He was now able to bring his family to Roxbury, and for the
time fortune seemed to smile upon him.
His success was but temporary, however. He obtained an order from the
General Government for one hundred and fifty India-rubber mail-bags,
which he succeeded in producing, and as they came out smooth, highly
polished, hard, well shaped, and entirely impervious to moisture, he was
delighted, and summoned his friends to inspect and admire them. All who
saw them pronounced them a perfect success; but, alas! in a single month
they began to soften and ferment, and finally became useless. Poor
Goodyear's hopes were dashed to the ground. It was found that the aqua
fortis merely "cured" the surface of the material, and that only very
thin cloth made in this way was durable. His other goods began to prove
worthless, and his promising business came to a sudden and disastrous
end. All his possessions were seized and sold for debt, and once more he
was reduced to poverty. His position was even worse than before, for his
family had increased in size, and his aged father also had become
dependent upon him for support.
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