Evening journal., 1915-12-13
New News Of Yesterday
The Sewing Machine and
the Hoop Skirt
BY Holland

The strange and gratifying experience
OF Ichabod Washbun was narrated to
me by Asa a. Potter, formerly leading
banker of Boston. VINO in that capacity
was brought in touch in the mid-years
of the past century with several of that
remarkable group of Massachusetts men
who perfected inventions which contrib
uted largely to the development OF
American prosperity.
understood Mr. Potter to say that
Mr.. Washburn. about the year 1900. was
born in a village few miles west Of
Plymouth not far from Plymouth Rock
As lad, he revealed what used to be
called yankee ingenuity" being espe-
e. skillful with jackknife and tools
In his early manhood, Mr. Washburn
was a toolmaEer, possibly higher sort
Of blacksmith, and this was a vocation
which in those early days was looked
upon in New England as an especially
reputable on
For some years his mind was oceu-
pied with the problem which, if he solved
it, would make it possible for him to
draw steel wire OF any thickness from a
steel ibn-. lie did, at hast, hit upon a
device. but it was not commercially very
practicable because the machine took a
long time to draw out a very small
quantity Of steel wire.
afr anfH Air poi fer
show nearly related some of oar imPor-
tant American inventions really were
Mir. Mashhurn kept at his problem
until at last he was able, by means OF
apparatus he invented, TO draw steel
wire with commercial practicability,
and especially fine wire, from cola
steel bar.
There was, however, not very much
demand for wire of this kind, although
AIr. Washburn manufactured fine steel
wire for some of the prominent piano
makers.
"Suddemly, ono great invention and
one freak of fashion created an enor-
nous demand for wire OF this Kind.
That was Just before the beginning OF
our Civil War. Elias Howe had in
vented practicable sewing machine.
Wilson had invented improvements upon
the machine. although the fundamental
uginciple was Howe's. think IL was
Howe who invented the needle with the
eye in the point. and this made the sew
ing machine possible.
There instantly began very heavy
demand for the Kind of steel wire avail
able for the manufacture of sewing ma
chine needles, and as the sale of sew
ing machines rapidly increased so also
the demand for needles expanded, and
there was Mashbhrn with his invention
ready to meet this demand. Probably
some other inventor in view of the de-
mand would have perfected an appa-
ratus like Nashburn's. but his invention
made the rapid marketing of the sewing
machine possible
"Then. again, Just about that time n
fashion imported from France dccried
that women should adopt that form OF
crinolne that used to be called the
hoop,skirt. To make these skirts en-
tailed "a peculiar kind of wire and it was
kind which the Plymouth Rock lad,
through his invention, was able to fur
nish. Therefore. the concurrent inven-
tion of the sewing machine and the de-
cree of fashion that women should use
hoopskirts brought such profitable de-
mand for the wire manufactured by Mr..
Washburn that he rapidly accumulated
a fortme'
Copyright, 1915. by i. j. Edwards. 9ll
rights reserved.)
Tomorrow Mr.. Edwards tells of "a