MORNIXG -OREGOXIAX. MONDAY,
SEPTEMBER 14, 1908.
SUCCESS WEAKENS
APPEAL FOR COIN
Republican Campaign Manag
ers Displeased by Large
Majority in Vermont.
FINANCIERS CLOSE PURSES
Democratic Committee Xot Likely to
Collect More Than $2 00,000
to Make Aggressive light
for Candidate,
BY LLOYD F. LONERGAX.
NEW YORK. Sept. 13.-(9pedal.)
Although of course they will not admit
It for publication, the Republican cam
paign managers are sorry that the Re
publican majority in Vermont reached
the proportions it" did. For the result
tiaa been that .the flnanclera to whom
they appeal simply laugh at requests for
tmoney.
"You don't need a cent. You have a
srlnch." they are told, thereby adding ma
terially to the unhapplness of National
Treasurer George R. Sheldon.
Democrats speak of the 1900 fight, so
far as they themselves were concerned.
'bs "the starvation and poverty cam
paign." But this year the financial crisis
lias fallen on all political headquarters,
and. comparatively. It Is as severe as the
Mow that tied up Wall street last August
'end September.
VThe Republicans have the best of us,
or they can secure credit." mourned a
fading Democrat at the Hoffman House
.today. "We are liable to be turned into
:the street any old morning, and we hardly
'bave the price of postage stamps."
The Democratic National committee
men in charge of Eastern headquarters
have had several conferences on the
-money question. Some were on the
verge of giving up the endeavor to make
n aggressive fight in this part of the
country, particularly as they doubted the
possibility of success. Others counseled
fjnaking the best front possible "along
llines of strictest economy." and this sen
Kiment prevailed after many warm dls
cusslons. Make Poverty Virtue.
"We must make a virtue of our pov
ierty." is the order of National Chairman
(Mack, and taking this aa their cue. the
Democrats are trying to appear virtuous,
'while loudly admitting that they are
poor. Spellbinders on the stump will
grow eloquent on the subject of poverty,
and well they may. for orators must be
content with unpaid honor. For there
la no money in the Democratic treasury
for speakers this year.
Almost the only contributions to the
Democratic treasury up to date have
been the collection of small sums by
'Western and Southern newspapers and
the pools of pennies and dollars made
lip by enthusiastic Bryan organizations.
How much these have amounted to up
to date la not accurately known. It is
privately admitted that there is not In
eight for the entire Democratic National
campaign mow than 1200.000. which will
mot go far toward an aggressive fight.
Much of the money gathered Is being
used in Chicago for the Western cam
paign. Eastern headquarters In the
.Hoffman House was expected not only
:to finance itself with contributions from
this part of the country, but also to send
'remittances westward.
But hard times have fallen on the Hoff
man House political managers. Con
tributions are few and small. The most
'noticeable absentees are the rich Demo
crats who financed the campaign of 1904
to the extent of $S00.000. So far as to
known, not one of them has contributed
a cent, and most of them are still in
Europe.
"Flngy" Connerg Has Troubles.
Chairman "Fingy" Conners. of the state
tcommlttee, Is also having his troubles.
Nobody cares to contribute, to his cam
ipaign fund until after the state conven
tion Is held, and, the identity of the can-
didates established. Under these clrcum
, stances the Democratic campaigners here
jare simply marking time. No literature is
( being sent out. no meetings arranged, no
(speakers engaged. Everything Is in abey
j ance pending the nominations.
On the Republican side there is one
j great advantage namely, credit. Posses
sion of that valuable asset, bred of rich
funds and prompt payments in the past,
I has enabled both National and state nian-
agers to go ahead with active work al
j most regardless of the diminished con
tributions. All the machinery of party or-
I ganization Is kept up from year to year
' by regularly employed staffs of workers.
The Democrats have been obliged to build
. up everything afresh out of the debris of
past disasters. The Republicans had a
' machine in perfect repair ready to start
the instant steam was turned on. Na
1 tional headquarters in the metropolitan
tower resembles a business establishment,
with each department running regular
j hours and filling In dally Its assigned part
. of the political game. There is no confu-
sion, no lost motion and no uncertainty
of action.
