Weekly commercial herald. (Vicksburg, Miss.) 1884-18??, 1885-12-04
THE SEWING MACHINE
INTERESTING FACTS AS TO ITS IN
VENTIoN AND INVENTORS.
Walter Hunt the Original Inventor in
1~sS@-slnger's success-A COmprO-
mise by Which High Prices
Were Maintained for Years.
LPittsburg Cor. sewIng.MachIne TImes.l

IPittsburg Cor. Sewing Machine Times.l
As hist rical facts are growing more in.
teresting each year concerning the prime
movers of the great sewing machine in.
dustry, | wish to give you what | know
about the king of the sewing-machine
business. L NJ Singer. All authorities
give Howe credit for the invention, and the
country blacksmith did well toward that
end. no doubt; but he got his idea from a de.
tective machine made by Walter Hunt of
New York in 1882. He demonstrated the
fact that a machine could take a stitch,
but he could go no farther, and Howe
patented the model and got an offer from
a London firm of corset-makers, who
gave him two years in which to perfect
his machine and adapt it to their business.
They fitted up a machine-shop and paid
him for his time, but it was a failure, and
he returned to America "disconsolate.
SINGER AS A WORKMAN.
About forty years ago a man named
Regan owned a wood-carving establish
ment on Fifth avenue, this city pitts
burg. Among his workmen was |. NJ.
Singer, who was an expert in making
wooden letters for signs. Mr.. Singer in
those days vas hard up" in the fullest
sense of that term, and was somewhat of
a Bohemian in habits and taste. He left
this CITY and tramped to New York,
where he obtained work in q similar
establishment, his new employer
being engaged in perfecting a ma
chine for saving out wooden letters
"a sort of scrolEsaw; at any rate Mr..
Singer helped him to complete it. The
inventor went to Mr.. Clark, q noted law
yer on patents, in order to get his scroll
saw patented. He took Mr.. Singer along
to better explain to the lawyer the work.
ing, specifications and plans of the scroll.
saw invention.
While there Mr.. Clark spoke incident
ally of the failure of Elias Howe to per-
feet his sewing machine in London. Singer
listened attentively, and it is said asked
many questions concerning the difficulty.
by George, " exclaimed Singer, IL can
make that thing work.
There is a fortune for you if you do"
said Mr.. Clark.
IL an do it. / have the idea now, zen.
Enthusiastically continued Singer.
THE PROBLEM SOLVED.
Then it is recorded how he looked down
at his shoes, with the soles loose, and his
clothes in tatters ana rags. He wilted $50
to speak and exclaimed: 81 am talking
wild; | / haven't money enough to buy q
screw.
81 will tell you what l will do, said
Clark. "Pll fit you up a shop in the loft
of my stable, furnish you with everything
you need to work with and live upon,
and give you two months to make it 90. If
you are successful | will get all necessary
patents and take half of my investment. y"
at a go, said Singer.
Inside of a month he had his machine
working, using the eye-pointed needle
and shuttle invented by Hunt, but with
an addition it made a continuous stitch.
There was one defect, however, His ma.
chine failed to draw up the stitches and
left each one with a loop on both sides of
the fabric. Upon this he worked night
and day until the last day of his time
Jcame. He worked at il until noon and then
started for his dinner. A thought struck
him, and back through the streets he
started on q run for his shop. He seized
a little piece Of wire, gave it several bends,
and inserted it in the machine. This was
the little spiral" called q "take.up,"
which to-day is found in one form or an
other in every machine. 1t was u SUGGEST
WHAT lowe FOUND.
Z By the time Elias Howe got back from
England he found three machines in
America that would sew; all were based
on his patent-the singer, the Wheeler &
Wilson, and the Grover ~ Baker. He
found that Singer had sold 1000
: machines. He brought suit and succeeded
in getting Judgment for $50, 600 royalty
on those sold, and further established a
royalty of $50 on each machine sold by
any OF the three firms. After this Howe
got a man named Taylor to work OF a
machine and he finally succeeded IN in.
venting an entirely new one, which took
Howe's name.
About this time rumOrs reached the
other firms that models made by Hunt
and antedating Howe's were in existence,
and they secured one from Baltimore.
They held q consultation and sent for Mr..
Howe, and showed him the model and
their proofs that Hunt invented it long
before his Eatent was applied for. Howe
Vas broken up badly and made o clean
breast of it. Rowe left the Office and
happened to meet his lawyer on the street;
To him he contided the whole matter. Il
will fix that, " said the lawyer, and they
started back.
HOW THEY. FIXED IT.
"Now. gentlemen, " he said, addressing
'the sewing -machine proprietors. you are
simply killing the goose that laid the
golden egg. You let this thing get known
and refuse to pay Mr.. Howe his royalty,
and you will have to sell your machine at
$25 instead of $l25. Inside of a year
there will be 100 sewing machines in the
market, all of them using the patent you
now hold. " They saw the point. A com
promise was effected, by which Elias
Howe continued to get a royalty of So on
each machine, instead of $50. Two dol.
lars also went into a general fund to fight
other companies into submission to their
control. This was the famous "combina-
ton" which made millions upon millions
Of dollars, and furnished much cause for
donunciation on the part of many well
meaning people.
Only an Acquaintance.
Bosom Home Journal.
49,. .-,sf II --11Z-