The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1922-10-15
Inventor Sees His First
Electric Fixture, Old
Gas Chandelier.
BIG CROWD AT HIS HEELS
Tour of Museum EdisOnia So
Interesting He Forgets to
Go to Supper.

Thomas A. Edison went to the Elec-
trical Show yesterday for the first
time in six years and saw electricity
make cigars. wrap soap, do the fam
lily washing, cook. sew sweep, operate
telephones and radio and do a thou
sand other things besides furnishing
electric light, the purpose which he
gave to the world.
with all these machines perfected"
said the inventor, ruefully, at will get
so that nobody will have to work any
more"
He turned to Judge Gary, who was
conducting him through the exhibits,
and said:
Look at these things. Judge. Speed
Is the thing. Everything has to be
speeded. up. I'd love to visit the cleo.
trical show twenty-five years from
now-yes. fifteen or ten years from
now. Why. there are new things
every month. 1t is hard to make a
comparison. Ten years from now the
show will make this show look like an
exhibit of antiques"
Worried by Idea of No Work.
Come and look at this cigar factory.
Tom" said Judge Gary. and half
dozen police opened lane through the
crowd.
"Yes, look at it." said Mr.. Edison.
1T has wonderful output now, but
they are going. to keep on speeding it
up until there won't be any more work
for anybody"
The idea seemed to worry him. He
shook his head as If he thought the
world would be poor sort Of. a place
to live in when electricity does all our
chores
who invented this cigar machne?"
he asked of Arthur Williams, president
oe the show. where is he now?"
He's crazy. Went insane" sai6 the
manager of the exhibit.
Mr.. Edison laughed.
That's what they get" he said "They
nearly all go crazy, these inventors. And
they don't make a cent on their inven-
tions, either. It's shame but some
body else comes and makes all the
money. after the inventor has produced
A machine like this"
Half of the third floor at Grand Cen
trail Palace was devoted to a Museum
OF Edisonia." When Mr.. and Mrs. Edi-
son arrived they were taken to this part
first. Before they reached the elevator
on tho main floor. however, word
flashed through the building that Edison
had arrived. One of the biggest crowds
In the history OF the electrical show
nilled around the entrance hoping to
get a peek at him.
Edison's holidays are rare and he
made the most of this one. laughing and
joking with his friends and former asso-
ciates, and posing good humoredly for
innumerable photographs and films The
reception from the crowd pleased him.
too. For three hours the exhibits were
deserted while everybody i'm the building
trailed Mr.. Edison and his party from
booth to BOOTH
At the Museum Edisonia he was
greeted by e. A. Wardlaw and Francis
Jehl its curators and alumni of the
original Edison laboratory at Menlo
Park. A six foot model of this building
had been built for the occasion and
Mr.. Edison unveiled It.
ut looks mighty nice" he said. 1T
takes me back to the old days"
Not Sentimental About Antiques.
Then; as II afraid OF being Insunder-
stood:
I'm not sentimental. think it's
wonderful to collect all this old stuff
but ii doesn't stir the least bit of senti-
ment in me-"
His attention was called TO the first
electric chandelier that ever hung in
home--an old gas apparatus wired for
electricity. that hung in Mr.. Edson's
own home In Menlo Park In 1879.
"oho. no." said he. Where did you
come FROM
"Where in the world, he inquired OF
Mr.. Wardlaw," did you resurrect all these
old thlngs?"
I'VE got them from Menlo Park. and
we've got n lot more too" Mr.. Ward
law said. lie turned the ancient cleo
trict switch and the 1879 chandelier was
lii up. The current vas supplied by
the first bi-polar generator, invented ami
built by Edison forty-odd years ago.
Next came one OF the original Jumbo"
generators which stood in the old Pearl
street station, grandfather of all cleo
trio power plants. il furnished 1900
lights OF 16 candle power each. Mr..
Edison took the switch and snapped Il
on, as he did on the day the generator
went into service In 1882.
At each new device Mr.. Edison's face
lighted UP. He went from ono exhibit to
another like a boy In a toy shop, and
Judge Gary and the others could hardly
keep pace with him. Finally Mrs. Edi--
son attracted his attention long enough
10 tell him II was almost Z o'clock and
he was already an hour or more late for
dinner.
Never mind dinner no said. 81
don't have so much fun as this every
day."