The next morning I made an early call on Mr. Dolan at his office. I introduced myself to him, although I think he knew me by sight. I told him the state of affairs I found at the electric-light station and received from him in reply the following astounding statement. He said: “Mr. Porter, when this company was formed I selected the Southwark Foundry as our engineers. I had previously become acquainted with the running of some of your engines and had come to the conclusion that they were just what we needed; accordingly I ordered our first engines from you. I assumed the engineering department of this enterprise to be in your hands, and that you would be represented here by an engineer selected by yourselves and devoted to your interest. Accordingly, when your men had finished their job I applied to your president to send me an engineer. He sent me a workman. That was not the kind of man I asked him for; the engines were in charge of workmen already from your own works. I wanted an educated man who could represent us in the courts and before the city councils--in short, an engineering head for this business, now in its infancy, but which was expected to grow to large proportions. He ought to have known what I wanted, or if he did not he should have asked me; his whole manner was entirely indifferent, he seemed to take no interest in the enterprise. “Seeing I could get no help from Mr. Merrick, I applied to William Sellers for an engineer. He sent me a young man from his drawing-office, and I soon found out he was not the man I wanted; he knew nothing about a steam-engine--was merely a machine-tool draftsman--so I found I must rely upon myself. The only man I could think of was this man I have. He had done some good work for me two or three years ago in repairing one of my engines, so I offered him the position, which he accepted. I knew nothing of his engineering preferences; he seems to be doing very well, and I am afraid he will have to stay;” and stay he did. The result was most remarkable. A demand for electric-lighting plants was springing up in all parts of the country. This became widely known as a pioneer plant, and was visited daily by parties who were interested in such projects. These visitors were met at the door by the engineer and his assistant and were warned, just as I was, to have nothing to do with a high-speed engine. They were always business men, quite ignorant of machinery, and with whom the testimony of two practical men who had experience with the engines and were actuated in their advice by a sense of duty was conclusive. The result was that we never had a single application to supply engines for electric lighting. Yes, we did have one application; a man came into the office when I was there alone and gave me an order for his mill and apologized to me for giving it. He said the place where he was obliged to locate his lighting plant was so limited, he found he could not get in the engine he wanted.