CROMPTON, SAMUEL English inventor, was born on Dec. 3, at Firwood, near Bolton-le-Moors, Lan cashire, and went into a spinning-mill as a lad. The defects of the spinning jenny inspired him with the idea of devising some thing better, and for five or six years the effort absorbed all his spare time and money, including what he earned by playing the violin at the Bolton theatre. About 1779 he succeeded in pro ducing a machine which span yarn suitable for use in the manu facture of muslin, and which was known as the muslin wheel or the Hall-in-the-Wood wheel, and later as the spinning mule. After his marriage in 178o a good demand arose for the yarn which he himself made at Hall-in-the-Wood, but he could not afford to take out a patent and decided to reveal the secret of his machine, on the promise of a number of manufacturers to pay him for the use of the mule, but all he received was about £6o. He then resumed spinning on his own account, but with indifferent suc cess. In 1800 a sum of f 50o was raised for his benefit by sub scription, and in 1812 parliament allowed him £5,000. With the aid of this money he embarked in business, first as a bleacher and then as a cotton merchant and spinner, but again without success. In 1824 some friends, without his knowledge, bought him an annuity of £63. He died at Bolton on June 26, 1827.