of
the great inventor. There was no need of calling anyone's attention to
the necessity for keeping quiet. Out of the big horn, as out of a
phonograph, came the deliberate and carefully enunciated words:

"It has been said that 'the boy is father to the man.' That may be
worthy of general belief; at least evidences of it are to be found in
the boyhood of him we delight to speak of as one of the first citizens
of our country and probably the greatest scientific discoverer of all
time. The boyhood of this remarkable man was almost as remarkable as his
manhood; it was full of incidents showing the tendencies that afterward
contributed to true greatness in the chosen field of endeavor of a mind
bent upon experiment, discovery and invention.

"Thomas Alva Edison was born in Milan, Ohio, in the year 1847. The
precise date, even to Mr. Edison, seems somewhat doubtful.

"He was a frail little chap, with an older brother and sister. But he
was active enough to have several narrow escapes from death. He wouldn't
have been a real boy if he hadn't fallen into the canal and barely
escaped drowning at least once.

"Then while he was a little bit of a fellow, climbing and prowling
around a grain elevator beside the canal, he fell into the wheat bin and
was nearly smothered to death.

"Once he held a skate strap for another boy to cut off with a big ax and
the lad sliced off the end of the fingers holding it!

"Another time the small Edison boy was investigating a bumblebee's nest
in a field close to the fence. He was so interested in watching the bees
that he didn't notice a cross old ram till it had butted in and sent him
sprawling. Although he was then 'between two fires,' the little lad was
quick-witted enough to jump up and climb the fence just in time to
escape a second attack from the ugly old beast. From a safe place he
watched the bees and the ram with keen concern. But Edison says his
mother used up a lot of arnica on his small frame after this double
encounter. The little lad early learned to observe that 'It's a great
life if you don't weaken!'

"Mr. Edison tells this story about himself:

"'Even as a small boy, before we moved away from Milan, I used to try to
make experiments. Once I built a fire in a barn. I remember how startled
I was to see how fast a fire spreads in such a place. Almost before I
knew it the barn was in flames and I barely escaped with my life.

"The neighbors thought I ought to be disciplin