Every branch of the service save one
Is free from trouble. The "room of
gloom" is the treasurer's office, for the
obligations are piling up. Experts figure
that it costs twice as much to finance a
Republican campaign as it does a Demo
cratic one. The latter have been accus
tomed to practice economy, and to secure
volunteers whose only remuneration is po
litical glory. But the late Senator Hanna,
with his rich campaign chests of the past,
and his lavish expenditures, put the Re
publican machine on a different basis.
Long for Bryan Scare.
There 'is talk of the necessity of a
Bryan scare to make Wall street wake up
and take notice. Men who have been so
licited for funds take refuge behind ob
jections to the law compelling publicity,
and Its forbidding contributions from cor
porations. Some of them go further than
this. and profess an actual indifference as
to the result of the campaign.
The Hearst campaigners are also suffer
ing from the pangs of poverty. Candidate
Hisgen, who is a wealthy' man. is paying
his own expenses In the tour of the Unit
ed States which is now under way. He
has made a contribution to the fund In
his home state (Massachusetts), but haa
clearly Indicated that he has no intention
of being an "easy mark."
And it might be added that William
Randolph Hearst is not spending money
like a drunken eailor this year. In a word
the campaign plans of the new organiza
tion provide for the greatest possible
amount of noise at the least possible ex
pense. If an orator wants to unburden
himself, he will be welcomed at any meet
ing. But he must pay his own car fare
and provide his own raiment, food, shel
ter and drinks.
Just as the hard times of last Winter
were called the "Rich Man's Panic," and
the possessors of luxuries found economy
difficult to practice, so the prospects of
depleted treasuries are causing night
snares to campaign managers."
E.tabli8hedl850.FIFTY.EIGHTYEARSlNBUblINtia-ttaDii5neaioOu i j.QU WailUllH Ott.ll IS X.rZA II
P'gWtegft,
Good Merchandise Only-Quality Considered, Our Price. Are Always the Lowest
Sale of La Parisienne Ear Rings
$1.25-$ 1.75 andT$3.50 Values, Only 59c
La Parisienne Earrings and Screws, as illustrated pearl, tur
quoise and coral in rolled gold setting; all sizes.- The CQ.
latest and most fashionable style everywhere. Sale at..-'''
Newest 9-gore, flare Walking Skirts, of all-wool panama, in
black, navy and brown, made with novelty strapping and but
ton trimmings. A decided novelty in walking skirts. J"7 Al
Strictly tailor-made, selling regularly at $12.50 H
mhl It
Real Value
$48.00
NOTE We always dispose of ererr old suit in our stock before September 1st. Tht is the reuon
we offer no sale, of $50.00 -suit, at $18.45 or $21.25. Every in our stock is newly arrived from
New York, smart and up-to- date in every detail.
High-Class Tailored Suits $25
We offer a variety of entirely new models in Tailored Suits, made of fine broad
cloth in black and colors, and all-wool fancy mixed cloths, at $25.00. However, it
is the general character, style and graceful cut of the suits to which we wish to call
attention, rather than the price, for we would be equally enthusiastic about their
.... . .1 i :i rf txv fin
superb values it we soia tnem at tne raawi ci icwu
Highest-Class Tailor-Made Suits, $35
Ladies' Strictly Tailored Suits of finest imported serges in plain and fancy
weaves, also of broadcloths, plain or satin trimmed, made in 36 and 40-inch coat
styles, lined with taffeta and peau de cygne silks. The skirts are made in the very
newest flare and circular shapes.
Smart Novelty Tailored Suits at $45
Ladies'' Novelty Tailor Suits of finest all-wool broadcloth in black and all the new
est shades made in 38 to 40-inch lengths. Fancy coat styles with vestees, fancy em-
. .... . i i 11 : l. .Mire4- flar ann (rnrM
broidery and Draia trimming, ine ssins nc mi m "" - - &-
styles trimmed to match the coats; real value 3bU.
HeatherbloompettiCOatS$2.49
These are the newest Fall styles in Heatherbloom Taffeta Petti
coats black, navy, brown and blue. They have the delicate
rustle and shimmer of the finest silk taffeta, but they wear twice
as long and cost half as much four times better. Strictly tailor-
made, with deep circular section ruffle and dust ruffle, trimmed
with hemstitching.
values.
