The St. Louis Republic., 1903-05-26
EPOCHS OF HISTORY
IN PATENT EXHIBIT,
Government Is Preparing Unique
Display for the Louisiana
Purchase Exposition.
SERIES OF MODELS DESIGNED.
Pattern of Original Machine or
Tool in Every Line of In.
vention Will BE
Shown.
SERIES OF MODELS DESIGNED.
The Republic Bureau,
18th st. and PENNSYLVANIA Ave,

!
18th st. and PENNSYLVANIA Ave
| Washington, May 25.-The Patent Office II
| preparing for the st. Louis Fair very
novel and interesting exhibit. consisting OF q
| series Of models designed to represent
ideas that have made epochs in the indus
trial history Of the world.
So far as possible, the first thing Of its
kind in every line Of human invention will
be shown.
For instance. visitors will have an oppor-
tunity to see the actual sewing machine
which was the first practical contrivance
| Of its kind ever constructed. 1t was patent
ed in 1916 by Elias Howe. Previously. in
1s42. J. ]. Greenough had obtained patent
for a sewing machine, which carried the
cloth along automatically, having a needle
with hole in the middle.
The needle passed back and forth through
the fabric somewhat after the manner of
the old-fashioned needle But the Green
ough machine, though in its day a wonder,
did not work fast enough to be OF much
account.
The essential principle Of tho Howe ma
chine was the needle with an eye in the
point-an idea which was not wholly original
With this inventor. inasmuch as eye-point-
Gu ucculcS udO Uetu III use III PEaNC6 IOE y
century. for embroidering.
As rule. great inventions attain their
development through the brains Of many
and this bs s hardy heS
Of the most valued treasures Of the Patent
Office. is operated with two threads, from
srools. On card attached to It Is bit Of
verse, in which Howes creation is made to
say:
Mine are sinews superhuman,
Ribs OF brass and nerves Of steely
am the Iron Needew oman,
Born to toll and not to feel.
Equally interesting in its way is the
earliest typewriter, which was patented by
c. Thurber in 1872. The type keys are sci
wheel and in order to print letter it is
merely necessary to punch one Of the but.
tons, which causes the type to descend
through q little tube and make q mark
But the wheel has to be freshly adjusted
for each letter and at least five minutes
would be required to write a single line.
The written matter looks like a telegram
The exhibit in question will include q
model Of the first cast-tron plow which was
patented by Charles Newbold in 1887, and
the first screw propeller which was invented
by Robert Hook in 1850.
1t will be news to most people that the
screw propeller was thought Of so long ago,
in which great thoughts are liable to be
product of many minds.
The invention of the steamboat is credited
to Robert Fulton, yet in the Seventeenth
Century Denys Papin launched on the Seine
in France a boat that was run by steam
1t Is matter Of historical record that the
river barge men smashed Papin's boat be.
cause they feared that it would injure
their business.
The most interesting Of all the models
however. in the line Of aQuatics will be
that Of Abraham Lncoln's famous device
for lifting steamboats, OF shoals.
Another exhibit will be the first printing
press and harvesting machine. the latter
made in $50 B. c.
The first locomotive and first steam en-
gine, made in Egypt 160 B. c., also will be
shown with many other rare inventions.