[D8959AEF], Letter from Alfred Ord Tate to Samuel Insull, September 13th, 1889
https://edisondigital.rutgers.edu/document/D8959AEF
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- Title
- [D8959AEF], Letter from Alfred Ord Tate to Samuel Insull, September 13th, 1889
- Editor's Notes
- [8 hard-to-read pages bit A[PPEARS TO BE INCOMPLETE] I confirm cablegram sent you from Paris 9th inst: 'Gouraud writes satisfactory confirmation order thousand machines. Wants [business?] immediately when can you ship [them?] balance twenty five weekly. May want additional hundred shipped South America this week. Can you furnish these. Payment Drexel Morgan against invoices bills lading. See his original order for proportions motor treadle. Edison' Upon Receipt of your reply to the above we sent the following to Gouraud under date 10th by wire: 'Can ship two hundred machines immediately twenty five weekly thereafter. Arrange credit for order. Edison.' Gouraud's confirmation of his orders referred to in our cable to you 9th inst is his letter to Mr Edison 7th inst. attached hereto. Following is a list of the correspondence enclosed: Letter Gouraud to Edison dated Aug 26/89 ## Copy Edison's reply to above dated Sep 3/89 Letter Gouraud to Edison dated Sep 7/89 Cablegram Edison to Gouraud Sep 9/89 This correspondence explains itself. Gouraud's letter [illeg] is [illeg] immaterial so I dont send it. Between the 4th and the 27th he found a way to dispose of [1200?] machines and therefore confirmed his order and we [illeg] the confirmation. I ascertained yeterday the disposition Gouraud intends making of these machines. A Firm of Manufacturers of advertising Boards such as you have seen in Hotels used as back for [illeg] tables and [illeg] in various ways with clocks and other devices to attract attention, is going to organize a Company for general advertising business. The plan is to put these Boards in consipicuous public places and in front of each to have a phonograph on exhibition in the [illeg] of one of their Employees adn which will I presume be used to acquaint an inquiring people with the [illeg] of [illeg] Soap and [illeg] Glue & c & c. Gouraud undertakes to supply phonograph to this Concern. When Mr. Edison came to Paris I told him what I have repeatedly said to you, that Gouraud never would organize an efficient agency business for want of both [illeg] and money. If he personally had the money [top p. 4] in his pocket he would not use it for this business because he himself has no confidence in the phonograph. I believed, and still believe, that any machines disposed of by him will be as so many stumbling blocks in the way of [illeg] progress and instead of assisting us in competition with the graphophone will give those people additional advantage over us in Europe. You are familiar with the alternative I proposed and I need not repeat it here. Mr. Edison looks at the matter in a different light and a few days afterwards I found he was talking with Gouraud about an agency business and bringing great pressure to bear upon the latter to start him selling machines. Gouraud discussed various methods of organizing professing to Mr Edison that he wanted to start [in?] the most efficient manner and left Paris to [hurry?] to London for the purpose, as he said, of organizing active operations. I need not elaborate the plans for as I told Mr Edison he did not mean a [ileg] of what he said. [He?] left his manager [illeg] in Paris to look into the matter of an agency there [and Young?] who came to see me the next day told me that Gouraud was in great distress and terribly worried; that he saw no way of getting out of that order for 1,000 machines, and did not know how to dispose of them. Young repaired a [illeg] in Paris and then came to London after doing practically nothing. I was [p. 6] in Gouraud's office yesterday and from the manager to the office boy they are ridiculing the way he is starting the business. He is going to sell machines to any Tom Dick or Harry who cames along and let the devil take care of them. I think you will find him ordering 10 treadles to one motor--because he thinks he can ship the treadles anywhere with a letter of instructions, which will cost less than the temporary [service?] of an Expert. ## You have pressed him and this is the way he [illeg] to first [illeg]. ## It seems to me that our only hope now is a combination with the Graphophone people. They pronounced the last proposition of 60 and 40 as "simply ridiculous." Gouraud [p. 7] believes they will combine on an Equal basis--but they have not directly said so. Seligman and Moriarty are here and Gouraud expects news from them in a few days resulting from a Directors meeting which was held in New York I think the day before yesterday I cannot believe that these Graphophone people will go ahead without the phonograph--but we will see. They have gall. Let me give you a little instance of the esteem in which Gouraud is held in France. The term of the Telephone Company's option on the Telephone has expired, and as originally agreed, the Government has taken over the business, paying the Company about $1,000,000. (fcs 5,000,000) for it. The [p. 8] Telephone Company must either pay this money back to the stockholders or invest it in a [new?] business. ## One of the subscribers [Sinson/Simon?] (you [illeg] on him) breakfasted with me the other morning [illeg words] had a long talk. He said his Directors were anxious to take up the phonograph for France. That they had the money and if they could negotiate with Mr Edison or his personal representative they would be [illeg] to do so immediately but they did not care to negotiate with Gouraud. This is the hand of Forbes and they [illeg] showing up again. They have but one [illeg] between [illeg]. Mr Edison's visit has done him an amount of good that cannot now be estimated. If the phonograph
- Author
- Tate, Alfred Ord
- Recipient
- Insull, Samuel
- Date
- 1889-09-13
- Type
- Letter
- Folder ID
- D8959-F
- Microfilm ID
- 127:887
- Document ID
- D8959AEF
- Publisher
- Thomas A. Edison Papers, School of Arts and Sciences, Rutgers University
- Has Version
- Archive.org Viewer, Microfilm Series Reel 127