111$ am Ml mm IB til IRIniPfnHIIIlBlP 11 ] r f{ I 1 rrrHrrt- 111 ill ! \ 1 I : li f il 1 i ' H r H 1 : r If ! 4 mfl I B i !jj j / ! i 1 i , , ;| i '. i ; Ijj ij p ' 1 n !! 1 r ? '! 1 II] 1 fi i i i I i! I i I j,] j 1 !: ; 1 I Ijj \ l 1 il!l r ? :' ' i ; if ' : ( ; Mij'i [ | ! 1 i ! i j ! I is ill ill li! : m U i i In I I 1 '; ' : 11 |!: ! /&(. I * Vl " ** * v \ MEMOIRS OF THE MOST EMINENT AMERICAN MECHANICS: ALSO, LIVES OF DISTINGUISHED EUROPEAN MECHANICS; TOGETHER WITH A COLLECTION OF ANECDOTES, DESCRIPTIONS, &c. &c. RELATING TO THE MECHANIC ARTS. ILLUSTRATED BY FIFTY ENGRAVINGS. BY HENRY HOWE "The due cultivation of practical manual arts-in a irtuion, has a greater tendency to polish and humanize mankind, than mere speculative science, however refined and sublime it njay be." NEW YORK: PUBLISHED BY ALEXANDER V. BLAKE, No. 54 Gold, corner of Fulton-street. STEREOTYPED BY R. C. VALENTINE, 45 GOLD-STREET. 1842. T3? Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1841, by ALEXANDER V. BLAKE, In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York R. CRAIGHEAD, Printer, 112 Fulton-street, N. Y. PREFACE. IT is singular that so little interest should heretofore have been taken in the history of those to whom we are indebted for the arts and inventions constituting the glory of our time. The pen has ever been more ready to record the brilliant than the useful. To this is to be attributed the neglect heretofore manifested in relation to these subjects. Indeed, so little regard has been evinced, that a late foreign writer, who happened incidentally to be " thrown upon" some incidents in the life of an eminent mechanician, considered it due to the fastidiousness of public taste, to claim indulgence for diverging into so obscure and tasteless a path of biographical research. But, thanks to the more general diffusion of knowledge and the light of Christianity, this false taste is rapidly dissipating, and mankind are beginning to appreciate the labors of those to whom we are indebted for our present unparalleled state of intellectual and social advance- ment. The memoirs of the benefactors of our racCj in past ages, are often histories of wrong; and those who have labored in the department of mechanical invention, may truly be termed the martyrs of civilization! The causes producing this state of 4 PREFACE. things are fading away before the intelligence of the times, and wise and just laws are in operation to protect the defenceless. As has been aptly observed, " the strife of trade has superseded the strife of war," the clash and din of arms has given place to the busy hum of industry, the ringing of the anvil, the melody of the waterfall, and the puff of the steam engine. The days of tournaments are past, the mechanic fairs are our " tilting grounds," where the conflict is not for physical superiority, but for inventions best promoting the comfort and elegance of life. Although much has been done, more remains to be accomplished. This new world is to be a theatre of mighty structures for the development of resources, advancing, beyond present conception, the welfare and happiness of our race Biographies of public individuals have their peculiar advan- tages ; but examples drawn from the common walks prove of more practical utility. Such are here presented ; and it is judged that their perusal will be found at least as useful as tracing the progress of a military hero through scenes of blood, or witness- ing the more peaceful triumphs of some champion in the field of political strife. With these views we have prosecuted this undertaking, in the hope of producing a series of memoirs, which, while of general interest, would be useful to the mechanic : and the aim being to give as much variety as possible within our assigned limits, we have reluctantly excluded several characters, who, but for their similarity of pursuit, would have adorned our pages. The materials are drawn from a variety of sources ; but we are principally indebted to the various mechanical journals of the day, including the publications of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful PREFACE. 5 Knowledge. Most of the memoirs, however, in the American department were written expressly for the work, while several of the others in this as well as in the other portion have under- gone more or less modification. To those who have kindly furnished us with notices of their respective friends, we feel duly grateful. To the public we pre- sent the result of our labors, with the desire that it may excite emulation, and illustrate and encourage the talent and persever- ance required for a successful cultivation of the mechanic arts. H. H. NEW HAVEN, CT., Nov. 20, 1839. 1* CONTENTS. AMERICAN MECHANICS. PAGE JOHN FITCH . . . . , . . .13 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN . 87 OLIVER EVANS . . 68 SAMUEL SLATER . . . . . . 85 ELI WHITNEY . . . . . . . 101 DAVID BUSHNELL . . 136 AMOS WHITTEMORE . ,147 ROBERT FULTON ........ 156 JACOB PERKINS . . . 188 THOMAS BLANCHARD . . ,197 HENRY ECKFORD . . /i 211 : CONTENTS. EUROPEAN MECHANICS. PAGE JOHN SMEATON .... . 219 MARQUIS OF WORCESTER 228 JAMES FERGUSON ' 237 SAMUEL CROMPTON 249 WILLIAM EDWARDS . . . . . . . 253 RICHARD ARKWRIGHT * . 258 M. GUINAND 270 JAMES WATT ... .... 279 JAMES BRINDLEY 298 JESSE RAMSDEN 313 EARL OF STANHOPE 318 HOHLFIELD 323 MATTHEW BOULTON . . # 327 THOMAS TELFORD 330 EDMUND CARTWRIGHT 336 JOHN WHITEHURST 342 JAMES HARGREAVES . ^C 347 JOSEPH BRAMAH 350 ANECDOTES, DESCRIPTIONS, ETC., ETC., RELATING TO THE MECHANIC ARTS. PAGE 1 -ogress of Invention illustrated . . . 353 111 istration of the Ignorance of Foreigners respecting American Inventions ...... 355 Singular Origin of the Invention of Frame-work Knitting 358 Ancient and Modern Labor ..... 360 The Slide of Alpnach .... 361 American Road-making 364 Archimedes . . . . . 367 The Inventor of the Iron Plough .... 370 Cotton Manufacture of India . . .' . . 372 Description of the Bridge at the Niagara Falls . . 376 Thomas Godfrey .^ . . . 378 Musical Kaleidoscope . . . . . . 379 Bernard Palissy 379 Dyeing Cloth of two Colors . . . . . . 380 Remarkable Wooden Bridge 380 Celebrated and curious Clocks ^fc ... 381 Manufacture of Porcelain and Earthenware . . 386 Inventors and Poets . .... 391 Public Works of the United States .... 392 Manufactory of the Gobelins 394 March of Umbrellas ...'... 395 The French Machine-maker . . . 396 Manufacturing Establishments . . . . 400 The Mechanical Fiddler 402 10 CONTENTS. PAGE Corn Mills in ancient times 404 The Obelisk of Luxor ...... 409 American Steamers . . 416 Simple Origin of important Discoveries . . . 426 Invention of the Safety Lamp . . . . . 427 The Thames Tunnel 428 Watchmaking in Switzerland . . . . . 441 Perpetual Motion ...*... 445 The Balsa 448 AUTOMATA . . 449 Mechanical Automata of the Ancients . . . 450 Automata of Dsedalus ...... 450 Wooden Pigeon of Archytas .... 450 Automatic Clock of Charlemagne .... 450 Automata of Muller and Turrianus . . . 451 Camus 's Carriage . 451 Degennes 1 Mechanical Peacock 452 Vaucanson's Duck . . . . . 452 Drawing and writing Automata ... 453 Maillardet's Conjurer . . . . . . 453 Benefits derived from the passion for Automata . 454 Duncan's Tambouring Machine ..... 455 Watt's Statue-turning Machinery ..... 457 Babbage's Calculating Machine ..... 457 Automaton Chess Player . . * 460 Chinese Bamboo Irrigation Wheel . . . * 469 Discovery of Gunpowder, and mventions arising there- from . 470 A few Remarks on the Relation which subsists between a Machine and its Model . * . . . 471 Shoes and Buckles ....... 475 The Croton Aqueduct . . " . . . . 476 Cugnot's Steam Carriage 479 Eloquent Description 480 Watchmaker's Epitaph 482 ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE FRONTISPIECE. Fitch's Steamboat 31 The first American Locomotive ; or, the " Oructor Am- phibolis " of Evans . . . . . v . 77 View of Pawtucket 93 Birth-place of Whitney 103 Cotton Gin, (Plan) 108 Ditto/ (Section) . 109 View of Whitney's Armory t . . . . .124 Tomb of Whitney . . . . . . 135 Destruction of a British Tender by a Torpedo . . 141 Stationary Torpedo ....... 166 Fulton's first American Steamboat . . . .179 Blanchard's Engine for turning irregular forms , . 203 Eddystone Bond . . 225 Eddystone Lighthouse in a Storm 227 Hall-in-the-wood, near Bolton * . . . .251 Arkwright's first Cotton Factory at Cromford . . .266 Aqueduct over the Irwell . . . ' . . 307 Menai Suspension Bridge . . . . . 333 The Hydrostatic Press . . . . . .351 Progress of Invention illustrated .... 353, 354 Wooden Pavement 367 Spinning-wheel of India ...... 372 Hindoos weaving . 373 12 ILLUSTRATIONS. Longitudinal Section of Thames Tunnel, showing its course under the river ....... Longitudinal Section of Thames Tunnel, with an end view of the Shield Cross Section of Thames Tunnel, showing the arrange, ment of the masonry ...... The Balsa . Chinese Irrigation Wheel Croton Aqueduct PAGE 434 434 439 448 469 478 PORTRAITS. Benjamin Franklin Oliver Evans . . Samuel Slater . . Eli Whitney . . Amos Whittemore Robert Fulton Jacob Perkins Thomas Blanchard John Smeaton . PAGE PAGE 36 231 69 James Ferguson . . . 236 84 Samuel Crompton . 248 100 Richard Arkwright . . 259 146 James Watt . . . . 278 157 James Brindley . . . 299 189 Stanhope .... 319 196 Matthew Boulton . . . 326 218 John Whitehurst . . . 343 AMERICAN MECHANICS. JOHN FITCH, AN EARLY STEAMBOAT INVENTOR. ivention all admired, and each how he s the inventor missed ; so easy it seemec found, which yet unfound, most would Impossible." MILTON. Who invented the first steamboat? Early experimenters in steam. Blasco de Garay. Jonathan Hulls. Fitch's manuscript. Birth. Character of his parents. Loses his mother. Juvenile heroism. Mother-in-law. Schoolboy days. Becomes a great arithmetician. Father's austerity. Hears of a won- derfid book. Great thirst for knowledge. Self-denial and industry. Makes a purchase. Becomes a great geographer. Father purchases him scale and dividers. Great joy thereat. Studies surveying. Surveys with the governor, and paid in glory. Leaves school for the farm. Brother's tyranny. Desires to study astronomy. Relaxes from studious habits. Embarks as a cabin-boy in a coaster. Cruel treatment. Leaves, and enters another. Makes a short voyage. Returns. Accidental meeting with a clockmaker. Wishes to enter his service. Selfish opposition of his parents. Kindness of his brother-in- law. Enters the clockmaker's service. His neglect. Leaves in ignorance of his profession. Enters the service of a clockmaker and watch repairer. Gross injustice. Leaves. New employment, and success. A change, and misfortune. Marries. Unhappy life. Abandons his wife. Wanders. Visits the Jerseys. Sickly appearance a prevention to obtaining employment as a day laborer. Turns button-maker. Revolutionary war. Repairs arms for the continental army. Employed in Kentucky as a surveyor. Taken prisoner by the Indians, and carried into captivity. Release. Returns to the east. First idea of a steamboat. Curious reflections. Dr. Thornton's account of his ex- periments. Note, Biographical Sketch of Rumsey. Description of Fitch's boat. Goes out to France. Return. Misfortunes. Generosity of a relation. Visits Kentucky. Better prospects. Death. " WHO invented the steamboat ?" is a question which has ex- cited great controversy, an achievement of which nations as well as individuals have been covetous. Several of the early experimenters in steam appear to have conceived of the idea. The first account we have on the subject is given in a work recently published in Spain, containing original papers relating to the voyage of Columbus, said to have been pre- 2 14 AMERICAN MECHANICS. served in the royal archives at Samancas, and among the public papers of Catalonia and those of the secretary at war for the yeai 1543. This narrative states that " Blasco de Garay, a sea cap- tain, exhibited to the emperor and king Charles V., in the year 1543, an engine by which ships and vessels of the largest size could be propelled, even in a calm, without the aid of oars or sails. Notwithstanding the opposition which this project encountered, the emperor resolved that an experiment should be made, as in fact it was, with success, in the harbor of Barcelona, on the 17th of June, 1543. Garay never publicly exposed the construction of his engine, but it was observed at the time of his experiment, that it consisted of a large caldron or vessel of boiling water, and a moveable wheel attached to each side of the ship. The experi- ment was made on a ship of 209 tons, arrived from Calibre, to discharge a cargo of wheat at Barcelona ; it was called the Tri- nity, and the captain's name was Peter de Scarza. By order of Charles V. and the prince Philip the Second, his son, there were present at the time, Henry de Toledo, the governor, Peter Car- dona, the treasurer, Ravago, the vice-chancellor, Francis Gralla, and many other persons of rank, both Castilians and Catalonians ; and among others, several sea captains witnessed the operation, some in the vessel, and others on the shore. The -emperor and prince, and others with them, applauded the engine, and especially the expertness with which the ship could be tacked. The trea- surer Ravago, an enemy to the project, said it would move two leagues in three hours. It was very complicated and expensive, and exposed to the constant danger of bursting the boiler. The other commissioners affirmed, that the vessel could be tacked twice as quick as a galley served by the common method, and that at its slowest rate it would move a league in an hour. The exhibition being finished, Garay took from the ship his engine, and having deposited the wood work in the arsenal of Barcelona, kept the rest to himself. Notwithstanding the' difficulties and opposition thrown in the way by Ravago, the invention was ap- proved ; and if the expedition in which Charles V. was then engaged had not failed, it would undoubtedly have been favored by him. As it was, he raised Garay to a higher station, gave him a sum of money (200,000 maravedies) as a present, ordered all the expenses of the experiment to be paid out of the general treasury, and conferred upon him other rewards." The editor of the Franklin Journal, from which this extract has been made, observes, " when the * Public Records ' shall appear in an authentic form, their evidence must be admitted ; until then he should not be inclined to commence the history of the inven- JOHN FITCH. 15 tion of the steamboat so far back as 1543. For circumstantial as the account is, it seems to have been written since the days of Fulton." He is not 1 alone in this opinion, as it is universally regarded as a mere fiction, the offspring of an individual jealous of his country's reputation. The most prominent and authentic account of the early projects of applying steam as a motive power to the propelling of vessels, is given in a treatise printed in London in 1737, entitled " De- scription and draught of a new-invented machine, for carrying vessels out of, or into any harbor, port, or river, against wind and tide or in a calm : for which his majesty George II. has granted letters patent for the sole benefit of the author, for the space of fourteen years ; by Jonathan Hulls." The draught or drawing prefixed is a plate of a stout boat with chimney smoking, a pair of wheels rigged out over each side of the stern, moved by means of ropes passing round their outer rims ; and to the axis of these wheels are fixed six paddles to propel the boat. From the stem of the boat a tow-line passes to the foremast of a two-decker, which the boat thus tows through the water. There is no evi- dence that Hulls ever applied his conceptions to practice. Since that time, down to the period of the great and successful experiments of Fulton, several attempts were made here and in Europe, with varied success. Among the most, if not the most conspicuous, were those made by the subject of this article. A few years previous to his death, Fitch prepared a memoir of himself, including a history of his experiments in steam. These papers were bequeathed to the Franklin Library of Philadelphia, with directions that they should be unsealed and perused thirty years from the time of his decease. At the appointed period they were opened, and found to contain a very full account of his life, particularly of that portion which related to his experiments in steam, including the progress of his operations from the time the thought first occurred to him, until the completion of the boat so far as to make numerous experiments on the Delaware, the sub- sequent alterations made, and the final abandonment of the scheme by the original stockholders. These manuscripts show but one tissue of discouragements and perplexities, and prove him to have been a strong-minded but un- lettered man, with a perseverance almost unexampled, and a de- termination to let no difficulty in the execution of his plan prevent him from endeavoring to bring it to perfection, so long as the shareholders furnished the means of defraying the expenses. Indeed, disappointment and oppression appear to have borne him 16 AMERICAN MECHANICS. company from his veiy youth ; and, as he himself remarks, it is the history of one of the most " singular" as well as one of the most " unfortunate men in the world /" From this narrative we shall make liberal quotations, especially from that portion relating to his younger days. It is the incidents of youth that give a tone and direction to character. We can all of us refer to some of the most apparently trivial events of earlier years that have completely changed the whole current of our thoughts and pursuits. In the memoir before us there can be traced, with a minuteness uncommon even in biography, those circumstances which moulded his strong mind into its peculiar model ; and we can there perceive the origin of that misanthropical cast of thought, that eccentricity of character and that looseness of sentiment in regard to concerns of a serious nature, which so strongly marked the author of its pages. This memoir is addressed to the " worthy Nathaniel Irwin, of Neshamoney," in Pennsylvania, a clergyman and a gentleman of whose talents and kindness of disposition Fitch had formed the highest estimate, and who, it appears, once requested him to pre- pare something of the kind. The principal reason which Fitch gives for complying with this request was, that his life had been filled with such a variety of changes, affording such useful lessons to mankind, that he considered it a neglect of duty were he to suppress it. " The 21st of January, 1743, old style," says he, " was the fatal time of bringing me into existence. The house I was born in was upon the line between Hartford and Windsor (Connecticut.) It was said I was born in Windsor ;* but from the singularity of my make, shape, disposition, and fortune in the world, I am in. clined to believe that it was the design of Heaven that I should be born on the very line, and not in any township whatever ; yet am happy also that it did not happen between two states, that I can say I was born somewhere." Fitch's father .was a farmer in good circumstances. His be- setting sin seems to have consisted in a want of generosity . in pecuniary affairs, so much so that his son observes, " I presume he never spent five shillings at a tavern during the whole course of his life." This, in our day, would be considered as a very singular and inapt illustration of that trait of disposition ; but when we remember the customs of society at that period, and the total deprivation of every thing like " amusement," inseparable from the isolated condition of agriculturists, we shall comprehend some- * Now East Windsor. JOHN FITCH. 17 thing like the spirit of the allusion. Still, his parent appears to have been a good provider ; for he goes on to state, " we always had plenty of victuals and drink in the house. In the whole course of my acquaintance with him, I never knew him out of cider but about two weeks, and never out of pickled pork. Our victuals were coarse, but wholesome, such as pork and beans, codfish and potatoes, hasty pudding and milk," and, what was particularly valued, " always a stout hasty pudding after dinner." His pa- rents had five children, two sons and two daughters, besides the " unfortunate John" " From the time of my birth," says he, " until I was five years of age, nothing material happened to me that I can recollect, any more than crawling along the floor and picking ants out of the cracks, and now and then catching a fly, which made as lively impression on my mind, as great, perhaps, as the Trojan war on the minds of heroes." " When I was four years old I went to school : I know from the circumstance that my mistress used to ask me how my mother was, and she died when I was five years old. I recollect that I learned to spell the first summer before my mother's death, whilst I went to Mrs. Rockwell. I remember frequently spelling there without the book the words commandment, Jerusalem, &c. But soon the fatal day arrived when my mother's guardianship should be taken from me, and early in the fall I was deprived of her. Although I did not consider my loss, natural affection carried my griefs to a very great excess for a child of my age." He here, and frequently elsewhere, speaks of his mother with regard, and no doubt her loss proved injurious to him. She was a kind and affectionate woman, without those disagreeable traits which marked the character of his other parent. " When about six years of age," he remarks, " a most extra- ordinary circumstance happened to me, worthy of the notice of a Roman soldier." Returning from school about dusk one day, he found no one in the house except a little sister, his second brother being in the barn yard holding a " wicked cow " for his eldest sister to milk. This little sister being anxious to show him a present which she had received during the day, it being too dark to see without, lighted a candle to find it. Unfortunately, in her search she set fire to two large bundles of flax standing in a dis- tant corner of the room* which young Fitch no sooner observed, than, with a presence of mind truly wonderful in a child so young, he ran and seized one of the blazing bundles, which was more than he was enabled to lift without resting it upon his knees, carried it to the hearth, and threw it down. In so doing he blistered his 2* 18 AMERICAN MECHANICS. hands and set his hair in a blaze, but, smothering the fire on his head with his naked hands, he sprang and grasped the other bundle and brought it to the same place, blistering his hands and setting his head on fire the second time, and putting it out in like manner. Having done this, he jumped upon the bundles until the fire was extinguished* " In the mean time," he says, " whilst I was thus occupied, my little sister Chloe being frightened, ran to the barn yard, and probably told my brother some improper story. When I had the fire put out, notwithstanding my painful hands and smarting face, which was then covered with blisters, I went to relate the tale to my elder brother ; but no sooner did I arrive in the yard than he fell foul of me, boxing my ears and beating me beyond reason for the greatest fault, and would not give me leave to say a word in my behalf. As my father had that evening- gone a courting, I had nowhere to apply to for redress, therefore was obliged not only to submit to the greatest indignities, but to the greatest injustice. On his return I made complaints, but with- out satisfaction or redress. This being what I may call the first act of my life, seemed to forebode the future rewards that I was to receive for my labors through it, which has generally corre- sponded with that." When he was about seven years old, his father married " one Abigail Church," whom he describes as being an orderly, easy- tempered old maid of forty, possessing sense sufficient to manage the affairs of the house. " My father," he continues, " kept me constantly at school until I was eight or nine years of age, as my schooling cost him nothing. When the weather was too bad to go to school, he had goodness enough to encourage my learning my book at home, and would frequently teach me. Before I was ten years old I could say the New England Primer all by heart, from Adam's fall to the end of the catechism. But the most surprising thing of my learning ap- pears to me to be this : My father had an old arithmetic book in the house, by one Hodder, with the old-fashioned division in it. I was able at nine years of age to make figures pretty well, as well as to write a legible hand. Whenever I had a minute's lei- sure I would have that book in my hand, and learned myself out of it the true principles of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division ; and the year that I was nine years of age, could tell how many minutes old I should be when I should have seen ten years, but was not able to multiply the figure nine : this I did in the presence of four or five neighbors one rainy day, to their admiration. When about eight years of age, my father took me from school, and set me to work in the most serious and diligent JOHN FITCH. 19 *t. manner, although I was exceedingly small of my age, and scarcely able to swingle more than two pounds of flax, or thresh more than two bushels of grain, with the steadiness of a man of thirty years for that trifling, pitiful labor. I was prevented from going to school more than one month in the winter, when he saw that I was nearly crazy after learning, and then I was always obliged to leave before it was out to come home to help him fodder." " My father was one of the most strenuous of the sect of Pres- byterians, and a bigot, which he carried to such excess that I dare not go into the garden to pick currants or into the orchard to get apples on the sabbath. I really believe that he thought it the extent of his duty toward me to learn me to read the Bible, that I might find the way to heaven ; when he had done that he felt per- fectly easy, and if I could earn him twopence per day it ought not to be lost. It may be irreverent for me thus to speak as I have done of a parent, but I mean to communicate the truth to you, and in as particular a manner as I can." Without apologizing for the unnatural language of Fitch in thus speaking of a parent, we can perceive in that austerity and scrupulous observance of the mere outward forms of religion which he evinced, without being suffi- ciently guided by its true spirit to act generously and fairly by those around him, the origin of that infidelity of sentiment which formed so striking a feature in the character of his son. " But notwithstanding," continues Fitch, " he suppressed me from going to school, he did not hinder me from studying such books as he had ; and at noontimes and evenings, instead of play- ing, as is common with boys of that age, I was as studious as the most zealous student under the eyes of a tutor, and, in particular, in Hodder's Arithmetic, which went as far as Alligation Alternate. When I was eleven years old, I heard of a book that would give me a knowledge of the whole world, which was Salmon's Geog- raphy. I repeatedly requested my father to get it for me, but to no purpose. J then proposed to him to give me some headlands at the end of a field to plant potatoes, which he granted, and I dug it up by hand on a holy day." This holy day was .the annual meet- ing of the militia of the state. Every reader who can recollect in the times of his boyhood how delightfully the old distich, 41 First Monday in May Is training day," used to sound in his ears, when he looked forward in anticipation to the glories of that jubilee, can form some idea of the thirst for knowledge which young Fitch here evinced in denying himself a participation in its pleasures. Having thus prepared the land, he 20 AMERICAN MECHANICS. planted it with potatoes, cultivating them at noontimes and at evenings, after the labors of the day were over. He says, " I raised several bushels, and in the fall sold them, and got ten shil- lings in money, and went to a merchant in the neighborhood who dealt in New York, who promised me to get the book, and fulfilled his promise. But the book cost twelve shillings, and I was two shillings in debt, which gave me a great deal of uneasiness. By some means, I do not recollect how, I soon discharged it, but was obliged to return the seed to my father in the fall. " What makes me pretty sure it happened when I was eleven years of age, is this : it was about one year after I planted the potatoes before I got the book, and I learned surveying that winter I was thirteen years of age, and when I learned that, I presume I was the best geographer of the world, that Connecticut could pro- duce, according to Salmon, at that time. No question could be asked me of any nation, but I would tell their number, religion, their latitude and longitude, and turn at once to any town marked on the maps, which could not be acquired in less than in about one year, considering the small opportunities I had of studying, which was only in the intervals of hard labor and times for rest. " My father never allowed me to go to school more than one month in a year, except that winter I was thirteen years of age, when he permitted me to go about five or six weeks. After I had got through with common arithmetic, my master told me in public school that he could learn me no farther in arithmetic, but, if I chose, he would learn me surveying. I so earnestly insisted on my father to indulge me in this, that he could not resist my en- treaties, and went to Hartford and got a scale and a pair of dividers, and on his return I never felt a greater sense of grati- tude to mortal man than I did to him at that time, and in tw weeks learned what we called surveying in New England. I knew no better, but thought myself perfect master, but learned nothing of logarithms, or of calculation by latitude and departure, only geometrically. As I had learned common arithmetic out of school by myself, I had but little to do while there, only to go through what I had really learned, except division, which took me about half a day to learn the different mode before I could be ready at it." " My father had meadow lands adjoining the governor of the colony. He frequently came under the shade with us in mowing time ; and seeing me a little, forward boy, one day requested my father to let me go to carry the chain with him, to measure off some small parcels. His request was easily granted, as is com. mon for poor men to exert themselves to. oblige the great. This JOHN FITCH. -21 happened when I was about ten or eleven years of age. In this undertaking the governor was exceedingly familiar with me, and would consult me on the most minute part of the business as much as if I had been an able counsellor, and as if he knew nothing of the business himself. I was equally proud of his company, and as officious as I could be to render him every service." " We could not finish the surveying that evening, but left, I believe, seven or eight acres when we quit. He left the chain, and gave me directions how to lay it off for sundry people ; I being proud of the office, readily accepted it, and executed it faithfully. Some time after, the governor called at -my father's house for the chain ; I fetched it to him with the greatest expedition, and ex- pectation of some pennies, when he took it, put it in his saddle- bags, and rode off without saying a word ! My mortification at this time was nearly equal to the usage I met with in extinguish- ing the fire in my father's house ; yet I am persuaded the governor was an honest man, but concluded within himself that the honor would fully compensate me." On leaving school, Fitch's whole time was devoted to the labors of the farm. His duties were so very severe, that he expresses an opinion that it " stunted him," and prevented his growth for several years. Independent of the severity of his father in thus keeping him so hard at work, he was subject to the tyranny of an elder brother, who sought every opportunity to oppress him and crush his spirits, cruelly compelling him to such an exertion in his labors that he was often " ready to faint," and speaking in such a manner as to put him in continual apprehension of a beating. " For this treatment," says he, " I do not thank my unfeeling father and tyrant brother ; and although I have not seen him for twenty years, would not go to the nearest neighbor's to see him, unless he was in distress. Could I be set into a Virginia field amongst their slaves, with the severest driver at my back, I would sooner engage in it than go through the same again." In speaking of an almost miraculous escape from injury in falling from a tree which happened about this period, he observes, " it seems heaven designed me for some more cruel fate." While on the farm, young Fitch was extremely desirous to study astronomy, and in vain solicited his father to procure the necessary works ; but, in some degree from the severity of his duties, partly from the want of books, and having already attained a greater amount of learning than any of his neighbors, he con- tinues, " I imperceptibly left my studies, and fell into the common practices of boys in our neighborhood, and devoted myself to play, when I could steal a minute, as much as I had before to my books. 22 AMERICAN MECHANICS. This helped to sweeten life ; and from the time I was thirteen and fourteen years of age until I went apprentice, I enjoyed my- self as well as most of the Virginia slaves, who have liberty to go to a dance once a week." " During that time there was nothing material happened to me. I seemed to be beloved both by old and young, as I could speak rationally to the old, and was always foremost among my play- fellows.'^ When about seventeen years of age, Fitch was anxious to learn some trade or go to sea, by which he " could make a living when he came to himself." He expressed these views to his father, at the same time representing that he was too small and weak to obtain a support by agricultural employments. His parent re- luctantly consented. In the following September the steeple to the village church was raised. This, was indeed a gala day, and the people from Hartford and the whole country round flocked to witness this then uncommon spectacle. Although, as he tells us, he had " a singular curiosity in witnessing mechanical operations," yet was determined to forego the pleasure, and borrowed a horse for the purpose of visiting Rocky Hill, a parish in Wethersfield, where there were a great number of coasters. The object of this visit was to engage a berth for a short voyage, to settle' his opinion as to the propriety of learning a trade or becoming a seaman. A place was first engaged on board of a sloop bound to New York, " under one Captain Abbott." This situation was found very disagreeable. The master treated him with brutality ; and although there were plenty of empty berths, he was compelled by the mate Starr, to lie upon deck on a chest, much too short, and this, too, without any covering. Such usage was considered " ex- tremely hard, after having been used to a comfortable bed at home." An occasion offering a day or two subsequent, he left and went on board of a Providence sloop. Here things were found very comfortable, and although not in accordance to stipulation, Fitch evinced such zeal and industry that his master paid him wages, and he made a " saving voyage." " I returned home," says he, " neither enamoured with the sea nor resolved against it, and in as much of a quandary how to dispose of myself as ever." Accident, however, soon threw him in the way of a neighboring clockmaker, who proposed to him to enter into his service. On expressing to his parents his desire to learn the business, they strenuously opposed his wishes, and this, too, without any regard to their son's welfare, but merely from a selfish unwillingness to dispense with his services on the farm, which had then become JOHN FITCH. 23 quite valuable. Their opposition came near frustrating the plan. On mentioning his troubles to his sister and her husband, Mr. Timothy King, although poor, they offered to advance the neces- sary funds. Fitch says, " these two persons were the greatest ornament that ever adorned my father's family. My sister was the most mannerly, generous-spirited woman that I ever saw, not only to me, but to others, and probably might take it in some manner from her husband, as good wives endeavor to recommend themselves to their husbands by adopting their sentiments." Other obstacles were thrown in his way, but he successfully overcame them. He describes the clockmaker as an eccentric man, and possess- ing some genius. According to agreement, Fitch was to work seven months in the year in the out-door concerns of his employer, the remainder of the time to devote to the pursuit of the art and mysteries of wooden clock-making. But his master by no means acted in conformity to contract, keeping his apprentice almost continually in attendance upon his domestic concerns ; and even during the small portion of the time he was employed in the shop, so neglected to instruct him, that at the expiration of two years and a half, Fitch left almost entirely ignorant of his profession. After this he went to work with a brother of his former em. ployer, who was engaged in a similar business, and who unitec with the manufacture of clocks the repairing of watches. This latter art it was especially stipulated should be taught his new ap- prentice ; he not only omitted to do it, but took particular pains to prevent his learning, working himself in a distant part of the room, locking up his tools when absent, and forbidding Fitch ever to touch them. Fitch was ajways kept busy on some unimportant part, so that during the eight months he was in this person's ser- vice, he never even saw a watch taken to pieces or put together, and, in fact, had no opportunity of obtaining any insight of the subject whatever. Nor did oppression end here ; " although," he observes, " I possessed a small appetite, I never was given sufficient to satisfy it, except on one occasion, when I managed to make a good, hearty meal on potatoes. Being an inferior, I was helped last at the table ; the females would then discourse upon gluttony, and my master, hastily devouring his own food, would immediately return thanks for that which himself and others eat, as well as for that which his apprentice did not." Fitch was kept very hard and steady at work from before sunrise in winter until ten o'clock at night, and as many hours during the summer, with, however, one single exception, this was on the occasion of the sickness and death of his master's child, when 24 AMERICAN MECHANICS. he was obliged to walk six miles for a physician. Shortly after his return the child died. " During the night," says he, " I watched with the corpse, with the privilege of as much water from the well as I desired, by way of refreshment." On leaving his last employer, he dared not set up the business on his own account, or work as a journeyman, for fear of exhibit- ing his ignorance, but employed himself, as he tells us, " in doing small brass work." This was pursued by him with so much in- dustry, that at the end of two years he found himself worth fifty pounds, which for him, considering the scarcity of money at the time, was viewed as " quite a treasure," and enabled him to pay off his debts, and have something "handsome left." Fitch after- wards entered into the potash business, but was unsuccessful in its prosecution, arising partially from the unfaithfulness of one of his partners. While thus engaged, he married Miss Lucy Ro- berts, on 29th December, 1767 ; but owing to her unhappy temper and disposition, was compelled, in the course of a year or two, to abandon her, being thoroughly convinced that it was for the happi- ness of both that they should separate. This event occasioned him great affliction, from being obliged to leave a child whom he " loved as dear as himself." A misfortune subsequently happen- ing to her, he observes, " could I have foreseen it, I should never have abandoned her, but have endeavored to worry through life in her company as well as I might." On forsaking the place of his nativity, Fitch went to Pittsfield, Mass., but not having constant employment there, visited Albany, yet with no better success. A short time after, we find him in New Jersey, in a destitute condition, endeavoring to find employ- ment on some farm as a common laborer, but his sickly appear- ance baffled all his efforts, no one would employ him. Finally, he entered into the business of making buttons, which he pursued with tolerable success, first at New Brunswick, and afterwards at Trenton. At the commencement of the revolution, Fitch espoused the popular cause, and during a portion of the time rendered himself very useful in repairing arms for the continental army. Subse- quently he removed to Kentucky, where he received the appoint- ment and practised as a surveyor. While at the West, and in navigating a river in a small boat, Fitch and his companions were taken prisoners and carried into 'captivity by the Indians, but after considerable hardship and suffering, were released. At a subse- quent period he became once more an inhabitant of one of the Atlantic states. " In the month of April, 1785," says Fitch, in the manuscript %\ 1 1* s : 5 f Xl | * I^\R k ^ H 'J- * ' Wb C HH 8" *2- *~* g. tr 1 e o I "" a Zi I? o JOHN FITCH. 27 alluded to, " I was so unfortunate as to have an idea that a car. riage might be carried by the force of steam along the roads. I pursued that idea about one week, and gave it over as imprac- ticable, or, in other words, turned my thoughts to vessels. From that time I have pursued the idea to this day with unremitted assi- duity, yet do frankly confess that it has been the most imprudent scheme that ever I engaged in. The perplexities and embarrass- ments through which it has caused me to wade, far exceed any thing that the common course of life ever presented to my view ; and to reflect on the disproportion of a man of my abilities to such a task, I am to charge myself with having been deranged ; and had I not the most convincing proofs to the contrary, should most certainly suppose myself to have been non compos mentis at the time." In another place he remarks, " If I had the abilities of Cicero, it would have been nothing less than madness in me to have un- dertaken it, in my state of penury. Had I been a nobleman of 3000, it would barely have justified my conduct." Again, he says, " What I am now to inform you of I know will not be to my credit, but, so long as it is the truth, I will insert it, viz., that I did not know that there was a steam engine on earth when I proposed to gain a force by steam ; and I leave my first drafts and descriptions behind, that you may judge whether I am sincere or not. A short time after drawing my first draft for a boat, I was amazingly chagrined to find, at Parson Irwin's, in Bucks county, a drawing of a steam engine ; but it had the effect to establish me in my other principles, as my doubts lay at that time in the engine only." The following account of Fitch's experiments is written by one of his early patrons, the late Dr. Thornton, of the patent office at Washington, and is entitled " A short account of the origin of steamboats :" " Finding that Mr. Robert Fulton,* whose genius and talents I highly jespect, has been considered by some the inventor of the steamboat, I think it a duty to the memory of the late JOHN FITCH to set forth, with as much brevity as possible, the fallacy of this opinion ; and to show, moreover, that if Mr. Fulton has any claim whatever to originality in his steamboat, it must be exceedingly limited. " In the year 1788, the late John Fitch applied for, and ob- tained a patent for the application of steam to navigation, in the * It may not be invidious here to mention, that one great advantage which Mr. Fulton possessed over many, if not all preceding experimenters, was the use of one of Watt's improved steam engines. 3 28 AMERICAN MECHANICS. states of New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, &c. ; and soon after, the late Mr. James Rumsey,* conceiving he had made some discoveries in perfecting the same, applied to the state of Pennsylvania for a patent; but a company formed by John * Biographical Sketch of James Rumsey. " This individual was a native of Mary- land, and, when a young man, removed to Shepherdstown, Virginia, where he occupied himself exclusively in mechanical subjects. As early as July or August, 1783, he directed his attention to the subject of navigation by steam ; and, under the most disadvantageous circumstances, succeeded, in the autumn of 1784, in making a private, but very imperfect experiment, in order to test some of the principles of his invention. This so well convinced him of its ultimate success, that at the October session of the Virginia legislature for that year, he applied for and obtained an act, guarantying to him the exclusive use of his invention in navigating the waters of that state. About the same time also he communi- cated his invention to General Washington. In January, 1785, he obtained a patent from the general assembly of Maryland for navigating their waters. Through the whole of this year, Rumsey was deeply engaged in building a boat, and procuring, improving, adapting, and testing the several parts of his machin- ery ; but, from obvious causes, was not ready for a public trial until the year fol- lowing, (1786,) which, all things considered, was eminently successful. In this trial he succeeded in propelling his boat by steam alone against the current of the Potomac, near Shepherdstown, at the rate of four or Jive miles an hour ! " Rumsey's boat was about fifty feet in length, and, as observed in the text, was propelled by a pump worked by a steam engine, which forced a quantity of water up through the keel ; the valve was then shut by the return of the stroke, which at the same time forced the water through a channel or pipe, a few inches square (lying above or parallel to the kelson,) out at the stern under the rudder, which had a less depth than usual, to permit the exit of the water. The impetus of this water, forced through the square channel against the exterior water, acted as an impelling power upon the vessel. The reaction of the effluent water pro- pelled her at the rate above mentioned, when loaded with three tons in addition to the weight of her engine of about a third of a ton. The boiler was quite a curiosity, holding no more than five gallons of water, and needing only a pint at a time. The whole machinery did not occupy a space greater than that required for four barrels of flour. The fuel consumed was not more than from four to six bushels of coals in twelve hours. Rumsey's other project was to apply the power of a steam engine to long poles, which were to reach the bottom of the river, and by that means to push a boat against a rapid current. " After the experiment above alluded to, Rumsey being under the strong con- viction that skilful workmen and perfect machinery were alone wanting to the most perfect success, and sensible that such could not be procured in America, resolved to go to England. With slender means of his own, and aided, or rather mocked, by some timid and unsteady patronage, he there resumed with untiring energy his great undertaking. He proceeded to procure patents of the British government for steam navigation : these patents bear date in the beginning of the year 1788. Several of his inventions, in one modified form or another, are now in general use ; as, for instance, the cylindrical boiler, so superior to the old tub or still boilers, in the presentation of fire surface, and capacity for hold- ing highly rarefied steam, is described, both single and combined, in his specifi- cations, and is identical in principle with the tub boiler which he used in his Potomac experiment. " Difficulties and embarrassments of a pecuniary nature, and such as invari- ably obstruct the progress of a new invention, attended him in England. He was often compelled to abandon temporarily his main object, and turn his atten- tion to something else, in order to raise means to resume it. He undertook with the same power, but by its more judicious application, to produce higher results in sereral waterworks, in all which he succeeded, realizing thereby some reputa- tion as well as funds to apply to his favorite project. JOHN FITCH. 29 Fitch, under his state patents, of which the author of this was one of the principal shareholders, conceiving that the patent of Fitch was not for any peculiar mode of applying the steam to navigation, but that it extended to all known modes of propelling boats and vessels, contested before the assembly of Pennsylvania, and also before the assembly of Delaware, the mode proposed by Mr. Rum- sey, and contended that the mode he proposed, viz., by drawing up the water into a tube, and forcing the same water out of the stern of the vessel or boat, which was derived from Dr. Franklin's works, (the doctor being one of the company,) was a mode the company had a right to, for the plan was originally published in Latin, about fifty years before, in the works of Bernouilli the younger. Two of Fitch's company and I appeared without counsel, and pleaded our own cause in the assembly of Pennsyl- vania, and after a week's patient hearing against the most learned counsel of Pennsylvania, we obtained a decision in our favor, and afterwards also in Delaware. We believed and contended that our claim of propelling boats by steam included all the modes of propelling vessels and boats then known, and that the patent was for the application of steam as an agent to the propelling powers : and the decisions of the legislatures were in favor of this construe- tion, as Mr. Ramsey's company (of which the late Messrs. Bing- ham, Myers, Fisher, and many other worthy gentlemen, were members,) were excluded from the right of using steamboats on any principle." " At another tirtie, in order to avoid a London prison, and the delay, if not the defeat of all his high hopes, he was compelled to transfer, at what he considered a ruinous sacrifice, a large interest in his inventions, a contract which entan- gled and embarrassed him through life. Still, however, he struggled on, undis- mayed, and had constructed a boat of about one hundred tons burden, and pushed forward his machinery so near to the point of completion, as to be able to indi- cate a day not very distant for a public exhibition, when his sudden death occurred from apoplexy, while discussing the principle of one of his inventions before a philosophical society of London. With his life the whole project ceased, there was no one present to administer, no one present able to carry it out. Few would have been willing to incur the ridicule of attempting to complete it. All that he left, his very boat and machinery, barely sufficed to satisfy anxious ami greedy creditors." A sharp controversy at one time existed between Rumsey and Fitch, and their mutual friends, relating to the originality of their respective inventions. With- out deciding upon the merits of either, both certainly claim the highest admira- tion for their perseverance, as well as sympathy for their misfortunes. For the above facts, see Stuart's Anecdotes of the Steam Engine, and the speech of Mr. Rumsey of Kentucky before the house of representatives, on the occasion of offering the following resolution, afterwards unanimously passed, Feb. 9, 1839 : " Resolved by the senate and house of representatives, &c. &c., That the President be and he is hereby requested to present to James Rumsey, jun., the son and only surviving child of James Rumsey, deceased, a suitable gold medal, commemorative of his father's services and high agency in giving to the world the benefits of the steamboat/' 30 AMERICAN MECHANICS. " We worked incessantly at the boat* to bring it to perfection, and under the disadvantages of never having seen a steam engine on the principles contemplated, of not having a single engineer in our company or pay, we made engineers of common black, smiths ; and after expending many thousand dollars, the boat did not exceed three miles an hour. Finding great unwillingness in many to proceed, I proposed to the company to give up to any one, the one-half of my shares, who would, at his own expense, make a boat go at the rate of eight miles an hour, in dead water, in eighteen months, or forfeit all the expenditures on failing ; or I would engage with any others to accept these terms. Each re- linquished one half of his shares, by making the forty shares eighty, and holding only as many of the new shares as he held of the old ones, and then subscribed as far as he thought proper to enter on the terms : by which many relinquished one half. I was among the number, and in less than twelve months we were ready for the experiment. " The day was appointed, and the experiment made in the fol- lowing manner: A mile was measured in Front (Water) street, Philadelphia, and the bounds projected at right angles, as exactly as could be to the wharf, where a flag was placed at each end, and also a stop watch. The boat was ordered under way at dead water, or when the tide was found to be without movement; as the boat passed one flag, it struck, and at the same instant the watches were set off; as the boat reached the other flag it was also struck, and the watches instantly stopped. Every precaution was taken before witnesses : the time was shown to all ; the ex- periment declared to be fairly made, and the boat was found to go at the rate of eight miles an hour, or one mile in seven minutes * Description of Fitch's Steamboat. The following account of Mr. Fitch's boat is given by the unfortunate inventor in the Columbian (Philadelphia) Magazine, vol. i. for December, 178G, of which the engraving annexed will give some idea. " The cylinder is to be horizontal, and the steam to work with equal force at each end. The mode by which we obtain a vacuum is, it is believed, entirely new, as is also the method of letting the water into it and throwing it off against the atmosphere without any friction. It is expected that the cylinder, which is of twelve inches diameter, will move a clear force of eleven or twelve cwt. after the frictions are deducted ; this force is to be directed against a wheel eighteen inches in diameter. The piston is to move about three feet, and each vibration of it gives the axis about forty evolutions. Each evolution of the axis moves twelve oars or paddles five and a half feet ; they work perpendicularly, and are represented by the strokes of a paddle of a canoe. As six of the paddles are raised from the water, six more are entered, and the two sets of paddles make their strokes of about eleven feet in each evolution. The crank of the axis acts upon the paddles, about one third of their length from their lower ends, on which part of the oar the whole force of the axis is applied. The engine is placed in the bottom of the boat, about one third from the stern, and both 'the action and reaction turn the wheel the same way." ! , JOHN FITCH. . 33 and a half; on which the shares were signed over with great satisfaction by the rest of the company. It afterwards went eighty miles in a day ! " The governor and council of Pennsylvania were so highly gratified with our labors, that without their intentions being pre- viously known to us, Governor Mifflin, attended by the council in procession, presented to the company, and placed in the boat, a superb silk flag, prepared expressly, and containing the arms of Pennsylvania ; and this flag we possessed till Mr. Fitch was sent to France by the company, at the request of Aaron Vail, Esq., our consul at L'Orient, who, being one of the company, was soli- citous to have steamboats built in France. John Fitch took the flag, unknown to the company, and presented it to the national convention. Mr. Vail, finding all the workmen put in requisition, and that none could be obtained to build the boats, paid the ex- penses of Mr. Fitch, who returned to the United States ; and Mr. Vail afterwards subjected to the examination of Mr. Fulton, when in France, the papers and designs of the steamboat appertaining to the company." " As Dr. Thornton has stated in his account, as quoted above, the company refused to advance more funds. This they did, after interfering with his views, and attempting expensive plans of im- provement, which failed of success ; and being probably influenced by that unceasing ridicule cast upon the project, they one by one gradually withdrew from the concern. The conviction of Fitch, however, respecting the power of steam, continued firm ; and in June, 1792, when the boat was laid up, he addressed a letter on the subject to Mr. Rittenhouse, one of the shareholders, in which he says, 4 it would be much easier to carry a first-rate man-of-war by steam than a boat, as we would not be cramped for room, nor would the weight of machinery be felt. This, sir, will be the mode of crossing the Atlantic in time, whether I bring it to perfection or not, for packets and armed vessels. I mean to make use of the wind when we have it, and in a calm to pursue the voyage at the rate of seven or eight miles an hour.' He further suggests the use of steam to conquer the cruisers of Barbary, by which several American vessels had then been lately captured. He says, * a six-foot cylinder could discharge a column of water from the round top forty or fifty yards, and throw a man off his feet, and wet their arms and ammunition.' He complains of his poverty ; and to raise funds, he urges Mr. Rittenhouse to purchase his lands in Kentucky, that he * might have the honor of enabling him to com- plete the great undertaking.' Fitch's enthusiasm on the subject never diminished one mo- 3* 34 AMERICAN MECHANICS. ment, and steam was the constant theme of his discourse whenever he could prevail upon any one to listen to him. Upon one occa- sion he called upon a smith who had worked at his boat, and after dwelling some time upon his favorite topic, concluded with these prophetic words : * Well, gentlemen, although I shall not live to see the time, you will, when steamboats will be preferred to all other means of conveyance, and especially for passengers ; and they will be particularly useful in the navigation of the river Mis- sissippi.' He then retired, when a person present observed, in a tone of deep sympathy, * Poor fellow! what a pity lie is crazy!* The predictions of the benefits which this country would derive from steam navigation are frequently referred to in his manuscript left to the library company." On the return from his unsuccessful sojourn in Europe, Fitch landed at Boston in a veiy needy and destitute condition. A re- lation, Colonel George King, of Sharon, Connecticut, hearing of his friendless situation, sent for and generously offered him a home under his own roof. Here he remained two or three years, and some time in 1796 went out to Kentucky, to obtain possession of some lands which he had purchased while surveying there. For this purpose, writs of ejectment were issued against those illegally occupying them ; and just as a better day was dawning upon the career of this most singularly unfortunate man, he was seized with a fever of the country, and died. " In conformity to his wishes, he was buried on the shores of the Ohio, that he might repose * where the song of the boatmen would enliven the stillness of his resting place, and the music of the steam engine sooth his spirit /' What an idea ! yet how natural to the mind of an ardent projector, who had been so long devoted to one darling object, which it was not his destiny to accomplish ! and how touching is the sentiment found in his journal : ' The day will come when some more powerful man will get fame and riches from my invention, but nobody will believe that poor John Fitch can do any thing worthy of attention T " BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. Birth. Intended for the church. Attends a common school. Assists his father in the tallow chandlery. Dislikes the business. Tries the cutler's trade. Becomes an apprentice in his brother's printing-office. Evinces great fond- ness for books. Is allowed access to a gentleman's library. Turns poet, and hawks his productions through the streets. Rising vanity checked. His friend Collins, and their discussions. Meets with an odd volume of the Spec- tator. Improvement in composition. Economy, and new system of diet. Masters arithmetic, and studies navigation. Secretly contributes to his bro- ther's newspaper. A discovery. Is viewed as a person of some consequence. Quarrels with his brother. First error in life. Privately leaves for New York. Destitute condition. Proceeds to Philadelphia. Graphic description. Enters into the printing-office of Keimer. Makes a distinguished acquaint- ance. Dines with Governor Keith. Informs his parents of his situation. Goes out to England under the supposed patronage of the governor. Disap- pointment and imposition. Thrown upon his own resources, and works in London as a journeyman printer, Writes a pamphlet. Attracts the attention of literary men. Frugality and temperance. Sets an example. A friend re turning to Philadelphia, is engaged as his clerk. Voyage. Forms a plan foi future conduct. Arrival at Philadelphia. Death of his friend. Once more thrown upon the world. Enters again into Keimer's service. Franklin and Meredith set up a printing-office. Industry. Rising credit, -Thinks of estab- lishing a new paper. Treachery. Its defeat. Purchases Keimer's paper. Growing popularity. Buys out his partner. Opens a stationer's shop. Mar- ries. Establishes the first American circulating library. Publishes " Pool Richard's Almanac." -Studies languages. Chosen clerk of the general as- sembly. Appointed deputy postmaster. Becomes interested in public affairs. Suggests various public improvements. Made an alderman. Elected bur- gess to the general assembly. Interesting electrical discoveries. Draws down lightning from the clouds. Increasing honors. Becomes an eminent states- man. Signs the declaration of independence. Sent ambassador to the court of France.