with anybody worth talking to, and, in spite of his deafness, an
excellent listener. No one ever goes away from him in doubt as to what
he thinks or means, but, with characteristic modesty, he is ever shy
and diffident to a degree if the talk turns on himself rather than on
his work.
He is a normal, fun-loving, typical American, ever ready to listen to
a new story, with a smile all the while, and a hearty, boyish laugh at
the end. He has a keen sense of humor, which manifests itself in witty
repartee and in various ways.
In his association with his staff of experimenters the "old man," as he
is affectionately called, is considerate and patient, although always
insisting on absolute accuracy and exactness in carrying out his ideas.
He makes liberal allowance for errors arising through human weakness of
one kind or another, but a stupid mistake or an inexcusable oversight
on the part of an assistant will call forth a storm of contemptuous
expression that is calculated to make the offender feel cheap. The
incident, however, is quickly a thing of the past, as a general rule.
If there is anything in heredity, Edison has many years of vigor and
activity yet before him. What the future may have in store in the way
of further achievement cannot be foreshadowed, for he is still a mighty
thinker and a prodigy of industry and hard work.
XXVI
EDISON'S NEW PHONOGRAPH
As related in a preceding chapter of this work, the first commercial
phonograph was of the wax cylinder type. Celluloid afterwards
superceded wax as a material for the cylinder record, because of its
indestructibility. Edison's work on the disc phonograph and record,
invented by him in 1878, is related in the following pages.
From the time of his conception of the phonograph in 1877 to the
present day Edison has had a deep conviction that people want good
music in their homes. That this is not a conviction founded upon
commercialism may be appreciated on reading his own words: "Of all
the various forms of entertainment in the home, I know of nothing
that compares with music. It is safe and sane, appeals to all finer
emotions, and tends to bind family influences with a wholesomeness
that links old and young together. If you will consider for a moment
how universally the old 'heart songs' are loved in the homes, you will
realize what a deep hold music has in the affections of the people. It
is a safety-valve in the home."
Throughout the years that followed the advent of the earlier type of
phonograph with the cylindrical wax records Edison never lost sight of
his determination to make it a more perfect instrument, for, of all
the children of his brain, the phonograph seems to be the one he loves
most. He is the most severe critic of his own work and is never content
with less than the best obtainable.
Thus it came about that, some thirteen years ago, having reached the
apex of his dissatisfaction with what he thought were the shortcomings
of the phonograph and records of that time, he began work on a
long-cherished plan of refining the machine and the records so that he
could reproduce music, vocal and instrumental, with all its original
beauty of tone and sweetness--in fact, a true "re-creation." As the
world knows, he has succeeded.
With his characteristic vigor and earnestness Edison plunged into
this campaign, fully realizing the immense difficulties of the task
he had undertaken. In order to accomplish the desired end he must, in
the first place, devise entirely new types of recorder and reproducer
which would have essentially different characteristics from any then
in existence. In addition to this, an entirely new material must be
found and adapted for the surface of the records, a material pliable,
indestructible, and, above all, so exceedingly smooth that there should
be no rasping, scratching sounds to mar the beauty of the music.
In planning this campaign Edison had decided to return to the disc type
of machine and record, which he had invented away back in 1878, and
which he now took up again, as it would afford him the greatest scope
for his latest efforts.
While simultaneously carrying on a formidable line of experiments to
produce the desired material for the records he labored patiently
through the days and away into the nights for many months in evolving
the new recorder and reproducer, pausing only to snatch a few hours of
sleep, which sometimes would be taken at home and at other times on a
bench or cot in the laboratory. After some thousands of experiments,
extending over a period of more than ten months and conducted with the
never-wearying patience so characteristic of him, he perfected his
recorder and the diamond-point reproducer which gave him the results
for which he strove so many years. This was on the eve of his departure
for Europe in August, 1911.
When Edison thinks he has perfected any device his next step is to find
out its weakness by trying his best to destroy it. Illustrative of this
there may be quoted two instances of severe tests in connection with
his alkaline storage battery. After completing it he rigged up a device
by means of which a set of batteries were subjected to a series of
1,700,000 severe bumps in the effort to destroy them. When this failed,
they were mounted on a heavy electric car, which was propelled with
terrific force a number of times against a heavy stone wall, only to
show that they were proof against injury by any such means.
His new phonograph reproducer was not exempted from this policy
of attempted destruction, and before leaving for Europe he gave
instructions for a grilling test, which was, of course, carried out
faithfully, but the diamond point was found to be uninjured after
playing records more than four thousand times. With such results he
deemed it a safe proposition.
