James Sandy, the inventor of these pocket-utensils, lived a few years
ago at Alyth, a town on the river Isla, in Perthshire, North Britain.
The genius and eccentricity of character which distinguished him have
been rarely surpassed. Deprived at an early age of the use of his legs,
he contrived, by dint of ingenuity, not only to pass his time agreeably,
but to render himself an useful member of society.
Sandy soon displayed a taste for mechanical pursuits; and contrived, as
a workshop for his operations, a sort of circular bed, the sides of
which being raised about eighteen inches above the clothes, were
employed as a platform for turning-lathes, table-vices, and cases for
tools of all kinds. His talent for practical mechanics was universal. He
was skilled in all sorts of turning, and constructed several very
curious lathes, as well as clocks and musical instruments of every
description, which were no less admired for the sweetness of their tone
than the elegance of their workmanship. He excelled, too, in the
construction of optical instruments, and made some reflecting
telescopes, the specula of which were not inferior to those finished by
the most eminent London artists. He likewise suggested some important
improvements in the machinery for spinning flax; and, as before stated,
he was the first who made the wooden-jointed snuff-boxes, generally
called Laurence-Kirk boxes, some of which, fabricated by this
self-taught artist, were purchased and sent as presents to the royal
family.
To his other endowments he added an accurate knowledge of drawing and
engraving, and in both these arts produced specimens of great merit.
For upwards of fifty years Sandy quitted his bed only three times, and
on these occasions his house was either inundated with water, or
threatened with danger from fire. His unbounded curiosity prompted him
to hatch different kinds of birds’ eggs by the natural warmth of his
body, and he reared his various broods with all the tenderness of a
parent. On visiting him it was no unusual thing to see singing birds of
different species, to which he may be said to have given birth, perched
on his head, and warbling the artificial notes he had taught them.
Naturally possessed of a good constitution, and an active, cheerful turn
of mind, his house was the general coffee-room of the village, where the
affairs of church and state were freely discussed. In consequence of
long confinement his countenance had rather a sickly cast, but it was
remarkably expressive, particularly when he was surrounded by his
country friends. This singular man had acquired by his ingenuity and
industry an honourable independence, and died possessed of considerable
property. About three weeks before his death he married.
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