^Chosen president of the supreme executive council. Character. Death. Anecdotes. THE name we are now to mention is perhaps the most distin- guished to be found in the annals of self-education. Of all those, at least, who, by their own efforts, and without any usurpation of the rights of others, have raised themselves to a high place in society, there is no one, as has been remarked, the close of whose history presents so great a contrast to its commencement as that of BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. It fortunately happens, too, in his case, that we are in possession of abundant information as to the methods by which he contrived to surmount the many disadvantages of his original condition ; to raise himself from the lowest poverty and obscurity to affluence and distinction ; and, above all, in the ab- sence of instructors, and of the ordinary helps to the acquisition 38 AMERICAN MECHANICS. of knowledge, to enrich himself so plentifully with the treasures of literature and science, as not only to be enabled to derive from that source the chief happiness of his life, but to succeed in placing himself high among the most famous writers and philosophers of his time. We shall avail ourselves, as liberally as our limits will permit, of the ample details, respecting the early part of his life especially, that have been given to the public, in order to present to the reader as full and distinct an account as possible of the suc- cessive steps of a progress so eminently worthy of being recorded, both from the interesting nature of the story, and from its value as an example and lesson, perhaps the most instructive to be any- where found, for all who have to be either the architects of their own fortunes, or their own guides in the pursuit of knowledge. Franklin has himself told us tlm story of his early life inimitably well. The narrative is given in the form of a letter to his son ; and does not appear to have been written originally with any view to publication. " From the poverty arid obscurity," he says, " in which I was born, and in which I passed my earliest years, I have raised myself to a state of affluence, and some degree of celebrity in the world. As constant good fortune has accompanied me, even to an advanced period of life, my posterity will perhaps be desirous of learning the means which I employed, and which, thanks to Providence, so well succeeded with me. They may also deem them fit to be imitated, should any of them find themselves in similar circumstances." It is not many years since this letter was, for the first time, given to the world by the grandson of the illustrious writer, only a small portion of it having previously ap- peared, and that merely a re-translation into English from a French version of the original manuscript which had been pub- lished at Paris. Franklin was born at Boston, on the 17th of January, 1706 ; the youngest, with the exception of two daughters, of a family of 'seventeen children. His father, who had emigrated from England about twenty -four years before, followed the occupation of a soap, boiler and tallow-chandler, a business to which he had not been bred, and by which he seems with difficulty to have been able to support his numerous family. At first it was proposed to make Benjamin a clergyman ; and he was accordingly, having before learned to read, put to the grammar-school at eight years of age ; an uncle, whose namesake he was, and who appears to have been an ingenious man, encouraging the project by offering to give him several volumes of sermons to set up with, which he had taken down, in a short-hand of his own invention, from the different preachers he had been in the habit of hearing. This person, who BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 39 was now advanced in life, had been only a common silk-dyer, but had been both a great reader and writer in his day, having filled two quarto volumes with his own manuscript poetry. What he was most proud of, however, was his short-hand, which he was very anxious that his nephew should learn. But young Franklin had hot been quite a year at the grammar-school, when his father began to reflect that the expense of a college education for him was what he could not very well afford. He was removed, and placed for another year under a teacher of writing and arithmetic ; after which his father took him home, when he was no more than ten years old, to assist him in his own business. Accordingly he was employed, he tells us, in cutting wicks for the candles, filling the moulds for cast candles, attending the shop, going errands, and other drudgery of the same kind. He showed so much dislike, however, to this business, that his father, afraid he would break loose and go to sea, as one of his elder brothers had done, found it advisable, after a trial of two years, to look about for another occupation for him ; and taking him round to see a great many different sorts of tradesmen at their work, it was at last agreed upon that he should be bound apprentice to a cousin of his own, who was a cutler. But he had been only for some days on trial at this business, when, his father thinking the apprentice-fee which his cousin asked too high, he was again taken home. In this state of things it was finally resolved to place him with his brother James, who had been bred a printer, and had just returned from England and set up on his own account at Boston. To him, therefore, Benjamin was bound apprentice, when he was yet only in his twelfth year, on an agreement that he should remain with him in that capacity till he reached the age of twenty-one. One of the principal reasons which induced his father to deter- mine upon this profession for him, was the fondness he had from his infancy shown for reading. All the money he could get hold of used to be eagerly laid out in the purchase of books. His fa- ther's small collection consisted principally of works in controver- sial divinity, a subject of little interest to a reader of his age ; but, such as they were, he went through most of them. Fortunately there was also a copy of Plutarch's Lives, which he says he read abundantly. This, and a book by Daniel Defoe, called an Essay on Projects, he seems to think were the two works from which he derived the most advantage. His new profession of a printer, by procuring him the acquaintance of some booksellers' apprentices, enabled him considerably to extend his acquaintance with books, by frequently borrowing a volume in the evening, which he sat up reading the greater part of the night, in order that he might return 40 AMERICAN MECHANICS. it in the morning, lest it should be missed. But these solitary studies did not prevent him from soon acquiring a great proficiency in his business, in which he was every day becoming more useful to his brother. After some time, too, his access to books was greatly facilitated by the kindness of a liberal-minded merchant, who was in the habit of frequenting the printing-office, and, being possessed of a tolerable library, invited young Franklin, whose in- dustry and intelligence had attracted his attention, to come to see it ; after which he allowed him to borrow from it such volumes as he wished to read. Our young student was now to distinguish himself in a new character. The perusal of the works of others suggested to him the idea of trying his own talent at composition ; and his first attempts in this way were a few pieces of poetry. Verse, it may be observed, is generally the earliest sort of composition attempted either by nations or individuals, and for the same reasons in both cases namely, first, because poetry has peculiar charms for the unripe understanding ; and, secondly, because people at first find it difficult to conceive what composition is at all, independently of such measured cadences and other regularities as constitute verse. Franklin's poetical fit, however, did not last long. Saving been induced by his brother to write two ballads, he was sent to sell them through the streets ; and one of them, at least, being on a subject which had just made a good deal of noise in the place, sold, as he tells us, prodigiously. But his father, who, without much literary knowledge, was a man of a remarkably sound and vigorous understanding, soon brought down the rising vanity of the young poet, by pointing out to him the many faults of his performances, and convincing him what wretched stuff they really were. Having been told, too, that verse-makers were generally beggars, with his characteristic prudence he determined to write no more ballads. He had an intimate acquaintance of the name of Collins, who was, like himself, passionately fond of books, and with whom he was in the habit of arguing upon such subjects as they met with in the course of their reading. Among other questions which they discussed in this way, one accidentally arose on the abilities of women, and the propriety of giving them a learned education. Collins maintained their natural unfitness for any of the severer studies, while Franklin took the contrary side of the question " perhaps," he says, " a little for dispute sake." His antagonist had always the greater plenty of words ; but Franklin thought that, on this occasion in particular, his own arguments were rather the stronger ; and on their parting without settling the point, he sat down, and put a summary of what he advanced in writing, which BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 41 he copied out and sent to Collins. This gave a new form to the discussion, which was now carried on for some time by letters, of which three or four had been written on both sides, when the cor- respondence fell into the hands of Franklin's father. His natural acuteness and good sense enabled him here again to render an essential service to his son, by pointing out to him how far he fell short of his antagonist in elegance of expression, in method, and in perspicuity, though he had the advantage of him in correct spelling and punctuation, which he evidently owed to his expe- rience in the printing-office. From that moment Franklin deter- mined to spare no pains in endeavoring to improve his style ; and we shall give, in his own words, the method he pursued for that end. " About this time," says he, " I met with an odd volume of the Spectator; I had never before seen any of them. I bought it, read it over and over, and was much delighted with it. I thought the writing excellent ; and wished, if possible, to imitate it. With that view, I took some of the papers, and making short hints of the sentiments in each sentence, laid them by a few days ; and then, without looking at the book, tried to complete the papers again, by expressing each hinted sentiment at length, and as fully as it had been expressed before, in any suitable words that should occur to me. Then I compared my Spectator with the original, dis- covered some of my faults, and corrected them. But I found I wanted a stock of words, or a readiness in recollecting and using them, which I thought I should have acquired before that time if I had gone on making verses ; since the continual search for words of the same import, but of different length, to suit the measure, or of different sound for the rhyme, would have laid me under a con- stant necessity of searching for variety, and also have tended to fix that variety in my mind, and make me master of it. There- fore, I took some of the tales in the Spectator, and turned them into verse ; and after a time, when I had pretty well forgotten the prose, turned them back again. I also sometimes jumbled my collection of hints into confusion ; and, after some weeks, endea- vored to reduce them into the best order, before I began to form the full sentences and complete the subject. This was to teach me method in the arrangement of the thoughts. By comparing my work with the original, I discovered many faults, and corrected them ; but I sometimes had the pleasure to fancy that in certain particulars of small consequence I had been fortunate enough to improve the method or the language ; and this encouraged me to think that I might, in time, come to be a tolerable English writer, of which I was extremely ambitious." 42 AMERICAN MECHANICS. Even at this early age nothing could exceed the perseverance and self-denial which he displayed, in pursuing his favorite object of cultivating his mental faculties to the utmost of his power. When only sixteen, he chanced to meet with a book in recom- mendation of a vegetable diet, one of the arguments at least in favor of which made an immediate impression upon him namely, its greater cheapness ; and from this and other considerations, he determined to adopt that way of living for the future. Having taken this resolution, he proposed to his brother, if he would give him weekly only half what his board had hitherto cost, to board himself, an offer which was immediately accepted. He presently found that by adhering to his new system of diet he could still save half what his brother allowed him. " This," says he, " was an additional fund for buying of books : but I had another advantage in it. My brother and the rest going from the printing-house to their meals, I remained there alone, and despatching presently my light repast, (which was often no more than a biscuit, or a slice of bread, a handful of raisins, or a tart from the pastrycook's, and a glass of water,) had the rest of the time, till their return, for study ; in which I made the greater progress, from that greater clearness of head and quicker apprehension which generally attend temper- ance in eating and drinking." It was about this time that, by means of Cocker's Arithmetic, he made himself master of that science, which he had twice attempted in vain to learn while at school ; and that he also obtained some acquaintance with the elements of geometry, by the perusal of a Treatise on Navigation. He men- tions, likewise, among the works which he now read, Locke on the Human Understanding, and the Port-Royal Art of Thinking, together with two little sketches on the arts of Logic and Rhetoric, which he found at the end of an English Grammar, and which initiated him in the Socratic mode of disputation, or that way of arguing by which an antagonist, by being questioned, is imper- ceptibly drawn into admissions which are afterwards dexterously turned against him. Of this method of reasoning he became, he tells us, excessively fond, finding it very safe for himself and veiy embarrassing for those against whom he used it ; but he after- wards abandoned it, apparently from a feeling that it gave advan- tages rather to cunning than to truth, and was better adapted to gain victories in conversation, than either to convince or to inform. A few years before this his brother had begun to publish a newspaper, the second that had appeared in America. This brought most of the literary people of Boston occasionally to the printing-office ; and young Franklin often heard them conversing BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 40 about the articles that appeared in the newspaper, and the appro- bation which particular ones received. At last, inflamed with the ambition of sharing in this sort of fame, he resolved to try how a communication of his own would succeed. Having written his paper, therefore, in a disguised hand, he put it at night under the door of the printing-office, where it was found in the morning, and submitted to the consideration of the critics, when they met as usual. " They read it," says he ; " commented on it in my hear- ing ; and I had the exquisite pleasure of finding it met with their approbation ; and that in their different guesses at the author, none were named but men of some character among us for learning and ingenuity." " I suppose," he adds, " that I was rather lucky in my judges, and that they were not really so very good as I then believed them to be." Encouraged, however, by the success of this attempt, he sent several other pieces to the press in the same way, keeping his secret, till, as he expresses it, all his fund of sense for such performances was exhausted. He then discovered himself, and immediately found that he began to be looked upon as a person of some consequence by his brother's literary ac- quaintances. This newspaper soon after afforded him, very unexpectedly, an opportunity of extricating himself from his indenture to his brother, who had all along treated him with great harshness, and to whom his rising literary reputation only made him more an object of envy and dislike. An article which they had admitted having offended the local government, his brother, as proprietor of the paper, was not only sentenced to a month's imprisonment, but prohibited from any longer continuing to print the offensive journal. In these circum- stances, it was determined that it should appear for the future in the name of Benjamin, who had managed it during his brother's confinement ; and in order to prevent it being alleged that the former proprietor was only screening himself behind one of his apprentices, the indenture by which the latter was bound was given up to him ; he at the same time, in order to secure to h^s brother the benefit of his services, signing new indentures for the remainder of his time, which were to be kept private. " A veiy flimsy scheme it was/' says Franklin ; " however, it was imme- diately executed ; and the paper was printed accordingly under my name for several months. At length a fresh difference arising between my brother and me, 1 took upon me to assert my freedom, presuming that he would not venture to produce the new indenture. It was not fair in me to take this advantage ; and this I therefore reckon one of the first errata of my life ; but the unfairness of it littCe with me, when under the impressions of resentment 4 44 AMERICAN MECHANICS. for the blows his passion too often urged him to bestow upon me, though he was otherwise not an ill-natured man : perhaps I was too saucy and provoking." Finding, however, that his brother, in consequence of this ex- ploit, had taken care to give him such a character to all those of his own profession in Boston, that nobody would employ him there, he now resolved to make his way to New York, the nearest place where there was a printer ; and accordingly, after selling his books to raise a little money, he embarked on board a vessel for that city, without communicating his intention to his friends, who he knew would oppose it. In three days he found himself at the end of his voyage, near three hundred miles from his home, at the age of seventeen, without the least recommendation, as he tells us, or knowledge of any person in the place, and with very little money in his pocket. Worst of all, upon applying to the only printer likely to give him any employment, he found that this person had nothing for him to do, and that the only way in which he could serve him was by recommending him to proceed to Philadelphia, a hundred miles farther, where he had a son, who, he believed, might employ him. We are unable, however, to follow our run- away through all the incidents of this journey, some of which were disastrous enough ; but we cannot refrain from relating the follow- ing anecdote :* Being troubled, wherever he stopped, by the inqui- sitiveness and curiosity of the people, he was induced to try an expedient for silencing similar inquiries. Accordingly, at the next place, as soon as supper was laid, he called his landlord, when the following dialogue took place between them. " Pray, are you married ?" " Yes." " What family have you got ?" " Two sons and three daughters." " How many servants ?" " Two, and an hostler." " Have you any objection to my seeing them ?" " None, I guess." " Then be so good as to desire them all to step here." This was done ; and the whole being assembled, Franklin thus addressed them : " Good people, my name is Benja- min Franklin / am ~by trade a printer / came from Boston, and am going to Philadelphia to seek employment I am in rather humble circumstances, and quite indifferent to news of any kind unconnected with printing. This is all I know of myself, and all I can possibly inform you ; and now, I hope you will allow me to take my supper in quiet." The following is Franklin's most graphic description of his first appearance in Philadelphia. After concluding the account of his voyage, " I have been the more particular," says he, " in this de- scription of my journey, and shall be so of my first entry into that city, that you may, in your mind, compare such unlikely beginnings BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 45 with the figure I have since made there. I was in my working dress, my best clothes coming round by sea. I was dirty, from my being so long in the boat ; my pockets were stuffed out with shirts and stockings ; and I knew no one, nor where to look for lodging. Fatigued with walking, rowing, and the want of sleep, I was very hungry ; and my whole stock of cash consisted in a single dollar, and about a shilling in copper coin, which I gave to the boatmen for my passage. At first they refused it, on account of my having rowed ; but I insisted on their taking it. Man is sometimes more generous when he has little money than when he has plenty ; perhaps to prevent his being thought to have but little. I walked towards the top of the street, gazing about till near Market-street, where I met a boy with bread. I had often made a meal of dry bread, and inquiring where he had bought it, I went immediately to the baker's he directed me to. I asked for bis- cuits, meaning such as we had at Boston ; that sort, it seems, was not made in Philadelphia. I then asked for a threepenny loaf, and was fold they had none. Not knowing the different prices, nor the names of the different sorts of bread, I told him to give me three-penny worth of any sort. He gave me, accordingly, three great puffy rolls. I was surprised at the quantity, but took it ; and having no room in my pockets, walked off with a roll under each arm, and eating the other. Thus I went up Market-street, as far as Fourth-street, passing by the door of Mr. Read, my future wife's father, when she, standing at the door, saw me, and thought I made, as I certainly did, a most awkward, ridiculous appearance. Then I turned and went down Chesnut-street and part of Walnut- street, eating my roll all the way, and coming round, found myself again at Market-street wharf, near the boat I came in, to which I went for a draught of the river water ; and being filled with one of my rolls, gave the other two to a worik n and her child that came down the river in the boat with us, and were waiting to go farther. Thus refreshed, I walked again up the street, which by this time had many clean dressed people in it, who were all walk- ing the same way. I joined them, and thereby was led into the great meeting-house of the Quakers,, near the market. I sat down among them ; and after looking round a while, and hearing noth- ing said, being very drowsy, through labor and want of rest the preceding night, I fell fast asleep, and continued so till the meeting broke up, when some one was kind enough to rouse me. This, therefore, was the first house I was in, or slept in, in Phila- delphia." Refreshed by his brief sojourn in this cheap place of repose, he then set out in quest of a lodging for the night. Next morning 46 AMERICAN MECHANICS. he found the person to whom he had been directed, who was not, however, able to give him any employment ; but upon applying to another printer in the place, of the name of Keimer, he was a little more fortunate, being set by him, in the first instance, to put an old press to rights, and afterwards taken into regular work. He had been some months at Philadelphia, his relations in Boston knowing nothing of what had become of him, when a brother-in- law, who was the master of a trading sloop, happening to hear of him in one of his voyages, wrote to him in very earnest terms to entreat him to return home. The letter which he sent in reply to this application reaching his brother-in-law when he chanced to be in company with Sir William Keith, the governor of the pro- vince, it was shown to that gentleman,, who expressed considerable surprise on being told the age of the writer ; and immediately said that he appeared to be a young man of promising parts, and that if he would set up on his own account in Philadelphia, where the printers were wretched ones, he had no doubt he would suc- ceed ; for his part he would procure him the public business, and do him every service in his power. Some time after this, Frank- lin, who knew nothing of what had taken place, was one day at work along with his master near the window, when " we saw,'* says he, " the governor and another gentleman, (who proved to be Colonel French, of Newcastle, in the province of Delaware,) finely dressed, come directly across the street to our house, and heard them at the door. Keimer ran down immediately, thinking it a visit to him : but the governor inquired for me, came up, and, with a condescension and politeness I had been quite unused to f made me many compliments, desired to, be acquainted with me,, blamed me kindly for not having made myself known to. him when I first came to the place, and would have me away with him to. the tavern, where he was going with Colonel French, to taste, as he said, some excellent Madeira.. I was not a. little surprised, and Keimer stared with astonishment." The reader already perceives that Sir William must have been rather an odd sort of person ; and this becomes still, more apparent in the sequel of the story. Having got his young protege to the tavern, he proposed to, him, over their wine, that he should, as soon as possible* set up. in Philadelphia as a master printer, only continuing to work with Keimer till an opportunity should offer of a passage to Boston, when he would return home, to arrange the matter with his father, who,, the governor had no doubt, would, upon a letter from him, at once advance his son the necessary funds for commencing business. Accordingly, Franklin set out for Boston by the first vessel that, sailed ; and,, upon his arrival, BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 47 was very kindly received by all his family, except his brother, and surprised his father not a little by presenting him with the governor's letter. For some time his father said little or nothing on the sub- ject, merely remarking, that Sir William must be a person of small discretion, to think of setting a youth up in business who wanted three years to arrive at man's estate. But at last he decidedly re- fused to have any thing to do with the arrangement ; and Franklin returned to his patron to tell him of his bad success, going this time, however, with the consent and blessing of his parents, who finding how industrious he had been while in Philadelphia, were willing that he should continue there. When Franklin presented himself to Sir William with his father's answer to the letter he had been honored with from that functionary, the governor observed that he was too prudent : " but since he will not set you up," added he, "I will do it myself," It was finally agreed that Franklin should proceed in person to England, to purchase types and other necessary articles, for which the governor was to give him letters of credit to the extent of one hundred pounds. After repeated applications to the governor for the promised letters of credit, Franklin was at last sent on board the vessel for Eng- land, which was just on the point of sailing,, with an assurance that Colonel French should be sent to him with the letters immediately. That gentleman soon after made his appearance,, bearing a packet of despatches from the governor : in this packet Franklin was in- formed his letters were. Accordingly, when they got into the Britsh channel, the captain having allowed him to search for them among the others, he found several addressed to his care, which he con- cluded of course to be those he had been promised. Upon pre- senting one of them, however, to a stationer to whom it was directed, the man having opened it, merely said, " Oh, this is from Riddlesdon (an attorney in Philadelphia, whom Franklin knew to be a thorough knave ;) I have lately found him to be a complete rascal ;" and giving back the letter, turned on his heel, and proceeded to serve his customers. Upon this, Franklin's confidence in his patron began to be a little shaken ; and,, after reviewing the whole affair in his own mind, he resolved to lay it before a very intelligent mercantile gentleman, who had come over from America with them, and with whom he had contracted an intimacy on the passage. This friend very soon put an end to* his doubts. "He let me," says Franklin, "-into Keith's character; told me there was not the least probability that he had written any letters for me ; that no one who knew him had the smallest dependence on him ; and he laughed at the idea of the governor's giving me a letter of credit,, having, as he said, no credit to give." 4* 48 AMERICAN MECHANICS. Thus thrown once more on his own means,, our young adven- turer found there was no resource for him but to endeavor to procure some employment at his trade in London. Accordingly, having applied to a Mr. Palmer, a printer of eminence in Bartholomew- close, his services were accepted, and he remained there for nearly a year. During this time, although he was led into a good deal of idleness by the example of a friend, somewhat older than himself, he by no means forgot his old habits of reading and study. Having been employed in printing a second edition of Wollaston's Religion of Nature, his perusal of the work induced him to compose and publish a small pamphlet in refutation of some of the author's positions, which, he tells us, he did not afterwards look back upon as altogether a wise proceeding. He employed the greater part of his leisure more profitably in reading a great many works, which (circulating libraries, he remarks,, not being then in. use) he bor- rowed, on certain terms that were agreed upon between them, from a bookseller whose shop was. next door ta his lodgings in Little Britain, and who had an immense collection of second-hand books. His pamphlet, however, was the means of making him known to a few of the literary characters then in London, among the rest to the noted Dr. Mandeville, author of the Fable of the Bees ; and to Dr. Pemberton, Sir Isaac Newton's friend, who promised to give him an opportunity, some time or other, of seeing that great man : but this, he says, never happened. He also became acquainted about the same time with the famous collector and naturalist, Sir Hans Sloane, the Founder of the British Museum, who had heard of some, curiositjes which Franklin had brought over from America ; among these was a purse made of asbestos^ which he purchased from him. While with Mr. Palmer, and afterwards with Mr. Watts, near Lincoln's Inn Fields, he gave very striking evidence of those habits of temperance, self-command, industry, and frugality, which distin- guished him through after life,, and were undoubtedly the source of much of the success that attended his persevering efforts to raise himself from the humble condition in which he passed his earlier years. While Mr. Watts's other workmen spent a great part of every week's wages on beer, he drank only water, and found him- self a good deal stronger, as well as much more clear headed,, on his light beverage,, than they on their strong potations. " From my example," says he> "a great many of them left off their mud- dling breakfast of beer, bread, and cheese, finding they could with me be supplied from a neighboring house with a large porringer of hot water-gruel,, sprinkled with pepper, crumbled with bread, and and a bit of butter in it, for the price of a pint of beer, viz, three BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, 49 half-pence. This was a more comfortable, as well as a cheaper breakfast, and kept their heads clearer. Those who continued sotting with their beer all day, were often, by not paying, out of credit at the alehouse, and used to make interest with me to get beer, their liglit, as they phrased it, being out. I watched the pay-table on Saturday night, and collected what I stood engaged for them, having to pay sometimes near thirty shillings a week on their accounts. This,, and my being esteemed a pretty good riggite, that is, a jocular verbal satirist, supported my consequence in the society. My constant attendance (I never making a St. Monday} recommended me to the master ; and my uncommon quickness at composing occasioned my being put upon works of despatch, which are generally better paid ; so I went on now very agreeably." He spent about eighteen months altogether in London, during most part of which time he worked hard, he says, at his business, and spent but little upon himself except in seeing plays, and in books. At last his friend Mr. Denham, the gentleman with whom, as we mentioned before, he had got acquainted on his voyage to England, informed him he was going to return to Philadelphia to open a store, or mercantile establishment, there, and offered him the situation of his clerk at a salary of fifty pounds. The money was less than he was now making as a compositor ; but he longed to see his native country again, and accepted the proposal. Ac- cordingly they set sail together ; and, after a long voyage, arrived in Philadelphia on the llth of October, 1726. Franklin was at this time only in his twenty-first year ; and he mentions having formed, and committed to writing, while at sea, a plan for regulating the future conduct of his life. This unfortunately has been lost ; but he tells us himself, that although conceived and determined upon when he was so young, it had yet " been pretty faithfully adhered to quite through to old age." Mr. Denham had only begun business for a few months when he died ; and Franklin was once more left upon the world. He now engaged again with his old master, Keimer, the printer, who had got a better house, and plenty of new types, though he was still as ignorant of his business as he was at the time of Franklin's former connection with him. While in this situation Franklin got acquainted with several persons, like himself, fond of literary pur- suits ; and as the men never worked on Saturday, that being Keimer's self-appointed Sabbath, he had the whole day for reading.* * Keimer had peculiar notions upon religious observances, and amongst other tilings, fancied it a Christian duty to observe the Sabbath on the last day of the 50 AMERICAN MECHANICS. He also showed his ingenuity, and the fertility of his resources, on various occasions. They wanted some new types, which, there being no letter-foundry in America, were only to be procured from England ; but Franklin, having seen types cast in London, though he had paid no particular attention to the process, contrived a mould, made use of the letters they had as punches, struck the matrices in lead, and thus supplied, as he tells us,, in a pretty tolerable way, all deficiencies. "I also," he adds, "engraved several things, on occasion ; made the ink ; I was warehouseman ; and, in short, quite a factotum." He did not, however, remain long with Keimeiy who had engaged him only that he might have his other workmen taught through his means ; and, accordingly, when this object was in some sort attained, contrived to pick a quarrel with him, which produced an immediate separation. He then entered into an agreement with one of his fellow-workmen, of the name of Meredith, whose friends were possessed of money, to begin business in Philadelphia in compa- ny with him, the understanding being that Franklin's skill should be placed against the capital to be supplied by Meredith. While he and his friend, however, were secretly preparing to put their plan in exe- cution, he was induced to return for a few months to Keimer, on his earnest invitation, to enable him to perform a contract for the printing of some paper money for the State of New Jersey,, which required a variety of cuts and types that nobody else in the place could supply ; and the two having gone together to Burlington to superintend this business, Franklin was fortunate enough,., during the three months he remained in that city, to acquire, by his agreeable manners and intelligent conversation, the friendship of several of the principal inhabitants, with whom his employment brought him into connection. Among these he mentions particu- larly Isaac Decow, the surveyor-general. " i He was,' y says Frank- lin, " a shrewd, sagacious, old man,, who told me that he began for himself, when young, by wheeling clay for the brickrnakers, learned to write after he was of age, carried the chain for surveyors, who taught him surveying, and he had now by his industry acquired a good estate; and, said he, I foresee that you will soon work this man (Keimer) out of his business, and make a fortune in it at Philadelphia. He had then not the least intimation of my intention to set up there or any where." Soon after he returned to Philadelphia, the types that had been sent for from London arrived ; and, settling with Keimer, he and his partner took a house, and commenced business. " We had scarce opened our letters," says he, " and put our press in order, before George House, an acquaintance of mine, brought a coun- BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 51 tryman to us, whom he had met in the street, inquiring for a printer. All our cash was now expended in the variety of parti, culars we had been obliged to procure, and this countryman's five shillings, being our first-fruits, and coming so seasonably, gave me more pleasure than any crown I have since earned ; and, from the gratitude I felt towards House, has made me often more ready than perhaps I otherwise should have been, to assist young begin- ners." He had, in the autumn of the preceding year, suggested to a number of his acquaintances a scheme for forming themselves into a club for mutual improvement ; and they had accordingly been in the habit of meeting every Friday evening, under the name of the Junto. All the members of this association exerted them- selves in procuring business for him ; and one of them, named Breinthal, obtained from the Quakers the printing of forty sheets of a history of that sect of religionists, then preparing at the ex- pense of the body. " Upon these," says Franklin, " we worked exceeding hard, for the price was low. It was a folio. I com- posed a sheet a day, and Meredith worked it off at press. It was often eleven at night, and sometimes later, before I had finished iny distribution for the next day's work : for the little jobs sent in by our other friends, now and then, put us back. But so deter- mined was I to continue doing a sheet a day of the folio, that one night, when, having imposed my forms, I thought my day's work over, one of them by accident was broken, and two pages (the half of the day's work) reduced to pi, I immediately distributed and composed it over again before I went to bed ; and this indus- try, visible to our neighbors, began to give us character and credit." The consequence was that business, and even offers of credit, came to them from all hands. They soon found themselves in a condition to think of establish- ing a newspaper ; but Franklin having inadvertently mentioned this scheme to a person who came to him wanting employment, that individual carried the secret to their old master, Keirncr, with whom he, as well as themselves, had formerly worked ; and he immediately determined to anticipate them by issuing proposals for a paper of his own. The manner in which Franklin met and defeated this treachery is exceedingly characteristic. There was another paper published in the place, which had been in existence for some years ; but it was altogether a wretched affair, and owed what success it had merely to the absence of all competition. For tjiis print, however, Franklin, not being able to commence his own paper immediately, in conjunction with a friend, set about writing a series of amusing communications under the title of the Busy Body, which the publisher printed, of course, very gladly. " By 52 AMERICAN MECHANICS. this means," says he, " the attention of the public was fixed on that paper ; and Keimer's proposals, which we burlesqued and ridiculed, were disregarded. He began his paper, however ; and before carrying it on three-quarters of a year, with at most only ninety subscribers, he offered it me for a trifle ; and I, having been ready some time to go on with it, took it in hand directly, and it proved in a few years extremely profitable to me." The paper, indeed, had no sooner got into Franklin's hands than its success equalled his most sanguine expectations. Some observa- tions which he wrote and printed in it on a colonial subject, then much talked of, excited so much attention among the leading people of the place, that it obtained the proprietors many friends in the house of assembly, and they were, on the first opportunity* appointed printers to the house. Fortunately, too, certain events occurred about this time which ended in the dissolution of Frank- lin's connection with Meredith, who was an idle,, drunken fellow,, and had all along been a mere encumbrance upon the concern. His father failing to advance the capital which had been agreed upon, when payment was demanded at the usual time by their paper merchant and other creditors,, he proposed to Franklin to relinquish the partnership, and leave the whole in his hands, if the latter would take upon him the debis of the company,, return to his father what he had advanced on their comrsjencing business,, pay his little personal debts, and give him thirty pounds and a new saddle. By the kindness of two friends, who,, unknown to each other, came forward unasked to tender their assistance, Franklin was enabled to accept of this proposal ; and thus,, about the year 1729, when he was yet only in the twenty-fourth year of his age, he found himself, after all his disappointments and vicissitudes, with nothing, indeed, to depend upon but his own skill and indus- try for gaining a livelihood, and for extricating himself from debt, but yet in one sense fairly established in life,, and with at least a prospect of well-doing before him. Having followed his course thus far with so minute an observ- ance of the several steps by which he arrived at the point to which we have now brought him, we shall not attempt to pursue the re- mainder of his career with the same particularity. His subse- quent efforts in the pursuit of fortune and independence were, as is well known, eminently successful ; and we find in his whole history, even to its close, a display of the same spirit of intelli- gence and love of knowledge, and the same active, self-denying, and intrepid virtues, which so greatly distinguished its commence- ment. The publication of a pamphlet, soon after Meredith had left him, in recommendation of a paper currency, a subject then BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 53 much debated in the province, obtained him such popularity, that he was employed by the government in printing the notes after they had resolved upon issuing them. Other profitable business of the same kind succeeded. He then opened a stationer's shop, began gradually to pay off his debts, and soon after married. By this time his old rival, Keimer, had gone to ruin; and he -was (with the exception of an old man, who was rich, and did not care about business,) the only printer in the place. We now find him taking a leading part as a citizen. He established a circulating library, the first ever known in America, which, although it com- menced with only fifty subscribers, became in course of time a large and valuable collection, the proprietors of which were event- ually incorporated by royal charter. While yet in its infancy, however^ it afforded its founder facilities of improvement of which he did not fail to avail himself, setting apart, as he tells us, an hour or two every day for study, which was the only amusement he allowed himself. In 1732 he first published his celebrated Almanac, under the name of Richard Saunders, but which was commonly known by the name of Poor Richard's Almanac. He continued this publication annually for twenty-five years. The proverbs and pithy sentences scattered up and down in the differ- ent numbers of it, were afterwards thrown together into a con- nected discourse under the title of the Way to Wealth, a produc- tion which has become so extensively popular, that every one of our readers is probably familiar with it. We shall quote, in his own words, the account he gives us of the manner in which he pursued one branch of his studies : ' " I had begun," says he, " in 1733, to study languages. I soon made myself so much a master of the French, as to be able to read the books in that language with ease. I then undertook the Italian. An acquaintance, who was also learning it, used often to tempt me to play chess with him. Finding this took up too much of the time I had to spare for study, I at length refused to play any more, unless on this condition, that the victor in every game should have a right to impose a task, either of parts of the gram- mar to be got by heart, or in translations, &c., which tasks the vanquished was to perform upon honor before our next meeting. As we played pretty equally, we thus beat one another into that language. I afterwards, with a little pains-taking, acquired as much of the Spanish as to read their books also. I have already mentioned that I had had only one year's instruction in a Latin school, and that when very young, after which I neglected that language entirely. But when I had attained an acquaintance with the French, Italian, and Spanish, I was surprised to find, on 54 AMERICAN MECHANICS. looking over a Latin Testament, that I understood more of that language than I had imagined, which encouraged me to apply myself again to the study of it ; and I met with the more success, as those preceding languages had greatly smoothed my way." In 1736 he was chosen clerk of the general assembly, and being soon after appointed deputy postmaster for the state, he turned his thoughts to public affairs, beginning, however, as he says* with small matters. He first occupied himself in improving the city watch ; then suggested and promoted the establishment of a fire- insurance company ; and afterwards exerted himself in organizing a philosophical society, an academy for the education of youth, and a militia for the defence of the province. In short, every part of the civil government, as he tells us, and almost at the same time, imposed some duty upon him. " The governor," he says, " put me into the commission of the peace ; the corporation of the city chose me one of the common council, and soon after alderman ; and the citizens at large elected me a burgess to repre- sent them in assembly. This latter station was the more agreable to me, as I grew at length tired with sitting there to hear the de- bates, in which, as clerk, I could take no part, and which were often so uninteresting that I was induced to amuse myself with making magic squares or circles, or any thing to avoid weariness ; and I conceived my becoming a member would enlarge my power of doing good. I would not, however, insinuate that my ambition was not flattered by all these promotions, it certainly was : for, considering my low beginning, they were great things to me ; and they were still more pleasing as being so many spontaneous testi- monies of the public good opinion, and by me entirely unsolicited." It is time, however, that we should introduce this extraordinary man to our readers in a new character. A much more important part in civil affairs than any he had yet acted was in reserve for him. He lived to attract to himself on the theatre of politics, the eyes, not of his own countrymen only, but of the whole civilized world ; and to be a principal agent in the production of events as mighty in themselves, and as pregnant with mighty consequences, as any belonging to modern history. But our immediate object is to exhibit a portrait of the diligent student, and of the acute and patient philosopher. We have now to speak of Franklin's famous electrical discoveries. Of these discoveries we cannot, of course, here attempt to give any thing more than a very general account. But we shall endeavor to make our statement as intelligible as possible, even to those to whom the subject is new. The term electricity is derived from electron, the Greek name for amber, which was known, even in ancient times, to be capable BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 55 of acquiring, by being rubbed, the curious property of attracting very light bodies, such as small bits of paper, when brought near to them. This virtue was thought to be peculiar to the substance in question, and one or two others, down to the close of the six- teenth century, when William Gilbert, a physician of London, an- nounced for the first time, in his Latin treatise on the magnet, that it belonged equally to the diamond and many other precious stones ; to glass, sulphur, sealing wax, rosin, and a variety of other sub- stances. It is from this period that we are to date the birth of the science of Electricity, which, however, continued in its infancy for above a century, and could hardly, indeed, be said to consist of any tiling more than a collection of unsystematized and ill-understood facts, until it attracted the attention of Franklin. Among the facts, however, that had been discovered in this in- terval, the following were the most important. In the first place, the list of the substances capable of being excited by friction to a mani- festation of electric virtue, was considerably extended. It was also found that the bodies which had been attracted by the excited substance were immediately after as forcibly repelled by it, and could not be again attracted until they had touched a third body. Other phenomena, too, besides those of attraction and repulsion, were found to take place when the body excited was one of suffi- cient magnitude. If any other body, not capable of being excited, such as the human hand or a rod of metal, was presented to it, a slight sound would be produced, which, if the experiment was per- formed in a dark room, would be accompanied with a momentary light. Lastly, it was discovered that the electric virtue might be imparted to bodies not capable of being themselves excited, by making such a body, when insulated, that is to say, separated from all other bodies of the same class by the intervention of one capable of excitation, act either as the rubber of the excited body, or as the drawer of a succession of sparks from it, in the manner that has just been described. It was said, in either of these cases, to be electrified ; and it was found that if it was touched, or even closely approached, when in this state, by any other body, in like manner incapable of being excited by friction, a pretty loud report would take place, accompanied, if either body were susceptible of feeling, with a slight sensation of pain at the point of contact, and which would instantly restore the electrified body to its usual and natural condition. In consequence of its thus appearing that all those bodies, and only those, which could not be themselves excited, might in this manner have electricity, as it were, transferred to them, they were designated conductors, as well as non-electrics : while all electrics, 5 56 AMERICAN MECHANICS. on the other hand, were also called non-conductors. It is proper, how- ever, that the reader should be aware, that of the various substances in nature, none, strictly speaking, belong exclusively to either of these classes ; the truth being merely, that different bodies admit the passage of the electric influence with extremely different de- grees of facility, and that those which transmit it readily are called conductors, the metals, and fluids, and living animals particularly belonging to this class ; while such as resist its passage, or permit it only with extreme reluctance, among which are amber, sulphur, wax, glass, and silk, are described by the opposite denomination. The beginning of the year 1746 is memorable in the annals of electricity for the accidental discovery of the possibility of accumu- lating large quantities of the electric fluid, by means of what was called the Leyden jar, or phial.* M. Cuneus, of that city, happened one day, while repeating some experiments which had been origin- ally suggested by M. Von Kleist, Dean of the Cathedral in Camin, to hold in one hand a glass vessel, nearly full of water, into which he had been sending a charge from an electrical machine, by means of a wire dipped into it, and communicating with the prime con- ductor, or insulated non-electric, exposed in the manner we have already mentioned to the action of the excited cylinder. He was greatly surprised, upon applying his other hand to disengage the wire from the conductor, when he thought that the water had acquired as much electricity as the machine could give it, by receiving a sudden shock in his arms and breast, much more severe than any thing of the kind he had previously encountered in the course of his experiments. The same thing, it was found, took place when the glass was covered, both within and without, with any other conductors than the water and the human hand, which had been used in this instance ; as, for example, when it was coated on both sides with tinfoil, in such a manner, however, that the two coatings were completely separated from each other, by a space around the lip of the vessel being left uncovered. Whenever a communi- cation was formed by the interposition of a conducting medium be- tween the inside and outside coating, an instant and loud explosion took place, accompanied with a flash of light, and the sensation of a sharp blow, if the conductor employed was any part of the human body. The first announcement of the wonders of the Leyden phial excited the curiosity of all Europe. The accounts given of the electric shock by those who first experiencd it are perfectly ludicrous, and well illustrate how strangely the imagination is acted upon by surprise and terror, when novel or unexpected results suddenly come upon it. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 57 From the original accounts, as Dr. Priestley observes, could we not have repeated the experiment, we should have formed a very differ, ent idea of the electric shock to what it really is, even when given in greater strength than it could have been by those early experi- menters. It was this experiment, however, that first made electri- city a subject of general curiosity. Every body was eager, not- withstanding the alarming reports that were spread of it, to feel the new sensation ; and in the same year in which the experiment was first made at Leyden, numbers of persons, in almost every country in Europe, obtained a livelihood by going about and showing it. The particulars,, then, that we have enumerated may be said to have constituted the whole of the science of Electricity, in the shape in which it first presented itself to the notice of Dr. Franklin. In the way in which we have stated them, they are little more, the reader will observe, than a mass of seemingly unconnected facts, having, at first sight, no semblance whatever of being the results of a common principle, or of being reducible to any general and comprehensive system. It is true that a theory, that of M. Dufay, had been formed before this time to account for many of them, and also for others that we have not mentioned ; but it does not appear that Franklin ever heard of it until he had formed his own, which is, at all events, entirely different ; so that it is unnecessary for us to take it at all into account. We shall form a fair estimate of the amount and merits of Franklin's discoveries, by considering the facts we have mentioned, as really constituting the science in the state in which he found it. It was in the year 1746, as he tells us himself in the narrative of his life, that, being at Boston, he met with a Dr. Spence, who had lately arrived from Scotland, and who showed him some electrical experiments. They were imperfectly performed, as the doctor was not very expert ; " but being," says Franklin, " on a subject quite new to me, they equally surprised and pleased me. Soon after my return to Philadelphia, our Library Company received from Mr. Peter Collinson, F. R. S., of London, a present of a glass tube, with some account of the use of it in making such experi- ments. I eagerly seized the opportunity of repeating what I had seen at Boston ; and, by much practice, acquired great readiness in performing those also which we had an account of from England, adding a number of new ones. I say much practice, for my house was continually full for some time, with persons who came to see these new wonders. To divide a little this encumbrance among my friends, I caused a number of similar tubes to be blown in our glass house, with which they furnished themselves, so that we had at length several performers." The newly discovered and extraor- 5g AMERICAN MECHANICS. dinary phenomena exhibited by the Leyden phial of course very early engaged his attention in pursuing these interesting experi- ments ; and his inquisitive mind immediately set itself to work to find out the reason of such strange effects, which still astonished and perplexed the ablest philosophers of Europe. Out of his spec- ulations arose the ingenious and beautiful theoiy of the action of the electric influence which is known by his name : and which has ever since been received by the greater number of philosophers as the best, because the simplest and most complete, demonstration of the phenomena that has yet been given to the world. Dr. Franklin's earliest inquiries were directed to ascertain the source of the electricity which friction had the effect of at least rendering manifest in the glass cylinder, or other electric. The question was, whether this virtue was created by the friction in the electric, or only thereby communicated to it from other bodies. In order to determine this point, he resorted to the very simple experiment of endeavoring to electrify himself; that is to say, having insulated himself, and excited the cylinder by rubbing it with his hand, he then drew off its electricity from it in the usual manner into his own body. But he found that he was not thereby electrified at all, as he would have been by doing the same thing, had the friction been applied by another person. No spark could be obtained from him, after the operation, by the presentment of a conductor ; nor did he exhibit on such bodies as were brought near him any of the other usual evidences of being charged with electricity. If the electricity had been created in the electric by the friction, it was impossible to conceive why the person who drew it off should not have been electrified in this case, just as he would have been had another person acted as the rubber. The result evidently indicated that the friction had effected a change upon the person who had performed that operation, as well as upon the cylinder, since it had rendered him incapable of being electrified by a pro- cess by which, in other circumstances, he would have been so. It was plain, in short, that the electricity had passed, in the first in. stance, out of his body into the cylinder ; which, therefore, in com- municating it to him in the second instance, only gave him back what it had received, and, instead of electrifying him, merely re- stored him to his usual state to that in which he had been before the experiment was begun. This accordingly was the conclusion to which Franklin came ; but, to confirm it, he next insulated two individuals, one of whom he made to rub the cylinder, while the other drew the electricity from it. In this case, it was not the latter merely that was BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 59 affected ; both were electrified. The one had given out as much electricity to the cylinder in rubbing it, as the other had drawn from it. To prove this still farther, he made them touch one another, when both were instantly restored to their usual state, the redundant electricity thrown off by the one exactly making up the deficiency of the other. The spark produced by their contact was also, as was to have been expected, greater than that which took place when either of them was touched by any third person who had not been electrified. Proceeding upon the inferences which these results seemed so evidently to indicate, Franklin constructed the general outlines of his theory. Every body in nature he considered to have its natural quantity of electricity, which may, however, be either diminished, by part of it being given out to another body, as that of the rubber, in the operation of the electrical machine, is given out to the cylinder ; or increased, as when the body is made to receive the electricity from the cylinder. In the one case he regarded the body as negatively, in the other as positively, electrified. In the one case it had less, in the other more> than its natural quantity of electricity : in either, therefore,, supposing it to be composed of electricity and common matter, the usual equilibrium or balance between its two constituent ingredients was, for the time* upset or destroyed. But how should this, produce the different effects which are ob- served to result from the action of electrified bodies ? How is the mere circumstance of the overthrow of the customary equilibrium between the electricity and the matter of a body to be made to account far its attraction and repulsion of other bodies, and for the extraordinary phenomena presented by the Leyden phial ? The Franklinian theory answers these questions with great ease and completeness. The fundamental law of the electric fluid, according to this theory, is, that its particles attract matter,, and repel one another. To this we must add a similar law with regard ta the particles of matter, namely, that they repel each other, as well as attract elec- tricity. This latter consideration was somewhat unaccountably overlooked by Franklin ; but was afterwards introduced by Mr. jEpinus, of Petersburg, and the late celebrated Mr. Cavendish, in their more elaborate expositions of his theory of the electrical action. Let us now apply these two simple principles to the ex- planation of the facts we have already mentioned. In the first place, when two bodies are in their ordinary or natural state, the quantity of matter is- an exact balance for the quantity of electricity in each, and there is accordingly no tendency 5* 00 AMERICAN MECHANICS. of the fluid to escape ; no spark will take place between two such bodies when they are brought into contact. Nor will they either attract or repel each other, because the attractive and repulsive forces operating between them are exactly balanced, the two at. tractions of the electricity in the first for the matter in the second, and of the electricity in the second for the matter in the first, being opposed by the two repulsions of the electricity in the first for the electricity in the second, and of the matter in the first for the mat- ter in the second. They, therefore, produce no effect upon each other whatever. But let us next suppose that one of the bodies is an electric which has been excited in the usual way by friction, a stick of wax, or a glass cylinder, for example, which has been rubbed with the hand, or a piece of dry silk. In this case, the body in question has received an addition to its natural quantity of electricity, which addition, accordingly, it will most readily part with whenever it is brought into contact with a conductor. But this is not all. Let us see how it will act, according to the law that has been stated, upon the other body, which we shall suppose to be in its natural state, when they are brought near each other. First, from the repulsive tendency of the electric particles, the extra electricity in the excited body will drive away a portion of the electricity of the other from its nearest end, which will thus become negatively elec- trified, or will consist of more matter than is necessary to balance its electricity. In this state of things, what are the attractive and repulsive forces operating between the two bodies, the one, be it remembered, having an excess of electricity, and the other an excess of matter 1 There are, in fact, five attractive forces opposed by only four repulsive ; the former being those of the matter in the first body for the electricity in the second, of the balanced electri- city in the first for the balanced matter in the second, of the same for the extra matter in the second, together with the two of the extra electricity in the first for the same two quantities of matter ; and the latter being those of the matter in the first for the balanced matter in the second, of the same for the extra matter in the second, together with those of the electricity in the second both for the balanced and the extra electricity in the first. The two bodies, therefore, ought to meet, as we find they actually do. But rip sooner do they meet than the extra electricity of the first, at- tracted by the matter of the second, flows over partly to it ; and both bodies become positively electrified ; that is to say, each contains a quantity of electricity beyond that which its matter is capable of balancing. It will be found, upon examination, that we have now four powers of attraction opposed by five of repul- BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 61 sion ; the former being those of the matter in each body for the two electricities in the other, the latter those exerted by each of the electricities in the one against both the electricities of the other, together with that of the matter in the one for the matter in the other. The bodies now accordingly should repel each other, just as we find to be the fact. Of course the same reason, ing applies to the case of a neutral body, and any other containing a superabundance of electricity, whether it be an electric or no, and in whatever way its electricity may have been communicated to it. We may add that there is no case of attraction or repulsion between two bodies, in which the results indicated by the theory do not coincide with those of observation as exactly as in this. We now come to the phenomena of the Leyden phial. The two bodies upon which we are here to fix our attention are the in. terior and exterior coatings, which, before the process of charging has commenced, are of course in their natural state, each having exactly that quantity of electricity which its matter is able to balance, and neither therefore exerting any effect whatever upon the other. But no sooner has the interior coating received an additional portion of electricity from the prime conductor, with which the reader will remember it is in communication, than, being now positively electrified, it repels a corresponding portion of its electricity from the exterior coating, which therefore be- comes negatively electrified. As the operation goes on, both these effects increase, till at last the superabundance of electricity in the one surface, and its deficiency in the other, reach the limit to which it is wished to carry them. All this while, it will be re- marked, the former is prevented from giving out its superfluity to the latter by the interposition of the glass, which is a non-con- ductor, and the uncovered space which had been left on both sides around the lip of the vessel. If the charge were made too high, however, even these obstacles would be overcome, and the un- balanced electricity of the interior coating, finding no easier vent, would at last rush through the glass to the unsaturated matter on its opposite surface, probably shattering it to pieces in its progress. But, to effect a discharge in the usual manner, a communication must be established by means of a good conductor between the two surfaces, before this extreme limit be reached. If either a rod of metal, for example, or the human body, be employed for this purpose, the fluid from the interior coating will instantly rush along the road made for it, occasioning a pretty loud report, and, in the latter case, a severe shock, by the rapidity of its passage. Both coatings will, in consequence, be immediately restored to their natural state. 