The Grenada gazette. (Grenada, Miss.) 1885-18??, 1888-10-04
whITNEYs COTTON GIN.
Circumstanoss Under which the F1ss
specimsn Was Produced.


specimsn Was Produced.
There is no doubt that the frst In.
ventor OF the cotton gin was Eli Whit
ney, and that all other claimants TO the
honor are pretsnders. Whitney was
the SOD OF Massachusetts farmer. and
was born in December, 1865. At West-
borough, in that State. From his
earliest childhood he showed that re-
markable power o. mind that is known
as inventive genius, and peculiar apt
ness in handling tools. 1t is said that
before he was ten years old he could
use any tool that he had ever seen
with dexterity, and before he was
twelve he had made violin, and ac-
quired wide fame as q skillful mender
OF fddles. He became nau-maker,
and at this business and other applica-
tons of his manufacturing skill
he made money enough to take
college course. He entered
Yale College in 1889, graduated
three years later. and went South to
teach. His ambition was to become a
lawyer, and he began the study in
Savannah, while boarding in the
family of the widow Of General
Nathaniel Greene, and ekIng out his
scanty means by coaching boys for COL
lege One day he CHANGED to hear
Mrs. Greene complaining Of the c!um-
siness OF her tam bour, and readily
made a much better one for her, TO her
great delight. At that time a few
pounds OF cotton was al that could be
cleaned by q single laborer in day.
A planter in Mrs. Greene's presence
expressed q wish that a machine could
be Invented for the work. and she ad-
vised him to consult young Whitney,
saying: II any one can make the ma
chine he can" At that time " hitney
had never examined cotton boil.
though he must have seen the plant
growing in the fields He was ready
enough 10 undertake the task but for
two obstacles. be had neither money
nor tools, An old college friend sup
piled the money, and the tools
Whitney made himself Mrs.
Greene and Miller, who after
ward became Whitney's partner,
were the only persons allowed to see
the machine in tie process OF oostruc-
ton. but the news Of the wonderful. in.
vention and its value got abroad, and
before 1t was complete some wretches
broke open the building one night and
carried of the unfinished machine.
Half mad with rage and despair, ths
young man left the State for which he
was TO create such great prosperity
went back to Connecticut and there
completed his work But he had
scarcely been away from Savannah c
week. when two other claimants 70 the
invention had appeared, and 8 few
months later the stolen invention oame
out However, Whitney received his
patent in March, 1874, and he and Mr..
Miller began the manufacture Of the
machines in Connecticut. The patent,
however, was continually infrtnged
upon. and Whitney had to struggle
hard to secure any reward for his 10.
Dor In 1901 the South Carolina Leg
islature granted him $50, 900 FOR his in.
vention, but he had to endure innu-
merable and vexatious lawsuits and de-
lays before he got the money.
North Carolina allowed per.
centage on the machines, and paid il
honorably for a number OF years, and
Tennessee pledged herself to do the
same thing, but basely repudiated her
contract. For years Whitney struggled
on against an accumulation OF mis-
fortunes, lawsuits. the burning Of bis
factory, false reports that his machine
injured the fiber Of the cotton. the re.
fusal of Congress to allow the renewal
Of his patent; until at last, convinced
that he would never receive a jus,
compensation for his invention, be
turned his attention to the manufacture
of firearms for the Government, from;
which he reaped a comfortable fortune,
He was the first to adapt machinery tc
the manufacture of the parts OF gun
so that any one piece should be equal
ly adapted TO any one of thousands OF
arms made by the some pattern. Sew
eral OF his inventions were applied by
others to other manufactures OF iron
and steel, which added considerably tc
his reputation, but not 10 his wealth,
Chicago Inter- Ocean.