Part 2

It was clever to shape the crackers like the oysters. An Elephant or Teddy Bears brand of popcorn might take. The old sand box toys took well. They operated mechanical figures on the hour glass principle. Millions of little wire hooks have been sold to hang things on Christmas trees. A simple device to revolve the tree should sell well. A small generative battery could electric light the tree. It injures the showcase to drop the money on it, and at times it is difficult to pick up the change. The little porcupine-like rubber mat is handy. The cigar cutter is all right. A revolving needle might be used to improve the draft of the improperly made cigars; it would be more practical than the porous plasters frequently recommended on the back of the head for the same purpose.

I guess the hen, in her quill, has us all beat on toothpicks. A man who built a large stack at his mill to get a better draft for the fire had an eight-inch pipe leading from the fireplace. It met an obstruction and was divided into two four-inch pipes, one going on either side of the obstruction and thence to the stack. When the work was completed the fire did no better than before. The builder was much disappointed and puzzled. He could not understand it. Can you observe what was the matter? It should be apparent at a glance. He shut off half of the draft. An eight-inch pipe is equal to four four-inch pipes. To observe you must observe. Why do people read fiction? A lady was annoyed by her hair coming down. She finally bent the hairpin. Her husband patented the idea and they made a fortune. The idea of a paragon frame for umbrellas proved a mint. Rubber dress shields, lined, made thousands. It is said wooden shoepegs paid millions. "Truth is stranger than fiction."

Toy guns are pretty old, and mama had always been nervous over the arrows, caps, etc. I patented the harmless gun in 1883--had it fire a hollow rubber ball. I supplied the trade for twelve years, and then sold the patent for $1,200. The invention has paid in all probably $50,000, and the guns are for sale in the stores as usual. In fact, all that my patent covered was the idea of a string made fast to the rear of the plunger and extending back to the outside, on the bottom edge of the stock, so that the spring or plunger could be pulled back into position, instead of using a ramrod to push it back, as in other toy guns. Perfecting the details of this gun called for much more study than did taking out the patent. At first the end of the plunger rod would wedge in the barrel on striking the hollow ball. The end of the plunger was flat, a very small portion of the ball touched it, and hence would naturally dent and wedge. It was remedied by making the end of the plunger concave, so that in striking the ball it would come in contact with a greater surface and not dent. The point where the string, which was pulled to set the spring, came out of the stock, would split out, and we could not satisfactorily fasten on a brass plate with an eyeletted hole. This was overcome by boring the hole large and gluing in a round piece with a hole through the centre. It was then cut down in the sandpapering, and was quite unnoticeable. It worked like a charm. It was difficult to get the hollow rubber balls at a low cost: two cents each was quoted. They took a square piece of thin rubber, pinched it up with the fingers, put some water in, then put cement on the edges, placed it in an iron mold and put it in the furnace. The water turned to steam and forced the rubber in the shape of the mould; the vulcanizing would cause it to stay in position, but many would leak and not shape right. The process was improved by using tubing cut proper length and pieces punched out of a flat sheet to fit over the ends. It was a success, and few ever failed to properly shape. One gross was made at a time. They cost less than one cent each. For a while $15 per thousand was the best price quoted for the brass eagles used on the stock for ornament. These were finally secured at $6, and a number of hundred thousand were used. Seven small wood turnings were used in each gun. The first lot of one thousand of these turnings cost $7.50. They were made on a lathe by hand. Then they were secured at $2.50 per thousand, done by machine, and finally they were contracted at 70 cents per thousand. A paper tube, painted and silver bronzed, made a good barrel. I thought these details might interest. They are "all wool and a yard wide." "One fact is worth a book full of theories."

Toys present a good field for inventors. They pay well usually, and are easy to handle. You must hold your prices firmly; treat all jobbers alike, no matter whether they buy one or one hundred gross. If you favor one you offend all the rest. Be impartial. Cities are growing so large, rents are soaring so high and store space seems to be getting so crowded, possibly a fixture of store shelves could be arranged on the Ferris Wheel plan and put into position above the counter to help the situation.

Mucilage evaporates so fast. They have fountain pens. Can any of you get up a fountain mucilage pen or brush? I guess we are a little late for ink bottles and spittoons that won't spill the contents upon upsetting. A thought in mind seems to constantly annoy. Readers, no doubt, if they have the patience to read the whole of this pamphlet, will possibly wonder what it is all about. Well, they need not ponder. The student who is alive to the subject will understand; he will take the time and allow his thoughts to dwell on each little subject mentioned. I believe in as much original gray matter "horse sense" and facts as circumstances permit, that every time you bump up against it you find something out. "Sabe."

