The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1915-04-27
PARTY LINES
To Be N|ADE:
SECRET NOW
OKLAHOMA BOY SECURES
FATENT THAT SHUTS OFF
EANESDROPpING

A. & Nj. college, has Just recent,
been granted a patent on q telephone
device which completely puts d stol
to eavesdropping on party lines ant
which will decrease the consumption
4 OF wire lines to one-tenth OF the
amount now necessitated in the sys
/ TENS in use.
Young Wright secured the patent
from the United States patent of
flee March 3, 1916, through Officers
OF the Scientific American magazine
who acted as patent attorneys. The
Scientific American of April 10 car.
ries a story about the A. n NJ student
and his invention. showing a picture
Of the device which is predicted by
electrical experts win cause a great
economy in the telephone world, as
well as making party line conversa-
tion secret by abolishing the listen-in
on the line
II was the latter thing that urged
Wright to set to work on his scheme
we had phone on a line with sew
eral others there al Cashion, (OklaD, 7"
said Wright, 'and frequently got
disgusted with so many always trying
to hear everything that was said, so
determined 20 invent something that
would squelch the busybodies' iobs-I
wanted TO get back at them.
THAT was three years ago, the
suynmer after / had started to A. G
Al. got job with the local tele-
phone company at home and learned
all could about the workings Of the
system. At odd times ! Figured out
how to accomplish the feat and finally
struck upon the plan that have
Not puffed Up.
The youthful inventor refuses to be
over his work, but de-
claros simply and In matter.of-fact
tone that it will be a success that
he knew il would all the time.
he will sell his patent out I
light to some telephone company or 4
manufacture the device to sell. Wright |
will not say, but asserts that he is /
going to make move
hai he believes will net him con
iderable sum He claims that the
dea was absolutely original and that
e did all of the preliminary work on
he device alone. Curiosity seems to
ave been the force that kept him at
FORK after his first labor Altogether
e put in about six months OF actual
and experiment on bis
atented idea.
In nutshell Wright's plan is to put
n additional bell on each telephone,
'hether box or desk arrangement.
'hich, when ring serves as block,
utting out ali connection on the
arty line. Then the central opera
)r can plug-in or ring any phone on
le line without molesting the others
a feature OF the attachment is that
can be made on the present-day
xtures without the nee dof putting
new fixtures equipped with the
blight" d
IN Save Wire Cost.
Probably the greatest feature OF the
yention from the standpoint of the
and telephone com d
lnies is that nine-tenths OF the wire :
Dw used is unnecessary. Wright
ould put all rural and city resi- |
snce telephones on party lines. For
stance. where 10 telephones are
Nv installed in one block by the y
'e Of 20 wires. he would have only {
70 wires This would hardly be I
acticable in the eongested business d
iices wher ethe telephones are al a
ost in constant use. as il would keep b
ne subscribers waiting for the tenth o
finish his talk. only 10 telephones -
ing able 10 be on one wire and =
y one being able to be used at a (
ne.
Wrlght's equipment can be attach
to the inside Of the box. thereby
the wonld-be listener from IL.
with ii, as the boxes lock. ts
short, the ringing Of the lookout th
Il trips a trigger that disconnecis ..ss'.
electric wires Of all party tele- pe
ones and the seIective bell then Ia
ps back Che trigger, thus connecting s,ai
single outfit thV is called. In ma
iliiy 10 get" central Indicates TO ~,
other persons on the line that the 60.
ne's busy" 80
This appliance does not materially ~.
,nge the switchboard method. bur mo
rely makes Il imperative TO install ms
'ther ringing apparatus on each .,a,
nd. SO