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International Safety Matches

International Vending, c. 1905, 18 ¹/₂. This is another version of the Ideal Safety Matches. Both were made by International Vending, which Silent Salesmen Too claims was a jobber that made this machine for other companies as well as itself. The Hamilton Safety Matches pictured on page 239 of Silent Salesmen Too looks to be identical to the machine above, except for a different body decal. The International and the Hamilton both have a push-rod (c. 1905), which Silent Salesmen Too claims is an older mechanism than the slider (c. 1910) used on the Ideal. I've always considered the push-rod to be a poor design for any vendor that doesn't attach to a wall. With a push rod, you have to back the machine up against something or depend on the customer to reach around to the back of the machine and brace it against the push. I imagine at least a few of these machines got pushed off countertops and shattered on the floor behind it.

The machine above is 100% original. It has a combination match holder/cigar cutter attached to a front corner, which isn't pictured on the example in Silent Salesmen Too but I've seen that or similar accoutrements on other wood match vendors. The advertising between the columns is also different on this one; it has more color than other examples I've seen. That, the match holder/cigar cutter, and the intact fringe is why I bought this one even though I had the Ideal waiting for me at home.