The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1918-07-20
Priest is an inventor
For Good Of Humanity
Father Glynn Is Priest With a Me.
chanical Turn of Mind-Has to
His Credit a Score of
Inventions.
(By' Harry \. Mount in the Cleveland
Plain Dealer.o

VI! ilNllS y. MOUNT Ill lue SleNelauC
Plain Dealer0
TWO young men-hardly more than
boys-worked side by side in the Of
fee of the Cambria Steel Co., at Johns
town, Pa. One was Charles NJ. Schwab,
now the steel king who was recently
made director of Americas all-import-
ant shipbuilding program. This is
story Of the other man.
He is Thomas j. Glynn-Rev. Thos.
j. Glynn, it is now; priest, author and
inventor. Yes, inventor; Father Glynn
is a priest with mechanical turn of
| mind, and he has to his credit score
or more of inventions, many of which
are in use.
His story is in striking contrast with
that of his former co-worker, Schwab,
for, at the age of IS, because of i'll
| health, he leads quiet life in Beaver
| Falls, Pa, a pretty little town just
across the Ohio line, between Cleve-
land and Pittsburg. He is acting chap
lain Of Providence hospital, there, and
devotes his time to this work and to
his inventions.
His life has been one of constant
| sacrifice of personal ambition, and, if
he has not won the fame that has come
| to Schwab, he is no less deserving.
He has refused to patent his inven-
tons, leaving them free for the use of
all and for "the good of humanity"
Rev. Father Glynn was born in Ire
land, and was brought to this country
| by his parents when he was a year
old He was educated in the public
| schools Of Johnstown, Pa, and finally
| got job in the office of the Cambria
| works, where he became Schwab's
friend. At about the same time that
Schwab left for the Bethlehem steel
works, where he rose to fame and
fortune, young Glynn began studying
for the priesthood He was ordained
on April 25, 1898, and, after serving
| as an assistant rector for five years
of St. Joseph's Church, North Oak
| land, Pa. After five years service
there, he spent many years as pastor
of St. Peters Church, at Brownsville,
Pa
When he left Brownsville a few
years ago, his church had become the
| mother church Of sixteen new par
| ishes. He had paid the debt on new
parochial residence at Coal Center and
had built new church at Lucyville.
In spite Of all Of this busy activity, he
had found time to write and publish
several books of essays and poems and
to work out many Inventions
One Of his first inventions was cir
| cular, all-steel mail, express and ca
boose car. Later, he found this device
in use at San Diego, Cal, with thirteen
improvements by others.
His work always has been among
| iron and steel workers and the inven-
| ton in which he places greatest faith
is new method of producing steel.
He has designed a furnace combining
| the best features of the open hearth
| and blast furnaces, which he believes
will materially lessen the cost and la
| Dor OF steel production.
Another invention is an automatic
brake for trains, designed to stop the
! train when the engineer ignores sig
nails.
Another invention is an electrical
device for noiselessly driving nails,
tacks and screws, or, used as drill,
has power enough to pierce armor
plate. Still another is hand crank
ing device for automobiles to be OPP
Grated from the seat.
Since the United States entered the
war, Father Glynn has been devotng
his time to developing some method
of beating the submarine. His in
vcntions along this line have been reg
istered with the naval consulting board
and offered free to the government
He has also offered the government
plans for torpedo guided by clock
work mechanism, so that it actually
hunts for its victim when it reaches
the spot where the submarine was last
seen. The gunner who fires the tor
pedo sets the range, and the torpedo
travels in straight course until it
reaches predetermined spot 1t then
submerges and performs figure gyra-
tions, gradually going deeper. It will
explode either at contact or at any
predetermined moment. He has also
designed huge all metal airship, driv.
en- by three propellers.
Foolish, you say, that man should |
spend his time inventing and then give
away his product. "The best man
can wish for himself" says Father
Glynn, is happiness, contentment and !
justice. I have all of these"