On his return from Europe in October, 1911, Edison resumed his attack
on the evolution of the new indestructible disc record with a smooth
surface, the main principles of which had been determined upon before
his departure. In addition, there arose the problem of manufacturing
such records in great quantities. The difficulties that confronted him
completely baffle description. The whole battle was carried on with
the aid of powerful microscopes, which even at their best would fail
to reveal the obscure cause of temporary discomfiture. Differences
in material, dirt, dust, temperature, water, chemical action, thumb
marks, breath marks, cloth and brush marks, and a host of major and
minor incidentals, were patiently and painstakingly investigated with a
thoroughness that is almost beyond belief to the layman.
Day and night the work was carried on incessantly. During the height
of the investigation, toward the close of this five-year campaign,
Edison and a few of his faithful experimenters--facetiously called "The
Insomnia Squad"--stayed steadily at the works for a period of over five
weeks--eating, drinking, working, and sleeping (occasionally) there.
During that time Edison went home only four or five times, and then
merely to change his clothing. He and the men slept for short periods
in the works or in the library, on benches and tables, resuming their
labors immediately on waking up. Edison had arranged for an abundant
supply of good substantial food which they themselves cooked, hence
the inner man was well cared for. The wives of the men came around at
intervals with changes of clothing for their husbands. This intense
application to work left no time for shaving, with the result that all
hands might well have been taken for a gang of traditional pirates from
their unkempt appearance.
They were all happy, however, and, strange to say, all increased in
weight, although a contrary result might naturally have been expected.
The intense work has never ceased, but there has been no similar
protracted siege since, as the main principles were practically
settled at that time. The foregoing instance has been merely mentioned
to illustrate the fierce vigor with which Edison works when he is
seeking to complete one of his inventions. He has been, and still is,
prosecuting his labors with the same energy to bring about the utmost
perfection that is possible.
He has not confined his work to the refinement of the merely mechanical
parts, such as the instrument and the records, but during the last
ten years he has devoted an immense amount of time to music itself.
Becoming convinced that the public desired really beautiful music,
he set himself to a thorough study of the subject, not only of
compositions, but also of the human voice, its powers and limitations,
and of different effects of various styles of orchestration. He
determined to hear for himself music of all kinds, and with this object
in view hired a number of sight-reading players and singers to render
musical selections by the hour.
[Illustration: "THE INSOMNIA SQUAD"--Copyright by Thomas A. Edison]
In the past ten years he has heard upward of twenty-five thousand
compositions of a wide range, from grand opera to ragtime. As he hears
them he indicates his opinions, which range from "beautiful" to "punk,"
according to his idea of availability for the phonograph. An elaborate
card system preserves these indications for further application in
selecting music for the phonograph.
It might seem dogmatic to have the reproduction of musical compositions
depend upon his opinion, but it must be said that he is not entirely
committed to such drastic measures if there is a real demand for some
musical selection which does not seem to merit his good opinion. His
decision as to a composition is not based on a merely personal whim or
fad, but upon his opinion of it from the standpoint of an inventor. He
has said to the writer more than once: "There is invention in music
just as much as in the arts. Composers such as Verdi, Rossini, Bellini,
Donizetti were inventors. They did not copy, nor did some of the other
great composers. But the rank and file of musicians are not inventors;
they have copied the ideas of the others, consciously or unconsciously.
If you will sit down for a few hours and have a lot of miscellaneous
compositions played you will be convinced of it."
Edison has had no musical training, as the term is generally
understood, and the writer must confess that before hearing the above
expression he failed to comprehend the true basis of the inventor's
opinions of the various compositions played or sung for him. On several
occasions he therefore arranged (unknown to Edison) to have one or more
compositions played or sung again after a lapse of some weeks, to see
whether or not there would be any similarity of opinion to that first
indicated. In every case Edison's judgment was practically, and in some
cases precisely, the same as before, thus proving that the opinion
first given was not merely a whim, but was based upon some definite
line of thought in the inventor's brain.
