an Ingersoll how costly striking
watches were; he also sensed that soldiers who were fighting could not
be supplied with endless numbers of watches nor even if they were would
they always be where they could show a light. Nevertheless there would
be hundreds of men in the trenches and on the battle fields who through
long stretches of darkness would wish to know what time it was. Many
would be on guard and compelled to remain awake; and many more would be
unable to sleep from terror, homesickness, or because they suffered from
the various discomforts war brings. What, therefore, could be a greater
boon than a cheap watch with an illuminated face? It was to answer this
emergency that the Ingersoll Company turned out their Radiolite Watch."

"I suppose the dial had phosphorus on it," rejoined Christopher.

"No. Phosphorus was found to be entirely impractical for the purpose,
because, you see, phosphorus must at intervals be placed where it can
absorb the light in order to retain its brilliancy. Now as a man's watch
stays most of the time in his pocket, a watch dial treated with
phosphorus would have no opportunity to regain its phosphorescence.
Hence the Ingersoll Company developed a sort of radium coating for their
dials. It probably was not actually made from radium because there is
not enough of it to be found in all the world even if a watch company
could afford to buy it up. Just what this magic watch dial was made from
was Ingersoll's secret; but anyway it did what it was guaranteed to do
and instantly leaped into popularity. Many and many a soldier off on
the battle front blessed the makers of these watches, I guess. As for
the company--no longer were they obliged to wrestle with the problem of
getting their goods known, because from one end of our country to the
other, as well as far overseas, their watches became a byword." The old
Scotchman stopped as if tired with telling his long story.

"Now," added he, "I have roughly sketched for you the tale of
watchmaking in America. There is much more that might be related but you
yourself, by using your eyes and ears, can fill in the gaps. Just
remember this one fact--that it was your own land that developed and
brought to its present high grade of efficiency the factory system of
making watches. You have no cause to apologize, either, for your
country's handiwork. We do not by any means always hold first place in
the products we put out. Many nations can give us point