1889 Edison and His Inventions

:

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-EDISON

AND

HIS

INVENTIONS

WITHCOMPLETE

EDISON

AND

HIS

INVENTIONS

INCLUDINGTHE MANY

INCIDENTS,

ANECDOTES, AND

INTERESTING

PARTICULARS

CONNECTED WITH THE

EARLY

AND LATER

LIFE

OF

THE

GREAT

INVENTOR.

FULL EXPLANATIONS OF THE

NEWLY

PERFECTED

PHONO-GRAPH,

TELEPHONE,

TASIMETER, ELECTRIC LIGHT,

AND

ALLHIS_{PRINCIPAL DISCOVERIES,}

WITH

COPIOUS ILLUSTRATIONS.

"T.A.E.neverhadanyboy-hooddays; hisearlyamusements were steam

enginesandmechanicalforces."

SAMUEL

EDISON,(concerning hisson.)

EDITED BY J. B.

McCLURE,

M. A.

COPYRIGHT,RHODES

&

MOCLUBEPUBLISHING COMPANY,1889. ALL BIGHTS RKSEBVED.

CHICAGO.

RHODES

&

MoOLUKE

PUBLISHING COMPANY,

In the fractional

moment

of the world's history,likeits

own

self,ElectricalScience hassuddenlyflashedinto_general utility,

and

is

now

rapidly lifting, not onlythe veritable

darkness

from

theearth, but everywherein

home

andoffice,

fieldand mine, onlandand sea,is demonstrating a scope of usefulness

commensurate

withtheloftiestaspirations ofman.

Very

circumscribed

must

be the mind,

and

decidedly lim-itedthe vision of

him

who

can take

no

interest

now

in

boththe actualand_possibleveritiesof _Electricity.

Its_positionis oneof popular supremacy,

from

whichits

blessingsfall

_upon

the _day,nolessthanthe night,and

from

whichthe

_weary

_spaces and even time itself,

seem

to flee

away.

What

it _reallyis,no one knows; but

what

it is

ac-tually doing this

book

clearly tells in its sketch lifeof

Thomas

Alva

Edison, the self-made electric king of the nineteenth _century.

So

numerous

are his inventions in

every departmentof thiswonderfulscience,and so_fullyare

theydescribed in this

volume

and _generally

_by

Mr.

Edi-sonhimself that a careful _perusal leaves little ornothing

elsetobe

known

of

what

is _{practical, just now,}in this

mar-vellously interestingfield.

Connected with thelife o. such_{a person, there} is_always

an_{array of incident}and anecdote in

which

agenerous

URL

Ithasbeen_{our aim,also, in this}volume,to_{present the}

_many

stories and remarkable _{experiences of his early}and later

lifethat

make

up

thewonderful history of Mr.Edison.

Nine

yearsagothefirst edition of this

work was

issued.

The

world

was

_{intensely expectant} then as to

what

Edison

might

discover_alongthe line of the _mystic science;

many

doubted,

some

laughed, and a

few

scientists

who

should

have

known

better,scoffedandsaid, "No, itis _impossible."

This

was

a period of great struggle with Mr. Edison,

and

yetnot without hope.

No

one

knows

this better thanthe

great inventor himself.

But where

are the scoffers

now?

And

what

thestupendous array of facts? IntohisElectric

Light alone _{has gone} $25,000,000,with

more

to follow! to

saynothingof his

_many

other inventions,oneof which, and

thelatest,his _{perfected Phonograph, he} is _{said recently to}

have sold for a "cool million" of dollars. _Verily the laborer is

_worthy

of hisreward.

There

can be no doubt, Electricity " has

come

to stay."

Itsmission is " business."

And

we

shall _{probably yet see}

the "_lightning all round the horizon." Mr. Edisonstill

"has

thefloor." Letuslisten.

We

retain,unchanged,the full details of Edison's _early struggleswith the ElectricLight

and Phonograph

allthe

more

_interesting

now

and

add

the full _{particulars of his} great success in these departments; also a _chapter on

"

_{Menlo Park}

"

_and

its noble Edisonian

band

of workersin

daysofyore hasnotbeenaltered.

The

readerwillfind quite an extendedElectrical Diction-aryatthe close of this

volume

that fully explains the

many

newly

coined

words

andphrases requiredin this

new

and rap-idly enlarging field,which are not foundin Webster's

Un-abridged, and

which

constitute,as a whole, aninteresting

and

instructive_{epitome of practicalElectricity.}

We

acknowledge ourobligations, in_{the preparation of}this

work, to

Samuel

Edison,Esq. father of the inventor of

Port Huron,

Mich.;Messrs. Edison, Batchelor,Griffin,

and

i

other associates o^ Mr. Edison; Geo. B. Prescott's_works;

Thomas

D. Lockwood's works; Scribner;

North

American

Review; and the _{following popular, practical} and

progres-sive electric _periodicals:

THE

ELECTRICAL

WORLD,

New

York

and Chicago;

THE

ELECTRICAL

_{REViEW,No.l3 Park Row,}

New

York;

THE WESTERN

ELECTRICIAN, Lakeside Building,

Chicago;

and

especially to Mr. E. L. Powers, the _Chicago

Manager

of theELECTRICAL

WORLD,

LakesideBuilding.

Our

thanks and bestwishes to all these industriousworkerson

" the confines of theknowable."

The

_{highest honors,}officialandsocial,have beenconferred

upon

Mr. Edison,

by

the _great Paris _Exposition of 1889,

where

his

_many

exhibits form the greatest

wonder

of all,

unless it be his _personal self, whose attentions from the

many

thousands _presentexceedthose of kings. Suchisthe

merited_{and wide-spread compliment bestowed upon}thehero

of thisvolume.

A

CHAPTER

OF

SOME CURIOUS FEATURES

INELECTRICITY, 264

A

DESCRIPTION OF

THE PHONOGRAPHIC RECORDS

UNDER

THE MICROSCOPE

How

the letters look Believed

by

Edison tobe_legible

The

_deepestindentations

made

by

consonants, 85

A

GREAT AND

WONDERFUL

INSTRUMENT

NOW

COM-PLETED

The

new

Phonograph

as_{explainedfully}

_by

Mr.Edison

What

it_is,

what

it _does,and

what

it

may

yet do, 216

A

LITTLE

CHAT

INTERMINGLED

WITH WHISPERS WITH

PERSONS

210 MILES

APART

An

innocent_joke

per-petratedon Mr.

Firman

Complete success of the

Carbon

Telephone, 112

A

MONUMENT

TO ELECTRICITY Mr. Edison's

New

Laboratory at Orange,

N.

