried
out: MY God-it speaks Had Dom
Pedro lived to see the Pan American
Exposition he could have heard Professor
Bell talking to him. not merely from the
other end OF a room, but from tile other
aide Of continent
The ,Pan-American Exposition itself,
planned to celebrate the completion Of
the Panama Canal and the joining of the
Atlantic and Pacific oceans, will mark a
still closer welding of the East and West.
When it, gates are thrown open on Feb
ruary Goth, San Francisco will not only
be nearer to New York through a short
ening oil it, water way, but w;ll BE in
constant and instantaneous touch with it
through the medium of speech. tit il
curious fact. too. that this second great
feat of engineering. this other canal. This
even more intimate connection between
the two seaboards has been completed in
the same wear. Quietly, almost unnoticed,
but steadily and bravely, while the gi
gantie steam shovels We're cutting their
way through the earth in thu South, The
engineers of sound and electricity were
weaving their magic webs through thu
air and pushing on toward the Golden
Gate. Their work has been less spec
tacular, it has excited little attention
but these men have met obstacles as hard
40 overcome as the Culehra slide. and
they have conquered them. The long
dreamed-of Transcontinental Line ia no
longer a dream. New York can talk To
San Francisco.
The Transatlantic Line Open
Monday, January %, 1915, has taken
its place among the momentous dates in
the annals of science and human prog
ress- on that day, in thu presence 81
groups OF prominent men On either coast,
the Transcontinental telephone wires
We're given their first public test, ana TIE
completion Of the line was formally cele-
brated. Distinguished men in the offices
of the Pacific Telephone & Telegraph
COMPANY in San Francisco conversed
freely with distinguished men OH THE At
lantic seabnard, and one more great
chanter in The history of telephony wa
finished as Bell. sitting in the Offices VI
the American Telephone & Telegraph
COMPANY in New York, talked to Watson
across a continent.
There was no hitch in the programme
or any doubt w. To the immediate success
and practicability of the new line.
Those who talked over The teleDhone dfd
not raise their voices above the usual
conversational pitch and the replies
came back from across the continent.
clear and instantaneous. There was no
more effort delay or indistinctness than
in talking across a table. Professor Bell
saws that he thought out the telephone in
Salem A fitting place for IT. conception
there is witchcraft in it, and the most
blase Of business men i'm the offices or thp
American Telephone & Telegraph Com
panv on Monday felt something akin to
uncanniness att the thought that hi voice
had gone across thirteen States. shot
over prairies and through forests. hurtleA
through cities. climbed the Rockies.
SKINNED across the desert and reached
The Pacific coast. and the answer had
come back TO him in an eve-wink.
A Dramatic Moment
There have been few more dramatic
moments In the history Of science than
when the venerable Professor Bell lifted
the receiver from it, hook and called tn
Watson, the friend and feilow-workrnan
OF his youth. in far away San Francisco
There WA wonderful story in that first
Hello a marvellous tale of miracle
working, Of heroic struggle and sublime
achievement Few men have seen so
great dream come true, probably no
two men before, in all the history OF the
worlds discoveries and inventions, ever
lived To Zee such magnificent results from
work in which they had been the pio-
neers. Hardened telephone users as all
OF those present were, and accustomed to
big events as most of them we're, a hush
that Wa tinged with awe, an almost sol-
emn silence, fell on the assemblage as the
great inventor talked to hi associate.
Every one felt that he was taking part
AKA IN epDch-makinG event. that. il tha fH.