Morning journal and courier., 1889-10-29
Heroes ofinvension

Never did any man work harder, suffer more keenly, or remain more steadfast to one great purpose of life than Charles Goodyear, writes George Makepisce Towle in Harpsr's Young People. The story of his ife-for the most part mournful-teems with touch. ing interest. No inventor ever struggled against greater or more often returning ob- stacles, or against repeated failures more ov- erwhelming Charles Goodyear was born at New Haven, Ct., in the first year of the pres ent century. He was the eldest of the six children of a leading hardware merchant of that place-a man both of piety and of in- ventive talent. When Charles was boy his father began the manufacture of hardware ar tioles, and at the same time carried on farm. He often required his sons assistance so that Charles schooling was limited. The boy was very fond of books from an early age, and instead of playing with his mates, devot- cd most of his iesure time to reading.
 It was even while he was 8 schoolboy that his attention was first turned to the article, the improvement of which, for common uses, became afterward his life work. "He happened to take up thin scale of India rubber" says his biographer "peeled from @ bottle, and it was suggested to his mind that 1t would be very useful fabric if it could be made uniformly thin and could be so prepar- ed as to prevent its melting and sticking to- gether in 6 solid mass"
 The years of his youth and carly manhood were spent in the hardware trade in Philadel- phia and then in Connecticut, and at 24 he was married to heroic young wife, who shared his trials, and was ever to him a com forting and encouraging spirit.
 Charles Goedyear's misfortunes began ear- ly in his career. He failed in business, his health broke down, and through life there- after he suffered almost continual attacks of dyspepsia. He was, moreover, Q small, frail man, with g weak constitution. He was inn prisoned for debt after his failure; nor was this the enly time that he found himself with in the walls of jail. That was almost ire. quent experience with him in after life.
 It was by accident at last that he hit upon the secret of how to make India rubber dura- ble. He was talking one day with several visitors and in his arder making rapid gest- lures, when piece of rubber he was holding in hts hand accidentally hit against the hot stove. To his amazement, instead of melting tho gum remained still and charred like leather. He again applied great heat to 8 piece of rubber and nailed it outside the door, where it was very cold. The next morning he found it was perfectly flexible, and this was the discovery which led to that success Lul luV0ubACu WAlCn uc uau bbKuSBloo GuTOukR so many years to perfect. The main value of the discovery lay in this that while the gum was dissolved in moderate heat, 1t both remained hard and continued to be flexible when submitted to strong heat. This came to be known as the "vulcanization" of India rubber. When he really had made the dis. covery nobody believed in it.
 He was still desperately poor and in wretch- ed health. Yet he moved to Woburn. in Massachusetts, resolutely continuing his ex- periments there. He had no money and so baked his India rubber in his wife's oven and sauce pans, or hung 1t before the nose of her tea-kettle. Sometimes he begged the use of tho factory ovens in the neighborhood at- ter the days work was over, and sold his children's very school books in order to sup. ply himself with the necessary gum.
 | At last, after infinite struggles. the absorb | ing purpose of his life was attained. India l rubber was introduced under patents. and soon proved to have all the value he had in l his widest days claimed for it. Success thus | crowned his noble efforts, which had contin-
 ned unoeasingly through 10 years of self-im-
 posed privation. India rubber was now seen | to be capable of being adapted to at least 800 l uses. It could be made "as pliable as kid, tougher than ox-hide, as elastic as whalebone | or as rigid as flint" But, as too often hap pens, his great discovery enriched neithe,
 Goodyear nor his family. It soon gave em.
 ployment to 60,000 artisans. and annually
 produced articles in this country alene wortl $8,000, ,0o0.
 Happily the later years of the noble, self