Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1903-12-29
Misetllaneuus Reaains.
IMPROVEMENTS IN WEAPONS.
Americans Furnish Ideas and Foreign
ers Utilize Thorn.


fall to the right in ejecting expiodeo
cartridges, and it was because the
bulrs-eye thus provided was hit square
ly by a well-known manufacturer ol
firearms that he was enabled to eVade
patent rights and place upon the mar
ket an arm for which he paid not a
cent. Apropos Of the subject, 1 am re-
minded that all the improvements
made in destructive instruments since
almost the time Of Friar John, have
been the fruit Of the inventive genius
Of Americans" declared a man VINO
knows what's what when it comes to
eunpowder and its burning, last night
at the Grunewald.
ITO begin at the beginning" he con-
tinued, "the evolution Of the revolver
from the old pistol began in the brain
of an old gunsmith in town In this
state-Baton Rouge, If I remember the
story Alright. It's been a long time
since l heard the story; in fact, l was
told when / first began the exploita-
tions Of fowling pieces and man-de-
stroying implements twenty years ago
But the old gunsmith's name, as l re-
collect it, was La Tul, or some sucn
French name. Working at his bench
there in the dead little town Il beg
pardon, the capital of Louisiana) when
it was nothing more than an arsenal
depot, this old patcher Of guns con-
ceived the idea of building pistol
that would repeat. He did build one
but the loquacity Of his French ances-
try bred in him a penchant for talking
of his plans before executing them;
and he committed the unpardonaole
error of talking on an important sub
iect before he copyrighted his theme
As a result he found that his idea mao
been sent to the patent office and pat
ented in another's name long before
he had completed his circulations ol
the profits he expected to pocket.
THAT, so far as I know, was the ad-
vent of the revolver. Old La Turs
idea was turned into barking steel, and
made his smarter rival millionaire
before improvements began to be pre-
sented. Then inventive talents, strain
ed in the effort to make death more
certain, began upon the old cap ano
ball with the view of evolving some
thing better, surer, and the next step
radical, I mean-in revolver manurac-
ture was the brass cartridge or navy
gun. This brings me, in two jumps
to the place at which 1 started. AL
patents for revolvers up to this time
provided for ejectment upon the right
The first p ttent for the navy was TAX
en- out by friend Of mine, and by fol-
lowing the custom of ejectment from
the right he provided the bulrs-eye
This friend, Browning by name, lived
in St. Louis, and shortly after taking
out his patent papers I, with brother
gunpowder man, went to see him. We
were both interested, and finally my
friend asked him, point blank, what ne
wanted for his rights.
Five hundred dollars" the pat
entee answered, and my friend imme-
diately heard fortune knocking at his
door.
Done he answered, and peeling OH
100 crisp s5 bills from large roll ne
closed the ZEAL before one or the 9TH
er had time to change his mind. Be-
ing sole owner Of the patent rights tc
the largest improved revolver, my
friend went to the well-known man.
ufacturer with a proposition the latter
saw fit not to take. The manufactures
offered $1,000. for the patent. The
powder man contemptuously refused
the offer, and betook himself to capt.
talists. who hemmed and hawed until
too late.
Meantime the manufacturer, anx-
ious to obtain the patent, set his. at
torneys to work. That is where the
singular similarity of ejecting process
es played it's part. The attorneys
found that all patents covered only
the ejectment to the right. The man.
ufacturer promptly prepared a work
ing model with the cylinder falling to
the left, securing a patent identical te
all intents and purposes. and for which
he didn't have to pay cent.
1.-THE addendum Of the story Is tina,
nv friend, the gunpowder man, prac.
tically invested $500 in gold brick
He has the patent yet, and later I'M
provements have rendered it worthless
But I think that his experience has
been shared by nearly every Ameri-
can who has ever patented any kino
of firearn. The Hotchkiss gun was
the invention Of an American who
could not gain the attention of this
government until a foreign nation
adopted it as part Of its armament
Then the United States had to ask
permission before manufacturing tina,
particular type of engine Of war fol
army service.
"Sir Hiram Maxim was forced tc
sell his patent to England, though II
was offered to this county first. And
Maxims are now as well known ir
our navy and army as they are In the
British.
1.-The Martini-Henri rifle, at one time
the arm Of IT, British infantry, was
also the invention. of an American; and
the French mitrelleuse, a prototype OF
DR.. Gatling's gun, was regarded as the
dream of a 'daffy' resident Of Illinois
long before the necessities engendered
by the civil war induced the adoption
of the Gatling. To come down to a
later date, though the Krag-Jorgensen
until lately the arm of the United
States army, bears a foreign name, II
is an American invention also.