THIS ADVANCED AGE

Greymouth Evening Star, 11 March 1938, Page 12

THIS ADVANCED AGE

SOME INVENTIONS. Even the youngest inhabitant knows that aeroplanes, radios, telephones, vacuum cleaners, movies and automobiles are commonplaces of contemporary life that were unknown to our grandparents. But few of us realise how many taken-for-granted gadgets in daily use are of fairly recent origin. The first bathtub was placed in an American home less than a century ago. Its proud owner, a wealthy Cincinnatian, gave a party in honour of the installation of his mahogany and metal 1750-pound toy, and invited his guests to use. When baby carriages were introduced in 1848 conservative citizens protested that the sidewalks would be unsafe for pedestrians. A housewife, prior to 1876, had no carpet sweeper; prior to 1861 no condensed milk, and until late in the 1890’s no prepared breakfast foods. If she went marketing before 1871 she did not bring home her purchases in paper bags. In 1849 for the first time she put spool silk into her sewing basket; and it contained no spring tape measure in a circular case until after 1868. Waffle irons were patented in 1869. Soap powder appeared as early as 1845, but soap, individually wrapped, not until 20 years later; before 1865 it was .sold in bars, by weight.

If a child cut his finger earlier than 1870, it could not be bound up with adhesive tape. He rode no bicycle before 1866 and had to wait for tyres until 1892. He chewed his first gum in 1869 and guzzled his first icecream in 1874. His skates could not be clamped on his shoes before 1866, and nobody could give him a flashlight for his birthday until 1898. Dad suffered his inconveniences, too. Although the safety razor was devised in 1895, the company promoting it was not organised until 1901, and even in 1903 total sales were only 51. Fountain pens, invented in 1830, were not practical until 1884. Book matches first appeared in 1896, perhaps to supply a need unfilled by the cigar lighter patented 13 years before. Barbed wire was invented in -1873. The first American accordion was patented in 1856, the first dental chair in 1848.