62 AMERICAN MECHANICS. That this is the true explanation of the matter Franklin further demonstrated by a variety of ingenious experiments. In the first place, he found that, if the outer coating was cut off, by being in- sulated from every conducting body, the inner coating could not be charged ; the electricity in the outer coating had here no means of escape, and it was consequently impossible to produce in that coating the requisite negative electricity. On the other hand, if a good conductor was brought within the striking distance from the outside coating, while the process of charging was going on, the expelled fluid might be seen passing away towards it in sparks, in proportion as more was sent from the prime conductor into the inside of the vessel. He observed also that, when a phial was charged, a cork ball, suspended on silk, would be attracted by the one coating when it had been repelled by the other an additional indication and proof of their opposite states of electricity, as might be easily shown by an analysis of the attractive and repulsive forces operating between the two bodies in each case. But Franklin did not rest contented with ascertaining the prin- ciple of the Leyden phial. He made also a very happy applica- tion of this principle, which afforded a still more wonderful mani- festation than had yet been obtained of the powers of accumulated electricity. Considering the waste that took place, in the common experiment, of the fluid expelled, during the process of charging, from the exterior coating, he conceived the idea of employing it to charge the inner surface of a second jar, which he effected, of course, by the simple expedient of drawing it off by means of a metal rod communicating with that surface. The electricity ex- pelled from the outside of this second jar was conveyed, in like manner, into the inside of a third ; and, in this way, a great num- ber of jars were charged with the same facility as a single one. Then, having connected all the inside coatings with one conductor, and all the outside coatings with another, he had merely to bring these two general conductors into contact or communication, in order to discharge the whole accumulation at once* This con- trivance he called an electrical battery. The general sketch we have just given will put the reader ia possession, at least, of the great outlines of the Franklinian theory of electricity, undoubtedly one of the most beautiful generalizations to be found in the whole compass of science. By the aid of what we may call a single principle, since the law with regard to the electric fluid and common matter is exactly the same, it explains satisfactorily not only all the facts connected with this interesting subject which were known when it was first proposed, but all those that have been since discovered, diffusing order and light through- BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 63 out what seemed before little better than a chaos of unintelligible contradictions. We must now, however, turn to a very brilliant discovery of this illustrious philosopher, the reality of which does not depend upon the truth or falsehood of any theory. Franklin was by no means the first person to whom the idea had suggested itself of a similarity between electricity and light- ning. Not to mention many other names which might be quoted, the Abbe Nollet had, before him, not only intimated his suspicion that thunder might be in the hands of Nature what electricity is in ours, but stated a variety of reasons on which he rested his conjecture. It is to Franklin alone, however, that the glory be- longs of both pointing out the true method of verifying this con- jecture, and of actually establishing the perfect identity of the two powers in question. " It has, indeed, been of late the fashion," says the editor of the first account of his electrical experiments, published at London in 1751, " to ascribe every grand or unusual operation of nature, such as lightning and earthquakes, to electri- city; not, as one would imagine from the matter of reasoning on these occasions, that the authors of these schemes have discovered any connection betwixt the cause and effect, or saw in what man- ner they were related ; but, as it would seem, merely because they were unacquainted with any other agent, of which it could not positively be said the connection was impossible." Franklin trans- formed what had been little more than a figure of rhetoric into a most important scientific fact. In a paper, dated November 7, 1749, he enumerates all the known points of resemblance between lightning and electricity. In the first place, he remarks, it is no wonder that the effects of the one should be so much greater than those of the other ; for if two gun-barrels electrified will strike at two inches distance, and make a loud report, at how great a distance will ten thousand acres of electrified cloud strike, and give its fire ; and how loud must be that crack ! He then notices the crooked and waving course, both of the flash of lightning, and, in some cases, of the electric sparks ; the tendency of lightning, like electricity, to take the readiest and best conductor ; the facts that lightning, as well as electricity, dis- solves metals, burns some bodies, rends others, strikes people blind, destroys animal life, reverses the poles of magnets, &c. He had known for some time the extraordinary power of pointed bodies, both in drawing and in throwing off the electric fire. The true explanation of this fact did not occur to him ; but it is a direct consequence of the fundamental principle of his own theory, according to which the repulsive tendency of the particles of elec- tricity towards each other, occasioning the fluid to retire, in every 64 AMERICAN MECHANICS. case, from the interior to the surface of bodies, drives it with especial force towards points and other prominences, and thus favors its escape through such outlets ; while, on the other hand, the more concentrated attraction which the matter of a pointed body, as compared with that of a blunt one, exerts upon the elec- tricity to which it is presented, brings it down into its new channel in a denser stream. In possession, however, of the fact, we find him concluding the paper we have mentioned as follows : "The electric fluid is attracted by points. We do not know whether this property be in lightning ; but since they agree in all the par- ticulars in which we can already compare them, it is not improb- able that they agree likewise in this. Let the experiment be made." Full of this idea, it was yet some time before he found what he conceived a favorable opportunity of trying its truth in the way he meditated. A spire was about to be erected in Philadelphia, which he thought would afford him facilities for the experiment ; but his attention having been one day drawn by a kite which a boy was flying, it suddenly occurred to him, that here was a method of reaching the clouds preferable to any other. Accordingly, he immediately took a large silk handkerchief, and stretching it over two cross sticks, formed in this manner his xsimple apparatus for drawing down the lightning from its cloud. Soon after, seeing a thunder-storm approaching, he took a walk into a field in the neighborhood of the city in which there was a shed, communi- cating his intentions, however, to no one but his son, whom he took with him, to assist him in raising the kite : this was in June, 1752. The kite being raised, he fastened a key to the lower extremity of the hempen string, and then insulating it by attaching it to a post by means of silk, he placed himself under the shed, and wait- ed the result. For some time no signs of electricity appeared. A cloud, apparently charged with lightning, had even passed over them without producing any effect. At length, however^ just as Franklin was beginning to despair, he observed some loose threads of the hempen string rise and stand erect, exactly as if they had been repelled from each other by being charged with electricity. He immediately presented his knuckle to the key, and, to his in- expressible delight, drew from it the well-known electrical spark. It is said that his emotion was so great at this completion of a discovery which was to make his name immortal, that he heaved a deep sigh, and felt that he could that moment have willingly died. As the rain increased, the cord became a better conductor, and the key gave out its electricity copiously. Had the hemp been BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 65 thoroughly wet, the bold experimenter might, as he was contented to do, have paid for his discovery with his life. He afterwards brought down the lightning into his house, by means of an insulated iron rod, and performed with it, at his leisure, all the experiments that could be performed with elec- tricity. But he did not stop here. His active and practical mind was not satisfied even with the splendid discovery, until he had turned it to a useful end. There was always a strong tendency in Franklin's philosophy to these practical applications. The lightning-rod was probably the result of some of the amusing ex- periments with which Franklin was,- at the commencement of his electrical investigations, accustomed to employ his own leisure, and afford pleasure to his friends. In one of his letters to Mr. Col- linson, dated so early as 1748, we find him expressing himself in the following strain, in reference to his electrical experiments : " Chagrined a little that we have hitherto been able to produce nothing in this way of use to mankind, and the hot weather coming on, when electrical experiments are not so agreeable, it is proposed to put an end to them for this season somewhat humorously, in a party of pleasure on the banks of the Schuylkill. Spirits at the same time are to be fired by a spark sent from side to side through the river, without any other conductor than the water an experiment which we have some time since performed to the amazement of many. A turkey is to be killed for dinner by the electrical shock, and roasted by the electrical jack, before a fire kindled by the electrical bottle ; when the healths of all the famous electricians in England, Holland, France, and Germany, are to be drunk in elec- trified bumpers, under the discharge of guns from the electrical battery." Franklin's electrical discoveries did not, on their first announce- ment, attract much attention in England ; and, indeed, he had the mortification of learning that his paper on the similarity of light- ning to electricity, when read by a friend to the Royal Society, had been only laughed at by that learned body. In France, however, the account that had been published in London of his experiments, fortunately fell into the hands of the celebrated naturalist, Buffbn, who was so much struck with it, that he had it translated into French, and printed at Paris. This made it immediately known to all Europe ; and versions of it in various other modern languages soon appeared, as well as one in Latin. The theory propounded in it was at first violently opposed in France by the Abbe Nollet, who had one of his own to support, and, as Franklin tells us, could not at first believe that such a work came from America ; but said it must have been fabricated by his enemies at Paris. The Abbe 66 AMERICAN MECHANICS. was eventually, however, deserted by all his partisans, and lived to see himself the last of his sect. In England, too, the Franklinian experiments gradually began to be more spoken of; and, at last, even the Royal Society was induced to resume the consideration of the papers that had formerly been read to them. One of their members verified the grand experiment of bringing down lightning from the clouds ; and upon his reading to them an account of his suc- cess, " they soon," says Franklin, " made me more than amends for the slight with which they had before treated me. Without my having made any application for that honor, they chose me a member; and voted that I should be excused the customary payments, which would have amounted to twenty-five guineas ; and ever since have given me their transactions gratis. They also presented me with the gold medal of Sir Godfrey Copley, for the year 1753, the de- livery of which was accompanied with a very handsome speech of the president, Lord Macclesfield, wherein I was highly honored." Some years afterwards, when he was in Great Britain with his son, the University of St. Andrew's conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of Laws ; and its example was followed by the Univer- sities of Edinburgh and Oxford. He was also elected a member of many of the learned societies throughout Europe. No philosopher of the age now stood on a prouder eminence than this extraordinary man, who had originally been one of the most obscure of the people, and had raised himself to all this distinction almost without the aid of any education but such as he had given himself. Who will say, after reading his story, that any thing more is necessary for the attainment of knowledge than the determination to attain it ? that there is any other obstacle to even the highest degree of intellectual advancement which may not be overcome, except a man's own listlessness or indolence ? The secret of this man's success in the cultivation of his mental powers was, that he was ever awake and active in that business ; that he suffered no opportunity of forwarding it to escape him unimproved ; that, however poor, he found at least a few pence, were it even by diminishing his scanty meals, to pay for the loan of the books he could not buy ; that, however hard- wrought, he found a few hours in the week, were it by sitting up half the night after toiling all the day, to read and study them. Others may not have his original powers of mind ; but his industry, his perseverance, his self-com- mand, are for the imitation of all : and though few may look for- ward to the rare fortune of achieving discoveries like his, all may derive both instruction and encouragement from his example. They who may never overtake the light, may at least follow its path, and guide their footsteps by its illumination. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 67 Were we to pursue the remainder of Franklin's history, we should find the fame of the patriot vying with that of the philoso- pher, in casting a splendor over it ; and the originally poor and unknown tradesman standing before kings, associating as an equal with the most eminent statesmen of his time, and arranging along with them the wars and treaties of mighty nations. When the struggle for independence commenced, Franklin took a very active part. He was soon sent ambassador to the court of France, where principally through his exertions an alliance was brought about between the two countries, which produced an immediate war be. tween the latter and England. In 1783, he signed the treaty of peace, which recognised our independence. Two years after he arrived in Philadelphia, where he was chosen president of the Supreme Executive Council of the city. He closed his eventful and honorable life on the 17th of April, 1790, in the eighty-fifth year of his age. Franklin was in conversation sprightly, in manners bland. Des- titute of pride, he considered all honest men on an equality. Dur- ing the time he was in Great Britain, in the dignified station of ambassador, he went into his old printing office, and entering the press-room, proceeded to a particular press where two men were at work : " Come, my fnends" says he, " we will drink together ; it is now forty years since I worked like you at this press, as a jour- neyman printer." A gallon of porter was sent for, and he then drank "success to printing." At a later period, the merchants in Philadelphia being desirous to establish an assembly for dancing, they drew up some rules, among which was one " that no mechanic or mechanic's wife or daughter should be admitted on any terms." This rule being submitted to Franklin, he remarked that " it ex* eluded God Almighty, for he was the greatest mechanic in the uni- verse." An enemy to every thing aristocratic, even his eloquence partook of an unpretending character ; but he developed his ideas with clearness and precision. He had always at hand an immense stock of common sense, and possessed the very useful quality of being " eminently great in little things." 6 OLIVER EVANS. Birth. Apprenticed to a wagon maker. Fondness for study. Penuriousness of his master. Pursues his evening studies by the light of burning shavings. Turns his attention to the propelling of carriages without animal power. An experiment. Renews his studies with increased ardor. Is laughed at for de- claring that he can make steam carriages. Opinions confirmed by experiment. Is defrauded of an invention for making card teeth. Marries. Enters into the milling business with his brothers. His inventions revolutionize the man- ufacture of flour. Account of those improvements. Difficulties attending their introduction. Opposition of the Brandywine millers. Petitions the Le- gislature of Pennsylvania for the right of using his mill improvements and steam carriages. The former granted and the latter ridiculed. The Legislature of Maryland grant them both. Commences a steam carriage at his own ex- pense. Latrobe's report. Lays aside the carriage and builds a steam engine for mills, which reduces him to poverty. Final success. Constructs a machine for cleaning docks. First American locomotive. Public incredulity. His the first high pressure engine. Submits a proposition to the Lancaster turnpike company. Predictions. Mill improvements gradually come into use. Viola- tors. Unsuccessful lawsuit. Petitions congress for a renewal of his patents. Memorial of his opponents. Counter memorial. Triumph. His published works. Death. IT is but seldom that the pen of the biographer has occasion to trace the memoir of an individual possessing equal perseverance, or greater originality of mechanical conception, than the subject of this memoir, who has been aptly styled " the Watt of America." Oliver Evans was born in Newport, Delaware, sometime in the year 1755 or 1756. Little is preserved respecting his early his- tory. His parents were agriculturists of respectable standing, who gave their son the advantages common to people in their station. At the age of fourteen Evans was apprenticed to a wheelwright or wagon maker. An anecdote is preserved which displays in his character, even at this period, that ardent desire for know, ledge, and that determination ever evinced not to let any obstacle interfere with the object of his pursuits. His master, an illiterate man, observing his apprentice employing his leisure evenings in study, through motives of parsimony, forbade him using candles ; but young Evans was not to be discouraged, for, collecting at the close of each day the shavings made from his work, he would take them to the chimney corner, and, by their uncertain light, pursue his evening studies. While yet an apprentice his attention was turned to the subject OLIVER EVANS. OLIVER EVANS. 71 of propelling land carriages without animal power; but all the methods with which he was acquainted appearing too futile to de- serve an experiment, he concluded such motion to be impossible for the want of a suitable original power. But one of his brothers informed him on a Christmas evening that he had that day been in company with a neighboring blacksmith's boy, who, for amuse- ment, had stopped up the touch-hole of a gun barrel, then pouring in a gill of water, rammed down a tight wad ; after which on put- ting the breech in the fire, it discharged itself with a report like gunpowder. The active mind of Evans, ever awake to the phe- nomena around him, instantly saw that here was the long desired power, if he could only apply it, and from this period endeavored to discover the means. He labored for some time without success ; at length a book fell into his hands describing the old atmospheric steam engine ; and he was greatly astonished to observe they had so far erred as to use the steam only in forming a vacuum to apply the mere pressure of the atmosphere, instead of using the elastic force of the steam for the original motion, the power of which he sup- posed irresistible. He thereupon renewed his studies with in- creased ardor, and soon declared that he could make steam car- riages, and endeavored to communicate his ideas to others, but was only listened to with ridicule. Persevering, his experiments confirm- ed his opinions ; but want of means for a time compelled him to abandon its prosecution. When twenty-three or twenty-four years of age he was engaged in making card teeth by hand, at that period the only method known. Finding this a tedious operation, he invented a machine that would manufacture three thousand a minute, but was defrauded of a great share of the benefits derived from it. Shortly after he projected a plan for pricking the leather in cards, and at the same time cutting, bending, and setting the teeth ; but owing to the un- fortunate result of the previous invention, never carried it into execution. At the age of twenty-five Mr. Evans married a daughter of Mr. John Tomlinson, a respectable farmer of Delaware. About this period he entered into business with his brothers, who were mil- lers, and wished to avail themselves of his talents and ingenuity. Here was an appropriate field for the display of a genius like his, and ere long was commenced those series of improvements in the construction of machinery and appurtenances of mills which effected a complete revolution in the manufacture of flour. These improve- ments consist of the invention and various application of the fol- lowing machines, viz : The elevator, the conveyor, the hopper- boy, the drill, and the descender, which five machines are variously 72 AMERICAN MECHANICS. applied in different mills according to their construction, so as to perform every necessary movement of the grain and meal from one part of the mill to the other, or from one machine to another, through all the various operations, from the time the grain is emp- tied from the wagoner's bag, or from the measure on board the ship, until it is completely manufactured into flour, separated, and ready for packing ; all of which is performed by the force of the water, without the aid of manual labor, except to set the different machines in motion. The advantages derived from these improvements are great in almost every respect, not only causing a saving of full one half in the labor of attendance, but manufacturing the flour better, and making about twenty-eight pounds of superfine flour more to each barrel than was made by the old method.* These improvements were completed in theory as early as 1783, but were not carried into operation until a year or two later ; and then before they perfectly succeeded, many alterations were to be made, and great difficulties to surmount. Although the result ex- ceeded expectation, yet the opposition which was experienced ren- dered their introduction into general use extremely laborious. To promote this object, Mr. Evans furnished his brother with the ne- cessary funds, and despatched him through the country to establish them. He travelled through the states of Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia, offering the inventions gratis to the first in each county who would adopt them. After considerable expense he returned wholly unsuccessful, and without any favorable pros- pects for the future. The Brandywine millers in particular op- posed their adoption with all their influence, until they were in use in several mills around them. At length they held a consultation, and deputed one of their number to Mr. Evans to make proposals as to the terms on which they would try the experiment, which were nearly in the words following, viz : " Oliver, we have had a meeting, and agreed that if thou would furnish all the materials, and thy own boarding, and come thyself to set up the machinery, in one of our mills, thee may come and try, and if it answers a valuable purpose, we will pay thy bill, but if it does not answer, thee must take it all out again, and leave the mill just as thee finds it, at thy own expense." The principles having already been tested, and these millers knowing Mr. Evans' reduced circumstances at the * When Mr. Evans' milling improvements came into popular use, it was esti- mated that at Ellicott's mills, near Baltimore, where three hundred and twenty- five barrels of flour were daily manufactured, that in expense of attendance alone, there was an annual saving of four thousand eight hundred and seventy-five dollars, and that the saving made by the increased amount manufactured, was at least fifty cents a barrel, amounting to a gain in this department of thirty-two thou- tandjive hundred dollars f OLIVER EVANS. 73 time, he could but regard their propositions as a disposition to re- tard and embarrass rather than to encourage or forward the im- provement. The following anecdotes which were related by Mr. Evans, exhibit a strength of prejudice, on the part of these men, almost inconceivable. When he had his inventions in full operation, so that he could alone attend his mill with less fatigue than he could before, even with the assistance of two men and a boy, he invited the Brandywine millers to come and witness its opera- tion. It so happened that some of them called on a day when he had alone, both to attend the mill and make hay in an adjoining clover lot. On seeing their approach, he turned from them, thinking it best to let them enter the mill, and finding it attending to itself, would be convincing and positive proof of the great utility of the improve- ments. Entering, they found all the operations of cleaning, grind- ing, and bolting going on without the intervention of a human hand, with perfect regularity and despatch. In about half an hour, they came to Mr. Evans, and requested him to explain the whole of the operations, which he did willingly, but took care to inform them that it was an " uncommon busy" day with him, for he had both to attend the mill and make hay. After they left, Mr. Evans returned to the lot, leaving the mill to attend itself, and rejoicing at the lucky circumstance, not doubting but they were now fully convinced. But to his astonishment, he soon learned that on their return, they had reported to their neighboring millers, that the whole contrivance was a set of " rattle traps," not worthy the attention of men of com- mon sense ; which fixed more firmly the opposition of the rest to the adoption of the improvement. Some time later, he exhibited a model of his improved mill in the streets of Wilmington, Dela- ware, which was to be sent to England. Some of the crowd called to a Brandywine miller, as he happened to be passing, who was so struck with its simplicity and perfection, together with the obser- vations of those present, that he contracted with the inventor to construct one for him. It was soon put into operation in presence of the neighboring millers ; and though the elevators and conveyors, without the aid of human hands, brought the meal from the two pair of stones, and the tail-flour from the bolts to the hopper-boy, which spread it over the floor, stirring, fanning, and gathering it, and attending the bolting hoppers at the same time, yet one of them, in contradiction to the evidence of his own senses, exclaimed, " It will not do ! it cannot do ! it is impossible it should do !" The opposition of these millers cost him thousands of dollars in fruitless attempts to establish his inventions. Wherever his agents went, the inquiry was, "Have the Brandywine millers adopted 6* 74 AMERICAN MECHANICS. them ?" The answer was of course, " No !" which was generally followed by this pertinent reply : " If those who are so much more extensively engaged in the manufacture of flour do not think them worthy their attention, they cannot certainly demand ours." This treatment on the part of these men recoiled upon themselves, and their obstinacy was such in adopting the improvements, that the mills on the Brandy wine for a time lost their pre-eminence. In the year 1786, Mr. Evans petitioned the legislature of Penn- sylvania for the exclusive right to use his improvements in flour mills, and steam carriages, in that state, and in the year follow- ing presented a similar petition to the legislature of Maryland. In the former instance he was only successful so far as to obtain the privilege of the mill improvements ; his representations concerning steam carriages were considered as savoring too much of insanity to deserve notice. He was more fortunate in Maryland, for, al- though the steam project was laughed at, yet one of his friends, a member, very judiciously observed that the grant could injure no one, for he did not think that any man in the world had thought of such a thing before, he therefore wished the encouragement might be afforded, as there was a prospect that it would produce some- thing useful. This kind of argument had its effect, and Evans received all that he asked for, and from that period considered himself bound in honor to the state of Maryland to produce a steam carriage, as soon as his means would allow him. For several years succeeding the granting of his petition by the legislature of Maryland, Mr. Evans endeavored to obtain some person of pecuniary resources to join with him in his plans ; and for this purpose explained his views by drafts, and otherwise, to some of the first mechanics in the country : although they appeared in several instances to understand them, yet declined any assistance from a fear of the expense and difficulty of their execution.* In the year 1800 or 1801, Mr. Evans, never having found any one willing to contribute to the expense, or even to encourage him in his efforts, determined to construct a steam carriage at his own expense. Previous to commencing he explained his views to Ro- bert Patterson, professor of mathematics in the University of Penn- sylvania, and to an eminent English engineer. They both de- * I certify that Oliver Evans did, about the year 1789, communicate a project to me of propelling land carriages by the power of steam, and did solicit me to join with him in the profits of the same. LEVI HOLLINGSWORTH. 'Baltimore, Nov. 16, 1812. I do certify that about 1781, (thirty-one years ago,) Oliver Evans, in conversa- tion with me, declared that by the power of steam he could drive any thing ; wagons, mills, or vessels by the same power. ENOCH ANDERSON. November 15, 1S12. OLIVER EVANS. 75 clared the principles new to them, and advised the plan, as highly worthy of a fair experiment. These were the only persons who had any confidence, or afforded encouraging advice. He also communicated his plans to Mr. B. F. Latrobe, a highly scientific gentleman, who publicly pronounced them as chimerical, and at- tempted to demonstrate the absurdity of Mr. Evans' principles in his report to the Philosophical Society of Pennsylvania, on steam engines : in which he also endeavored to show the impossibility of making steamboats useful. In this report, Mr. Evans is one of the persons alluded to, as being seized with the " steam mania" but the liberality of the society caused them to reject that portion of the paper, conceiving that they had no right to set up their opin- ions as an obstacle in the way of any exertions to make a discovery, although they did not reject that gentleman's demonstrations respect- ing steamboats. In consequence of the determination previously alluded to, Mr. Evans commenced and had made considerable progress in the construction of a steam carriage, when the idea occurred to him, that as his steam engine was altogether different in form, as well as in principle, from any other in use, a patent could be obtained for it, and then applied to mills, more profitably than to carriages. The steam carriage was accordingly laid aside for a season of more leisure, and the construction of a small engine was commenced, with a cylinder six inches in diameter, and piston of eighteen inches stroke, for a mill to grind plaster of Paris. The expense of its construction far exceeded Mr. Evans' calculations, and before the engine was finished he found it cost him all he was worth. He had then to begin the world anew, at the age of forty-eight, with a large family to support, and that too with a knowledge, that if the trial failed his credit would be entirety ruined, and his prospects for the remainder of life dark and gloomy. But fortune favored him, and his success was complete. In a brief account given by himself of his experiments in steam, he says, " I could break and grind three hundred bushels of plaster of Paris, or twelve tons, in twenty-four hours ; and to show its operations more fully to the public, I applied it to saw stone, on the side of Market-street, where the driving of twelve saws in heavy frames, sawing at the rate of one hundred feet of marble in twelve hours, made a great show and excited much attention. I thought this was sufficient to convince the thousands of spectators of the utility of my discovery, but I frequently heard them inquire if the power could be applied to saw timber, as well as stone, to grind grain, propel boats, &c., and though I answered in the affirm- ative, they still doubted. I therefore determined to apply my 76 AMERICAN MECHANICS. engine to all new uses ; to introduce it and them to the public. This experiment completely tested the correctness of my principles. The power of my engine rises in a geometrical proportion, while the consumption of fuel has only an arithmetical ratio ; in such proportion that every time I added one fourth more to the consump- tion of the fuel, its powers were doubled ; and that twice the quan- tity of fuel required to drive one saw, would drive sixteen saws at least ; for when I drove two saws the consumption was eight bushels of coal in twelve hours, but when twelve saws were driven, the consumption was not more than ten bushels ; so that the more we resist the steam, the greater is the effect of the engine. On these principles very light but powerful engines can be made suitable for propelling boats and land carriages, without the great encumbrance of their weight as mentioned in Latrobe's demonstration." In the year 1804, Mr. Evans, by order of the board of health of Philadelphia, constructed at his works, situated a mile and a half from the water, a machine for cleaning docks.* It consisted of a large flat or scow, with a steam engine of the power of five horses on board, to work machinery, in raising the mud into scows. This was considered a fine opportunity to show the public that his engine could propel both land and water conveyances. When the machine was finished, he fixed, in a rough and temporary manner, wheels with wooden axletrees, and of course, under the influence of great friction. Although the whole weight was equal to two hundred barrels of flour, jet his small engine propelled it up Market-street, and round the circle to the water works, where it was launched into the Schuylkill. A paddle wheel was then applied to its stern, and it thus sailed down that river to the Delaware, a distance of sixteen miles, leaving all vessels that were under sail at least half way, (the wind being ahead,) in the presence of thousands of spec- tators, which he supposed would have convinced them of the prac- ticability of steamboats and steam carriages. But no allowance was made by the public for the disproportion of the engine to its load, nor for the rough manner in which the machinery was fixed, or the great friction and ill form of the boat, but it was supposed that this was the utmost it could perform. Some individuals under- took to ridicule this experiment of driving so great a weight on land, because the motion was too slow to be useful. The inventor silenced them by answering that he would make a carriage propelled by steam, for a wager of three thousand dollars, to run upon a level road, against the swiftest horse that could be produced. This machine Evans named the Oructor Amphibolis, which is * This was the first application to the important but now common operation of dredging. American edition of Wood's Treatise on Rail Roads. nl O S > > 2 o Z' G OLIVER EVANS. 79 believed to have been the first application, in America, of steam power to the propelling of land carriages. On the 25th of September, 1804, Evans submitted to the consi- deration of the Lancaster turnpike company, a statement of the costs and profits of a steam carriage to carry one hundred barrels of flour, fifty miles in twenty-four hours ; tending to show, that one such steam carriage would make more nett profits than ten wagons, drawn by five horses each, on a good turnpike road, and offering to build one at a very low price. His address closed as follows : " It is too much for an individual to put in operation every improve- ment which he may invent. I have no doubt but that my engines will propel boats against the current of the Mississippi, and wagons on turnpike roads, with great profit. I now call upon those whose interest it is, to carry this invention into effect. All which is re- spectfully submitted to your consideration." Little or no attention was paid to the offer. Had Evans received the patronage and pecuniaiy assistance that fell to the lot of Fulton, there is no doubt but he might have shown steamboats in operation fifteen or twenty years previous to the successful experiments of that ingenious individual. This probability is strengthened by the fact, that his engine, the first* ever invented on the high-pressure principle, is the only one that can be applied on railways, and is now in universal use on the Mississippif and other rapid rivers, where great power is required. * " It is scarcely necessary to mention to the American reader, that the claim respecting the high pressure steam and locomotive engines to which the English assert, is entirely without foundation. The application of steam in this manner and to these purposes had, indeed, been contemplated, but never reduced to Sractice until the experiments alluded to. In early life, Mr. Evans sent Mr. oseph Sampson to England with the drawings and specifications of his steam engines, &c. They were exhibited to numerous engineers, and his plans were copied by Messrs. Vivian and Trevithick, without any acknowledgment : the latter persons acquired fame and fortune, while the ingenious, but eccentric Evans, died poor, neglected, and broken-hearted. Fitch, Fulton, and Evans, exhibit a singular coincidence in their history. Posterity will, at least, render them the tartly recompense of justice. America may, therefore, claim, the invention of locomotive engines with even more justice than that of steamboats, inventions which are destined to revolutionize the commerce and defence of nations." Amer. Edit, of Wood's Treatise on Railroads. t " Mr. Evans wrote in 1802 to gentlemen in Kentucky, informing them he had got his engine in motion, which he had long before invented, for propelling boats and carriages. These letters were shown to Captain James M'Keaver, who associated with Mr. Louis Valcourt, to build a steamboat to ply between New Orleans and Natchez. Valcourt came to Philadelphia to employ Mr. Evans to make a steam engine, while the captain should build a boat eighty feet keel, and eighteen feet beam. Two of Mr. Evans' company of workmen went with the engine to meet the boat at New Orleans, to set it up, which they completed, and the boat was ready for experiment ; but bj this time the water had subsided. and left the boat half a mile from the water : their money being expended, their credit exhausted, and the river not expected to rise in less than six months ! In 80 AMERICAN MECHANICS. While Evans' conceptions respecting the power of steam reflect the highest credit upon his sagacity and talent, his predictions of its application may well be termed prophetic. In some of his writings, published in the early part of the present century, he re- marks : " The time will come when people will travel in stages, moved by steam engines, from one city to another, almost as fast as birds fly, fifteen or twenty miles an hour. Passing through the air with such velocity, changing the scene in such rapid succession, will be the most rapid exhilarating exercise. A carriage (steam) will set out from Washington in the morning, the passengers will breakfast at Baltimore, dine at Philadelphia, and sup in New York the same day. To accomplish this, two sets of railways will be laid, so nearly level as not in any way to deviate more than two degrees from a horizontal line, made of wood or iron, or smooth paths of broken stone or gravel, with a rail to guide the carriages so that they may pass each other in different directions, and travel by night as well as by day. Engines will drive boats ten or twelve miles per hour, and there will be many hundred steamboats run- ning on the Mississippi, as predicted years ago." After a lapse of years, as the improvements in the manufacture of flour gradually came into popular use, the inducements to in- fringe upon Evans' rights increased, until he was obliged to appeal for redress to the United States circuit court of Pennsylvania, but, through some informality in the patent, an unfavorable decision was given. Thus was he deprived of all means of recovering what was so justly due. Agreeably to the request of counsel, he then petitioned congress for a new patent. In stating his case, he observed, " that he had been at a great expense in publishing and disseminating these inventions, travelling either by himself or agents this predicament, Mr. William Donaldson offered them money to take the engine out of the boat, and set it to drive a saw-mill, that could go only by the waters of the river overflowing its banks, and was then standing. Their necessities compelled them to accept the offer. When they got the saw-mill going, they wrote that to their astonishment the engine was sawing three thousand feet of boards per day of twelve hours, which had been selling at the enormous price of fifty to sixty dollars per one thousand feet ; that they were now convinced there could be no doubt that the steamboat would have succeeded beyond their expectations ; that they would soon retrieve their losses, and would order an- other engine for the boat. But, alas ! their fair prospects were soon blasted ; for there, too, were some of the wise opposers of improvements. This mill was likely to deprive some who sawed lumbar by hand of profitable jobs, and it was set on fire ; the two first attempts the fire was discovered in time to be extin- guished ; but in the third, those infernal incendiaries had like to have succeeded not only in destroying the mill, but with it those who had slept in it, to guard it. Thus were two noble and enterprising men ruined, in the most laudable attempts to establish steamboats on the Mississippi. They had expended fifteen thousand dollars, and would have succeededThree or four years before Fulton and Living- ston, but for the reasons above stated." Patent Right Oppression Exposed. OLIVER EVANS. 81 for thirteen years, throughout the country, from state to state, and from mill to mill, to instruct workmen in their manufacture, and millers their use : and in this way had expended the small fees which were received from those who had generously and freely paid for their license." These arguments were so clearly founded on justice, that government could not but listen to his claims, and the petition was granted, January 21, 1808. Ere long, a memorial was presented to congress by John Wor- thington, Elisha Tyson, and other interested millers, against Oliver Evans, stating " that the public had been grossly deceived in re- gard to Evans being the original inventor of his patented mill machines ; for, so far from having invented ALL, he was not the original inventor of any of them : and that they could not believe that those in authority intended to let loose upon the community this exorbitant monopolist with so grievous and despotic a power. They therefore petitioned to have the subject once more taken into consideration." Evans immediately presented a counter me- morial, in which he completely proved the falsity of their state- ments, and the interested motives of his opponents. Independent of this, some of the most prominent* individuals in the community, on this and other occasions, came forward unsolicited with their testimony in his behalf. In the result, Evans was sustained. * The following, among other statements, was furnished by the well-known editor of Niles' Register, on the occasion of some of Mr. Evans' lawsuits : " The subscriber, unsolicited by, and unknown to Oliver Evans, feels it due to truth and justice to state his recollections of the mill machinery.. He well remembers, when at the Brandywine mills, they used to hoist the flour from the lower story to the loft, in large buckets or tubs, filled by shovels from the chests into which the flour fell from the millstones : he has also frequently seen a man employed at these mills in heaping the flour over the hopper to let it pass into the bolting cloth below. Born in the neighborhood of these mills, ana passing his infancy and youth at Wilmington, within half a mile of them ; and going there to swim and to skate, as well as for other juvenile amusements, the place presenting delightful advantages for their enjoyment, he has passed through those mills, or some of them, many hundred times before and since the improve- ments were introduced. His young mind was much pleased to observe the little buckets (the elevator,} supplying the place of the large one, above alluded to ; and he was much amused to see the labors of the hopper-boy, that spread, cooled, and collected the meal, without manual labor, to the spot where it was wanted ; nor was he less agreeably surprised at the operation of the conveyor, that, while it cooled the flour, passed it on to the place where the elevator caught it. He also recollects to have heard it stated that the introduction of this machinery would throw more than twenty persons out of employ at Brandywine ; and always understood that these innovations on the old mode of manufacturing flour were made by Oliver Evans. " While writing the above, an old schoolmate is at my elbow, who has pre- cisely the same recollections. Neither of us pretend to know that Oliver Evans really invented those things ; but are certain that common fame gave him the credit of them at the time they were introduced at the Brandywine mills. " H. NILES, " Baltimore, Feb. 10, 1813." Editor of the Register." 82 AMERICAN MECHANICS. A few years subsequent to his marriage, Mr. Evans removed to Philadelphia, where he finally established an iron foundry and steam factory. Here he prepared his two works for the press, viz. the Young Millwright's and the Young Steam Engineer's Guides, productions every way worthy of their author. In 1810, his two sons-in-law, Messrs. James Rush and David Muhlenburg, joined and continued in business with him until the time of his decease, which took place from an inflammation of the lungs, April 21st, 1819. SAMUEL SLATER. SAMUEL SLATER, THE FATHER OF THE AMERICAN COTTON MANUFACTURES. Birth. Is apprenticed to the partner of Arkwright in the business of cotton spinning. Fondness for experiments in machinery. Improves the " heart motion." Industry. Appointed overseer. Anecdote. Forms the idea of coming to America. Is obliged to leave secretly. Adventures in London. Sails for the United States. Obtains a temporary employment. Dispiriting results of the attempts to establish the cotton manufacture previous to his arrival. Applies to Moses Brown. Visits Pawtucket. Enters into the cotton business with Messrs. Almy and Brown.- Low state of manufactures. Dis- appointment. Agrees to erect the Arkwright patents. Affecting anecdote. Forms a tender attachment. Builds the " Old Mill" at Pawtucket Preju dice. Prosperity. Extension of the cotton manufacture. Establishes the first American Sunday school. Character. Conclusion of his domestic his- tory. Death. Tribute to his memory. WE, of the present day, in witnessing the extent and variety of our manufactures, can scarcely realize the low state in which they were, some forty or fifty years since : nor, without investi- gation, can we form any conception of the difficulties incident to their establishment. In none were they so formidable as in the cotton manufacture : and it is judged that Ae, who forsook the endearments of home for a land of strangers, to seek its estab- lishment among us, certainly claims a place amid the other char- acters that comprise this volume. The subject of this memoir* was born at Belper, in Derbyshire, England, June 9, 1768. His father was one of those independent yeomanry who farm their own lands, forming a distinct class from the tenantry. Young Slater received the advantages of an ordi- nary English education ; and while at school, manifested a general fondness for study, but more particularly for that of arithmetic, one by far the most important in disciplining the mind for the business of life-^-a talent almost universal with those who become distin- guished for mechanical ingenuity. The cotton spinning business, at this time in its infancy, was carried on in the neighborhood by Jedediah Strutt, the partner of * See White's " Memoir of Slater ; connected with a History of the Rise and Progress of the Cotton Manufacture in England and America : with Remarks on the Moral Influence of Manufactories in the United States ;" a work con- taining a great deal of valuable and interesting information. 7 S6 AMERICAN MECHANICS. the celebrated Arkwright. Mr. Slater having frequent intercourse with Mr. Strutt, made an agreement with him to take his son into his employment. In August of the same year, young Slater lost his father ; and thus, at the early age of fourteen, was left his own master. A short time subsequent to this event, his employer asked him if he intended to continue in the business. Previous to giving a decisive answer, he inquired his opinion of its perma- nency. The reply was, that it would not probably continue as good as then, but, under proper management, would doubtless always be a fair business. So little did even its founders foresee the vast extension to which it was designed, and the astonishing change in politics, commerce, and the relations of states to each other, which have been the consequence. Indeed, all the cotton manufacture of England was then confined to a small district in Derbyshire, and its whole amount not greater than that done at the present day in a single village in New England. Young Slater early manifested the bent of his mind, frequently spending his Sundays alone in making experiments in machinery ; and for six months was without seeing any of his friends, though living only a mile from home. This was not from a want of filial or fraternal affection, but solely through devotion to his employ, ment. As showing the propensity and expertness of his mind at this period, the following circumstance is related : His master in vain endeavored to improve the " heart motion " so as to raise or enlarge the yarn in the middle, in order to contain more on the bobbin. Slater seeing through the difficulty, went to work, and the next Sunday (his only spare time) succeeded in that, which his employer, with all his ingenuity, was unable to effect. This gen- eral application on Slater's part was not without its benefits ; his employers gained so much confidence in his business habits and industry, that during the last four or five years of his stay with them he was engaged as an overseer. This general oversight, with his close habits of observation, eventually proved of incalcu- lable service. Slater was fortunate in having for his employer a man of so much stability and integrity, who took a great deal of pains to properly mould his character and habits. He was, like all other business men, a strict economist in that which related to his pro- fession, and would often enforce his maxims on his young protege. As an illustration, the following anecdote is related : When Slater was yet a boy, he passed by some loose cotton on the floor ; Mr. Strutt called him back, with a request to pick it up, for it was by attending to such small things that great fortunes were accumu- lated ; at the same time observing to his wife, by way of impress- SAMUEL SLATER. 87 ing it more strongly on the mind of his favorite apprentice, that he " was afraid that Samuel would never be rich." Slater faithfully served his indenture with Mr. Strutt. This accomplishment of his full time was characteristic with him, and was praiseworthy and beneficial, as it laid the foundation of his adaptation to business, and finally to its perfect knowledge. He early turned his attention to the United States, as affording a vast field for enterprise in his department. This originated partially from an apprehension that the business would be ruined by competition in his native country, and, with this idea, he would seek every means to gain information. The motives which finally induced him to leave, were the various rumors which reached Derbyshire of the anxiety of the different state govern, ments here to encourage manufactures. Slater was more strongly confirmed in this determination on observing a newspaper account of a liberal bounty granted by the legislature of Pennsylvania to a person who had imperfectly succeeded in constructing a carding machine, to make rolls for jennies ; and the knowledge, too, that a society had been authorized by the same legislature for the promo- tion of manufactures. Having made due preparation, he secretly, and without divulging his plans to even a single individual, bid farewell to the home of his childhood. What were his feelings in gazing, for the last time, on the countenances of his mother, brothers, and sisters, only those who" have been in similar circumstances can imagine ; his young heart was full, but a youthful ambition fired his soul, and enabled him to overcome his emotions. While waiting in London until the vessel was ready, he wrote to his friends, informing them of his plans, but, for obvious reasons, did not put the letter into the office until ready to embark. The ship being ready, Mr. Slater embarked, Sept. 1st, 1789, being at that time only a few months over twenty-one years of age. He was aware of the danger incurred in leaving England as a machinist, and therefore took no drawings of any sort, trust, ing solely to the powers of his memory to enable him to construct the most complicated of machinery. Indeed, he had no writing with him excepting his indenture, which was his sole introduction to the western world. After a tedious passage of sixty-six days, he arrived in New York. Here he obtained a temporary employ- ment, until something permanent should arise. Previous to Slater's arrival in America, every attempt to spin cotton warp or twist, or any other yarn, by water power, had totally failed, and every effort to import the patent machinery of England had proved abortive. Much interest had been excited in 88 AMERICAN MECHANICS. Philadelphia, New York, Beverly, Massachusetts, and Providence but it was found impossible to compete with the superior machin- ery of Derbyshire.* Distrust and despondency had affected the * At a meeting held in Boston a few years since, on the subject of opening a railroad to Albany, the infant difficulties of our manufactures were thus adverted toby Mr.Hallet: " We talk now of the future, in regard to railways, with doubt, as of an expe- riment yet to be tested, and many look upon the calculations of the sanguine as mere speculating dreams. Here is a new avenue about to be opened to the de- velopment of resources, and yet men hesitate to go forward. Let us test what we can reasonably anticipate in this, by what we know has happened, in the development of resources once deemed quite as visionary, through another me- dium of industry and enterprise domestic manufactures. There is not an adult among us who cannot remember the time when it was a source of mortification to be dressed in homespun. Now, our own fabrics are among the best and richest stuffs of every day consumption, and the products of our looms are pre- ferred even in foreign countries. Forty years ago, who would have dared to conjure up the visions of such manufacturing cities as Lowell, and Fall River, your Ware, Waltham, and the hundreds of flourishing villages which now con- stitute the most prosperous communities in this commonwealth ? How small and feeble was the beginning of all this! In. 1787, the first cotton mill in this, state was got up in Beverly, by John Cabot and others, and in three years it was nearly given up, in consequence of the difficulties which the first beginning of the development of the vast resources of domestic industry, in our state, had to encounter. I hold in my hand," said Mr. Ballet, " a document of uncommon interest, on this subject, found in the files of the Massachusetts senate ; which will show the early struggles of domestic manufactures, and the doubts enter- tained of their success, more forcibly than any fact that can be stated. It is the petition of the proprietors of the little Beverly cotton mill, in 1790, for aid from the legislature to save them from being compelled to abandon the enterprise altogether. This petition was referred to the committee of both houses for the encouragement of arts, agriculture, and manufactures, (of which Nathaniel Gorham was chairman ;) and with all the lights which that intelligent commit?- tee then had on this subject, destined to become one of the greatest means of developing resources ever opened to national prosperity, they cautiously reported that ' from the best information we can obtain, we are of opinion that the said manufactory is of great public utility. But owing to the great expenses incurred in providing machines, and other incidents usually attending a new business, the said manufactory is upon the decline, and unless some public assistance can be afforded, is in danger of failing. Your committee therefore report, as their opinion) that the petitioners have a grant of one thousand pounds, to be raised in a lottery :' on condition that they give bonds that the money be actually ap- propriated in such a way as will most effectually promote the ' manufacturing* of cotton piece goods in this commonwealth Where now is the little Beverly cotton mill ? And what has been the mighty development of resources in domestic industry in forty-five years, since the date of that petition, when the wisest men among us had got no farther than to a belief that the said manufac- tory was of great public utility ! Is the-re any vision of the great public utility of railways," said Mr. Hallet, " which can go beyond what now is, and what will be in forty years, that can exceed in contrast what we know once was and now is, in the development of resources by the investment of capital and industry in domestic manufactures? The petitioners for the little Beverly cotton mill were doubtless deemed to be absurdly extravagant, when they hinted that the manu- facture of cottons would one day not only afford a supply for domestic consump- tion, but a staple for exportation. But what do we now see ? Our domestic fabrics find a market in every clime, and vessels, lying at your wharves, are receiving these goods to export to Calcutta. " The world is beginning to understand the true uses of wealth, to develop SAMUEL SLATER. 