THE LEWISTON TELLER — AUGUST 27, 1896
IT IS A WOODEN MAN ♢ THE MARVELOUS INVENTION OF A TONAWANDAN ♢ Has Perfected a Machine Which Moves the Pedals at a Rate of Ten Miles Per Hour—Worked on the Contrivence for One Year.
TONAWANDA special to New York World: This town has been in a flutter of excitement all the week over a wonderful mechanical man which has been walking the streets each evening with the grace and ease of a human.
Philip Perew, of this city, is the inventor of the latest novel mechanical device. It is made of wood, steel and brass, and viewed from a rod or two away it is almost impossible to distinguish it from flesh and blood.
The first successful appearance of the dummy was made on the streets of Tonawanda last Monday evening, and since then it has walked up and down the pavement nightly.
It was about a year ago that Mr. Perew conceived the idea of inventing a wooden man. He was possessed of ingenuity and necessary capital to carry out his plans. A shop was built expressly for the purpose and tilled with material to be used in the construction of his wooden wonder. After securing the services of M. S. Loucks, a master mechanic and experienced engineer, the work was immediately begun. Perew drew the plans and Loucks did the rest. In about six weeks man was finished and ready to appear before the public. It appeared, but was a failure. The Joints were stiff and the legs swung backward end forward as though they were working on a hinge joint instead of a
