William Seward Burroughs (January 28, 1855-September 15, 1898), inventor, was born in Auburn, Cayuga County, New York, the second son of Edmund and Ellen Julia Burroughs, and third child in a family of four. His father, a model-maker for castings and new inventions, had a thorough knowledge of mechanics and some inventive talent, but was never able to make much out of them financially. After a limited education in the Auburn schools, William at the age of fifteen began to earn his own living, at first in a bank and later in stores and lumber yards. In his early manhood he was engaged in one or two commercial enterprises. At the age of twenty-six he moved to St. Louis and for a short time worked in his father's model shop. Later, he was employed in that city by the Future Great Manufacturing Company and by a manufacturer of wood-working machinery. His...