The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1915-12-16
BIG INDUSTRY
ARISES FROM
AN INVENTION
Early History Of Taking Ma
chine with No Promise of
Results Achieved.

NaSh AuoiuuS "A. CQlbOu, away
back in 1876, talked into a little
machine and heard. his own voice
reproduced he was filed with awe.
1t was the first time that human
tones had been written down and re-
produced as they were spoken. It
was an epoch-making discovery, but
even Edison, noted for his practical
btltty, as well as for his wisdom, lit
tie dreamed OF the commercial and
artistic possibilities concealed in the
discovery. He was busy with other
things and he laid the invention on
the shelf for while.
The average man. confronted with
the wonderful improvements that
have been made In the talking ma
chine. does not today realize that only
little more than half dozen years
ago the machine was squealy. SOP
bling contraption; that the voice that
came from 1t did not sound natural.
that all sorts Of noises seemed 60 nc
company its emission from tho horn.
Industry Large, But Young.
Passing along the street and not
ing the handsome cabinets Of all sizes
and prices standing In the show win
dows. the young man OF twenty does
not recall that he was about fifteen
when these cabinets first made their
appearance; that he was five years
old when the talking machine was
becoming little more than a toy. We
are 30 accustomed to the slow, devel
opmcnt of inventions that when we see
q great and sudden development be-
fore us and then become familiar with
1t. 1t seems as II many years had
passed. and 1t requires a mental eff
fort to recall the fact that we are
actually its contemporaries, indeed,
that many Of US were grown men and
women when the invention itself wao
in its infancy.
Would anybody on the spur OF tho
moment. consider the photograph as
very nearly co-equal with. the tele-
phone? Would anybody think Of
them both as almost co-existent?
Think. how many millions Of tele-
phones were in use through the world
before the photograph became known
to the average person. Think how
perfect the telephone was when,
twenty-five years ago, you stopped at
the street corner and paid man a
nickel to let you put two tubes to
your car and hear wheezy voice
sing Drill, Ye Tarriers, Drill!"
Early Days Of the Machine.
The talking machine was at first
toy. Tho nit was used by peripatetic
street. wonders. either to draw Gus.
tom for their other wares by show
the wonders of the phonograph or
praphophone. as 1t was called in those
early days. or to draw people in a
hall to hear the device talk, for q
price. Then manufacturers began to
put 1t on the market for home use.
the records consisting OF funny stor-
les or comic or sentimental songs,
many records being faxed, as the one
which falsely purported to register
the rawlings Of famous actor who
was in the insane asylum.
For while there was quite boom
In the sale of talking machines for
the home recording" of tho voice.
Much amusement was extracted from
the little machine which received the
voice and then reproduced. For a
while the gruesome fad OF recording
the pipings of sickly children for the
purpose OF reproducing It's voice after
the little one should have passed
away threatened to become quite pre-
valent. and that possibility of the
machine was pretty we'll advertised.
Even today there are few people
who embalm the voices OF the mem
bers OF the family and put them
away for safe keeping, but only for
the delcctation of posterity, not for
the morbid purpose Of treating them
selves to the voice of one that is gone.
Many Uses Developed.
The. sentimental picture. Ills Mas
ter's Voice." originated ut that time.
Although the picture is still used as
a trade mark 1t is not expected to
realize on its original purpose. But
1t is said that in former days the
sight Of the dog listening sadly to
his dead masters voice issuing from
the graphophone helped to sell many
recording machine. In France and
perhaps other countries records are
kept of the voices Of public men, of
actors and actresses. Such records