Were it not for the access we have to this subsequent history, it might be tempting to imagine that Johnson’s rural upbringing in Delaware was the sole inspiration for Tarpomania, but it would seem that such a claim could be attributed to one Leon Forrest Douglass.
Johnson dedicates Tarpomania to Douglass, an engineer and pioneer of polyphonics and sound technology, whom Johnson thanks for being “the first to teach me that I loved to go a fishin’”. In his day Douglass ranked alongside Edison and Berliner in terms of industrial creativity and his acquaintance with Johnson was to propel the latter small-time bookbinder and machinist to become a major industrialist.
After founding the Victor Talking Machine Company in 1901, with Reeves Johnson as president, Douglass and Johnson worked and prospered together for many years, and the dedication of Tarpomania to Douglass is significant in that it demonstrates the depth of their relationship that not only founded an industrial empire, but also secured a solid sporting friendship.
The book is described as being in good condition and is expected to fetch in the region of £200 to £400.
Gone fishin’… in Chelsea
STRANGE to associate the HMV label in any way with fishing, but one of the highlights of Holt’s March 6 sale at the Duke of York’s Barracks, Chelsea, will be this rare copy of Tarpomania – the madness of fishing, written in 1908 by the industrialist and founder of His Master’s Voice, Eldridge Reeves Johnson.
