There are some interesting examples of people commenting about things via social media when the poster has followed a hunch as opposed to bothering to do some research in order to establish whether or not their “hunch” is actually a fact.
An example of this recently came up on my YouTube channel in response to a video I made some time ago about Queen Victoria and Jack the Ripper.
In the course of the video, I made reference to the fact that their were rumours that the Queen had actually telephoned her Home Secretary, Henry Matthews, in the aftermath of the first murder.
This caused several viewers to question whether the telephone had actually been invented at the time in order for Queen Victoria to make such a call.
QUEEN VICTORIA AND THE TELEPHONE
In fact, not only did phones exist at the time, but Queen Victoria showed herself to be an impressively tech savvy head of state in that not only was she was the first European monarch to have a telephone installed, but she was actually shown how to use it by no less a person than Alexander Graham Bell himself.
ENTER ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL
On the 10th of March, 1876, Bell had made history with the first successful speech telephone call which he made to his assistant Thomas Watson.
Now admittedly, Watson was only in the next room – but when Bell shouted into the mouthpiece of his device, “Mr Watson come here – I want to see you,” he set in motion a total revolution in how people communicated with one another, and sowed the seeds for commuters of the future to be able to annoy their fellow passengers by sharing their most intimate escapades in exceedingly loud voices on crowded trains and busses in the rush hour.
HE HEARD AND UNDERSTOOD
Anyway, back to Alexander Graham Bell’s pioneering first phone call, which, as it transpires, was only a one way dialogue since, as Bell recalled in his journal:-
“To my delight he came and declared that he had heard and understood what I said. I asked him to repeat the words. He answered, “You said, “Mr. Watson – come here – I want to see you.”
The two changed places, and Bell listened to the speaker as Watson read a few passages from a book into the mouthpiece.” “It was certainly the case that articulate sounds proceeded from the speaker,” Bell detailed in his journal. “The effect was loud but indistinct and muffled.”
BELL HONED HIS INVENTION
Over the next 20 or so months, Bell honed this new scientific wonder, and, in late 1877 he arrived in London, where he demonstrated his apparatus “for the electrical transmission of distinctly articulate sounds to great distances,” before various scientific gatherings.
All who saw Bell’s invention were suitably impressed by it, and it wasn’t long before news of it reached the ears of the Queen, and in late December 1877, Sir Lyon Playfair, the Postmaster General, wrote to Alexander Graham Bell suggesting that, “Her Majesty might like to see your telephone in action.”
Bell wasn’t about to turn down such an invitation and an audience with the Queen was arranged for January the 14th 1878, at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight.
THE TELEPHONE DEMONSTRATED FOR THE QUEEN
Bell and his team arrived well in advance of the audience in order to set up the equipment for the demonstration, and duly set up two telephones one in the Council Room of Osborne House, and the other in Osborne Cottage, an overflow guest house on the Estate.
At 9.30pm on the 14th of January, following the Queen’s dinner, she and her entourage gathered in the Council Room, Bell was ushered in, and he began explaining the origin and development of his invention.
The Queen listened intently, and then the demonstration began.
THE TELEPHONE AT OSBORNE HOUSE.
The Daily News reported on what transpired in its edition of Wednesday the 16th of January 1878:-
By invitation, the telephone was exhibited to the Queen last Monday evening by Professor Bell and Colonel Reynolds, assisted by Mr. C. Wollston.
After explaining the mechanism of his invention, Professor Bell held telephonic communication with Osborne Cottage, where Mr. F. C. Ormiston superintended the apparatus.
Her Majesty conversed with Sir Thomas and Lady Biddulph, and later Miss Kate Field sang “Kathleen Mavourneen,” for which her Majesty kindly returned thanks telephonically through his Royal Highness the Duke of Connaught. The applause that followed was heard at the cottage end of the line.
On again being requested to sing, Miss Field gave Shakespeare’s “Cuckoo Song,” which was heard through a circuit of five human bodies. She then sang, “Comin’ thro’ the rye.” and delivered the epilogue to “As You Like It”, both being perfectly audible.
BUGLES AND SINGERS
The next experiments were with Cowes, where Major Webber was in command.
A quartet of tonic sol fa singers sang “God Save the Queen,” “Stars of the Summer Night,” “Sweet and Low,” and “Sir Knight, O whither away?” with excellent effect, the unison being far more complete at Osborne than where the singers were themselves.
After his Royal Highness the Duke of Connaught had finished a long conversation with Major Webber, Mr. W. H. Preece, of the Post-office, talked from Southampton with Professor Bell and Colonel Reynolds.
Bugle playing from the same town was delightful, but the music of an organ in London was less satisfactory. Uninterrupted conversation took place for two hours between Mr. Wilmot and Mr. Preece. Cheering and laughing in London were heard eighty miles away.
Throughout the séance her Majesty and the Royal Family were exceedingly interested.”
I find it somewhat intriguing that the author of the article considered a telephone conversation to be akin to the supernatural in that he referred to it as a séance.
MOST EXTRAORDINARY
Victoria noted her impression of what she had witnessed in her journal:- “…a Professor Bell explained the whole process, which is most extraordinary. It had been put in communication with Osborne Cottage, & we talked with Sir Thomas & Mary Biddulph, also heard some singing quite plainly. But it is rather faint, & one must hold the tube close to one’s ear.”
THE QUEEN ORDERED A PHONE!
However, she was sufficiently impressed to get the head of her household Sir Thomas Biddulph to send a note of thanks to Bell:-
Sir, l hope you are aware how much gratified and surprised the Queen was at the exhibition of the telephone here on Monday evening. Her Majesty desires to express her thanks to you and the ladies and gentlemen associated with you on the occasion. The Queen would like, if there is no reason against it, to purchase the two instruments which are still here with the wires,etc, attached. Perhaps you will be so kind as to let me know to whom the sum due should be paid.
Bell replied:-
Dear Sir, l feel highly honoured by the gratification expressed by Her Majesty, and her desire to possess a set of telephones.
The instruments at present at Osborne are merely those supplied for ordinary commercial purposes, and it will afford me much pleasure to be permitted to offer to the Queen a set of telephones to be made expressly for Her Majesty’s use.
Your obedient servant, Alexander Graham Bell.
HE SENT VICTORIA 2 TELEPHONES
Bell was as good as his word, and he duly sent the Queen two telephones with receivers made out of ivory and gold, free of charge.
From that point on the Queen began having more and more telephones installed, and, by 1897, all her residences were connected by phone.
SHE WASN’T TOO AMUSED
However, it is interesting to note that she considered the phone somewhat impersonal, and refused to actually have one installed in any of her private apartments.
So by the time of the Jack the Ripper murders, Victoria had been using the telephone for ten years, and would, therefore, have been able to phone the Home Secretary should she have desired to do so.