Real Value
$60.00
Regular $3.50
$2.49
I lilt
Relsem Cape Gloves
$3-$325 Vals. $2.49
Monday we place on sale an immense special
purchase of Elbow-Length Cape Gloves the
most stylish "glove for street wear this Fall
without doubt the greatest bargain in this sea
son's most stylish glove. Finest quality leath-
er, Relsem London make, plain or with; straps
at wrist. Regular $3.00 and
$3.25 values.
$2.49
Dress Goods Monday Sales
New Bordered Suitings
New Combination Suitings
New Chiffon Broadcloths
Novelty Broadcloths
New Stripe Worsteds
46-inch, all-wool Herringbone stripe
Serges; unequalled for school wear; in
navy, electric blue, wine, brown 7Q
and green; at, the yard I y
54-inch, all-wool English Tailor Suiting j
new stripe effects; all the lead- Qgc
ing colors; at, the yard
46-inch novelty stripe Cheviots and
Worsted suitings; in the latest colors,
smoke, taupe, olive, electric fljl OC
navy, brown, etc.; yard V Z,Yn
52-inch Chiffon Broadcloths-; the $2.00
kind; in all the leading Fall & 1 AQ
Wc- nt. the vard x
New Herringbone Suitings
New Velveteens and Corduroys
Imitation Furs and Cloakings
New Tailor Stripes and Plaids
New Black Dress Goods
54-inch imported French Chiffon Broad
cloth; sponged and shrunk; guaranteed
not to spot ; full line of 50 new Fall col
ors, for street and evening 0 QQ
wear; regular $3.50 quality. . PS't
50-ineh new stripe Venetian Broadcloths,
one of the richest fabrics of (tl QQ
the season; all colors; yard. . YiMu
Louis Chiffon Cotele and plain Chiffon
Velveteens, fashion's favorite for coats
and costumes; at, the yard, 1 CA
85, $1.00 and
Portland agents for Velutina; ask to
see the new colors.
NORWAY SHUT OUT
Great Shipping Nation Barred
. From Naval Conference.
BUT SPAIN IS INVITED
Original Plan to Allow Participation
of Only Eight Great Powers
Not Adhered To Re
sults Are Queer.
LONDON, Sept. 12. (Special.) When Sir
Edward Grey issued Invitation, last May,
for a conference or the great naval
powers to be held In London In October,
he suggested that by August 1 each of
the governments Invited should be ready
with a memorandum of their views on
the Questions on the programme. With
such memoranda in his possession the
British Foreign Minister will no doubt
be able profitably to employ the months
of August and September in ascertaining
whether there Is any prospect of arriv
ing at an agreement upon any or all of
the subjects down for discussion. To
Judge from experience at The Hague, the
success or failure of the conference In
October will depend more upon the pre
liminary pourparlers of the governments
than upon the debates of their delegates.
There are two or three questions of a
preliminary nature that will have to be
definitely disposed of before October. The
first of these relates to the constitution
of the conference; the second to Its au
thority; and the third to the scope or
elasticity of Its mandate. The first ques
tion to be decided Is the governments
which ought to be represented at the con
ference, which will meet In London in
October. When the project was first
mooted at The Hague It was understood
that Invitations would be limited to the
eight great powers that Is to say, to the
six great powers of Europe, the United
States and Japan.
That was. at least, an intelligible prin
ciple, but it has been departed from In
two directions. Spain has been invited,
and Holland, although neither state can
be regarded as a great power, or even
as a naval power of the first class. Spain
may possibly have been included as rep
resenting the Spanish world In both hem
ispheres, but. If so. the question is asked,
why should Portugal and Brazil be
Ignored? Holland Is included as a mat
ter of courtesy to the state whose cap
ital is the seat of The Hague conference.
But it the original constitution of. the
conference is to be extended it Is dif
ficult to see why Norway, one of the
most important shipping nations in the
world, should Hot be Included.
At present. Norway and greater Port
ugal are not invited, and only ten states
will be represented, as at present ar
ranged. It Is. however, still open to con
sideration whether the number should
not be raised to 12.
