Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1912-08-15
IDEAS THAT MADE MILLIONS
lovernment's Patent Office Full
of Human Interest.
|ubtIe Notions Have Returned I'M
p,rnsc Fortuncs-Appnrentiy the
Absurd, WitIess Fancies Have
Deen among Most Profitable.
(From the New York Tlmes.)

screw and find that you had added one
bf the greatest conveniences Of modern
civilization and incidentally earned $780,
u0.Ool? This has also been done. The
moving picture show, that diversion of
biz the civilized world, was made posi-
le through the simple device of max
tng a slit bigger than II had been be-
fore 1t is because farmer lay on his
back in the middle of the night and
thought, that the world has the conven-
Fence Of the platform scale. Every year
BIZ seeing the addition of more conven-
Fences and the amassing Of fortunes from
them.
\ hundred years ago this government
decided that 1t would be advisa BILE to pro-
|tect the inventor in such way that he
might be allowed the exclusive right to
profits from his invention for a term Of
Il years after making it. 1t was held
THAT making invention profitable would
add to the advancement of the race. All
the important nations have taken the
same view of the matter. All have pro-
tected the ideas of their inventors. The
advancement of the world during this
practical age of mechanics has proven the
wisdom of this plan This government
has issued 100000 patents to date. 1t is
Issuing leo of them every day. OF some 81
odd of these nothing is ever heard. but
there are few that are regularly maxi
Ing good The story of them makes pale
those yarns of gold strikes and million
aires made IN a day. Here are a few.
INVENTING THE MOVING VIEW.
G. Francis jenkins is the inventor Of
the moving picture show. He was a
government clerk before he became an
inventor. The idea of a machine that
would project pictures in such a way as
20 show a scene Of action had been
sticking In the back of his head for a
long time. There We're other people
working upon it. among Them being
Thomas Edison. They had developed "A
crude ma chine that approached, but did
not accomplish the desired result. The
machine depended upon the operation
Of n shutter. or revolving disk. In this
disk was a hole and every time the hole
came around a new picture was pro-
jectod. Chen the light was shut off and
a picture shifted into place by the
time the hole came around again. This
left the curtain dark for so long a
period that the desired idea of con-
.inuous scene was not produced.
All that jenkins did was to enlarge
the hole He extended it until it be-
rame slit that took up nine-tenths
of the distance around the disk. Thus
was the picture exposed nine times
as long the curtain was kept dark.
Operated rapidly this gave the impress
sion of a continuous exposure. and the
Instant Of darkness during which the
shift of pictures was made was not APP
parent. Tho moving picture machine was
thus perfected and the way was made
clear for Its development into the most
universal entertainment feature that the
world has ever known.
So simple was the claim upon which
jenkins applied for his patents that they
were at first refused He was told he
had no idea that had not been applied
in previous machines. Jenkins insisted
that his machine worked, while the 9TH
ers did not. In the end the commissioner
Of patents passed favorably upon his
claim simply because Jenkins demonstrate
ed to him that the given machine ac-
tually produced the result. while the
others failed jenkins did not make for
tune on this invention, but sold it out
right for $500, and other people have
reaped the chief profits. while the inven-
tor has since grown affluent as a result
OF other children of his brain.
TELEPHONE AN ACCIDENT
Probably the best paid piece of labor
the world has ever known was that per
formed by Dr. Alexander Graham Bell
when he twisted a screw one-fourth Of
one revolution and thereby invented the
telephone, and made hundred million
dollars. 1t is likewise interesting to know
that the invention was made by accident
and that DR.. Bell did not realize that it
was of any commercial value for months
afterward
DR. Sell Is by nature and training a
very learned and original scientist. His
father had invented an alphabet for the
deaf and DR. Bcll had been a student
from childhood of methods of training
the deaf 10 speak. 1t was through lis
work that he first met the Young lady
whom he afterward married. and who
had been entirely deaf from childhood.
The inventive mind of the scientist
sought method of making speech Wis.
lble by some such device as electric
flashes that he might talk more freely
with his wife. In connection with this
which another man had invented and
which attempted to carry speech to a
distance by means of electricity and a
wire. The former inventor had been
using an intermittent current. that Is a
current that jumps a gap and there
fore, is not continuous, When DIR. Bell
turned the screw already referred to, he
closed this gap, making the current con-
slant, and the principle of the modern
telephone was established.
DIR, Bell found that he could talk
over his wire. which bore an electric
current. He rugged up a system through
which he talked from his cellar to his
garnet. one night. weeks later, he
demonstrated this contrivance to a party
Of friends who were calling upon him
One of these friends saw the commercial
possibilities that lay back of 1t and
him to protect himself by patents. Next
morning at ten O'Clock he took out his
patents At three o'clock that afternoon
another man applied for a patent on the
same Idea. Through this difference OF
time one man gained and another lost
100000 and a worldwide reputation.
MILLS AND ARMY BELT.
Brig. Gen. Arson Mills Is the inventor
Of the cartridge belt that every wearel
goes into the field. General Mills. in his
earlier days on the frontier. found that
the sewed belts worn at that time were
constantly ripping and making it neces'
sary for the soldier to carry his ammu'