J. - - - - 24

A

STORY OF EDISON

Hurrying

up

the_Phonograph, - 231

A

SERIES

OF REMINISCENCES

OF

EDISON

AS "

TRAIN

BOY

" His successin_{selling apples,toys,} periodi-cals,etc.,onthetrain

How

he usedtheTelegraph

He

starts a

_Newspaper

The

Edison

Duplex

His Laboratory on wheels

A

greatmishap

Young

Edisonpitchedoffthetrain, - - - -

-37

A

VERY YOUNG

ELECTRICIAN

He

_buysa

book

on Elec-tricity Extemporizes a short line

The

Tom

Cat

Electrical_Battery

A

_daringfeatinfront ofa

loco-motive

The

young Son

of

Thunder

_getting

down

A

YOUNG

OPERATOR

His

engagement

atPort

Huron

Resigns

Goes

to Stratford _Rigs an _Ingenious

Machine

Telegraphing

by

Steam, - - - 53

A

YOUNG

INVENTOB AND

OPERATOR

Inventsan

instru-ment

Tells theboys to " rush

him

" _Fidelity

re-warded

Becomes

a first-class_operator, - - ₅₆

.^EROPHONE

An

Instrument for enlarging the

volume

ofsound Illustrated, - - -

-140

AN

ACCOUNT

OF

EARLY

REMINISCENCES, AS GIVEN,

BY

EDISON'S

FATHER,

46

BOSTON AND

YOUNG

EDISON

He

departs for the

"Hub"

Snow

bound

His _reception Joke on the cock

roaches Inventions

The

girls, - - - - 62

BURDETTE

AND

EDISON

TESTING THE SPANKTROPHONE,

116

CARBON

RHEOSTAT,

138

DAWDLES

TRIES

_{THE TELEPHONE,}

- - - - 119

DICTIONARY

OP

ELECTRICAL

WORDS

AND

PHRASES,

FULLY

EXPLAINED

_(NOT

FOUND

IN

_WEBSTER)

Giving aneasy outline of the science ofelectricity, 237

DOLL BABY

PHONOGRAPH,

231

DOWN

IN

THE GOLD MINES

OUT

WEST,

- -

_-124

DYNAMO

FULLY EXPLAINED

A

wonderful

mechanism

forgeneratingelectricity, 173

DYNAMO

INSTRUCTIONSIN

FULL

DETAIL

_Showing

how

torunit_properly, 179

EARLY

EFFORTS

ON THE

PHONOGRAPH

The

Edison

&

Faber

_talkingmachines _Phonographicpossibilities

now

realized, 75

EDISON

BUILDING, CHICAGO, 196

EDISON

IN

_NEWARK,

--

....-66

EDISON

IN

NEW

YORK

Penniless and

_hungry

The

supreme

moment

Brains Hisgreat success, - 64

EDISON

IN

MENLO

PARK

AND

His

EARLY

BAND

OP

INDUSTRIOUS

WORKERS,

69

EDISON'S

EARLY

LIFE His nativity Childish

amuse-ments His _ancestry Mrs.

_Nancy

Elliott Edison

Edison's

_happy

home

Earlyeducation, - - ₂₆

EDISON'S

UPS

AND

DOWNS

The

Inventorvs.the

Oper-ator

Thunder

all'round the horizon _Footing it

inTennessee Off forSouth

America

"Run"

ona

bank

Incidents, 58

EDISON'S

COURTSHIP

AND

MARRIAGE,

- - - - ₆₇

EDISON'S

FUNNY ANECDOTE

OF

THE

ROCKY MOUNTAIN

SCOUTS, - 125

EDISON'S

BRIDGE FOR MEASURING MAGNETIC

CONDUC-TIVITY,

...

212

EDISON'S

DYNAMO

FOB

GENERATING

_ELECTRICITY, - ₁₇₃

EDISON'SELECTRIC

LIGHT

AS

EXPLAINED BY HIMSELF

IN

FULL DETAIL WITH

ILLUSTRATIONS;

How

IT is

MADE,

ETC., 159

EDISON'S ELECTRIC

LIGHT

vs. JABLOCHOFF'S et al.

Sub-division of thefluid Platinum and Iridium

How

thelightappearedtoavisitor

Carbon

candle

Earlyefforts, 148

EDISON'SELECTRIC

LIGHT

IN

THE

ROOKERY

BUILDING

IN

CHICAGO

One

_{of the largest plants}in_{the world,} - ₁₉₀

EBISON'SELECTRIC

PEN,

95

EDISON'S

GROUND

DETECTOR FOR LIGHT

_CIRCUITS, - ₁₉₈

EDISON'S

HARMONIC

ENGINE, 144

EDISON'S

IMPROVED

PHONOPLEX FOR TELEGRAPHING

SEV-ERAL MESSAGES ON THE SAME

WIRE

AT

THE

SAME

TIME, 209

EDISON'S

EARLY

EFFORTS

INELECTRIC

LIGHT

EXPERI-MENTS, 154

EDISON'S

JUNCTION

Box AND

SAFETY

CATCH, - - 208

EDISON'S

METERS

FOR

MEASURING

ELECTRICITY, - - 202

EDISON'S

METHOD

OF

REGULATING THE CURRENT,

- - ₂₀₁

EDISON'S

MIMEOGRAPH,

208

EDISON'S

MUNICIPAL INCANDESCENT

LAMP

FOR OUTSIDE

LIGHTING, 186

EDISON'S

NEW

CUT-OUT

An

ingenious

mechanism

to

preventalongline of _lamps

from

being suddenly

extinguished, - 189

EDISON'S

OPINION OF

THE

PATENT

LAW

A

plain,

pung-entstatementfor_Congressmen,

....

233

EDISON'S

PYRO-MAGNETIC

DYNAMO

A

mechanism

gen-eratingelectric_energy

from

the heat of a storm, -₁₈₂

EDISON'S

PERFECTED PHONOGRAPH,

- - - - 216

EDISON'S

_PHONOMETER,

142

EDISON'S _{PRINCIPAL INVENTIONS,} - - - 71

EDISON'S

PET

BABY,

- - -

-121

EDISON'S

QUADRUPLEX,

73

EDISON'S

RHEOSTAT

For

_regulating the resistance of

electricity, 138

EDISON'S

SONOROUS VOLTAMETER,

123

EDISON'S

TELEPHONE

Full explanations Illustrated, - 98

EDISON

JOKING WITH THE

EARLY

PHONOGRAPH,

- - ₉₄

EDISON

JOKING WITH

HIS FRIENDS, - - - - ₁₂₃

EDISON ON

STORAGE

BATTERIES,

---

185 10

ELECTRIC

MOTOR,

181

ELECTRO-MOTOGRAPH

A

curious instrument

How

it

works

Four hundred

moves

in _{a second,} - - 96

ELI

PERKINS AND

MR.

EDISON, 117

ETHERIC

FORCE

A

curious discovery ofMr. Edison, - 147

FUNNY

SIDE

_{OF THE PHONOGRAPH,}

AS

SEEN BY

COL.

KNOX,

- ₂₂₉

FURTHER EXPERIMENTS PERTAINING

TO LIGHTS, LAMPS,

AED THE GENERATING OF

ELECTRICITY, - - 159

How

THE

PHONOGRAPH

MAN

AMUSES

HIMSELF, - - ₉₁

How

THE

PHONOGRAPH

FRIGHTENED

A PREACHER,

- 92

How

THE

PHONOGRAPH

WAS

DISCOVERED

BY

MR.

EDISON, 93

How

TO

PUT

THE

DYNAMO

IN_OPERATION, - - - 176

LITTLE

SUNS

MADE

FROM

BURNT

PAPER

A

great

wonder,

__..-_.-

159

MEGAPHONE,

- -

...

- - - - 122

MOSES

AND THE TODDYGRAPH,

- 90

MOTOGRAPH

RECEIVER

A

curious instrument, - - 146

NEW

EDISON

_DYNAMO,

- - -

-173

OUR

AGE

AND

ITS

_HERO,

17

PERSONAL

DESCRIPTION

OF

MR.

EDISON, ETC., - - 20

PHONOGRAPH

AS

NEWLY

PERFECTED

FULLY

EXPLAINED,

BY MR.

_EDISON, - - 216

PHONOGRAPH

AND Music

What

itcan_do,

...