OLDFIELD WINS AUTO RACE
Take9 $2500 Sweepstakes In Finals
at Cincinnati.
CINCINNATI. O.. Sept. 13. Barney Old
field was the victor over Walter Christie
in the finals today of the $2500 sweep
stakes in which Oldfleld. Christie and
Charlie Soules competed at the Latonla
racetracks.
No records were broken, Oldfleld win
ning the last race of the match from
Christie In 1:04 2-5. Previous to this
Christie defeated Oldfleld in one minute
and one second. But as Oldfleld had
won the day before, honors were even
and an additional race was necessary.
This was won by Oldfleld.
VOTING IN MAINE TODAY
Liquor Question Again Chief Issue
Before People of State.
PORTLAND, Me.. Sept. 13. With ,the
Republicans confident and the Democrats
hopeful, and with clearly defined Issues of
local rather than of National Importance,
the voters of Maine will cast their ballots
tomorrow for Governor, Congressmen,
Eta to AiMlior. members of the Legislature
and county officials. In addition they will
be asked to accept two proposed amend
ments to the state constitution, both deal
ing with the Initiative and referendum.
The election, of Bert M. Fernald by at
least 15,000 plurality was claimed tonight
by the Republican' leaders, while their
Democratic opponents predicted success of
Gardner, who heads their ticket, by a safe
margin.
The Republicans have won in Maine 1n
every election since 1SS0 by pluralities
averaging about 23,000 on Presidential
years.
The paramount issue in Maine is again
the liquor question and resubmission of
the constitutional amendment to the peo
ple. The Democrats have also put for
ward a plea for taxation of the wild lands
and a reform In the business methods of
.v.. ni Tho Ttpnnhlicnns strongly
advocate the enforcement of the prohibi
tion law.
SWITCH - CAUSES DISASTER
THIRTV-FOCR PASSENGERS IX
JCBED IX THE EAST.
wnoT n nw vpRr,F rF r,RF.AT DISCOVERIES IN
OCCUI T RF AT M. DECLARES THOMAS A. EDISON
Noted Inventor Talks of His Work and Present Efforts to Lessen Cost of Building Homes.
Persons With Grievance Against the
Railroad Company Believed to
Have Planned Wreck.
MEADVILLE. Pa.. Sept. 13. Thirty
four persons were Injured early today In
the wreck of Erie train No. 4, Chicago
to New York express, at Geneva. Pa., a
small station eight miles west of here.
The wreck, railroad officials believe, was
due to persons having a grievance against
the company opening a switch shortly be
fore the passenger train arrived. The in
jured were brought to this city and 23
were taken to a Spencer hospital. Five,
after having their injuries dressed, were
discharged, while 18 still remain at the
hospital.
Thirty-one of the injured were passen
gers and three railroad employes. A ma
jority of the former were Italian and
Greek laborers. It is not believed any of
the victims will die.
The train Is due here at 12:50 A. M., but
was an hour late and was running over
60 miles an hour. Upon striking the
open switch the entire train left the
track, the locomotive turning over upon
its side. Two of the cars, a combina
tion smoker and baggage-car and a day
coach, were demolished. A majority of
the Injured were riding In the combina
tion car. Among those Injured were:
Mrs. Myrtle Baldwin and 6-year-old
daughter. Lucille, of Van Buren, Ind.,
both painfully injured.
John McDiil, of Meadville. . fireman,
bruised.
Edward Cox. Meadville. thigh broken
and left leg fractured; serious.
Fred Jackson. Brooklyn Navy-yard,
head cut and hips bruised; serious.
W. P. Hamlin, Rochester, N. Y.. chest
bruised.
W. H. Chadwick, Suffem, N. Y., badly
shaken up.
TEACH PRINCES PUNTING
Professional Waterman Gives Ed
ward and Albert Lessons.
LONDON, Sept. 13. (Special.) Prince
Edward and Prince Albert of Wales, who
are Just now spending part of their holi
days with their monther at Frogmore,
have had their first lesson in punting on
the Thames, their instructor being Gerge
Haines, the well-known professional. At
tended by their tutor. Mr. Hua, the young
Princes went to Old Windsor. They were
dressed in boating flannels and showed
much keenness and enthusiasm In fol
lowing the instructions of their guide,
although they quicWy discovered that
punting is not so easy as it looks.
