The Denver Jewish news., 1922-09-20
Louis Steinberger, the
Jewish Edison
Louis StefnAergsF, "Ms1sst Inventor" !"
Has Revoautisnized lEleetfic En-
gineering aaa Radio Teasxsaphy.

words, he neglected to include one
combination of noun AID adjective
which one finds inevitable-the term
modest inventor" Modesty is one
gift that, with few exceptions, all great
Inventors share. OF none is this more
true than Of Louis Steinberger, Of
Brooklyn, N. T.. whose inventions in
the electrical field have entitled him
to be called the "Jewish Edison"
whose discoveries have revolutionized
electrical engineering and radio tele-
graphy, and who is nevertheless little
known except among the electrical en-
gineers whose work his inventions
have made possible and among the
government officials who have had Oc-
casiOn to praise their efficacy.
This Jewish inventor, whose scien-
tific contributions have fmmeasurably
aided the prowess and progress Of
America on land and sea, Is like SO
many Jewish-American patriots, for
eign-born. He came to this country
from Hungary many years ago, and
in laboratory and workshop has made
the contributions which bring him in
the forefront of American patriots. In
his youth he had achieved some sue
cess as portrait figure and land
scape painter. Yet he turned from
his artistic career to devote many
years to painstaking, toilsome research
in the electrical field.
Chief among his electrical discov-
cries Che has more than two hundred
patents to his credit) is Electrose,
material from which were made the
first electrical insulatprs which could
endure the high voltage required in
modern electrical operation such as
radio telegraphy and long distance
transmission of power.
The great difficulty Of working with
electricity is the problem Of getting the
electricity where you want 1t. 1t seeks
always to escape into the ground. espe-
cially when 1t is carried in wires ander
high pressure. This was one Of the diff
ficulties which had to be overcome be-
fore the long distance wireless tele-
phone was possible and before Charles
r. S.einmetE could transmit currents
under a pressure Of million colts. The
electricity always escaped and no one
could find chains suABciently stroag to
hold 1t back. Until Electroee was in
vented, the electrical wires were In
sulated from the ground and the cleo
| - nj, Inv
means Of insulators made OF glass or
porcelain. As the voitages required In
electrical work grew higher and higher,
these glass and porcelain insulators
proved inadequate. The current tore
through them and destroyed them. It
was necessary that some inventive
genius discover an insulating material
which would Withstand heavy pres
sures and prevent the electricity from
escaping.
The NC-4, the first airship to cross
the ocean, carried Steinberger's Elec-
trose. Today Mr.. Steinberger's inven.
tion is universally used by electricians
and electrical engineers. The United
States Navy use is not only on board
ships but also in all the wireless army
and navy stations established by the
government. On every ship Of our
navy that has wireless plant about
thirty-sfX different types of Electrose
insulations are used. On the battle
ships three hundred pieces Of this In
sulation is used for the wireless equip
ment alone. Every telephone man and
every one interested in electricity and
the transmission of electric power
knows the name and uses of this
material.
When war was declared, Mr.. Stein
berger was among the first Americans
to offer the use of his large plant to
the government for the making Of war
materials. One single war time Incl
dent is indicative of the fervent patriot
ism of the man. On Monday after
noon he contributed 800 to war activi-
ties in response to an appeal at the
Orpheum Theatre in Brooklyn, where
he resides. On Monday evening he con-
tributed an equal amount at the Majes-
tic Theatre.
This man whom the general public.
despite his genius and generosity,
knows SO little is president and gen
eral manager of the Electrose Manu-
featuring Company, which he organized
in 1892, and has retained the presi-
tleucv ever since and has yvon AVN rds
at the Chicago and st. Louis Worlds
Fairs. Through his unerring energy he
developed the business to a point where
the sales reach the very respectable
figure of million dollars a year--be-
ing the largest volume of sales ever at