Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1922-08-31
A GREAT INVENTOR DIES.

see experiments which he began with
a dead mans ear less than fifty years
ago result in means Of communica-
tion for millions Of long distance tele-
phone conversations daily in all parts
OF tine world. The possibility of talk
ing over a wire, rdiculed then as
dream by almost everybody except Bell,
became during his lifetime a reality
commonplace and marvellous.
The Boil basic patent, known in the
records at Washington as No. l74465,
has been called the most valuable sin
gle patent ever iSsaed in the whole
| history Of invention. There are to-
day over thirteen million telephone in
struments, through which billions Of
telephone conversations are carried on
each year.
Means Of communication had been a
hobby in the Bell family long before
| the inventor OF the telephone was born.
Two generations back Alexander Bell
became noted for inventing system
for overcoming stammcring speech.
while his son, Alexander Melville Bell,
father Of the inventor Of the telephone,
perfected system of visible sreech.
With this heritage the SOL, born in
Edinburgh, Scotland, in l847, under
took similar experiments while still a
lad. He constructed an artificial
skull OF gutta percha and India Rubber
that would pronounce several words in
weird tones when blown into by a
hand bellows. At the age of 10 he be-
came, like his father, a teacher of
elocution and an instructor of deaf
mutes.
Bell reached a crisis in his life at
the age Of p, when he was threaten
ed with tuberculosis. The white
plague caused the death of his two
brothers and the Bell family migrated
to Brantford, Canada.
A meeting at the same time with
Sir Charles Wheatstone, the English
inventor of the telegraph, fired the
young elocutionist with ambition to
invent a musical, or multiple tele-
graph, which eventually turned out
to be a telephone.
His first success came while testing
his instruments in his new quarters
IN Boston. Thomas A. Watson, Bells
assistant, had struck a clock spring at
one end of the wire and Bell was cleo
trihed to hear the sound in another
room. For 40 weeks the instrumen;
struggled, as it were, for human
speech. Then, on March 10, 1876,
Watson became almost insane with
Joy when he heard over the wire Belts
voice saying
"Mr. Watson, come here. | want
YOU"
On his twenty-ninth birthday Bell
received his patent. 1t was at the Cen
tennial Exposition, held at PhiIadcl-
phla two months later, where men of
science the world over who had come
to examine and study the numerous
inventions exhibited, saw Professor
Bell give practical demonstration of
the transmission Of the human voice
by electricity.
AS for Mr.. Bell himself, he had moi
planned to attend the Centennial at all
He was poor and he had reorpanized
his classes in vocal speech. Toward
the end of June he went to the sta.
ton to see Miss Hubbard off for Phil
adelphia. There had been some talk
of his going, but he had put it quiet
~ aside. She believed he was going
when they reached the station she
pleaded with him and was refused. As
he put her aboard the train and it
moved out, leaving him on the plat
form she burst out crying. Bell
dashed after her and sprang aboard the
train, without baggage, ticket or any
other trifies.
The next Sunday afternoon Bell was
promised an inspection OF his inven-
ton by the judges of exhibits. 1t was
a hot day and the judges had seen a
great deal. Some of them were for
going home; one jeered, and there was
general boredom. Then there appear
ed the b!ond-bearded Emperor of Bra
I'll, with outstretched hands. He had
heard some Of Bells lectures in Bos-
ton; the deaf-mute work appealed to
him. His greeting made stir Bell
made ready for his demonstration. A
wire had been strung the length of
the room. Bell took the transmitter.
Don Pedro placed the receiver I'd his