9 strongest minds, disappointment and repeated loss of property had entirely disheartened these pioneers in the production of home- spun cloth. To the subject of this memoir belongs the honor of having solely, by his own personal knowledge and skill, constructed and put in motion the whole series of Arkwright's patents, and in such perfect operation, as to produce as good yarn and cotton cloth of various descriptions as the English, In the course of Slater's inquiries for the most eligible place as the scene of his first essay in America, he was informed that attempts had lately been made in Providence and its vicinity, under the auspices of Moses Brown,, who was in want of a manager in spinning. He immediately addressed a letter to Mr. Brown, and received in reply a very urgent request to* render his services. In this letter he offered Slateiv if he could work the machinery they had on hand, alt the profits of the business,, and held out the promise of the credit, as well as the advantages of perfecting the first water mill in America. Arrangements were entered into between Almy, Brown, and Slater, to commence cotton spinning at Pawtucket. the resources of the country; and it is in great enterprises, which benefit the public more than those immediately concerned in them, that we have a practical demonstration of the doctrine of the greatest good of the greatest number. Much is said, and more feared, about the divisions of the rich and the poor. But in truth, in our happy institutions, we need have no poor, forming a distinct class among the citizens. Where is your populace, your rabble ? is an inquiry which has often puzzled the foreigner who has passed through our streets where thronged by a multitude. We have no populace no rabble, but free and inde^ pendent citizens. What has made them so ? The development of our resources. What has stopped the tide of emigration that once threatened to depopulate New England ? The development of our resources. Go on developing these resources, and there need, be no fear of setting the poor against the rich, for there will be no poor to set against them. All will be rich, for they wilt kave enough., and no man is in reality any richer for possessing what he cannot use. When men of capital are found hoarding it, holding it back from enterprises, and* cau- tious of doing any thing to develop the resources of a community, there is there just cause to fear the operation of unequal and injurious distinctions. Take from industry and enterprise the means of acquiring wealth, cut off commerce, manufactures, canals, and railways, and you will lay the surest foundation 1 pos- sible for the despotism of one class over another. But open all these great resources to all extend your facilities of intercourse- throughout the country, and you cannot repress the energies of men ; you cannot keep them poor long enough to mark them as a class.. You* gradations in* society will be stepped over, forward and backward, so often, that no distinct line can be kept up.. This is the vast moral power, which is exerted on society by the investment of capital for public benefit, without unjust privileges-; in. great projects: Here are the- true uses of wealth, in, a government like ours, and this great specific lies at the bottom of the philosophy of our political economy. Develop the resources of the country place the means of wealth within the reach- of industry, and you produce the happy medium in society. All will then move forward evenly, as on the level of a railroad, with occasional inclined planes and elevations, but none that can stop the powerful locomotives which, impel forward every New Eiiglander enterprise and moral energy." 7* QO AMERICAN MECHANICS. A few days subsequent to his arrival in Providence, Mr. Brown took him to view the machinery in a mill which he had erected at Pawtucket. On examination, Mr. Slater felt dispirited ; and shaking his head, observed, " these will not do they are good for nothing in their present condition, nor can they be made to answer." After various disappointments, it was proposed that he should erect the series of machines called the Arkwright patents. This he promised to perform, provided he was furnished with a man to work on wood, who should be under bonds not to steal the patterns, or disclose the nature of the works. " Under my pro- posals," says he, " if I do not make as good yarn as they do in England, I will have nothing for my services, but will throw the whole of what I have attempted over the bridge." On the 2.1st of December, 1790, Mr. Slater started three cards, drawing, roving, and seventy-two spindles, which were operated by an old fulling-mill water-wheel in a clothier's shop at the western end of Pawtucket bridge. In this place they continued the spin- ning until the subsequent erection of the "old mill," so called. The difficulties under which these first measures towards the establishment of the business were pursued, can hardly be con- ceived at the present day, even by a practical machinist or manu- facturer. The basin of the Narragansett bay, and the small, but invaluable streams that fall into it on every side, did not,, at that early day, form, as they now do, a continuous hive of mechanical industry, enterprise, and skill, where every sort of material, and even the most minute subdivision of handicraft ingenuity, can be procured at will. There were no magazines or workmen. With the exception of scythes, anchors, horse-shoes, ploughs, nails, cannon, shot, and a few other articles of iron v there was no staple manufacture for exportation. The mechanism then applied in their manufacture was almost as simple as the first impulse of water or steam. Even the side motion of the card machine had not been adopted ; the first hint for its use having been obtained several years after. Although Mr. Slater had full confidence in his own remembrance of every part, and ability to perfect the work, he found it next to an impossibility to get those who could make any thing like his models. But there are few difficulties that can discourage an ingenious, enterprising, and determined mind. The various materials required for the first machines were collected at much expense from different parts of the country,. and young Slater's own skill and perseverance supplied the place of other mechanics. It was now, when he flattered himself with an entire success, that an unforeseen difficulty arose. After the frames were ready SAMUEL SLATER. 91 for operation, he prepared the cotton and started the cards, but it rolled up on the top cards instead of passing through the small cylinder. This was the cause of the greatest perplexity, and days were passed in the utmost anxiety as to the final result. On advising with his assistant and pointing out the defect, he per- ceived that the teeth of the cards were not crooked enough ; as they had no good card leather, the punctures were made by hand, and consequently were too large, so that the teeth fell back from their proper place. Luckily it occurred to them to beat the teeth with a piece of grindstone ; this gave them the proper crook, and, to their joy and relief, the machinery worked perfectly. On Slater's arrival in Pawtucket, he was introduced into' the worthy family of Mr. Oziel Wilkinson as a boarder. These people were Quakers, and became greatly interested in the young stranger ; they have since described his conduct during the diffi- culty just alluded to. When leaning his head over the fire-place, they heard him utter deep sighs, and frequently observed the tears roll from his eyes. He said but little of his fears and apprehen- sions ; but Mrs. Wilkinson, perceiving his distress, with a motherly kindness inquired, " Art thou sick, Samuel ?" He then explained to them the nature of his trial, and showed the point on which he was most tender. " If," said he, " I am frustrated in my carding machine,, they will think me an impostor." He was apprehensive that no suitable cards could be obtained, short of England ; and from thence none were allowed to be exported. While in this family, a tender attachment arose between him. self and one of its female members, Miss Hannah Wilkinson. He was happy in fixing his affections so soon on one who loved him,, and one so worthy ; this was the loadstone that served to bind him to the place, when every thing else appeared dreary and discouraging. Her parents being Friends, could not consistently give consent to her marriage out of the society, and talked of sending her away some distance to school, which occasioned Mr. Slater to say, " You may send her where you please, but I will follow her to the ends of the earth." Though absorbed in per- plexing business, his hours of relaxation were cheering ; he spent them in telling Hannah and her sister the story of his early life, the tales of his home, of his family connections, and of his father land. This introduction was one of the favorable circumstances that finally secured his success. Here was found a father and mother, who were kind to him as to their own son. He was not distrust, ful of his ability to support a family did not wait to grow rich before marriage, but was willing to take his bride for better and 92 AMERICAN MECHANICS. for worse ; and she received the young stranger as the man of her choice, the object of her first love. This connection with Oziel Wilkinson was of great service to him, as a stranger, inex- perienced in the world beyond his peculiar sphere. Besides, it is well known, that sixty years since, the contrast of character of New England men and manners, and other peculiarities, were very great between the two countries. No one knows the heart of a stranger but he who has been from home in a strange land, without an old acquaintance, without a tried friend to whom he could unbosom his anxieties without confidence in those around him, and others without confidence towards him. Mr. Slater's own experience taught him ever to treat the numerous strangers who flocked to him for advice, assistance, or employment, with marked attention, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. Early in 1793, Almy, Brown, and Slater built a small factory in Pawtucket, which is now called the " Old Mill," where they slowly added to their machinery as the sales of yarn increased. The disposal of the yarn in market was at first found as difficult as the first construction of the machinery for its manufacture. Such are the prejudices of mankind, and their unwillingness to break over long-established habits and opinions, that, superior as was this yarn in material, and durability to that imported, people would hardly be convinced, even by actual experiment, that it was possible to make good cotton yarn at home. That made by these pioneers in American manufacture would sometimes be on hand in large quantities, or could be got rid of only as " truck," whilst the English made yarn was eagerly sought for at a much higher price in money. In a note found among Mr. Slater's papers, we are informed that when the first seventy-two spindles and prepara- tion had been at work only twenty months, " they had several thousand pounds of yarn on hand, notwithstanding every exertion was used to weave it up and sell it." The same difficulty was experienced in the sale of yarn at intervals, until the introduction of the power loom. Slow as was the advancement of spinning until twenty years after its first establishment, it never attained the advantage of a quick remunerating staple business until the loom was placed beside the spinning frame, and propelled by the same power. The power loom, twenty or thirty years ago, did for the spinning frame what has since been done for the loom by the printery, it furnished an immediate and ready consumption, and a market ready for its products.* * As an evidence of the vast improvements ih: the manufacture and culture of cotton, it is stated, that at the time of Slater's arrival in this country, good cotton cloth was fifty cents a yard,, and never less thaiiforty* SAMUEL SLATER. 95 It was only in 1799 that the sales of yarn became sufficiently promising to induce another company to set up the second cotton mill establishment in Rhode Island, and Messrs. Almy, Brown, and Slater were encouraged to make very considerable additions to the machinery in the " Old Mill." Their subsequent business, up to the year 1806, turned their attention to a more extended investment in spinning, and from thenceforth it was continually on the increase. Mr. Slater was a philanthropist in its most important sense, and ever manifested an interest in the welfare of those under his charge. No sooner did he find his business collected young people and children who were destitute of the means of instruc- tion, than he commenced establishing a Sunday school in his own house, sometimes instructing his scholars himself, but generally hiring a person to perform that duty. This was the first Sunday school in the United States ; and what appears to us not a little singular, was regarded by some as an unhallowed innovation ; one young man, the son of a clergyman, was at first deterred from becoming a teacher^ because his father considered it a profanation of the Sabbath ! The impulse given to industry and production by the cotton manufacture has not been confined to one branch alone, but has been felt in every kind of employment useful to the community. We need not in this place enlarge upon the close affinity and mutual de- pendence of these various employments ; they are obvious to every mind which has acquired the habit of tracing results to their causes in the endless relations of society. As a general fact, it is un- doubtedly true, that the advancement of our country in the manu- factures of wool and iron,, has been greatly accelerated by the cotton manufacture ; and that those branches of industry have always been deeply affected by the temporary reverses which this branch has experienced. Mr. Slater was for many years, until the time of his death, con- cerned in woollen and iron, as well as cotton manufactories, and his observation and sagacity never suffered him to question the iden- tity of their interests. There was another point in which his views and sentiments, though decried by some as too liberal and disinterested in any matter of business, were truly wise and saga- cious, and fully concurred in by his partners. He always main- tained that legislative protection would be as beneficial to himself as to others ; to those already established in business and possess- ing an ample capital, as those just commencing, with little or no means. This opinion, notwithstanding all the huckstering calculations and short sighted views of would-be monopolists, was certainly the 96 AMERICAN MECHANICS. best for himself. Monopoly in this country, by any men, or set of men, subject to our laws, is unattainable, either by legislation or combination. It is, or ought to be, excluded from all the calcula- tions of a sober and practical business mind. There was, there- fore, nothing in their preoccupation of the cotton business that gave them an advantage over other domestic manufacturers, except their skill and capital. Of these advantages legislation could or would not deprive them ; and with them on their side, they could extend their investments as fast, certainly with as much pro-fit, as those who were without, or with capital only. In petitions and other means adopted by the manufacturing districts of our country, to obtain this protection, Mr. Slater was ever a prominent and efficient person. . Such are the outlines of the business life of a man, whose skill and knowledge of detail was unrivalled, in a business which, up to the time of his appearance, was unknown in this country, whose commercial views were of the most liberal and enlightened char- acter, whose energy, perseverance, and untiring diligence, aided in his early efforts by the money and countenance of those who justly appreciated his merits, and confidently anticipated his emi- nence, have triumphed over obstacles which would have discouraged others ; have given a new direction to the industry of his adopted country, and opened a new and boundless field to its enterprise. It has rarely fallen to the lot of any single individual to be made an instrument, under Providence, of so much and such widely dif- fused benefit to his fellow men, as this man has conferred upon them, without any pretension to high-wrought philanthropy in the ordinary, unostentatious pursuit of that profession to which he had been educated. Yet, unpretending as he was, and noiseless in that sublimated charity which is now so fashionable and predominant, his sympathy for the distressed, and his kindness and good-will for all, were ever warm, active, practical sentiments ; based upon steadfast principles, and aiming at the greatest attainable measure of good. In the relief of immediate and pressing want, he was prompt and liberal ; in the measures which he adopted for its prevention in future, he evinced paternal feeling and judicious forecast. Employment and liberal pay to the able bodied promoted regularity and cheerfulness in the house, and drove the wolf from its door. " Direct charity," he has been heard to say, " places its recipient under a sense of obligation which trenches upon that independent spirit that all should maintain. It breaks his pride, and he soon learns to beg and eat the bread of idleness without a blush. But employ and pay him, and he receives and enjoys with an honest pride, that SAMUEL SLATER. 97 which he knows he has earned, and could have received for the same amount of labor from any other employer." It would be well for all communities if such views on the subject of pauperism, were generally adopted and carried into practice. It is hardly necessary to state of one who has done so much busi- ness, and with so great success, that his business habits and morals were of the highest character. The punctual performance of every engagement, in its true spirit and meaning, was, with him, a point of honor, from which no consideration of temporary or prospective advantage would induce him to depart,- from, which no sacrifice of money or feeling was sufficient to deter him. There was a method and arrangement in his transactions, by which every thing was duly and at the proper time attended to. Nothing was hurried from its proper place, nothing postponed beyond its proper time. It was thus that transactions, the most varied, intri- cate, and extensive, deeply affecting the interests of three adjoining states, and extending their influence to thousands of individuals, proceeded from their first inception to their final consummation, with an order, a regularity and certainty, truly admirable and in- structive. The master's mind was equally present and apparent in every thing, from the imposing mass of the total to the most minute particular of its component parts. Mr. Slater's private and domestic character was without a blem- ish. He was twice married, and had four children, all sons, by his first wife, and at his death left a pious and amiable widow, formerly Mrs. Parkinson, of Philadelphia, with an ample dowry, to receive from his family that protection and affection which her motherly attention to them has so well deserved. He was a sin- cere and practical Christian, and died, April 21st, 1835, in the cheering hopes and consolations which Christianity alone imparts. We conclude this memoir with the following tribute to his mem- ory, which is in substance the remarks of Mr. Tristam Burgess, in his address before the Rhode Island Agricultural Society : " Forty years ago there was not a spindle wrought by water on this side the Atlantic. Since then, how immense the capital by which spin- ning and weaving machinery are moved ! How many, how great, how various, the improvements ! The farmers of Flanders erected a statue in honor of him who introduced into their country the culture of the potato. What shall the people of New England do for him who first brought us the knowledge of manufacturing cloth, by machinery moved by water ? In England, he would in life be ornamented with a peerage, in death, lamented by a monu- ment in Westminster Abbey. The name of Slater will be remem- bered as one of our greatest public benefactors. Let not the rich, 98 AMERICAN MECHANICS. in his adopted country, envy the products of his labor his exten- sive opulence his fair and elevated character. Let the poor rise up and call him blessed ; for he has introduced a species of industry into our country, which furnishes them with labor, food, clothing, and habitation." ELI WHITNEY. ELI WHITNEY, INVENTOR OF THE COTTON GIN. Birth. Anecdotes of his youth. Manufactures nails. Teaches school. By his own exertions prepares for college. Anecdotes of his college life. Graduates. Goes to Georgia as a Teacher. Disappointment. Becomes an inmate in the family of Gen. Greene. Ingenuity. Low state of the cotton culture. An in- troduction. Old method of separating the cotton from the seed. Invents the cotton gin. Forms a co-partnership with Mr. Phineas Miller to manufacture gins. Note, Description. The first machine stolen. Commencement of en- croachments. Disastrous fire. A trial. Its unfortunate issue. Gloomy pros- pects. South Carolina purchases the patent right for that state. Enters into a similar engagement with North Carolina and Tennessee. South Carolina and Tennessee annul their contracts. Increasing encroachments. South Carolina Legislature, of 1804, rescind the act of annulment. Death of Mr. Miller. Celebrated decision of Judge Johnson. Lawsuits. Commences manufacturing arms for government. Difficulties to be surmounted. De- scription of the system. Rejection of the memorial to congress for a renewal of the patent right on the cotton gin. Marriage. Death. A comparison. Character. To the efforts of Whitney, our country is indebted for the value of her great staple. While the invention of the cotton gin has been the chief source of the prosperity of the southern planter, the northern manufacturer comes in for a large share of the benefit derived from the most important offspring of American ingenuity. Eli Whitney* was born in Westborough, Worcester county, Massachusetts, December 8th, 1765. His parents belonged to that respectable class in society, who, by the labors of husbandry, manage, by uniform industry, to provide well for a rising family, a class from whom have arisen most of those who, in New Eng- land, have attained to high eminence and usefulness. The following incident, though trivial in itself, will serve to show at how early a period certain qualities, of strong feeling tempered by that discretion for which Mr. Whitney afterwards became dis- tinguished, began to display themselves. When he was six or seven years old, he had overheard the kitchen maid, in a fit of passion, calling his mother, who was in a delicate state of health, hard names, at which he expressed great displeasure to his sister. " She * Condensed from the able memoir by Professor Olmsted, published in the twenty-first volume of Silliman's Journal. 8 102 AMERICAN MECHANICS. thought," said he, " that I was not big enough to know any thing ; but I can tell her, I am too big to hear her talk so about my mother. I think she ought to have a flogging, and if I knew how to bring it about, she should have one." His sister advised him to tell their father. " No," he replied, " that will not do ; it will hurt his feelings and mother's too ; and besides, its likely the girl will say she never said so, and that would make a quarrel. It is best to say nothing about it." Indications of his mechanical genius were likewise developed at a very early age. Of his early passion for such employments, his sister gives the following account. " Our father had a workshop, and sometimes made wheels, of different kinds, and chairs. He had a variety of tools, and a lathe for turning chair posts. This gave my brother an opportunity of learning the use of tools when very young. He lost no time, but as soon as he could handle tools he was always making something in the shop, and seemed not to like working on the farm. On a time, after the death f p our mother, when our father had been absent from home two or three days, on his return, he inquired of the housekeeper, what the boys had been doing. She told him what B. and J. had been about. *But what has EH been doing?' said he. She replied, he had been making a fiddle. * Ah ! (added he despondingly) / fear Eli will have to lake his portion in fiddles. 1 He was at this time about twelve years old. His sister adds, that this fiddle was finished throughout, like a common violin, and made tolerable good music. It was examined by many persons, and all pronounced it to be a remarkable piece of work for such a boy to perform. From this time he was employed to repair violins, and had many nice jobs, which were always executed to the entire satisfaction, and often to the astonishment of his customers. His father's watch be- ing the greatest piece of mechanism that had yet presented itself to his observation, he was extremely desirous of examining its interior construction, but was not permitted to do so. One Sunday morn- ing, observing that his father was going to meeting, and would leave at home the wonderful little machine, he immediately feigned illness as an apology for not going to church. As soon as the family were out of sight, he flew to the room where the watch hung, and taking it down, he was so delighted with its motions, that he took it to pieces before he thought of the consequences of his rash deed ; for his father was a stern parent, and punishment would have been the reward of his idle curiosity, had the mischief been detected. He, however, put the work all so neatly together, that his father never discovered his audacity until he himself told him, many years afterwards." ELI WHITNEY. 105 Whitney lost his mother at an early age, and when he was thir- teen years old, his father married a second time. His step-mo- ther, among her articles of furniture, had a htindsome set of table knives, that she valued very highly ; which our young mechanic observing, said to her, " I could make as good ones if I had tools, and I could make the necessary tools if I had a few common tools to make them with." His step-mother thought he was deriding her, and was much displeased ; but it so hap- pened, not long afterwards, that one of the knives got broken, and he made one exactly like it in every respect, except the stamp on the blade. This he would likewise have executed, had not the tools required been too expensive for his slender resources. When Whitney was fifteen or sixteen years of age, he suggested to his father an enterprise, which was an earnest of the similar undertakings in which he engaged on a far greater scale in later life. This being the time of the revolutionary war, nails were in great demand, and bore a high price. At that period, nails were made chiefly by hand, with little aid from machinery. Young Whitney proposed to his father to procure him a few tools, and to permit him to set up the manufacture. His father consented, and he went steadily to work, and suffered nothing to divert him from his task until his day's work was completed. By extraordinary diligence, he gained time to make tools for his own use, and to put in knife blades, and to perform many other curious little jobs, which exceeded the skill of the country artisans. At this labori- ous occupation the enterprising boy wrought alone, with great suc- cess, and with much profit to his father, for two winters, pursuing the ordinary labors of the farm during the summers. At this time he devised a plan for enlarging his business and increasing his profits. He whispered his scheme to his sister, with strong in- junctions of secrecy ; and requesting leave of his father to go to a neighboring town, without specifying his object, he set out on horse- back in quest of a fellow laborer. Not finding one so easily as he had anticipated, he proceeded from town to town, with a persever- ance which was always a strong trait of his character, until at the distance of forty miles from home, he found such a workman as he desired. He also made his journey subservient to his improvement in mechanical skill, for he called at every workshop on his way, and gleaned all the information he could respecting the mechanic arts. At the close of the war, the business of making nails was no longer profitable ; but a fashion prevailing among the ladies of fastening on their bonnets with long pins, he contrived to make those with such skill and dexterity, that he nearly monopolized the 106 AMERICAN MECHANICS. business, although he devoted to it only such seasons of leisure as he could redeem from the occupations of the farm, to which he now principally befook himself. He added to this article the manufacture of walking canes, which he made with peculiar neat- ness. We are informed that he manifested an aptness for mathemati- cal calculations, and that when quite young was considered not only remarkable for his ingenuity, but for general information. From the age of nineteen, young Whitney conceived the idea of obtaining a liberal education ; and partly by the avails of his mechanical industry, and partly by teaching a village school, was enabled so far to surmount the difficulties thrown in his way, as to prepare himself for the freshman class in Yale college, which he entered in 1789. While a schoolmaster, the mechanic would often usurp the place of the teacher ; and the mind, too aspiring for such a sphere, was wandering off in pursuit of "perpetiuji mo- tion." At college his mechanical propensity frequently showed itself. He successfully undertook on one occasion the repairing of some of the philosophical apparatus. On another, a carpenter being at work at the house where Whitney boarded, he solicited the permission to use his tools. The carpenter being unwilling to trust him, only granted the request on the gentleman of the house promising to be responsible for the damages ; but no sooner had Whitney commenced operations, than the man, astonished, exclaim. ed, " There was one good mechanic spoiled when you went to college." Soon after taking his degree in the autumn of 1792, Mr. Whitney engaged with a Mr. B., of Georgia, to reside in his family as a private teacher. On his arrival he was informed that Mr. B. had employed another person, leaving him without resources or friends, save in the family of Gen. Greene, of Mulberry Grove, near Savannah, with whom he had formed an accidental acquaintance. These benevolent people, however, deeply interested themselves in his case, and hospitably offered him the privilege of making his home at their house, where he commenced the study of law. While residing there, Mrs. Greene was employed in embroidery, which is worked on a kind of frame, called a tambour. She com- plained of its bad construction, and observed it tore the delicate threads of her work. Mr. Whitney, eager for an opportunity to oblige his hostess, set himself to work and speedily produced a tambour frame on a plan entirely new, with which he presented her. Mrs. Greene and her family were much delighted with it, and considered it a wonderful piece of ingenuity. Not long after the family were visited by a party of gentlemen, consisting principally of officers who had served under the general, ELI WHITNEY. 107 in the revolutionary army. The conversation turning upon the state of agriculture, it was regretted that there was no means of cleaning the seed from the green seed cotton, which might other, wise be profitably raised on lands unsuitable for rice. But, until ingenuity could devise some machine which would grealy facilitate the process of cleaning, it was vain to think of raising cotton for market. Separating one pound of the clean staple from the seed was a day's work for a woman ; but the time usually devoted to the picking of the cotton was the evening, after the labor of the field was over. Then the slaves, men, women, and children, were col- lected in circles with one, whose duty it was to rouse the dozing and quicken the indolent. While the company were engaged in this conversation, '* Gentlemen," said Mrs. Greene, * apply to my young friend, Mr. Whitney, he can make any thing," at the same time showing them the tambour frame and several other articles which he had made. She introduced the gentlemen to Whitney himself, extolling his genius, and commending him to their notice and friendship. He modestly disclaimed all pretensions to me- chanical genius, and on their naming the object, replied that he had never seen cotton seed in his life. Mrs. G. said to one of the gentlemen, " I have accomplished my aim, Mr. Whitney is a very deserving young man, and to bring him into notice was my object. The interest which our friends now feel for him, will* I hope, lead to his getting some employment to enable him to prosecute the study of the law." But no one foresaw the change that this interview was to make in the plan of his life. He immediately began upon the task of in. venting and constructing that machine, on which his future fame depended. Mr. Miller, to whom he communicated his design, warmly encouraged him in it, and gave him a room in his house, wherein to carry on his operations. Here he set himself to work, with the disadvantage of being obliged to manufacture his tools and draw his own wire, an article then not to be found in Savannah. Mr. Phineas Miller and Mrs. Greene were the only persons who knew any thing of his occupation. The many hours he spent in his mysterious pursuits, afforded matter of great curiosity, and often of raillery, to the younger members of the family. Near the close of the winter, the machine was so nearly completed as to leave no doubt of his success. The individual who contributed most to incite him to persevere in the undertaking, was Mr. Miller, who was a native of Connecti- cut, and a graduate of Yale college. Like Mr. Whitney, soon after he had completed his education, he came to Georgia as a private teacher, in the family of Gen. Greene, and after the decease 8* 108 AMERICAN MECHANICS. of the general, he became the husband of Mrs. Greene. He had qualified himself for the profession of law, and was a gentleman of cultivated mind and superior talents ; but he was of an ardent tem- perament, and therefore well fitted to enter with zeal into the views which the genius of his friend had laid open to him. He had also considerable funds at command, and proposed to Mr. Whitney to become the joint adventurer, and to be at the whole expense of ma. taring the invention* until it should be patented. If the machine ft ff f f f f f ffff y ^# PLAN OF THE SAW AND BRUSH CYLINDERS. * Description of Whitney's Cotton Gin. The principal parts are two cylinders of different diameters, (see F H, section and plan,) mounted in a strong wooden frame, A, which are turned by means either of a handle or a pulley and belt, act- ing upon the axis of a fly wheel, attached to the end of the shaft, opposite to that seen in the section. Its endless band turns a large pulley on the end D of the saw cylinder F, and a smaller pulley on the end E of the brush cylinder H, (see plan,) so as to make the latter revolve with the greater rapidity. Upon the wooden cylin- der F, ten inches in diameter, are mounted, three quarters of an inch apart, fifty, sixty, or even eighty, circular saws, edged as at I, (see section,) of one foot diameter, which fit very exactly into grooves cut one inch deep into the cylin- der. Each saw consists of two segments of a circle, and is preferably made of hammered (not rolled) sheet iron ; the teeth must be kept very sharp. Opposite to the interstices of the saws are flat bars of iron, which form a parallel grid of such a curvature, that the shoulder of the slanting saw tooth passes first, and then the point. By this means, when a tooth gets bent by the seeds, it resets itself by rubbing against the grid bars, instead of be- ing torn off, as would happen did the apex of the saw tooth enter first. Care must be taken that the saws revolve in the middle of their respective grid inter- vals, for if they rubbed against the bars they would tear the cotton filaments to pieces. The hollow cylinder H, is mounted with the brushes c c c, the tips of whose bristles ought to touch the saw teeth, as at d, d, (see plan,) and thus sweep off the adhering cotton wool. The cylinder H revolves in an opposite direction to the cylinder F, as is indicated by the arrows in the section. The seed cotton, as picked from the pods, is thrown into the hopper L, (see COTTON GIN, ELI WHITNEY. HI should succeed in its intended operation, the parties agreed, under legal formalities, " that the profits and advantages arising there- from, as well as all privileges and emoluments to be derived from patenting, making, vending, and working the same, should be mu- tually and equally shared between them." This instrument bears date May 27, 1793, and immediately afterwards they commenced business under the firm of Miller and Whitney. An invention so important to the agricultural interests (and, as it has proved, to every department of human industry,) could not long remain a secret. The knowledge of it soon spread through the state, and so great was the excitement on the subject, that mul- titudes of persons came from all quarters of the state to see the machine ; but it was not deemed safe to gratify their curiosity until the patent right should be secured. But so determined were some of the populace to possess this treasure, that neither law nor justice could restrain them ; they broke open the building by night, and carried off the machine. In this way the public became possessed of the invention ; and before Mr. Whitney could complete his mo- del and secure his patent, a number of machines were in successful operation, constructed with some slight deviation from the original, with the hope of evading the penalty for violating the patent right. As soon as the copartnership of Miller and Whitney was formed, Mr. Whitney repaired to Connecticut, where, as far as possible, he was to perfect the machine, obtain a patent, and manufacture and ship for Georgia, such a number of machines as would supply the demand. section ;) the disc saws, I, in turning round, encounter the cotton filaments rest- ing against the grid, catch them with their sharp teeth, and drag them inwards and upwards, while the striped seeds, too large to pass between the bars, fall through the bottom N of the hopper, upon the inclined board M. The size of the aperture N, is regulated at pleasure by an adjusting screw to suit the size of the particular species of seeds. The saw teeth, filled with cotton wool, after return- ing through the grid, meet the brushes c c c of the cylinder H, and deliver it up to them ; the cotton is thereafter whisked down upon the sloping table O, and thence falls into the receptacle P. A cover Q (see section) encloses both the cylinders and the hopper ; this cover is turned up around the hinges as shown in the section, in order to introduce the charge of seed cotton into the machine, and is then let down before setting the wheels in gear with the driving power. The axis e e,ff, of the cylinders (see plan) should be well fitted into their plumrner box bearings, so as to prevent any lateral swagging, which would greatly injure their operation. The raised position of the cover is obvious in the section, the hinge being placed at B. By means of the cotton gin, one man with the aid of a water wheel possessing a two horse power, can cleanse thousand pounds of seed cotton in a day, eighty saws being mounted upon his machine. The clean- ed wool forms generally one fourth of the weight of the seed cotton, and some- times so much as twenty-seven per cent. The ginners are usually a distinct body from the planters, and they receive for their work one-eighth, or one-tenth of the nett weight of the cleaned cotton, under an obligation to supply all the seed required by the planter. 112 AMERICAN MECHANICS, Within three days after the conclusion of the copartnership, Mr. Whitney having set out for the north, Mr. Miller commenced his long correspondence relative to the cotton gin, The first letter announces that encroachments upon their rights had already com- menccd. " It will be necessary," says Mr. Miller, " to have a consi- derable number of gins made, to be in readiness to send out as soon as the patent is obtained, in order to satisfy the absolute demands, and make people's heads easy on the subject ; for I am informed of two other claimants for the honor of the invention of cotton gins, in addi- tion to those ive knew before." At the close of this year (1793) Mr. Whitney was to return to Georgia with his cotton gins, where his partner had made arrange, ments for commencing business immediately after his arrival. The importunity of Mr. Miller's letters, written during the preceding period, urging him to come on, evinces how eager the Georgia planters were to enter the new field of enterprise which the genius of Whitney had laid open to them. Nor did they at first in general contemplate availing themselves of the invention unlawfully. But the minds of the more honorable class of planters were afterwards, deluded by various artifices, set on foot by designing men, with the view of robbing Mr. Whitney of his just rights. One of the greatest difficulties experienced by men of enterprise, at this period, was the extreme scarcity of money, which embar- rassed them to such a degree as to render it almost impossible tq construct machines fast enough. In April he returned to Georgia ; during his absence he was strongly importuned to return by his partner, on account of the infatuated eagerness of the Georgia planters to obtain the advan- tages of his machine. Large crops of cotton were planted, the profits of which were to depend, of course, entirely on the sue, cess and employment of the gin. The roller gin was at first the most formidable competitor with Whitney's machine. It extricated the seed by means of rollers, crushing them between revolving cylinders, instead of disengaging them by means of teeth. The fragments of seeds which remained in the cotton rendered its execution much inferior in this respect to Whitney's gin, and it was also much slower in its operation. Great efforts were made, however, to create an impression in favor of its superiority in other respects. But a still more formidable rival appeared early in the year 1795, under the name of the saw gin. It was Whitney's gin, except that the teeth were cut in circular rims of iron, instead of being made of wires, as was the case in the earlier forms of the patent gin. The idea of such teeth had early occurred to Mr. Whitney, ELI WHITNEY. 113 as he afterwards established by legal proof. But they would have been of no use except in connection with the other parts of his machine ; and, therefore, this was a palpable attempt to invade the patent right, and it was principally in reference to this that the lawsuits were afterwards held. In March, 1795, in the midst of perplexities and discourage- ments, Mr. Whitney went to New York on business, where he was detained three weeks by fever. As soon as he was able, he went by packet to New Haven, where, on landing, he was in- formed, that on the preceding d&y^his shop, with all his machines and papers, had been consumed by Jire ! Thus was he suddenly reduced to bankruptcy, being in debt four thousand dollars, with- out any means of payment. His mind, however, was not one to sink under such trials as even this ; he was, on the contrary, in- cited to more vigorous effort. Similar was the spirit manifested by Mr. Miller. The following extract of a letter of his to Mr. Whitney may be a useful lesson to young men who feel themselves overwhelmed with misfortunes : " I think that we ought to meet such events with equanimity. We have been pursuing a valuable object by honorable means ; and I trust that all our measures have been such as reason and virtue must justify. It has pleased Providence to postpone the attainment of this object. In the midst of the reflections which your story has suggested, and with feelings keenly awake to the heavy, the extensive injury we have sustained, I feel a secret joy and satisfaction, that you possess a mind in this respect similar to my own that you are not disheartened that you do not relin- quish the pursuit and that you will persevere, and endeavor, at all events, to attain the main object. This is exactly consonant to my own determinations. I will devote all my time, all my thoughts, all my exertions, and all the money I can earn or bor- row, to encompass and complete the business we have undertaken ; and if fortune should, by any future disaster, deny us the boon we ask, we will at least deserve it. It shall never be said that we have lost an object which a little perseverance could have attained. I think, indeed, it will be very extraordinary, if two younj* men in the prime of life, with some share of ingenuity, with a little know- ledge of the world, a great deal of industry, and a considerable command of property, should not be able to sustain such a stroke of misfortune as this, heavy as it is." After this disaster the company began to feel much straitened for want of funds. Mr. Miller expresses a confidence that they should be able to raise money in some way or other, though he knows not how. He recommends to Mr. Whitney to proceed 114 AMERICAN MECHANICS. forthwith to erect a new shop, and to recommence his business, and requests him to tell the people of New Haven, who might be disposed to render them any service, that they required nothing but a little time to get their machinery in motion before they could make payment, and that the loan of money at twelve per cent, per annum would be as great a favor as they could ask. But, he adds, " in doing this, use great care to avoid giving an idea that we are in a desperate situation, to induce us to borrow money. To people who are deficient in understanding, this precaution will be extremely necessary : men of sense can easily distinguish be- tween the prospect of large gains, and the approaches to bank- ruptcy." " Such is tho disposition of man," he observes on an- other occasion, " that while we keep afloat, there will not be want- ing those who will appear willing to assist us ; but let us once be given over, and they will immediately desert us." While misfortune was thus multiplying upon them, intelligence was received from England that the manufacturers had con- demned the cotton cleaned by their machines, on the ground that the staple was greatly injured. This news threatened the death-blow to their hopes. At this time (1796) they had thirty gins at eight different places in Georgia, some carried by horses and oxen, and some by water. Some of these were even then standing still. The company had $10,000 dollars in real estate, suited only to the purposes of ginning cotton. The following ex- tract of a letter, written by Mr. Whitney at this period, will serve to show the state of his mind and affairs at this period : " The extreme embarrassments," says he, " which have been for a long time accumulating upon me, are now become so great, that it will be impossible for me to struggle against them many days longer. It has required my utmost exertions to exist, without making the least progress in our business. I have labored hard against the strong current of disappointment, which has been threatening to carry us down the cataract, but I have labored with a shattered oar, and struggled in vain, unless some speedy relief is obtained Life is but short at best, and six or seven years out of the midst of it is, to him who makes it, an immense sacrifice. My most unremitted attention has been devoted to our business ; I have sacrificed to it other objects from which, before this time, I might certainly have gained twenty or thirty thousand dollars. My whole prospects have been embarked in it, with the expectation that J should, before this time, have realized something from it." The cotton from Whitney's gins was, however, sought by mer- chants in preference to other kinds, and respectable manufacturers ELI WHITNEY. 115 testified in its favor ; and had it not been for the extensive and shameful violations of their patent right, they might yet have sue- ceeded, but these encroachments had become so extensive as al- most to annihilate its value. The issue of the first trial they were able to obtain, is announced in the following letter from Mr. Miller, dated May 11, 1797: " The event of the first patent suit, after all our exertions made in such a variety of ways, has gone against us. The preposterous custom of trying civil causes of this intricacy and magnitude by a common jury, together with the imperfection of the patent law, frustrated all our views, and disappointed expectations which had become very sanguine. The tide of popular opinion was running in our favor, the judge was well disposed towards us, and many decided friends were with us, who adhered firmly to our cause and interests. The judge gave a charge to the jury pointedly in our favor ; after which the defendant himself told an acquaintance of his, that he would give two thousand dollars to be free from the verdict ; and yet the jury gave it against us, after a consultation of about an hour. And having made the verdict general, no ap- peal would lie. " On Monday morning, when the verdict was rendered, we ap- plied for a new trial ; but the judge refused it to us, on the ground that the jury might have made up their opinion on the defect of the law, which makes an aggression consist of making, devising, and 'using, or selling ; whereas we could only charge the defendant with using. " Thus, after four years of assiduous labor, fatigue, and diffi- culty, are we again set afloat by a new and most unexpected ob- stacle. Our hopes of success are now removed to a period still more distant than before, while our expenses are realized beyond all controversy." Great efforts were made to obtain trial in a second suit, at the session of the court in Savannah, in May, 1798. A great number of witnesses were collected from various parts of the country, to the distance of a hundred miles from Savannah, when, behold, no judge appeared, and, of course, no court was held. In conse- quence of the failure of the first suit, and so great a procrastina- tion of the second, the encroachments on the patent right had been prodigiously multiplied, so as almost entirely to destroy the busi- ness of the patentees. In April, 1799, Mr. Miller writes as follows : " The prospect of making any thing by ginning in this state is at an end. Sur- reptitious gins are erected in every part of the country ; and the jurymen at Augusta have come to an understanding among them- 116 AMERICAN MECHANICS. selves, that they will never give a cause in our favor, let the merits of the case be as they may." The company would now have gladly relinquished the plan of working their own machines, and confined their operations to the sale of patent rights ; but few would buy a patent right which they could use with impunity without purchasing, and those few, hardly in a single instance, paid cash, but gave their notes, which they afterwards to a great extent avoided paying, either by obtaining a verdict from the juries declaring them void, or by contriving to postpone the collection until they were barred by the statute of limitations, a period of only four years. When thus barred, the agent of Miller and Whitney, who was despatched on a collecting tour through the state of Georgia, informed them, that such ob- stacles were thrown in his way from one or the other of the fore- going causes, he was unable to collect money enough from all these claims to bear his expenses, but was compelled to draw for nearly the whole amount of these upon his employers. It was suggested that an application to the legislature of South Carolina to purchase the patent right for that state would be suc- cessful. Mr. Whitney accordingly repaired to Columbia, and the business was brought before the legislature soon after the opening of the session in December, 1801. An extract from a letter of Mr. Whitney to his friend Stebbins, at this time, will show the nature of the contract thus made : " I have been at this place a little more than two weeks, attend- ing the legislature. They closed their session at ten o'clock last evening. A few hours previous to their adjournment, they voted to purchase, for the state of South Carolina, my patent right to the machine for cleaning cotton, at fifty thousand dollars, of which sum twenty thousand is to be paid in hand, and the remainder in three annual payments of ten thousand dollars each." He adds, " We get but a song for it in comparison with the worth of the thing ; but it is securing something. It will enable Miller and Whitney to pay all their debts, and divide something between them." In December, 1802, Mr. Whitney negotiated a sale of his patent right with the state of North Carolina. The legislature laid a tax of two shillings and sixpence upon every saw* employed in ginning cotton, to be continued for five years ; and after deducting the ex- penses of collection, the avails were faithfully passed over to the patentee. This compensation was regarded by Mr. Whitney as more liberal than that received from any other source. About the same time, Mr. Goodrich, an agent of the company, entered * Some of the gins had forty saws. ELI WHITNEY. 117 into a similar negotiation with the state of Tennessee. This state had by this time begun to realize the importance and usefulness of the invention. The citizens testified strongly their desire of coming into possession of its benefits. The legislature, therefore, passed a law, laying a tax of thirty-seven and a half cents per annum on every saw, for the space of four years. Thus far prospects were growing favorable to the patentees, when the legislature of South Carolina unexpectedly annulled the contract she had made, suspended further payment of the balance then due, and sued for the refunding of what had already been paid. When Mr. Whitney first heard of the transactions of the South Carolina legislature annulling their contract, he was at Raleigh, where he had just concluded his negotiation with the legislature of North Carolina. In a letter written to Mr. Miller at this time he remarks : " I am, for my own part, more vexed than alarmec 7 by their extraordinary proceedings. I think it behooves us to b very cautious and circumspect in our measures, and even in ou. remarks with regard to it. Be cautious what you say or publish till we meet our enemies in a court of justice, when, if they have any sensibility left, we will make them very much ashamed of their childish conduct." But that Mr. Whitney felt very keenly in regard to the severities afterwards practised towards him, is evident from the tenor of the remonstrance which he presented to the legislature. " The sub- scriber (says he) respectfully solicits permission to represent to the legislature of South Carolina, that he conceives himself to have been treated with unreasonable severity in the measures recently taken against him by and under their immediate direction. He holds that, to be seized and dragged to prison without being al- lowed to be heard in answer to the charge alleged against him, and indeed without the exhibition of any specific charge, is a direct violation of the common right of every citizen of a free govern, ment ; that the power, in this case, is all on one side ; that what, ever may be the issue of the process now instituted against him, he must, in any case, be subjected to great expense and extreme hardships ; and that he considers the tribunal before which he is holden to appear, to be wholly incompetent to decide, definitively, existing disputes between the state and Miller and Whitney. " The subscriber avers that he has manifested no other than a disposition to fulfil all the stipulations, entered into with the state of South Carolina, with punctuality and good faith ; and he begs leave to observe farther, that to have industriously, laboriously, and exclusively, devoted many years of the prime of his life to the invention and the improvement of a machine, from which the 9 118 AMERICAN MECHANICS. citizens of South Carolina have already realized immense profits, which is worth to them millions, and from which their posterity, to the latest generations, must continue to derive the most im- portant benefits, and in return to be treated as a felon, a swindler, and a villain, has stung him to the very soul. And when he con- siders that this cruel persecution is inflicted by the very persons who are enjoying these great benefits, and expressly for the pur- pose of preventing his ever deriving the least advantage from his own labors, the acuteness of his feelings is altogether inexpressible." Doubts, it seems,- had arisen in the public mind as to the validity of the patent, and the patentees were supposed to have failed in the fulfilment of a part of the contract. Great exertions had been made in Georgia, where, it will be remembered, hostilities were first declared against him, to show that his title to the invention was unsound, and that somebody in Switzerland had conceived of it before him, and that the improved form of the machine, with saws instead of wire teeth, did not come within the patent, having been introduced by one Hodgin Holmes. The popular voice, stimulated by the most sordid motives, was now raised against him throughout all the cotton growing states. The state of Tennessee followed the example of South Carolina, in annulling the contract made with him; and the attempt was made in North Carolina, but a committee of the legislature, to whom it was referred, reported in his favor, declaring " that the contract ought to be fulfilled with punctuality and good faith," which resolution was adopted' by both houses. There were also high-minded men in South Carolina who were indignant at the dishonorable measures adopted by their legislature of 1803 ; and their sentiments had impressed the community so favorably with regard to Mr. Whitney, that at the session of 1804, the legislature not only rescinded what the previous one had done, but signified their respect for Mr. Whitney by marked commendations. Nor ought it to be forgotten that there were in Georgia, too, those who viewed with scorn and indignation the base attempts of dema- gogues to defraud him. The proceedings against Mr. Whitney were predicated upon impositions practised upon the public. At this time, a new and unexpected responsibility devolved on Mr. Whitney, in consequence of the death of his partner, Mr. Miller, who died on the 7th of December, 1803. Mr. Miller had, in the early stages of the enterprise, indulged very high hopes of a sudden fortune ; but perpetual disappointments appear to have attended him throughout the remainder of his life. The history of them, as detailed in his voluminous correspondence, affords an instructive exemplification of the anxiety, toil, and uncertainty, ELI WHITNEY. U9 that frequently accompany too eager a pursuit of wealth, and the pain and disappointments that follow in the train of expectations too highly elated. If Mr. Miller anticipated a great bargain from an approaching auction of cotton, some sly adventurer was sure to step in before him, and bid it out of his hands. If he looked to his extensive rice crops, cultivated on the estate of General Greene, as the means of raising money to extricate himself from the numerous embarrassments into which he had fallen, a severe drought came on and shrivelled the crop, or floods of rain sud- denly destroyed it. The markets unexpectedly changed at the very moment of selling, and always to his disadvantage. Heavy rains likewise destroyed the cotton crops on which he had counted for thousands ; and more than all, wicked and dishonest men con- trived to cheat him of his just rights, and thus his airy hopes were often frustrated, until at length he was beguiled into inextricable difficulties ; and in the midst of all, and on the dawn of a brighter day, death stepped in and dissolved the pageant that had so long been dancing before his eyes. Mr. Whitney was now left alone, to contend singly against those difficulties which had for a series of years almost broken down the spirits of both the partners. The light, moreover, which seemed to be rising upon them from the favorable occurrences of the pre- ceding year, proved but the twilight of prosperity, and a darker night seemed about to supervene. But the favorable issue of the affairs of Mr. Whitney, in South Carolina, during the subsequent year, and the generous receipts that he obtained from the avails of his contracts with North Caro- lina, relieved him from the embarrassments under which he had so long groaned, and made him in some degree independent. Still, no small portion of the funds thus collected in North and South Carolina was expended in carrying on the fruitless, endless lawsuits in Georgia. In the United States court, held in Georgia in December, 1807 Mr. Whitney obtained a most important decision, in a. suit brought against a trespasser of the name of Fort. It was on this trial that Judge Johnson gave his celebrated decision. It was in the follow- ing words : " Whitney, survivor of "J Miller $ Whitney, In e ity . VS. Arthur Fort. ) " The complainants, in this case, are proprietors of the machine called the saw gin : the use of which is to detach the short staple cotton from its seed. 120 AMERICAN MECHANICS. " The defendant, in violation of their patent right, has con- structed, and continues to use this machine ; and the object of this suit is to obtain a perpetual injunction to prevent a continuance of this infraction of complainant's right. " Defendant admits most of the facts in the bill set forth, but contends that the complainants are not entitled to the benefits of the act of congress on this subject, because 1st. The invention is not original. 2d. Is not useful. 