228

PHONOGRAPH

SUPREME AT HOME,

---

88

PHONOGRAPH'S ARRIVAL

OUT

WEST"

Itvisits

Chi-cago Is interviewed

by

a _reporter

A

modern

miracle

How

it talked

What

it

had

to say, - 82 11

POSSIBILITIES OF

THE

PHONOGRAPH

A

short

hand

re-porter Elocutionist

Opera

singer Teacher of

languages Itsmedical_{possibilities,} - - - 80

PEESSUKE

RELAY

A

veryuseful instrument, - - 136

RELATIVE CONDUCTIVITY

OF SUBSTANCES, - - - 263

SEA

TELEPHONE

How

_ships

_may

talkonthesea, - - 209

TABLES

OF

WEIGHT AND

LINEAL MEASURE,

ETC. - 263

TASIMETER OR

THERMOPILE

An

instrument that

meas-urestheheat of the stars

How

it is done Full

accountofits_discovery, - - - -

-126

TASIMETER

AND

THE

STARS, 128

TESTING

THE TASIMETER ON THE

SUN'S

CORONA

"Won-derful experiments of Mr. Edison in the

_Rocky

Mountains, - - -

-129

TELEPHONE

Mr.Edison's

own

accountof his_discovery ofthe

Carbon

_Telephone

An

interesting history

Hisexplanation of thewonderful instrument Illus-trated

by numerous

engravings Ittalksoverawire 720miles_long

His

other telephones, - - 98

TELEPHONE

AND

THE

_DOCTORS, - - - -

.119

TELEPHONOGRAPH

A

combinationofthetelephone

and

phonograph, - - -

-121

THE

BASISOF

THE

_TASIMETER, 132

TRAIN

TELEGRAPHY

How

a telegram

may

be sent or receivedon arapidly

moving

train, - - - 204

UNCLE

REMUS

AND THE PHONOGRAPH,

- -

.89

Aerophone, (1) (2) 140

Amperemeters and

Regulator

Boxes

192

An

Early Generator 171

Apparatus ofthe _Telephone 104

Bergmanns

&

Go's_Manufactoryof Edison's Electric

Ap-pliances 227

Bridgefor _{Measuring Magnetic Conductivity} 213

Carbon

Rheostat _{(perspective,)} _139

Carbon

Rheostat_(in section,) 139

Carbon

_Spiral __ _ 161

Cat Battery Experiment 49

Continental Bill__ 29

Diagram

ofthe

_Phonograph

78 Different

_Types

ofthe Edison

_Dynamo

178

Dynamo

in_Operation 175

Dynamo,

New

Edison 173

Dynamo

Room

inthe

_Rookery

_{Building, Chicago} 191

Edison _{Building,Chicago} 197

Edison

"Ground"

Detector 199

Edison

_Lamp

_Company's

_Factory,

_{Newark, N. J}

195

Edison Municipal Incandescent

Lamp

187

Edison Rescuing a Child 50

Early Incandescent

Lamp

165

Edison Telegraphing

by Steam

55

Edison's Electric Generator 155

Edison's Electric Light 157

Edison's_{Pyro-Magnetic}

_Dynamo

183

Electric

_Lamp

169 Electric _Light " 153 Electric

Pen

__ 95 Electro-Mechanical Telephone 169 ElectrophorousTelephone 108 Electro-Static_Telephone __ ___109

Harmonic Engine

144

House

in

which

Edison

was Born

27

Incandescent

House

_Lamp

194

Lever _Signal 106

Local

_Lamp

161

Menlo

Park,the Birth-place of theIncandescent

_Lamp..

16

Micro-Tasimeter _{(perspective)} _133

Micro-Tasimeter

(insection) ___133

Micro-Tasimeter _(entire) 133

Motograph

Receiver 146

Mrs.

_Nancy

E.Edison,

Mother

of theInventor __ 31 Offices

and

Show Rooms

oftheEdisonUnitedStates

Manu-facturing Co.,

New

York

236

Operator Receiving

and

Sending Messages ona

Railway

Train _ ___204

Operator'sTrain Telegraph Apparatus 207 14

Pendulum

_Signal ___ 107

Phonograph

Perfected

The

Wonder

ofthe

World

Fully

Explained

by

Mr.Edison __217

Phonograph

in_Operation 75

Phonograph

Records underthe_Microscope 87

Phonometer

142

Pressure Relay 137

Printingthe "

Grand Trunk

Herald"ontheTrain 39

Quadruplex 74

Railway

Car

Showing

How

to _Telegraph on a

_Moving

Train 205

Samuel

Edison, Fatherof theInventor 31

Tasimeter __ __ _..128

Telephone Apparatus, with Switch 105

The

_{Telephone(interior)} __. 98

The

Telephone(exterior) __ 98

The

Telephonograph___ 121

Thomas

Alva

Edison Frontispiece

Tuning Fork

Signal ___ ___107

The

Sea 210

Water

_Telephone 110

Young

Edison's

Mishap

Car onFire 36

Young

Edison Pitched Into theRiver 43

Zircon Burner.. __160

EDISON

AND

HIS

INVENTIONS.

Our

Age and

Its

Hero.

"

_{Of what}

_use isit?"saidthe _{skeptic to Franklin,}

doubt-ing the value of hisidentificationof lightningand_electricity.

"

_{Of what}

_{useisa child?}"

said the _{philosopher,adding} "_It

may

become

aman."

Evidently,this"

man

withthe kite"

saw

the

_coming

pos-sibilities of the " subtlefluid,"but itis_{hardlypossible that}

he

dreamed

ofitsultimatewidespreadgeneralutility. "

We

putit_{now,"says Professor Gray,}"toallsortsofuses.

We

make

it_carryour messages,drive our _{engine, ring}ourdoor

bell,

and

scarethe burglar.

We

takeit as_{a medicine, light}

our_{gas, see}

_by

it,hearfrom it,talkwith it,and

now we

are

beginningto teach it to write. If

Job

lived inthis _age,

and_{the question}

was

putto

him

as of old, Canst thou

send_lightnings, that they

may

go

andsayunto thee, <

Here

we

are?" he couldsay, 'Yes;'

and

they can be

made

to

say itinthe vernacular." "

A

friend of

mine

_saysin_verse,"

adds _{the professor:}

"_{Time was whenonemust hold}

bisear Closetoawhisperingvoice to

hear-Like deaf men, nighandnigher;

But

now

from towntotownhetalks,

And

puts hisnoseintoabox

And

whispers througha wire. "_{In olden times along}the street

A

glimmeringlanternledourfeet

When

onamidnightstroll;

But

now we

snatch,whennightcomesnigh,

A

piece of lightningfrom the sky

And

stickitona pole."

i8

THOMAS

A.

EDISON

Yes,the " childhas

become

aman,"noble, honest, useful,

good and

great. Ithas

had

_{a singularly} longperiod of in-fancy, but a decidedly brief boyhood.

As

Samuel

Edison

says of his son, the great inventor, so has it been with

electricity:

"T.

A.E. never

had

any

boyhood

days; his early

amusements

were steam engines and mechanicalforces." "

_Those

_{of us}

_who

_are

just across the meridianof life,"

says Gray,"can

remember

the first _telegraphwirethat

was

strungin this _country.

_To-day

it is difficultto find a

cor-nerof the earth so remote as to be out of sight of one.

You

will find

them

even in the

bottom

of the seas

and

oceans.

The

last _{twenty years}haveseen

more

advancein the science of electricitythan all the 6,000historic _years preceding.

More

isdiscovered in one

day

now

than in a

thousandyears of the middle ages, sothat, literally,'a

day

isa thousand_years.'"

