Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1871-01-26
First Umbrella.

IT is generally stated that Jonas Ham
way, the well-known philanthropist, was
the first man who carried an umbrella in
the streets of London. Hanway died in
1888 EARLY in the century large UNI
brella was kept in the halls of aristocraGe
mansions fer the special protection of tina
lady of the house in passing from her door
to her coach !; and it was not uncommon
to keep such articles in the coffee houses
or taverns for the benefit of customers as
early as Queen Anne's reign. The fact,
however, is not the less true, that it is
only, within the lifetime Of persons now
living that this almost Indispensable pro-
lection from the mists and rain has become
generally adopted In the Female 1atter
Of December 10, 1909, appears satiricaI
notice informing the young gentleman
belonging To the custom house who, for
fear Of rain, borrowed the umbrella at
Wits coffee house, in Cornhill, Of the
mistress" that, "to be dry from head
to foot on the like occasion, he shall be
welcome to the maids pattens." Gay men
tons the umbrella as early as 1712 in his
poem of Trivia" in which he describes
the tucked-up sempstress" walking in a
shower, while streams "rlin down her
oiled umbrellas sides" Mr.. =. Jameson,
Scottish surgeon, brought with him from
Paris in 1881 or 1882 an umbrella, which
was the first seen in Glasgow, where he re-
sided, and where it attracted universal at
tentiOn. 80 sl"}%H @Hii
Id The earliest specimens of the English
umbrella ware made, as mentioned In Gays
lines, of oiled silk, which, when wet, was
exceedingly difficult to open or close. The
stick and furniture were heavy and
inconvcnient, and the article very expen-
sve. Its transition to the present porta-
blc'form is due partly to the substitution OF
silk and bingham for the heavy and troub-
lesomc oiled silk, which admits OF the ribs
and stretcher being made much lighter,
and also to the many ingenious mechanical
improvements in the framework which
have been made from time TO time, sever
al of which have been patented No
change has proved a greater convenience
than that from the oldrfashioned ring and
string for securing the umbrella when
closed to the simple clip and India-rubber
braid now in use and yet, before this was
accomplished many transitions had TO be
passed through. -h.t.Ef ..af ..E-s-.,.
Though the umbrella is itself Of older
date, there is nothing to invalidate tho
story that IL Is to the good Jonas Hanway
that we are indebted for the valuable ex-
ample of moral courage in first carrying
an umbrella in the streets Of London. 1t
is difficult now to conceive the amount Of
persecution which this strange proceeding
entailed upon the unfortunate philanthropy
list, whose object was, doubtless, less the
protection Of his own person than that Of
showing his fellow -countrymen how they
might avoid those continual drenchings To
which they had SO long submitted. The
hackney coachmen and the sedan chairmcn
were the first to call out against the nova
ton, declaring that they were ruined if.it
came into fashion When they began to
be carried even gentleman accompanied
by lady, under the shelter OF the new
tangled rain-protector, were hooted as
they passed along, while gentleman
alone carving one was certain to be at
tackled with cries Of {" Frenchmanl French
man why don't you call coachy" and
other more offensive salutatiOns. "+