The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1882-12-15
NUMBER so.

range Of possibility, and the announcement
that machine has been built and tested in
the field with satisfactory results is apt to
be received with some lack Of confidence in
the achievement by those who have not
personally witnessed it,
TIE INVENTOR
OF the machine now alluded to is Mr.. Dan
lei B. Haselton, of this city. Mr.. Haselton,
who Is native Of the State of Now IIamp.
shire, came to Charleston in 1856, and has
resided here ever since. He is master
machinist, aud of late years has been con.
Quoting the business Of selling aud repairs
ing sewing machines.
After the war, when the labor problem
was SO suddenly thrust upon the peop. of
the South, MIR. Haselton realized that tho
one great necessity Of the Southern c,,ton
planter was the means to gather his crop
alter he had made it, independent of the
very uncertain aud expensive mode Of pick.
ing the cotton BY hand Uc accc rdiusly dc.
voted his energies towarde the invention Of
machine which should take the place OF
the laborcr as cotton picker and at less
expense. In $780, after long years Of
thought and experiment, Mr. Hasc.on con.
ceved tho plan Of tho machine which ha.
been recently tested. A patent was secured,
and in 1881 another patent covcling an
improvement was obtained. Being = poor
man, without the means of practically CORY.
Ing out his idea, he made repeated efforts TO
obtain assistance in this city to enable him
to bulld rui o;--I m,ob;,, A u
del was exhibited at the Cotton Exchange
and was explained to nearly al tho capital
lists Of Charleston. The machine was &C.
knowledgcd to be remarkably ingenious, but
there was doub; as to its practical usefulness,
and
FINANCIAL AID WAS WITHHELD.
At the Cotton Exposition in Atlanta, last
year, Mr.. IIasclton exhibited his model and
explained it to thousands Of people. The
belief, however, that practical cotton
picking machine is an impossibiity was so
deeply rooted that the required assistance
war still withheld, The managers of the
Exposition awarded Mr.. Hasclton the pre-
MUM offered for such machine, although
he had exhibited only small model in COM
petition with other full sized machines which
were tested and found impractcable Dis
couraGed by his repeated failures 10 salts
fy the Southern public of the value of his
invention, Mr.. uasclton returned to Char
lesion determined to make an effort at the
North. Just before leaving for the North
last summer, however, six gentlemen Of this
city furnished the required capital, an agree.
ment between the parties was regularly
drawn up and signed and the work of con-
strac,ins ful-sizod machine began.
TIE HISTORY OF TIE CONSTRUCTION.
Of the machine would be, perhaps, bu,
repetition OF the experience of every inven-
tor since the world began, and although
every effort was made to push forward the
work cxasperating delays and unlocked for
difficulties presented themselves nearly
every day. Such work as it was necessary
to have done at the North was executed
promptly enough, but the Charleston ma
chine shops were so crowded with work
that they either fatty refused to do any Of
the work for the machine or took month
to do what they agreed to do in few day..
To make long story short, the result of all
fbn.n fri,1, ,r tbot
PEELED to do nearly all tho work on the MI.
chine with his own hands assisted only by
one OF his sons. Not being supplied with
improved tools and appliances for heavy
iron work, this process consumed much val.
liable time, and when it was seen that tho
cotton crop was fast being gathered and that
the opportunity for testing the machine in
the field was slipping away Mr. Ha,slton
succeeded in getting some of the heavy work
done in Augusta. Time, however rolled
relcntesSy by and it was not until last
week that the machine, in a comparatively
unfinished condition, was taken into a cotton
field for trial. Through the kindness OF
MIR. Rivers Lawton, who is planting cotton
about sixteen miles from this city, small
patch Of cotton on his place was left uupicl.
ed for the purpose OF the trial, and the
South Carolina Railway Company, through
tho influence of Col. Pickens, transported
tho machine to Sineath's station free OF
charge. From this point the machine was
transported by pair of Mr.. Lawton's mulos
to his plantation two miles distant.