After several turns, however, their
Royal Highnesses began to acquire the
knack of using the pole and controlling
its vagaries. For over an hour Prince
Edward end his brother manfully grappled
with their task and by that time were
able to get along the stream excellently,
going as far as Magna Cnarta Island
and back. -
San Pedro Shipping.
SAN PEDRO. Cal., Sept. 13. The
schooner Balboa, Captain Burmedeter.
arrived this morning H days from Ta
coma, carrying S50.C00 feet of lumber.
The schooner RojWSomers arrived this
afternoon from Grays Harbor, carrying
400,000 feet of lumber. ,
BY ARTHUR A. GREENE.
HE world is on the verge of
some wonderful discoveries in
the occult realm. Electricity
Is going to solve many of the mysteries
of life and death, thought transference,
miracles and the like a good deal
sooner than you think, young man,"
said Thomas A. Edison to me in the
lobby of the Portland Hotel last night.
' I undertook to draw him out further
on the subject, but the wizard would
say no more... He seemed much more
Interested in physical matters, al
though he said as I have quoted him
with impressiveness that made the
cold chills run up and down my spine.
Almost any schoolboy In almost any
schoolroom in almost any of the civil
ized countries, if asked to name the
six greatest living men, would cer
tainly include Thomas A. Edison's
name In the list. If not at the head of
it, and a jury of sage!, would agree
with him. Yet "landing" this man,
who seems to possess ., almost super
human qualities t mind for an inter
view, is a very easy matter. The suc
cessful country bai.ker, whom Mr.' Edi
son resembles, would make a lot more
fuss about talking for publication. He's
the most unassuming "personage" It
has ever been my lucky lot to shake
hands with and so companionable that
the veriest tyro would be Instantly at
ease with him. His simple directness
was illustrated when a card was sent
to him at dinner asking for an ap
pointment, and he returned It with the
message; "After dinner Edison" writ
ten on its back in his fine cramped
handwriting.
That's characteristic of the man; no
frills and no posturing. He looks like his
pictures; of medium height, heavy, 190 as
to weight perhaps, as gray of hair as a
man's should be beyond 60, but no more
so; his eyes blue-gray, with twinkles In
them. His face is full, smooth-shaven
and as healthy looking as a clean
blooded boy's. He talks in a low. not
particularly distinct voice, as is the habit
with men who do not hear well. With
the one exception of a slight deafness, h?
seems "fit as a fiddle," and his swinging
walk is unusual in a man of his bulk and
age.
It was a distinct surprise to find him of
such a placid temperament. I had ex
pected to find a man whose average day's
work was 20 hours for a quarter of a
century what the women call "a bundle
of nerves," but he doesn't seem to have
bn in his system. He laughs frequently,
and when he Isn't smiling, which was in
frequent during the three-quarters of
an hour I was with him, his face fairly
beams. The much-abused word "genial"
may be most appropriately applied to
him. I was particularly struck with his
hands, which are long and narrow and
thin. His head Is big, for when we In
advertently exchanged hats at the end of
the Interview his straw settled down onto
my ears as for one Immense moment I
wore the hat of Edison. He smokes, but
not passionately, for his cigar went out
as he talked and he forgot all about It
Occasionally there were grammatical
lapses In his conversation, for I remem
ber distinctly that more than once he
said "wasn't no," and he told me that
he came of "a long-lived race," pro
nouncing the 1 In lived as if it had a
breve over it.
But to get back to that talk: The
marvellous man of Menlo Park is just
now yery much Interested in his experi
ments with concrete. "I have two engi
neers back home working out my plans
In experiments for building cheap houses
for working men." said he changing in
stantly from occultism to the very tangi
ble, "and I'm very sure they will find
that my latest work will succeed. I be
came interested In the necessity of pro
viding better homes for the laboring man,
the fellow who earns $1.60 to tl a. day,
you know, after Investigating how they
live in the slums of . Newark. I found
that the cheapest rental for two miser
able little rooms 10x12 was $9 a month.
