The phonoscope (Nov 1896-Dec 1899)

The Phonoscope (Copyrighted, 1896) A Monthly Journal Devoted to Scientific and Amusement Inventions Appertaining to Sound and Sight . IH. NEW YORK, DECEMBER, i899 No. Vol. pbonoorapb tbe feature of an Ifnteresthio Hbbress Father Biever Explores More of Electricity's Wonderland The Catholic Winter School session of 1900, begun March 1st and ending March 17th, at Tulane Hall, New Orleans, ended "in ablaze of glory." It was a fitting finale on the anniversary day of Ireland's great saint, and it seemed as if the blessing of God and of his elect in Heaven, among whom St. Patrick occupies a shining place, descended upon the winter school and its patrons. The night was made memorable by the wonderful telephonic conversation between Rev. Father I'.iever seated at a desk on the platform in Tulane Hall and his grace, Archbishop Elder, of Cincinnati, at his home in Cincinnati, a distance over an air line of more than 700 miles, and by the circuitous wire route of about 1000 miles. Rev. Father Biever, who had delighted and instructed large audiences with his admirable scientific experime-.its, now has the credit of having been the first person who has talked by telephone over such a long distance as between New Orleans and Cincinnati. The experiment succeeded beyond the most sanguine expectations. In this marvelous labor. Father Biever says that he has been greatly assisted by the Cumberland Telephone and Telegraph Company and the American Telephone and Telegraph Company, and Mr. E. H. McFall, manager of the National Automatic Fire Alarm Company of Louisiana The telephone companies attended to the installation of the instruments in Tulane Hall, and provided apparatus of extreme delicacy and perfection of mechanism, and Mr. McFall kindly loaned a splendid Phonograph and megaphone. An expert operator was present to see that the trial should not fail. Not only was the address of Archbishop Elder received and distinctly heard, but the Phonographic record of Mgr. Chapelle's greeting to the winter school was transmitted to Archbishop Elder, who sent answer to Father Biever that he had clearly heard the words, which were repeated from the Phonograph into the megaphone and then poured into the receiver of the telephone. The audience went wild with pleasure and delight at the unparalleled success of the messages to and from Cincinnati, and the applause was thunderous and continuous. Father Biever asked the archbishop if he heard the applause and the reply came, "Very plainly." President Alcee Fortier and the directors of the Catholic Winter School are greatly pleased with the successful session It is probable that Rev. T. P. McLoughlin, who sang and lectured so artistically, and Mr. Henry Austin Adams, so well known that he needs no words of praise, and Mrs. Bertha Kuntz Baker, elocutionist, who recited "Cyrano de Bergerac" in such an effective manner, will be among the lecturers next year. The event of the night occurred at 9 o'clock when Father Biever announced that he was about to ring up Archbishop Elder at his residence in Cincinnati, and talk with him. The audience stood at "attention," and prepared for something interesting. Father Biever seated himself at the desk on the platform, and, taking up the transmitter of the telephone, asked : "Is that Archbishop Elder?" "I hear him distinctly," remarked Father Biever to the audience. "Now the Archbishop is at his residence in Cincinnati, and is, by telephone, in communication with the Catholic Winter School, in session at Tulane Hall, here. I am going to talk to the Archbishop." Father Biever then spoke through the transmitter as follows : "Archbishop Elder, this is Father Biever talking to you from Tulane Hall, New Orleans, in the presence of a very large audience of the Catholic Winter School of New Orleans. On this, the closing night, the people of this city and the directors of the Winter School have requested me to present their heartiest greetings to the distinguished Archbishop of Cincinnatti, and to request at your hands a special blessing. Now, Archbishop, we are going to send you, through this telephone, the Phonographic record of his grace, Archbishop Chapelle, Apostolic delegate to the Philippines. This record was taken just prior to the departure of the Archbishop for the far-away mission with which he has been trusted by our Holy Father, the pope. Now are you ready?" "This is wonderful, " remarked Father Biever to the attentive and interested spectators. "Wonderful, indeed. The Archbishop says he understands every word I say, and I hear very clearly all that he says." Here the audience applauded most heartily. "Did you hear the applause, Archbishop?" asked Father Biever. "He saj-s he does." "Now, Archbishop. Iam going to transmit to you the greeting of Archbishop Chapelle to the Catholic Winter School." Father Biever connected the Phonograph to a megaphone, and next put the megaphone en rapport with the telephone, and the audience heard distinctly the following words of welcome and the blessing from Archbishop Chapelle : "Archbishop Elder, did you hear every word?" asked Father Biever. "He says he did." "Now, your grace, we are ready to receive your greeting and your blessing." Father Biever took up the receiver and repeated an address of Archbishop Elder, who was sitting in his own residence at Cincinnati, more than 700 miles away. The theory of sound-waves was treated and an illustration furnished. A small brass cannon was loaded with gas and stopped with a cork. An electric spark was conducted into the chamber, and the ignited, expanding gas forced out the cork with a loud detonation. Father Biever then explained how sound traveled, and made clear the complicated process whereby human beings become sensible to the transmission and reception of sound. The beautiful experiments with vari-colored Geissler tubes, hung in festoons of glass from one 12 end of the stage to the other, were repeated and were applauded. Music and sound were next spoken of and contrasted. Father Biever, with the aid of gas jets and hollow tubes, produced singing flames, and next amused the audience with howling flames. Upon the screen there were thrown a succession of photographs of sound-waves, showing how the curves of musical horns travel in the air. Those curves are recorded by means of a metallic point traveling on a glass surface coated with lamp-black and vaseline. The delicate and intricate tracing and airy convolutions and intermingling of lines and curves were admired by the audience. The possibilities of the cinematograph and Phonograph combined were next shown upon the screen with a variety of pictures, representing ladies and gentlemen, listening to Phonographic selections, and at the same time looking at cinematographic scenes. The Phonograph was next called into requisition. The first sound heard from the instrument was greeted with applause. It was Archbiv' Chapelle's greeting to the winter school, as follows : Greeting and blessing extended to the Catholic Winter School by his excellency, Placide Louis Chapelle, Archbishop of New Orleans and apostolic delegate to Cuba, Porto Rico and the Philippine Islands : "Ladies and Gentlemen of the Winter School : I would greatly rejoice to personally extend to you all a most heartfelt greeting and blessing. Our Lord in his inscrutable designs has deigned through the express will of his vicar on earth, our holy father, Leo XIII; to send me to the Philippine Islands t'> work there for a while for the promotion of the most sacred interests of church and country. My spirit and affection will be with you ; I shall daily pray that God may vouchsafe to make this session of the winter school a perfect success — success for the winter school means that by attending it you may know God, yourselves and the universe better, and that your faith in Christ, our Savior, may be increased ; that you may love hiu; more perfectly, and thus become more like unto God. May you understand better every day that faith and human science, grace and nature harmonize perfectly in Him who is the way, the truth and the life. I shall always remember vou beiore God, and I beg you will not forget to pray for your Archbishop, who is absolutely devoted to you in life and in death, and who blesses you' with all his heart. "May the blessing of God the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost descend upon you and remain with you forever ! Amen " Several selections, vocal and instrumental, were also given Very Rev Father Spillard, of Holy Cross College, and one of the directors of (he winter school, stepped to the platform and spoke a pretty compliment to Father Biever, which the Phonograph recorded and reproduced. Prof. Victor Huber played a selection on the zither and the morceau was immediatelv repeated by the Phonograph. The audience was greatly pleased with the experiment and with the entertainment.