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281
Heroes of the Telegraph
·
John Munro
203
The
institution
has
proved
a
remarkable
success.
From
it
has
emanated
a
series
of
marvellous
inventions
which
have
carried
the
name
of
Edison
throughout
the
whole
civilised
world.
Expense
was
disregarded
in
making
the
laboratory
as
efficient
as
possible;
the
very
best
equipment
was
provided,
the
ablest
assistants
employed,
and
the
profit
has
been
immense.
Edison
is
a
millionaire;
the
royalties
from
his
patents
alone
are
said
to
equal
the
salary
of
a
Prime
Minister.
Although
Edison
was
the
master
spirit
of
the
band,
it
must
not
be
forgotten
that
his
assistants
were
sometimes
co-inventors
with
himself.
No
doubt
he
often
supplied
the
germinal
ideas,
while
his
assistants
only
carried
them
out.
But
occasionally
the
suggestion
was
nothing
more
than
this:
'I
want
something
that
will
do
so-and-so.
I
believe
it
will
be
a
good
thing,
and
can
be
done.'
The
assistant
was
on
his
mettle,
and
either
failed
or
triumphed.
The
results
of
the
experiments
and
researches
were
all
chronicled
in
a
book,
for
the
new
facts,
if
not
then
required,
might
become
serviceable
at
a
future
time.
If
a
rare
material
was
wanted,
it
was
procured
at
any
cost.
With
such
facilities,
an
invention
is
rapidly
matured.
Sometimes
the
idea
was
conceived
in
the
morning,
and
a
working
model
was
constructed
by
the
evening.
One
day,
we
are
told,
a
discovery
was
made
at
4
P.M.,
and
Edison
telegraphed
it
to
his
patent
agent,
who
immediately
drew
up
the
specification,
and
at
nine
o'clock
next
morning
cabled
it
to
London.
Before
the
inventor
was
out
of
bed,
he
received
an
intimation
that
his
patent
had
been
already
deposited
in
the
British
Patent
Office.
Of
course,
the
difference
of
time
was
in
his
favour.
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