The Passion for Competitions (Cont.)

“I can say,” the great inventor said with evident self-satisfaction, “that electric light is completely perfected, and all the problems which have troubled me during the last eighteen months are resolved. I hope to light every house here. When I succeed in placing several lamps in the street, I will leave them burning day and night for at least two weeks to thoroughly test my coal. I am confident that it will not melt—I have convinced myself of this through experiments in my laboratory, conducted for entire weeks—but I want the public to be convinced of it as well, and to be convinced by their own experiment. I think that my charred paper is the only substance capable of fully glowing and at the same time so fireproof that while conducting electric current, it will not be destroyed. The emptiness in the bulb, of course, presents nothing for combustion, but the intense heat produced by electricity would destroy any substance except charred paper. There is absolutely nothing here to melt: it is simple, pure coal, and our century has yet to know such a machine that could produce sufficient electricity to destroy it.”

The name of the “king of inventors” after eighteen months of silence about him is again on everyone’s lips. In Russia also he is often mentioned, but hardly one-tenth of the interesting, one might say anecdotal events of his life are known. In one Russian book I once read that Edison is a gloomy bachelor. This is a complete falsehood. The “king of inventors” is a good family man and has three children. His marriage has such a romantic character that it can be recounted here.

Back in 1873, Edison, already a famous inventor, was entirely occupied with coal, batteries, chemical processes, and it seemed that there was no force that could break through the shell of his exterior to reach his heart. But such a force was found; its name was love. The matter was thus. In 1873, Edison was extremely occupied with an experiment on improving the automatic system of the telegraph. Among the people invited to work on the various machines relating to this, there was one extremely shy girl, who devoted herself entirely to her work and never raised her eyes to the budding genius. Once Edison stood and watched as she worked with her plump little fingers. The girl, according to custom, did not raise her eyes, but her nervous finger movements, however, made it clear that she was in a terribly confused state. Finally, she could not bear it, lowered her hands to her lap, and looked hopelessly into Edison’s face. A smile flashed on his face, and with some awkwardness he suddenly addressed her:

–What do you think of me, Miss Mary? Do I please you?

– Why do you, Mr. Edison, confuse me? I…that is… I…

– Do not hurry to answer me. It is of no great importance, unless you wish to marry me.

The girl was inclined to laugh, but Edison continued:

– I am speaking seriously; however, do not hurry to answer. Think about it carefully, talk it over with your mother, and tell me as soon as it is convenient for you… Well, at least on Tuesday. Will that be convenient for you? I mean Tuesday of next week. Yes?

Edison’s workshop at that time was located in New York, and one of his friends, who worked in the main office of the Western Telegraph Company in New York, returning home on the last train, saw light in Edison’s private laboratory and ran up the stairs to rouse his friend from his usual state of semi-oblivion over some complex point of telegraph science.

– Hey, Tom! the visitor called out cheerfully. What are you doing here at such a late hour? Let’s go home!

– What time is it? – asked Edison, sleepily rubbing his eyes and stretching, like a lion suddenly awakened.

– It is nearly midnight. Let’s go.

– Really? – asked Edison in surprise – So I need to go home. After all, I got married today!

Despite such apparent inattention to an important day in his life, Edison is, one can say, an exemplary family man, and his family, now consisting of three little ones, is one of the happiest.