Johnny Wants to Rest

Johnny was born in the loomery of a mill. The noise of the looms was the first sound he heard.

When he was six he looked after his younger brothers and sisters.

At seven he began to work at the mill. His job was very easy. He was to look after the cloth that came out of the machine, and helped it pass over a hot roller. He always sat in the same place. He became a part of the machine. He was very happy at this job and he was full of dreams. But he earned very little to help his family.

But when he was nine years old he lost his job, because he fell ill. When he was well again, he found work at a glass factory. He earned more, but the work was more difficult.

He held the bottles between his knees to work with both hands. In this way he sat all day to tie 300 dozen (3600) bottle stoppers a day. His chest became weak as he sat ten hours each day. This was not good for his lungs, but he worked like a machine to earn more to help his family.

His cough became worse and worse, then he caught pneumonia and lost his job at the glass factory.

After recovering, he returned to the jute mill. He worked well, he was a good worker, he did not dream any longer and all the days were alike for him.

There were few interesting things in his life. One was when his mother bought some California prunes. The other two times were when she baked pies.

Once he found a silver coin in the street. That was also an interesting event in his life.

He celebrated his 16th birthday by working on a loom. At the end of three months he was working on two looms, and later — three and four.

At the end of the second year he was making more cloth than any other worker and began to earn much more. He gave his mother all the money he earned, but the children needed more to it. And they went to school, and school books cost money. Even the rent cost more.

He grew taller and thinner. Also, he became more nervous.

The children were afraid to play near him. There was no joy in his life.

Welcoming Shores

At the end of the 18th century, science in the newly created United States was isolated by the Atlantic Ocean from scientific thought and research in Europe. In addition, the United States was a relatively poor nation. There were neither public nor private funds for large-scale scientific research.

However America had certain advantages for scientists from other lands. American science was closely linked with the needs and feelings of the people. Many of the leaders of the new nation were enthusiastic about science and warmly welcomed scientists and technologists from other lands.

One of the first to come was the British chemist, Joseph Priestley. Though Priestley was one of the leading scientists of his day, his work was frequently ridiculed in Britain because his political opinions were different from those of the government.

Priestley was the first of thousands of world-known scientists that have come to the United States looking for a free creative environment. Other scientists came to the United States to share in the nation's quick growth and the-opportunity to apply new scientific ideas to practical uses. Alexander Bell moved from Canada to patent and commercially develop the telephone and also to work on related inventions. Charles Steinmetz came to America for the opportunity to develop new electrical systems at General Electric. Later, other scientists came to share in the nation's new outstanding research facilities. In the early decades of the 20th century, financial resources for the support of scientific research were plentiful and scientists working in the United States could hope for considerable material, as well as intellectual rewards.