Inventions _multiply with _increasing rapidity, and dis-coveriesflash_{as lightnings}overtheland.

We

cannot,if

we

would,shut our _eyes to theresults.

Intimately associatedwith this _progress,

and

foremostin the ranks,is

Thomas

Alva

Edison, the acknowledgedleader

in"_{applied electricity,"a veritable " captain of industries,"}

whose

_{multiplied and multiplying} usefulelectrical

mechan-isms have

become

to

men

of thought, the

wonder

of the world.

Since the firstEdison

_dynamo

was

built,forthe

unfortu-natesteamer "_Jeannette," which

now

lies with it in the

cold_depths of the ArcticOcean, over one

hundred and

fifty

centralstations,

and

nearly

two

thousand isolatedplants,

with _{a capacity of}

more

than one million,five

hundred

thousand_lamps,have been installedin

America

alone, to

sup-ply the Edison incandescent electric light, aggregating an

expenditureof

_many

millions of dollars. Otherplants are

AND

HIS

INVENTIONS.

19

Chicago,willbe _{the largest isolated plant}inthe world,

con-taining eight thousand,six

hundred

_lights,

now

in_{process of} installation.

And

all_{this, in}theline_{of only}one_great pur-poseof theEdisondiscoveries, the electric light,involving,

however, about one thousandseparate patents!

Verily, these facts demonstrate not onlythe genius,but the persistent energy

and

dominant

determinationof Mr.

Edison, to subordinate the occult forces of the mystic

sciencetohisend and aims,,

and

also verifyhisremarkable

words, uttered

some

four ve^rs _ago only, concerning the

"_{commercial evolution of}

electricity,"

amid

thelaughs

and

jeersof

many,

andexcitinggreat criticism at the time,

when

hesaid: "

Two

_{years of experience proves}

_beyond

a doubt

thattheelectric _light for household _purposes can be

pro-ducedandsold."

Professor Barker

_may

well _say, as he has, of Mr.

Ed-ison, that "

He

is a

man

of Herculean suggestiveness; not

only the greatest inventor of the age,but a discoverer as

well;for,

when

he cannotfindmaterialwith_propertieshe re-quires,hereaches farout into the regions of the

unknown,

andbringsbackcaptive the requisites for his inventions."

Recently,ata concertin_{the Crystal Palace,}London,

Edi-son's

new

phonograph

recorded _{perfectly aperformance}of

Handel's_{music, reporting}with _{perfectaccuracy}thesublime

strains of the "Israel inEgypt,"

and

which

can

now

be

repeatedat_{any time}

and

_place with the

_phonogram

anda

"

reproducer."

By

Edison's automatic _system one thousand

words

per

minuteare possible overa single wire;

by

his _quadruplex,

fourdistinctanddifferent_messagespassoverthewireatthe

same

time;

by

his

_phonograph

all shadesof sound_are

pre-servedand

_may

at _any time be _reproduced;

_by

hiscarbon

telephoneallshadesof soundpass overthelongwires tobe

20

THOMAS

A.

EDISON"

night,withits darkness,is_disappearing

from

thearenaof civilization.

Thus

the

wide

world, every day,

by

this_great

man,

is_{being brought}into closer _proximity,withits

facili-tiesforcommunication,business,sociallifeandpleasures,

al-most

_{infinitelyaugmented.}

Well

_may

a leading journal ofthis_{country remark:}<{_There

canbe

no

doubtthatMr. Edison,the inventor of the

phono-graph, is one of the

most

remarkable

men

cf_{the present}

century. His improvementsin telegraphic apparatus,

and

in the

_working

of_{the telephone,}

seem

almosttohave exhausted

thepossibilities of electricity. Inlike

manner

the discov-ery of the

phonograph

andthe application of its_principles

in _{the aerophone,}

_by

whichthe

volume

of soundis_so

ampli-fied

and

intensified as to be

made

audibleata distance of several miles,

seem

tohavestretched the laws ofsoundto theirutmostlimit.

We

are inclined to_regard

him

asoneof

thewondersof the world.

While

Huxley, Tyndall, Spencer

and

other theorists talk

and

speculate,hequietlyproduces

accomplishedfacts, and, with his marvelousinventions,is

pushingthewhole world ahead in its

march

to_{the highest}

civilization,

making

life

more and more

_enjoyable."

Personal

Description.

OF

MEDIUM

SIZE

FINE

LOOKING,

COMPANIONABLE,

UNOS-TENTATIOUS

GREAT

ENERGY,

PERSEVERANCE

AN

IN-TERESTING

ANECDOTE.

Mr. Edison is a _{very pleasantlooking}

_man,

of the

av-erage size, five feet_{ten inches high,} fair _{complexion, with}

dark hair _considerably silvered,

and

wonderfullypiercing

gray eyes.

The

latter are almost veritableelectric lights,

and

when

_engaged

in_{deep thought}theirlookis intense, in-dicative of decided _penetration

and

acute _analysis. His

AND

HIS INVENTIONS.

21 features are well outlined inthe_engraving

we

present,

and

show him

tobe a

man

_remarkably adapted to hislineof labor.

He

is

now

_forty years of age. His residenceisat

Llew-ellynPark, Orange, N.J.,

where

he hasafinehome, withall

the pleasant surroundings that a magnificent country seat

requires.

He

losthis first wife several years since,the

in-dulgent

mother

of

two

dear children,"

Dot

"

and

"Dash."

Some

two

_{years ago} he married Miss Minnie Miller, the

daughterof the well

known

manufacturer

and

_capitalist of

that

name

_residing atAkron,Ohio.

A

third child has

come

upon

the stage,

who

is the "little one" of this_pleasant

family of five,

and

is the "

baby

"elsewhere mentionedin

this _volume,therecord of

whose

varied vociferationsMr.

Edison is _{said statedly to be recording with}his wonderful

phonograph,just to

show

itafter a while

when

ithas

_grown

to

_young

womanhood

how

itcouldanddid,without a doubt, chirrup,cry

and

laughduringthe infantile period.

It is_{here,also, atOrange,}thatMr. Edisonhas located his newest, best

and

very extensive laboratory,

which

is_fully

equipped with everypossibleconvenienceforturningout his

many

and

remarkable inventions. Itisin this

immense

es-tablishment,completed at _{great expense,}and

manned

_by

a

noble

_body

of faithful,intelligent and competentassistants,

many

of

whom

wereat

Newark

and

Menlo

Park,thatMr.

Edisonis_quiteat

home

and

fullymasterofthesituation.

When

in this vast _workshop,the _{great inventor} istoo

studious to care

much

forhisdress

and

_{generalmake-up.}

On

suchoccasionshe_appears,likeother _hard-working

men,

of-ten the "worseforwear," withacid-stained_{garments, dusty}

eye-brows,discolored hands

and

dishevelled hair.

Under

such circumstanceshe hasbeen_correctly noted

_by

_reporters

as "_{considering time}toovaluable towaste on_personal

ap-22

THOMAS

A.

EDISOK

pearmg

as if " cut

_by

himself."

But

at the _{proper time}

and

place,

when

a betterappearanceis_requisite,heis_always

equalto the occasion, being " clean shaven,"

handsomely

attiredinthe

most

_{approvedstyle, wearing} a

number

seven and seven-eightssilk hat, andis_{every whita noble-looking}

man.

Mr. Edisonissocial

_by

nature,and very companionableto

those

who

enjoyhis confidence.