Have you ever studied the philosophy of trains going around curves. The wheels have a flange on one side and taper to the other side. They stand on the track with the flange on the inside. When they come to the curve, in which the outside rail is always set higher than the inside one, and is necessarily longer, the flange presses against it, and that wheel is running on its largest diameter while the opposite wheel is on its smallest diameter. This fact, together with the slipping, enables the outside wheel to go over a greater length of rail than the inside wheel, though both are secured rigidly to the same axle. The train has a tendency to go straight ahead; the outside rail being higher causes it to constantly slip a little. The bent rail keeps prying the flange over, as it were, and the train is brought around the curve safely.

Sometimes it pays to learn some things not generally considered as being immediately connected with one's regular calling. I heard of a noted Chinese doctor who had a very bright son who was studying medicine at college. An epidemic set in, the doctor was sent for and went from one case to another. He was quite an athlete and a good swimmer. Soon the village people concluded the doctor was the cause of all the sickness and decided to thrash him. The doctor ran for his life, the crowd close on his heels. Finally he came to a river, plunged in and swam to the opposite side. No one in the crowd could swim--the doctor was safe. He went home and the bright young son answered the door and said, "Father, I need the money for some books at college the teacher recommends." The father's mind was full of thought of the experience he had just gone through, and he said, "My son, with due respect to your teacher, I advise that you first learn to swim; it may some day be more important than any of your studies."

Don't be an idle spectator of life, Create splendor for others' view.

Do I think ladies could invent? Well, at the present moment I feel like saying most decidedly yes. Why, you yourself made a splendid observation. Don't you recall saying the horses lost a great portion of their food by tossing their heads about while eating? Well, yes, the flies are annoying, but I think there is another reason. Well, you see they strap the full feed bag to the horse's head. At first the adjustment is good enough, but as the horse eats the surface of the food recedes and soon the adjustment becomes bad. The horse can no longer reach the food, and tosses his head about in an effort to get it. Well, we observed, thought, and as a consequence have a problem to work out. Yes, I think we might overcome the difficulty. Why, exactly, splendid; we can properly adjust the springs and fasten them in the handle or hanging straps that hold the feed bag to the horse. Then, as he eats and the weight becomes less, the springs will cause the bag to rise and the adjustment will be proper throughout. Yes, that is a real invention. We are inventors. We will use a perforated bag. Why, I think we might call it "The Automatic Ventilated Feed Bag." The horse will thank us, and we will become so rich. Salt cellars don't work good in damp weather--the salt cakes. You should work out that problem by the "Think a little" rule. A flagpole to operate the flag on the principle of the spring roller window curtain; make the political banner collapsible. Pass tops by, too many already; besides I have been sore on them since youth, when I tried to make one to wind up with a key and run all day. It was a long time before I replaced my watch, the works of which I used in that top. Did it spin? "Nope." Postage stamp affixer. No, pass it. It may do later on when you are more experienced. I had some dealings with a simple kind: it looked and worked like a rubber stamp, but the moisture from the sponge soon got in among the stamps--impractical. It should be quite easy to make a chute wagon that would unload coal while standing lengthwise along the curb, so as not to block the cars.

Suppose you wish to cause a toy man to pass around a six-inch circle and at the same time constantly revolve, could you contrive to make it work by turning a crank? It is good practice to work all puzzles and problems you find. It cultivates reasoning and gives you splendid practice on concentrating your thought. It makes you a close observer and becomes a valuable asset for use in any walk of life. Some people don't seem to notice anything--or, at least, very few things. I one time had an amusing debate with a man. He insisted he moved his upper jaw in eating. He proved it conclusively to himself by biting on his finger. How many of you know the difference between a horse and a cow in getting up? I hope a half dozen dozen and six dozen dozen don't look alike to you. You must get things exactly as they are in your mind; then only will you have a true basis to reason from. Don't go through life with the idea that everything is "about the size of a piece of chalk."

Many people will say to those who invent, "How did you come to think of it? I could never think of anything." The main trouble is they don't think at all. If they would take an interest in things and examine them closely, study them until they can clearly explain every detail, it would be a reasonably short time until they would think of other things and invent. The inventor should be sanguine and hopeful. It spurs him on and helps him to wade through discouragement. Possibly as like produces like, like thoughts produce like thoughts, fear thoughts produce fear thoughts. You must have a little of the big I in you.

"He who dares assert the I May calmly wait, while hurrying fate Meets his demands with sure supply."

