Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1889-01-10
THERE ARE FORTUNES IN PATENTS.
The Enormous Capital Invested and the
Surprising Results.

The Commissioner of patents est
mates that ..from six to seven eight
of the entire manufacturing capital 4.
the United States, or six hundrGa
millions of dollars, is directly or in
directly based upon patents" A cal
culation of the same kind in England,
according to the London Inventor, re-
veals still more surprising result, the
capital invested being enormous. 1t
has been computed that Siemen's in
ventions have produced more than
five millions sterling. There is"
says an eminent authority, scarcely
an article of human convenience or
necessity in the market to-day that has
not been the subject of patent in
whole or in part. The sale of every
such article yields its inventor a profit.
Ii we purchase box of paper collars
a portion of the price goes to the in
yentor; if we buy sewing machine
the chances are that we pay ROYALTY
TO as many as dozen or fifteen inven-
tors at once" Lord Brougham often
said that he would gladly have ex-
changed his honor and emoluments for
the profits and renown of the inventor
of the perambulator or sewing ma
chine. The profits annually divided
by our several sewing machine manu-
facturers are phenomenal in amount
More money has been and always
can be made out of patented inventions
than by any other investment or occu-
patton" The telephone. the planning
machine, and the rubber patents re-
alize many millions, while the simple
idea of heating the blast in iron
smelling increased the wealth of the
country by hundreds of millions. The
patent for making the lower end of
candles taper instead of parallel, so as
to more easily fit the socket, made the
present enormous business of a we'll
known firm of London chambers
The drive-well was an idea of Col.
Green, whose troops during the war
were in want of water. He conceived
the notion of driving two inch tube
into the ground until water was
reached, and then attaching a pump.
This simple contrivance was patented
and the tens of thousands of farmers
who have adopted itpaid him royalty
until the recent decision of the Supreme
Court, which was adverse to sustain
ing the patent. A large fortune was
realized by the inventor who patented
the idea of making umbrellas of alpaca
instead of Bingham, and the patentee
of the improved paragon frame"
Samuel Fox lately left by will f170,-
600 out of the profit of his invention.
The weaving, dyeing, lace, and ribbon
making trades originated and depend
for their existence upon ingenious ma
chinery, the result of an infnity of in
ventive efforts. Carpet beating, from
behind an untold nuisance, has become
a lucrative trade through the same in
ventive genius and mechanical con-
trivance. Even natural curiosity has
been turned to account in the number
of automatic boxes for the sale of
goods of all kinds, and fabulous divi-
dends have been paid by the public
to companies owning the patents. Ia
fact any one can be successful inven-
tor. In proof of this, the most profit
able inventions are the improvements
in simple devices, things of everyday
use that everybody wants and which
are in the power of everybody to in
vent. A lady derived large income
for inventing moving belt for drying
eggs, aibumen, etc.