3d. That the machine which he uses is materially different from their invention, in the application of an improvement, the invention of another person. " The court will proceed to make a few remarks upon the several points as they have been presented to their view : whether the defendant was now at liberty to set up this defence whilst the patent right of complainants remains unrepealed, has not been made a question, and they will therefore not consider it. " To support the originality of the invention, the complainants have produced a variety of depositions of witnesses, examined un- der commission, whose examination expressly proves the origin, progress, and completion of the machine by Whitney, one of the copartners. Persons who were made privy to his first discovery, testify to the several experiments which he made in their presence before he ventured to expose his invention to the scrutiny of the public eye. But it is not necessary to resort to such testimony to maintain this point. The jealousy of the artist to maintain that reputation which his ingenuity has justly acquired, has urged him to unnecessary pains on this subject. There are circumstances; in the knowledge of all mankind which prove the originality of this invention more satisfactorily to the mind than the direct testk mony of a host of witnesses. The cotton plant furnished clothing to mankind before the age of Herodotus. The green seed is a species much more productive than the black^ and by nature adapted to a much greater variety of climate ; but by reason of the strong adherence of the fibre to the seed, without the aid of some more powerful machine for separating it than any formerly known among us, the cultivation o/ it w&idd never have been made an object. The machine of which Mr. Whitney claims the inven- tion so facilitates the preparation of this species for use, that the cultivation of it has suddenly become an object of infinitely greater; national importance than that of the other species ever can be. Is it, then, to be imagined, that if this machine had been before dis- covered, the use of it would ever have been lost, or could have been confined to any tract or country left unexplored by commer-* ELI WHITNEY. 121 cial enterprise ? But it is unnecessary to remark further upon this subject. A number of years have elapsed since Mr. Whitney took out his patent, and no one has produced or pretended to prove the existence of a machine of similar construction or use. " 2d. With regard to the utility of this discovery, the court would deem it a waste of time to dwell long upon this topic. Is there a man who hears us who has not experienced its utility 1 the whole interior of the southern states was languishing, and its inhabitants emigrating for want of some object to engage their attention and employ their industry, when the invention of this machine at once opened views to them which set the whole coun- try in active motion. From childhood to age it has presented to us a lucrative employment. Individuals who were depressed with poverty and sunk in idleness, have suddenly risen to wealth and respectability. Our debts have been paid off; our capitals have increased, and our lands treUed themselves in value. We cannot express the weight of the obligation which the country owes to this invention. The extent of it cannot now be seen. Some faint pre- sentiment may be formed from the reflection that cotton is rapidly supplanting wool, flax, silk, and even furs in manufactures, and may one day profitably supply the use of specie in our East India trade. Our sister states, also, participate in the benefits of this invention ; for, besides % affording the raw material for their manu- facturers, the bulkiness and quantity of the article afford a valuable employment for their shipping. " 3d. The third and last ground taken by defendant appears to be that on which he mostly relies. In the specification, the teeth made use of are of strong wire inserted into the cylinder. A Mr. Holmes has cut teeth in plates of iron, and passed them over the cylinder. This is certainly a meritorious improvement in the mechanical process of constructing this machine. But at last what does it amount to, except a more convenient mode of making the same thing ; every characteristic of Mr. Whitney's machine is preserved. The cylinder, the iron tooth, the rotary motion of the tooth, the breast work and brush, and all the merit that this discovery can assume, is that of a more expeditious mode of at- taching the tooth to the cylinder. After being attached, in opera- tion and effect they are entirely the same. Mr. Whitney may not be at liberty to use Mr. Holmes's iron plate ; but certainly Mr. Holmes's improvement does not destroy Mr. Whitney's patent right. Let the decree for a perpetual injunction be entered." This favorable decision, however, did not put a final stop to aggression. At the next session of the United States court, two other actions were brought, and verdicts for damages gained of 9* 122 AMERICAN MECHANICS. two thousand dollars in one case, and one thousand and five hun . dred dollars in the other. The influence of these decisions, however, availed Mr. Whitney very little, for now the term of his patent right was searly expired. More than sixty, suits had been instituted in Georgia before a single decision on the merits of his claim was obtained, and at the period of this decision thirty years of his patent had expired. In prose- cution of this troublesome business, Mr. Whitney had made six different journeys to Georgia, several of which were accomplished by land at a time when, compared with the present, the difficulties of such journeys were exceedingly great, and exposed him to ex- cessive fatigues and privations^ which at times seriously affected his health, and even jeopardized his life. A gentleman of much experience, who was well acquainted with Mr. Whitney's affairs in the south, and sometimes acted as his legal adviser, observes, that " in all his experience in the thorny profession of the law, he has never seen a case of such perseverance, under such persecution ; nor," he adds, " do I believe that I ever knew any other man who would have met them with equal coolness and firmness, or who would finally have obtained even the partial success which he had. He always called on me in New York, on his way south, when going to attend his endless trials, and to meet the mischievous contrivances of men who seemed inexhaustible in their resources of evil. Even now, after thirty years,, my head aches to recollect his narratives of new trials, fresh disappointments, and accumu- lated wrongs." In 1798, Mr. Whitney became deeply impressed with the uncer- tainty of all his hopes founded upon the cotton gin^ notwithstanding their high promise, and he began to think seriously of devoting himself to some business in which superior ingenuity,, seconded by uncommon industry, qualifications which he must have been con- scious of possessing in no ordinary degree, would conduct him by a slow but sure route to a competent fortune ; and we have always considered it indicative of a solid judgment, and a well-balanced mind, that he did not, as is frequently the case with men of in- ventive genius, become so poisoned with the hopes of vast and sudden wealth,, as to be disqualified for making a reasonable pro- vision for life by the sober earnings of frugal industry. The enterprise which he selected in accordance with these views was the manufacture of arms for the United States. He addressed a letter to the Hon. Oliver Wolcott, secretary of the treasury, by whose influence he obtained a contract for the manufacture of ten thousand stand of arms, four thousand of which were to be deliv- ered on or before the last of September of the ensuing year, (the ELI WHITNEY. 125 contract being concluded on the 14th of January, 1798,) and the remaining six thousand within one year from that time. The site which Mr. Whitney had purchased for his works was at the foot of the celebrated precipice called East Rock, near the city of New Haven. This spot (which is now called Whit, neyville) is justly admired for the romantic beauty of its scenery. A waterfall of moderate extent afforded here the necessary power for propelling the machinery. In this pleasant retreat Mr. Whit- ney commenced his operations with the greatest zeal; and his great mind, and daring, persevering spirit, were abundantly mani- fested in this undertaking. His machinery was yet to be built, his materials to be collected, and even his workmen to be taught, and that in a business with which he was imperfectly acquainted. A severe winter retarded his operations, and the multiplied difficul- ties of his undertaking rendered him wholly incompetent to the fulfilment of the contract, and delivering the arms within the limited time. Only five hundred, instead of four thousand, were delivered the first year, and eight, instead of two years, were found neces- sary for completing the whole. Notwithstanding this, the govern- ment seems to have been altogether liberal in its dealings with him. During the eight years Mr. Whitney was occupied in performing this engagement, he applied himself to business with the most exemplary diligence, rising every morning as soon as it was day, and at night setting every thing in order appertaining to all parts of the establishment before he retired to rest. In a letter ad- dressed to the secretary of the treasury at this period, he says " I find that my personal attention and oversight are more con- stantly and essentially necessary to every branch of the work than I apprehended. Mankind, generally, are not to be depended on, and the best workmen I can find are incapable of directing. Indeed there is no branch of the work that can proceed well, scarcely for a single hour, unless I am present." His genius, in. deed, impressed itself on every part of the manufactory, extending even to the most common tools, all of which received some pecu- liar modification which improved them in accuracy, or efficacy, or beauty. His machinery for making the several parts of a musket was made to operate with the greatest possible degree of uniform- ity and precision. The object at which he aimed, and which he fully accomplished, was to make the same parts of different guns, as the locks, for example, as much like each other as the succes- sive impressions of a copper-plate engraving. It has generally been conceded that Mr. Whitney greatly improved the art of manufacturing arms, and laid his country under permanent obliga. tions, by augmenting her facilities for national defence. So rnnid 126 AMERICAN MECHANICS. has been the improvement in the arts and manufactures in this country, that it is difficult to conceive of the low state in which they were thirty years ago. To this advancement the genius and industry of Mr. Whitney most essentially contributed ; for while he was clearing off the numerous impediments which were thrown in his way, he v/as at the same time performing the office of a pioneer to the succeeding generation. In 1812 he entered into a contract to manufacture for the United States fifteen thousand stand of arms, and in the mean time he made a similar contract with the State of New York. Several other persons made contracts with the government at about the same time, and attempted the manufacture of muskets, following, substantially, so far as they understood it, the method pursued in England. The result of their efforts was a complete failure to manufacture muskets of the quality required, at the price agreed to be paid by the government : and in some instances they expended in the execution of their contracts, a considerable for- tune in addition to the whole amount received for their work. The low state to which the arts had been depressed in this coun- try by the policy of England, under the colonial system, and from which they had then scarcely begun to recover, together with the high price of labor, and other causes, conspired to render it im- practicable at that time even for those most competent to the un- dertaking, to manufacture muskets here in the English method. And doubtless Mr. Whitney would have shared the fate of his enterprising but unsuccessful competitors, had he adopted the course which they pursued ; but his genius struck out for him a course entirely new. In maturing his system he had many obstacles to combat, and a much longer time was occupied, than he had anticipated; but with his characteristic firmness he pursued his object, in the face of the obloquy and ridicule of his competitors, the evil predictions of his enemies, and the still more discouraging and disheartening misgivings, doubts, and apprehensions of his friends. His efforts were" at length crowned with success, and he had the satisfaction to find, that the business which had proved so ruinous to others, was likely to prove not altogether unprofitable to himself. Our limits do not permit us to give a minute and detailed ac- count of this system ; and we shall only glance at two or three of its more prominent features, for the purpose of illustrating its gen- eral character. The several parts of the musket were, under this system, carried along through the various processes of manufacture, in lots of some hundreds or thousands of each. In their various stages of pro- ELI WHITNEY. 127 gress, they were made to undergo successive operations by ma- chinery, which not only vastly abridged the labor, but at the same time so fixed and determined their form and dimensions, as to make comparatively little skill necessary in the manual operations. Such was the construction and arrangement of this machinery, that it could be worked by persons of little or no experience ; and yet it performed the work with so much precision, that when, in the later stages of the process, the several parts of the musket came to be put together, they were as readily adapted to each other, as if each had been made for its respective fellow. A lot of these parts passed through the hands of several different work- men successively, (and in some cases several times returned, at intervals more or less remote, to the hands of the same workman,) each performing upon them every time some single and simple operation, by machinery or by hand, until they were completed. Thus Mr. Whitney reduced a complex business, embracing many ramifications, almost to a mere succession of simple processes, and was thereby enabled to make a division of the labor among his workmen, on a principle which was not only more extensive, but also altogether more philosophical, than that pursued in the English method. In England, the labor of making a musket was divided by making the different workmen the manufacturers of different limbs, while in Mr. Whitney's system the work was divided with reference to its nature, and several workmen performed different operations on the same limb. It will be readily seen that under such an arrangement any per- son of ordinary capacity would soon acquire sufficient dexterity to perform a branch of the work. Indeed, so easy did Mr. Whitney find it to instruct new and inexperienced workmen, that he uni- formly preferred to do so, rather than to attempt to combat the prejudices of those, who had learned the business under a different system. When Mr. Whitney's mode of conducting the business was brought into successful operation, and the utility of his machinery was fully demonstrated, the clouds of prejudice which lowered over his first efforts, were soon dissipated, and he had the satisfaction of seeing not only his system, but most of his machinery, intro. duced into every other considerable establishment for the manu- facture of arms, both public and private, in the United States. The labors of Mr. Whitney in the manufacture of arms, have been often and fully admitted by the officers of the government, to have been of the greatest value to the public interest. In the year 1822, Mr. Calhoun, then secretary of war, admitted, in a conver- sation with Mr. Whitney, that the government were saving twenty- 128 AMERICAN MECHANICS. five thousand dollars per annum at the two public armories alone, by his improvements. This admission, though it is believed to be far below the truth, is sufficient to show, that the subject of this memoir deserved well of his country in this department of her service. It should be remarked, that the utility of Mr. Whitney's labors during the period of his life which we have now been contemplat- ing, was not limited to the particular business in which he wag engaged. Many of the inventions which he made to facilitate the manufacture of muskets, were applicable to most other manufac- tures of iron and steel. To many of these they were soon extend- ed, and became the nucleus around which other inventions clus- tered ; and at the present time some of them may be recognised in almost every considerable workshop of that description in the United States. In the year 1812, Mr. W. made application to congress for the renewal of his patent for the cotton gin. In his memorial, he pre- sented a history of the struggles he had been forced to encounter in defence of his right, observing that he had been unable to obtain any decision on the merits of his claim until he .had been eleven years in the law, and thirteen years of his patent term had expired. He sets forth, that his invention had been a source of opulence to thousands of the citizens of the United States ; that, as a labor- saving machine, it would enable one man to perform the work of a thousand men ; and that it furnishes to the whole family of man- kind, at a very cheap rate, the most essential article of their cloth- ing. Hence, he humbly conceived himself entitled to a further remuneration from his country, and thought he ought to be admit- ted to a more liberal participation with his fellow citizens in the benefits of his invention. Although so great advantages had been already experienced, and the prospect of future benefits was so promising, still, many of those whose interest had been most pro. moted, and the value of whose property had been most enhanced by this invention, had obstinately persisted in refusing to make any compensation to the inventor. The very men whose wealth had been acquired by the use of this machine, and who had grown rich beyond all former example, had combined their exertions to pre- vent the patentee from deriving any emolument from his invention. From that state in which he had first made, and where he had first .introduced- his machine, and which had derived the most signal benefits from it, he had received nothing ; and from no state had he received the amount of half a cent per pound on the cotton cleaned with his machines in one year. Estimating the value of the labor of one man at twenty cents per day, the whole amount ELI WHITNEY. 129 Which had been received by him for his invention, was not equal to the value of the labor saved in one hour, by his machines then in use in the United States. " This invention (he proceeds) now gives to the southern section of the Union, over and above the profits which would be derived from the cultivation of any other crop, an annual emolument of at least three millions of dollars."* The foregoing statement does not rest on conjecture, it is no vis- ionary speculation, all these advantages have been realized ; the planters of the southern states have counted the cash, felt the weight of it in their pockets, and heard the exhilarating sound of its collis- ion. Nor do the advantages stop here : this immense source of wealth is bat just beginning to be opened. Cotton is a more cleanly and healthful article of cultivation than tobacco and indigo, which it has superseded, and does not so much impoverish the soil. This invention has already trebled the value of the land through a great extent of territory ; and the degree to which the cultivation of cotton may be still augmented, is altogether incalculable. This species of cotton has been known in all countries where cotton has been raised, from time immemorial, but was never known as an article of commerce, until since this method of cleaning it was dis- covered. In short, (to quote the language of Judge Johnson,) if we should assert that the benefits of this invention exceed one hundred millions of dollars, we can prove the assertion by correct calcula- tion. " It is objected that if the patentee succeeds in procuring the renewal of his patent, he will be too rich. There is no proba- bility that the patentee, if the term of his patent were extended for twenty years, would ever obtain for his invention one half as much as many an individual will gain by the use of it. Up to the present time, the whole amount of what he has acquired from this source, (after deducting his expenses,) does not exceed one half the sum which a single individual has gained by the use of the machine in one year. It is true that considerable sums have been obtained from some of the states where the machine is used ; but no small portion of these sums has been expended in prosecuting his claim in a state where nothing has been obtained, and where his machine has been used to the greatest advantage. "Your memorialist has not been able to discover any reason why he, as well as others, is not entitled to share the benefits of his own labors. He who speculates upon the markets, and takes advantage of the necessities of others, and by these means accumu- lates property, is called * a man of enterprise' * a man of busi- ness' he is complimented for his talents, and is protected by the * This was in 1812 : the amount of profit is at this time incomparably greater. 130 AMERICAN MECHANICS. laws. He however only gets into his possession, that which was before in the possession of another ; he adds nothing to the public stock ; and can he who has given thousands to others, be thought unreasonable, if he asks one in return? " It is to be remembered, that the pursuit of wealth by means of new inventions, is a very precarious and uncertain one ; a lottery where there are many thousand blanks to one prize. Of all the various attempts at improvements, there are probably not more than one in five hundred for which a patent is taken out ; and of all the patents taken out, not one in twenty has yielded a nett profit to the patentee equal to the amount of the patent fees. In cases where a useful and valuable invention is brought into operation, the reward ought to be in proportion to the hazard of the pursuit. The patent law has now been in operation more than fourteen years. Many suits for damages have been instituted against those who have infringed the right of patentees ; and it is a fact, that very rarely has the patentee ever recovered. If you would hold out in- ducements for men of real talents to engage in these pursuits, your rewards must be sure and substantial. Men of this description can calculate, and will know how to appreciate, the recompense which they are to receive for their labors. If the encouragement held out be specious and delusive, the discerning will discover the fallacy, and will despise it : the weak and visionary only will be decoyed by it, and your patent office will be filled with rubbish. The number of those who succeed in bringing into operation really useful and important improvements, always has been, and always must be, very small. It is not probable that this number can ever be as great as one in a hundred thousand. It is therefore impossi- ble that they can ever exert upon the community an undue influ- ence. There is, on the contrary, much probability and danger that their rights will be trampled on by the many." Notwithstanding these cogent arguments, the application was rejected by Congress. Some liberal minded and enlightened men from the cotton districts, favored the petition : but a majority of the members from that section of the Union, were warmly opposed to granting it. In a correspondence with the late Mr. Robert Fulton, on the same subject, Mr. Whitney observes as follows : " The difficulties with which I have had to contend have originated, principally, in the want of a disposition in mankind to do justice. My invention was new and distinct from every other : it stood alone. It was not interwoven with any thing before known ; and it can seldom happen that an invention or improvement is so strongly marked, and can be so clearly and specifically identified ; and I have ELI WHITNEY. 131 always believed, that I should have had no difficulty in causing my rights to be respected, if it had been less valuable, and been used only by a small portion of the community. But the use of this machine being immensely profitable to almost every planter in the cotton districts, all were interested in trespassing upon the patent right, and each kept the other in countenance. Demagogues made themselves popular my misrepresentation, and unfounded clamors, both against the right, and against the law made for its protection. Hence there arose associations and combinations to oppose both* At one time, but few men in Georgia dared to come into court, and testify to the most simple facts within their knowledge, relative to the use of the machine. In one instance, I had great difficulty in proving that the machine had been used in Georgia, although, at the same moment, there were three separate setts of this machinery in motion, within fifty yards of the building in which the court sat, and all so near that the rattling of the wheels was distinctly heard on the steps of the court Jiouse."* While, however, unsuccessfully endeavoring to secure to himself some of the avails of the immense benefits he had thus bestowed on his fellow citizens, his manufactory was gradually leading him to more affluent and liberal circumstances. In January, 1817, he married Miss Henrietta F. Edwards, the youngest daughter of the Hon. Pierpont Edwards, of the District Court for the State of Con- necticut. Fortune seemed now to smile upon him, as he saw his domestic circle increase by the addition of a son and three daugh- ters, and a prosperous and sunny close appeared to be about to terminate his stormy and vexatious day of life. But death who comes to all, prostrated him upon a bed of pain; and after a protracted period of suffering, he breathed his last, on the 8th of January, 1825, after having labored for a long while under a formidable and tedious disease. The strongest demonstrations of respect and regard, were mani- fested by the citizens of New Haven, in committing his remains to * In one of his trials, Mr. Whitney adopted the following plan, in order to show how nugatory were the methods of evasion practised by his adversaries. They were endeavoring to have his claim to the invention set aside, on the ground, that the teeth in his machine were made of wire, inserted into the cylinder of wood, while in the machine of Holmes, the teeth were cut in plates, or iron sur- rounding the cylinder, forming a circular saw. Mr. Whitney, by an ingenious device, (consisting chiefly of sinking the plate below the surface of the cylinder, and suffering the teeth to project,) contrived to give to the saw teeth the appear- ance of wires, while he prepared another cylinder in which the wire teeth were made to look like saw teeth. The two cylinders were produced in court, and the witnesses were called on to testify which was the invention of Whitney, and which that of Holmes. They accordingly swore the saw teeth upon Whitney, and the wire teeth upon Holmes ; upon which the judge declared that it was un- necessary to proceed any farther, the principle of both being manifestly the same, 10 132 AMERICAN MECHANICS. the earth, and the Rev. President Day pronounced over his grave the following eulogy. " How frequent and how striking are the monitions to us, that this world is not the place of our rest ! " It is not often the case, that a man has laid his plans for the business and the enjoyment of life, with a deeper sagacity, than the friend whose remains we have now committed to the dust. He had received, as the gift of heaven, a mind of a superior order. Early habits of thinking gave to it a character of independence and originality. He was accustomed to form his decisions, not after the model of common opinion, but by his own nicely balanced judgment. His mind was enriched with the treasures which are furnished by a liberal education. He had a rare fertility of inven- tion in the arts ; an exactness of execution almost unequalled. By a single exercise of his powers, he changed the state of cultivation, and multiplied the wealth, of a large portion of our country. He set an example of system and precision in mechanical operations, which others had not even thought of attempting. " The higher qualities of his mind, instead of unfitting him foi ordinary duties, were finely tempered with taste and judgment in the business of life. His manners were formed by an extensive inter- course with the best society. He had an energy of character which carried him through difficulties too formidable for ordinary minds. " With these advantages, he entered on the career of life. His efforts were crowned with success. An ample competency was the reward of his industry and skill. He had gained the respect of all classes of the community. His opinions were regarded with peculiar deference, by the man of science, as well as the practical artist. His large and liberal views, his knowledge of the world, the wide range of his observations, his public spirit, and his acts of beneficence, had given him a commanding influence in society. The gentleness and refinement of his manners, and the delicacy of his feelings in the social and domestic relations, had endeared him to a numerous circle of relatives and friends. " And what were his reflections in review of the whole, in con- nection with the distressing scenes of the last period of life ? * All is as the flower of the grass : the wind passeth over it, and it is gone.' All on earth is transient ; all in eternity is substantial and enduring. His language was, * I am a sinner. But God is mer- ciful. The only ground of acceptance before him, is through the great Mediator.' From this mercy, through this Mediator, is de- rived our solace under this heavy bereavement. On this, rest the hopes of the mourners, that they shall- meet the deceased with joy, at the resurrection of the just." ELI WHITNEY. 13 3 The following account is given of Mr. Whitney's character, a character not often met with in the common walks of life. His manners were conciliatory, and his whole appearance such as to inspire universal respect. Among his particular friends, no man was more esteemed. Some of the earliest of his intimate as- sociates were also among the latest. With one or two of the bosom friends of his youth, he kept up a correspondence by letter for thirty years, with marks of continually increasing regard. His sense of honor was high, and his feelings of resentment and indig- nation occasionally strong. He could, however, be cool when his opponents were heated ; and, though sometimes surprised by pas- sion, yet the unparalleled trials of patience which he had sustained did not render him petulant, nor did his strong sense of the injuries he had suffered in relation to the cotton gin, impair the natural serenity of his temper. But the most remarkable trait in the char- acter of Mr. Whitney aside from his inventive powers, was his perseverance ; and this is the more remarkable because it is so com- mon to find men of great powers of mechanical invention deficient in this quality. This it was which led him through scenes of trial and almost unparalleled misfortune, with that calm, yet determined spirit which he so clearly manifested, and which finally led him to a period of prosperity from which he was snatched only by the hand of death. In person Mr. Whitney was considerably above the ordinary size, of a dignified carriage, and of an open, manly, and agreeable countenance. Indeed, he seems to have won the respect of all with whom he conversed, and to have made himself friends wherever he went, by his modest, unassuming, yet agreeable manners, and by his superior skill and ingenuity. In presenting to the public the foregoing sketch of the life of this extraordinary man, the aim has been to render the narrative useful to the enterprising mechanic and the man of business, to whom Whitney may be confidently proposed as a model. To such, it is believed, the details given respecting his various strug- gles and embarrassments, may afford a useful lesson, a fresh incen- tive to perseverance, and stronger impressions of the value of a character improved by intellectual cultivation, and adorned with all the moral virtues. Fabrics of cotton are now so familiar to us, and so universally diffused, that we are apt to look upon them rather as original gifts of nature than as recent products of human ingenuity. The fol- lowing statements however will show how exceedingly limited the cotton trade was previous to the invention of the cotton gin. In 1784, an American vessel arrived at Liverpool, having on 134 AMERICAN MECHANICS. board for part of her cargo, eight lags of cotton, which were seized by the officers of the customhouse, under the conviction that they could not be the growth of America. The following fact ascer- tained from old newspapers shows the limited extent of the cotton trade for the two subsequent years, viz : that the whole amount arrived at Liverpool from America was short of 120 bags. Now this article is equal in general to some millions more than one half the whole value of our exports. The annual average growth is about one million of bales, amounting to several hundred millions of pounds, of which about one fifth is used in our own manufac- tories. We present, in conclusion, the following remarks of a distin- guished scholar, upon this great man, occasioned by a visit to the cemetery of New Haven, which sufficiently show in what estima- tion he is held by those capable of appreciating his merits. After alluding to the monument of Gen. Humphreys, who intro- duced the firm wooled sheep into the United States, the stranger remarks : " But Whitney's monument perpetuates the name of a still greater public benefactor. His simple name would have been epitaph enough, with the addition perhaps of 4 the inventor of the cotton gin.' How few of the inscriptions in Westminster Abbey could be compared with that ! Who is there that, like him, has given his country a machine the product of his own skill which has furnished a large part of its population, * from childhood to age, with a lucrative employment ; by which their debts have been paid off; their capitals increased ; their lands trebled in value ?'* It may be said indeed that this belongs to the physical and material nature of man, and ought not to be compared with what has been done by the intellectual benefactors of mankind ; the Miltons, the Shakspeares, and the Newtons. But is it quite certain that any thing short of the highest intellectual vigor the brightest genius is sufficient to invent one of these extraordinary machines 1 Place a common mind before an oration of Cicero and a steam engine, and it will despair of rivalling the latter as much as the former ; and we can by no means be persuaded, that the peculiar aptitude for combining and applying the simple powers of mechanics, so as to produce these marvellous operations, does not imply a vivacity of the imagination, not inferior to that of the poet and the orator." And in concluding he asks," Has not he who has trebled the value of land, created capital, rescued the population from the necessity of emigrating, and covered a waste with plenty has not he done * The words of Mr. Justice Johnson of South Carolina, in the opinion in the case of Whitney versus Carter. ELI WHITNEY. 135 a service to the country of the highest moral and intellectual char- acter ? Prosperity is the parent of civilization, and all its refine- ments ; and every family of prosperous citizens added to the com- munity, is an addition of so many thinking, inventing, moral, and immortal natures." His tomb is after the model of that of Scipio at Rome. It is simple and beautiful, and promises to endure for years. It bears the following inscription. ELI WHITNEY, The inventor of the Cotton Gin. Of useful science and arts, the efficient patron and improver. In the social relations of life, a model of excellence. While private affection weeps at his tomb, his country honors his memory. Born Dec. 8, 1765. Died Jan. 8, 1825. DAVID BUSHNELL, THE ORIGINATOR OF SUBMARINE WARFARE. Early attempts at submarine navigation. Drebell's boat. The invention of an Englishman, for entering sunken ships. Worcester. Birth of Bushnell. Early Character. Receives a collegiate education. Account of his first ex- periments. Description of his submarine boat, and magazine. Endeavors to blow up the British ship of war Eagle in the harbor of New York. Blows up the tender of his Majesty's ship Cerberus, off New London. Contrives a new expedient to destroy the British shipping in the Delaware. " Battle of the Kegs." Dejected at the issue of his experiments, leaves for France. Returns and settles in Georgia. His Death. SINCE the invention of the diving bell in the sixteenth century, we have accounts of several projects for submarine navigation, among which the following are most prominent. " A scheme is said to have been tried in the reign of James the First, by Cornelius Drebell, a famous English projector, who, we are told by Mr. Boyle, made a submarine vessel which would carry twelve rowers, be- sides the passengers ; and that he also discovered a liquid which had the singular property of restoring the air when it became im- pure by breathing. This last circumstance, with the number of persons enclosed in the machine and the imperfect state of mechan- ics at the period alluded to, renders the whole story extremely im- probable, though it shows clearly that the idea had been entertained and perhaps some attempt made. Another contrivance is men- tioned by Mr. Martin, in his Philosophia Britannica, as the inven- tion of an Englishman, consisting of strong thick leather, which contained half a hogshead of air, so prepared that none could escape, and constructed in such a manner that it exactly fitted the arms and legs, and had a glass placed in the fore part of it. When he put on this apparatus he could not only walk on the ground at the bottom of the sea, but also enter the cabin of a sunken ship and convey goods out of it at pleasure. The inventor is said to have carried on his business for more than forty years, and to have grown rich by it." It is evident from the perusal of the following pages, that the plans of Bushnell were almost entirely original ; and he appears to DAVID BUSHNELL. 137 have greatly advanced, if not actually to have originated, submarine navigation. In its application as a means of warfare, we must give him the entire credit of originality ; although Worcester in his Century or Hundred of Inventions, vaguely alludes to something of the kind, there is no evidence of its application, and as far as regards benefits to subsequent experiments, it is entirely useless. The efforts of Bushnell in the revolutionary, and of Fulton during the late war, at the time attracted considerable attention, and greatly excited the fears* of the enemy. Although, for obvious reasons, the anticipated success did not attend these experiments, we must remember that " invention is progressive ;" and while we hear them derided as visionary, we should reflect that such has ever been the fate, in their incipient stages, of the most useful inventions. The day may not be far distant, when another Bushnell will arise to advance submarine warfare to such perfection as to render it an important auxiliary in coast defence. David Bushnell was born in Saybrook, Connecticut, some time about the year 1742. His parents were agriculturists of rather moderate circumstances, and resided in a very secluded part of the town. Here in attendance upon the duties of the paternal farm young Bushneli passed the earlier portion of his life, and is only remembered as being a very modest, retiring young man, shunning all society, and bound down to his books. On the death of his father, which happened when he was about twenty-seven years of age, Bushnell sold his inheritance and re- moved to the central portion of the town for the purpose of prepar- ing for college, the attainment of a liberal education having long been with him an object of his most ardent wishes. As is custom* ary in the New England villages, the pastor of the society, the Rev. John Devotion, assisted him in his studies. One of his fellow townsmen Mr. Elias Tully, becoming ac. quainted with him and admiring his character, very generously offered him a home under his own roof, where he remained until his entrance into Yale college in 1771. We are ignorant of the origin of Mr. BushnelPs conceptions re- specting submarine warfare, but he appears to have turned his at. tention to the subject in the earlier portions of his collegiate career, so that on graduating in 1775, his plans were advanced to ma- turity. * It is well known that during the experiments of Fulton, the British ship- ping were very cautious in approaching our shores. A gentleman, who was taken prisoner by a vessel of war in Long Island Sound, describes the anxiety of the officers as being so great, that they made a regular practice at certain times of day, of dragging ropes under the ship's bottom. This course, it is believed, was universally practised by the enemy while anchoring off our coast. 138 AMERICAN MECHANICS. " The first experiment was made with about two ounces of gun- powder, to prove to some influential men that powder would burn under water. In the second trial there were two pounds of gun. powder enclosed in a wooden bottle, and fixed under a hogshead, with a two inch oak plank between the hogshead and the powder. The hogshead was loaded with stones as deep as it could swim ; a wooden pipe primed with powder descended through the lower head of the hogshead, and thence through the plank into the powder contained in the bottle. A match put to the priming exploded the powder with a tremendous effect, casting a great body of water with the stones and ruins many feet into the air. " He subsequently made many experiments of a similar nature, some of them with large quantities of powder, all of which produced very violent explosions, much more than sufficient for any purposes he had in view. " When finished, the external appearance of his torpedo bore some resemblance to two upper tortoise shells of equal size, placed in contact, leaving, at that part which represents the head of the animal, a flue or opening sufficiently capacious to contain the ope- rator, and air to support him thirty minutes. At the bottom, op. posite to the entrance, was placed a quantity of lead for ballast. The operator sat upright and held an oar for rowing forward or backward, and was furnished with a rudder for steering. An ap- erture at the bottom with its valve admitted water for the purpose of descending, and two brass forcing pumps served to eject the water within when necessary for ascending. The vessel was made completely water-tight, furnished with glass windows for the admis- sion of light, with ventilators and air pipes, and was so ballasted with lead fixed at the bottom as to render it solid, and obviate all danger of oversetting. Behind the submarine vessel was a place above the rudder for carrying a large powder magazine ; this was made of two pieces of oak timber, large enough, when hollowed out, to contain one hundred and fifty pounds of powder, with the appa- ratus used for firing it, and was secured in its place by a screw turned by the operator. It was lighter than water, that it might rise against the object to which it was intended to be fastened. " Within the magazine was an apparatus constructed to run any proposed period under twelve hours ; when it had run out its turn, it unpinioned a strong lock, resembling a gun-lock, which gave fire to the powder. This apparatus was so pinioned, that it could not possibly move, until, by casting off the magazine from the vessel, it was set in motion. The skilful operator could swim so low on the surface of the water, as to approach very near a ship in the night, without fear of being discovered j and might, if he chose, DAVID BUSHNELL; 139 approach the stem or stern above water, with very little danger. He could sink very quickly, keep at any necessary depth, and row a great distance in any direction he desired without coming to the surface. When he rose to the top ho could soon obtain a fresh supply of air, and, if necessary, descend again and pursue his course. " Mr. Bushnell found that it required many trials and considera- ble instruction to make a man of common ingenuity a skilful ope- rator. The first person whom he employed was his brother, who was exceedingly ingenious, and made himself master of it, but was taken sick before he had an opportunity to make a trial of his skill. Having procured for a substitute a sergeant of one of the Connec. ticut regiments, and given him such instructions as time would allow, he was directed to try an experiment on the Eagle, a sixty- four gun ship, lying in the harbor of New York, and commanded by Lord Howe. Gen. Putnam placed himself on the wharf to witness the result. " The sergeant went under the ship and attempted to fix the wooden screw into her bottom, but struck, as he supposed, a" bar of iron, which passed from the rudder hinge, and was spiked under the ship's quarter. Had he moved a few inches, which might have been done without rowing, there is no doubt he might have found wood where he could have fixed the screw ; or if the ship had been sheathed with copper, it might easily have been pierced. But for want of skill and experience in managing the vessel, in an attempt to move to another place, he passed out from under the ship. After seeking her in vain for some time, he rowed some distance and rose to the surface of the water, but found daylight so far advanced that he dared not to renew the attempt, for fear of being discovered by the sentinels on duty. He said he could easily have fastened the magazine under the stern of the ship, above water, as he rowed up and touched it before he descended. Had it been done, the explosion of the one hundred and fifty pounds of powder, contained in the magazine, must have been fatal to the ship. " In returning from the ship to New York, the operator passed near Governor's Island, and thought he was discovered by the Bri- tish stationed there. In haste to avoid the danger, he cast off his magazine, imagining it retarded him in the swell, which was very considerable. The internal apparatus was set to run just one hour ; at the expiration of the allotted time it blew up with tremendous violence, throwing a vast column of water to an amazing height in the air, much to. the astonishment of the enemy. "Some other attempts were made on the Hudson, in one of 140 AMERICAN MECHANICS. which the operator in going towards the ship lost sight of her, and went a great distance beyond. The tide ran so strong as to baffle all further effort. "In the year 1777, Mr. Bushnell made an attempt from a whale- boat against the Cerberus frigate, lying at anchor off New London, in drawing a machine against her side by means of a line. The machine was loaded with powder to be exploded by a gun-lock, which was to be unpinioned by an apparatus to be turned by being brought along side of the frigate. This machine fell in with a schooner at anchor astern of the frigate, and becoming fixed, it ex- ploded and demolished the vessel, "Commodore Simmons being on board of the Cerberus, addressed an official letter to Sir Peter Parker, describing this singular dis- aster. Being at anchor to the westward of the town with a schooner which he had taken, about eleven o'clock in the evening he disco- vered a line towing astern from the bows. He believed that some person had veered away by it, and immediately began to haul in. A sailor belonging to the schooner taking it for a fishing line, laid hold of it and drew in about fifteen fathoms. It was buoyed up by small pieces tied to it at regular distances. At the end of the rope a machine was fastened too heavy for one man to pull up, for it exceeded one hundred pounds in weight. The other people of the schooner coming to his assistance, they drew it upon deck. While the men, to gratify their curiosity, were examining the machine, it exploded, blew the vessel into pieces, and set her on fire. Three men were killed, and a fourth blown into the water, much injured. On subsequent examination the other part of the line was discovered buoyed up in the same manner ; this the commodore ordered to be instantly cut away, for fear (as he termed it) of * hauling up another of the infernals /' " These machines were constructed with wheels furnished with irons sharpened at the end, and projecting about an inch, in order to strike the sides of the vessel when hauling them up, thereby set- ting the wheels in motion, which in the space of five minutes causes the explosion. Had the whole apparatus been brought to act upon a ship at the same time, it must have occasioned prodigious de- struction. " Mr. Bushnell contrived another ingenious expedient to effect his favorite object. He fixed a large number of kegs, charged with powder, to explode on coming in contact with any thing while floating along with the tide. " In December, 1777, he set his squadron of kegs afloat in the Delaware above the British shipping. The kegs were set adrift DESTRUCTION OF A BRITISH TENDER BY A TORPEDO. DAVID BUSHNELL. 143 in the night, to fall with the ebb on the shipping ; but the proper distance could not be well ascertained, and they were set adrift too remotely from the vessels, so that they were obstructed and dispersed by the ice. They approached, however, in the day. time, and one of them blew up a boat, others exploded, and occa- sioned the greatest consternation and alarm among the British seamen. The British soldiers actually manned the wharves and shipping at Philadelphia, and discharged their small arms and cannon at every thing they could see floating in the river during the ebb tide. This incident has received the name of * the Bailie of the Kegs^ and has furnished the subject of an excellent and humorous song by the Hon. Francis Hopkinson, which, as it is an amusing relic of the times, we here insert." THE BATTLE OF THE KEGS : A SONG. TUNE" Moggy Lawder." GALLANTS attend, and hear a friend Trill forth harmonious ditty ; Strange things I'll tell, which late befell In Philadelphia city. 'Twas early day, as poets say, Just when the sun was rising, A soldier stood on log of wood, And saw a sight surprising. As in amaze he stood to gaze, The truth can't be denied, He spied a score of kegs, or more, Come floating down the tide. A sailor too, in jerkin blue, The strange appearance viewing, First " d d his eyes," in great surprise, Then said, " some mischief's brewing: 41 These kegs now hold the rebels bold, Pack'd up like pickled herring ; And they're comedown t'attackthe town In this new way of ferrying." The soldier flew, the sailor too, And almost scared to death, Wore out their shoes to spread the news, And ran till out of breath. Now up and down , throughout the town, Most frantic scenes were acted ; And some ran here and some ran there Like men almost distracted. Some fire! cried, which some denied, But said, the earth had quaked: And girls and boys, with hideous noise, Ran through the streets, half naked. HOWE, ia a fright, starts upright, Awoke by such a clatter ; Rubbing both eyes, he loudly cries, " For God's sake, what's the matter?" At his bedside he then espied Sir ERSKINE at command; Upon one foot he had one boot, And t'other in his hand. " Arise ! arise !" Sir ERSKINE cries ; " The rebels more's the pity Without a boat are all afloat, And rang'd before the city ; " The motley crew, in vessels new, With SATAN for their guide, Pack'd up in bags, or wooden kegs, Come driving down the tide ; " Therefore prepare for bloody war; These kegs must all be routed, Or surely we despised shall be, And British courage doubted." The royal band now ready stand, All rang'd in dread array, With stomachs stout, to see it out, And make a bloody day. 144 AMERICAN MECHANICS. The cannons roar from shore to shore, The small arms make a rattle ; Since war began, I'm sure no man Ere saw so strange a battle : The rebel vales, the rebel dales, With rebel trees surrounded ; The distant woods, the hills and floods, With rebel echoes sounded. The fish below swam to and fro, Attack'd from every quarter ; " Why sure," thought they, " the devil's to pay 'Mongst folks above the water." The kegs, 'tis said, though strongly made Of rebel staves and hoops, Could not oppose their pow'rful foes, The conq'ring British troops. From morn to night, these men of might Display'd amazing courage : And when the sun was fairly down, lletir'd to sup their porridge. A hundred men, with each a pen, Or more, upon my word, It is most true, would be too few Their valor to record : Such feats did they perform that day Upon those wicked kegs, That years to come, if they get home, They'll make their boast and brags. The unfortunate issue of Mr. Bushnell's efforts rendered him very dejected. He had been disappointed in his expected support from government, having spent nearly all, if not the whole of his own property in the course of his experiments. Soon after the close of the war, he left his native country for France. The object of this voyage is not known ; and it was always supposed, until within a very short time, that he had perished amid some one of the sanguinary scenes of the French revolution. But it appears that, after remaining in Europe a number of years, he returned and settled in Georgia, under the assumed name of Bush, where he lived in a retired manner, gaining his livelihood by the practice of medicine. The tidings of his death, in 1826, accompanied by a handsome bequest, the product of his professional industry, was the first information his relations had received of him for a period of nearly forty years. AMOS WHITTEMORE. AMOS WHITTEMORE, THE INVENTOR OF THE CARD MACHINE. Birth, Early traits of character. Is apprenticed to a gunsmith. Industry. Constructs a wooden clock without a model. Invents a machine for measur- ing the progress of vessels. Becomes a partner in manufacturing cotton and wool cards. Description and imperfection of the old method of making cards. Sets about the construction of the card machine. Wonderful perseverance. Meets with an unexpected obstacle. Overcomes the difficulty in a dream. Com- pletes the invention. Its beauty and precision. Secures the patent. Visits England, to secure a patent there. Taken prisoner by a French man-of-war. Release. Dyer's card establishment at Manchester. Return. Forms a co- partnership to manufacture card machines. Slow progress and exhausted means. Visits Washington, and exhibits the invention. It excites universal admiration. Congress renews the patent. Establish a branch in New York. The New York Manufacturing Company purchase their whole interest. Its succeeding history. Phoanix Bank. Singular chain of circumstances. Whittemore purchases a country seat, and retires from active life. Projects an orrery on a new plan. Feeble health. Death. Character. Value of the card machine. Conclusion. THE incidents in the following memoir are principally such as could be gathered from the memory of one who intimately knew the subject of it while living, and always entertained for him and his memory a high regard. The writer therefore feels some diffi- dence in recording as strict fact, every part of the relation made to him, inasmuch as the lapse of years may have effaced in some degree the recollection of many of the events. It is believed, how- ever, that its leading features are essentially correct, and as noth- ing stated can affect others, he feels relieved 'from responsibility. Amos Whittemore, who, by his extraordinary invention for making cotton and wool cards, merits a prominent place among the first mechanics of the age, was the second of five brothers, and was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, April 19th, 1759. His father was an agriculturist of but moderate means, whose industry enabled him to rear a large family, and give to his children the mere rudiments of an English education. Of the five brothers, it is unnecessary to allude to either than the two next in age, William and Samuel, who, as will appear in the sequel, became interested in business with that brother whose ingenuity laid the foundation of their fortunes. The youthful days of Whittemore were passed in the usual manner of lads in the country, chiefly in assisting his parent in 11 148 AMERICAN MECHANICS. the cultivation of the farm. At an early age he manifested a re- markable talent for mechanical pursuits, together with a mind dis- posed to the contemplation of philosophical and abstruse science. Aware that he must depend almost entirely upon his own re- sources, not only for his maintenance, but for his future advance- ment, it was obvious that he must soon choose a profession which would promote these ends. Free to make his own choice, he se- lected the trade of a gunsmith, as one which, while it presented a field for the cultivation of mechanical taste, offered the prospects of a fruitful harvest. On becoming an apprentice, he not only zealously applied him- self to the interests of his master, but devoted his leisure to volun- tary employment. At this period he invented many ingenious and useful implements ; and such was his proficiency, that long ere the expiration of his term of service, his employer confessed himself unable to give further instruction, and advised him to commence business for himself. Among the many instances of his skill, may be noticed that of an excellent clock made without a model, which remained many years in the family, proving a useful, as well as gratifying me- mento of his early ingenuity. This was among the first of the kind, although now there is scarcely a cottage in our wide spread country that does not boast of at least one of these indispensable as well as ornamental pieces of furniture. He also invented a machine constructed with dial hands and figures, to be placed in the water at a vessel's stern, for the purpose of accurately mea- suring its progress. At the suggestion of a medical friend, a Dr. Putnam of Charlestown, he invented a self-acting loom, for weaving duck, which, from the best information we possess, is believed to be the same in principle as the celebrated power loom now so universally used. Owing to the unsettled state of business at this period, and the want of encouragement in the useful arts, these productions, notwithstanding their value, were suffered to lie neglected and forgotten. For years succeeding the expiration of his apprenticeship, Whittemore was variously, though to himself, in a pecuniary point, unprofitably employed. At length he became interested with his brother William, and five others, in the manufacture of cotton and wool cards, conducting their business in Boston under the firm of Giles, Richards, and Co., and supplying nearly all the cards then used in the country. Amos devoted himself to the mechanical department, as being the most agreeable and useful. Hitherto, the manufacture of cotton and wool cards, which had already become an article of great demand, was attended with AMOS WHITTEMORE. 1 49 much expense, owing to the imperfection of the machinery, and the amount of manual labor required. But two machines, and those of simple construction, were as yet known ; one for cutting and bending the wire into staples, and another for piercing the sheets of leather with holes, into which the staples were placed, one by one, with the hand. This last operation gave employment to hundreds of the younger members of families in New England : and it was not unamusing to witness groups of children, of both sexes, engaged in this easy labor, their tiny fingers rapidly placing staple after staple into its appropriate place, as eager to perform their allotted task as they were to count the few pence earned at the dear expense of a temporary deprivation of their youthful sports. This, the only method then known, combined both the disadvantage of great expense and the impossibility of making the cards sufficiently perfect to properly prepare the raw material. Whittemore, ever bent upon improvements in machinery, at once saw the importance, and, of course, the immense value of a machine so constructed as to be enabled, by its own independent action, to hold the sheet of leather, pierce the holes, draw the wire from the reel, and shape and stick it into its proper place : thus, by the combination of a series of successive independent opera- ' tions, complete the card. After that mature reflection which always characterized him, he imparted to his brother William the conception of that idea which he so ardently desired to exe- cute. Encouraged by the advice and assistance of this brother, he engaged in the apparently insurmountable task, well convinced of the rich reward awaiting him if he could but embody in a machine the picture of his imagination. With ardor and unre- mitting zeal he prosecuted his labors, devoting his whole mental and 'physical energies to the undertaking. Such was his diligence, and so incessantly did it occupy his time, that he not only impaired his health, but frequently neglected the demands of nature, to the extent that food and sleep seemed to him of but secondary conse- quence. Slowly, but steadily he progressed ; and while his bodily strength daily diminished, the fire of his mind seemed to burn with increased enthusiasm. Like the discoverer of our western world, he had staked, as it were, his reputation upon this effort, and, though storms of discouragement buffeted him at every point, and a boundless sea of toil appeared between him and his uncertain haven, yet he undauntingly persevered almost against hope. Baffled as was his skill to the utmost, he at length so far com- pleted his machine as to cause it to draw the wire from the reel, cut and shape it, pierce the holes in the leather, and even place the staples firmly in the sheet ; but it was yet necessary to bend the 150 AMERICAN MECHANICS. wire after it was placed : without this, all was in vain ; time and health had been valuelessly sacrificed, and that ambition that ever animates to action the inventive mind, seemed in him about to re- ceive a fatal check. Notwithstanding the encouragement of his friends who, believing that he could finally succeed, were, if pos- sible, more zealous than himself he gradually became irresolute, and frequently declared his inability to make any farther progress. The labor of nearly three months lay before him, an unfinished, yet wonderfully ingenious structure ; but, like the famed ivory balls of the Chinese, while it was admirable for the skill displayed in its workmanship, was valueless. Fortunately, he was not long doomed to look upon his work as a mere monument of labor lost. While the ingenuity of his mind had in vain been taxed to the ut- most, it was, as it would seem, to miraculous interposition that he owed his ultimate success. Extraordinary as it may appear, and doubted as it may be by some, it is, nevertheless, a fact, that during a night succeeding a day of despondency and gloom, and at an hour when his faculties were wrapped in slumber, in a vision was disclosed to him the complete accomplishment of his hopes. Scarcely had the following day dawned, when, with a heart swell- ing with emotions of eagerness and joy, he once more revisited the chamber where he had so earnestly toiled, and, ere he broke his fast on that morning, he was enabled to announce to his brother and friends his entire success. Thus, within the short space of three months, he had, by un- tiring industry, commenced and completed an invention which at once revolutionized the manufacture of cards, and which, for in- genuity of construction, precision of movement, rapidity of per- formance, and perfection of execution, may challenge comparison with any mechanical effort of the human mind. It must be studi- ously examined to be justly appreciated ; and, with a distinguished man* of our day, one alike eminent for his scientific attainments as for his accomplishments as a statesman, we may say, that those who examine its complicated performance can compare it with nothing more nearly than the machinery of the human system. This anecdote, so intimately connected with the invention, was one which Whittemore frequently related, and it was gratifying to observe with what ardor he told the story of his toil ; upon no part of which would he dwell with more enthusiastic delight than this singular dream. The brothers, fully aware, if successful, of the value of such a machine, had, in a measure, kept secret the fact of Whittemore's * Edward Everett. AMOS WH1TTEMORE. 