His excursion into the musical realm has also included the personal
hearing of many singers so as to determine their fitness for making
phonograph records. This proved to be a wonderfully interesting
field of investigation, and he has given a great deal of time to it,
listening critically to each voice, good, bad, or indifferent, and
patiently writing out his criticism in each case. Not only has he heard
a large number of singers who have visited the laboratory for the
purpose, but he also had a representative scouring Europe for voices
several years ago. This man visited the principal cities and towns
of Europe and took phonograph records of the voices of the operatic
and other prominent singers in each place and shipped them over to
Edison, who listened to each one and recorded his opinion in a series
of note-books kept for the purpose. He has in the laboratory at Orange
nearly two thousand voice records of this kind. All this is done with
the object of securing the really best voices in the world. Probably
this is the most unique "voice library" in existence.
He is very deaf, but has a wonderfully acute inner ear, which, being
protected by his deafness from the ordinary sounds of life, will catch
minute imperfections that are imperceptible to the person of ordinary
hearing. In listening to a voice he uses a peculiarly shaped horn which
is held close to the ear, and such is the acuteness of his hearing
that he at once distinguishes minute changes of register, extra waves,
tremolo, non-periodic vibrations, and other minor defects that detract
from the true beauty of vocal sounds. In addition, he can immediately
recognize the number of overtones and rate of tremolo, which may
afterward be verified by a microscopic examination of a record of the
same voice.
Edison contends that the phonograph will give the "acid test" of a
voice, for it will record nothing more and nothing less than what
is in the voice itself, and the record is unchangeable. In his
judgment, operatic voices are not necessarily the most perfect ones,
for, as he says: "the vocal cords of opera singers are always at the
straining-point. They usually sing on roomy stages in large theaters
with a large orchestra in front of them, and their voices must go out
above all these instruments so as to be heard to the farthest limits of
the house. Consequently, they are always doing their utmost and their
vocal cords become adapted to heavy work only. People often wonder why
their favorite operatic singers do not charm them as much in concert
or through the phonograph as they did at the opera, but do not stop to
think of the difference between the opera-house and the concert-hall or
parlor. I don't mean to say a word of detraction in regard to operatic
singers, for I have a great admiration for their wonderful art and for
many of their voices, and a great number of them have now recognized
the value of special effort to acquire the distinct art and technique
of singing for the phonograph (which is a parlor instrument), and have
made some really beautiful records."
The writer was one day discussing with Edison the temperament of
singers generally and the good opinion that each one usually has of
his or her own voice irrespective of any artistic use he or she could
make of it. He said: "I don't see what they have to be conceited about.
The Almighty has given them a little piece of meat in their throats
that differs slightly from the corresponding piece of meat in somebody
else's throat. They can take no credit for that, but if they use their
brains to interpret and perfect the use of what has been given them,
they have accomplished something. What I want is voices that will stand
the test of the phonograph and give permanent pleasure to people,
irrespective of stage environment, or the press agent, or pleasing
personality."
This chapter could be extended to a great length in setting forth the
results of Edison's deep study of music which he undertook solely for
the purpose of bringing his latest achievement up to the high standard
which he set for it so many years ago, but enough has been said to
indicate the immense amount of work he has done and the trend of his
ideas. That he has been able, amid the round of his multitudinous
duties and work, which occupy his time and attention from sixteen to
eighteen hours a day, to delve into the subject so profoundly and
to evolve ideas that are confessedly awakening the musical world is
sufficient to indicate that in spite of his years and herculean labors
in the past he has not lost any of the vim or pertinacity that have so
distinguished him in days gone by.
XXVII
EDISON'S WORK DURING THE WAR
With the shattering of the world's peace by the great conflict which
commenced on July 28, 1914, there came a universal disturbance of
industrial conditions. The Edison industries were not exempt.
Edison's activities during the years of the war were of the same
intensely vigorous and energetic nature so characteristic of him
throughout his busy life. His work during this period is divisible
into two distinct sections: first, the working out of processes and
the design and construction of nine chemical and two benzol plants to
supply chemicals and materials greatly needed by our country; and,
second, his war work for the United States government. We will discuss
these in the above order.
For many years before the war America had been a large importer of raw
materials and manufactured products from England, Germany, and other
European countries. Among these may be mentioned potash, dyes, carbolic
acid, aniline oil, and other coal-tar products. After hostilities
began the activities of the Allied fleets prevented all exportations
by Germany and the Central Powers. On the other hand, England and her
allies placed embargoes on the exportation from their countries of all
materials and products which could be used for food or munitions of war.
Thus there suddenly came a great embarrassment to numerous American
industries. By reason of our continued importation for many years
our country had become dependent upon Europe for supplies of various
products and had made practically no provision for the manufacture of
these products within our own borders.
