FIRST SUCCESSFUL OPERATION. 127 



the country.* From him he received the sum of fifty dollars. 

 This enabled him to get to New York, and to lay the subject 

 before Mr. William Rider, a gentleman to whom he was intro- 

 duced for the first time on his arrival there. An arrangement 

 was soon made, by which Mr. Rider engaged to furnish capital 

 to conduct the manufacture on joint account. 



To the firmness and perseverance of Mr. William Rider, to- 

 gether with the skill and assiduity of his brother, Mr. Emory 

 Rider, under a series of obstacles which this new manufacture 

 encountered for several years, more than to the amount of the 

 pecuniary aid rendered, the inventor feels indebted for a share 

 of his success. From him he received a sufficient amount of 

 funds for the comfort of his family, and sufficient to enable 

 him to proceed, in a small way, with his experiments. Thus he 

 continued for about a year, when the failure of his friend again 

 left him without resources. He had, however, made some ad- 

 vance towards demonstrating the utility of his improvements, 

 although he found it nearly impossible to get over the difficulties 

 which he met with in the way of heating the goods with 

 uniformity. 



In the fall of 1841, before the failure of Mr. Rider, the inven- 

 tor commenced operations in Springfield, Mass., having a short 

 time previously succeeded in manufacturing some few yards of 

 the elastic compound in sheets, and in heating them uniformly. 

 This was done by passing them through a heated cast-iron 

 trough, represented in the drawing, plate . This was the first 

 successful operation of vulcanizing. At this time, also, he in- 

 vented the shirred or corrugated goods, which have since been 

 so famous, both on account of their intrinsic merit and on ac- 

 count of the numerous suits at law of which they have been the 

 subject. Having shirred some elegant ribbons, they attracted 

 the notice of a brother-in-law,* an extensive woolen manufac- 

 turer, and through him, the notice of the public. By the aid and 

 kindness of this individual, who, for a time, furnished the means 

 to conduct the manufacture, the inventor was enabled gradually 



* William Deforest, Esq. 



