Sharp County record., 1879-11-13
CuriositieS OF Invention.

As has already been noticed, there Is
a vast difference between scientific dis
covery and the practical application OF
such discovery. Scientific discoverer,
NAV be considered the most practical
men in existence, but it was 800 years
before the form of pin introduced for
the benefit of the infant portion OF the
community was invented, after the or
dinary pins were introduced.
No one would imagine that this in
fantile pima wire pointed at one end,
and cunningly twisted, so that one end
serves as shield for the point of the
in-involved invention, and yet, al
though the need always existed, it was
not until some happy thought brought it
to the mind of some lucky inventor that
it was brought into the world. Again,
there were once Is operations to be
performed in the manufacture OF pms
II pounds of pins were made in day,
but invention has produced Il machine
that turns out 100 pins q minute, and
puts them on papers without the aud OF
human fingers. Again, 90 through the
streets of a city like Boston, and it will
be seen that clocks are cheap by the
bushel. Those clocks will keep good
time, are tasteful in appearance, and
serve all the purposes Of the domestic
clock. Price Sl.25.
America, by the way, is seizing the
watch manufacture of the world. Swift
zerland went home from here in 1877 in
dismay at the prospect that this industry
of hers would be swept from her hands.
The chronometer, the result of prize
offered by the British Government OF
100000 for any means by which the
longitude of aveSsel could be determined
within 10 miles, is an invention. Har-
risOn worked at it for 10 years, and in
1867 he won the prize of 100000. Its
recorded that he made one so perfect
that it varied but one second and quar-
ter in 10 years.
An unlimited number of inventions
can not be made by means of a limited
amount of scientific knowledge; and in
consequence of the lack of new knOWl-
edge, manufacturers and others continue
to suffer losses which might be avoided.
improvements are wanted in processes,
employers Of steam engines want to OBJ
tain more power from the Goals, iron
puddlers want to ecOnOmize heat; manu-
facturers in general want to utilize their
waste products, and prevent theirpollut-
inc the streams and atmosphere; and so
on without end.
Inventors are continually trying to
supply these demands. For instance, a
machine for completely converting heat
into mechanical force can not be invent
ed until more scientific knowledge is
discovered. Yet generic inventions,
like the Crompton loom and the ma
chinery used in the manufacture of plain
cotton sheetings. have produced enor-
NOUS results. There has been no radical
change in the process of manufacture OF
these goods since 1885; the gain has
been by adding little improvement
here and there.
In one of those mills, 90 hands, work.
ING GO hours a week, in 1878, turned ou'
as much cloth as 231 hands, working
76 1-2 hours per week, in 1888; and il
another concern there were turned ou
23,300 yards per year per operative
against 1914 yards in 1885; while eacl
Crompton loom in a certain mill turned
out 12,191 yards last year against 7,1GC
yards in 1885, and the cost of labor has
been reduced almost one half.
We might pursue this project in this
line Of thought almost indefinitely, bu'
we think we have obtained enough O.
scientific discovery applied in a practi
cal manner to demonstrate the nationa
Importance of the former and the utility
of invention as applied in these latter
DAYS. As we intimated in the beginning
of this article, some of the greatest prac
tical realities Of this age had their origin
in search after pure truth instead o
after utilities. Commercial Bulletin.