I don't mean that you should sit down and expect to invent by mere weight of thought. That would be like watching the clock to see the hour pass by. I mean you should make the start. Begin by noticing how things are done. Interest your thoughts on the subject. Keep the matter in mind. Time will pass by pleasantly and some morning you will find your mind engrossed with an idea of an invention or an improvement on one, and that day will appear the brightest in your life. The more you study over what others have done, the sooner you will do something yourself. I fear you won't study. Now let me see; take that trick box. In No. 1 they tilted the box to get the cent out. Well, by tilting the box they simply put the flat bottom on a slant and the cent slid out. That could be improved in working by making a slanting bottom. Again, in No. 1, after they worked the outer sleeve up so that the openings registered and allowed the cent to slide out, they then worked the outer sleeve back into position, so that the side of the cap hid the slot. That work could be saved by inserting a spring, and so you should take up each feature, learn the reason why, and impress it on your mind. Confine yourself to the very simple things. Later on you will take interest in the larger ones, but at first they would likely discourage you, though the large inventions are only a combination of simple ideas. The telegraph sounds big. In the first place, it was simply a discovery. The electric current magnetized the wire so that it attracted metal, and would do so no matter how long the wire (within reason). Now, they could not well arrange to move the magnet over the paper to do the writing, so they thought to make it stationary and move the paper. The machine to do this was the biggest part of the invention. The code or Morse alphabet followed, by arranging the dots and dashes to represent the letters. If a massive structure were built of bricks, broad, high walls, square and round towers, high, commanding, arched doorway, facades, ledges, etc., you would stand and gaze in bewildering admiration at the grand, colossal structure. Yet it is only a combination of bricks. And what are bricks, pray? Only clay molded into shape and baked in an oven. No man ever invented a great machine unless he was an adept in the line of simple things, or he engaged assistance from those who were. Don't underrate the importance of these simple ideas. Take each one up, consider and go over it as carefully as though it were new--your own thought--and as though you were going to apply for a patent on it. If you can't enthuse and work or study in earnest on these matters you are surely on the wrong line for you. Get off and devote your time to some other pursuit. You must be in earnest and willing to persevere. Keep everlastingly at it. Dabblers rarely ever succeed at anything. I saw a patented churn. It was a plain tank and a long round handle with propeller blades set on the end. The propeller was pushed down through the cream. It did not revolve, and hence agitated the cream very much. Then, when it was pulled up to the top, the propeller revolved and the cream was scarcely moved. In going down the propeller would move up about one inch and lock. In pulling up it would move back and unlock. I remember the man who patented an iron ore washer. It was a large tank affair, say eight feet long, three feet at one end and six feet at the other. Inside it was lined with iron plates having a flange projecting upward. These were fastened so that the flanges formed a spiral from the large to the small end. An axle was placed in the centre by braces. The large end almost touched the ground; the small end was, say, two feet above the ground. The ore dirt was shoveled in the big end. A stream of water entered the small end. The washer was revolved. The dirt ran out with the water. The ore was worked by the flanges up to and fell out of the small end. I met a party who had a patented bung for barrels. It looked like a straight piece of round wood. I inquired, what is the patent. He said, bungs blow out of barrels, but his would not, because it was first made larger at one end than the other, then by driving it through a tube it was forced equal at each end. The original big end was marked and put in the bung hole. The liquid would cause it to swell to its former size. It could not blow out, and to tap the barrel it was driven in. The shores of Lake Superior are full of fine iron ore, probably millions of dollars worth. A party got up an electrical separator. To reclaim the iron sounds big. Let us see. An iron cylinder, an electrical battery or dynamo to charge and magnetize it, a long trough with a moving belt in the bottom. The sand and fine iron were shoveled on the belt and carried up to and fell on one side of the revolving magnetized cylinder. The iron adhered, and as the separator revolved it was scraped off on the other side. Some ten years ago I wrote to a number of chewing gum firms and proposed they make sugar-coated tablets. They did not enthuse and I dropped the matter. To-day it forms quite a business. About twenty-five years ago I proposed to put India-rubber along the water line of war ships, so that when struck the hole would close and prevent the water going in. To-day every war ship is equipped with that idea, using cellulose instead of rubber. So, don't give up your ideas too quickly. Become well convinced before you drop them. During the past month I read an article stating that the railroads required a heavier rail. I thought the added weight might be used to make the rail alike top and bottom--a double rail--so that when one side wore out the rail could be turned and virtually have a new one, and it being on the ground would save the handling in the second case. A special shoe would secure it to the tie. First costs are often increased to get economic results. I simply advance the idea. Any one interested can put it in their pipe and smoke it. If any of you use a rubber ball in the heel of the shoe to make walking comfortable you may be able to fit a small tube and have it arranged to ventilate the toe of the shoe. A party made a horseshoe having a toe piece of three parts. The centre was very hard steel; the outsides were soft. They wore down and the hard centre stuck up. It was always sharp. He said the blacksmiths would not handle them because it hurt their business.

