Evening journal., 1913-11-26
NEW NEWS OF YESTERDAY
George Westinghouse and
the Rat Trap
by Holland.

/ have heard men Of great ability,
some of whom have had long personal
acquaintance with George Westing-
house, try to analyze. Mr.. Westing-
houses intellectual powers. They
have sought to expound what to al
most every one are the mystic pro-
cesses of intellect which have enabled
Mr.. Westinghouse to gain. while still
living, fame which is sure to be per-
manent. Men of science are convinced
that Mr. Westinghouse viii be num-
bered among the American immortals.
But perhaps the best exposition Of
Mr. Westinghouse intellect and
achievements is one recently made to
me by Colonel Edward Jay Allen, of
Pittsburgh, himself a man of great
scientific attainments and of expert
ence which goes back to the days
when the discovery of gold in Cali
fornia changed the economic system
of the United States. Curiously
enough, Colonel Aliens exposition
was illustrated by a single example
that came within his own knowledge,
involving such a humble and simple
little thing as a rat trap. | quote
with substantial accuracy what Col
lonel Allen said to me:
81 received at my home at Pitts
burgh one day a very intelligent and
interesting man who told me that ne
had come to show me an invention
which he had just perfected. He want
ed to get my opinion as to its COM
mercial practicability. He was in
lclined to think that a good sale could
be secured for it.
"Thereupon he produced rat trap
and asked me to study it. | did so
and then told him that while the in
vention was very ingenious, neverthe-
less / thought he had made mistake
lin assuming that the rat is a very in
ltelligent creature. l esaid that while
the rodent is presumed to be very
cunning, nevertheless 1 thought that
rat with intelligence enough to be
made the victim of that rat trap had
not yet appeared.
"The man looked disappointed, but
he frightened up when l. told MN
that theer was one little device which
he had applied to his rat trap which
seemed to me to possess important
possibilities. I advised him to go 70
George Westinghouse with the trap.
told him that while Mr. Westing-
house was himself one of the great
est of inventors. he had possibly an
even greater gift and that was his
ability to detect value in devices, ap-
paratus or other instrumentalities
which were brought to him by inven-
tors. j said that Mr.. Westinghouse
was man without a particle OF
jealousy and that many of his great
est achievements reflected his utiliza-
tion of the devices which he had pur-
chased of others. ] asked the man
what he would sell his patent rights
in the rap trap for He told me that
he would be glad If he could get
hundred dollars for them. l said to
him that the one little device which
he had perfected ought to be worth
more money than that. and if Mr..
westinghouse bought the patent
rights to the rat trap, he would GER
tainly pay a good deal more.
Somewhat dubiously the man went
away. ! did not see him for some
weeks. At last, / met him in the
lstreet, and 7 asked him if he had
shown his rat trap to Mr.. Westing-
house.
" oh, yes, he replied, and it turned
out just as you said. Mr.. Westing-
house did not care anything about the
rat trap, but he became greatly in
terested in the Identical device which
YOU assured me would interest him. l
REALIZED that he was persuaded that
the control Of this device might be
OF great value to him in certain ap-
lparatus which he was then perfecting.
lit didn't take him long to decide. He
bought my rat trap, patent rights and
all. would have gladly sold
lit to him for a hundred dollars He
loftered me three thousand dollars for
Ia and ! accepted upon the spot
"That Device" continued Colonel
Allen. "and Mr. Westinghouse's in
slant appreciation of it illustrated to
ime better than any other anecdote Of
Mr. Westinghouse ! ever heard what
his great qualities Of intellect really
ARE"
Copyright. 1913. by r. J. Edwards.
B rfnI,to rnuarurT