﻿582 
  ANNUAL 
  EEPOET 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  19 
  2 
  9 
  

  

  inventions 
  a 
  menace 
  to 
  their 
  crafts, 
  and 
  endeavored 
  to 
  destroy 
  them 
  

   wherever 
  they 
  appeared. 
  Another 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  public 
  was 
  amused 
  

   at 
  the 
  claims 
  made 
  for 
  the 
  freak 
  "Yankee" 
  machines 
  and 
  were 
  curious 
  

   enough 
  to 
  pay 
  good 
  money 
  to 
  see 
  the 
  "contraptions" 
  exhibited 
  in 
  

   side 
  shows. 
  

  

  One 
  of 
  Barthelemy 
  Thimonnier's 
  wooden 
  machines 
  was 
  sent 
  by 
  

   him 
  from 
  France 
  to 
  his 
  friend 
  Charles 
  Magnin 
  in 
  England 
  to 
  be 
  

   shown 
  at 
  the 
  Crystal 
  Palace 
  Exhibition 
  held 
  in 
  London 
  in 
  1851. 
  It 
  

   was 
  exhibited 
  by 
  Magnin 
  in 
  his 
  own 
  name 
  and 
  received 
  no 
  notice 
  

   whatever. 
  There 
  were 
  exhibited 
  at 
  the 
  Crystal 
  Palace 
  at 
  the 
  same 
  

   time 
  several 
  English 
  so-called 
  sewing 
  machines 
  and 
  one 
  American 
  

   machine, 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  patented 
  by 
  Morey 
  and 
  Johnson 
  of 
  Boston 
  

   on 
  February 
  6, 
  1849. 
  While 
  no 
  notice 
  was 
  taken 
  by 
  English 
  writers 
  

   on 
  science 
  or 
  technology 
  of 
  the 
  few 
  clumsy 
  instruments 
  catalogued 
  as 
  

   sewing 
  machines 
  which 
  were 
  shown 
  at 
  the 
  "great 
  exhibition 
  of 
  the 
  

   world's 
  industry," 
  these 
  machines 
  did 
  attract 
  the 
  attention 
  of 
  an 
  

   astonished 
  reporter 
  for 
  an 
  important 
  Italian 
  newspaper. 
  The 
  

   following 
  paragraph 
  is 
  a 
  translation 
  from 
  an 
  article 
  in 
  the 
  Giornale 
  di 
  

   Roma, 
  giving 
  its 
  readers 
  a 
  brief 
  summary 
  of 
  American 
  eccentricities 
  

   in 
  the 
  Crystal 
  Palace 
  : 
  

  

  A 
  little 
  further 
  on 
  you 
  stop 
  before 
  a 
  small 
  brass 
  machine, 
  about 
  the 
  size 
  of 
  a 
  

   quart 
  bottle; 
  you 
  fancy 
  it 
  is 
  a 
  meat 
  roaster; 
  not 
  at 
  all. 
  Ha! 
  ha! 
  It 
  is 
  a 
  tailor! 
  

   Yes, 
  a 
  veritable 
  stitcher. 
  Present 
  a 
  piece 
  of 
  cloth 
  to 
  it; 
  suddenly 
  it 
  becomes 
  

   agitated, 
  it 
  tivists 
  about, 
  screams 
  audibly 
  — 
  a 
  pair 
  of 
  scissors 
  are 
  projected 
  forth 
  — 
  

   the 
  cloth 
  is 
  cut; 
  a 
  needle 
  set 
  to 
  work, 
  and 
  lo 
  and 
  behold, 
  the 
  process 
  of 
  sewing 
  

   goes 
  on 
  with 
  feverish 
  activity, 
  and 
  before 
  you 
  have 
  taken 
  three 
  steps 
  a 
  pair 
  

   of 
  inexpressibles 
  are 
  thrown 
  down 
  at 
  your 
  feet, 
  and 
  the 
  impatient 
  machine, 
  

   all 
  fretting 
  and 
  fuming, 
  seems 
  to 
  expect 
  a 
  second 
  piece 
  of 
  cloth 
  at 
  your 
  hands. 
  

   Take 
  care, 
  however, 
  as 
  you 
  pass 
  along, 
  that 
  this 
  most 
  industrious 
  of 
  all 
  possible 
  

   machines 
  does 
  not 
  lay 
  hold 
  of 
  your 
  cloak 
  or 
  greatcoat; 
  if 
  it 
  touches 
  even 
  the 
  

   hem 
  of 
  the 
  garment 
  it 
  is 
  enough 
  — 
  it 
  is 
  appropriated, 
  the 
  scissors 
  are 
  whipped 
  

   out, 
  and 
  with 
  its 
  accustomed 
  intelligence 
  the 
  machine 
  sets 
  to 
  work, 
  and 
  in 
  a 
  twin- 
  

   kling 
  another 
  pair 
  is 
  produced 
  of 
  that 
  article 
  of 
  attire, 
  for 
  which 
  the 
  English 
  

   have 
  as 
  yet 
  been 
  able 
  to 
  discover 
  no 
  name 
  in 
  their 
  most 
  comprehensive 
  vocabulary. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  in 
  the 
  meantime 
  more 
  serious 
  attention 
  was 
  

   being 
  paid 
  to 
  the 
  new 
  inventions 
  which 
  promised 
  so 
  well 
  to 
  lessen 
  the 
  

   labor 
  of 
  the 
  needle 
  workers. 
  The 
  early 
  issues 
  of 
  the 
  Scientific 
  Ameri- 
  

   can 
  devoted 
  considerable 
  space 
  to 
  a 
  description 
  of 
  each 
  new 
  sewing 
  

   machine 
  that 
  appeared. 
  From 
  the 
  issue 
  of 
  July 
  17, 
  1852, 
  which 
  told 
  

   of 
  the 
  achievements 
  of 
  Allen 
  B. 
  Wilson, 
  the 
  following 
  prophecy 
  is 
  

   quoted 
  : 
  

  

  * 
  * 
  * 
  When 
  we 
  look 
  at 
  the 
  progress 
  made 
  in 
  sewing 
  machines, 
  we 
  expect 
  

   them 
  to 
  create 
  a 
  social 
  revolution, 
  for 
  a 
  good 
  housewife 
  will 
  sew 
  a 
  fine 
  shirt, 
  

   doing 
  all 
  the 
  seams 
  in 
  fine 
  stitching, 
  by 
  one 
  of 
  Wilson's 
  little 
  machines 
  in 
  a 
  single 
  

   hour. 
  The 
  time 
  thus 
  saved 
  to 
  wives, 
  tailors, 
  and 
  seamstresses 
  of 
  every 
  descrip- 
  

   tion 
  is 
  of 
  incalculable 
  importance, 
  for 
  it 
  will 
  allow 
  them 
  to 
  devote 
  their 
  atten- 
  

   tion 
  to 
  other 
  things, 
  during 
  the 
  time 
  which 
  used 
  to 
  be 
  taken 
  up 
  with 
  dull 
  seam 
  

   sewing. 
  Young 
  ladies 
  will 
  have 
  more 
  time 
  to 
  devote 
  to 
  ornamental 
  work 
  (it 
  

  

  