He

lovestoconverse with

those interestedin his _inventions, and_{particularly so}if his discoveries arecomprehended. His geniality has

made

for

him

a host _{of friends, and gathered about}

him

a

band

of workers,

some

of

whom

havebeen with

him

for

_many

_years.

Inhis_{family he}isaffectionateand_{generous, a}kindhusband

andindulgent father,caringlittleforthe ordinary manner-isms of life,and always reaching the point

by

the nearest road. Withal hehas a well defined vein of

humor

thatis

alwaysseen at the right time, and that not _infrequently

assumes_{the aspect of a}joke.

Thus

heoccasionally

threat-ens to adjustan invention of

some

kind to his_gateatthe factory that will deter visitors

from

entering, perchance

knock

them

down, but the gate yet swings harmlessly and

hosts of visitors_passinandout.

Hispersonaltastesare_{very simple,} and heis _thoroughly

unostentatious.

When

invited

some

time sinceto adinner

atDelmonico's, hesatisfied himself with_{a piece of pie}

and

cup of tea, greatly to the astonishment of his host,

who

wishedtodo" the

handsome

thing."

On

oneoccasion

when

tendered a _public dinner,he declined, stating that " one

hundred thousanddollars

would

not_tempt

him

tosit_through

two

hours of personalglorification." Personalnotorietyhe

dislikes,andaptlysays" a

man

istobe measured

_{by what}

he

does,andnot

by what

is said of him."

Hishabits are peculiar,consequentuponhis intense

devo-tion to _discovery.

When

in the throes of invention,he

AND

HIS

INVENTIONS.

23

eating. "Speakingof his early

work

in

Newark,"

saysMr.

Johnson,a co-laborer,"he averagedeighteenhours a_day."

Saysthe

same

gentleman: "Ihave

worked

with

him

for three

consecutive months,all

_day

and

all_{night,exceptcatching}

alittle_sleep

between

sixand nine o'clock inthemorning."

At

Newark,

onthe occasion of the apparentfailureof the printing machine he

had

taken a contract to furnish,he

went up

into the loft of his _factory with five assistants,

and

declaredhe

would

not

come

down

till it worked. It

took _sixty hours of continuous labor, but it _worked,

and

thenhe sleptforthirty. Hisperseverance, patience, endur-ance, determination and_{industry are very} remarkable,

and

perhaps withoutparallel.

The

routine of his day,it iswell

said,"is a routine ofgrandprocessesand ennoblingideas."

The

following story fairly illustrates the _scope of Mr.

Edison's labor in _{reaching a single point: In the}

develop-ment

of theautomatic_telegraphit

became

_necessarytohave

a solution that

would

give a chemically preparedpaper

upon

which

the characters could be recorded ata speed greater

than

two hundred

wordsa minute.

There

were

numerous

solutionsinFrenchbooks,but none of

them

enabled

him

to

exceedthatrate.

But

he had inventedamachinethat

would

exceed it,

and

must

have thepaper to

match

the machine.

"I

came

inone _{night," says} Mr. Johnson,"

and

there sat

Edison witha pile of chemistries and chemical booksthat

were fivefeethigh

when

they stood on the floorandlaid

one

upon

the other.

He

had

ordered

them

from

New

York,

London

andParis.

He

studied

them

night andday.

He

ateathisdesk and slept in his chair. Insix

weeks

he

had

gone

throughthe books, written a

volume

ofabstracts,

made

two

_{thousand experiments on}theformulasand

had

_produced

a solution the_{only one}intheworld that

would

dothe_very

thing he

wanted

done, recordover

two hundred

wordsa

min-uteonawire

two

hundred andfiftymiles long.

He

has since

24

THOMAS

A.

EDISON

Edison's

Monument

to

_Electricity.

THE

NEW

LABORATORY AT

LLEWELLYN

PARK,ORANGE,N.J.

The

finestand

most

complete laboratory, doubtless,to be

foundin_{the world,}Mr. Edisonhasjusterectedat_Llewellyn

Park, Orange, N.J.,

where

heandhisfaithfuland competent

assistants

now

_spendtheir timein "_{turning out inventions,}

with

two

one

hundred

and _{fifty horse-power engines back}of

them."

"The

Electrical _Review,"in _describing this

estab-lishment, says:

"

_He

_{has not}

merelya laboratory ofunequalled extent,but

he has a storehouse of everything, a _perfectly equipped

machineshop,capable of turning out the heaviestaswell as

themostdelicatekindsofwork, with

workmen

ofthe highest skill in_{every department;}a veritable centralstation,adapted

tofurnish_anydesired current for experiments; a chemical

laboratory of the

most

complete description; a scientific library of

enormous

proportions; andin short,hehas a

mod-ernizedAladdin's

_{Lamp, by whose}

aid_{every wish almost}can

beat hisbidding convertedinto_{an accomplished}fact."

Inthe _{chemical department} ofthis institutionthere is to

be found samples of every element

and compound,

known

and unknown,

in_{the world,} in_{quantities to}

meet

the wants

of the inventor for experimental purposes; even the teeth, fur, skins, etc., of animals, and leaves,grasses, wood,etc.,

from

_everyclime.

The

libraryisalsoa magnificent affair. Itis_{a spacious,}

high-ceiled room, with three tiers of alcoves and

two

balconiesaroundtheroom, all _{finished elaborately} in hard

wood, and will hold about _100,000 volumes.

_Though

not

quitefilled, itwillsoonbe,at_{the rate of stocking}

now

_going

on. Tables and _writing desks _{are conveniently arranged,}

and any givensubject canbe quickly studiedupin

AND

HIS

INVENTIONS.

25

ofTurkish_rugsandexoticplants. Electriclampsare

every-where, ready tobe _lightedat will, both hereinthe library

andin_{everypart of the buildings.}

The

lecture

room

isdevotedtolectures

_by

various

members

ofMr.Edison'sstaff,andthese aregiven onregular occasions.

A

raised platform,with experimentaltables

and

blackboards forillustrations,occupies the center ofone of thesides, and atthe walls are the terminalsfrom the distant

dynamos

and

batteries_readyto_supplycurrent forallsortsofexperiments

ordemonstrations.

Altogether, the laboratory has not its_equalintheworld.

Mr.Edison has _{personally selected} hisassistantsand

work-men,therequirement beingthe highest intelligenceandskill;

and

it

_may

be safely said that

nowhere

elsecanbefound a corps of officers

and

workmen

_combining the intellectual

knowledge and

mechanicalexpertness here

drawn

_together.

The

laboratory, the fulfilment of theunexpressedhopes of the genial inventor for years past,

would

seem

tobe oneof his greatest achievements; but he himselfconsiders as his greatest

work

the establishment

and

_{successful operation of}

the great central stationinPearlstreet,

New

York

City.

The

task

was

undertakenata time

when

absolutelynothing

had

beendone

from which

_examplecouldbetaken.

There

were nofingerposts,no beatenpaths,nothing but a wilderness of

darkness

and

_{obscurity. Everything}

had

tobe_{invented, the}

dynamos,regulators, indicators, distributing mains

and

feed-ers,house-wiringdevices,meters, lamps, holders

and

a

_myriad

of

minor

details.

Yet

thesewereall_{devised,putin practical}

form, applied, thegreatnetwork switchedin,brushesapplied,

steam raised,the engines started

and

thousands of lamps

started into illuminatedlife,and,nottheleast_{extraordinary} part of it,

from

that

moment

to the present, there hasnot

beena single cessation of currentinthe mains. _Trulyit

was

a greatwork, and one which has

become

a conspicuousmile

96

THOMAS

A.

