Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-04-10
PATENTED BY WOMEN.
Novel Things to Which the Sex Has
Applied Its Inventive Genius.
THE RECORD FOR PENNSYLVANIA.
Ho5pskirts, Corsets, Bustles, Etc, Have Been
Rather Neglected.
WHAT THE STRONG MINDED RUN TO
THE RECORD FOR PENNSYLVANIA.
WHAT THE STRONG MINDED RUN TO
WRITTEN FOR THE pIsPArcH.r

It has been frequently asserted that
women have no inventive faculty and the
world likes to believe it; yet from actual
| official returns women 60 right on invent
| ing. 1t is encouraging to notice that there
is at least one man who recognizes this talent
IN women, and if ''gallant Mr.. RELY" shall
have his way with the bill he has so kindly
introduced in Congress, then will women az
inventors have fair provision made for
them at the Worlds Fair.
Being curious to know inst what kind Of
showing In this line of head-work women
were likely to make and particularly what
share of the glory Mr. Rely could claim
for the women of his State, 1 have taken
the pains to look up what women have in
vented and am surprised to discover that
they have taken out patents on pretty
much everything from q shoe button to q
telescope. Indeed, find the very first
submarine telescope was invented by
woman, Sarah P. Mather, in 1845. Long
before women had thought they dare aspire
to the profession, before they had been ad-
mitted to practice in the courts of justice,
granted the privilege of the clinic, or been
licensed to preach the Gospel, they were
exercising their inventive genius, since
that required no license.
City Women Helping Country Sisters.
As early in this century as the ninth year
there was patent granted to woman for
machine that would weave straw with
either silk or cotton thread From this one
of that year the number with each succeed
ing year has rapidly increased until thou
sands of patents have been granted to
women, and every State in the Union has
its representatives.. City women lead
country women and women in small towns
in the number of inventions. This would
not, perhaps, be worthy of remark were it
not that city women have largely invented
appliances useful especially to country
women and which one would naturally ex-
pect country women to first discover the
need of, and that out of the need would
spring the invention.
New York State outnumhers BY MANY
hundreds other States in the number Of
patents granted to women 646 having been
taken out since 1909. Massachusetts, is next,
while Pennsylvania ranks third Two
hundred and forty-seven patents have been
granted to women of our State. Thirtv-six
have been taken out during the last three
years. OF this number, Philadelphia has
furnished nearly one-half OF these, Marie
E. Beasley, famous for having invented
machine for tnrning out complete barrels BY
the hundreds, has been granted no less than
ten patents. Besides the best known and
most generally employed appliances for
making barrels, she is the patentee of a
life-saving raft, a machine for pasting shoe
uppers a steam generator, and other useful
appliances.
What Strons-Minded Women Invent.
The women of Philadelphia are stylish or
nothing, and in the number of their inven-
tions they have not overlooked anything
that would in their opinion improve upon
their personal attractiveness. They do not
pose as being particularly strong minded,
but since it has been done by the women Of
and especially those of Bos-
ton, i. is not without point to notice that
out of nearly 800 patents granted the women
of that State, two-thirds have been i'm
provements upon corsets, hoop-skirts,
bustles, hair curriers'; in short all such f1um-
merry in the line of wearing apparel, and
the balance, with the several exceptions 1
shall name, were taken out on various good
and useful things growing out of household
thrift.
To the renown of our sisters of that State,
let it be known, the first fountain pen was
the invention of Susan S. Taylor, of East
Cambridge And let Helen L. Mackef
have due credit for an improvement in
alloys to initiate silver, and ANNE NJ
Getchell process for hardening copper.
But the greatest achievement was that Of
Miss Margaret E. Knight who invented a
machine for making the useful
square, -bottomed paper bag, and refused
invented another machine that does the
work of 80 pairs of hands in folding these
bags.
Coming back to our own State, though
Philadelphia women began BY taking out.a
patent on corsets in 1862 and the last year
closed with Ida G. Muslin patenting COM
oination under garment, in the Intervening
years among other things patented, both
interesting in the way of being useful and
were the following:
Inventions Of Pennsylvania Women.
A rail for ornamental fence, granted to
Elizabeth NJ Stigale; to Victoria Quarre
w edekind, an improvement for engraving
,n copper; to Elizabeth CConnor, improve
nent in beehives: to Sarah Ruth, sunshade
or horses; to Mary A. E. Whitner, i'm
in stereoscopes; to Mary F. Sal
ade, improvement in plating machine: to
Iouisa F. Sleeper improvement Ill detachinY
,orses; to Ella /. Haller, patent on self
lighting lamp and to Lille Tubbs, cut-oR
or hydraulic and other engines.
Pittsburg and Allegheny have swelled the
ist with useful and time and labor saving
ts and with the sin2le exception
VI a patent taken out by Harr1ett u, Sill on
cosmetic compound, nothing inconsider-
BILE has been patented by them
Emily E. sassey, of Pittsburg. is the pat
ntee or an Improvement in syphon propel-
err pumps; Elizabeth Holt, improvement in
for piston-rOds; Ella MaTat:a, coal
-ault grating, while Amelia III. Lindsay has
atented a rotary eng inc, by which samples
f their inventive genius it may be inferred
hat the women of Pittsburg are content to
rusf to Yankee Improvements upon all ap-
liances Tor perfecting and making easier
heir own labors, while they sweat their own
rains for the betterment of the manufac-
uring industries of their city. In this they
re abetted by their Allegheny sisters.
usan L. Sinclair, OF that city. has patented
car wheel and a method of filling the re-
es-es in the tread OF car wheels Christina
eggs has patented a car seat and limb
IMPORTER for car seats.
Tastes in Allegheny County.
But not hoopskirt, corset f1atiron or hair.
-imper has been patented by a woman in
i that region of country.
As a mere mention of what other Pennsyl-
ania women have invented. Betsy Ann
-orden, O, Scranton has an Improvements
car-eouplings: Savilla III. CrumP, OF Read
p has patented % thing so grue5ome as a
,rpse-cooler; Emily E. Tassey, OF Mchees-
1rt, Improvement in apparatus for raising
lnlen vessels: Elizabeth Delong, of Stone
burcn patent on steam and fume boxesj
ora Hirsh, of Lancaster, n car-coupling de-
ice, while Annie X. Pentz, of Clearfeld,
IS invented and patented q stock car; Mrs.
has invented machine for 1eed-
u cattle on trains.
Let it be remembered that 1t was Mrs.
Uterine Green. wife of General Nathaniel
reene, who undoubtedly invented the cot
IN gin though to her second husband credit
flue for her ever having Draved the ridt-