ELI WHITNEY, THE INVENTOR OF THE COTTON GIN. Birth.-Anecdotes of his youth.-Manufactures nails.-Teaches school.-By his own exertions prepares for college.-Anecdotes of his college life.-Graduates. -Goes to Georgia as a teacher.-Disappointment.-Becomes an inmate in the family of Gen. Greene.-Ingenuity.-Low state of the cotton culture.-An introduction.-Old method of separating the cotton from the seed.-Invents the cotton gin.-Forms a co-partnership with Mr. Phineas Miller to manufacture gins. Note, Description.-The first machine stolen.-Commencement of encroachments.-Disastrous fire.-A trial.-Its unfortunate issue.-Gloomy prospects. South Carolina purchases the patent right for that state.-Enters into a similar engagement with North Carolina and Tennessee.-South Carolina and Tennessee annul their contracts.-Increasing encroachments.-South Carolina Legislature, of 1804, rescind the act of annulment.-Death of Mr. Miller. Celebrated decision of Judge Johnson.-Lawsuits.-Commences manufacturing arms for government.-Difficulties to be surmounted.-Description of the system.-Rejection of the memorial to congress for a renewal of the patent right on the cotton gin.-Marriage.-Death.-A comparison.Character. To the efforts of Whitney, our country is indebted for the value of her great staple. While the invention of the cotton gin has been the chief source of the prosperity of the southern planter, the northern manufacturer comes in for a large share of the benefit derived from the most important offspring of American ingenuity. Eli Whitney* was born in Westborough, Worcester county, Massachusetts, December 8th, 1765. His parents belonged to that respectable class in society, who, by the labors of husbandry, manage, by uniform industry, to provide well for a rising family,a class from whom have arisen most of those who, in New England, have attained to high eminence and usefulness. The following incident, though trivial in itself, will serve to show at how early a period certain qualities, of strong feeling tempered by that discretion for which Mr. Whitney afterwards became distinguished, began to display themselves. When he was six or seven years old, he had overheard the kitchen maid, in a fit of passion, calling his mother, who was in a delicate state of health, hard names, at which he expressed great displeasure to his sister. "She * Condensed from the able memoir by Professor Olmsted, published in the twenty-first volume of Silliman's Journal. thought," said he, "that I was not big enough to know any thing; but I can tell her, I am too big to hear her talk so about my mother. I think she ought to have a flogging, and if I knew how to bring it about, she should have one." His sister advised him to tell their father. "No," he replied, "that will not do; it will hurt his feelings and mother's too; and besides, its likely the girl will say she never said so, and that would make a quarrel. It is best to say nothing about it." Indications of his mechanical genius were likewise developed at a very early age. Of his early passion for such employments, his sister gives the following account. "Our father had a workshop, and sometimes made wheels, of different kinds, and chairs. He had a variety of tools, and a lathe for turning chair posts. This gave my brother an opportunity of learning the use of tools when very young. He lost no time, but as soon as he could handle tools he was always making something in the shop, and seemed not to like working on the farm. On a time, after the death of our mother, when our father had been absent from home two or three days, on his return, he inquired of the housekeeper, what the boys had been doing. She told him what B. and J. had been about. But what has Eli been doing?' said he. She replied, he had been making a fiddle. Ah! (added he despondingly) I fear Eli will have to take his portion in fiddles.' He was at this time about twelve years old. His sister adds, that this fiddle was finished throughout, like a common violin, and made tolerable good music. It was examined by many persons, and all pronounced it to be a remarkable piece of work for such a boy to perform. From this time he was employed to repair violins, and had many nice jobs, which were always executed to the entire satisfaction, and often to the astonishment of his customers. His father's watch being the greatest piece of mechanism that had yet presented itself to his observation, he was extremely desirous of examining its interior construction, but was not permitted to do so. One Sunday morn. ing, observing that his father was going to meeting, and would leave at home the wonderful little machine, he immediately feigned illness as an apology for not going to church. As soon as the family were out of sight, he flew to the room where the watch hung, and taking it down, he was so delighted with its motions, that he took it to pieces before he thought of the consequences of his rash deed; for his father was a stern parent, and punishment would have been the reward of his idle curiosity, had the mischief been detected. He, however, put the work all so neatly together, that his father never discovered his audacity until he himself told him, many years afterwards." |