The phonoscope (Nov 1896-Dec 1899)

14 THE PHONOSCOPE May, 1897 letters This column is open to any of our patrons who have a complaint to make, a grievance to ventilate, information to give, or a subject of general interest to discuss appertaining to Sound Producing Machines, Picture Projecting Devices, Slot Machines, Amusement Inventions or Scientific Novelties in general. Pottstille, Pa. , May, 1897. Editor Phonoscope: If a prominent company dealing in phonograph records sends you another customer's order and upon being informed of the error in your order of selections, acknowledge their mistake, but offer to rectify it; who should pay the expressage for reshipping said records? I think the company that made the mistake should pay them and not the customer! Although this was the case recently with your Humble servant, C. F. D. [We think that the company should prepay expressage. Ed.] Atlanta, Ga. , May, 189T. Dear Sm: I wrote you some time back about sending some money to the Sapphire Co. , and never receiving goods ordered nor a reply. I do not wish to trouble you any more, but if convenient would appeciate it if you will speak to Mr. about it. I have since written him without receiving a reply. Tours very respectfully, J. P. R. [We consider Mr. ■ a responsible party. Perhaps your letters have miscarried. Write to him in our care and we will guarantee an explanation. Ed.] Editor Phonoscope: The management of a certain ex-dividend paying concern has had another mental fit, and I have read with some amusement his remarks upon his virtues and artistic abilities. ' 'Listen" says or sings our friend in speaking of himself. "It is bad art — it is vulgar — it is bad faith toward the buyer," and yet in the same circular lists twenty-four alleged selections by ' 'Gilmore's Band," which I know are in fact really played by local musicians, who are obtained at a minimum cost and many of whom never saw Mr. Gilmore. Selections by Sousa's Baud are also listed, and this organization was never in the building. This is indeed "high art." For such good faith its customers pay a price in proportion to the amount of humbuggery in the records. In its regular catalogue, it has sixteen pages of equally valuable bargains sandwiched between misleading statements of the same sort. Take, for instance, its so-called "French" glasses; all made in New Tork State, and which are subsequently artistically tinted around the edges with red ink (or circus lemonade), at the so-called laboratory. For this ' 'artistic" decoration the price is raised from two-cents to fifty cents, and the dear public are warned not to buy cheap glasses but be sure and get this French kind as they are clearer and more brilliant in reproduction than the common American glasses. Why all this unreality and sham ? Why such a cataract of nonsense ? Why do they waste so much beautiful peacockblue ink in giving melancholy thanks to heaven that they are so "artistic," when, as a matter of fact, they are vulgarly faking? The introduction of the fakir, and his confidence methods into the ligitimate business field, is indeed to be regretted These are not the methods of the business world, but are the "little arts of little minds." One Who Has Been Artistically Done. Editor Phonoscope: Dear Sm. — A certain unscrupulous company, who has been advertising so-called Gilmore and Holding Band records, do so without authortiv. Neither myself, nor the members of Gilmore's Band have played for this company for years. Our only engagements for this class of work have betn with the Columbia Phonograph Company, who employ us regularly. The authority to use the name of Gilmore and his men for phonograph record-making work was granted to me by Mr. Gilmore some time before his death. The Band to-day is composed of the same musicians who worked so long under the direction of this famous master. Is there no redress for such a fraud ? Tours very truly, John B. Holding. ©ur Correspondence The Phonoscope: Gentlemen : On page 13 of jTour last issue, the American Graphophone circular, dated October 15th, 1896, intimates that the late suit against the New England Phonograph Company, was decided in favor of the Graphophone Company. This is not a fact. We beg to quote the decision of the court. Circuit Court of the United States, DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS. IN EQUITY. American Graphophone Company ~\ v. fetal" The New England Phonograph Company ' opinion of the court. June 19, 1896. Carpenter, District Judge. This is a bill in equity to restrain an alleged infringement of certain letters patent for apparatus for recording and r-eproducing sounds, known as graphophones. The respondents plead a license from the complainant and issue has been joined and evidence has been taken. I do not think it will be useful for me to detail the arguments and considerations which have been taken into the account in determining the questions thus raised. I have reached the conclusion that the contracts made by the complainant on the sixth of August, 1888, with Jesse H. Lippincott, amount to an adoption and ratification of the contracts made by him and under which the respondents claim ; and that the complainant is estopped to deny the rights of the parties to those last-named contracts to carry out the provisions thereof. The bill will therefore be dismissed. This decision confirms the SOLE rights of the New England Phonograph Company for the sale of Phonographs, Phonograph-Graphophones and their supplies in the New England States, and all infringers will be dealt with according to law. New England Phonograph Company popular Science Machine That Breathes A curious instrument was recently placed on exhibition by the New York academ)' of sciences. It consisted of an ordinary lamp chimney over the bottom of which was stretched a soft rubber sheet and in the top of which was inserted a rubber stopper. Through the center of the stopper was a piece of glass tubing. On the end of the tubing, inside of the lamp chimney, was tied a little bag made of what is known as gold beater's skin. Ordinarily the little bag of skin in the chimney hangs limp and loose like a collapsed balloon. If, however, the rubber sheeting is caught by the fingers in the middle and pulled downward, the enclosed bag will immediately swell out to its full size. On the contrary, if the rubber sheet on the bottom of the chimney is pushed in by the finger, the little bag folds up limp again. ByT quickly pushing the sheet in and pulling it out again, the little bag inflates and folds, out and in, in perfect time to the action of the fingers. Now, this is precisely the action that takes place when we breathe. The sheet of rubber on the bottom of the chimney corresponds to the diaphragm in the human body. The little bag represents the lungs, and the glass tube is the windpipe. It is a mistaken idea with many persons that when we breathe the air rushing into the lungs causes the lungs and the muscles surrounding them to expand. But a precisely reverse action takes place. We invariably move our muscles and diaphragm first, thus expanding the lungs, into which the air rushes to fill up the space which would otherwise become a partial vacuum. Thus a lamp chimney can be made to perform several actions of the human body. It breathes just as truly, and its lungs are a good fac-simile of ou own. This is because pulling the rubber sheet makes the space within the lamp larger than the enclosed air can fill, or what scientists call a partial vacuum. The outside air rushes down the glass tube to supply the vacancy, and in doing so swells the little bag out to its fullest extent. Hnswers to Correspondence All questions pertaining to Talking Machines, PictureProjecting Inventions, Automatic Coin-in-Slot devices, Amusement Inventions, etc., will be cheer . fully and fully answered in this column. Inquiries for this department should be addressed, Information Department, The Phonoscope, 4 East Fourteenth Street, New York, U. S. A. J* Jt ^ G. W. — [As we have said before we cannot recommend any particular manufacturer as building ' ' the best " records. All reputable companies, such as those advertising in The Phonoscope, manufacture good records. Tou should not judge a manufactured product by one or two cylinders as the subject or selection may not be suitable for a phonograph or graphophone record. If you write to the company and explain fully why and how you are disatisfied, they will probably adjust matters to your satisfaction. Tes; you may send the records to us. We will give you our candid opinion of same. Ed.] Exhibitor — [There is really no rule to follow as to the thickness of the glass for an automatic diaphragm, as all models vary as to lost motion in the bearings. It is our impression that a 6 or 6i glass gives the best results. If your diaphragm rattles, put a drop of collodion on the bearings. Ed.] William S. — [Xo. Street exhibiting ruins your records, machine and reputation. No respectable man or woman will stop ou a street corner with a crowd and listen to a talking machine. A fair ground is different; people expect to see out-door exhibitions there, and make exceptions. Ed.]