Ir is seldom or never that Progress takes a stride of importance without crushing as many under her feet as she benefits, The sewing machine may be instanced as having at ite birth caused suffering and loss of em. ployment to thousands, directly; but indirectly it has benefited the world much greater extent. In fact, it may be said that sume one class at least must suffer whenever the world at large gains a benefit from scientific or practical advance. It is as well, therefore, after accepting the Telephone 8 an accomplished practical fact, to ponder upon the revolution it will create in the world's communication and the condition of those employed in it. The first great losses will evid. ently be felt by the instrument makers, In England, France, and America it is no uncommon thing for Telegraph instrument makers to employ. from 100 to 500 hands, many of them being finishers, burnishers, and Inoquerers, perfection in whose speciality commands high wages. The occupa. tion, too, of the designing and practical mechanic is jeopardized, if not lust while the battery makers sustain equally their share in the down-fall, But the heaviest loss of all, from the employment of the 'I'eleplione, will fall on the operator. The man who began say as a message boy, and has risen from thence to office boy, assistant, clerk in charge, and finally to first class or expert operator on the "Mirror" or " Recorder,"—to attain which years of unceasing application ere necessary—will find them result in nothing but uselessness, and himself be compelled to begin again at the bottom step of another ladder of life, It is estimated that some 150 millions sterling are invested in England alone in Telegraph enterprise, and any fact which would radically change the working of establishments of such value must entail Joss and privation to thousands.
On the other hand, the Telephone will bring employment to thousands, Its use will cheapen and thus promote lines of telegraph, especially for social purposes, whilst for commercial use, on account of the rapidity of its communi. cation, a class of shorthand writers and translators will be required, the creation of which will not take many years, and will also afford employment to five or six persons to replace the previous operator. To large manufacturing firms such as Siemen's, the Telegraph Construction and Maintenance Ca. and others whose influence enables them to promote companies for which they manufacture cables and line material, the Telephone will undoubtedly bring good fortune. True, their instrament workshops will be abandoned to "clockwork and bells;" for the Telephone will, we expect, for many years to come require an alarm of some kind; but the Telephones themselves will doubtless become in time a daily want; and the high-priced mechanics, whose pride waa in their work, will now be reduced to turning out the "penny trumpets by the gross." The engineer and electrican will remain on about the same rung of the ladder he now occupies—
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.