Jasper James . . . . The A to Z of Slightly Strange Unknown Victorian Inventors and Explorers

Jasper James

Having made his name as a prize-fighter in the darker corners of Victorian England, Jasper James knew that he needed to retire when he was beaten by the son of Benny (Grizzly) Knuckle-bender, who was the man he originally won the prestigious Shorthill Belt from many years earlier.  And he was certainly not someone you would expect to invent a device such as the James Juxtaposing Jumbling Machine.  It was the very first mechanical device to use a sliding integrated diminished scissor action to create a self selecting binary IF switch. And that alone meant that among his peers in the world of Victorian inventors he was looked upon with much reverence and admiration.

Unfortunately Jasper James never appeared to entirely understand his own invention or the simple paradox that its design signified to the great minds of the time. And a curious reporter from The Times Newspaper discovered that the James Juxtaposing Jumbling Machine was in fact invented by a school boy who wanted to become a great boxing legend. And it turned out Jasper James tricked him into handing over his device which he had made as a fourth year school project in metalwork.

Sadly the young school boy was a terrible boxer and had to settle for a life of science at Oxford University. As for Jasper James after the news that he did not actually invent his own invention he became a pet shop owner and spent the rest of his days breeding goldfish. .