More on the introduction of the Clip-Cap

I've posted on Waterman's early clips here and here, and at the time had not found any mention of the Clip-Cap prior to July 1905. Now we can push back that date to April 20, the date of the issue of Geyer's Stationer in which the above ad appears (vol. 39, 1905, p. 11). All subsequent Waterman display ads in Geyer's show the Clip-Cap, even if they do not feature it to the same degree. The only material offered was German silver (aka nickel silver or cupronickel) until gold and silver versions are mentioned in the ad below, found in the July 20 issue (vol. 40, 1905, p. 11).

The ad refers interested dealers to the July issue of Waterman's Pen Prophet. Unfortunately, I do not have access to a copy, but if anyone wants to share theirs with me, I'd be happy to add its contents to this post.

PS It has been pointed out that the depiction of the clips in these early ads is distinctive, with squared-off tops -- unlike the rounded profiles of all known Waterman clips, but similar to the form shown in the patent drawings. Are these images actually representative of the very earliest Waterman clips, or are they artists' renditions that depend more on the patent drawings than on actual production samples? So far, no flat-topped Waterman clips have turned up. The first images of round-topped clips begin to appear in ads from the beginning of August 1905, and the last images of the flat-topped clips disappear after September -- though it should be noted that for years afterwards, Waterman ads often showed clips as more angular and less rounded than real-life examples.