EDISON

Edison's Early

Life.

His NATIVITY CHILDISH AMUSEMENTS His ANCESTRY MRS. NANCY

ELLIOTT EDISON REMOVALTO PORT

HURON-EDISON'S HAPPY

HOME

EARLY

EDUCATION.

The

firstseven yearsof _youngEdison's_early life were _spent

inMilan, ErieCounty,Ohio,wherehewasborn February nth, 1847. AtthistimeMilan was_{a young, ambitious}and prosper-oustownofthreethousand inhabitants, located on the

Huron

River, at thehead of_navigation, ten miles from Lake Erie.

Itwasthe center ofan extensive trade in _{grain, cooperage,} ship-building,etc., that continued prosperously until the

com-pletionoftheLakeShore Railway, a fewmilesSouth,

when

its

business_{rapidly declined,}andMilan almost ceasedtoexist. Its

name, however,is

now

_immortal,forit will _always be

known

asthe birth-placeof

Thomas

AlvaEdison. Itisquite befitting

that America should furnish the greatest of inventors, and

equallyso,thatacentral State, likeOhio, should includehis

vil-lageof nativity. Edison

may

besaid tobe_{the "product" of a}

freecountry,andappropriately heads the longest list of_great inventors that history anywhere exhibits.

And

we

are glad to say,liketheancient

_{Roman, who}

_always asserted with

em-phasis his

Roman

citizenship, thatEdison, too, rejoices in the factthatheis"anAmericancitizen."

He

is_proud ofhis na-tive land.

Milan, withits little river, surrounding hills and _grand old

forests,salubriousclimeandbusyindustries,provedanexcellent basis_{of physical}lifefor_{young Thomas.}

He

was fond ofthe ramble_{and young}adventure, and often _indulged in innocent

playonthebanksoftheHuron.

He

issaidto have delighted

intheconstruction oflittleplankroads, theexcavation oflittle

caves,and such like original pursuits.

He

never lacked for subjects, thusrevealing"thedominant power" veryearlyinlife.

From

thefirst,hewasa chubby, rosyfaced, laughing boy.

He

AND

HIS

INVENTIONS.

*9

wasfiveyearsold,and"lisped in homely numbers, 'Oh, for a

lifeon_{the raging}canawl,' erehehadfairlylearnedhisalphabet"

But_{his great heritage at}Milanwasthe love and tender

solic-itudeofhis parents.

He

hada careful, watchful father and a loving mother, to

whom, Thomas

Edison owes much,if not nearly all, thathas

made

himgreat.

His_ancestryon the paternalsidecan be traced back two

hundredyears,

when

theywereextensiveand_prosperous millers

hiHolland, In1730 a few

members

of_{the familyemigrated}to America.

ceive_Forty

Spams

milled Dollars, c

Value thereofin

GoldorSilver, cordingto_{a Rej}

ContinentalBill.

Thomas

Edison, great grandfather of

Thomas

Alva, was a

prominent bankofficer on Manhattan_{Island during the}

Revo-lution,andhis

name

_appears onthe continental _money. His

signature isshown in the above _engraving

on

a continental note,

now

overone hundredyearsold.

He

died inthe one

hundred and second_{year of his age.}

The

race is remarkable

forits

longevity.

Thomas

Alva's grandfather lived tobe one

jo

THOMAS

A.

EDISON

Hisfather,SamuelEdison,is

now

living,agedeighty-four,in perfect health, andable to attendto all the detailsof an ac-tive businesslife.

He

issixfeettwoinches _high,and in1868

itissaid,"outjumped two hundred andsixty

men

belongingtoa regiment ofsoldiers stationed atFortGratiot,Mich."

He

was born Augusti6th, 1804, inthe town_{of Digby,}

coun-tyof Annapolis,

Nova

Scotia. For]ashort time,and

when

quite young,he residedat Newark, N.J., and subsequently,at the age of seven, removed tothe township of of Bayham,

Upper

Canada.

He

married Miss

_Nancy

Elliott,an accomplished

la-dyof_{Vienna,Canada, and}

came

west_{in 1837, locating at Detroit,} Mich., where heresided one _year, andthen

moved

to Milan, Ohio, and afterwards returned to _Michigan in _1854. Inhis

younger days he learned the tailor's trade,but subsequently

entered commercial life, engaging in an extensive lumber

business and afterwards _becominga producemerchant,in all

which he has been sufficiently successful to_{amplyprovide the}

comforts of a_{happy home.}

He

_{has always}been in _good

cir-cumstances and wasdeeplyinterested inthe

home

educationof

his son,paying him afixed price for _everybookhe readto encouragehiminthework.

Mrs.

Nancy

Elliott_Edison,motherof T. A. Edison,was born

inChenango County, N.Y., Januaryroth, 1810. She was of

ScotchandEnglish parentage,andhighly educated. For

seve-ral_{years she} wasasuccesfulandpopular teacherinaCanadian

High School She diedApril gth, 1871, but her

memory

is stil

dearto_{a long}listofassociates,

many

of

whom

speak of heras

a MarthaWashington. She wasa fine looking, cultured, well

educated lady,

endowed

with greatsocialpowers, and beloved

byalarge circle of friends. For her son

Thomas

she _always

hadthemosttenderaffection.

Wm.

P.Edison, a brother of

Thomas

A.,is aprominent

busi-ness

man

inPortHuron,Mich., where he has residedfor the

last thirty-five years. SamuelEdison, thefather, isalsoa

resi-dent ofthesame city.

A

sister, Mrs.

Homer

Page,is a

SamuelEdison. Mrs._NancyE.Edison,

AND

HIS INVENTIONS.

33 At_{the age}of seven_young Edison and his parents removed

from Milan to Port Huron, Michigan, where his father still

resides.

He

soon

became

reconciledto his

new

home, and was

thesamecheerfulladontheshoresof the"narrowsea" thathe

had been onthebanksof thelittleriver.

The

family residence

atPort

Huron

was

_among

the largestand finest in that _region of country, being a very roomy,goodold fashionedwhite frame building,locatedinthe center of an extensive grove,and

at-tachedtowhichwas an _{observatory giving} a glorious outlook overthebroadriveranddistanthills.

How

far this _remarkably

pleasant

home

contributed_{in laying the}mentaland moral foun-dationsofthe greatinventor is a matter of mere conjecture. Here, however, helived,studyingmoreorlessfor_{several years,}

athismother'sside,

who

byhergreat natural qualifications for such a_{work and by}a mother's immeasurable love^taught him, not onlythe_{"fundamental branches," but}whatisbetter, the love and purpose of knowledge. Thereexistedan unusual and su-perlative affectionbetweenthemother andherson. Sheseemed tolovehisvery presence,and for this reason, young

Thomas

wastaughtathome, where hemight constantly add to the pa-rental pleasures. Itcan be _easily seen

how Thomas

Edison" under such benignand_potentinfluences

became

awell instructed,

and

_{we may}

add,awelleducated boy; for he was _taught the presence,power andpossibilitiesof

human

resources,and what he himself mightultimately accomplish if"faithfulto the_end;" thatthewide worldwas onegreat,broadfieldofactivities, and

thatNaturewas

brimmed

with_{law,order, the beautiful}andgood.

His mother_taughthim_{not only "his alphabet, spelling, reading,}

writingandarithmetic,"butalso_{the greatobject of}all

learning.

She wascareful to _implant the love of learning and fire the

young mindwitha burningdesire to

know

more of the "great

beyond.