Well, when a man has a wife and several
children cooped up In a place like that
its tough and I concluded to try what I
coulci do to help matters. I think I have
hit upon a scheme that will revolutionize
home building for poor folks.
"The plan is simple enough when once
you get the secret of properly mixing
your concrete and that I think I've done.
I had a lot of trouble with air. The air
gets trapped In bubbles In the concrete
and makes trouble but that Is practically
remedied now. The whole plan Is simply
a scheme of iron forms made 2x4 feet in
GREAT INVENTOR WHO IS VISITING PORTLAND
1
fe. . vaJi':-;::. ,
(( ' M
r v- . . :t: 'i : : : - ' 1 ss :::: .yyu'.J: :. .-:
I I ' v ' ' x
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Thainaa A. Edlnon.
size and made out of cast iron. That's
my brick, you see. Then these forms are
placed one upon another and bolted to
gether. We use four electric derricks to
hoist them into position. Xow for a
two-family house, three-stories high with
13 rooms in it. and this is the class of
buildings we are preparing to build, it
takes two working days to place all the
moulds in position. These moulds are
made with grooves and relief designs that
are highly ornamental into which the con
crete settles and Is moulded Into all sorts
of beautiful architectural embellishments.
The concrete Is mixed very liquid, most
people think concrete can't .be pumped but
we know very little about concrete yet.
It can be pumped, though.
'Then, as I say. this thin concrete Is
raised to the top of the wall of moulds
and there delivered by 12 spouts until the
moulds are entirely filled and overflowing.
After "six days we take the moulds down
and you have your house. With six sets
of moulds 33 men can build 12 of these
houses a month, complete, in every par
ticular. The cost of each house, ready to
move In, will be from S1000 to $1200 and in
Portland would be about $1400 to $1500 be
cause of the additional cost of materials
and labor here. Remember this is a
house of 13 rooms and basement with sta
tionary wash tubs and all that. Even
the newels and- stair rails are of con
crete, the only wood that's used being
window sashes and strips to tack carpets
onto the floors. There is usually enough
sand and- gravel In the soil that is ex
cavated from the cellar to mix the con
crete: that's an item I forgot to speak of.
"We are going to rent those houses,
all ready for the tenants to move into,
for $7.40 for each half, allowing the
renter 11.60 a month for carfare, thus
meeting exactly the present rate of $9 a
month for two rooms, 10x12, which are
simply death-traps. Don't you think
that's doing pretty well? A building out
fit to construct such houses will be ex
pensive. Six seta of molds, enough to
keep six houses under way all the time,
will cost $26,000. but they . will last for
ever. Then, allowing 6 per cent for In
terest and 4 per cent for breakage, you
have $110 more, and. as I say, you have
to buy your cement, using the soil from
the cellar to mix It. An outfit won't be
so expensive, after all."
I had been putting down a few figures
on the back of an envelope, and the
Wizard said, abruptly. In his good-natured
way, "I wouldn't take notes. It
spoils the memory." Then I asked him
about his electric storage battery for au
tomobiles. "Why, that's already in use. The
Adams Express people are using 30 of
them In New York, and Tiffany's have
20. Express wagons, trucks and- the
like can be operated so much more
cheaply with them than by horses that
in a few years you'll see mighty few
horses on the streets of the big cities.
The battery is good for driving a touring-car
100 miles at one charging, with
four passengers, and 135 miles with
two passengers. But It s the truckage
that I'm interested in. Why. do you
know that in New York City alone
more truckage is carried every day
than over all the railroads west of the
Rocky Mountains? It costs as much to
deliver freight from the stations or
docks in New York to the uptown de
partment stores as it does to carry it
from Buffalo to New York. Street traf
fic is so congested, owing to the cum
bersome horse vehicles, that it fre
quently takes a half a day to get the
load through, and It costs $7 a load.
The storage battery is going to do away
with such conditions very soon.