151 being engaged in its construction. When, therefore, completed, steps were immediately taken to secure to the fortunate inventor, and his associates, the pecuniary advantages to be derived ; and on the 2d of June, 1797, a patent right was granted for a term of fourteen years. The importance of securing a patent right in England, as well as in the United States, was not lost sight of. At this time, during the administration of the elder Adams, but few years had elapsed since the establishment of our national inde- pendence, and the relations of our country with England were unset- tled, while with France we were engaged in naval hostilities. To undertake a voyage across the Atlantic, under such circumstances, and at this early period, was considered of almost as much im- portance as, in our time, to circumnavigate the globe. To many of the habits of Whittemore, the project of visiting England, and there to wade through the difficulties of securing a patent, would have been thought too great an enterprise : at most, that the ad- vantages to accrue would not be commensurate with the risk and expenditure. Not so thought the brothers ; and the requisite ar- rangements being made, it became the duty as well as pleasure of Whittemore to visit that country. At this period, but two ships traded regularly between Boston and London, the Galen and the Minerva ; in the latter of which he embarked in the spring of 1799, accompanied by an English gentleman named Sharpe, who evinced great interest in the machine, and is believed to have been largely benefited by it in England. Being unacquainted with the circumstances connected with this visit, it is out of our power to give a detail of its events ; it is sufficient, however,- to know, that the invention soon became fully appreciated, and though numerous offers were made, either to pur. chase the right or become interested in its profits, nothing of con- sequence was done to remunerate the inventor. Anxious to re- turn, he left his business in the hands of those in whom he reposed confidence, and in the spring of 1800 sailed for Boston, where he arrived in safety after a passage of fifty-nine days, and a year's absence from home. Either on his outward or homeward voyage, the vessel which he was in was captured by the French, but the passengers were released without serious inconvenience. Justly entitled as he was to a rich reward in that country, which has since been so largely benefited by this invention, he was de- spoiled of his rights, and realized little else than expense and labor. No sooner was the machine generally understood in England, than it was perceived how fatal its successful operation would be- come to the working classes engaged in the manufacture of cards. The greatest caution and secrecy were therefore observed, lest the 11* 152 AMERICAN MECHANICS. threats of the people, to mob those engaged in making the ma- chinery, would be carried into execution. The only safe method was, to have parts of the machine made in different places, and put together when finished. The most extensive, if not the only establishment now in opera- tion in England for manufacturing machine cards, is that of Mr. Dyer, in Manchester, who has conducted the business with great success ; through whose agency the machinery has been carried into France and the other parts of the continent, and is even supposed by many to be his invention, though he himself acknow- ledges its proper source. The copartnership of Giles, Richards, and Co. having expired some time, Whittemore, with his brother, had been engaged in the manufacture of cards upon the old plan. On his return from England, they formed a connection with their friend, Mr. Robert Williams, of Boston, who possessed the requisite means for car- rying on the business with the improved machinery, though on a limited scale. Until the year 1809, little had been done beside constructing expensive machines, and making the necessary preparations for the manufacture of cards. The patent was at this time within two years of its expiration, and their treasury nearly exhausted. Serious apprehensions were therefore entertained that, when about to realize a remuneration for their time and expense, others, by successful competition, would step in and wrest from them the fruits of all their toils. During the session of the congress of 1808 and 1809, Whitte- more, with his brother William, visited Washington, carrying with them a complete machine, of full size, as a model for exhibition, which was shown to the members and other men of distinction. It not only elicited universal admiration, but of such advantage was it considered to the country, especially to the cotton and wool-growing interest, that many members, among them Matthew Lyon of Vermont, a gentleman distinguished for his abilities, were disposed to grant a perpetual patent to the inventor and his heirs. The result, however, was, that on the 3d of March, 1809, an act received the unanimous vote of congress, granting a renewal of the patent for fourteen years from the expiration of the first term. The city of New York had long since given evidence of its peculiar advantages for trade and commerce ; and as early as the year 1803, a branch of the business was established in that city, under the management of a younger brother, Mr. Samuel Whitte- more, who became a partner with the brothers. As may be AMOS WHITTEMORE. 153 readily supposed, the importance of the machine attracted no little attention among the enterprising of this metropolis ; and $oon after the renewal of the patent, efforts were made to establish a company, with a capital of sufficient magnitude to carry on an extensive business, and thus obtain the certain profit that a mono- poly such as this seemed to ensure. Men of fortune and energy gave it their support ; and during ;he session of the New York legislature of 1812, an act was passed, ncorporating the " New York Manufacturing Company," with a capital of about $800,000, of which $300,000 was directed to be employed in manufacturing cotton and wool cards, and building he necessary machinery and factories, while the balance was to >e employed in banking. Among the first acts of this company, was to purchase of the /tessrs. Whittemore their patent right and entire stock of machine- y ; which was effected on the 20th of July, 1812, for the sum of one tundred and fifty thousand dollars. The company having purchased . site on New York island, commenced the erection of extensive vorks ; and the usual custom in public buildings of laying the corner tone, was here observed with much ceremony. And now for the irst time, it may be said, that the business had commenced on fa- vorable auspices, so far as capital and an intelligent direction was \ guarantee of success. Our country, being at this time engaged in an active, and to our commerce, a destructive warfare with England, a country that had ilways supplied us with cotton and woollen, as well as other goods, i check, if not a total suspension, was thus placed upon farther im- portations, and the manufacture of these fabrics was thrown upon ourselves. Cotton and woollen factories were erected as if by the magic of Aladdin's lamp, and they, with the demand from all parts of the country for hand cards, gave such an impetus to the business that the company were most actively and profitably engaged. But the peace of 1815, an event, so much and so devoutly wished for by our suffering country, proved injurious to the association. Sudden and immense importations of foreign goods followed this event, and such was the insufficient protection then afforded to do- mestic industry, and so great was the demand for the raw material abroad, that our infant manufactories were compelled to stop, and scarcely a pound of cottoji or wool remained at home. The com- pany thus found themselves with a large stock of machinery and cards, and no market. In the year 1818, after waiting in vain for a reaction, and the business being doubtless shackled by the un- wieldy management of a corporation, the company proposed and effected a sale of its entire manufacturing property to Messrs. 154 AMERICAN MECHANICS. Samuel and Timothy Whittemore, the former a brother, the latter a son of the inventor. Mr. Timothy Whittemore almost immedi- ately thereafter relinquished his interest to his uncle, who became the sole proprietor, and conducted the business with varied success until within a few years. The New York manufacturing company, after this sale, with an increased capital, changed its title to that of the " Phoenix Bank," and continues to this day a popular banking institution. At the expiration of the patent in 1825, Mr. Samuel Whittemore sold several of his machines in anticipation of a rapid decline in the business, since the monopoly could no longer be retained ; and from that time the manufacture of cards by machinery has become so general, as to make it a business of comparatively small amount to any, but to a few old established firms. By a singular, though interesting chain of circumstances, the identical machines which the inventor himself assisted in building, after being out of his family for more than twenty-five years, have now become the property of his sons, and are used by them in West Cambridge, a small town near that which gave him birth. Their cards are well known for their uniform excellence, the stamp being to the consumer a sufficient guarantee of their quality. Although more than forty years have elapsed since the invention, such was the perfection with which it came from the rnind of the inventor, that no essential improvements have ever been suggested. Attempts were frequently made to defraud him of his well-earned fame, by claiming it as the production of others, but they have proved as abortive as the attempts to infringe upon the patent. After the sale of his interest, Whittemore retired from active life, and having purchased a pleasant estate in the town of West Cambridge, found that quiet and freedom from the many cares of business life, so agreeable to his nature. Since the invention, he never seriously exerted his mechanical ingenuity, feeling, doubtless, content with the laurels already acquired. Having, however, in early life entertained a deep interest in the science of astronomy, in later years he conceived the plan of a complete orrery, repre- senting the whole planetary system, each planet to describe its own orbit, and the combination acting like nature's own. Enfeebled by an impaired health, and the infirmities of age, he never matured this project, and at length he died, in the year 1828, at the age of sixty-nine, at his residence in West Cambridge, leaving a widow to lament the loss of *a kind husband, his children an indulgent father, and his associates an amiable and devoted friend. To his family he was an example of one who lived a pure and blame- less life ; and though he left but an inconsiderable fortune, they AMOS WHITTEMORE. 155 inherited a far brighter treasure in an unsullied reputation. Whit- temore was of a bland and conciliating disposition, even in temper, and in manners strikingly meditative, conversing but little, and often seen in profound mental study. The value that the card machine has been, and still is, not to this country alone, but to the whole manufacturing world, it is be- lieved even few now justly appreciate. With Whitney's cotton gin, it forms an important and necessary link in the chain of machinery which by their operation furnish to the world one of the most use- ful, as well as beautiful fabrics. How far it may have contributed, not only to perfect in quality, but to reduce it in cost, cannot be difficult to estimate. We may add, however, in conclusion, that not a cotton or wollen factory is reared, that does not rely upon the card machine to complete its own machinery, and the use of the hand card, in the southern states, has become as general as the culture of cotton itself. ROBERT FULTON. Birth and parentage. Early ingenuity. Becomes a painter. Visits England. Becomes an inmate in the family of Benjamin West. Inland navigation. Ex- cavating machine. Visits France. Turns his attention to submarine warfare. Experiments. British Government. Bonaparte. Constructs a plunging- boat, with which he remains under water an hour. Blows up a vessel in the harbor of Brest with a submarine bomb. Revisits England. Blows up a Dan- ish brig. Returns to the United States. Anecdote. Stationary torpedo. Congress appropriate funds to carry on his experiments. Report of the com- missioners. Letter to the secretary of the navy. Experiments on the sloop of war Argus. Gun-harpoon and cable-cutter. Steam navigation. Chancellor Livingston. Fulton's steam experiments in France. Experiments with a steamboat on the Seine. Commences building a steamboat in New York. Orders an engine from England. Description and success of the first experi- ment on the Hudson. Redheffer's perpetual motion. Builds a floating steam battery for government. Launch. Voyage of " Fulton the First." Lawsuits. Death. Conclusion. THIS indefatigable man was born in Little Britain, Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, in the year 1765, of a respectable, though not opulent family. His father was a native of Kilkenny, in Ire. land, and his mother was of a respectable Irish family, residing in Pennsylvania. He had two sisters older than himself, besides a younger brother and sister. His patrimony was very small. In his infancy he received the rudiments of a common English educa- tion, and his peculiar genius manifested itself at a very early age. All his hours of recreation were passed in the shops of mechanics, or in the use of his pencil. By the time he had attained the age of seventeen, he became so much of an artist, as to derive emolument from portrait and landscape painting in Philadelphia, where he re- mained till he was about twenty-one. When he became of age, he went to Washington county, and there purchased a little farm, on which he settled his mother, his father having died in 1768. After seeing his parent comfortably established in the home which he had provided for her, he set out with the intention of returning to Philadelphia. On his way, he visited the warm springs of Pennsylvania, where he met with some gentlemen, who were so much pleased with the genius they discov- ered in his paintings, that they advised him to go to England, where they assured him he would meet with the patronage of his ROBERT FULTON. ROBERT FULTON. 159 countryman Mr. West, who had, even then, attained great celeb- rity. Mr. Fulton went to England, and his reception by Mr. West was such as he had been led to anticipate. That distinguished American was so well pleased with his promising and eaterprising genius, and his amiable qualities, that he took him into his house, where he continued an inmate for several years. After leaving the family of Mr. West, he appears to have made the art of paint- ing his chief employment for some time. He spent two years in Devonshire, near Exeter, where he made many respectable ac- quaintances ; among others, he became known to the duke of Bridgewater, so famous for his canals, and Lord Stanhope, a nobleman celebrated for his love of science, and particularly for his attachment to the mechanic arts. With Lord Stanhope^Mr. Fulton held a correspondence for a long time, and they communi- cated to each other ideas on subjects towards which their minds were mutually directed. In 1793, we find Mr. Fulton actively engaged in a project to improve inland navigation ; for, even at that early day, he had conceived the idea of propelling vessels by steam, and he speaks in his manuscripts with great confidence of its practicability. In May, 1774, he obtained from the British government a patent for a double inclined plane, to be used for transportation. An account of this may be seen in vol. xvii. of the Repertory of Arts. What were Mr. Fulton's pursuits for some years after this period it does not appear. In his preface to a description of his Nautilus, or plunging-boat, he says, that he had resided eighteen months in the great manufacturing town of Birmingham, where he must have acquired some of that practical knowledge in mechanics which he made so useful to his country, and indeed to all the world. In 1804, when Mr. Fulton left Paris, he sent a large collection of his manuscripts to this country ; but unfortunately, the vessel in which they were sent was wrecked. The case containing the papers was recovered, but only a few fragments of the manuscripts were preserved. These, however, mark the genius of Fulton, and in- crease our regret that any productions of his strong and original mind which he thought worth preserving should be lost. It is owing to this misfortune that we have so few traces of Mr. Fulton's occupations at this period. But a mind like his could never be idle, and it is evident that, at this time, it was still directed to- wards his favorite pursuits. In 1794, he submitted to the British Society for the Promotion of Arts and Commerce, an improvement of his invention in mills for sawing marble, for which he received the thanks of the society and an honorary medal. He invented also, as is presumed, about 160 AMERICAN MECHANICS. this time, a machine for spinning flax, and another for making ropes, for both of which he obtained patents from the British gov- ernment. A mechanical contrivance for scooping out earth in certain situations, to form the channels for canals or aqueducts, which, as it is understood, has been much used in England, is also his invention. Indeed, the subject of canals appears chiefly to have engaged his attention at this time. He now, and probably for some time previous, professed himself a civil engineer, and lender this title he published his work on canals, and in 1795, some essays on the same subject in the London Morning Star. In 1796, he published in London, his Treatise on the Improve, ment of Canal Navigation, in which he recommends small canals and boats of little burden ; and also inclined planes instead of IOCKS, together with the various contrivances necessary to effect the passage of boats from one level to another. His plans were strongly recommended by the British Board of Agriculture, of which Sir John Sinclair was president. Mr. Fulton, throughout his course as a mechanist and civil en- gineer, derived great advantages from his talent for drawing and painting. He was an elegant and accurate draughtsman, which is proved by the plates annexed to the work we have mentioned. This gave him great facility in procuring the execution of his designs, and a great advantage over most who have engaged ir similar pursuits. He seems, however, to have neglected his penci as a painter for many years, till a short time before his death, when he resumed it to paint some portraits of his own family, anc his success in executing these gave him much pleasure. Mr. Fulton, ever thoughtful of the interests of his own country, sent copies of his works to distinguished persons in America, ac- companied with letters, setting forth the advantages to be derived from internal communication by canals. Having obtained a patent for canal improvements from the British government, he went to France, with the intention of in- troducing them there ; but not meeting with much encouragement, he soon directed his mind to other important subjects ; though the canal system still occupied a portion of his thoughts. About this time, his thoughts were turned towards the subject of political economy, and he wrote a work, addressed to " the Friends of Mankind," in which he labors to show, that education and internal improvements would have a good effect on the happiness of a na- tion. He not only wished to see a free and speedy communica- tion between the different parts of a large country, but a universal free trade between all nations. He saw that it would take ages to establish the freedom of the seas by the common consent of na. ROBERT FULTON. 161 he therefore turned his whole attention to 'find out some means of destroying ships of war, those engines of oppression, and to put it out of the power of any nation to maintain such a system ; and thus to compel every government to adopt the simple principles of education, industry, and a free circulatiorr%f its pro- duce. Out of such enlarged and philanthropic views and reflec- tions grew Mr. Fulton's inventions for submarine navigation and explosions, and with such patriotic motives did he prosecute them. Of these inventions we now proceed to give some account. In the year 1797, he became acquainted with Mr. Joel Barlow., our celebrated countryman, then residing in Paris, in whose family he lived seven years, during which he learned the French, and something of the German and Italian languages. He also studied the high mathematics, physics, chemistry, and perspective. In December, 1797, he made an experiment in company with Mr. Barlow, on the Seine, with a machine which he had con- structed, and by which he designed to impart to carcasses of gun- powder a progressive motion under water, and there to explode them ; but he was disappointed in its performance. He continued, however, to make experiments with a view to the accomplishment of his object, until he had perfected the plan for his submarine boat. A want of funds to enable him to cariy his design into execu- tion, induced him to apply to the French Directory. They at first gave him reason to expect their aid, but after a long attendance at the public offices, he received a note, informing him that they had totally rejected his plan. Mr. Fulton was not to be discouraged, but pursued his inventions ; and having executed a handsome model of his machine, and a change in the directors having taken place, he presented his plan, and a commission was appointed to examine his pretensions ; but after three months attendance, he was again disappointed by finding his plan entirely rejected. Not yet, how. ever, discouraged, he offered his project to the British government, through the ambassador from Holland ; but without success, al- though a commission was appointed to examine his models. But the French government at length changed ; and Bonaparte having placed himself at the head of it, Mr. Fulton presented an address to him, on which a commission was immediately appointed and assistance afforded, which enabled him to put some of his plans in practice. In the spring of 1801, Mr. Fulton repaired to Brest, to make experiments with the plunging-boat which he had constructed the preceding winter. This, as he says, had many imperfections natural to a first machine, and had been injured by rust, as parts which should have been of copper or brass were made of iron. 12 162 AMERICAN MECHANICS. Notwithstanding these disadvantages, he engaged in a course of experiments, which required no less courage than energy and per- severance. From a report of his proceedings to the committee appointed jp? the French executive, we learn, that on the third of July, 18017 he embarked with three companions on board his plunging-boat in the harbor of Brest, and descended to the depth of five, ten, fifteen, and so on to twenty-five feet ; but he did not attempt to go lower, because he found that his imperfect machine would not bear the pressure of the water at a greater depth. He remained below the surface an hour in utter darkness, which was very unpleasant, and candles were found to consume too much of the vital air ; so he caused a small window of thick glass to be made near the bow of his boat, which afforded him light enough to count the minutes on his watch. Having satisfied himself that he could have sufficient light under water ; that he could do a long time without fresh air, and descend to any depth or rise to the surface with facility ; his next object was to try the movements of liis vessel, as well on the surface as under it. He found that she would tack and steer, and sail on a wind or before it, as well as any common sailing boat. He then struck her masts and sails ; to do which, and prepare for plunging, required about two minutes. Having plunged to a certain depth, he placed two men at the engine, which was intended to give her progressive motion, and one at the helm, while he, with a barometer before him, kept her balanced between the upper and lower waters. He found that with one hand he could keep her at any depth he pleased ; and that in seven minutes he had gone about the third of a mile. He could turn her round while under water, and return to the place he started from. These experiments were repeated for several days, till he became familiar with the operation of the machinery and the motion of the boat. He found that she was as obedient to her helm under water as any boat could be on the surface ; and that the magnetic needle traversed as well in one situation as in the other. On the 7th of August, Mr. Fulton descended with a store of air compressed into a copper globe, whereby he was enabled to remain under water four hours and twenty minutes. The success of these experiments determined him to try the effects of these inventions on the English ships, which were daily near the harbor of Brest. Satisfied with his boat, he next made some experiments with the torpedoes, or submarine bombs. A small vessel was anchored in the roads, and with a bomb containing about twenty pounds of powder, he approached within about two hundred yards, struck the vessel and blew her into atoms. A column of water and frag- ROBERT FULTON 163 merits was blown near one hundred feet into the air. This experi- ment was made in the presence of the prefect of the department and a multitude of spectators. Through the summer of 1801, and till the project, was relin- quished on account of the season, Mr. Fulton appears to have been watching the English ships which were on the coast ; but though some of them daily approached off the harbor, yet none of them came so near, or anchored in such a situation, as to be exposed to the effects of his attempts. In one instance, he came very near a British seventy-four ; but she, just in time, made such a change of position as to save herself. The rulers of France were discouraged by this want of success, or rather of opportunity, and, so far from being willing to make farther advances for new experiments or efforts, they showed no disposition to fulfil the engagements they had already made with Mr. Fulton. The escape of the enemy's vessels seems to have lowered his invention so much in their es- timation, that they refused to give him any farther encouragement. The English had some information respecting the attempts which their enemies were making, but did not know to what ex- tent they had been carried. Much anxiety was expressed, which induced the British minister to communicate with Mr. Fulton, the object of which was to deprive France of his services, and secure them to England. In this he was successful, and Mr. Fulton was induced to proceed to London, where he arrived in May, 1804. He sooji had an interview with Mr. Pitt and Lord Melville. When Mr. Pitt first saw a drawing of a torpedo, with a sketch of the mode of applying it, and understood what would be the effect of the explosion, he said that if it were introduced into practice, it could not fail of annihilating all military marines ; and when Mr. Fulton exhibited his torpedo and described its effects to the Earl St. Vincent, he exclaimed, in the strong language of his profession, against this mode of warfare, which, he said, with great reason, they who commanded the seas did not want, and which, if suc- cessful, would wrest the trident from those who claimed to bear it as the sceptre of supremacy over the ocean. From the subse- quent conduct of the British ministry, it may well be supposed that they never truly intended to give Mr. Fulton a fair opportunity of trying the effects of his engines. The object may have been to prevent them from being placed in the hands of an enemy ; and if this was accomplished, it was the interest of England, as long as she was ambitious of the proud title of mistress of the seas, to make the world believe that Mr. Fulton's projects were chimerical. Nothing would be more likely to produce this effect than abortive attempts to apply them. Several experiments were made, and 164 AMERICAN MECHANICS. some of them were failures ; but on the 15th of October, 1805, he blew up a strong built Danish brig of 200 tons burden, which had been provided for the experiment, and which was anchored in Walmar roads, near the residence of Mr. Pitt. The torpedo used on this occasion contained 170 pounds of powder; and in fifteen minutes from the time of starting the machinery and throwing tlie torpedo into the water, the explosion took place. It lifted the brig almost entire, and broke her completely in two. The ends sunk immediately, and in one minute nothing was to be seen of her but floating fragments. In fact, her annihilation was complete. Notwithstanding the complete success of this experiment, the British ministry seem to-have been but little disposed to have any thing farther to do with Mr. Fulton or his projects. Indeed, the evidence it afforded of their efficacy may have been a reason for this conduct. After some further experiments, of which we have no particular account, he at length embarked for his native coun- try, and arrived at New York on the 13th of December, 1806. Upon his arrival in this country, he immediately engaged in the projects, both of submarine war and steam navigation. For the last he had made some preparations before he left England ; but we intend to postpone this important subject, to be presented in one view, after tracing the progress of his other pursuits. So. far from being discouraged by his attempts at applying his torpedoes in Europe, his confidence was unabated, because he saw, as he said, that his failures were to be attributed to trivial errors-, which actual experience only could discover, and which could be easily corrected. He very soon induced our government to afford him the means of trying further experiments, and invited the magis=. tracy of New York and a number of citizens to Go-vernor's Island 1 , where were the torpedoes and machinery with which his experi- ments were to be made ; and while he was explaining his blank torpedoes, which were large copper cylinders, his numerous audi- tors crowded around him. At length he turned to a copper case of the same description, which was placed under the gateway of the fort, and to which was attached a clockwork lock. This, by drawing out a peg, he set in motion, and then said to his audience : " Gentlemen, this is a charged torpedo, with which, precisely in its present state, I mean to blow up a vessel. It contains 170 pounds of powder ; and if I were to suffer the clockwork to rur> fifteen minutes, I have no doubt but that it would blow this fortifi- cation to atoms." The circle round Mr. Fulton was very soon much enlarged, and before five of the fifteen minutes were out, there were but two or three persons remaining under the gateway The apprehensions of the company amused him^ and he took CMS ROBERT FULTON. 165 casion to remark, how true it was that fear frequently arose from ignorance. On the 20th of July, 1807, he blew up with a torpedo, in the harbor of New York, a large hulk brig, which had been prepared for the purpose. This experiment only served to prove to the in- habitants of New York, by ocular demonstration, that the explo- sion of a torpedo under a vessel's bottom would annihilate her. A The annexed cut represents one of Mr. Fulton's stationary torpedoes, which were to be carcasses of powder, having levers attached to the triggers of the locks ; num. bers of them were to be anchored in the channel through w r hich vessels, to make an attack, must pass. The hostile vessel, in passing over a torpedo, would press the lever and cause an explosion. A is the lever, and B a portion of the rope to which the anchor is attached. In a letter to the city government of New York, Mr. Fulton says : " You have now seen the effect of the explosion oT powder under the bottom of a vessel, and this, I believe, is the best and most simple mode of using it with the greatest effect in marine wars ; for a right application of one torpedo will annihilate a ship, nor leave a man to relate the dreadful catastrophe. Thus, should a ship of the line, containing five hundred men, contend with ten good row boats, each with a torpedo and ten men, she would risk total annihilation, while the boats, under cover of the night and with quick movements, would risk only a few men out of the hun- dred. When two ships of equal force engage, it may be doubtful which will gain the victory ; frequently one hundred men are killed, as many wounded, and the ships much injured. But even the vanquished vessels will admit of being repaired, and thus the number of ships of war will not be diminished ; but will continue to increase and tyrannize over the rights of neutrals and peaceable nations." In March, 1810, five thousand dollars were granted by congress for further experiments in submarine explosions, which gave Mr. Fulton another opportunity to exercise his skill. A commission was also appointed to be present and report the results. The sloop of war Argus was prepared for defence against the torpedoes, under the orders of Commodore Rogers, after Mr. Fulton had ex- plained his mode of attack. The defence was so complete, that he found it impracticable to do any thing with his torpedoes as 12* 106 AMERICAN MECHANICS. they were then prepared. Some experiments were tried, however, with his gun-harpoon and cable-cutter ; and after several attempts, a fourteen-inch cable was cut off, several feet below the surface of the water.. The. commissioners appointed to make the report did not exactly agree in sentiments concerning these experiments. The following letter from Mr. Fulton to the secretary of the navy accompanied their report : " Kalorama, (District of Columbia,) February 1, 1811. " SIR, I have the honor to return to you the report of the committee on the torpedo experiments, with that of Commodore Rogers^ and the letters of Robert R. Livingston, Morgan Lewis, and Cadwallader D. Golden, on the same subject. The opinions expressed in these papers are, I think, as favorable to this infant art as, under all circumstances, could be expected. It is proved and admitted " 1st. That the water-proof locks will ignite gunpowder under water. " 2d. It is proved that seventy pounds of powder, exploded un- der the bottom of a vessel of two hundred tons, will blow her up ; hence it is admitted by all the above parties, that if a sufficient quantity of powder (and which, I believe, need not be more than two hundred pounds,) be ignited under the bottom of a first-rate man-of-war, it would instantly destroy her. " 3d. It is proved and admitted by all parties, concerned in the experiments, that a gun can be fixed under water, and a cable of any size may be cut by that means at any required depth. With these immensely important principles proved and admitted, the question naturally occurs, whether there- be within the genius or inventive faculties of man, the means of placing a torpedo under a ship, in defiance of her powers of resistance, tie who says there is not, and that consequently torpedoes never can be rendered use- ful, must of course believe that he has penetrated to the limits of man's inventive powers, and that he has- contemplated ali the com- binations and arrangements which present or future ingenuity can devise to place a torpedo under a ship. There is no man of sound sense, who has the least acquaintance with the difficulties under which all the arts have labored in their infancy, who on calm re* flection will be so weak or vain as to presume that he possesses a strength of intellect to foresee all that can be done, not only in infant arts, but in arts now familiar and long established. " But as it is impossible now to conceive the various modes which may be invented for placing torpedoes under a ship, and as the success is of incalculable importance to our country, there is every ROBERT FULTON. 167 reason to prosecute the experiments with ardor ; and we are en- couraged to this by a contemplation of the progress of the whole military art, and particularly the attack and defence of fortified places. The celebrated Vauban, after years of experience, aided by a powerful genius, to fortify cities, confessed that it was impos- sible to make any work so strong by art alone that it could not be taken by the art and exertions of a besieging army, in which the besiegers commence by parallels and zigzags, to approach the rampart of the besieged, and run their mine or subterranean pass- age under the works to blow them up. During the whole time of their approaches, which is frequently for weeks or months, the be- siegers are under as heavy a fire from the besieged, as has or per- haps can be invented ; when the explosion makes a breach in the rampart it is defended by all the guns loaded with grape and canister shot, which can be brought to bear upon it : the trench is enfiladed with cannon and small arms. In fact the whole power of the be- sieged is directed to defend the breach, perhaps not twenty feet wide ; yet in defiance of so concentrated a fire, a fire infinitely more destructive than any ship could keep up from her bow, there are hundreds of instances of such breaches having been forced and the works taken. Is it impossible to contemplate the ingenious com- binations, the perseverance, the risk and acts of valor of a besieg- ing army, and then believe that there are not ways and means, enterprise and courage, when organized and exercised, to mine through water, which is the work of a few minutes, and blow up a ship, when the risk is not one thousandth part so great as that of storming a breachj I think, sir, this comparative view of the danger in storming a breach, and attacking a ship, proves, that added to three principles before mentioned and admitted, the cour- age to undertake the attack of a ship with torpedoes must be ad- mitted also. " I will now consider the progress of the experiments at New York, and the prospect of future improvement which they present : " First, as to the harpoon, it is admitted that at the distance of ' fifteen feet the harpoon stuck firm. 1 * Were it improved it should not be fired at a greater distance from the ship than thirty or forty feet, because the sudden jerk on the line might break it off at the torpedo : men in a boat at thirty feet distance from a ship, are in as great danger as when in with her bow and under her guns ; thus as the harpoon can be fixed at fifteen feet, I will not at present insist on a greater distance, though I am certain that prac- tice will enable me to fix the harpoons at the distance of forty or ,* It entered five inches into oak plank. 168 AMERICAN MECHANICS. more feet if required ; but I do insist that organized men, who have courage to storm a breach or to attack a vessel by boarding, have courage to approach within fifteen feet of a ship to fire a harpoon, or even if necessary to drive a spike into her bow ; when the ship discharges her bow guns, her bow must be covered with smoke, after which all shot against the boats will be random, particularly if the attack be made in the night ; but to protect the men, the torpedo boats may be decked with thick oak plank, and rendered proof against canister and musket-shot. The risk of the men would then be inconsiderable, for while a boat was near in with the bow of the ship, her cannon could not be brought to bear so as to fire round-shot. It is, therefore, a fair conclusion, that, courage added to art, a ship cannot guard herself against a torpedo attack by means of her guns and small-arms only. She must, therefore, have nets, booms, grapnels, &c. &c. " I will now do justice to the talents of Commodore Rodgers, by stating that the nets, booms, kentledge and grapnels which he ar- ranged round the Argus, made at first sight a formidable appear- ance against one torpedo boat and eight bad oarsmen. I was taken unawares ; I had explained to the officers of the navy my means of attack ; they did not inform me of their measures of defence ; the nets were put down to the ground, otherwise I should have sent the torpedoes under them. In this situation, the means with which I was provided, being imperfect, insignificant, and inade- quate to the effect to be produced, I might be compared to what Bartholomew Schwartz, the inventor of gunpowder, would have appeared, had he lived at the time of Julius Casar, and presented himself before the gates of Rome with a four-pounder, thereby en- deavoring to convince the Roman legions that by the means of such machines well organized, he could batter down the walls and take the city : a few catapultas casting arrows and stones upon his men, would have caused them to retreat ; a shower of rain might destroy his ill-guarded powder, and the Roman centurions who could not conceive the various modes in which gunpowder has since been used to destroy the then art of war, (as my opponents cannot now see the combinations by which torpedoes may super- sede the necessity of ships of w r ar,) would very naturally conclude that it was a useless invention ; while the manufacturers of cata- pultas, bows, arrows, and shields, would be the most vehement against further experiments. " This, sir, may be conceived a digression ; but being on an in- teresting subject, I have stated this supposed first experiment with a four-pounder as a case in point. Some of the first cannon were made of leather ; but if such cannon failed, does it therefore fol- ROBERT FULTON. 169 low that gunpowder was useless 1 Or does it follow, because I was not prepared to put torpedoes through a net the first time it was presented to me, that the defect was in the torpedoes ? You, sir, will instantly perceive it was not ; but arose from the want of time and experience. I had not one man instructed in the use of the machines, nor had I time to reflect on this particular mode for defending a vessel. I have now, however, had time ; and I feel confident that I have discovered a means which will render nets to the ground, booms, kentledge, grapnels, oars with sword-blades through the port-holes, and all such kinds of operations, totally useless. It is as follows : " Should an enemy of any force enter one of our ports and put her nets to the ground, let government press from the wharves four or more merchantmen, loaded or in ballast, each of them from three to four hundred tons burden ; in the magazine there should be thirty or forty torpedoes, each containing two hundred pounds of powder, and each adjusted to the end of a spar or boom, from forty to sixty feet long, tapering from the butt to the point, where the torpedo, of a conic form, and having on each side a long blade or scythe, should be firmly fixed ; let the butt end of the spar be tied so as to act like a swivel under the fore-chains, one on the larboard, the other on the starboard side, and the other end of the spars with the torpedo be hoisted up to the spritsail- yard, and held there until near the scene of action. The expense of thus preparing a ship will be 800 or 1,000 dollars, and each will be as dangerous to an enemy as a fire-ship. The expense of a fire-ship is from 8 to 10,000 dollars, which sum could cer- tainly be expended to greater advantage by arranging torpedo- ships as here proposed, and for the following reasons : First, 8,000 dollars would pay for arranging eight torpedo-ships, which could be done in a few hours ; each with two torpedoes projecting from the bow, which eight ships moving at one time towards the enemy, would divide her fire on eight points, and render it less dangerous to each than in the case of one fire-ship, which would draw on her the whole fire of the vessel attacked. " Second, the expense of a fire-ship is so great, that an attack is seldom made with more than one ; which must be grappled with the enemy, then set on fire and abandoned by her men, who must take to their boat, and expose themselves to the boats and guns of the vessel attacked. Should the fire-ship be grappled to the enemy, still she may not burn so as to communicate the fire : or if to the leeward, she may be cut adrift ; at all events, if in port, the men could escape to the shore : therefore, their danger not being great, they would work with more confidence and ardor to extinguish 170 AMERICAN MECHANICS. the flames and save their ship ; yet the clanger with which fire-ships impress an enemy makes them respect the ports where they are prepared for action. " In the year 1776, Commodore Tolbert grappled a fire-ship to a British two-decker in the river Hudson : he set his ship on fire, and returned to shore under a heavy discharge of musketry and cannon, without losing a man. He failed to burn the enemy, but he drove the vessel attacked, and one of equal force, from seven miles above New York down to Staten Island. " As it does not require so much bravery to make an attack with a torpedo-ship as to grapple a fire-ship to an enemy, the use of fire-ships proves that courage is to be found to attack with those which may be armed with torpedoes. Suppose, then, two torpedo, ships fastened to each other by a chain 80 or 100 feet long, form- ing a bridle opposite to the fore-chains, in the manner I arrange my floating torpedoes ; then to be sailed or floated down on the tide, the torpedoes let down twenty-two feet under water, one ship steered for the larboard and one for the starboard side of the ene- my ; in this manner the chain would cross her cable, before which she must either slip or cut cable and run, or the momentum of the torpedo-ships would sheer round, stern outwards, and press the torpedoes through the nets under her bottom, where instant explo- sion would be instant death : such an operation gives no time for an enemy to deliberate or exert themselves to push off, or cut tor- pedo vessels adrift, or to calculate on getting to shore in boats. The tremendous consequence of explosion under a ship deprives common men, such as sailors, of all firmness, and the irresistible danger would also influence the major part of officers : hence this mode of attack is infinitely more to be dreaded than that of fire- ships ; and for these reasons an enemy will not dare to enter our ports to put it to the test. Should any one doubt the practicability of this mode of passing torpedoes through nets and under a vessel, the importance of the object merits the experiment. " Of the anchored torpedoes, I have had the pleasure to show you the improvements I have made on these since the meeting of the committee at New York, to give them stability under water, or to take them up or put them down when necessary : there is a very simple mode to convince any unbeliever of the advantage which this kind of engine will present, and the respect for our har- bors which it will create in the mind of an enemy : let me put one under water, and they who do not believe in its effect may put their confidence to the proof by sailing over it. " A compound engine of this kind will cost from eight hundred to one thousand dollars : three hundred and twenty of them could ROBERT FULTON. 171 be made for the first cost of one ship of 54 guns ; of which three hundred and twenty, say one hundred at New York ; one hundred, if required, at Boston ; one hundred at Charleston ; twenty in the Delaware, to be placed in the waters between the forts or batteries ; and thus four ports could be guarded so as to render it impossible for the enemy's ships to enter either of them, unless they had strength first to. take possession of the land and forts, and then time to deliberately search for the torpedoes ; yet one ship of 54 guns cannot guard one port against one 74 gun-ship, although her first cost in anchored torpedoes would guard at leastithree ports against ten ships of 74 guns. In this estimate it may also be stated, that a 54 gun-ship in commission costs the nation one hundred thousand dollars a-year ; this, at five per cent., is interest to raise a loan of two millions to build the forts or batteries in barbet, between which the torpedoes should be placed.* While I thus compare the expense of torpedoes with that of a ship of 54 guns, I do not mean to object to such ships to protect our coast ; but when considered for harbor defence, or aiding forts or batteries to defend harbors, the money can be better expended in torpedoes. " In the report of the committee it is also admitted that I cut a fourteen-inch cable at the depth of six feet under water, (it was, in fact, twelve feet under the water.) In this experiment, it is true, I was five or six minutes within pistol-shot of the vessel : the rea- son is, it was only the fourth time a cable-cutting machine was ever tried ; with so little experience, I did not attempt to cut at a greater distance : the object at the time being to prove that a cable could be hooked and cut without injuring the machine. New invented instruments must be unskilfully used for a time ; but with the practice of only one month and one good boa^s crew, I will undertake to cut the cable of a ship at any given depth under water, without approaching nearer to her than eight hundred yards. I will also undertake to place myself at the distance of eight hun- dred yards from a ship having an unguarded cable, and at that distance I will put an improved cable-cutting machine in the water : I will there abandon it, and it shall go to the cable, cut it off and set the ship adrift, without any further aid on my part than placing it in the water. Such is the unforeseen and incalculable results of mechanical combinations.* It may be said, if one cable be cut and anchor lost, the enemy could put out a second, third, fourth, or fifth anchor and cable ; but as a provident government would not undertake to defend a port with one cannon, so there should be in the magazine fifteen or twenty machines for cutting cables, * This discovery has been produced by my other experiments. 172 AMERICAN MECHANICS. and there should be a marine militia practised in the use of them. In such case an enemy could not afford to exchange an anchor and cable, worth five thousand dollars, against three ounces of gunpowder, and at the same time run the risk of being driven on shore in a calm or by a lee-tide ; hence, in our calculations on harbor defence, this instrument alone will always be an embar- rassing consideration for an enemy. " It must be admitted that the whole of the experiments at New York were badly executed ; but they could not be otherwise. I had not a naan practised, nor am I experienced in the use of my own machines. I consequently was necessitated to explain my theory by such imperfect means as I had in my power ; yet, under all these disadvantages, I have, to my satisfaction, gained much useful experience, and evidently convinced some of the committee of the great importance of persevering, and particularly with a view to harbor defence. By the experiments I have discovered much of the strength and resources of 'my opponents ; and I am satisfied I can defeat every obstruction which has hitherto been presented : this I hope to prove after some practice. But having "witnessed the activity and resources of mind which Commodore Rodgers and Captain Chauncey possess, I look forward to contend with new and difficult combinations which they may produce for defence : in this manner it is probable we shall discover the prin- cipal means of defence against torpedoes, and modes of attack with them, until, like the attack and defence of fortified places, the measures to be pursued on each side, in all cases, will become fa- miliar, and a fair calculation may be made on the mode of attack- ing a ship. " But, sir, to do this, it is indispensable that I should have twenty or thirty men under my command, to be practised to the use of my engines in my own way. Well as gunnery is under- stood, no one can hope that young recruits should fire a cannon with skill and effect until they have some months practice. It is, therefore, demanding of me to perform a miracle, to apply torpe- does to advantage, break through nets, harpoon ships, and cut cables, with an outfit of one thousand dollars, and not one man practised to assist me. Compare my situation with that of my opponents ; men of talents and sound nautical knowledge, working on their own element, the commodore commanding more than four hundred men in a ship of fifty-four guns, which ship, with all her various apparatus as fitted for efficient service, is an engine pro- duced by the combined talents of some thousands of ingenious men, who have directed their attention to the improvement of ves- sels of war since the invention of gunpowder : thus the commodore, ROBERT FULTON. 173 added to his own talents, has the advantage of the experience and talents of all nautical men who have lived before him ; yet he would not be so imprudent as to face an enemy of equal force, if his men were raw recruits unpractised to the guns or working of the ship ; and it is to familiarize his men to their duty in each de- partment that he is in a state of constant practice. A succession of experiments on his men, which costs the nation one hundred thousand dollars a year, which experiments, when followed from one to ten or twenty years, at the expense of from one hundred thousand to two millions of dollars, is to enable him to do no more than fight one ship of equal force, in which contest the chances would be equal that he would not take or destroy the enemy : with all this expensive experiment for years of peace to be prepared in case of war, it is not expected that he should contend with a ship of seventy-four guns. But if experiments, which are inconsider- able in their expense compared to that of a fifty -four gun-ship, should prove that attacks with torpedoes can be rendered practi- cable and efficient, (and every reflection teaches me that they can,) it will be immaterial whether the enemy's vessel be a forty or an eighty gun-ship ; two hundred pounds of powder exploded under the bottom of either will produce certain destruction. " Thus, sir, considering this subject in these various points of view, its infancy, its prospect of success, and, if successful, its immense importance to these states, and to mankind, the small establishment, and inconsiderable sum required to practise and prove its utility, compared with the expense of other nautical establishments which promise only common and imperfect results, I conceive it highly merits a patient and candid succession of ex- periments ; for which purpose I feel the necessity of taking time, that I may have the ensuing summer to practise a few men on nets, and such other obstructions as may be presented ; which I hope, sir, will meet with your approbation and that of every friend to science. " I unite with the committee in opinion that government should not rely on this, or any new invention for defence, until its utility be fully proved. It never has been my wish that swch confidence should be placed in torpedoes, until fair experiment had proved their value beyond a doubt. " I have the honor to be, sir, with great respect, " Your most obedient, " ROBERT FULTON." It is to be feared, that the hints which Fulton has felt for the improvement of his submarine warfare, which he thought so much 13 174 AMERICAN MECHANICS. of, will be neglected ; partly for want of support, and that rare com- bination of courage, industry, and perseverance which he possessed. We must now, however, revert to an early period of his life, to trace from the beginning the progress of that great improvement in the arts, for which we, and all the world, are so much indebted to him : we mean the practical establishment of navigation by steam. At what time his attention was first directed to this sub- ject, we do not know ; but it is ascertained that, in the year 1793, he had matured a plan, in which, even at that early day, he had great confidence. It is impossible to say how far Mr. Fulton had turned his atten- tion to this subject, and what experiments, or what degree of pro- gress he had made in his plans for steamboat navigation, previously to the year 1801, when he and Chancellor Livingston met at Paris. Among his papers are a variety of drawings, diagrams, and calcu- lations, which evidently relate to the subject, but they are imper- fect ; most of them are mutilated by the accident before mentioned, and without dates, so that they cannot with certainty be assigned to any particular period. They render it very evident, however, that paddle-wheels, as they are now used in the boats which he built, were among his first conceptions of the means by which steam-vessels might be propelled. Our limits will not permit us to examine minutely, the preten- sions of those who claim to have preceded Mr. Fulton in the appli- cation of steam to navigation. That it was not successfully ac- complished by any one prior to the execution of his plan, seems to be proved by the acknowledged fact, that though in several instan- ces boats had been made to move by the force of steam, yet not one, either in Europe or America, had ever answered any other purpose than to prove an unsuccessful experiment. Mr. Fulton, when he conceived a mechanical invention, not only perceived the effect it would produce, but he could ascertain, by calculation, the power his combination would afford, how far it would be adequate to his purpose, and what would be the requisite strength of every part of the machine : and though his numerical calculations did not always prove exact, and required to be correct- ed by experiments, yet they assured him of general results. Yet he never attempted to put in practice any improvements in me- chanics, without having made his calculations, drawn his plans, and executed his models. A view of the progress of his improve- ments, as they are to be traced from the calculations, drawings, and notes on experiments which he has left, would afford the most useful lessons ; and a work which would give them to the world in a proper manner, would be invaluable. ROBERT FULTON. 175 It would be great injustice not to notice with due respect and commendation the enterprises of the late Chancellor Livingston, who had so intimate a connection with Fulton in the progress and establishment of steam navigation. While Mr. Livingston devoted much of his own time and talents to the advancement of science, and the promotion of the public good, he was fond of fostering the discoveries of others. The resources of his ample fortune were afforded with great liberality, whenever he could apply them to the support and encouragement of genius. He entertained very clear conceptions of what would be the great advantages of steamboats, on the large and extensive rivers of the United States. He had applied himself with uncommon perseverance, and at great expense, to constructing vessels and ma- chinery for that kind of navigation. As early as 1798, he be- lieved that he had accomplished his object, and represented to the legislature of New York, that he was possessed of a mode of applying the steam engine to propel a boat on new and advan- tageous principles ; but that he was deterred from carrying it into effect, by the uncertainty and hazard of a very expensive experi- ment, unless he could be assured of an exclusive advantage from it, should it be found successful. The legislature, in March, 1798, passed an act, vesting Mr. Livingston with the exclusive right and privilege of navigating all kinds of boats, which might be propelled by the force of fire or steam, on all the waters within the territory or jurisdiction of the state of New York, for the term of twenty years from the pass- ing of the act ; upon condition that he should, within a twelve- month, build such a boat, the mean of whose progress should not be less than four miles an hour. Mr. Livingston, immediately after the passing of this act, built a boat of about thirty tons burden, which was propelled by steam ; but as she was incompetent to fulfil the condition of the law, she was abandoned. Soon after he entered into a contract with Fulton, by which it was, among other things, agreed, that a patent should be taken out in the United States in Mr. Fulton's name, which Mr. Liv- ingston well knew could not be done without Mr. Fulton's taking an oath that the improvement was solely his. We have seen that Mr. Fulton's mind, previous to his return to this country, had long been directed to the project of propelling boats by steam. Upon Chancellor Livingston's arrival in France, Fulton was induced to revive his thoughts of this invention, by his represen- 176 AMERICAN MECHANICS. tations of the advantages which would be derived from naviga- tion by steam in this country, by his account of the approaches to success which he had made in his experiments, and by the pecuniary support which the chancellor's wealth enabled him to offer. Mr. Fulton began a course of calculations upon the re- sistance of water, the necessary force to move a body through it, upon the most advantageous form of the body to be moved, and upon the different means of propelling vessels which had been previously attempted ; and after a variety of calculations, he re- jected the plan proposed of using paddles or oars, likewise that of duck's feet, which open as they are pushed out, and shut as they are drawn in, and also, that of forcing water out at the stern of the vessel ; retaining two methods only, as worthy of experi- ment, namely, endless chains with resisting boards upon them, and the paddle-wheel. The latter was found to be the most promising, and finally adopted, after a number of trials with his models, on a little rivulet which runs through the village of Plombieres, to which place he had retired to pursue his expert rnents without interruption. This was in the spring of 1802. It was now determined to build an experimental boat, which was completed in the spring of 1803 ; but when Mr. Fulton was on the point of making an experiment with her, an accident happened to the boat, the wood-work not having been framed strong enough to bear the weight of the machinery, and the agita- tion of the river. The accident did the machinery very little injury ; but they were obliged to build the boat almost, entirely anew. She was completed in July ; her length was sixty-six. feet, and she was eight feet wide. Early in August, Mr. Fulton addressed a letter to the French National Institute, inviting them to witness a trial of his boat, which was made in their presence, and in the presence of a great multitude of the Parisians. The- experiment was entirely satisfactory to Mr. Fulton, though the boat did not move altogether with as much speed as he expected. But he imputed her moving so slowly to the extremely defective fabrication of the machinery, and to imperfections which were to be expected in the first experiment with so complicated a machine,, but which he saw might be easily remedied. Such entire confidence did he acquire from this experiment, that immediately afterwards he wrote to Messrs. Watt and Bolton, of Birmingham, England, ordering certain parts of a steam engine to be made for him, and sent to America. He did not disclose to them for what purpose the engine was intended ; but his directions were such as would produce the pa.rts of an engine,, ROBERT FULTON. 