The Washington herald., 1915-05-16

written by ThOpas y. watson, CO.
worker with Alexander Graham Bell. or
the actual incidents, disappointments
and dramatic successes leading up to the
first words spoken over the first telc.
phone.
This Is the story of Thomas A. Wat
son. a shipbuilder of New England. the
man who stood in the little laboratory
! OF Alexander Graham Bell i'm Boston
| Mass, on March 10. 1876. and heard his
| own name In the first workable telephone
receiver. the first Ineligible words ever
spoken over telephone wire. 1t is the
story OF the man who again heard those
exact words spoken OH March TO- 1915
over a. telephone wire that stretched
from New York to San Francisco. in all
the glory OF a transcontinental mastery
of sound and space. and who is now still
| hale and hearty and predicts that he
will still live to hear the same historic
| words spoken by telephone clear around
the globe. DR.. Bell was the sole dis
coverer OF the telephone and Mr.. Watson
alone was present with the inventor at
its birth. 1t was in the factory OF
Charles Williams at 100 Court street.
Boston, that the first mechanical work
| on the telephone was done. 1t was in
vented in 1915. but the real birthday Of
4
when the commonplace words over the
| first wire We're spoken. 1t was in 1890
Mr.. Watson wrote for the first time his
account of that event, but being called
away on business connected with suits
over patent rights then pending in the
| courts and the article has never been
printed before now.
Heard First Words spoken.
In reviewing his manuscript for this
publication. Mr.. Watson said:
81 believe this gives you the truest and
best record of the birth Of the telephone
that will ever be printed. i was the
only witness. I heard the first words.
They, were my own name. This article
embodies the essential details Of the in
vention.'
the coil of wire over which the first words
were transmitted. the wire that DR.. Bel
used in perfecting his invention. with the
memorandum attached as he wrote II
when the wire was taken down July s.
1871.
Mr. watson's account Of the birth Of
the telephone follows:
1T was my good fortune to have
been associated with Alexander Graham
Bell during the whole Of his famous
experiments by which the telephone was
developed, which the crude and imperfect
form into q commercial success. 1 was
employed by him to embody in practical
form his ideas. ! assisted in the tests
Of his telephone apparatus and heard
the first words ever transmitted by an
electric-speaking telephone. These are
my recollections:
Nearly a year before the first expert
ment on the speaking telephone was
made. Mr.. Bell was at work developing
an invention that he called the har-
monte telegraph This was an improve
ment on the Morse system. 1t aimed
to utilize the well-known law OF sympa-
thetic vibration and transmit simultane-
ously without confusion . large number
OF Morse dot and dash messages over
single wire.
Bell Explained Idea.
MY intimacy with him and first knowl-
edge Of his ideas of the speaking tele-
phone date from the experiments in the
early EOS. wildly remember when
he first told me that he was convinced
that the telegraphing Of speech was
possibility and explained to me his theo-
retical conception OF the principles on
which the development Of the idea must
depend. q conception since proved correct
by the fact that the entire development
of the telephone TO its present state
has been in exact accordance with this
original idea.
As he then expressed 1t. the transla-
ton of the timber. or quality OF any
sound. or OF articulate speech, can only
be effected by some instrument in which
the air. vibrating under the influence
Of sound. shall impress on an electric
current analogous vibrations. This kind
OF electric current he named 'undulatory
current to distinguish il from a rapid
make-or-break or intermittent current.
THAT such an apparatus was theo-
possible he had no doubt. In
fact. he had already sketched and de-
scribed a, complicated instrument OF the !
kind. but had not sufficient confidence |
that 1t would operate practically To- risk |
the large expenditure needed for its con- |
struction. Yet. as if impelled to devote |
himself to electrical matters. he was !
giving his attention to his harmonic 1
telegraph system: which. although wide |
~ difficult from the speaking telephone !
II interesting as having directly led to ,
the discovery that his theoretical con-
ception was capable Of practical appIi- |
ca ton.
Systematic Vibrations.
"A brief description OF the simple ap-
paratus used In the harmonic telegraph !
Instrument Is necessary To an under |
OF this most important disCov-
FRY. A. has been stated. MIR. Bells har- !
monte telegraph is based on the we'll .
known law Of sympathetic vibration
This law may be illustrated by sound
ing axnote either with the voice or with |
any musical instrument near the I'M
1ampened strings Of piano. The string
hat is tuned to the pitch of the uttered
sound will then be set into strong vibra-
lion. while the rest OF the strings will be
practically soundless. II two notes are
sounded simultaneously only the two
strings will respond
"A variation Of this experiment woulH
be to put an clcctro-ma2net under each
II the piano strings that are not har-
monies. connecting all the magnets to-
gether In one circuit with an electric
battery. If. now. by any means the cleo
'rc current Of the battery is regularly
certain number of times
Der second. corresponding to the normal
ate of vibrations of one of the strings
all the magnets will pull and
-eleasc their string at the same rate per
second, only the string that naturally
.ibrates at this rate will he set into
;ibration. The others will remain silent
Is in the first experiment.
The difference in the two experiments
les In the fact that in the first place
he rhythmic impulses that set the string
nto vibration were conveyed directly
through the air while In the second case
hey acted through the electromagnetic.
III two or more rates per second of
hsse current Interruptions are made 81
each set will cause its cor
string to vibrate. and by en- I