May 31, 1893.
My dear Mr. Edison,-
Referring to the letter which I wrote to you 25th instant, suggesting that the General Electric Company had delayed their order for meters on account of their contract with you not having been closed, and which you have returned to me, indicating that in your belief the suspension of this order was occasioned because they are hard up, the Manufacturing Company has received a letter from Mr. Haskins which confirms my suspicions to a considerable extent. I will send you a copy of this letter (Gladstone has it at present or I would enclose it herewith). They reaffirm the order for the meters, but they state that in the event of a certain contract now pending being closed between you and themselves, these meters shall be manufactured for them upon the terms specified in this contract for the manufacture of certain other devices - that is at a profit of 20% or 30%, I do not exactly recollect which. Now this arrangement concerning manufacture upon a percentage basis was made in view of the fact that you contemplated constructing articles covered by patents belonging to the Gen'l. Electric Co. We would, of course, be very glad to undertake this work upon a percentage basis, but they have absolutely no right to ask us to make the same arrangement for devices in no way controlled by them, and I have instructed the Manufacturing Co. to write Mr. Haskins to this effect. If they choose to give us the order for meters upon the terms originally arranged we will go ahead immediately, but if they are unwilling to do this, I am in favor of marketing the instruments ourselves. It is quite evident that after Mr. Haskins had placed the order with us, Mr. Coffin stepped in and suspended it in order to submit this new proposition.
Yours very truly,

Thomas A. Edison, Esq.,
Orange, N. J.

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