1888. ] A! 47 { Houston. 
Success could hardly be looked for by means of any device that left the 
record on the record-surface by movements at right angles thereto ; for, 
Since the movements of the telephone diaphragm are exceedingly minute, 
and the amount of energy represented thereby exceedingly small, it is 
hardly to be expected that a record of any value could be so produced. 
But with a record recorded by movements parallel to the surface, and 
received on a surface whose resistance to motion is small, the difficulties 
would not appear to be insurmountable. 
It should be carefully borne in mind that a telephone record may be 
made of very small dimensions. Indeed, in the case of any phonographic 
apparatus, where it is not intended that the record should reproduce the 
sounds by direct mechanical movements of the diaphragm, large records 
are not always necessary nor are they even desirable; for, such repro- 
duction may be effected electrically. 
Where the telephone record-surface has been prepared, no effort should 
be made to cause it to reproduce the telephonic despatch mechanically. 
An electrical method of reproduction is far the preferable one. 
(8.) The following method would appear to promise excellent results. 
Employ the telephone-record to act mechanically on a lever or other 
device, but instead of attempting to cause the movements of such a lever 
to impart audible, articulate motion to a receiving diaphragm, cause them 
to act directly on a variable resistance in the circuit of which is included 
a voltaic battery and a receiving telephone. Since, for such an operation, 
very slight movements of the variable resistance contacts are required, it 
is by no means improbable that some of the methods proposed, or, obvious 
modifications thereof, will, in practice, be found applicable for the produc- 
tion of a permanent telephone record. 
The advantages of a telephonic record thus obtained arise not only from 
its permanency, but also from the possibility of preparing a phonographic 
record of the voice or message, and sending the same for telephonic trans- 
mission over a line to a distant point. 
(9.) Before concluding this brief sketch, it might be well to suggest the 
following plan, which would appear to be particularly suitable for obtain. 
ing a telephone record : Mount a concave mirror at the centre of the dia- 
phragm of the receiving telephone ; or, better yet, from the entire dia- 
phragm of a concave mirror, shaping the magnet pole of the telephone to 
conform to the approximated surface thereof. When the telephone is 
receiving transmitted speech, allow the light reflected from the diaphragm - 
mirror, and suitably concentrated by a lens, to fall on a sensitized photo- 
graphic plate placed in a plane at right angles to the plane of the dia- 
phragm, so as to receive the spot of light parallel to its surface. The 
Photographic plate must, of course, be moved mechanically at right angles 
to the direction of movement of the spot of light. The plate thus acted 
On is then developed, fixed, and used to reproduce the record by any of 
the well-known methods of photo-engraving, etching, etc. The record 
thus obtained may be used either mechanically to reproduce the trans- 
