The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1899-10-07
IX-RAYED A MOTOR FRAUD
A PERPETUAL MOTION MACHINE
THAT WENT BY CLOcKWORK.

Investors Sent 1t to the Patent ONCE after
Aldrich Got Into Prlson-Patent ONCE
Wouldn't Bother With It-Scientidc
American Tries Sldagraph.
In revealing the unseen "works"
which made a perpetual motion ma
chino "mote' the Scientific American
has found a new use for the A-ray.
There came to the office OF the paper
not long ago box containing mys-
FERROUS machine. Along with 1t came
letter from man in Bradford,
Penn, who said that the machine was
the invention OF J. NJ. Aldrich, now
serving o sentence in Auburn Prison
for obtaining money by fraud. Al
arich drifted into Bradford some time
ago and succeeded in interesting sew
eral men in his perpetual motion coz
trivance.
After thoy had seen it "mote" and
had scrutinized its exterior, they adj
vanced money to the inventor to en.
able him to perfect his machine and
get it through the Patent Office. But,
IS weeks went by, and Aldrich a6'
sorbed the money advanced him with
out any apparent result. tie pro.
moters became suspicious. At last
Aldrich was locked up in the county
Jail, only to b. released when the pro-
motors concluded that they lacked
evidence against him, Later he YVES
sent to prison in New York State:
Aldrich's motor, like Keely's, is iri=
geniously contrived to dupe anybody
who thinks something can be made
from nothing. Most perpetual motion
machines don't go, but Keely's did
and so does Aldrich's. Keely's motor
was big machine, immovable, and 1t
was simple task for its constructor
to connect il by unseen tubes with
the source Of power under the floor,
but this motor from Bradford can be
carried about i'll hat box, and its
maker showed unusual mechanical
skill in SO concealing the ''works"
that 1t puzzled the experts who ex-
amined it. II is one OF the most
cleverly contrived frauds that ever
drew money from the pockets OF the
guileless.
So simple is the exterior constitute
ton of this motor that it seemed all
the more wonderful to Aldrich's dupes.
First, square, thick, WOO len base,
seemingly o solid piece; on this block
two posts, supporting horizontal
shaft; on the shaft, at its middle, q
large fly wheel. Then, ON tho shaft,
on either side of the fly wheel, straight
arms at right angles to each other; at
the ends OF the arms, metal weights
on swinging levers-the movers of the
motor. Many on inventor. chasing
, the will-o' -the-wisp of perpetual
motion, has sought to mako a whee
] turn by gravity by placing about it'
; circumference weights on hinged pro
jecting arms, and having these arms
throw the weights away from thu
wheel on ono side and draw them il
, on the other. But, despite the mos
ingenious devices Of those who have
B soughtto disprove the laws of the con
; servation of energy, all these weighted
! wheels have refused to go.
This machine from Bradford, on tn
! face of it, is an honest weighted whee
= motor, but unlike all other motors 0
). its kind, it goes. With no uncertain
d motion does it go, either; it is SO full
). of energy that it has to havo gov
ernor and brake to keep it from run
: ming away with itself. A brake on I
9 perpetual motion machine ia impress
J sive. Tho weighted levers of thi
machine are so attached to the trans
h verse arms that in the downward hal
h of each revolution they fall outwar
and forward, thus frightening til
d radius of the revolution. On the VI
] ward half of the revolution the lever
e close up and the weights describe a
arc of rotation with q shortened rf.dius
: AS each transverse arm with its jointe
!. lever and weight rises little past th
oi horizontal it slides forward and dow
ward, thus throwing the weight o
ID the opposite end still further from til
10 centre and increasing the turnin
. moment on that side, at the san
IL time decreasing the moment on IL
e. upward half of the revolution. I'll
o transverse arms are kept in place
means of small rocking levers whic
extend from steadying arms attache
to the shaft.
DC After Aldrich had been sent to pri
on some. of his dupes were still read
to to believe that there was somethir
al in his motor. They couldn't make
Ill go, however; something was wroI
W somewhere. So they sent it to IL
s. Patent Office. The Patent Office
x overrun with perpetual motion m
lg chimes, and the examiners seldom stC
Id to look ct them. They haven't tim
as The motor was shipped back to Bra
Is ford. Then it was sent to the Scienti
m American office. The Bradford pc
IT. pie wanted it taken apart and look
or into; they didn't want to take it apa
ID, themselves, because they didn't knc
b. what Internal contrivances might
", secreted in it. Tho examiners he
Is. looked it over very carefully and fail
ID, to find any concealed devices. TIL
III said it was the demonstrating II
ne tor they had ever seen. Rather tn
nd destroy the machine, they took all
"a ray photograph OF the innocent-loc
nd ing woodea base.
- The mystery vanished when the
~ ray revealed the silhouette of CO
=, mon, everyday clockwork, with