In America, this integrity of design is derived from three centuries of experience: one of heterogeneous character, the mid-17th to the mid-18th; one of predominately English influence, from 1750 to 1850; and one that saw the perfection of basic tools, by native innovators, between 1850 and the early 20th century. In the two earlier periods, the woodworking tool and the products it finished had a natural affinity owing largely to the harmony of line that both the tool and finished product shared. The later period, however, presents a striking contrast. Hand-tool design, with few exceptions, continued vigorous and functional amidst the confusion of an eclectic architecture, a flurry of rival styles, the horrors of the jigsaw, and the excesses of Victorian taste. In conclusion, it would seem that whether seeking some continuous thread in the evolution of a national style, or whether appraising American contributions to technology, such a search must rest, at least in part, upon the character and quality of the hand tools the society has made and used, because they offer a continuity largely unknown to other classes of material survivals. FOOTNOTES: [1] W.M. FLINDERS PETRIE, "History in Tools," _Annual Report Smithsonian Institution_, 1918, pp. 563-572 [reprint]. [2] JOHANN AMOS COMENIUS, _Orbis Sensualium Pictus_, transl. Charles Hoole (London, 1685), pp. 130, 143. [3] JOSEPH MOXON, _Mechanick Exercises or the Doctrine of Handy-Works_, 3rd. ed. (London, 1703), pp. 63, 119. [4] MARTIN, _Circle of the Mechanical Arts_ (1813), p. 123. [5] PETER NICHOLSON, _The Mechanic's Companion_ (Philadelphia, 1832), pp. 31, 89-90. [6] _Catalog_, Book 87, Cutler and Co., Castle Hill Works, Sheffield [in the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London]; and _Illustrated Supplement to the Catalogue of Bench Planes_, Arrowmammett Works (Middletown, Conn., 1857) [in the Smithsonian Institution Library]. [7] York County Records, Virginia Deeds, Orders, and Wills, no. 13 (1706-1710), p. 248; and the inventory of Amasa Thompson in LAWRENCE B. ROMAINE, "A Yankee Carpenter and His Tools," _The Chronicle_ of the Early American Industries Association (July 1953), vol. 6, no. 3, pp. 33-34. [8] _Reports by the Juries: Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, 1851_ (London, 1852), p. 485. [9] U.S. patent specifications cited in this paragraph may be found at the U.S. Patent Office, Washington, D.C. [10] In 1865 George Parr in his application for an improved screwdriver stated categorically that the scalloped blade served no purpose other than decoration. See U.S. patent 45,854, dated January 10, 1865. [11] Francis A. Walker, ed., _United States Centennial Commission, International Exhibition, 1876, Reports and Awards, Group XV_ (Philadelphia, 1877), p. 5. [12] Ibid., p. 6. [13] Ibid., pp. 9-10. [14] Ibid., pp. 11-12. [15] Ibid., pp. 14, 44, 5. [16] Ibid., p. 13.