Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-10-10

ZACHARY TAYLOR UNDER
III WOOD, retired telegrapher, who
III lives at 1909 West Jefferson
~ street, Louisville. KY, is firm
believer with Mr. Dooley that 'oppor-
tunity knocks at yer dure but vance.
and IL you do not respond your chance
is gone forever.
Mr. Underwood once had the oppor-
tunity of sharing in the profits from
some of the 900 or more inventions for
which Thomas Alva Edison has been
granted letters patent in the United
States and in other countries, but he
did not embrace it. Opportunity knock
ed hard at the Underwood door only
once, and II was Thomas A. Edison who
did the knocking. but Mr.. Underwood
let him get away.
Nearly a half century ago Thomas A.
Edison and Zachary Taylor Underwood
were very intimate friends, so intimate
that Mr.. Edison wanted to borrow 500
from Mr.. Underwood. For this loan OF
800 Mr. Underwood was to share in
the profits which Mr.. Edison then con-
6dently believed would eventually ac-
crue from his inventions, particularly
the double transmitter. the quadru-
pick telegraph. sextuple telegraph. the
alkaline storage batteries. quadruplex
and sextuple telegraph transmission. and
many other inventions which have to
do with telegraphy and electricity. All
of these prospective inventions were In
Mr. Edison's mind while he was en-
pioyed as a telegraph operator for the
Western Union Telegraph Company on
the south side of Main street between
Cd and Sd streets, in Louisville.
xx
This all happened in the years 1867.
Mr.. Edison at that time did not have
sufficient money to purchase the neces-
sary instruments with which he desired
to make the experiments for improve
ments in teIegraphy. At the same time
Mr.. Underwood was clerk and mes
senger in the telegraph office. He was
a frugal boy. and had saved some
money. in that particular being like
unto another messenger boy. Andy
Carnegie. although Mr.. Underwood is
not a canny Scot. but native Ken
tuckian. kinsman of former Repre-
sentative, now United States Senator,
Oscar Underwood of Alabama. who. by
the way. was also born in Louisville. A
hundred dollars looked big to Taylor
Underwood at that time, and although
he liked Telegraph Operator Edison
better than any one else in the Office,
he hesitated about letting him have the
500 which he wanted so badly. So he
consulted the chief operator. who at
that time happened to be Andrew Ell
ilSOn, since deceased. ana also the man
ager Of the Office at the time. Thomas
r. Boyle. also now dead. Says Mr.. Tn
derwood:
THAT fellow Edison has wheel In
his head they all said, and added:
He will be in the lunatic asylum
within six months IL he doesn't quit
projectin'. Let him have 500. Why
boy, you would be as crazy as he Is &c
do SO. You had hard time earning
that 800: keep 1T. and pay no attention
to Edison and his Inventions.
That's what all my bosses told me, >
said Mr.. Underwood. rather sorrowfully
And Zachary Taylor Underwood kept
his 500. Telegraph Operator Edison
soon afterward left Louisville. but not
for lunatic asylum He left in order
to accept 4 better position in the east
and soon afterward MIR. Underwood
heard that he was getting a salary OF
$4,000 4 year. Mr.. Underwood and hi,
fellow operators who are still alive
have heard of Ed. many times since
then. Messenger Underwood became q
telegraph operator for the Louisville
and Nashville railroad. and was after.