"

Inthisshe succeededto_{a degree}commensuratewith herefforts,for atthe age^ often, young Alva's mind was an

electricthunder-storm rushing through the fields oftruth.

At

this_agehehadreadthe_{"PennyEncyclopedias,"} "Hume's

His-tory of England," "History of the Reformation," "Gibbon's

34

THOMAS

A.

EDISON

Rome,

"Sears'"History oftheWorld," severalworkson

chem

istryandotherscientificbooks.

He

readthemall with the

ut-mostfidelity,never skipping awordorformula. Itisthis

won-derful habitof concentration, fired with the determination to reach "thepoint," thathasledhimto_accomplishso

_many

as-tonishingresults. Itistrue thatitmust_{always remain a curious}

fact that such a

man

as Mr. Edison should never have

at-tendedthe schools, that hisname,

now

so great, was never en-rolled inanycollege calendar,andthat in facthe never"wentto school"morethantwomonthsinallhislife. But

_{may we}

not, yea,do

we

not, see again, for the thousandth time, the _power

and_{possibilities}of amother's loveandlabor,-in training the child inthe_wayitshouldgo?

Was

not his home, after all, his

uni-versity?

And

wasitnot agood one, well officered, and well adaptedtoaccomplishthe realwork? Itissaidhismother was

afine reader,andoftenreadaloudtothe family. Oh,

how

easy,

inthis_way, toenkindleaninterest,and impart the information that giveslifetothe_youngsoul. _Again

we

can trace the "be-ginnings"ofanothergreatlifetoa mother'slove. Thiswasthe

"mainbattery"thathassent out,andstillsends its silent

influ-ence overthe_longlineof Edison's life. It is a divine adjust-ment, Heaven's grand discovery for man, this mother's love!

Though

gonethese

many

years,itissaidMr. Edisonstill_greatly

revereshismother'sname, anddelights as herchild,to "rise up and callherblessed."

AND

HIS

INVENTIONS.

37

Edison

as

"Train

Boy."

HisSUCCESS INSELLINGAPPLES, TOYS, PERIODICALS,ETC.,ONTHKTRAIN

How HE

USEDTHETELEGRAPH

HE

STARTSA

NEWSPA-PERTHE

EDISONDUPLEX HisLABORATORY ON

WHEELS

A

GREAT MISHAP YOUNG

EDISON PITCHEDOFF THETRAIN.

Young

Edison beganpubliclifeatthe _{age of twelve} as trail

boy onthe Grand Trunk Railroad, between Port

Huron

and

Detroit,aposition selectedbyhisfather,becauseit afforded his sonan_opportunitytolearn

_many

_importantlessons in _practical

life,toearn something of a livelihood, and to enjoy, still, the

pleasure of spending

many

a pleasant evening at home, at the Port

Huron

end of the line. In this

new

vocation, young

Thomas

wasa "decided success."

He

sold _{figs, apples,} toys, magazines, newspapers,andthe entire _{inventory of things} that

make

_upthe miscellaneousmerchandizeof the train_boy. His

businessrapidly increased, and in a little while he was

com-pelled toemployas

many

as four assistants. For _{the purpose}

of enlarginghis business,andthus demonstratinghis _early gen-iusfor invention,hesoonhit_uponthe_{novel plan of telegraphing}

inadvanceof his trainthe head-linesofthewar news columns,

whichwere_properlybulletined at thestations,and whichcaused

his_papersto_"gooff" atalmostelectric speed. Hisperiodicals

were_purchasedprincipally at theDetroit _{end from John} Lan-igan,

now

of Chicago,

who

remembers himas an _{"honest boy,"}

who

did a "cashbusiness,"butwhen"time"was_desired, it was

alwaysgiven,andthe "liabilities" werepromptly met. His av-eragedailyearningsduring the four yearsinwhichhe continued

inthiswork were something over one dollar, aggregating the

neat

sum

of nearlytwothousanddollars,all ofwhichhe turned overto hisbelovedparents. Hishabits _{of study} and love for reading followedhimintothe

new

field,andledhimin his _early

visitstoDetroit to unite with the _library association ofthat place.

He

undertooktheherculeantaskof reading every

38

THOMAS

A.

EDISON

shelf,heactuallyread through a line of books fifteen feet in length,omittingno volume, nor skipping any part ofa single book.

The

_dustylistincluded,

among

others, Newton's "Prin-cipia,"Ure'sScientific Dictionaries,Burton's

_"Anatomy

of Mel-ancholy,"etc. _{After completing} fifteen feet ofthe

mammoth

project,he gaveupthe jobandthereafter selected more conge-nialmaterial.

He

was anoccasional reader of poetryand

fic-tion. Victor

_Hugo

was

_among

his favorite authors.

The

"Les

Miserables,

"

he read adozentimes,andhasreviewedit _perhaps

as

_many

timessince.

He

regards the "Toilers ofthe _{Sea," by} thesame author, as a wonderful production. His

memory

is

remarkablyretentive,andfromhisvastfield of research he has alwaysbeen able to

make

extensive extracts, and can usually refer direct to thebook and page for any information or fact

neededforexperimentandresearch. Soextensiveand_thorough

hasbeenhisearnest_{reading, that}it is difficult to _{mention any} subjectabout which heknowsnothing.

Whiledisposing ofhispapersitsoon occurredto _young

Edi-son,whichisanother demonstration ofhis inventive resources,

thathe mightaswell_getupa paper ofhis own. Attached to the trainwasaspringless freightcar having a

room

set apart for

smokingpurposes, butwhichwasso_poorlyventilatedand

other-wisedilapidated that passengers seldom entered it. This was

selected as theheadcenter of hisfirst _{grand enterprise.} Three

hundred poundsof typewerepurchased from theDetroit Free.

Press, and very soon Edisonwastheeditor and_publisherof a

little paper, twelve by sixteen inches, issued _weekly, entitled

"The

Grand

TrunkHerald;"thecolumnsofwhich weredevoted

to railway gossip,changes, accidentsand general information.

Itwasprintedinthemost primitive style,on oneside only, the impressions being

made

bythe pressure ofthe hand. It sold for threecents a copy, andreached acirculationofseveral hun-dred.

On

oneoccasionit

came

underthe_{eye of}thecelebrated Englishengineer,GeorgeStephenson, builder of the great

tu-bular bridgeatMontreal,

who

atonceorderedan extra edition for his

own

use. It numbered

among

its contributors

_many

AND

HIS INVENTIONS.

₄₁

worthyrailroadmen, and becamequite celebrated as the only

journalintheworld printedona _railwaytrain.

_Among

its co-temporariesinwhich itreceived favorable _mention, was

num-beredthe

London

Times. Edisonwashighlydelighted with, the

new

enterprise,and becameinfact,alittleBen.Franklin,whose early historyinthis line,andultimate success as an influential

man

doubtlessgreatly inspired theyoungeditorof the Herald. Parallelwiththisnovelenterpriseandin the same old

aban-donedfreight car,

Thomas

Alva was prosecuting another and

entirely different lineoflabor.

From

thevery start he was a self-exhibitionoftheduplex system, which long afterwards ap-peared throughhismanipulations,in _telegraphy.

He

procured a work on chemistry Freseniu's Qualitative Analysis pur-chaseda_{supply of chemicals}onthe instalment plan, obtained

someretortstands from the

men

in the railroad _shops in ex-changefor papers, and openeda_laboratory. Thiswas his first

effort in_{the great}world of chemicallaw.

