Alternate-Current Motors

Sir — In your issue of March 6 I find the passage: “Mr. Kapp described the position as it exists. He showed how Ferraris first of all pointed out the right way to get an alternating-current motor that was self-starting, and how Tesla and others had worked in the direction indicated by Ferraris,” etc.

I would be very glad to learn how Mr. Kapp succeeded in showing this. I may call his attention to the fact that the date of filing of my American patent anticipates the publication of the results of Prof. Ferraris in Italy by something like six months. The date of filing of my application is, therefore, the first public record of the invention. Considering this fact, it seems to me that it would be desireable that Mr. Kapp should modify his statement. — Yours, etc.

Nikola Tesla
New York, 17th March, 1891