177 that might be put together within a compass suited for a boat. Mr. Livingston had written to his friends in this country, and through their interference, an act was passed by the legislature of the state of New York, on the 5th of April, 1803, by which the rights ajid exclusive privileges of navigating all the waters of that state, by vessels propelled by fire or steam, granted to Mr. Livingston by the act of 1798, which we have before men- tioned, were extended to Mr. Livingston and Mr. Fulton, for the term of twenty years from the date of the new act. By this law, the time of producing proof of the practicability of propelling by steam a boat of twenty tons capacity, at the rate of four miles an hour, with and against the ordinary current of the Hud- son, was extended two years, and by a subsequent law, the time was enlarged to 1807. Very soon after Mr. Fulton's arrival in New York, he commen- ced building his first American boat. While she was constructing, he found that her expenses would greatly exceed his calculations. He endeavored to lessen the pressure on his own finances, by offer- ing one third of the right, for a proportionate contribution to the expense. It was generally known that he made this offer, but n on " LEVI FARWELL, Roads and Canals." " WILLIAM B. CALHOUN,J THOMAS BLANCHARD. 207 Notwithstanding this satisfactory report, capitalists viewed it as a visionary project. Blanchard then applied to the legislature of New York, and, explaining his plans to Governor Clinton, pro. posed to try the experiment of building a railroad from Albany to Schenectady ; but he was of opinion that it was too soon after the completion of the Erie canal. Finding himself before the times, he abandoned the subject. In 1826, it was determined by some gentlemen residing at Hartford to improve the navigation at the rapids called Enfield Falls, on the Connecticut, between that city and Springfield. These falls are in a rocky, crooked channel of about two miles in length, and are composed of a number of short, shoal rapids, amounting in the whole to about thirty feet descent. The method at that time employed was to navigate them in flat-boats, and even then it was impossible to ascend them without a favorable wind and the assistance of polesmen. Accordingly, a company was formed and the funds raised to build a steamboat for this purpose. Previous to commencing, an agent was sent to examine the differ- ent kinds of boats in use on the western waters. On his return, one was built in New York, on the most approved plan, with the wheel under the stern, but, on trial, it proved unsuccessful. The project was then given up as useless, and a canal dug around the falls, at an expense of two hundred thousand dollars, sufficiently large to admit of the passage of a small steamer. In anticipation of its completion, a company in Springfield employed Mr. Blan- chard as an agent to build a steamboat. While it was construct- ing, a freshet damaged the canal so as to cause over a year's delay in its completion. This event caused Blanchard to make the at- tempt to navigate the falls with their boat, but it proved as fruitless as the experiment of the canal company. This led him to study the subject more fully, to make experiments as to the best form for a boat and wheels, to examine the rapids, ascertain the speed of the water, and calculate the power required to ascend them. While thus engaged, he made an important discovery, in which consisted the true secret of his success. This was in placing the wheel at that point astern where the greatest eddy is formed by the filling in of the water after the passage of the boat ; an ar- rangement by which the paddles give a much more powerful effect than when placed on the sides or immediately astern, as on the western rivers : and for the simple reason that the vacuum created by the passage of the boat causes the current to set in after it with such velocity as to offer a very powerful resistance to the paddles as they strike against the water. Finding no one willing to assist him, he was determined to 208 AMERICAN MECHANICS. build, at his own expense, a boat on the foregoing plan. While constructing, it was regarded by the public as a visionary scheme and a waste of money. It was made of the best materials, of light draught, and wrought instead of cast iron used in the formation of the engine. By little practice, she ascended the falls with perfect ease, and made her daily trips between Springfield and Hartford as a passage-boat. This was the commencement of a new era in the prosperity of Springfield, for Hartford was no longer the head of steam navigation. In the autumn of 1828, Blanchard made an excursion with a party in his boat up the Connecticut above Springfield, passing through its fertile and romantic valley for a distance of one hun- dred and fifty miles. Many of the inhabitants had never seen a steamboat, and consequently flocked to the river by thousands to witness the wonderful power of steam. Having heard of the burst- ing of boilers, many were at first afraid to approach ; but curiosity conquering their fears, they became anxious to see and take a short trip. Its arrival was welcomed by the ringing of bells and the firing of cannon. At one village, so great was the enthusiasm that a line was formed on the river bank, composed of all sexes, who, as she passed, made the welkin ring with their acclamations. The success of this boat, which was named the Vermont, in- duced Blanchard to build another and far superior one, (the Mas- sachusetts,) of a larger size, and drawing eighteen inches of water. The wheel and weighty portions of the machinery were supported by two arches of peculiar construction running lengthwise of the vessel, combining great strength with little weight. She was thus enabled to carry two steam engines, one on each side, driving the paddle wheel, with a crank on each end of the wheel shaft, set at right angles with each other. By this arrangement there was not any dead point, or slacking of the wheel, while making a revolu- tion, a very important point in ascending rapids. The facility of this mode of conveyance caused the travel and transportation to more than double between the two places. Finding that small rapid rivers could be navigated by this mode of conveyance, Mr. Blanchard soon had many applications from different parts of the union, and in 1830 was employed to build a boat on the Alleghany, to ply between Pittsburg and Olean Point, a distance of three hundred miles ; the fall amounting in the whole to six hundred feet, and the river in many places very rapid. This boat was named the Alleghany, and set out on her first trip in the month of May, with thirty passengers and twenty-five tons of freight, passing through many pleasant villages where a steamboat had never been. On reaching the village of the celebrated Indian THOMAS BLANCHARD. 209 chief Cornplanter, an invitation was given him to take an excur- sion up the river ; he at first hesitated, but on being assured that there was no danger, went on board with his family. He wit- nessed the various parts of the machinery, the engine, paddle, wheels, &c., with astonishment, exclaiming, in broken English, " Great ! great /-great power /" The Alleghany drawing only eighteen inches of water, was enabled to ascend many of the small streams that empty into the Ohio, and so established the practica- bility of navigating small and rapid rivers, that this kind of boat has since gone into universal use. Like all other inventors, Blanchard has experienced his sharo of wrong from the selfishness of his fellow men. He has secured no less than twenty-four patents for as many different inventions. But a small portion have been of sufficient benefit to pay for the expense of getting them up. Many of them have been used with- out consent, or even so far as giving him the credit of their inven- tion. While making his first model for turning irregular forms, a neighbor attempted to defraud him of it, by obtaining others to privately watch his movements, who would copy as fast as he pro- gressed. On Blanchard 1 s going to Washington to secure the right, to his great astonishment he found a caveat had been lodged for the same invention only the day previous. Luckily he had taken the precaution, at the time his model was first put into operation, to call two witnesses to view it, and note the date ; so he was en- abled on trial to sustain his right. Scarcely, however, was this difficulty surmounted before another attempt was made to deprive him of it, A company was about forming in Boston, to put it into operation for turning ships 1 tackle-blocks, for which right the in- ventor was to receive several thousand dollars. Two individuals, discovering, on examination, (as they thought,) that the claim was too broad, informed Blanchara of it, at the same time threatening that, unless he would give them one half of what he was about to receive, they would make it public : he rejected these proposals with scorn and indignation. Thereupon an article appeared in the prints, cautioning the public, and stating that the inventor had claimed more than he had invented. This so alarmed those in- terested, that a stop was put to the formation of the company ; he thereupon surrendered up the patent, and took out another. After he obtained a renewal of his patent by act of congress in 1834, he was determined to prosecute, in order to. realize something from his labors. On bringing a suit before Judge Story, of Boston, he was nonsuited through two defects in the patent : one of which was in the date of the patent set forth jn the act, and the other in terming the invention a machine, 15* 210 AMERICAN MECHANICS. instead of an engine. On application to congress, although stren- uously opposed by the defendants in the former case, the mis- take was rectified. Subsequently another suit was commenced against the same violators. The defence set up was, first, that the plaintiff did not describe his machine so clearly in the specifica- tion as to enable a skilful artist to build it ; secondly, that the ma- chine was not the invention of the plaintiff; and thirdly, that the claim was for the function, and not for the machine itself. But not any proof being brought to establish this defence, the court overruled all objections, and gave judgment for the plaintiff. His honor Judge Story, on making his remarks, paid the following high compliment to Mr. Blanchard, viz. : " That after much trouble, care, and anxiety, he will be enabled to enjoy the fruits, unmolested, of his inventive genius, of which he had a high opin- ion ; and it afforded him much pleasure in thus being able publicly to express it." Mr. Blanchard, at the present time, is residing in New York city, where he is engaged in an invention promising to be of supe- rior utility. We trust that success will attend all his future efforts : and may he continue to merit the increased gratitude of his fellow-, citizens by the productions of his inventive talents.. HENRY ECKFORD. Birth. Is placed with an eminent naval constructor at Quebec. Commences ship-building in New York. Establishes the reputation of the naval archi- tecture of that city. Improvements. Indebtedness of our country to his exer- tions during the late war. Verplanck's tribute to his memory. Builds the steam-ship " Robert Fulton." Is appointed naval constructor at Brooklyn. Builds the Ohio. Resigns. Is engaged in constructing vessels of war for the various European and some of the South American governments. Plan for a new organization of the navy. Unfortunate connection with a stock company. Honorable acquittal. Is appointed chief naval constructor of the Turkish empire. Death. Character. WE are indebted to the kindness of a friend for the following memoir of one, whose talents and industry evinced in improving the popular arm of our national defence, should render our coun- try proud of ranking him among her adopted children. Henry Eckford was born at Irvine, (Scotland,) March 12, 1775. At the age of sixteen he was sent out to Canada, and placed under the care of his maternal uncle, Mr. John Black, an eminent naval constructor at Quebec. Here he remained for three or four years, and in 1796, at the age of twenty-one, commenced his labors in New York. His untiring industry and attention to business soon procured for him numerous friends ; and the superior style in which his ships were built excited general attention. At that time the vessels constructed at Philadelphia stood highest in the public esteem ; but it is scarcely too much to say, that those built by Mr. Eckford soon occupied the first rank, and gradually New York built ships bore away the palm from all competitors. Equally con- versant with the theoretical as well as with the practical part of his profession, he never frittered away his own time or the money of his employers in daring experiments, which so often extort ap- plause from the uninformed multitude. He preferred feeling his way cautiously, step by step. Upon the return of one of his ves- sels from a voyage, by a series of questions he obtained from her commander an accurate estimate of her properties under all the casualties of navigation. This, connected with her form, enabled him to execute his judgment upon the next vessel to be built. In this way he proceeded, successively improving the shape of each, until those constructed by him ; or after his models, firmly estab- 212 AMERICAN MECHANICS. lished the character of New York built ships over those of any other port in the union. It would be impossible, within the limits prescribed by the na- ture of this work, to point out the various improvements in the shape and rig of all classes of vessels suggested by the fertile mind of Mr. Eckford ; and perhaps their technical details would be unintelligible to ordinary readers. It is sufficient to observe, that after his models our vessels gradually dispensed with their large and low stern frames, the details of their rigging underwent ex- tensive changes, and in the important particulars of stability, speed, and capacity, they soon far surpassed their rivals. Mr. Eckford had married and become identified with the inter, ests of his adopted country when the war broke out between America and England. He entered into contracts with the gov- ernment to construct vessels on the lakes, and the world witnessed With astonishment a fleet of brigs, sloops of war, frigates, and ships of the line, constructed within an incredibly short space of time. At the present day, we can scarcely appreciate the difficulties and discouragements under which operations on so extended a scale were obliged to be conducted. The country was comparatively wild and uninhabited, the winters long and severe, provisions and men, with the iron-work, tools, rigging, and sails, were to be transported from the sea-coast, the timber was still waving in the forests, and, to crown the whole, the funds provided by the govern, ment were in such bad repute, that, to obtain current funds there- from, Mr. Eckford was obliged to give his personal guarantee. Under all these embarrassments, he commenced his operations with his accustomed activity and judgment, organized his plans, and offered every inducement to the interests, the pride, and the patriotism of those in his. employ to labor to the extent of their ability. Encouraged by his presence and example, they entered upon their labors with enthusiasm, and neither night nor day saw a respite to their toils. The consequences were quickly apparent.. A respectable fleet was soon afloat, and our frontier preserved from the invasion of a foe as active and persevering as ourselves. In allusion to these efforts, one of our intelligent citizens, Mr. Ver^ planck, in a discourse delivered before the Mechanics 1 Institute, has happily observed, " I cannot forbear from paying a passing tribute to the memory of a townsman and a friend. It is but a few days since that the wealth, talent, and public station of this city were assembled to pay honor to the brave and excellent Com- modore Chauncey. Few men could better deserve such honors, either by public service or private worth ; but all of us who recok lect the events of the struggle for naval superiority on the lakes HENRY ECKFORD. 213 during the late war with Great Britain, could not help calling to mind that the courage, the seamanship, and ability of Chauncey would have been exerted in vain, had they not been seconded by the skill, the enterprise, the science, the powers of combination, and the inexhaustible resources of the ship-builder, Henry Eck- ford." At the conclusion of the war, his accounts, involving an amount of several millions of dollars, were promptly and honorably settled with the government. Shortly after this, he constructed a steam-ship, the " Robert Fulton, 1 ' of a thousand tons, to navigate between New York and New Orleans. Unlike the light and fairy-like models of the pre- sent day, which seem only fit for smooth water and summer seas, she was a stout and burdensome vessel, fitted to contend with the storms of the Atlantic, and her performance, even with the dis- advantage of an engine of inadequate power, far exceeded every expectation. The sudden death of her owner, in connection with other circumstances, caused her to be sold ; and it is no slight commendation of her model, that when she was afterwards rigged into a sailing vessel, she became the fastest and most efficient sloop-of-war (mounting twenty-four guns) in the Brazilian navy. It is to be regretted that the model then proposed by Mr. Eckford for sea steamers has not been followed. The vain attempt to ob- tain speed, without a corresponding change in the shape of the model, that would enable them to contend successfully with heavy seas, has been attended with disgraceful failures, involving an im- mense loss of lives. A strong feeling of professional pride induced Mr. Eckford to accept an invitation from the Secretary of the navy to become naval constructor at Brooklyn. He was desirous of building a line-of-battle ship for the ocean that should serve as a model for future vessels of that class, and in the Ohio, we believe, it is gene- rally conceded such a model has been obtained. Her ports, it is true, have been altered to suit the whim of some ignorant officer, who has thus weakened her frame in order to imitate an English model, and her spars have been curtailed of their due proportions, to gratify a commissioner's fancy ; but, under all these disadvan- tages, she is to remain a model for future constructors. Unfor- tunately, our marine was then encumbered, as it is now, with a board of commissioners composed of old navy officers, who fancied that because they commanded ships they could build them, an idea as preposterous as it would have been to have intrusted the naval constructors with their command. Under this sage adminis- tration of the affairs of the navy, six ships of the line, costing four 214 AMERICAN MECHANICS. millions of dollars, were constructed ; the constructors received their orders from the sages at Washington, and each vessel, as was to have been expected, became worse than the preceding. Two of them are permitted to rot in the mud, a third has been cut down to a frigate possessing no very creditable properties, and the others, if not humanely suffered to rot, will probably follow their example. The same signal disgrace has fallen upon our sloops of war. Under a mistaken idea of strength and stability, their frames are solid, and in many instances their leeway and headway are nearly balanced. Some of them, we are officially informed, possess every desirable property, except that they are rather difficult to steer! Those in the least acquainted with the subject need hardly be informed that this exception, trifling as it seems, is conclusive against the model. At the head of this board was Commodore John Rodgers, and his instructions and his orders were to be the basis of Mr. Eck- ford^ operations. These orders, copied, for the most part, out of some exploded work on naval architecture, were wisely disre- garded, although their receipt was duly acknowledged ; and he has been heard to observe, that when the vessel was completed, he would have challenged the whole board to have examined and pointed out in what particulars their orders had not been implicitly obeyed. Under the orders of the commissioners, he had prepared a model which, after due examination, was graciously approved of. When Mr. Eckford proceeded to lay down the vessel, he thought fit to introduce many important changes, and the only genuine draught of the Ohio is now owned by Mr. Isaac Webb, one of the most intelligent of his pupils. The consequence, however, of these collisions between presuming ignorance and modest worth were soon obvious. Mr. Eckford resigned his commission on the day the Ohio was launched ; and shortly after received an intimation, that he would never see her put in commission as long as the mem- bers of that board held their seats. This promise, as our readers are aware, was kept for eighteen years. Shortly after this he engaged extensively in his profession ; and so great and extended became his reputation, that he was called upon to construct vessels of war for various European powers, and for some of the republics of South America. Among others, he built and despatched to Columbia and Brazil four 64 gun-ships, of 2000 tons each, in the incredibly short space of eighteen months. In these cases his accounts were promptly adjusted, and he re- ceived from all parties highly honorable testimonials of his integ- rity, punctuality, and good faith. He subsequently received pro- HENRY ECKFORD. 215 posals to build two frigates for Greece ; but as he thought he perceived, on the part of the agents, a disposition to take an unfair advantage of the necessities of that nation, he honorably and hu- manely declined their tempting propositions. All are aware of the disastrous and (to this country) disgraceful manner in which that business terminated. Upon the accession of General Jackson to the presidency, he received from* him an invitation to furnish him with a plan for a new organization of the navy. This was promptly furnished, and was pronounced by all who read it to be exactly what was required for an efficient and economical administration of the navy. It was not acted upon, although its adoption would have materially ad- vanced the interests of the country. Among other novel proposi- tions, it was recommended to remodel entirely the dockyards. These were to be under the superintendence of superannuated commodores, who, in taking command, would relinquish their rank and make way for more active officers. The constructor at each yard was to be held responsible for the quantity and quality of work done, and only amenable to the chief constructor at Wash- ington. This latter office, he took occasion, however, to say, he could not, under any circumstances, be persuaded to accept. He wished, in short, from what he had himself observed of the extra- vagance, waste, and delay at our dockyards, to place them on a civil footing, as more consonant to the feelings of the mechanics and the spirit of our institutions. About this- period he determined to prepare and publish a work on naval architecture, for which he had ample materials, and numerous draughts of vessels of almost every class. He had also set aside twenty thousand dollars to establish a professorship of naval architecture in Columbia college, and had already entered into correspondence with an eminent constructor, Mr. Doughty, whom he had intended as the first professor, when a disastrous affair occurred, involving his reputation and his ample fortune. An insurance company, in which he was largely interested, be- came, in the panic of the day, insolvent, and its creditors ventured, in the madness of the moment, to throw doubts on the hitherto unimpeached character of Mr. Eckford. In this they were aided by a knot of political partisans, to whom his silent, but gradually increasing popularity, (which had, Jong ere this, placed him in the state legislature,) was gall and wormwood. Notwithstanding he satisfactorily proved that he had lost, by stock, and other ad- vances to save the sinking credit of the company, nearly half a million of dollars, yet his enemies affected to discredit his testi- mony, upon the ground that such unparalleled sacrifices were too 216 AMERICAN MECHANICS. disinterested to be credible. The termination of the investigation resulted in his complete and honorable acquittal, but the venomed shaft rankled in his kind and gentle breast to the hour of his death. It is no consolation to his numerous friends and relatives to know, that all who joined in this base conspiracy against this pure-minded and well-principled man have since paid the forfeit of their infuriated zeal, by the silent, but withering contempt of their fellow-citizens. In 1831, he built a sloop-of-war for the Sultan Mahmoud, and was induced to visit Turkey. His fame as a skilful architect had preceded him, and he was shortly afterwards offered the situation of chief naval constructor for the empire. A field worthy of his enterprise seemed open to him. With his characteristic energy he commenced the organization of the navy yard, and laid down the keel of a ship of the line. He had rapidly entered in her con- struction, and had so far advanced in the favor of the sultan that preparations were in train to create him a Bey of the empire, when his labors were suddenly brought to a close by his lamented death, from inflammation of the bowels, which occurred November 12, 1832, in the fifty-seventh year of his age. In private life, Eckford was remarkably simple in his manners and habits. Abstemious and temperate, he always possessed un- clouded faculties ; and his quiet attention and kindness to all under his control enabled him to secure their ready co-operation in any of his plans which required from them willing and prompt exer- tions. The scrupulous observance of his contracts to the mi- nutest particular was with him a point of honor ; and his dealings with his fellow-men bore rather the character of princely munifi- cence than the generosity of a private individual. Throughout life, and amid transactions involving millions, he maintained the same unassuming habits, considering himself but the mere trustee for the benefit of others ; and died as he had lived, honored and beloved by all who knew him. JOHN SMEATON. FOREIGN MECHANICS. JOHN SMEATON. JOHN SMEATON was born the 28th of May, 1724, at Austhorpe, near Leeds. The strength of his understanding and the origin- ality of his genius appeared at an early age. His playthings, it is said by one long well acquainted with him, were not the playthings of children, but the tools men work with, and he ap- peared to derive more pleasure from seeing the men in the neigh- borhood work, and asking them questions, than from any thing else. When not quite six years old, he was seen one day, much to the alarm of his friends, on the top of his father's barn, fixing up some- thing like a windmill. Not long after he attended some men fix-- ing a pump at a neighboring village, and observing them cut off a piece of bored pipe, he was so lucky as to procure it, and actually made with it a working punip that raised water. In his fourteenth and fifteenth years, he made for himself an engine to turn rose- work, and presented his friends with boxes turned in ivory or wood. At the age of eighteen he had acquired by the strength of his genius and indefatigable industry, an extensive set of tools, and the art of working in most of the mechanical trades, without the assistance of any master, and this with an expertness seldom surpassed. His father was an attorney, and intended to bring up his son to his own profession ; but the latter finding, to use his own words, " that the law did not suit the bent of his genius," obtained his parent's consent that he should seek a more congenial employment. Accordingly he came to London, where he established himself as a mathematical instrument maker, and soon became known to the scientific circles by several ingenious inventions ; among which were a new kind of magnetic compass, and a machine for measur- ing a ship's way at sea. In 1753, he was elected a member of the Royal Society, and contributed several papers to, their philosophical transactions. In the succeeding year he visited Holland, travelling mostly on foot 16 220 FOREIGN MECHANICS. and in passage-boats, to make himself master, with greater ease r of the mechanical contrivances of those countries. A few years after his return he was applied to, to rebuild the Eddystone light- house, a structure which has rendered his name so celebrated. To more fully illustrate the difficulties he had to surmount, we give in connection a brief history of the lighthouse. Eddystone lighthouse is erected on one of the rocks of that name, which lie in the English Channel about fourteen miles S.S.W. from Plymouth. The nearest land to the Eddystone rocks is the point to the west of Plymouth called the Ram Head, from which they are about ten miles almost directly south. As these rocks (called the Eddystone, in all probability, from the whirl or eddy which is occasioned by the waters striking against them) were not very much elevated above the sea at any time, and at high water were quite covered by it, they formed a most dangerous obstacle to nav- igation, and several vessels were every season lost upon them. Many a gallant ship which had voyaged in safety across the whole breadth of the Atlantic, was shattered to pieces on this hidden source of destruction as it was nearing port, and went down with its crew in sight of their native shores. It was therefore very de- sirable that the spot should, if possible, be pointed out by a warning light. But the same circumstances which made the Eddystone rocks so formidable to the mariner, rendered the attempt to erect a lighthonse upon them a peculiarly difficult enterprise. The task, however, was at last undertaken by a Mr. Henry Winstanley, of Littlebury in Essex, a gentleman of some property, and not a reg- ularly-bred engineer or architect, but only a person with a natural turn for mechanical invention, and fond of amusing himself with ingenius experiments,, and withal was somewhat of an excentric character. In his house at Littlebury, a visiter would enter a room where he saw an old slipper on the floor ; he would kick away the slipper, and a figure with the appearance of a being from the other world would start up before him. He would sit down in a chair, and immediately a pair of arms would clasp him around the waist. He would go into an arbor in the garden, by the side of a canal, and straightway he would find himself afloat in the middle of that piece of water, without the power of getting ashore, until a per- son in the secret had moved certain machinery. Mr. Winstanley also contrived some ingenious water- works. The fabric erected by this amateur engineer, upon the Eddy- stone, was of timber, sixty feet high, and was four years in build- ing ; during which time the workmen suffered much from bad weather, and were once or twice taken off in a state of starvation, after having been for weeks debarred all intercourse with the land. JOHN SMEATON. 221 Finding that the waves often rose so high as to bury the lantern, Mr. Winstanley, in the fourth year, enlarged the base and added forty feet to the height ; and yet in violent weather the sea would seem to fly a hundred feet above the vane ; and it was generally said that a six-oared boat might have been directed on the top of a wave through the open gallery of the lighthouse. In Novem- ber, 1703, some repairs being required, Mr. Winstanley went down to Plymouth to superintend the performance of them. The general opinion was, that the building would not be of long dura- tion ; but the builder held different sentiments. As he was about to embark with his workmen, the danger was intimated to him in a friendly manner, and it was remarked that one day or other the lighthouse would certainly overset. To this he replied, that he was so well assured of its stability, " that he should only wish to be there in the greatest storm that ever New" In this wish he was but too soon gratified ; for on the 26th of the month just men- tioned, while he was still superintending the repairs, there occurred one of the severest storms within the memory of the oldest inhabit- ants ; being the same which Defoe thought proper to chronicle in a volume under the title of " THE STORM." When the people looked abroad the next morning, not a trace of the Eddystone lighthouse was to be seen. The whole fabric, with its ingenious architect, and many other persons, had perished. As if to show the necessity of instantly rebuilding it, the Win- chelsea, a homeward-bound Virginiaman, almost immediately after, struck upon the rock, and was lost, with most of the crew. It was not, however, till 1706, that a new work was commenced. The second Eddystone lighthouse was built as the private under- taking of a Captain Lovett. The immediate architect was Mr. John Rudyard, a linen draper, who, like Winstanley, seems to have had a taste for mechanical pursuits. The building was in the lower part constructed of alternate courses of granite and oak timber ; in the upper part, of timber alone : the whole being cased in timber very carefully jointed. The light-room was sixty-one feet above the rock, and the whole height to the ball at the top was ninety-two. The general form was circular, and there were no projections of any kind, in both of which respects it improved upon the former building, which was heavy cornered, with many superfluous ornaments. During the progress of the work, a French privateer took the men upon the lighthouse, together with their tools, and carried them to France, where the captain, it is said, expected a reward for his exploit. While the captives lay in prison, the transaction reached the ears of Louis XIV. who immediately ordered them to be released, and the captors to be 222 FOREIGN MECHANICS. put into their place ; declaring that though he was at war with England, he was not at war with mankind. He accordingly directed the men to be returned to their work with presents, as a compensation for the inconvenience which they had suffered. The lighthouse was completed in 1709. From the simplicity of the figure of this building, and the judg- ment shown in its construction, it was considered likely, notwith- standing the nature of the materials, to have withstood the effects of the winds and waves for an unlimited period. It was doomed, however, to fall before an accident which had not been calculated upon. At two o'clock on the morning of the 3d of December, 1755, one of the three men who had the c-harge of it, having gone up to snuff the candles in the lantern, found the place full of smoke, from the midst of which, as soon as he opened the door, a flame burst forth. A spark from some of the twenty-four candles, which were kept constantly burning, had probably ignited the- wood-work, or the flakes of soot hanging from the roof. The> man instantly alarmed his companions ; but being in, bed and asleep, it was some time before they arrived to his assistance.. In the mean time he did his utmost; to effect the extinction of the fire by heaving water up to it (it was burning four yards above him) from a tubful which always stood in the place. The other tw,o, when they came* brought up rnpre water from below ; but a grew unable to work, Mr. Brindley, by his" ingenuity and application, kept up the business with credit, and even supported the old man and his family in a comfortable manner." His master, indeed, from all that we hear of him, does not ap- pear to have been very capable of teaching him much of any thing ; and Brindley seems to have been left to pick up his know- ledge of the business in the best way he could', by his own obser- vation and sagacity. Bennet having been employed on one occasion, we. are told, to build the machinery of a paper-mill, which he had never seen in his life, took a journey to a distant part of the country expressly for the purpose of inspecting- one which might serve him for a model. However, he had made his observations, it would seem, to- very little purpose ;-. for, having returned home and fallen to work, he could make nothing of the business at all, and was only bewildering himself, when a stranger, who understood something of such matters, happening one day to see what he was about, felt no scruple in remarking in the neigh- borhood that the man was only throwing- away his employer's money. The reports which in consequence got abroad soon reached the ears of Brindley, who had been employed on the machinery under the directions of his master. Having probably of himself begun ere this to suspect that all was not right, his suspicions were only confirmed by what he heard ; but, aware how unlikely it was- that his master would be able to explain matters, or even to assist him in getting out of his difficulties, he 21* 302 FOREIGN MECHANICS. did not apply to him. On the contrary, he said nothing to any one ; but, waiting till the work of the week was over, set out by himself one Saturday evening to see the mill which his master had already visited. He accomplished his object, and was back to his work by Monday morning, having travelled the whole journey of fifty miles on foot. Perfectly master now of the con- struction of the mill, he found no difficulty in going on with his undertaking ; and completed the machine, indeed, not only so as perfectly to satisfy the proprietor, but with several improvements on his model, of his own contrivance. After remaining some years with Bennet, he set up in business for himself. With the reputation he had already acquired, his entire devotion to his profession, and the wonderful talent for me- chanical invention, of which almost every piece of machinery he constructed gave evidence, he could not fail to succeed. But for some time, of course, he was known only, in the neighborhood of the place where he lived. His connections, however, gradually became more and more extensive ; and at length he began to undertake engineering in all its branches. He distinguished him- self greatly in 1752, by the erection of a water-engine for drain- ing a coal-mine at Clifton in Lancashire. The great difficulty in this case was to obtain a supply of water for working the engine ; this he brought through a tunnel of six hundred yards in length, cut in the solid rock. It would appear, however, that his genius was not yet quite appreciated as it deserved to be, even by those who employed him, He was in some sort an intruder into his present profession, for which he had not been regularly educated ; and it was natural enough that, before his great powers had had an opportunity of showing themselves, and commanding the uni- versal admiration of those best qualified to judge of them, he should have been conceived by many to be rather a merely clever workman in a few particular departments, than one who could be safely intrusted with the entire management and superintendence of a complicated design. In 1755 it was determined to erect a new silk-mill at Congleton, in Cheshire ; and another person hav- ing been appointed to preside over the execution of the work, and to arrange the more intricate combinations, Brindlcy was engaged to fabricate the larger wheels and other coarser parts of the ap- paratus. It soon became manifest, however, in this instance, that the superintendent was unfit for his office ; and the proprietors were obliged to apply to Brindley to remedy several blunders into which he had fallen, and give his advice as to how the work should be proceeded in. Still they did not deem it proper to dismiss their incapable projector ; but, the pressing difficulty overcome, would JAMES BRINDLEY. 303 have had him by whose ingenuity they had been enabled lo get over it, to return to his subordinate place, and work under the directions of the same superior. This Brindley positively refused to do. He told them he was ready, if they would merely let him know what they wished the machine to perform, to apply his best endeavors to make it answer that purpose, and that he had no doubt he should succeed ; but he would not submit to be super- intended by a person whom he had discovered to be quite ignorant of the business he professed. This at once brought about a proper arrangement of matters. Brindley's services could not be dis- pensed with ; those of the pretender, who had been set over him, might be so, without much disadvantage. The entire manage- ment of the work, therefore, was forthwith confined to the former, who completed it, with his usual ability, in a superior manner. He not only made important improvements, indeed, in many parts of the machine itself, but even in the mode of preparing the separate pieces of which it was to be composed. His ever-active genius was constantly displaying itself by the invention of the most beautiful and economical simplifications. One of these was a method which he contrived for cutting 'all his tooth and pinion wheels by machinery, instead of having them done by the hand, as they always till then had been. This invention enabled him to finish as much of that sort of work in one day as had formerly been accomplished in fourteen. But the character of this man's mind was comprehensiveness and grandeur of conception ; and he had not yet found any ade- quate field for the display of his vast ideas and almost inexhausti- ble powers of execution. Happily, however, this was at last afforded him, by the commencement of a. series of undertakings in his native country, which deservedly rank among the achieve- ments of modern enterprise and mechanical skill ; and which were destined, within no long period, to change the whole aspect of the internal commerce of the island. Artificial water-roads, or canals, were well known to the an- cients. Without transcribing all the learning that has been col- lected upon the subject, and may be found in any of the common treatises, we may merely state that the Egyptians had early effect- ed a junction, by this means, between the Red Sea and the Medi- terranean ; that both the Greeks and the Romans attempted to cut a canal across the Isthmus of Corinth ; and that the latter people actually cut one in Britain from the neighborhood of Peterborough to that of Lincoln, some traces of which are still discernible. Canal navigation is also of considerable antiquity in China. The greatest work of this description in the world is the Imperial Canal 304 FOREIGN MECHANICS. of that country, which is two hundred feet broad, and, commen- cing at Pekin, extends southward, to the distance of about nine hundred rniles. It is supposed to have been constructed about eight centuries ago ; but there are a great many smaller works of the same kind in the country, many of which are undoubtedly much older. The Chinese are unacquainted, as were also the ancients, with the contrivance called a lock, by means of which different levels are connected in modern canals, and which, as probably all our readers know, is merely a small intermediate space, in which the water can be kept at the same elevation as either part of the channel, into which the boat is admitted by the opening of one floodgate, and from which it is let out by the opening of an- other, after the former has been, shut; the purpose being thus attained, of floating it onwards, without any greater waste of water than the quantity required to alter the level of the enclosed space. When locks are not employed, the canal, must be either of uniform level throughout, or it must consist of a succession of completely separated portions of water-way, from, one to the other of which the boat is carried on an inclined plane, or by some other mechan- ical contrivance. Canals have also been long in use in several of the countries of modern Europe, particularly in. the Netherlands and in France. In the former, indeed, they constitute the principal means of com- munication between one place and another, whether for commer- cial or other purposes. In France, the canals of Burgundy, of Briare, of Orleans, and of Languedoc, all contribute important facilities to the commerce of the country. The last mentioned, which unites the Mediterranean to the Atlantic, is sixty feet broad and one hundred and fifty miles in length. It was finished in 1681 ; having employed twelve thousand men for fifteen years, and cost twelve hundred thousand pounds sterling. It is remarkable that, with these examples before her, England was so late in availing herself of the advantages- of canal naviga- tion. The subject, however, had not been altogether unthought of. As early as the reign of Charles the Second, a scheme was in agi- tation for cutting a canal (which has since been made) between the Forth and the Clyde, in the northern part of the kingdom ; but the idea was abandoned, from the difficulty of procuring the requi- site funds. A very general impression, too, seems to have been felt, in the earlier part* of the last century, as to the desirableness of effecting a canal navigation between the central English coun- ties and either the metropolis or the eastern coast. The first modern canal actually executed in England, was not begun till the year 1755. It was the result of a sudden thought JAMES BRINDLEY. 305 on the part of its undertakers, nothing of the kind having been contemplated by them when they commenced the operations which led to it. They had obtained an act of parliament for rendering navigable the Sankey brook, in Lancashire, which flows into the river Mersey, from the neighborhood of the now flourishing town of St. Helen's, through a district abounding in valuable beds of coal. Upon surveying the ground, however, with more care, it was considered better to leave the natural course of the stream altogether, and to cariy the intended navigation along a new line ; in other words, to cut a canal. The work was accordingly com- menced ; and the powers of the projectors having been enlarged by a second act of parliament, the canal was eventually extended to the length of about twelve miles. It has turned out both a highly successful speculation for the proprietors, and a valuble pub- lic accommodation. It is probable that the Sankey Canal, although it did not give birth to the first idea of the great work we are now about to de- scribe, had at least the honor of prompting the first decided step towards its execution. Francis, duke of Bridgewater, who, while yet much under age, had succeeded, in the year 1748, by the death of his elder brothers, to the family estates, and the title, which had been first borne by his father, had a property at Worsley, about seven miles west from Manchester, extremely rich in coal-mines, which, however, had hitherto been unproductive, owing to the want of any sufficiently economical means of transport. The object of supplying this defect had for some time strongly engaged the atten- tion of the young duke, as it had, indeed, done that of his father ; who, in the year 1732, had obtained an act of parliament enabling him to cut a canal to Manchester, but had been deterred from com- mencing the work, both by the immense pecuniary outlay which it would have demanded, and the formidable natural difficulties against which, at that time, there was probably no engineer in the country able to contend. When the idea, however, was now re- vived, the extraordinary mechanical genius ot Brindley had already acquired for him an extensive reputation, and he was applied to by the duke, to survey the ground through which the proposed canal would have to be carried, and to make his report upon the practi- cability of the scheme. New as he was to this species of engi- neering, Brindley, confident in his own powers, at once undertook to make the desired examination, and, having finished it, expressed his conviction that the ground presented no difficulties which might not be surmounted. On receiving this assurance, the duke at once determined upon commencing the undertaking ; and an act of par- liament having been obtained in 1758, the powers of which were 306 FOREIGN MECHANICS. considerably extended by succeeding acts, the formation of the canal was begun that year. From the first, the duke resolved that, without regard to ex- pense, every part of the work should be executed in the most per- fect manner. One of the chief difficulties to be surmounted was that of procuring a sufficient supply of water ; and, therefore, that there might be as little of it as possible wasted, it was determined that the canal should be of uniform level throughout, and of course without locks. It had. consequently to he carried in various parts of its course both under hills and over wide and deep valleys. The point, indeed, from which it took its commencement was the heart of the coal mountain at Worsley. Here a large basin was form- ed, in the first place, from which a tunnel of three quarters of a mile in length had to be cut through, the hill. We may just men- tion, in passing, that the subterraneous course of the water beyond this basin has since been extended in various directions for about thirty miles. After emerging from under ground, the line in the canal was carried forward, as we have stated, by the intrepid engineer, on the same undeviating level ; every obstacle that presented itself being triumphed over by his admirable ingenuity, which the difficulties, seemed only to render more fertile in happy inventions. Nor did his comprehensive mind ever neglect even the most subordinate departments of the enterprise. The opera- tions of the workmen were every where facilitated by new machines of his contrivance ; and whatever could contribute to the economy with which the work was carried on, was attended to only less anxiously than what was deemed essential to its completeness. Thus, for example, the materials excavated, from one place were employed to form the necessary embankments at another, to which they were conveyed in boats, having bottoms which opened, and at once deposited the load in the place where it was wanted. No part of his task, indeed, seemed to meet this great engineer unpre- pared. He made no blunders, and never had either to undo any thing, or to wish it undone ; on the contrary, when any new difficulty oc- curred, it appeared almost as if he had been all along providing for it as if his other operations had been directed from the first by his anticipation of the one now about to be undertaken. In order to bring the canal to Manchester it was necessary to carry it across the Irwell. That river is, and was then, navigable for a considerable way above the place at which the canal comes up to it ; and this circumstance interposed an additional difficulty, as, of course, in establishing the one navigation, it was indispensa- ble that the other should not be destroyed or interfered with. But nothing could dismay the daring genius of Brindley. Thinking it, JAMES BRINDLEY. 309 however, due to his noble employer to give him the most satisfying evidence in his power of the practicability of his design, he requested that another engineer might be called in to give his opinion before its execution should be determined on. This person Brindley car- ried to the spot where he proposed to rear his aqueduct, and en- deavored to explain to him how he meant to carry on the work. But the man only shook his head, and remarked, that "he had often heard of castles in the air, but never before was shown where any of them were to be erected," The duke, nevertheless, retained his confidence in his own engineer, and it was resolved that the work should proceed. The erection of the aqueduct, accordingly, was begun in September, 1760, and on the 17th of July following the first boat passed over it, the whole structure forming a bridge of above two hundred yards in length, supported upon three arches, of which the centre one rose nearly forty feet above the surface of the river ; on which might be frequently beheld a vessel passing along, while another, with all its masts and sails standing, w T as holding its undisturbed way directly under its keel. In 1762 an act of parliament was, after much opposition, ob- tained by the duke, for carrying a branch of his canal to commu- nicate with Liverpool, and so uniting that town, by this method of communication, to Manchester. This portion of the canal, which is more than twenty-nine miles in length, is, like the former, with- out locks, and is carried by an aqueduct over the Mersey, the arch of which, however, is less lofty than that of the one over the Irwell, as the river is not navigable at the place where it crosses. It passes also over several valleys of considerable width and depth. Before this, the usual price of the carriage of goods between Liverpool and Manchester had been twelve shillings per ton by by water, and forty shillings by land ; they were now conveyed by the canal, at a charge of six shillings per ton, and with all the regularity of land carriage. In contemplating this great work, we ought not to overlook the admirable manner in which the enterprising nobleman, at whose expense it was undertaken, performed his part in 'carrying it on. It was his determination, as we have already stated, from the first, to spare no expense on its completion. Accordingly, he devoted to it during the time of its progress nearly the whole of his reve- nues, denying himself, all the while, even the ordinary accommo- dations of his rank, and living on an income of four hundred a year. He had even great commercial difficulties to contend with in the prosecution of his schemes, being at one time unable to raise 5007. on his bond on the Royal Exchange ; and it was a chief business of his agent, Mr. Gilbert, to ride up and down the country to raise 310 FOREIGN MECHANICS. money on his grace's promissory notes. It is true that he was afterwards amply repaid for this outlay and temporary sacrifice ; but the compensation that eventually accrued to him he never might have lived to enjoy ; and at all events he acted as none but extra- ordinary men do, in thus voluntarily relinquishing the present for the future, and preferring to any dissipation of his wealth on pass- ing and merely personal objects, the creation of this magnificent monument of lasting public usefulness. Nor was it only in the liberality of his expenditure that the duke approved himself a patron worthy of Brindley. He supported his engineer throughout the un- dertaking with unflinching spirit, in the face of no little outcry and ridicule, to which the imagined extravagance or impracticability of many of his plans exposed him and that even from those who were generally accounted the most scientific judges of such matters. The success with which these plans were carried into execution, is probably, in no slight degree, to be attributed to the perfect confi- dence with which their author was thus enabled to proceed. While the Bridgewater canal was yet in progress, Mr. Brindley was engaged by Lord Gower, and the other principal landed pro- prietors of Staffordshire, to survey a line for another canal, which it was proposed should pass through that county, and, by uniting the Trent and the Mersey, open for it a communication, by water, with both the east and west coast. Having reported favorably of the practicability of this design, and an act of parliament having been obtained in 1765 for carrying it into effect, he was appointed to conduct the work. The scheme was one which had been often thought of; but the supposed impossibility of carrying the canal across the tract of elevated country which stretches along the cen- tral region of England had hitherto prevented any attempt to exe- cute it. This was, however, precisely such an obstacle as Brindley delighted to cope with ; and he at once overcame it, by carrying a tunnel through Harecastle Hill, of two thousand eight hundred and eighty yards in length, at a depth, in some places, of more than two hundred feet below the surface of the earth. This was only one of five tunnels excavated in different parts of the canal, which extends to the length of ninety-three miles, having seventy-six locks, and passing in its course over many aqueducts. Brindley, how- ever, did not live to execute the whole of this great work, which was finished by his brother-in-law, Mr. Henshall, in 1777, about eleven years after its commencement. During the time that these operations, so new in England, were in progress, the curious crowded to witness them from all quarters, and the grandeur of many of B rind ley's plans seems to have made a deep impression upon even his unscientific visiters. JAMES BRINDLEY. 311 A letter which appeared in the newspapers, while he was engaged with the Trent and Mersey Canal, gives us a lively picture of the astonishment with which the multitude viewed what he was about The writer, it will be observed, alludes particularly to the Hare- castle tunnel, the chief difficulty in excavating which arose from the nature of the soil it had to be cut through. " Gentlemen come to view our eighth wonder of the world, the subterranean naviga- tion which is cutting by the great Mr. Brindley, who handles rocks as easily as you would plum-pies, and makes the four elements subservient to his will. He is as plain a looking man as one of the boors of the Peak, or one of his own carters ; but when he speaks all ears listen, and every mind is filled with wonder at the things he pronounces to be practicable. He has cut a mile through bogs which he binds up, embanking them with stones, which he gets out of other parts of the navigation, besides about a quarter of a mile into the hill Yelden, on the side of which he has a pump, which is worked by water, and a stove, the fire of which sucks through a pipe the damps that would annoy the men who are cut- ting towards the centre of the hill. The clay he cuts out serves for brick to arch the subterraneous part, which we heartily wish to see finished to Wilden Ferry, when we shall be able to send coals and pots to London, and to different parts of the globe." It would occupy too much of our space to detail, however rapidly, the history of the other undertakings of this description to which the remainder of Mr. Brindley's life was devoted. The success with which the Duke of Bridgewater ? s enterprising plans for the improvement of his property were rewarded, speedily prompted numerous other speculations of a similar description ; and many canals were formed in different parts of the kingdom, in the exe- cution or planning of almost all of which Brindley ''s services were employed. He himself had become quite an enthusiast in his new profession, as a little anecdote that has been often told of him may serve to show. Having been called on one occasion to give his evidence touching some professional point before a committee of the house of commons, he expressed himself, in the course of his examination, with so much contejgapt of rivers as means of in- ternal navigation, that an honorable member was tempted to ask him for what purpose he conceived rivers to have been created? when Brindley, after hesitating a moment, replied, " To feed canals" His success as a builder of aqueducts would appear to have inspired him with almost as fervid a zeal in favor of bridges as of canals, if it be true, as has been asserted, that one of his favorite schemes contemplated the joining of Great Britain to Ire- land by a bridge of boats extending from Port Patrick to Donag. 22 312 FOREIGN MECHANICS. hadee. This report, however, is alleged to be without foundation by the late Earl of Bridgewater, in a curious work which he pub- lished some years ago at Paris, relative to his predecessor^ cele- brated canal. Brindley's multiplied labors, and intense application, rapidly wasted his strength, and shortened his life. He died at Turnhurst, in Staffordshire, on the 27th of September, 1772, in the fifty-sixth year of his age, having suffered for some years under a hectic fever, which he had never been able to get rid of. In his case, as in that of other active spirits, the soul seems to have 4< O'er-iriform'd its tenement of clay ;" although the actual bodily fatigue to which his many engagements subjected him, must doubtless have contributed to wear him out. No man ever lived more for his pursuit, or less for himself, than Brindley. He had no sources of enjoyment, or even of thought, except in his profession. It is related, that having once, when in London, been prevailed upon to go to the -theatre, the unusual excitement so confused and agitated him, as actually to unfit him for business for several days, on which account he never could be induced to repeat his visit. His total want of education, and ignorance of literature, left his genius without any other field in which to exercise itself and spend its strength than that which the pursuit of his profession afforded it : its power, even here, would not probably have been impaired, if it could have better sought relaxation in variety ; on the contrary, its spring would most likely have been all the stronger for being occasionally un- bent. We have already mentioned that he was all but entirely ignorant of reading and writing. He knew something of figures, but did not avail himself much of their assistance in performing the calculations which were frequently necessary in the prosecu- tion of his mechanical designs. On these occasions his habit was to work the question by a method of his own, chiefly in his head, only setting down the results at particular stages of the operation ; yet his conclusions were generally correct. His vigor of concep- tion, in regard to machineryf^as so great, that however compli- cated might be the machine he had to execute, he never, except sometimes to satisfy his employers, made any drawing or model of it ; but having once fixed its different parts in his mind, would construct it without any difficulty, merely from the idea of which he had thus possessed himself. When much perplexed with any problem he had to solve, his practice was to take to bed, in order to study it ; and he would sometimes remain, we are told, for two or three days thus fixed to his pillow in meditation. JESSE RAMSDEN. 