Wood River times. [volume] (Hailey, Idaho) 1882-1915, 1893-08-11
THE TAILOR OF MANNHEIM.
Story of the Bullet Proof Cloth, Which Il
Curious Reading.

Curious Reading.
The most popular tailor In Ger.
mary to-day is neither Worth nor
Felix, he Is Heinrich DOVE INT |
month ago no one had ever heard
or him outside of the poor quarter
or Mannheim, Baden, where he al
ways found in the Naundorff annals
interesting reading, followed his
homely trade making blue blouscs
for workingmen and mending the
trousers OF men OF his kind. Now
nus name is familiar to every soldier
ana war minister of Europe lie has
been received in audience by Chan
celior Caprivi; he has been c0urtcd iy
representatives of Austria, Italy, and
France, and his daily mail requires
the services OF a secretary. Scores of
editorials have borne his name as a
headline, and patriotic Germans have
euiOSlzed him in verse. His name
has been coupled with that of Moltke,
and his achievements have given rise
To new dreams OF German conquest.
About six months ago Dove began
to experiment with IA peculiar kind
OF cloth, which he hoped to make
popular with the workingmen because
or It's durable properties by acct
dent he put it through IA process
which he has kept secret-and to his
establishment found its powers of
resistance almost incredibly great
\ discharged bullet tiattcned against
It's surface. Naturally for DOVE
served his three years in the army
visions OF bullet-prOOf uniform and
hordes of soldiers standing up against
lying lead missiles arose before him.
lie continued his experiments with
greater zeal. In the dusk CT evening,
after hard days lalor, he stole out
to the shooting grounds OF the Mann.
helm regiments, placed his cloth on
the limbs OF trees and began to fire
at 1t with his army gun. His fellow
lahorcrs in the little shop thought
him crazy and kept him at q respect
ful distance.
The small boys of the town gath
cred about to jeer at and mock him,
but Dove worked on. His expert
ments were interrupted for weeks at a
time for lack OF money to purchase
ammunition and chemicals In the
interval he would ply his needle with
especial diligence, would save few
marks and then proceed with his
higher labors. At last, half confident
OF his success, he unfoulded his plans
to a physician of Mannheim. who,
after considerable hesitation, lent
him 300 marks with which to con-
tinGe his experiments He could give
no security for the money and could
only ptomise the doctor il percentage
OF the future gains.
a little more than a month ago he
called upon the commander of the
Mannheim garrison and asked him to
''try his buliet-proOf cloth" The Of
ficer laughed incredulously, but con-
sented to accommodate him. To the
amazement Of the officer and his aids,
the experiments were successful and
the bullets OF the ordinary rifles made
no impression on the clark blue
cloth" The Lebel gun, "the terrible
destroyer Of men," it is true, was not
used in the shooting: but Dove is
confident that his cloth eventually
| will be able to iiatten the bullets
from the "Lebel barrel"
The Mannheim commander sent
| the news Of the invention to the wal
| Office in Berlin, and day later DOVE
| was famous mau. He is about "a
| years old, and a widower with two
| children. His education was meagre,
and it is proba bic that he under
| stands no physical law He is in
| teligent, however, for man of his
| class, and with the wealth which
seems to he within his grasp he will
be able 10 tit himself for the compare
| lively important place which he ma,
be called upon to occupy.