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Unusual early 20th-century computing device, patented as "Brown's Computing Table" on January 9, 1906, featuring a large cylindrical drum with numbered tables, turned by a wheel at the bottom. The device is housed in its original wooden case, measuring 14.5˝ x 19˝ x 14.75˝, with manufacturer's plaque at the top: "Brown's Computing Table, No. 1, Pat. Jan. 9, 1906, Manufactured by the Brown Mfg. Co., Otto, N.Y.," with a portion of the plate blacked out. In very good to fine, functional condition, with some wear and staining to the internal drum.
Accompanied by a photocopy of the "computing device" patent granted to George M. Brown, which describes his invention: "This invention relates to an improved device for rapidly determining the value of a certain line of goods at a given price without mathematical calculation, and has for its object to produce a device of this character which will have a very large range both in respect to the prices and quantities, which will be very compact in structure, and which will be so simple as to render mistakes impossible. To these ends the invention consists, essentially, of a table divided into a number of divisions designated by the even hundreds, said divisions being subdivided and numbered so as to give the value of the intermediate numbers between the even hundreds and also of those numbers plus one thousand."
By way of example: "Should it be desired to find the value of five hundred and thirteen pounds at one dollar and five cents per hundred, the cylinder is turned until the column headed by $1.05 in the division marked 1-500 is adjacent the edge of the rod. The upper numeral in the space opposite the space on the rod, designated by the numeral 13, gives the desired value, which is five dollars and thirty-nine cents. The numeral directly below this gives the price of fifteen hundred and thirteen pounds at one dollar and five cents per hundred, which is fifteen dollars and eighty-nine cents. In a similar manner the value of any quantity from one pound to two thousand pounds can be readily determined where the prices range between sixty-five cents and one dollar and sixty-five cents per hundred."
