Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1912-01-06
FORESTALLED &
THE INVENTOR.
How a Clever Thief Used a
Camera to Defraud.

lore striking anything OF actual value.
Then. be happened 10 fall in love.
There IL nothing to settle a man down
love apd marriage The trst invention
Fairchild made. after his engagement
hs sold for $1,000. On this be married
His workshop was single room ON
an upper door In a business block in
The city. There be used TO go at o
o'clock In the morning and work all
day at his inventions. In a few months
be hid perfected machine which be
believed would make his fortune. He
made very excellent model of the
choicest wood, with brass fittings,
keeping It, b secret and locking the
model In his shop when not there. 10
that no one could get at It, When.
however. bis lawyer came 10 ask Tor
patent he was informed that the
same machine had been PATENTED o
few days before. -.
Great was ,Fairchild's disappoint-
ment. but greater was fiis surprise
that some one else had been working
on the same plan as himself and at
the same time. Nevertheless he APP
piled himself diligently and In the
course OF "a year had another novelty
ready for patentng. What was, his
establishment to find that In this also
some one had got ahead OF him. This
time he began to- suspect that his
plans had been copied. But who could
have done so? He kept them locked
in a safe in his shop. and there was
no evidence OF the safe ever having
been opened by. any one except him
self. He made an inspection of the
entrances to his shop. but there was
only one door. on which he had placed
a lock that no one would he likely to
pick. There was nothing about the
room that gave any evidence of hav-
ing been tempered With. However.
before completing other plans and au-
other model. every night before leav-
ing he placed seal on the door and
on each of the two windows. The
seals were never broken except by
himself when be returned to work in
the morning. Nevertheless when he
applied for a patent on his next ma
chine he found that he had been fore
stalled.
Hoping to get rid of the trouble by
changing his shop. Fairchild rented
a room in another building. Here
he mqde a. new machine. Giving the
plans to bis lawyer. he waited the re-
suit with feverish anxiety. 1.-THE re-
port came. as usual, that this invention
had been patented.
BY this time he had spent every cent
he had RECEIVED for his first invention
and had made pothing more. A chId
had been born to him. aud his neces-
sary expenses were, INCREASED There
was something SO Irritating, SO wear
ing on him that sumo mysterious per-
son or spirit was taking advantage Of
his brain work. leaving him and bis
family to sturve. that he at last broke
down with nervous prostration.
Meanwhile as his spirits sank his
wife rose to the OCCASION; She con-
tended that there was no way for any
one tp. steal the plans except at the
shop and determined to keep watch
there berself., Her husband was too
discouraged I'd make a new invention.
but he wrote out a bogus plan and set
up a former model, While 1t was APP
proachinG' completion Mrs. Fairchild.
leaving their little one in care of her
husband. went to the shop, She en-
tered it stealth4ly. so az mot to put
any one ON guard. She. sat In the dark
till long past midnikht! but saw moth.
ing unusual. The next night she went
again to the shop and sat in the. dark.
1t was forlorn hope sitting there
with only the dim model to see against
the window. 1t was perhaps II o'clock
when she began to feel very sleepy.
She pinched herself to keep awake.
Suddenly there was flash SO binding
that she was forced to close her eyes
for second. and when she opened
them all was darker than ever. M
Mrs. Fairchild waited awhile so as
not to alarm any one. then stealthily
left the shop and. going to the nearest
police office. told the officers she
thought there were robbers In the
building where her, husband had his
shop. Several of them accompanied
her. she having the good sense to warn
them to make search with great
caution. They searched every floor,
at last coming to the one where the
shop was located One man stationed
himself on the landing above. one. be-
low. There were but two rooms on
a floor. and the men directed their
search to the rear room back of the
shop. The door was locked. and there
was no appearance Of light within.
AT Mrs. Fairchild's request the police.
man broke open the door. Directing
buIiseye lantern into the apartment.
a man was seen covering In corner
In n table drawer was found MUM
Der Of photographs In different stages
of finish. ON the table camera. Near
the ceiling In the wall between the
room and the shop was hole so care
fully made and stopped when not used \
that It would never he observed unless
sought for. Holding the light to the
Mrs. Fairchild recogniz. /
ed pictures OF her husbands models.
The man was arrested and confessed
that he had been photogrnphing Fair.
child's models ever since the inventor
had been making them by means of l.
the hashight process of photography.
He was convicted. and all of his pat
ents were transferred to Falrchild. who y
Is now enormously wealthy
=.
Takina No Chancaa.