Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1902-07-10
ANCIENTS WERE WISE
NOT DESTITUTE OF GENIUS IN
MECHANIC ARTS.
they Had Many Things In Con mos
Use that We Have Grown to Con.
sider the Products Of Modern Skill
and luvou tiveneos.

An official of the United States Pat
ent Office who Is preparing history
Of that institution has been impressed
with the idea that there Is little new
under the sun. He has pOred over vol
umes Of ancient lore and satisfied him
self that the ingenuity Of moderns was
discounted by the wise men Of an
tiquity. In art, in the sciences, In me-
chanics, our boosted progress seems to
him to have been vastly Overrated.
bandage Of which examples are not
seen in the swathings Of Egyptian
mummles. "rhe Patent Office issues
patent for nickel-in- the-slOt ma
chine described by HerOdOtus." Pliny
tells us Of copy of the Iliad engraved
on so small piece of parchment that
the entire work was contained In nut
shell. Microscopes Of rock crystal were
found in the palace of Nlmr0d. Nero
had lenses made out Of an emerald,
with which from distance he watched
gladiatOrial contests. The Romans, as
stated by Prof. Lanciani, had storage
warehouses and safety deposit vaults.
The ancients, according to this Pat
ent office skeptic. were as full Of wis
dom as the mOderns who ignorantly
undertook to patronlze them. Their
mechanical cOntrivances and engineer
Ing works were remarkable. Archi-
medes discovered many scientific prin-
ciples which are in use nowadays. Pub
lie works were Of the highest order.
The ancient Greek water supply sys-
ment-such as we have acquired only
within the past ten years. The public
roads Of Peru were built Of masonry,
were twenty-five feet wide, macadam-
lied with pulverized stone mixed with
lime and bituminOus cement and wall
ed In by walls more than six feet thick.
A sort Of telegraph system existed and
news was transmitted hundreds Of
miles In a day. When Peru was dis
covered" several centuries ago its
wooden and cotton goods exceeded In
tineness any similar goods produced in
Europe. Plato knew that the earth was
round: other philosophers. now forgot,
ten. were familiar with the law Of
gravitatiOn. Astronomers before the
Christian era understood the rotation
Of planets and knew great deal about
comets. There is reason to believe that
the ancients used the telephone in some
form. while there Is tradition In
China that the photograph was en-
ployed by rich orientals.
Still. the wisdom OF the ancients has
not discouraged modern inventors.
Men Of science and mechanical ingenu-
lty will continue to add to the knowl-
edge. the comfort and wealth of the
world. With all the progress that has
been made many cOntrivances remain
to be devised before human ingenuity
realizes that Its limit has been reached.
Immense fortunes will be made by the
Inventive geniuses Of the future who
work out problems which must be-
solved before man attains complete
happiness on this mundane sphere.
What appears impossible In this gen.
Grafton may be In general use In the
next generation. Matters of transpOr-
tatiOn, Of power. Of fuel. Of lighting and
heating engage at this time the atten-
ton OF thoughtful and resourceful men.
There are many prizes to be won by
the successful inventors Of the fu-
ure.-BaltimOre Sun.