PAGE 3
My Translatophone
by
“She did a sensible thing, anyway,” commented the Master of the House.
The Daughter of the House opened her mouth to say: “I do not like her. She had no enthusiasm, or real goodness, to give up her work so soon and for such reasons.” But she suddenly reflected that Mary had been the speaker’s wife, and she shut her mouth with a little vicious snap.
“I went to the Armat house that evening, and I found there a very lively girl awaiting me. Her parents and her two sisters had gone out, and we had the parlor to ourselves. Life in Burma may not have suited Mary Armat, but it certainly had improved her, for she was much more charming than when I had last seen her. Moreover, she was so very friendly, and without doubt so glad to see me, she was so bright and full of high spirits, that it might have been supposed she had arranged matters so that we could have the evening to ourselves, and was eminently pleased with her success.
“I admired her more and more every time I looked at her, and I determined that, as soon as the proper time should come, I would make earnest love to her, and tell her what, perhaps, I should have told her long ago. But just now I had other matters on my mind.
“Above all things I wanted Mary to talk into my translatophone, and to speak in Burmese. I knew nothing whatever of that language, and if she should speak it, and the words should come to my ears in pure English, then no further experiment would be necessary, no doubts could possibly exist. But until I had made this test I did not want her to know what the instrument was intended to do; it was barely possible she might play a trick on me and speak in English. But if the thing succeeded I would tell her everything. We two should be the sole owners of the secret of my great invention–an invention which would not only benefit the English-speaking world, but which might be adapted to the language of any nation, and which would make us rich beyond all ordinary probabilities.
“As soon as I had the opportunity I began to speak of the work I had been engaged upon during Mary’s absence; and when I approached the subject I thought I saw on her face an expression which seemed to say, ‘Oh, dear! are you going to begin on that tiresome business again?’ But I was not to be turned from my purpose. Such an opportunity as this was too valuable, too important, to be slighted or set aside for anything else. In a few minutes I might discover whether this invention of mine was a success or a failure. I took my translatophone from my pocket, and laid it on the table beside us.
“‘What’s that?’ she exclaimed. ‘You don’t mean to tell me you have become hard of hearing?’
“‘Oh, no,’ said I; ‘my hearing is just as good as it ever was.’
“‘But that is a thing deaf people use,’ she said.
“‘Well, yes,’ I answered; ‘it could be used by deaf people, I suppose, although I have never tried it in that way. It is my latest and, I think, my most important invention. It would take too long to explain its mechanism just now–‘
“‘Indeed it would,’ she interrupted quickly.
“‘But what I want to do,’ I continued, ‘is to make a little trial of it with you.’
“‘If you mean you want me to speak into that thing,’ she said, ‘I do not want to do it. I should hate to think you are deaf and needed anything of the sort. Please put it away; I do not even like the looks of it.’
“But I persisted; I told her that I greatly desired that she should speak a few sentences in Burmese into my instrument. I had a certain reason for this which I would explain afterwards.