﻿THE 
  SEWING 
  MACHHSTE 
  — 
  LEWTON 
  579 
  

  

  granted 
  without 
  the 
  consent 
  of 
  all 
  four 
  parties. 
  It 
  was 
  also 
  agreed 
  

   that 
  a 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  license 
  fees 
  was 
  to 
  be 
  reserved 
  as 
  a 
  fund 
  out 
  

   of 
  which 
  to 
  pay 
  the 
  cost 
  of 
  prosecuting 
  infringers. 
  

  

  This 
  arrangement 
  enabled 
  manufacturers 
  to 
  continue 
  making 
  

   machines 
  by 
  the 
  payment 
  of 
  only 
  one 
  license 
  fee 
  to 
  the 
  combination, 
  

   and 
  anyone 
  who 
  had 
  a 
  good 
  machine 
  that 
  was 
  not 
  an 
  offensive 
  

   imitation 
  of 
  that 
  of 
  some 
  other 
  Hcensed 
  manufacturer 
  was 
  granted 
  a 
  

   license. 
  There 
  was 
  no 
  pooling 
  of 
  any 
  other 
  interest 
  in 
  the 
  combina- 
  

   tion 
  excepting 
  that 
  of 
  patents; 
  each 
  company 
  retained 
  the 
  right 
  to 
  

   make 
  a 
  certain 
  machine 
  and 
  aimed 
  to 
  so 
  improve 
  and 
  perfect 
  its 
  

   own 
  particular 
  machine 
  that 
  it 
  would 
  be 
  selected 
  instead 
  of 
  others. 
  

  

  The 
  most 
  important 
  patents 
  contributed 
  to 
  the 
  combination 
  were 
  

   the 
  following: 
  

  

  1. 
  The 
  combination 
  of 
  the 
  grooved, 
  eye-pointed 
  needle 
  and 
  a 
  shuttle, 
  by 
  

   Elias 
  Howe, 
  jr. 
  

  

  2. 
  The 
  4-motion 
  feeding 
  mechanism, 
  by 
  Allen 
  B. 
  Wilson. 
  

  

  3. 
  The 
  continuous 
  wheel 
  feed, 
  the 
  yielding 
  presser 
  foot, 
  and 
  the 
  heart-shaped 
  

   cam 
  as 
  applied 
  to 
  moving 
  the 
  needle 
  bar, 
  by 
  Isaac 
  M. 
  Singer. 
  

  

  4. 
  The 
  basic 
  patent 
  covering 
  a 
  needle 
  moving 
  vertically 
  above 
  a 
  horizontal 
  

   work 
  plate, 
  a 
  yielding 
  presser 
  resting 
  on 
  the 
  work, 
  and 
  a 
  "perpetual" 
  or 
  con- 
  

   tinuous 
  feeding 
  device, 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  issued 
  to 
  John 
  Bachelder 
  on 
  May 
  8, 
  1849, 
  

   and 
  afterwards 
  purchased 
  by 
  Singer 
  and 
  his 
  partner 
  Clark. 
  

  

  The 
  Grover 
  & 
  Baker 
  Co., 
  controlled 
  several 
  patents 
  of 
  importance 
  

   which 
  were 
  contributed 
  to 
  the 
  combination, 
  but 
  its 
  most 
  important 
  

   claim 
  for 
  admission 
  was 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  Mr. 
  Potter 
  had 
  promoted 
  the 
  

   scheme. 
  

  

  When 
  Howe's 
  patent 
  was 
  renewed 
  in 
  1860 
  the 
  general 
  license 
  fee 
  

   was 
  reduced 
  from 
  $15 
  to 
  $7, 
  and 
  Howe's 
  special 
  royalty 
  from 
  $5 
  to 
  $1. 
  

  

  The 
  combination 
  continued 
  in 
  existence 
  with 
  Howe 
  as 
  a 
  member 
  

   until 
  the 
  expiration 
  of 
  the 
  extended 
  term 
  of 
  his 
  patent 
  in 
  1867, 
  and 
  

   was 
  then 
  continued 
  by 
  the 
  other 
  members 
  until 
  1877, 
  when 
  the 
  

   John 
  Bachelder 
  patent 
  expired. 
  This 
  patent 
  had 
  been 
  twice 
  extended, 
  

   so 
  that 
  it 
  ran 
  for 
  28 
  years. 
  The 
  fundamental 
  principles 
  of 
  the 
  sewing 
  

   machine 
  were 
  now 
  no 
  longer 
  controlled 
  by 
  any 
  one, 
  the 
  beneficial 
  open 
  

   competition 
  of 
  the 
  smaller 
  manufacturers 
  was 
  made 
  possible, 
  and 
  an 
  

   enormous 
  reduction 
  of 
  prices 
  resulted. 
  Many 
  important 
  and 
  radical 
  

   improvements 
  appeared 
  in 
  quick 
  succession, 
  which 
  greatly 
  multiplied 
  

   the 
  usefulness 
  of 
  the 
  sewing 
  machine. 
  

  

  CONTRIBUTIONS 
  OF 
  THE 
  PIONEER 
  INVENTORS 
  

  

  Leaving 
  for 
  the 
  time 
  these 
  accounts 
  of 
  the 
  struggles 
  of 
  pioneer 
  

   inventors 
  in 
  the 
  field 
  of 
  mechanical 
  sewing 
  to 
  prove 
  the 
  practicability 
  

   of 
  their 
  ideas, 
  let 
  us 
  see 
  what 
  were 
  the 
  real 
  achievements 
  of 
  these 
  men. 
  

   While 
  the 
  drawings 
  of 
  Saint's 
  sewing 
  machine, 
  which 
  was 
  patented 
  

   in 
  England 
  in 
  1790, 
  show 
  the 
  overhanging 
  arm, 
  the 
  up 
  and 
  down 
  

   movement 
  of 
  the 
  needle, 
  the 
  horizontal 
  bed 
  or 
  plate 
  to 
  support 
  the 
  

  

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