Inasmuch as our narrative concerns Edison and his work, we shall not
attempt to name all the industries thus affected, but will confine
ourselves to a mention of the items relating to his own needs and
of those which he promptly took steps to produce for the relief of
many industries and for the general good of the country. These items
were carbolic acid, aniline oil, myrbane, aniline salts, acetanilid,
para-nitro-acetanilid, paraphenylenediamine, para-amidophenol,
benzidine, benzol, toluol, xylol, solvent naphtha, and naphthaline
flakes.
Edison's principal requirements were potash for his storage battery and
carbolic acid and paraphenylenediamine for use in the manufacture of
disc phonograph records. After a great deal of experimenting he found
that caustic soda could be used in his storage battery and therefore
employed it until new supplies of potash were obtainable.
Carbolic acid and paraphenylenediamine had been previously imported
from England and Germany and as there was practically none produced in
the United States and no possibility of substituting other products
Edison realized that he would be compelled to manufacture them
himself, as the source of supply was cut off. He, therefore, as usual,
gathered together all available literature and plunged into a study of
manufacturing processes and quickly set his chemists to work on various
lines of experiment.
Having decided through these experiments on the process by which he
would manufacture carbolic acid synthetically, Edison designed his
first plant, gathered the building material and apparatus together and
instructed his engineers to rush the construction as fast as possible.
By working gangs of men twenty-four hours a day the plant was rapidly
completed and on the eighteenth day after the work of construction was
begun it commenced turning out carbolic acid. Within a month this plant
was making more than a ton a day and gradually increased its capacity
until, a few months afterward, it reached its maximum of six tons a day.
It soon became publicly known that Edison was manufacturing carbolic
acid, and he was overwhelmed with offers to purchase the excess over
his own requirements. The demand for carbolic acid became so great
that he decided to erect a second plant. This was quickly constructed
and its capacity, which was also six tons per day, was contracted for
before the plant was fully completed. It is interesting to note that
the army and navy departments of the United States were among the first
to make long contracts with Edison for his carbolic acid, from which
they made explosives that were badly needed.
We must digress here to show an emergency that had arisen during the
early days of the first carbolicacid plant. There had come about
a serious shortage of benzol, which is a basic material in the
manufacture of synthetic carbolic acid. Benzol is a product derived
from the gases arising from the destructive distillation of coal in
coke ovens. At the time of which we are writing (beginning of 1915)
there was only a comparatively small quantity of benzol produced in the
United States.
Mr. Edison realized that without a continuous and liberal supply
of benzol he would be unable to carry out his project of producing
carbolic acid in large quantities. He had also been approached
by various textile manufacturers to make aniline oil, which was
essential to their continuance in business, and of which there was
practically no supply in the country. Without it he could not make
paraphenylenediamine. Benzol is also a basic material in making aniline
oil.
Therefore, it became doubly important to arrange for an adequate and
continuous supply of benzol. Edison made a study of the methods and
processes of producing benzol and then made proposals to various steel
companies to the effect that he would, with their permission, erect a
benzol plant at their coke ovens, operate the same at his own expense,
and pay them a royalty for every gallon of benzol, toluol, xylol, or
solvent naphtha taken from their gases. Such arrangement would not
only meet his requirements, but at the same time would give the steel
companies an income from something which they had been allowing to
pass away into the air. He succeeded in making arrangements with two
of the companies--namely, the Cambria Steel Company at Johnstown,
Pennsylvania, and the Woodward Iron Company, Woodward, Alabama.
Ordinarily, it requires from nine to ten months to erect a benzol
plant, but before making his proposal to the steel companies Edison had
worked out a plan for erecting a practical plant within sixty days,
and had laid it out on paper. He was sure of his grounds, because from
his vast experience he knew where to pick up the different pieces of
apparatus in various parts of the country.
The contract for his first benzol plant at Johnstown, Pennsylvania,
was signed on January 18, 1915, and the actual work was begun an hour
after the contract was signed, with the final result that in forty-five
days afterward the benzol plant was completed and commenced working
successfully. The second plant, at Woodward, Alabama, was completed
within sixty days after breaking ground, the two weeks difference
in time being accounted for by the fact that Woodward was farther
away from the base of supplies and there were delays in railroad
transportation of materials.
Being sure, through these contracts, of a continuous supply of benzol,
Edison designed a plant for making aniline oil. By working gangs of men
day and night, the erection of this plant was completed in forty-five
days. The capacity of the plant, four thousand pounds per day, was
fully contracted for by anxious manufacturers long before the machinery
was in place.