The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1913-01-30

st. Augustine, Fla, Jan. 28.-James
! 3artlett Hammond, inventor of the
typewriter that bears his name and
president of the company manufac-
.uring it, died suddenly at the Hotel
Alcazar here yesterday. He was
learly rs years old and was on a
His body will be taken to New York
today.
James Bartlett Hammond was born
at Boston April %, 1889. He was edu
Gated at the public schools of Boston
and the University of Vermont, from
which he was graduated in 1861. In
| the Civil War Mr.. Hammond was a
correspondent for the New York
! Tribune. At one time, going from
| Winchester to Harper's Ferry, after
Sheridan's retreat, he was captured
by band of Mosby's guerillas and
sentenced to be shot for writing
abolition lies for Horace Greeley"
He, however, escaped during a sud-
| den attack by union forces.
After the war Mr.. Hammond stud
led for the ministry at Union Theo-
logical Seminary, New York. He
continued his studies in Germany,
| but was compelled to return TO
America In broken health and distrub
ed by difficult theological and phil
| osophical questions. Mr. Ham
mond had become an expert steno
| grapher and while engaged in the
| translation and annexation of the
| hat nrlr
| of long hand was irksome, perfected
plan, on which he had worked in
| college, for a machine that would re-
| lieve the labor for manual effort.
For many years after beginning work
on his writing machine he suffered
| poverty, but he persisted and pro-
duced, in 1876, machine that was
later developed into the present day
| Hammond typewriter. the first oil
which was exhibited in 1884.
Mr.. Hammond made great deal
of money in the Hammond Typewrit-
| err company of which he was presi'
| dent. He had his own ideas concern
ing the way things should be done,
| and in consequence figured in the
newspapers to no small extent in the
last six years. In 1907, when he
was 6S years old, his brother, Thomas
| f. Hammond, who was in the cash
register business, declared that the
inventor, was insane, and caused
him to be arrested and taken to
Bellevue hospital for examination.
Experts declared that Hammond
was insane after he had remained
three days In Bellevue, and asserted
that his particular form of insanity
was permanent. That was in April
1907. The following December Ham
mond returned TO his typewriter fac
| tory, in East seth street, after remain
ing nine months in sanatorium.
| He had been awaiting the trial OF
his case and sheriff's jury had inn
medately declared him sane.
In 1908 Mr.. Hammond thought that
he was soon to die, and he gave to
certain employees 500 shares of the
stock of the Hammond Typewriter
company. When the doctors told him
he was not in danger of immediate
death and he felt better he brought
suit to restrain his employees from
disposing of the stock, which had
been distributed in his absence In
Europe. Justice Giegerich decided
in Hammond's favor in 1909.
Mr.. Hammond had big motor
boat built In 1911. and in it he start.
ed on a cruise which he declared
would last for 81 years. The Loung
er ii sailed from New York in July
and headed south. He was going
around the world by way OF Florida
Several Interruptions to the voy
age occurred on the passage to Flor
ida, and at Jacksonville fire was dis
covered aboard the yacht and Mr.
Hammond had narrow escape. The
accident halted the inventors tour OF
the world.
He was noted for his generosity
toward the men and women whom
he employed. For years he daily
visited the factory and spoke to
every woman and man there. They
knew him more as a familiar friend
than as an employer He was fond
of giving them coaching parties
driving a tallyho he led a string OF
them all filled with his workers.
One of the achievements of which
he was proudest was an invention by
the use of which 20 languages can be
typewriter on one typewriter.
Mr.. Hammond was reputed to be
very wealthy, several times a million
aire. He was a widower and eccen
tric. 1t is prophesied that there will
| hA Ia 4.