November 1. 1915.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



61 



The same year the Life-Saving Service had submitted to ii 

 the McNichoIas life-preserver. This device consisted of a rub 

 ber sleeveless coat containing air chambers capable of being in- 

 riated by the wearer by means of air tubes. 

 Leather flaps were attached to the hands 

 and feet to aid the wearer when swimming. 

 There was a mirror which could be elevated 

 to a position perpendicular to the body to 

 show the wearer while swimming upon his 

 back any obstructions that he may approach. 

 Two bags were attached about the waist. 

 partly inflated to give them buoyancy, and 

 designed to carry provisions and water. It 

 was an ingenious device but not adapted to 

 the requirements of the service. 



Only a few years ago the Life-Savins; 

 Service examined the Rader life-preserver. 

 .\ccording to the official report this affair 

 consists of a vest or sleeveless coat, made of 

 rubber-lined cloth, and provided with a num- 

 ber of air pockets capable of being inflated 

 by means of a tube or mouthpiece that could 

 be sealed by a screw valve. As will be seen, 

 there is a persistent similarit}' of effort and 

 general form present in most of these in- 

 ventions. Today, the "Gieve" life-saving 

 waistcoat, an English invention, gives us a 

 modification of a combined garment for 

 every-day wear and an inflatable rubber ring 

 or belt. It is a good illustration of com- 

 pactness, efficiency and readiness. The 

 wearer has only to blow air into it through 

 a small flexible tube and he is insured ample 

 buoyancy for keeping his head and shoulders 

 above the water. 



One of the particular advantages of the 

 rubber life-belt is that its proportions can 

 be made such that it will not interfere with 

 the motions of swimming while yet provid- 

 ing the needful sustaining buoyancy. With the cork life-belt, on 

 the other hand, the thing is so bulky that it seriously hampers 

 efforts towards self-propulsion, and the ultimate safety of the 

 wearer may frequently depend 

 upon his reaching some defmite 

 f-;(>al or point. So well is this 

 matter of compactness recog- 

 nized as a desideratum that in 

 tliDUsands of pleasure craft and 

 ill nearly all modern submarines 

 where space is decidedly pre- 

 MMUs^the life-preservers are 

 i.ide of rubber and are inflat- 

 li'lc. In under-water boats this 

 1^ particularly important, be- 

 cause the passages of escape are 

 narrow, and men wearing cork 

 h i"i--preservers would find it ex- 

 iremely difficult if not impos- 

 -ihle to get out of a sinking sub- 

 marine through the average 

 li.itchway. 



I'ossibly one of the most in- 

 genious affairs of recent design 

 is the life-saving handbag in- 

 vented by John L. Edlund, a 

 Norwegian. Ordinarily, this 

 grip has the outward appearance of a handbag of goodly pro- 

 portions, and can actually be used as such. But when turned 

 inside out the thing becomes a one-piece garment made up larycly 



rnpynght 



Equipped in 

 Ready 



of rubber-lined cloth into which the owner can crawl and seal 

 himself water-tight before jumping overboard. There is a dead- 

 light fitted with a glass plate which permits him to look out, and 

 a couple of valves in the top of the ar- 

 rangement provide a way for the admission 

 of fresh air. As one of our illustrations 

 shows, a man weighing 160 pounds does not 

 overtax the reserve of buoyancy; and by 

 putting his hands in the hollow flippers it 

 i< possible for the occupant of this garment 

 to propel himself through the water. Food 

 and water sufficient for a number of days 

 can be carried inside of this novel dress. 

 The prime objection that can be offered to 

 the equipment is that the bag on shipboard 

 would be filled with things and probably 

 stored in the owner's stateroom when ur- 

 gently needed. In other words, it would be 

 inacces.sible if the vessel were sinking 

 rapidly. 



.\ somewhat kindred although not exactly 

 similar life-saving suit has recently been in- 

 vented by a German engineer, and for water 

 tightness a rubber fabric is relied upon. In 

 this case, the feet are not free to assist in 

 self-propulsion, and in order to maintain the 

 dress upright when occupied and in the wa- 

 ter, a perforated metal bucket forms the 

 lower end of the suit. The weight of this, 

 when filled with water, keeps that part of the 

 dress lowermost. The whole suit is packed 

 in this can when not in service. A still closer 

 return to Paul Bo)'ton's outfit is that re- 

 cently invented by Carl G. Walle, of Brook- 

 lyn, N. Y. He has a three-piece suit of rub- 

 ber fabric consisting of a water-tight hood, 

 a jacket, and trousers with rubber boots 

 attached. 

 In order to bring the history of life- 

 preservers down to the latest moment, mention should be made 

 of a device demonstrated in New York harbor on the Ifith of 

 last month by Mr. Youngren, of Wyoming. T' - • of a 



THE Youngren Suit, 

 OR THE Plunge. 



The Gieve Inflatable 



Waistcoat. 



Cofyright by Undencoo 



Floating on th 



waterproof union suit of rubberized fabric which entirely en- 

 velops the body, fitting tightly, with an elastic band around the 

 neck. Buoyancy is afforded by a belt which goes around the 



