New Britain herald., 1926-10-21
ELECTRIC LIGHT
 47 YRS. OLD TODAY
Edison, Now S4, Considers This
 His Greatest Work

West Orange, N. J., Oct. 21 R- This is the filth birthday anniver- sary of the electric light.
 Thomas A. Edison, 84 year old wizard of Menlo Park, who fathered the phonograph, motion picture. and electric railway as practical achieve ments, considers the inventions that underlie the $7,500, 100000, electric light and power industry his most important work.
 The aged inventor also Is con- yinced that his profession blazes the way to universal peace.
 Invention has not led to war" he told the Associated Press in the office of his laboratory building. Invention has produced reasoning and a questioning age. People are becoming, because of the changes brought about by invention, more intelligent, and will not stand for exploitation by emperors and kings and societies. There is more reas- oning and questioning today than ever before. We are in the process of discardng those things which in the past have been breeders of war and oppression"
 If he had his life to live over the inventor said, he would again turn his attention to the field of inven- ton.
 "The field Is unlimited" he as- serted. If I were to begin my career over again I would turn to electric light, heat and chemical reactions. |The young man so inclined should have no hesitation in taking up 1n- vention as a profession, provided he has imagination and the will to work.
 Mir. Edison, stopped by age, care lessly dressed, with a faded white rose dropping from the lapel of his old office coat, took time from his work, a rarely granted privilege, to recall the days that followed his discovery that a loop of carbonized sewing thread, sealed in a bulb from which the air had been pumped, and connected with cleo tric current, would burn for AS hours.
 On New Years eve, 1879, he re- membered, 5000 persons Taveled to Menlo park to view the amaz- ing new lamp from which developed one of the worlds greatest indus tries, but it was not until 1882 that the first central generating station, in Pearl street. New York, was placed in operation.
 Much has been done since the day in developing electricity, but even more remains to be done, he declared. Farm power he believed the most pressing need, meaning by that the extension of transmits sion lines so that electrical power would be made available to every farmer in the country at low cost.
 The inventors talk is spotted with the word cost" His energies are constantly directed toward reduc- ton of cost so that the benefits of invention may be available to more people.
 No one can tell where experi- mentation in the various fields of invention will lead" he said. Op- parently he was thinking of scof- fers who minimize research and in- Vention which does not immediately lead to practical results.
 The heliuln atom has been broken into atoms of hydrogen" he continued. Tt is a theoretical step at present, but it has great possi- bllitles, how great, no man can tell. You remember when Faraday dis covered a means of getting cleo tricity from induced magnetism and was asked what good his. dis covery was he replied: What good is a baby?"
 Although MT. Edison was born Sf years ago he told his interview CT with a smile that he really was 1855 years old.
 "The average man." he explained. would need that many years to put in as many hours work as I have in my S4."