The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-11-01
FACTS ABOUT STEEL PENS.
Increasing Sales IN the Face of Typewriters
and Fountain Pens.

increasing Sales IN the Face of Typewriter
and Fountain Pens.
The mum Der of steel pens consumed
yearly in the United States is computed
TO be between three and four for each
man. woman and child in the land
Estimating the population at $1,000.
GOO, the total number of pens used
yearly here is between 1876, 900, 600 and
900. 600. 900. In Great Britain the com
puta alton is said to be twelve for each
man. woman and child The figure is
here believed to be too high. The
importation Of pens into the United
States is about one-half the quantity
used. The exact quantity manufac,
tured here is known to be very
few only, it being trade secret
carefully kept Notwithstanding the
invention of the typewriting ma
chine and the fountain pen,
the sale OF steel pens steadi-
ly shows a yearly increase. Tbe per
centage is the same practically as the
percentage Of yearly increase in the
nations population. In view of the
general use into which the typewriter
and the fountain pen have come. the
fact thvt their invention has had no
Elateria influence on the sale Of steel
pens is surprising. But even the opera
tor on the typewriter is compelled 20
scribbie. and then. too-and this is as
signed as the chief cause of the steel
pens retaining its sale-children con
tinue to graduate in greater mum bers
from the school year by year. A rep
Tcsentative of one of the largest for
eign manufacturers of pens told the
writer that he estimated that the in
vention OF the typewriter and fountain
pen had decreased the annual sale of
the steel pen 33 per cent, that is,
had made the increased sale that much
less than it would be otherwise The
domestic manufacturers however. de-
clared this To be true only of imported
pens. and that they felt the effect of
competition on the part of the domestic
pen.
Steel pens were introduced into this
rouutry in 1882 bv Michael l.. Leman,
the pen manufacturer, now dead. Their
introduction fell fiat. People would
not use the metallic pen. as it was
called, on the ground of the old con-
servative cry that what was good
enough for their fathers was good
enough for them. In addition the fact
that the nesv writing device scratched
and that it seemed that the writing
would not lastan length of time. were
effective objections against its use The
last objection is still assigned as the
reason why the Bank of England uses
the quill to-day. The great fire in New
\ orls in 1876 was the cause of the gen
eral introduction of the steel pen here.
in that fire more than ]. 200. 900 auills
were burned and a shortage in the pen
supply ensued. Mr.. Leman, then
great pen merchant, determined to sell
only steel pens, refusing to import the
quill: and he succeeded.
/ There is much waste of steel in the
manufacture of pens; il is unavoida BILE,
and amounts to from twenty-five to
thlrty-three per cent. The prepared
steel that can not be turned into pens
as thrown away, no longer having ca
pacity for use. So worn out pens are
no longer capa bic of utility in any
form. 1t is the acid in the ink that
wears out the pen so quickly There
are inks without acid, but they are not
generally used. A pen that is in con-
slant use lasts no longer than a day.
There are pens and pens. New
York dealer has in his shop eos STYLES.
All these he claims to manufacture. In
this pen shop, moreover pens are pre-
scrib bed If asked. the proprietor will
examine his customer and tell him
what pen he should use to write most
easily, most legibly and most rapidly.
Ailments in penmanShip are also cured
by the prescription of certain pens He
SAYS that from study he has come to
the conclusion that peculiar nervous
temperaments and habits of mind re-
quire the use of certain styles of pens
to,achieve most in writing. For exam
pie, mind that thinks rapidly is
much hindered if the writer can
not keep apace with the flow of
thought, and for such man he
prescrihes a rapid transit" pen which
he makes. and which really moves
with wonderful rapidity even on the
toughest paper.
The stub pen came out in 1870. and
was first classed as the short nib en-
crossing pen" 1t was not intended to
popularize ii at first, but the demand
became so Imperative that it was forced
on the market despite the manufactur-
ers. IL has become one of the pens
largest in demand. The different
styles Of this pen are quite numerous.
one domestic manufacturer MAKING
twenty varieties. Clergymen and law
yers use them most
Although the pen is so small a thing
and seemingly simple to make. il
takes some time before it reaches tbe
state when it is ready for use. No or
Ger for a pen that has to be made TO or
der can be executed in less than ten
days. This il mainly due to the MANY
times 1t has TO be heated and to the
securing ii receives 20 take off the
rough edges
Pens can be made out of eight
metals: Steel, brass. copper. gold. sill
yer, platinum. aralgam. and alumni
MUM Aluminium pens are still a
novelty and are said to last mucl
longer than AIRY other metallic pen.