Year: 1878

The foremost of American inventors,
Thomas Edison, contributes to the current
number of the North american Reuiew an
account of his latest and most wonderful in
vention, the phonograph, an instrument
which is remarkable illustration of the trite
saying that truth is stranger than fiction, for
it outdoes the most preposterous fable of
Munchausen. The story of the trumpeter
whose notes were frozen in the horn and
thawed out the next spring filling the air
with melody has been laughed at for the last
hundred years. The fancy is an old one and
was esteemed so good a jest that Rabelais
provoked "inextinguishable laughter' '-inex-
tinguishable until Edison came-with it three
centuries ago. Indeed when the discovery of
the phonograph was announced most of us
took it to be revival of the old joke by the
''end-men" of the newspapers, a sort of resur-
rection of the jest of our great-grand-fathers


Mr.. Edison's paper is clear statement of
the mechanism and operations of the instru-
ment and an ingenious speculation as to the
practical uses to which it may be put. These
are the demonstrated facts concerning it.:
A vibrating plate or disk is capable of receiv-
a complex motion (which shall correctly rep
resent the peculiar property of each and all
multifarious vocal and other sound waves.''
Such complex motion may be transmitted
from the vibrating plate by means of a single
embossing point attached thereto so as to pro-
duce by indentation on fat surface record
having corresponding variety and complexi-
ty of form; and the same enclosing point on
being passed over the record again will follow
it with such fidelity as to retransmit to the
disk the same variety of movement and re-
produce the vocal or other sound waves With
out loss of any property essential to produc-
ing on the ear the same sensation as If they
came directly from the original source. The
record once produced can be removed from
the apparatus on which it was made and
placed upon another without mutilation or
less of effective power to vibrate second
plate. In making the change from one in
strument to another the record may be trans
ported any distance. 1t may be made suf-
fciently durable to undergo from 30 to 100
repetitions. 1t may be duplicated and rem
dered permanent by an electrotype process.


The practical applications suggested are
many. Messages may be spoken into the
mouthpiece Of the phonograph, and thus the
trouble of writing obviated. The speaker
can retain one copy and forward the other
to any distance, and either may be placed
upon another machine and reproduced when
ever it is thought desirable. Books can be-
read into it by an elocutionist, and the read
ing, which reproduces the exact tones of the
elocutionist, be "ground out" whenever and
wherever it is convenient. Its uses in schools
are many and various, Volumes of 10000
words can be put upon sheet of tin foil ten
inches square. The phonograph can take
the place of the court photographer and the
reporter of public meetings. 1t can be util-
lied as teacher of elocuton or music. 1t
is of service in many household Offices,
and its application to toys is well-nigh end
less. By it speeches and songs may be kept
con tap" But its greatest use is perhaps its
connection with the telephone, by which Mr..
Edison hopes to supplant the telegraph. He
believes that he can transmit the sound
waves over long distances by the telephone
wire and have them recorded by the phono-
graph. On this subject he grows enthusi-
astic and says (and as practical electrician
and telegrapher his opinion is Of great weight:
"rhe telegraph company of the future-and
that no distant one-will be simply an organ
ization having huge system Of wires, cen.
tral and sub-central stations, managed by
skilful attendants, whose sole duty it will be
to keep the wires in proper repair, and give,
by switch and shunt arrangement, prompt
attention to subscriber No. 923 in New York.
when he signals his desire to have private
communication with subscriber 1901 in Boston
for three minutes. The minor and totally in
consequent details which seem to arise as
obstacles in the eyes of the groove-traveling
telegraph-man, welded to existing methods,
will wholly disappear before that re-
morseess Juggernaut, the needs of man.
for, will not the necessities of man sur
mount trifles in order to reap the full benefit
ofan invention which practically brings him
face to face with whom he will; and better