The Phonogram, Vol. 2:12 (1892-12)

* 264 THE PHONOGRAM. into a funnel the familiar verse, “ Mary had a little lamb.” The^German thought he had gone mad ; but when Mr. Edison reversed the motion and the phonograph pipingly repeated the stanza, the old me- chanic threw up his hands and exclaimed in utter astonishment, “ Mein Got, it talks.” This was the birth of the phono- graph. The Edison laboratory is the most unique and complete structure of its kind in the world, and in the heart of this vast pile of brick and mortar the little talking ma- chine first saw the light of day. An entire block is occupied by the plant, and there are five different sets of brick buildings with hard-wood interiors. The main one is three stories high, 200 feet deep and 75 wide. There is a library, a lecture room, stock room, department rooms and power room in this structure. The library and office form a hollow square, with three galleries rising to the third floor. The cases contain some 20,000 volumes of scientific works in all languages, and there is a capacity for 100,000 books. Pour one story buildings surround the central one. These arp used for ore-mill- ing, blacksmithing, the manufacture of patterns, etc. There is a capacity of 320 horse power on the plant, and electricity is supplied for about 000 incandescent lamps.- The Phonograph works are entirely in- • dependent of the other establishments of Mr. Edison, but are conveniently lo- cated near this magnificent laboratory. The phonograph is Mr. Edison’s pet. The instrument of a dozen years ago has dis- appeared, and in its place we have a scien- tific marvel, a bunch of iron nerves and sinesw which outranks in capacity for labor and endurance any dozen of the most skilled workmen on his place. Mr. George F. Ballou, the superinten- dent of the Phonograph .works, has been connected with Mr. Ediwm for about four years. Mr. Ballou was born in Providence’ R. I., March 26th, 1846, and is not quite a year older than Mr. Edison. At the age of twelve years he began his apprenticeship as a machinist. During the early part of the war, when but a lad, ho served his country for three months in the Ninth Rhode Island Regiment When he re-^ turned he finished hisappreneiceship, and then went to Boston, where he was em- ployed by the Grover and Baker Sewing Machine Co., and the Howard Watch and Clock Co. Ilis evenings, for several years, were spent in the Boston Evening High Schools, studying drawing and other branches. In after years Mr. Ballou be- came a de.-igner of tools.and was employed by the American Watch Company, of Waltham, Mass., where he remained for sixteen years. He tliere learned the intricate mechanism of watches, and made the four standard astronomical clocks turned out by this company. Two of these clocks remain at the factory, one went to the Wesleyan University at Middletown, Conn., and the fourth was set up by Mr. Ballou at the Signal Service department, in Washington, D. C. The American Watch Company have their own observatorv and transit instruments to make observations: in this technical school Mr. Ballou became experienced in constructing all delicate and intricate ma- chinery. After leaving this company, Mr. Ballou, in conjunction with Professor Rogers, of Harvard College, made for Cor- nell University the only dividing engine of its class in the world, and through this wondeHul piece of mechanism his repu- tation became familiar to the country. This machine is for ruling microscopic standards of length on metal or glass. The greatest error of the dividing screw, when tested under a high power objective, was found to be less than **4™ part of an inch. Mr. Ballou is also well known as a maker of fine tools for watches, out-