[D8853ACJ], Letter from Armin Tenner to Thomas Alva Edison, May 3rd, 1888
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Title
[D8853ACJ], Letter from Armin Tenner to Thomas Alva Edison, May 3rd, 1888
Editor's Notes
[from Berlin] "In answer to your [unclear] letter of April 10th permit me to say that the Phonoplex cannot be put to use in Europe unless you succeed in your efforts to provide the instrument with a recording device. There are no messages read by sound in fact to great majority of operators are not capable of reading by sound at all. Skilled labor is cheap in this part of the world and if one operator cannot attend to the work attributed to him he will simply receive an assistant. They say more stress on the record than on rapidity. The government have to provide a large number mustered out non-commissioned Army officers and the latter to a great extent are assigned to the telegraphic service. You will therefore appreciate the motives of the Telegraph authorities in adhering to the old system. It would be a rather difficulat task to transform such a military man into an operator of the American type. ### I am sorry to learn from your worthy Secretary of the trouble you encounter with the Phonoplex but am not surprised. Still you have successfully solved much harder problems and I am sure you will eventually perfect the Phonoplex also. ### If the instrument can be made to record messages I am quite sure that it can be introduced in Europe." [TAE marginalia: "Tell him I shall keep at it." E]
Author
Recipient
Mentioned
Date
1888-05-03
Type
Folder/Volume ID
D8853-F
Microfilm ID
124:920
Document ID
D8853ACJ
Publisher
Thomas A. Edison Papers, School of Arts and Sciences, Rutgers University