﻿236 
  

  

  THE 
  NATIONAL 
  GEOGRAPHIC 
  MAGAZINE 
  

  

  ... 
  

  

  Photograph 
  by 
  Gilbert 
  Grosvenor 
  

   DR. 
  AND 
  MRS. 
  BELL, 
  THEIR 
  TWO 
  DAUGHTERS, 
  AND 
  THEIR 
  GRANDCHILDREN, 
  

   AT 
  BADDECK, 
  NOVA 
  SCOTIA, 
  IN 
  THE 
  SUMMER 
  OF 
  I92I 
  

  

  While 
  I 
  was 
  working 
  at 
  this 
  apparatus, 
  

   my 
  brother 
  Melville 
  succeeded 
  in 
  making 
  

   an 
  artificial 
  larynx, 
  or 
  throat, 
  of 
  tin, 
  with 
  

   a 
  flexible 
  tube 
  attached 
  as 
  windpipe. 
  

  

  Inside 
  the 
  larynx 
  were 
  two 
  flat 
  sheets 
  

   of 
  tin 
  sloping 
  upward 
  toward 
  one 
  another, 
  

   but 
  not 
  touching 
  in 
  the 
  middle. 
  They 
  

   resembled 
  the 
  roof 
  of 
  a 
  house 
  with 
  the 
  

   ridge-pole 
  removed. 
  

  

  Stretched 
  tightly 
  upon 
  this 
  structure 
  

   were 
  two 
  sheets 
  of 
  rubber 
  the 
  edges 
  of 
  

   which 
  touched 
  one 
  another 
  in 
  the 
  space 
  

   where 
  the 
  ridge-pole 
  should 
  be. 
  

  

  My 
  brother 
  found, 
  upon 
  blowing 
  

   through 
  the 
  windpipe, 
  that 
  the 
  rubber 
  

   vocal 
  chords 
  were 
  thrown 
  into 
  vibration, 
  

   producing 
  a 
  musical 
  sound. 
  By 
  varying 
  

   the 
  tension 
  of 
  the 
  rubber 
  strips 
  and 
  by 
  

   varying 
  the 
  force 
  of 
  the 
  breath, 
  he 
  could 
  

   make 
  the 
  thing 
  squeak 
  like 
  a 
  Punch 
  and 
  

   Judy 
  show, 
  or 
  produce 
  a 
  good, 
  sonorous 
  

   vibration 
  like 
  a 
  reed 
  musical 
  instrument. 
  

  

  THE 
  TALKING 
  HEAD 
  IS 
  ASSEMBLED 
  AND 
  

   TRIED 
  ON 
  THE 
  NEIGHBORS 
  

  

  When 
  this 
  stage 
  had 
  been 
  reached 
  we 
  

   were, 
  of 
  course, 
  anxious 
  to 
  put 
  the 
  throat 
  

   and 
  the 
  mouth 
  together 
  to 
  see 
  what 
  the 
  

  

  effect 
  would 
  be. 
  We 
  could 
  not 
  wait 
  for 
  

   the 
  completion 
  of 
  the 
  tongue; 
  we 
  could 
  

   not 
  wait 
  for 
  the 
  arrival 
  of 
  the 
  organ 
  bel- 
  

   lows. 
  My 
  brother 
  simply 
  fastened 
  his 
  tin 
  

   larynx 
  to 
  my 
  gutta-percha 
  mouth 
  and 
  

   blew 
  through 
  the 
  windpipe 
  provided. 
  

  

  At 
  once 
  the 
  character 
  of 
  the 
  sound 
  was 
  

   changed. 
  It 
  no 
  longer 
  resembled 
  a 
  reed 
  

   musical 
  instrument, 
  but 
  a 
  human 
  voice. 
  

   Vowel 
  quality, 
  too, 
  could 
  be 
  detected, 
  and 
  

   it 
  really 
  seemed 
  as 
  though 
  some 
  one 
  were 
  

   singing 
  the 
  vowel 
  "ah." 
  

  

  I 
  then 
  closed 
  and 
  opened 
  the 
  rubber 
  

   lips 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  times 
  in 
  succession, 
  

   while 
  my 
  brother 
  blew 
  through 
  the 
  wind- 
  

   pipe. 
  The 
  machine 
  at 
  once 
  responded 
  by 
  

   uttering 
  the 
  syllables 
  "ma-ma-ma-ma," 
  

   etc., 
  quite 
  clearly 
  and 
  distinctly. 
  By 
  using 
  

   only 
  two 
  syllables 
  and 
  prolonging 
  the 
  

   second, 
  we 
  obtained 
  a 
  quite 
  startling 
  re- 
  

   production 
  of 
  the 
  word 
  "mamma," 
  pro- 
  

   nounced 
  in 
  the 
  British 
  fashion, 
  with 
  the 
  

   accent 
  on 
  the 
  second 
  syllable. 
  

  

  Well, 
  of 
  course, 
  boys 
  will 
  be 
  boys, 
  and 
  

   we 
  determined 
  to 
  try 
  the 
  effect 
  upon 
  our 
  

   neighbors. 
  

  

  My 
  father's 
  house 
  in 
  Edinburgh 
  was 
  

   one 
  of 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  houses 
  and 
  flats 
  that 
  

  

  