He

saw at once the wonderfulandvariedattributes of material things; the endless existingaffinities,andoccultpower and possibilities of the

ele-ments. Itwasa

new

worldinwhichhe stood entranced.

And

fromthat time,ontothe present,he has never ceased to delve into the subtle influence and mysteries ofchemical science.

The

laboratory ofthe abandoned smoking carand the

labora-toryonthehillatMenlo Parkare inthesameseries.

The

real

differenceis_{simply a matter of}wheels, which persisted in car. ryingtheformerattherateofthirtymilesanhour,jostling and

bumping and otherwise seriously interfering with the _young

chemist'sexperiments,while thelatterstandsstock-stillat

Menlo

Park,andallowsthe distant whispers to jingle against the

car-bonbutton, orpermitstheheat fromtheNorthStar whose light

hasbeenforty-sevenyearsinreachingtheearth attherateofone

hundred andeighty-fourthousand miles per second, to _quietly

registeritselfonthe scale of the tasimeter. Nevertheless,this

differenceof wheelsultimatelyprovedaseriousmatterfor_young Edison. Inthis_{rudely constructed laboratory}therewasabottle of phosphorus,from which_{one day} the water had evaporated,

4

THOMAS

A.

EDISON

andwhichan extra jolt of the springless car tumbled to the

floor.

A

scene ofconfusion,ofcourse, followed.

The

carwas

ignited and a conflagration was imminent.

The

conductor rushedhurriedly,and

we

may

add_madly,tothescene ofconflict

andwith_difficulty

extinguishedthe flames. Inhis rashness,and

to

make

it

absolutely certain thatsuchan event could not pos-siblyoccuragain,heunceremonioulythrew overboard, not only the chemicals ofthe entire _laboratory, but also the _printing establishment,andclosedthefearful _{drama by soundly boxing}

young Edison's ears, and hurriedly ejecting him from the

blazing train.

What

has

become

of this _impetuous

gentle-man,

we

donot know. Perhaps he is endeavoring to atone

for his work as the _gentlemanly conductor of the excursion

trains,which,

now

andthen, toaccommodate scientists, friends

andthecurious,runfrom Bostonto

Menlo

Park. Sad as was

the event, itdid_{not,however, discourage}the_youngchemistand

editor.

He

doubtless realized the importance of _fire-proof

smokingcars,and,ifhe had felt more amiable, at the time,

towards railwayofficials,mighthave invented one, but in lieu

ofthis,andwithabetterknowledge of phosphorus and

human

nature,he gatheredup his scattered materials and located in

whathe

deemed

a

much

safer place, thebasementof his father's

residenceat Port Huron. Here, as _opportunity afforded, he continuedhis_{experimentsin chemistry,}and,in _{time, issued} an-other petitejournalentitled"PaulPry,"whichwasmoreafterthe regularplan of anewspaper, andevery

way

an improvement on

the "Herald."

Ithada host of contributorsand a _long list ofsubscribers. Butalas forall_sublunaryaffairs. Itwasnot long before an ar-ticlefroma_{contributor appeared}in the columns ofthis news-paper which, though Edisonpersistentlyclaimedwas notwithin

theboundsof_{the legally libelous, yet} gave great offence to a

subscriber

who

atonce_soughtthe editor in chief, and finding

him onthemargin ofthe St. Clair, deliberatelypicked him

up andpitchedhimintotheriver. Itwas an unexpected and

AND

HIS

INVENTIONS.

45

Thomas,butfrom whichhesoon emerged,safeand sound, with

the conviction,however, not soonforgotten, that the life ofan

editorisenvironed withnoinconsiderable degree of danger. In theformergreatmishapfirewasthe essential factor; in the latter

itwaswater! Thus

early inlife, andinapeculiar manner,was

the greatinventor baptized with the two _great elements.

Nor

wasitan_{ordinary "sprinkle"}either; inboth instancesit was a rousing "immersion!"

Mr._{Edison occasionally}referstothistrain _boy.

period of his

life,andalways with

much

humor.

When

asked one day ifhe

belongedtothe classof trainboys

"who

sell_figsin boxes with bottomshalfaninch thick?"he respondedwitha_merrytwinkle, "IfI_{recollect right}thebottomsof

my

boxes werea_goodinch."

A

daguerreotype ofhistrain_{boy epoch}isyet extant,which rep-resents the greatinventorasa_chubbyfaced_boy in _glazed cap

and, with a bundle of papers under his arm. His lips are

wreathedin smiles,and_altogetherhepresentsthe_{appearance of} acontentedand happylittlefellow. Suchalife had, ofcourse,

its_upsanddowns, butafterall, itwasaprofitable schooling for

youngEdison. Besides,duringthe fouryears he continued in

thiswork he was_alwaysin dailyreach of home, where his

sor-rowsas wellasjoyswere promptlyshared by those

who

could easilyandgladlyimpartthe essential lesson.

The

easy manner

inwhichhe_disposed ofhis limited stock of merchandize, the

useof the_telegraphtoaid in_{the disposal}ofhis papers, the suc-cessful issuingofa_weeklypaper, thelaboratory with its varied experiments,andthewonderfulamountofsolid_readingthat

per-vadedall,clearlydemonstrate thatMr. Edison at this age was

not only amost_{extraordinary}"train_{boy," but}alsoaremaikable

genius.

The

spiritofinventionwas upon him.

The

click of

the"sounder"w*saudible, and the _"message" of his _coming greatnesswasonits_way.

46

THOMAS

A.

EDISO*

Early

Reminiscences.

Mr. SamuelEdison states that his son,T. A.E., never had

any"boyhooddays"inthe

common

acceptation ofthatterm.

From

thefirsthisinclinationswereinthe direction_{of machinery,}

and amusements,withsteam engines and various mechanisms.

Itisnot surprising therefore to findhimatanearlyage perfect-ing,ona smallscale, a workingengine.

When

onthe Grand

Trunklinehe frequently rode with the _engineerthat_{he might}

learn_{something about} the mysteries ofa locomotive, and on

oneoccasion,todemonstrate_{his proficiency,} whilethe_engineer

was asleep, ran a train nearly the entiretrip, with theonly

mishapof _pumpingtoogreata quantity of waterinto theboiler,

which _being thrown fromthe _{smoke-stack deluged the engine}

withfilth. Occasionally,as he had opportunity, hewouldvisit

the railroad machine shops, where he always manifested the greatest interest inexamining the_machinery.

He

wasalways carefulwithhislittle labratoryand would not allowhis things to be tampered with _{by any}one.

To

insure better _safety he labeled _every bottle in the establishment "poison."

When

excited,young

Thomas

wasslowto cool down.

The

sequeltothe dreadfulcold watercatastrophe,wasthatthe

name

of the_{person J.}H. B.ofPort

Huron

who

threwhiminto the

river,wasstudiouslykept out ofthecolumnsofPaul Pry. If

Thomas

hadnotbeena_{good swimmer,}that_{occasion might}have beenfarmoreseriousthanitwas.

Edison's sister tells a _good story of his childhood:

"He

tried tositon _eggs," shesaid.

"What

do you mean?"inquired thelistener. _"Why,hewasaboutsix _{years old,}Ishouldthink,

andhefound out

how

_{the goose}was _sitting, andthensaw what

the surprising resultwas.

One

day

we

missed him, called, sent messengers,andcouldn't findhim_anywhere.

_By

andby, don't

youthink, father foundhimcurled_upin a nest he had

made

in thebarnand filled _{with goose eggs}andhen's eggs, actually

sittingonthe eggsandtrying tohatch them.