"My most important Invention? Well,
I should - say the Incandescent electric
light I know I worked harder on that
than anything else. It took me seven
years before I perfected it in '79. The
phonograph I worked on for a good while
but I had one made that would talk in
a day after I finally stumbled on the
secret. I was working that day on a
plan for an automatic telegraph. I had
a steel disc with the Morse alphabet on it
and on this a circular piece of paper on
which I was embossing the dots and
dashes. I noticed in whirling the paper
over the metal disk at a high velocity
by means of an electrical current that I
got a musical sound. Just sort of a mur
mur. I figured that if that sound was
produced while turning at the rate of SO
words a minute by running it at the rate
of 1500 words a minute I could reproduce
the human voice. I did it all right that
da.Yes. I helped on the telrphone. I In
rented the talking end and Bell the re
ceiving end. I was also the first one to
apply electric power to streetcars. Henry
Vlllard and I used to be partners, you
know, and one day. I think it was in 185.
I took him and Morgan and a whole gang
of pretty big financiers down to my place,
where I had built three miles of track.
The car worked all right, but after we
went back and talked the thing over In
the back room of J. P. Morgan's office,
that crowd of capitalists decided there
wasn't anything in the trolley business.
I told them they could have the rights
for the $40,000 I had put into the thing,
but they couldn't see it. Funny, isn't
it? Then Sprague and some of the other
boys In my laboratories and I put In the
first practical line in Richmond, Va. I
think that was the same year. I put up
the money, and while that line didn't ex
actly bust me. I was pretty badly bent
when I got rid of it. The fellows who
got it made a barrel of money out ofjt,
but us poor devils never made a cent."
I asked Mr. Edison how much money,
at a rough estimate, has been made as
a direct result of his Inventions. We
are all sordid, you know, and like to
talk of filthy lucre, so I, Ignoring the
infinitely better things than money he
had given the world, asked him that.
He squinted up his eyes and thought a
moment. "Well, you've got me. I ex
pect I've spent something like $30,-
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but 1 don't know how much I've made
them nor myself. I make it and spend
It. Dog-on-it, I put it right back into
new things. By the way. don't forget
that concrete house business I'm going
to give away. The method of prepar
ing the concrete and making ahe plates,
vou know. There will be no patent
on it."
Weird tales are told of the daily hab
its of the man and. to my surprise, I
heard him verify most of them. "No. I
don't eat much. That dinner I kept you
waiting on me for consisted of a bowl of
soup. That was all. I didn't have any
breakfast or lunch. People all eat too
much. It's a very bad habit. I've eaten
so little all these years that my stomach
has grown so small It doesn't take much
to fill It Eating Is largely a habit, like
drinking whisky and playing poker. So
is sleeping. Four hours is enough
for any orte who is In good
health. In fact, I know a lot
of very busy men who take no more. The
difference between them and me Is that
they eat a big dinner and then go to
the theater and afterward go to Bupper.
Then, likely as not, they will go to the
club and drink whisky and play poker
until 4 o'clock in the morning and then
get up at 8. Now, science is my game of
poker. I like It a lot better and win
oftener. So when I worked at It 20 hours
out of the 24 for more than 25 years I
got a constitution that can't be beaten.
I'm sound all through.
The Wizard spoke of the activity of the
Japanese In the field of Invention, and
declared that some of his brightest stu
dents had been from the Flowery King
dom. "Watch the Japs. You'll bave to
look out for those fellows. Not that I
think there is danger of war, but we'll
have to hurry to keep even with them In
a commercial and scientific way. They're
the best bacteriologists in the world
now."
And In closing this Interview this boy
ish, democratic, whole-souled, greatest
among the world's Inventors squinted up
his eyes again and said: "Electricity!
Why. we're just groping In the dark. We
don't know anything about its illimitable
possibilities. Some one will come .after
me and the other fellows and carry on
what we've started. Just groping in the
dark." And then he gave me his hand,
like a woman pianist's, and said:
"First time live ever been In Port
land. Like the town. Was in San
Francisco 30 years ago. The air up in
Yellowstone Park is like champagne.
Almost as good here. I 'missed being
in that big stage hold-up In the park
just two days. I'd gladly have coughed
up a couple of hundred dollars to have
had the experience. Say, you said
something about Napoleon awhile ago.
Wouldn't he have been a great real es
tate agent out in this country?"