The phonoscope (Nov 1896-Dec 1899)

14 THE PHONOSCOPE February, IfOf) flew Corporations Persaecto Manufacturing Company, Chicago ; capitil, $25,000; manufacture of Perspectoscopes ; incorporator-;, Henry H. Hill, Edward P. Hatch, Fred W. Kraft. Klondike Exposition Company, with a capital stock of S2oo,ooo, to make Vitascopic pictures of the Yukon and Alaska districts. The incorporators are Thos. Crahan, James H. White and George H. Adams. New England Motoscope Company, Kittery. To operate places of amusement. Authorized capital, $250,000. Incorporators : Frank E. Fitz, Chelsea, Mass. ; F. E. Powell and Benjamin T. Bunker, Kiiterv, Me. ; F. R. Tibbelts, Boston ; Aaron Humburger, Philadelphia. World's Amusement Machine Company, Chicago; capital stock, §1,200; incorporators, G. Bernhard Anderson, Joseph Hallner, and Theo. Burkland. The National Gramaphone Corporation of New York, having its principal office in Yonkers, was incorporated by the Secretary of State. The capital stock is $Soo,oco and the company will manufacture and deal in talking-machines or instruments for recording and reproducing sound. The ("doctors are Charles B. Seabury, Francis E. Burrows, W. A. S. Clarke, Emil Modick, William T. Hepper, William F. Stelle"r and David Jennings of New York city. Reed, Dawson & Co. Principal office, No. 516 Broad Street, Newark, N. J. Manufacture Phonographs, bicycles, etc. Capital, 4*50,000. Incorporators : James G. Barnett, Thomas H. Reed, Frank A Dawson, all of Newark, N. J. Our Correspondents DeLand, Fla. Editor of the Phonoscope. Dear Sir:— Am interested in the talkingma-hine business in Newark, N. J., but am at present travelling in the South for health and pleasure. Naturally, whenever I go to a new place, my first inquiry is; "Does anyone in town sell talking-machines?" and am much surprised that there are so few who handle them here. In fact, they seem to be little known in this part of the country, and this is strange when we consider how popular talking-machines have become in the North. I think there is a fairly good market down here for this class of goods; but it would be necessary to employ other methods than are at present used to bring them to the attention of the people. For example; a man could start out with a small stock of the cheaper machines and supplies and going to the smaller towns could rent a store or part of one and with several showy brass horns and the rest of his stock could make a good display. Every evening he could give free exhibitions with a good machine and records, and also of the process of record-making, which, to some people is the most interesting part of a talkingmachi le and which is ofte 1 omitted by dealers when selling machines. Hive met with several people who have purchased cheap machines without k o.ving that it was possible to make records cn them and when I have demonstrated that it could be don • have expressed surprise and in several instances thty have bought recorders from me. By this in ;ans and with the ldxral use of hand-bills and other printed matter, the people would become interested and I have no doubt that considerable business could be done in three or four weeks, after which the stock could be removed to next town and the operation repeated. Those who had purchased outfits and who would wish to obtain further supplies could be instructed to do so from a dealer who i= permanently locatel in some large city and who by previous arrangement would allow a discount to the man who had sold the outfit on all orders received from any town where he had done business. Have a good machine and several records with me that I brought along for ray own amusement and at several places where I have stopped, have given p ivate entertainments which have been well received. The other evening at a public concert given at the Stetson University here, we gave the audience quite a surprise with the aid of the Phonograph. Among the numbers on the programme were several selections by a first class vocal quartette. I had previously made several records of their singing and on the night of the concert had my Phonogrr.ph set upon the platform behind a screen and entirely hidden from view, with one of the records 011 the machine in readiness for reproduction. The quartette went on the platform and sang a selection having two verses, the record of which I ha'd on the machine. Instead of singing the second verse they remained silent and I started the machine, thus instantly reproducing what they had already sung. You may imagine the surprise of the audience on hearing the song repeated and coming from no one knew where. Finally it dawned upon them that there was a Phonograph concealed somewhere and when the record was .finished the applause was deafening. While on this subject I might say that an animated picture machine with calcium light outfit and run in connection with a talking-machine, ought to be successful in this part of the country. Several of the towns have electric lights which could be used in place of the calcium light if desired. Anything having the merit of novelty is sure to draw good audiences down here. Wishing for the continued success of The Phonoscope I remain H. V. BUTTERWORTH. Hn |VIRa\? Swinble A number of complaints have been made to the police concerning two young men who have been canvassing in Wooster and Meadow Streets, New Haven, Conn., with some powder which they claim has a peculiar power and which they call "X-ray Powder." A number of persons have given a dollar for a small box of the powder and found that it was worthlefs. The powder comes in a small tin box. It is white and the agents explained that when put into kerosene or benzine it rendered the fluid proof against explosion. Taking a little kerosene the agents would put in some of the powder and then throw a burning match into the fluid. The match would go out without igniting the kerosene. It was further explained by the agents that if the box of powder was purchased, the purchaser in a few days would be visited by a representative of the company who were selling it and would receive free of charge an elegant lamp or a rug simply as an advertisement of the firm which they represen ed, had established a State Street store. Many women bought the powder in order to get the rug or the lamp, but as yet no body I as appeared at their homes and they find themselves the possessors of a smill box of powder which is absolutely worthless. The fact is that the trick of throwing a burning match into gasolene or kerosene in an open vessel and having it go out can be performed just as well without the addition of powder as with it and the fluid is just as dangerous with the powder in it as it is without it. So the purchasers of the powder have also purchase i one dollar's worth of experience. One woman also had a narrow escape. She put some of the powder into the kerosene in a lamp and touched a match to it. Tiie-'fcerosene ignited on the wick and^a small explosion occurred which frightened the woman, but did no damage except to ruin a rug which she used to extinguish the blaze. The woman would like one of the new rugs which was promised her now, but it has not materialized. (Brip (Berms in 'fl>bones New York Doctor Declares Receivers are Incubators of Microbes If scientists are to be believed, the telephone is a constant menace to the public health and the abode of grip germs. This is what Dr. E. John Kauffman says : "More cases of grip have been coughed and sneezed into the telephone, to be contracted by the next user of the instrument, than have proceeded from all other sources combined. "There has been much speculation," he went on, "as to the causes of the recent epidemic of grip, which has not yet spent its force. Together with one of the leading bacteriologists of the city, I have visited several of the finest hotels, also a number of the public telephone exchanges. 1 mounted some clean cotton on a piece of wire and rubbed it around the inside of the mouthpiece of the telephone receiver. I made a lot of these exhibits, placing each one in a small bottle and carefully corking it so that there could be nothing on the cotton, but the scraping from the receivers. Then the cotton I alls were taken in hand by the bacteriologist. The result was we found a multitude of the grip bacilli. "There are 45, coo telephones at least in New York, and I figure that there have been from 35,000 to 40,000 cases of grip. I will tell you whythere has not been more contagious from this source It does not follow that every one that uses the telephone is susceptible to the grip, and the same is true of all diseases proceeding from germs. "There should be a reform now that it is certain that the grip at least is contracted from telephone receivers, and the receivers should be kept clean." M. Dussaud, who some time ago brought out a Phonograph for the deaf, has now introduced a sort of cinematograph for the blind. The figures are in relief on the traviling slip (or "film") of the cinematograph, they are passed under the fingers of the blind person quick enough to let him form a good idea of the movements of the object. Tints a blind person can get his mind enlarged by correct notions of movements, such as the sway of a branch, the flight of a bird, the roll of a wave, aud so on.