Springfield globe-republic. (Springfield, Ohio) 1884-1887, 1886-07-04

have been allowed on the improvements by
tii' Patent office. and steps viii soon be Ia
taken 10 obtain foreign patents. Now a:
I" tie Inventions Themselves. Everybody
knows te bother Of threading needle ol
the sewing machine The head must be
bent dow n and the ha1d cramped, and hap
py the ira which is successful the first
time. Another great difficulty with the
sewing machA-s now in Use is to get heavy
goods, such as an uNcrCeat ~ cloak, under
the foot OF the machine. These two diff
CultieS are obv's,ed in Nr. Lo"krrs's de
vices, the arm OF the machine being made
in two pieces, and We armhead plvoted So
that the whole arrn-hcad. foot needle bar
and all can be swung around, either side at
will, out of the way, ifting the needle up
in front of the eyes. SO that il can be
threaded rs easily as All ordinary loose
needle. and leaving a Spae of several
inches clear under the foot in which heavy
goods can be introduced. Thisswingimg is
controlled by leyer-huttOE Ontle arm of
the sewing machine. When >he fOt of the
machine is turned up in the ar,tt is also
much easier to adjust hemmerS, NraderS
and other attachments. That the singing
around Of the arm-head does not iHrrfert
with the mechanism of the maenr j.
proved by the fact that the maChiR will
still run no matter how far the arurAead
is swung around. The swinging is aoom-
,,1i y,Yb ba, la I,.l
centric with the shaft of the arm. ThhiS
the most valuable of the devices. andES
covered by three patents. The next devie
is a divided table. The table of the lnS
under the bed-plate of the machine. TM
whole right side of the table can be let
down, leaving the bed-plate projecting,
making it possible to hem around sleeves,
perfectly fiat, from the fact that
the work can be passed directly under
the shuttle brace. A hinged and jointed
needle-har and hinged and jointed foot
bar are two other devices. by which the foot
and mredle-har can be turned up out of the
way for convenience in threading. and in
putting thick goods under the foot An
other device is a spool box made of tin and
designed 10 be attached to the arm The
box contains six sp"ols, each spool accom-
panied by its proper and separate tension
thus obyiating the necessity of change Of
tension. The box can be readily detached
and used for hand sewing. A needle clamp
is another invention, enabling the operator
10 take the needle away from the machine
without losing its set, and to turn the needle
up out Of the way when done sewing. An
automatic locking device makes it possible
to lock the action Of the machine. The
sewing machine experts vino have seen the
attachments are unanimous in their trsti-
momy of their value.
1t is said that Singer the great improyrr
If sewing machines, made $50. 600. 900 in
royalties. and other inventors have made
fortunes in proportion. The immense finan-
,ial value of such inventions will thus be
seen. The owners have not vet decided
what disposition to make of the inventions.
Mr.. LOCKER said. The Singer Co. are
making 500 machines a day and the DomeS-
tic Co. $50, with other concerns in proper
ton. \ small royalty on this improvement
IF ours would amount to a fabulous amount
When went to Washington and saw the
ar loads of models illustrating the improve
nents on sewing machines. it seemed As if
ny devices must be among them, but the
patent office was bare Of anything like
hem. The swinging arm-head can be ap-
Dlied to any O{ the machines now manufaC-
uTed, by a change in the castings, at an ex-
DenSe of not over fifty cents a machine"
Mr.. LOCKER recently exhibited his i'm
to the sewing machine manu-
acturers of Cleveland, who were amazed
1t the simplicity of the invention and its
,reat value.
Several handsome offers for the patents
lave been made but have not been accept
u. Mr.. LOCKER was born in Fairfield coun-
Y. Ohio and spent most of his life in Nir
,inia He is a striking looking old gentle
nan with white mustaChe and beard, grey
lair, and a thoughtful, intelligent look.
lie, as well as his partner, Dr. Mclaughlin.
lave excellent chances for making a million
piece ont of their inventions.