methodical and
practical manner. In this was the beginning of the work which has since
made such a profound impression on contemporary life.

There is nothing of the helter-skelter, slap-dash style in Edison's
experiments. Although all the laboratory experimenters agree in the
opinion that he "tries everything," it is not merely the mixing of a
little of this, some of that, and a few drops of the other, in the HOPE
that SOMETHING will come of it. Nor is the spirit of the laboratory
work represented in the following dialogue overheard between two alleged
carpenters picked up at random to help on a hurry job.

"How near does she fit, Mike?"

"About an inch."

"Nail her!"

A most casual examination of any of the laboratory records will reveal
evidence of the minutest exactitude insisted on in the conduct of
experiments, irrespective of the length of time they occupied. Edison's
instructions, always clear cut and direct, followed by his keen
oversight, admit of nothing less than implicit observance in all
details, no matter where they may lead, and impel to the utmost
minuteness and accuracy.

To some extent there has been a popular notion that many of Edison's
successes have been due to mere dumb fool luck--to blind, fortuitous
"happenings." Nothing could be further from the truth, for, on the
contrary, it is owing almost entirely to the comprehensive scope of his
knowledge, the breadth of his conception, the daring originality of
his methods, and minuteness and extent of experiment, combined with
unwavering pertinacity, that new arts have been created and additions
made to others already in existence. Indeed, without this tireless
minutiae, and methodical, searching spirit, it would have been
practically impossible to have produced many of the most important of
these inventions.

Needless to say, mastery of its literature is regarded by him as a
most important preliminary in taking up any line of investigation. What
others may have done, bearing directly or collaterally on the subject,
in print, is carefully considered and sifted to the point of exhaustion.
Not that he takes it for granted that the conclusions are correct, for
he frequently obtains vastly different results by repeating in his own
way experiments made by others as detailed in books.

"Edison can travel along a well-used road and still find virgin soil,"
remarked recently one of his most practical experimenters, who had been
working along a cert