File:Inventors (1893) (14591229149).jpg

Identifier: inventors00hube2 (find matches)
Title: Inventors
Year: 1893 (1890s)
Authors: Hubert, Philip Gengembre, 1852-1925
Subjects: Inventors
Publisher: New York, C. Scribner's Sons
Contributing Library: New York Public Library
Digitizing Sponsor: MSN

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egree of heat necessary for the perfectingof the rubber and the exact length of time re-quired for the heating. He made this discovery in his darkest days,when, in fact, he was in constant danger of arrestfor debt, having already been a frequent inmateof the debtors prison. He was in the depths ofbitter poverty and in such feeble health that hewas constantly haunted by the fear of dying be-fore he had perfected his discovery—before hehad fulfilled his mission. He needed an appara-tus for producing a high and uniform heat for hisexperiments, and he was unable to obtain it. Heused to bake his compound in his wifes bread-oven and steam it over the spout of her tea-kettle, and to press the kitchen fire into his ser-vice so far as it would go. When this failed, hewould go down to the shops in the vicinity ofWoburn and beg to be allowed to use the ovensand boilers after working hours were over. Theworkmen regarded him as a lunatic, but were toogood-natured to deny him the request. Finally
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73 C _ns ao cUJ CD o 03 CL o £ ^ u re jr w j -o a o -^ 0) -^ -Q J DC •a a £ rt co X UJ (SCD OO 03 -C 0 170 INVENTORS he induced a bricklayer to make him an oven,and paid him in masons aprons of india-rubber.The oven was a failure. Sometimes it wouldturn out pieces of perfectly vulcanized cloth,and again the goods would be charred andruined. Goodyear was in despair. All this time he lived on the charity of hisfriends. His neighbors pretended to lend himmoney, but in reality gave him the means ofkeeping his family from starvation. He has de-clared that all the while he felt sure he would,before long, be able to pay them back, but theyhave declared with equal emphasis that, at thattime, they never expected to witness his success.He was yellow and shrivelled in face, with agaunt, lean figure, and his habit of wearing anindia-rubber coat, which was charred and black-ened from his frequent experiments with it, gavehim a wild and singular appearance. Peopleshook their heads so

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