It always seemed a good idea to make a wheel so that the spokes formed a hub at the centre. If all the people were alive to their needs all hats would be ventilated. The corrugated band is a good idea, as far as it goes. It should be supplemented with vents in sides or top. Do you know they paint ships without brushes? Simply spray it on with an atomizer and sweep with a suction hose. I hope it will be after my day when some of you get up a machine to do the eating. A cannon was mounted with mechanism to absorb the recoil and other service. A hole was drilled through the side of the cannon about one foot from the end or muzzle. A tube was fitted and extended rearward to the mechanism. When the cannon was fired the pressure became very great in the chamber, and the instant the projectile passed the drilled hole, and until it left the gun, this high pressure or power went through the tube and worked the mechanism at the rear of the gun. I know hoopskirts are long out of style. Could a flexible metal band be arranged at the bottom of pants and end of coat sleeves, so that they need not be sewed and could be worked to shorten or lengthen them, as desired?

I saw a funnel that had a wire rod running down to the small end. A ball on the end of the rod was used to close or open the funnel. When the bottle was full you could close the funnel, and no more would run out of it. I don't think there is a good nutmeg grater on the market. The price at retail should not be above 10 cents. It should have a good appearance, convenient and practical. It should all be enclosed, fly proof and dust proof--a sanitary grater. There is a chance to improve a match box to hang on the wall, something that won't show the marks. You should be alive to the difference between goods being on sale at stores and taking hold of a specialty and pushing it.

Sometimes the horses are driven with slack lines, and shy or scare suddenly. Often the driver is bothered to take up the slack. Could you invent handles to put on the lines that could be moved forward easily, have them grip so not to slip back until a spring or catch released them? I don't understand why they don't connect the shafts to the vehicle so that they could be instantly disconnected in case the horse ran away.

They sell a number of popcorn roasters. One to revolve should prove a good seller. The shaking plan is very tiresome. Some arrangement should be put on the bootblack boy's box to prevent the foot from slipping off. A propeller rocket could be made to go very high. Could you make a metal frame that any one, by using a strong manila paper, could make a pocketbook to hold notes, bills, etc.? How do you like a wire device to be put on rolls of ribbon to keep them from unwinding in the retail stores? A watch might be made so that the opening and closing of the lid would keep it wound up. I have not been inside a school for a long time. Perhaps they have holders to prevent the chalk crayons from breaking.

Did you ever cut a round piece of cardboard in a strip, say one-half inch wide, cutting round and round to the centre, then set it on a knitting needle, place it over the stove and see it turn? The heat from a small wax candle should turn a Christmas tree lamp on the same principle. Now they make wood lead pencils that require no sharpening. The lead is loose. A slot down the side of the pencil enables one to advance the lead as required. Elections call forth many ideas as to the best form of balloting. I think a very safe form of voting would be to have two large iron boxes with mechanism and a long roll of paper, proper width, with the ballots printed on it; a flat space or table between the boxes; the long paper tape of ballots would be wound up on a roller in one box and unwound into the other, the ballots to be numbered consecutively. A voter steps up and proves his right to vote; then he marks his vote on ballot No. 1, which shows on the flat place between the boxes. The judges then turn a crank. That ballot moves into the other box and the next adjoining ballot appears on the flat place. Such a plan would be free from stuffing, and ought to give reasonable satisfaction. The various styles of folding boxes are good illustrations of the single idea inventions. Many flourishing concerns are based on same. To be an inventor one should be a close observer. They should make sure of just what they see. I heard of a business man who had a very valuable horse. He left particular orders that great care should be taken and see that the horse did not get loose and go in the new clover field. He went off to his business, some distance away, and soon a neighbor came at top speed and said, "Your horse is in the clover field." The business man left his office in great haste and ran home, where he found the horse in the stable where he had left him. The cow had been put in the clover field. The neighbor said he did not look so very close. He saw an animal in the field. It seemed to have four corners, with a leg from each corner to the ground, and thought it might be the horse. He wouldn't make an inventor--"A left-over in the process of nature's selection." A device to turn the sheets of music for piano players should be worthy of study. Some one ought to get up a paste that could be put in a tooth and adhere. It should become hard and be lasting. Most anything to obviate the barbarous riveting process.