313 Had it not been for the example set by his adventurous genius, the progress of artificial navigation in Great Britain would proba- bly have been timid and slow, compared to what it has been. For a long time, in all likelihood, the only canals would have been a few small ones, cut in the more level parts of the country, the benefit of each of which would have been extremely insignificant, and confined to a very narrow neighborhood. He did, in the very infancy of the art, what has not yet been outdone ; struggling, in- deed, with such difficulties, and triumphing over them, as could be scarcely exceeded by any his successors might have to en- counter. By the boldness arid success with which, in particular, he carried the grand Trunk Navigation across the elevated ground of the midland counties, he demonstrated that there was hardly any part of the island where a canal might not be formed ; and, accordingly, this very central ridge, which used to be deemed so insurmountable an obstacle to the junction of the opposite coasts, is now intersected by more than twenty canals besides the one which he first drove through the barrier. It is in the conception and accomplishment of such grand and fortunate deviations from, ordinary practice that we discern the power, and confess the value, of original genius. The case of Brindley affords us a wonderful example of what the force of natural talent will sometimes do in attaining an ac- quaintance with particular departments of science, in the face of almost every conceivable disadvantage where not only all edu- cation is wanting, but even all access to books. JESSE RAMSDEN. JESSE RAMSDEN was born in 1735, at Salterhebble, near Hali- fax, where his father kept an inn. The education he received in his boyhood embraced both a little Latin and the elements of geometry and algebra. But when he was of the usual age for being put to a business, his father took him from school, and bound him apprentice to a clothier in Halifax ; and in this line he con- tinued till he reached his twentieth year, when he came up to London, and obtained employment as a clerk in a wholesale ware- house. He held this situation for about two years and a half; but in the mean time he had industriously availed himself of what leisure he could command to renew and extend his acquaintance 314 FOREIGN MECHANICS. with science ; and so enamoured did he gradually become of these pursuits, that he at last resolved to make an effort to establish himself in . some line more closely connected with his favorite studies than that which he had heretofore followed. With this view, notwithstanding that he was now so far beyond the age at which the learning of a business is usually begun, he bound him- self apprentice for four years to Mr. Burton, of Denmark-court, a mathematical instrument maker. On the expiration of this term, he and a fellow-workman of the name of Cole entered into business together, Ramsden serving the olher as journeyman at a salary of twelve shillings per week. This connection, however, did not last long ; and on its termination Ramsden opened a shop of his own. His chief employment for some time consisted in repairing optical and other mathematical instruments which had got out of order ; and in this the industry and ability he displayed soon brought him into notice, and procured him a rapidly increas- ing business. But he did not rest satisfied with merely performing in a superior manner such work as he undertook of this descrip- tion ; the different instruments which passed through his hands forcibly attracted his attention to the imperfections by which each happened to be characterized, and called his powers of contrivance into exercise in devising how. they might be improved. In order to accomplish himself the more completely for this task, he labored assiduously till he acquired, entirely by his own application, the art of grinding glass, and of handling the file, the lathe, and the other instruments used by opticians. Thus furnished with the practical skill and dexterity requisite to enable him to apply his ingenuity and mathematical knowledge., he proceeded to enter upon a regular and comprehensive examination of all the different optical instruments in use, with a view to the remedying of their several defects. This resolution, and the perseverance with which it was followed up, eventually made Ramsden one of the greatest optical mechani- cians that the world has ever produced. The list of the in- struments which are indebted to him for the most ingenious and valuable improvements, embraces nearly all those of greatest im- portance and most common use in astronomy and the connected sciences. Hadley ? s quadrant, the sextant, the theodolite, the baro- meter, the transit instrument, and many others too numerous to specify, all came out of his hands, it might almost be said, with new powers, and certainly, at all events, with much more in every case than they before possessed, both of manageableness and of accuracy. In this last respect, especially, the instruments con- strueted by 'him far surpassed any that had before been produced \ JESSE KAMSDEN. 315 and they were indebted for much of their superiority to a new dividing or graduating engine which he had contrived, the prin- ciple of which was extremely ingenious. It consisted essentially of a marker moved forward by the turning of a very fine-threaded screw. It is easy to make a screw with a hundred turns of the thread in an inch ; and by attaching to it a handle or index of sufficient length, so that the extremity may be over a properly divided circle of considerable magnitude, the movement of such a screw may be regulated with perfect precision to the thousandth part of one of its entire revolutions. Now, as by such a revolu- tion it would only advance the marker the hundredth part of an inch, it is evident that, by being turned only the thousandth part of an entire revolution every time the marker is allowed to descend and make an impression upon the plate of metal or other surface to be divided, a hundred thousand equidistant lines may actually be drawn upon every inch of that surface. For this most useful contrivance the Board of Longitude awarded him a premium of 615 ; and in return he engaged to graduate whatever sextants were put into his hands for that purpose, at the rate of three shil- lings a-piece. His engine, indeed, enabled him to perform the operation in about twenty minutes, whereas it had been wont to occupy many hours. But the additional accuracy which was given to the instrument to which it was applied by the new method, was of still greater importance than its comparative expedition and cheapness. Hadley's quadrant, for instance, used to be so coarsely divided, and in .other respects so defectively made, before it re- ceived Ramsden 1 s improvements, that, in endeavoring to ascertain the longitude by it, the observation might in some cases lead to an error of fifty leagues ; but Ramsden constructed it in so superior a manner, that even his commonest instruments did not admit of an error being fallen into of more than the tenth part of that amount, and with those of a more expensive description accuracy was ensured in all cases to within a single league. Soon after he commenced business, Ramsden married Miss Dollond, daughter of the inventor of the achromatic telescope, part of the patent for which came in this way into his possession. In 1786 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, having been proposed by his friends without his knowledge, after his diffidence in his claims to such a distinction had made him long withhold his consent to their taking that step. In 1794 he was chosen a mem- ber of the Imperial Academy of Sciences at Petersburg ; and in 1795 the Royal Society awarded him the gold medal annually be- stowed by them for eminence in science. The Reverend Lewis Dutens, the author of the " Researches on 22* 316 JFOKJfilGJN MECHANICS. the Origin of Discoveries," who was intimately acquainted with Ramsden, has given us an account of his friend, which contains some interesting particulars of his character and habits. After noticing his great activity, the uncommon force of his reasoning powers, and the accurate and retentive memory with which he was endowed, the writer proceeds to remark, that perhaps, after all, the most distinguishing quality of his mind was a certain ele- gance, and taste for precision and high finish, which appeared not more in the instruments he manufactured than in every thing he did. " This feeling for perfection," Mr. Dutens goes on to say, " led him, in the most minute and insignificant parts of his instru- ments, to a polish and grace, which sometimes tempted those to smile who did not perceive that the same principle which enabled him to carry the essential parts of his instruments to a degree of perfection unknown, and considered as impossible before his time, induced him to be dissatisfied if a blemish of any sort, even the most trifling, appeared to his exquisite eye. To these uncom- monly strong natural endowments he added all that the most con- stant and intense study could bestow. Temperate to abstemious- ness in his diet, satisfied with an extremely small portion of sleep, unacquainted with dissipation or amusement, and giving but very little time even to the society of his friends, the whole of those hours which he could spare from the duties of his profession were devoted either to meditation on farther improvements of philo- sophical instruments, or to the perusal of books of science, parti- cularly those mathematical works of the most sublime writers which had any connection with the subjects of his own pursuits, Mr. Ramsden : s only relaxation from these constant and severe studies was the occasional perusal of the best authors both in prose and verse ; and when it is recollected that at an advanced age he made himself so completely master of the French language as to read with peculiar pleasure the works of Boileau and Moliere, he will not be accused of trifling even in his lighter hours. Short and temperate as were his repasts, a book or a pen were the con- stant companions of his meals, and not seldom brought on a for- getfulness of hunger ; and when illness broke his sleep, a lamp and a book were ever in readiness to beguile the sense of pain, and make bodily sickness minister to the progress of his mind. Of the extent of his mathematical knowledge he was always from innate modesty averse to speak, although I have heard him say that he never was at a loss when his profession required the ap- plication of geometry. His knowledge in the science of optics is well known to have been perfect ; and when we add that the works of Bouguer and the great Leonard Euler were his favorite study, JESSE RAMSDEN. 317 We shall not lightly rate his proficiency in mathematics. Of his skill in mechanics it is unnecessary to speak. Nor let it be sup. posed that his science in his profession was limited to the higher branch of invention and direction of the labors of others. It is a well-known fact, that such was his own manual dexterity, that there was not any one tool, in any of the numerous branches of his profession, which he could not use with a degree of perfection at least equal to that of the very best workman in that particular branch ; and it is no exaggeration to assert that he could with his own hands have begun and finished every single part of his most complicated instruments. It may not be foreign to this part of his character to observe, that his drawings were singularly neat and accurate, and his handwriting so beautiful, that when he chose to exert his skill few writing-masters could equal it. 11 In order to ensure that perfect accuracy which it was his object to give to every instrument he sold, Ramsden had all the parts of the work done under his own inspection ; and for this purpose he kept men of every necessary branch of trade in his establishment. He availed himself also to the utmost of the advantages to be de- rived from the division of labor allotting to every workman his particular department, from which he was never called away to another. He employed about sixty men in all ; but such was his reputation over all Europe, and so numerous were the orders he received, that even with this large establishment he found it im- possible to execute them with the requisite expedition. About this, indeed, he did not give himself much trouble ; what alone he cared for was, that every instrument which bore his name should be worthy of his reputation, no matter what time or pains it should cost to make it so. No man was ever more nobly indifferent to the mere pecuniary gains of his art. If he had been anxious to enrich himself, he might have easily accumulated a large fortune ; but for that object he would have had to enlarge his already exten- sive establishment so much farther, that his personal superintend- ence of every part of it would have been impossible. So far was he from being influenced by any views of this kind, that it is as- serted he never executed any one of the many great works for which he received commissions from public bodies, both in his own and other countries, without being a loser by it as a trades- man. When he occasionally sent for a workman to give him necessary directions concerning what he wished to have done, he first showed the recent finished plan, then explained the different parts of it, and generally concluded by saying, with the greatest good-humour, "Now see, man, let us try to find fault with it;" and thus, by putting two heads together to scrutinize his own perform- 318 FOREIGN MECHANICS. ance, some alteration was probably made for the better. But, whatever expense an instrument had cost in forming, if it did not fully answer the intended design, he would immediately say, after a little examination of the work, " Bobs, man ! this won't do ; we must have at it again ;" and when it did not answer his expecta- tions, he never hesitated to take it to pieces, or to destroy it, what- ever had been the cost bestowed upon its construction. Admirable as all his instruments were, too, for their accuracy, their high finish, their durability, and all the other qualities that make up the excellence of such productions, he generally put a less price upon them in some cases a much less price than was charged for inferior works of the same kind by other artists. It was his custom to retire in the evening to what he considered the most comfortable corner in the house, viz., the kitchen fire- side, in order to draw some plan for the forming of some new in- strument, or perfecting one already made. There he sat, with his drawing implements on the table before him, a cat sitting on the one side, and a certain portion of bread, butter, and a small mug of porter, placed on the other side, while four or five apprentices commonly made up the circle. He amused himself with either whistling the favorite air, or sometimes singing the old ballad, of " If she is not so true to me, What care I to whom she be : What care I, what care I to whom she be !" and appeared in this domestic group contented and happy. Mr. Ramsden died on the 5th of November, 1800, at Brighton, to which place he had gone a short time before with the view of recovering his health, which, never vigorous, had latterly been greatly impaired by his unremitting exertions. He died possessed of only a small fortune ; and, in the spirit in which he had lived, he left the greater part of it to be divided among his workmen, in proportion to their merits and their length of service. EARL OF STANHOPE. THIS eccentric and ingenious nobleman was born at Chevening, Kent, in August, 1753. In his 9th year he was sent to Eton, and at this early age began to give strong proofs of his mechanical and mathematical taste. In his ninteenth year he was removed to Geneva, and placed under the tuition of Le Sage ; and a few STANHOPE. STANHOPE. 321 months afterwards, he gained a prize, offered by a national aca- demy for the best paper written in French, on the construction of the pendulum. The earl was the author of a great number of inventions and improvements in the arts and philosophy. Among those which attracted the most attention were his electrical experiments ; his scheme for securing buildings from fire ; a machine for solving problems in arithmetic ; a mode of roofing houses ; a kiln for burning lime, a steamboat, and a double inclined plane for re- medying the inconvenience attending canal locks. This was sug- gested to the earl while he was forming a canal in Devonshire, the line of which he surveyed himself; and during this employment, he for days carried the theodolite on his own shoulders. Experi- ments on stereotype printing, an esteemed printing press which bears his name, a plan for preventing forgeries in coin and bank notes, &c. &c. In putting his ideas into practice he was assisted by Mr. Varley, one of the .most expert practical mechanics of the day. But numerous and important as his labors were to the arts, they were, even in a public view, exceeded in importance by the impulse which his patronage gave to mechanical artists. He appeared to be delighted in bringing them and their productions before the public, and in this way he spent a large portion of his ample for- tune, and almost the whole of his thoughts and time. Whatever view different men might take of the soundness or tendency of his political principles, all were convinced that they sprang from the honest conviction of his own mind, uninfluenced by the most remotely interested motive, for he uniformly declined all offices and public honors. If his projects, both political and mechanical, were occasionally considered impracticable, they were neither sordid nor selfish. His speeches in the house of lords, and in public, on whatever topic, were ingenuous, perspicuous, and somewhat forcible. But it was often as difficult to answer as to concur with them ; for he seldom adapted his opinions to the state of public affairs, but rea- soned from some abstract standard of moral or political right, that was seldom in accordance with principles of party or state expe- diency. He was sometimes eloquent, and at others, very eccentric in his illustrations. There was often a certain quaintness of man- ner about them that made them quite irresistible, even to produ- cing laughter, from the guarded and studied gravity of the incumbent on the woolsack. His activity and perseverance were amazing, for notwithstanding the multiplicity of his projects and experiments, he was assuredly 322 FOREIGN MECHANICS. profoundly learned in every thing that regarded the constitution and ecclesiastical polity of his country, and when on these subjects, it is said he even taught " the Judges law, and the Bishops reli- gion!^ When questions arose which required a practical know- ledge of the exact sciences, or their application to the arts, if he were not the only man, he was, at least, the ablest in the house to expound, discuss, and decide them : and on such occasions he ever acted with great judgment. Earl Stanhope married Hester Pitt, a daughter of the great Earl of Chatham, whose political principles he venerated with a feeling little removed from idolatry ; and in the early part of his public career, acted cordially with his brother-in-law Mr. Pitt. But the circumstances which induced that consummate statesman to alter his opinions, had not the same effect on the earl, and their political connection was dissolved. On this separation taking place, a domestic difficulty sprung up between Stanhope, and his wife and wife's connections. This dissension arose from the fact, that Stan- hope desired that his children should devote themselves to acquire some useful calling as he had done, by which, when the day of pub- lic calamity came, which he imagined he foresaw the rapid ap- proach of, they might secure independence by their own personal ingenuity and labor. But his family preferring the patronage of their uncle, the minister, to the protection of the paternal roof, Stanhope declared as they chose to be saddled on the public purse, they must " take the consequences.' 1 '' They were not there- fore mentioned in his will, although they were entitled to certain sums by a marriage settlement. " Charles Stanhope, 11 said the Earl of Chatham, "as a carpenter, a blacksmith, or millwright, could in any country, or any times, preserve his independence and bring up his family in honest and industrious courses, without soliciting the bounty of friends or the charity of strangers." Stanhope was odd in his dress and person, and his plain, unaf- fected, amiable manners, were considered to be singular for a man of his high rank and connections : but they conciliated affection in many cases approaching to devotion, and his general integrity commanded universal respect. He was a considerate and kind landlord, an ardent friend, and his purse and influence were ever open to befriend the helpless and the poor ; but he always disliked any superfluous expressions of gratitude. Among other anecdotes of his lordship's eccentricities, the fol- lowing is related. He was very particular in the shape and tex- ture of his wigs, which were peculiar, and was a long time in getting a barber to make them to his liking, but at last succeeded. It HOHLFELD. 323 happened, however, that at a period when his stock of these " ele- gant imitations of nature" was " unusually low, 11 the poor barber was taken so exceedingly ill that his life was despaired of. His lordship immediately on hearing of the illness of his favorite artist, sent a physician to attend him, and the first desire of the- barber on his recovery was, very naturally, to assure the noble lord of his gratitude for this unexpected act of benevolence. After a few words of condolence, his lordship asked him if his funds were not exhausted by his long inability to attend to his business, and whether an order in the way of trade would not be serviceable to him. Receiving an answer in the affirmative, he ordered a score of wigs. Upon bringing them home, the wig maker began to pour forth the grateful feelings of his heart for this new kindness, in addition to having saved his life, when his lordship interrupted him by putting down the money, and jokingly re- marked, " Oh ! you may now die and be for aught I care, for I have got wigs enough to last all my life!' 1 '' Lord Stanhope died in December, 1815, deeply lamented by all, but more especially by the humbler class of citizens, whose esteem and friendship he had won by his interest and exertions in their welfare. HOHLFELD. HOHLFELD, the celebrated German mechanic, was born of poor parents at Hennerndorf, in the mountains of Saxony, in the year 1711. He learned the trade of lace-making at Dresden, and early disovered.a turn for mechanics by constructing various kinds of clocks. From Dresden he removed to Berlin to follow his occu- pation. As he was an excellent workman, and had invented several machines for shortening his labor, he found sufficient time to in- dulge his inclination for mechanics ; and he made there, at the same tima he pursued his usual business, air-guns and clocks. In the year 1748, he became acquainted with the celebrated Sulzer, at whose desire he undertook the construction of a machine for noting down any piece of music when played upon a harpsichord. A machine of this kind had been before invented by Mr. Von Un- ger, but Hohlfeld, from a very imperfect description, completed one without any assistance. Of this machine, now in the possession of the Academy of Sciences at Berlin, Sulzer gave a figure, from which it was afterwards constructed in England. This ingenious 324 ; FOREIGN MECHANICS. piece of mechanism was universally approved, though several things may be wanting to render it complete ; but no one was so generous as to indemnify the artist for his expenses, or to reward him for his labor. About the year 1756, the Prussian minister, Count de Powde- wils, took him into his service, chiefly for the purpose of construct, ing water-works in his magnificent gardens at Gusow. There he invented his well-known threshing machine, and another for chop, ping straw more expeditiously. He also displayed his talent for invention by constructing an apparatus which, when fastened to a carriage, indicated the number of revolutions made by the wheels. Such machines had been made before, but his far exceeded every thing of the like kind. Having lost this machine by a fire, he in- vented another still simpler, which was so contrived as to be buck- led between the spokes of the wheel. This piece of mechanism was in the possession of Sulzer, who used it on his tour, and found that it answered the intended purpose. In the year 1765, when the Duke of Courland, then hereditary prince, resided at Berlin, he paid a visit to Hohlfeld and endeavor- ed to prevail on him to go to Courland, by offering him a pension of eight hundred rix-dollars ; but this ingenious man was so con- tented with his condition, and so attached to his friends, that he would not, merely for self-interest, quit Berlin. His refusal, how- ever, obtained for him a pension of one hundred and fifty dollars from the king. Besides the before mentioned machines, he con- structed occasionally several useful models. Among these was a loom for weaving figured stuffs, so contrived that the weaver had no need of any thing to shoot through the woof; a pedometer for putting in the pocket ; a convenient and simple bed for a sick person, by which the patient could at any time, with the least ef- fort, raise or lower the breast, and, when necessary, convert the bed into a stool ; and a carriage, so formed, that if the horses took fright and ran away, the person in it could, by a single push, loosen the pole and set them at liberty. Every machine that this singular man saw, he altered and im- proved in the simplest manner. All his own instruments he made himself, and repaired them when damaged. But as he was fonder of inventing than of following the plans of others, he made them in such a way that no one but himself could use them. Several of his improvements were, however, imitated by common work, men, though in a very clumsy manner. It is worthy of remark, that he never besj^wed study upon any thing ; but when he had once conceived an idea, he immediately executed it. He compre- hended in a moment whatever was proposed, and at the same time MATTHEW BOULTON. MATTHEW BOULTON. 327 saw how it was to be accomplished. He could, therefore, tell in an instant whether a thing was practicable ; if he thought it was not, no persuasion or offer of money could induce him to attempt it. He never pursued chimeras, like those mechanics who have not had the benefit of education or instruction ; and though this may be ascribed to the intercourse he had with great mathemati- cians and philosophers, there is every reason to believe that he would have equally guarded himself against them, even had he not enjoyed that advantage. The same quickness of apprehension which he manifested in mechanics, he showed also in other things. His observations on most subjects were judicious, and peculiar to himself. With regard to his moral character, he was every thing that could be desired. Although he still retained something of the man- ners of his former condition, his mild and pleasing deportment rendered his company and conversation agreeable. He possessed a good heart, and his life was sober and regular. Though he was every day welcome to the best tables, he stayed for the most part at home through choice ; went to market for his own provisions, which he cooked himself, and was as contented over his humble meal as Ourius was over his turnips. A little before his death he had the pleasure of seeing a curious harpsichord he had made, and which was purchased by his Prussian majesty, placed in an elegant apartment of the new palace at Pottsdam. As he had for some time neglected this instrument, the too great attention which he bestowed on putting it in order, contributed not a little to bring on that disease which at last proved fatal to him. His clock hav- ing become deranged during his illness, he could not be prevented, notwithstanding the admonition and advice of his friend and phy- sician, Dr. Stahls, from repairing it. Close application occasioned some obstructions which were not observed till too late ; and an inflammation taking place, he died, in 1771, at the house of Count de Powdewils, in the sixtieth year of his age. MATTHEW BOULTON. THIS individual, well known as the partner of the celebrated Watt, was born at Birmingham on the 14th of September, 1728 ; and after having received a tolerable education, studied drawing and mathematics. He commenced business as a manufacturer of 23 328 FOREIGN MECHANICS. hardware ; and having discovered a new method of inlaying steel, he sent a considerable quantity of buckles, watch-chains, &c., to the continent, where they were purchased by the English travellers as the offspring of French ingenuity. Finding his premises at Birmingham not sufficiently capacious for his purposes, he, in 1762, purchased an extensive tract of heath, about two miles from the town, and at great expense laid the foundation of those vast and unrivalled works known as the Soho establishment. To this spot his liberality soon attracted numbers of ingenious men from all parts, and by their aid the most splendid apartments in Europe received their ornaments. About 1767, finding the force of the water-mill inadequate to his purposes, he constructed a steam engine upon the original plan of Savery ; and two years afterwards entered into partnership with Watt, in conjunction with whom he turned that machine into several new and important uses. They soon acquired a mechan- ical fame all over Europe by the extent and utility of their under- takings ; the most important of which was their improvement in coinage, which they effected about 1788. The coins struck at the Soho manufactory were remarkable for their beauty and execution, and caused the inventors to be employed by the Sierra Leone Company in the coinage of their silver, and by the East India Company in that of their copper. Mr. Boulton also sent two complete mints to St. Petersburg ; and having presented the late emperor Paul the First with some of the most curious articles of his manufacture, that sovereign returned him a polite letter of thanks and approbation, together with a princely present of medals and minerals from Siberia, and specimens of all the modern money of Russia. Another invention which emanated from the Soho establishment was a method of copying oil paintings with such fidelity as to deceive the most practised connoisseurs. The last discovery for which Mr. Boulton obtained a patent, was an important method for raising water and other fluids by impulse ; the specification of which is published in the ninth volume of the Repertory of tjje Arts. It had been de- monstrated by Daniel Bernouilli, that water flowing through a pipe and arriving at a part in which the pipe is suddenly contracted, would have its velocity at first very greatly increased; but no practical application of the principle appears to have been at- tempted until 1792, by an apparatus set up by Mr. Whitehurst at Oulton, in Cheshire. To this Mr. Boulton added a number of in- genious modifications. As an illustration of the nicety and skill displayed in some of the articles made by Mr. Boulton, the following anecdote is re- MATTHEW BOULTON. 329 lated : He visited France on a certain occasion, for the purpose of attending a celebrated mechanical fair that was about taking place ; at which he begged to be allowed to exhibit a needle of his own making, at the same time submitting it to the examiners of works intended for this public display, who one and all pro- nounced it to be, though well-shaped and finely polished, but a " common needle," and not worthy of appearing amongst the splen- did and ingenious improvements and inventions that usually graced the fair. " Gentlemen," observed Mr. Boulton, " my needle is well worthy of appearance amongst your promised novelties ; only allow it to be exhibited with them now, and I will afterwards show you the reason why." An unwilling assent to this request was finally obtained ; but when the fair closed, and the prizes were to be awarded, the arbi- trators triumphantly asked, " where was Mr. Boulton's needle ? and what were those striking merits which everybody had failed to discover ?" Thereupon Mr. Boulton again presented it to them for inspection, with a magnifying glass, begging them to state whether they observed roughness or wrinkle upon its surface. The umpires returning it, said, " Far from it ; for that its sole merit seemed to lie in its -exquisite polish." " Behold, then," said this ingenious man, " its undiscoverable merit ; and whilst I prove to you that I made no vain boast of its claim to your attention, you will learn, perhaps, not to judge so readily again by mere ex- terior." He then unscrewed the needle, when another appeared of as exquisite a workmanship ; and, to the astonished eyes of the Frenchmen, about half a dozen beautiful needles were thus turned out, neatly and curiously packed within each other ! a miracle of art that seems to rival all we ever read of, a truly " multum in parvo !" Mr. Boulton triumphed in his turn, and carried off the prize which his delicate workmanship so richly deserved. Mr. Boulton appeared at St. James 1 on a levee day : " Well, Mr. Boulton," said the king, " I am glad to see you ; what new project have you got now ?" "I am," said Mr. Boulton, " manu- facturing a new article that kings are very fond of." " Aye ! aye ! Mr. Boulton, what's that ?" " It is power, and please your ma- jesty." " Power ! Mr. Boulton, we like power, that's true ; but what do you mean ?" " Why, sir, I mean the power of steam to move machines." His majesty appeared pleased, and laughing, said, "Very good; go on, go on." After a life devoted to the advancement of the useful arts and the commercial interests of his country, the subject of our memoir died on the 17th of August, 1809, in the eighty-first year of his 330 FOREIGN MECHANICS. age, and was buried at Handsworth, near Soho ; his funeral being followed by six hundred workmen, each of whom received a silver medal, struck to commemorate the event. Mr. Boulton presents us with an example of the vast influence and effects that may be produced upon society by the well-directed powers of a great mind abundantly stored with resources, but dis- daining the selfish and narrow views that might have contracted its usefulness, had he neglected to call to his aid the genius of a Watt, and others equally eminent in their spheres. His private character was very amiable ; and in his manners and conversation he is said to have been extremely fascinating. THOMAS TELFORD. IT is to the energies of genius in humble life that science is chiefly indebted for its most valuable discoveries, and extension of its empire. The names of Brindley, Watt, and Arkwright will never be forgotten ; and with them, and others equally dis- tinguished, will henceforth rank Telford, a civil engineer, and constructor of public works, unsurpassed in any country. Thomas Telford was born in the year 1757, in the parish of Westerkirks, in the pastoral vale of Eskdale, a district in the county of Dumfries, in Scotland. His parents, although they oc- cupied an humble station in the walks of life, were respected and beloved by all who knew them. The outset of the life of their son Thomas corresponded to their situation in society, and was strikingly humble and obscure in comparison with its close. He began the world as a working stone-mason in his native parish, and for a long time was only remarkable for the neatness with which he cut the letters upon those frail sepulchral memorials, which " teach the rustic moralist to die." His occupation, fortunately, afforded a greater number of leisure hours than what are usually allowed by such laborious employ- ments, and these young Telford turned to the utmost advantage in his power. Having previously acquired the elements of learning, he spent all his spare time in poring over such volumes as fell in his way, with no better light than was afforded by the cottage fire. Under these circumstances, his mind took a direction not uncom- mon among rustic youths : he became a noted rhymster in the homely style of Ramsay and Ferguson, and while still a very THOMAS TELFORD. 331 young man, contributed verses to Ruddiman's Weekly Magazine, under the unpretending signature of " Eskdale Tarn." In one of these compositions which was addressed to Burns, he sketched his own character, and his own ultimate fate : Nor pass the tentie curious lad, Who o'er the ingle hangs his head, And begs of neighbors books to read ; For hence arise, Thy country's sons, who far are spread, Baith bold and wise. Though Mr. Telford afterwards abandoned the thriftless trade of versifying, he is said to have retained through life a strong " frater feeling 11 for the corps, which he showed in a particular manner on the death of Burns, in exertions for the benefit of the family. Having completed his apprenticeship as a stone mason, in his native place, he repaired to Edinburgh, where he found employ- ment, and continued with unremitting application to study the principles of architecture agreeable to the rules of science. Here he remained three or four years, when having made a considera- ble proficiency, he left the Scottish capital, and went to London, under the patronage of Sir William Pulteney, and the family of Pasley, who were townsmen of Telford. He now found himself in a scene which presented scope for his industry and talent. Fortunately, he did not long remain un- noticed, or unemployed. His progress was not rapid, but steady, and always advancing ; and every opportunity for displaying his taste, science, and genius, extended his fame, and paved the way to new enterprises and acquisitions. The first public employment in which he was engaged, was that of superintending some works belonging to government, in Portsmouth Dock Yard, The duties of this undertaking were discharged with so much fidelity and care, as to give complete satisfaction to the commissioners, and to ensure the future exercise of his talents and services. Hence, in 1787, he was appointed surveyor of public works in the rich and extensive county of Salop, which situation he retained until his decease. A detail of the steps by which Mr. Telford subsequently placed himself at the head of his profession of engineering, would, most likely, only tire our readers. It is allowed on all hands, that his elevation was owing solely to his consummate ability and perse- vering industry, unless we are to allow a share in the process to the very strict integrity which marked his career. His works 23* 332 FOREIGN MECHANICS. are so numerous all over Great Britain, that there is hardly a county in England, Wales, or Scotland, in which they may not be pointed- out. Nor was the British empire alone benefited by Mr. Telford's genius. In the year 1808, he was employed by the Swedish government to survey the ground, and lay out an inland naviga- tion through the central parts of that kingdom. The design of this undertaking was to connect the great fresh water lakes, and 'to form a direct communication by water, between the North Sea and the Baltic. Mr. Telford's fame as an engineer has been principally spread in Great Britain by his great work, the Dublin road from London to Holyhead, including the Menai and Conway bridges. The Menai bridge, one of the greatest wonders of art in the world, is unquestionably the most imperishable monument of his capacity for extensive undertakings. This bridge is constructed over the small strait of the sea, which intervenes between the mainland of North Wales, and the island of Anglesea, and carries onward the road to Holy head. Before its erection, the communication was carried on by means of ferry boats, and was therefore subject to delays and dangers. The bridge is at a point near the town of Bangor, from near which its appearance is strikingly grand. It is built partly of stone and partly of iron, on the suspension principle, and consists of seven stone arches, exceeding in magni- tude every work of the kind in the world. They connect the land with the two main piers, which rise 53 feet above the level of the road, over the top of which the chains are suspended, each chain being 1714 feet from the fastenings in the rock. The first three-masted vessel passed under the bridge in 1826. Her top- masts were nearly as high as a frigate ; but they cleared 12| feet below the centre of the roadway. The suspending power of the chains was calculated at 2016 tons ; the total weight of each chain, 121 tons. This stupendous undertaking occasioned Mr. Telford more in- tense thought than any other of his works. He told a friend that his state of anxiety for a short time previous to the opening of the bridge was so extreme, that he had but little sound sleep, and that a much longer continuance of that condition of mind must have undermined his health. Not that he had any reason to doubt the strength and stability of every part of the structure, for he had employed all the precautions that he could imagine useful, as sug- gested by his own experience and consideration, or by the zeal and talents of his very able and faithful assistants ; yet the bare possibility, that some weak point might have escaped his and their THOMAS TELFORD. 335 vigilance in a work so new, kept the- whole structure constantly in review before his mind's eye, to examine if he could discover a point that did not contribute its share to the perfection of the whole. In this, as in all his great works, he employed, as sub- engineers, men capable of appreciating and acting on his ideas ; but he was no rigid stickler tor his own plans, for he most readily acquiesced in the reasonable suggestions of his assistants, and thus identified them with the success of the work. In ascertain, ing the strength of the materials for the Menai bridge, he em- ployed men of the highest rank for scientific character and attain- ments. The genius of Telford, as has been stated, was not confined to his profession. Dr. Currie says, in his life of Burns, that a great number of manuscript poems were found among the papers of Burns, addressed to him by admirers of his genius, from different parts of Britain, as well as Ireland and America. Among these was a poetical epistle of superior merit, by Telford, and addressed to Burns, and in the versification generally employed by that poet himself. Its object is to recommend him to other subjects of a serious nature, similar to that of the Cottar's Saturday Night, and the reader will find that the advice is happily enforced by example. We extract a portion of it : " Pursue, O Burns, thy happy style, ' Those manner-painting strains,' that while They bear me northward mony a mile, Recall the days When tender joys, with pleasing smile, Blest my young ways. I see my fond companions rise ; I join the happy village joys ; I see our green hills touch the skies, And through the wood I hear the river's rushing noise Its roaring flood. No distant Swiss with warmer glow E'er heard his native music flow, Nor could his wishes stronger grow Than still have mine, When up this rural mount I go With songs of thine. O happy bard ! thy generous flame Was given to raise thy country's fame ; For this thy charming numbers came Thy matchless lays : Then sing, and save her virtuous name To latest days." 35t5 FOREIGN MECHANICS. Mr. Telford was not more remarkable for his great professional abilities, than for his sterling worth in private life. His easiness of access, and the playfulness of his disposition, even to the close of life, endeared him to a numerous circle of friends, including all the most distinguished men of his time. He was the patron of merit in others, wherever it was to be found ; and he was the means of raising many deserving individuals from obscurity to situations where their talents were seen, and soon appreciated. Up to the last period of his life, he was fond of young men, and of their company, provided they delighted in learning. His punctuality was universal. In the course of his very active life, he found time to acquire a knowledge of the Latin, French, and German languages. He understood Algebra well, but thought it led too much to abstrac- tion, and too little to practice. Mathematical investigation he also held rather cheaply, and always, when practicable, resorted to experiment to determine the relative value of any plans on which il was his business to decide. He delighted to employ the vast in nature, yet did not despise minutw, a point too seldom attended to by projectors. For some years before his death, he gradually retired from professional employment, and he latterly amused his leisure hours by writing a detailed account of the principal undertakings which he had planned, and lived to see executed. The immediate cause of Mr. Telford 1 s death was a repetition of severe bilious attacks, to which he had for some years been subject, and which, at length, proved fatal. His life, prolonged by temperance and cheerfulness, at length drew to a close, and he expired at his house,, in Abing- don street, Westminster, September 2d, 1834. EDMUND CARTWRIGHT, THE INVENTOR OF THE POWER-LOOM. EDMUND CARTWRIGHT was born in the year 1743, and was the fourth son of William Cartwright, Esq. of Marnham, in Notting- hamshire. Being intended for the church, Edmund at the usual age was entered of University College, Oxford ; from whence he was subsequently elected a Fellow of Magdalen College. He early distinguished himself by his literary attainments, an evidence of EDMUND CARTWRIGHT. 337 which he gave to the world while yet a young man by the publica- tion of a small volume of poems, which was very favorably re- ceived. About the year 1774, also, he became a contributor to the Monthly Review ; for which he continued to write during the following ten years. For the first forty years of his life he had never given any at- tention to the subject of mechanics ; although, as was recollected long afterwards, his genius for invention in that department had once displayed itself, while at his father^ house- during one of his college vacations, in some improvements which he made on an agricultural machine which happened to attract his notice. But this exercise of his ingenuity, being out of the line of his pursuits at that time, led to no other attempts of the kind, nor to any far- ther application of his thoughts to such matters. The circumstances which many years after this led him to the invention of his weaving machine, or power-loom, as it is commonly called, cannot be better described than they have been by himself in the following statement, first printed in the Supplement to the Encyclopaedia Britannica. " Happening," he says, " to be at Mat- lock in the summer of 1784, 1 fell in company with some gentle- men of Manchester, when the conversation turned on Arkwrighf s spinning machinery. One of the company observed that as soon as Arkwright's patent expired, so many mills would be erected, and so much cotton spun, that hands would never be found to weave it. To this observation I replied, that Arkwright must then set his wits to work to invent a weaving-mill. This brought on a conversation upon the subject, in which the Manchester 'gentlemen unanimously agreed that the thing was impracticable ; and in- de- fence of their opinion they adduced arguments which I was cer- tainly incompetent to answer, or even to comprehend, being totally ignorant of the subject, having never at the time seen a person weave. I controverted, however, the impracticability of the thing by remarking that there had been lately exhibited in London an automaton figure which played at chess. Now you will not assert, gentlemen, said I, that it is more difficult to construct a machine that shall weave, than one that shall make all the variety of moves that are required in that complicated game. Some time afterwards a particular circumstance recalling this conversation to my mind, it struck me that, as in plain weaving, according to the conception I then had of the business, there could be only three movements, which were to follow each other in succession, there could be little difficulty in producing and repeating them. Full of these ideas, I immediately employed a carpenter and smith to carry them into effect. As soon as the machine was finished, I got a weaver to put 338 FOREIGN MECHANICS. in the warp, which was of such materials as sail-cloth is usually made of. To my great delight, a piece of cloth, such as it was, was the produce. As I had never before turned my thoughts to mechanism, either in theory or practice, nor had seen a loom at work, nor knew any thing of its construction, you will readily sup. pose that my first loom must have been a most rude piece of ma- chinery. The warp was laid perpendicularly, the reed fell with a force of at least half a hundred weight, and the springs which threw the shuttle were strong enough to have thrown a Congreve rocket. In short, it required the strength of two powerful men to work the machine, at a slow rate, and only for a short time. Conceiving in my simplicity that I had accomplished all that was required, I then secured what I thought a most valuable property by a patent, 4th of April, 1785. This being done, I then condescended to see how other people wove ; and you will guess my astonishment when I compared their easy modes of operation with mine. Availing myself, however, of what I then saw, I made a loom in its general principles nearly as they are now made. But it was not till the year 1787, that I completed my invention, when I took out my last weaving patent, August the 1st of that year. 11 Dr. Cartwrighfs children still remember often seeing their father about this time walking to and fro apparently in deep meditation, and occasionally throwing his arms from side to side ; on which they used to be told that he was thinking of weaving and throwing the shuttle. From the moment indeed when his attention was first turned to the invention of the power-loom, mechanical contrivance became the grand occupying subject of his thoughts. With that sanguineness of disposition which seems to be almost a necessary part of the character of an inventor, he looked upon difficulties, when he met with them in any of his attempts, as only affording his genius an occasion for a more distinguished triumph ; nor did he allow even repeated failures for a moment to dishearten him. Some time after he had brought his first loom to perfection, a manufacturer, who had called upon him to see it at work, after expressing his admiration of the ingenuity displayed in it, remarked that, wonderful as was Mr. Cartwright's mechanical skill, there was one thing that would effectually baffle him, the weaving, namely, of patterns in chec.ks, or, in other words, the combining, in the same web, of a pattern, or fancy figure, with the crossing colors which constitute the check. Mr. Cartwright made no reply to this observation at the time ; but some weeks after, on receiving a second visit from the same person, he had the pleasure of show- ing him a piece of muslin, of the description mentioned, beautifully executed by machinery. The man is said to have been so much EDMUND CARTWRIGHT. 339 astonished, that he roundly declared his conviction that some agency more than human must have been called in to assist on the occasion. The weaving factory which was erected at Doncaster, by some of Cartwrighf s friends, with his license, was unsuccessful ; and another establishment containing five hundred looms, built at Man. Chester, was destroyed in 1790 by an exasperated mob. The in- vention had surmounted all opposition at the time of his death, and is stated then to have increased in use so rapidly as to perform the labor of two hundred thousand men ! Cartvvright's next invention was to comb wool by machinery, which excited if possible a still greater ferment among the working classes than even the power-looms. The whole body of wool combers petitioned parliament to suppress the obnoxious machines, but without effect. These machines began to be used by some manu- facturers, who at the same time attempted to evade Cart w right's claim as their inventor. After a trial which occupied twenty-six hours, he established his right, and gained a verdict of one thou- sand pounds against the pirates. For several other inventions in agriculture and manufactures he took out patents, and for others premiums were bestowed upon him by the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, and the Board of Agriculture. Even the steam engine engaged his attention ; and an account of some improvements which he proposed in its mechanism may be found in Reese's Cyclopedia. Indeed, so long as forty years ago, while residing at Eltham in Lincolnshire, he used frequently to tell his son that, if he lived to be a man, he would see both ships and land-carriages impelled by steam. It is also certain that at that early period he had constructed a model of a steam engine attached to a barge, which he explained about the year 1793, in the presence of his family, to Robert Fulton, then a student of painting under West. Even so late as the year 1822, Dr. Cartwrightj notwithstanding his very advanced age, and although his attention was much occupied by other philosophical speculations, was actively engaged in endeavoring to contrive a plan of propelling land-carriages by steam. His death, however, at Hastings, in October, 1823, prevented the completion of this, as well as of many other designs in the prosecution of which he had been employed. His enthusiasm for mechanical invention continued unabated to the last ; and indeed his general energy both of mind and body was very little impaired up to within a short period of his death. In a letter to his brother, Major Cartwright, dated 24th April, 1819, he says, " I this day entered into my 77th year in as good health and spirits, thank 340 FOREIGN MECHANICS. God, as I have done on any one birthday for the last half century. I am moving about my farm -from eight o'clock in the morning till four in the afternoon, without suffering the least fatigue. I sent in my claim to the Board of Agriculture for their premium for a cure of the mildew on wheat, but have not yet heard that it was admitted. I don't know whether I ever mentioned to you a ma- chine for dibbling or planting wheat, which I have brought to great perfection. I have also a very material improvement on the stocks respecting ploughs and wheel-carriages ; but of this I shall say nothing till I have brought it to the proof, which I hope to do very shortly ; when you shall be immediately informed of the re- sult, whether favorable or not.' 1 The following verses, also, which he sent to a friend not long before his death, will show at once the undiminished ardor and activity of his mind, and the generous and philanthropic motives by which his enthusiasm was sustained and directed : " Since even Newton owns that all he wrought Was due to industry and patient thought, What shall restrain the impulse which I feel To forward, as I may, the public weal ? By his example fired, to break away, In search of truth, through darkness into day ? He tried, on venturous wing, the loftiest flight, An eagle soaring to the fount of light 1 I cling to earth, to earth-born arts confined, A worm of science of the humblest kind. Our powers, though wide apart as earth and heaven, For different purposes alike were given : Though mine the arena of inglorious fame, Where pride and folly would the strife disdain, With mind unwearied still will I engage In spite of failing vigor and of age, Nor quit the combat till I quit the stage : Or, if in idleness my life shall close, Let well-earned victory justify repose !'" The disposition of this excellent man, indeed, naturally carried him throughout his life to promote, by every means in his power, the benefit of his fellow creatures ; and the following incident is perhaps worthy of being recorded, as illustrating how this tendency used to display itself in other parts of his conduct, as well as in his zeal for mechanical improvements. While he held the living of Goadly Maxwood, in Leicestershire, he applied himself so as- siduously to the study of medicine that he acquired extensive knowledge and eminent skill in that science, and was in the habit of prescribing to his poorer parishioners with great success. Actuated by such feelings as those we have described, Dr. Cartwright was as free as any man who ever lived from jealousy or illiberally towards other inventors. In fact, it may be safely EDMUND CARTWRIGHT. 341 asserted, that had he not carried his frankness and want of suspi- cion, as well as his indifference to pecuniary gains, beyond the limits of worldly prudence, his ingenious contrivances would in all probability have been productive of much greater benefit to himself than they ever actually were. So careless was he in re- gard to retaining in his own possession the valuable ideas with which his mind was continually teeming, that he has been fre- quently known to have given the most important assistance by his suggestions to other persons engaged like hirqself in mechanical pursuits, and afterwards to have forgotten the circumstance as entirely as if it had never happened. Nay, so completely did what he was engaged about at the moment occupy his mind, that he sometimes forgot his own inventions, and other productions, of an older date, even when his attention was particularly called to them. One day, one of his daughters having chanced to repeat in his presence some lines from a poem entitled the " Prince of Peace," which appeared in his volume already mentioned, he ex- claimed, to her surprise and amusement, " Those are beautiful lines, child ; where did you meet with them ?" On another occa- sion, being shown the model of a machine, he examined it with great attention, and at last observed, that the inventor must have been a man of great ingenuity, and that he himself should feel very proud if he had been the author of the contrivance ; nor could he be immediately convinced of what was proved to be the case, namely, that it was a machine of his own. Dr. Cart wright was defrauded of the pecuniary profits which he might reasonably have expected from his great invention of the power-loom, by various accidents, and especially by the burning of a manufactory, containing five hundred of his machines, almost immediately after it was built. It may also be added, that after he had demonstrated the practicability of weaving by machinery, other inventors applied themselves to the devising of contrivances for that purpose slightly different from his a comparatively easy task, even where the new invention was not merely a disguised infringement of his patent, while in those cases in which it was in reality nothing more than such an infringement, it was yet so pro- tected, that it could hardly be reached and put down as such. On these and other accounts, and in no small degree owing to Dr. Cartwright's carelessness about his own interests, the power-loom only began, in point of fact, to be extensively introduced about the year 1801, the very year in which his patent expired. So gene- rally, however, was it felt among those best entitled to express an opinion on the subject, that to him really belonged the merit of the invention, that in the year 1808, several merchants and manufac- 24 342 FOREIGN MECHANICS. turers of Manchester and its neighborhood, to none of whom he was personally known, held a meeting to consider the propriety of presenting to the Lords of the Treasury a memorial of his emi- nent services, and of the losses he had sustained through the pira- cies and other unfortunate circumstances to which we have alluded. In consequence of this and other applications in his favor, the sum of ten thousand pounds was soon after granted him by parliament. An amount, although munificent as a present, yet barely adequate even to repay the sums the doctor had expended in his experi- ments ; and his family, after all, reaped no pecuniary benefit from his ingenious and persevering labors. This national recog- nition of his claims may be taken as a sufficient answer to some attempts that have been occasionally made to rob Dr. Cartwright of the credit of having been the author of one of the most valuable presents ever made to the manufacturing industry of his country. As a man of education and literary habits, the inventor of the power-loom, notwithstanding his deviation from his original track of thought and study when he began to give his attention to me- chanics, may yet be said to have come even to that new line of pursuit with certain acquired advantages. He brought with him at least a mind awakened to some knowledge of its own powers by the general cultivation it had received, and not undisciplined by its accustomed exercises to habits of speculation and inquiry JOHN WHITEHURST. THIS individual, whose philosophical and mechanical researches have met with such universal attention, was born in Congleton, in Cheshire, April 10, 1713 : he was the son of a clock and watch maker of the same name in that town. Of the early part of his life little is known. He who dies at a very advanced age leaves few behind him to communicate anec- dotes of his youth. On his leaving school, where the education he received was certainly very defective, he was bred up by his father to his own trade ; in which, as in other mechanical and sci- entific pursuits, he soon gave intimations of future eminence. At about the age of twenty-one, his eagerness after new ideas carried him to Dublin, having heard of an ingenious piece of me- chanism in that city, consisting of a clock with certain curious ap- pendages, which he was extremely desirous of seeing, and no less JOHN WHITEHURST. JOHN WHITEHURST. 345 so than of conversing with the maker. On his arrival, however, he could neither procure a sight of the former, nor draw the least hint from the latter concerning it. Thus disappointed, he thought of an expedient to accomplish his design. He accordingly took up his residence in the house of the mechanic, paying the more liberally for his board, as he had hopes of thence more readily obtaining the indulgence so eagerly wished for. As happened, he was accommodated with a room directly over that in which the favorite piece was kept carefully locked. The so long wished for opportunity soon occurred ; for the artist being one day employed in examining the machine, was suddenly called down stairs. White- hurst, ever on the alert, softly slipped into the room, inspected the machine, and having comprehended its principles, escaped undis. covered to his own apartment. His curiosity thus gratified, he shortly bid the machinist farewell, and returned to his father in England. About two years after his adventure in Ireland, he left the place of his nativity, and entered into business for himself at Derby. His reputation as a clock and watch maker soon became very ex- tended, and his character as a citizen such that he was enrolled as burgess. He was also consulted in almost all the undertakings in the coun- try round, where the aid of superior skill in mechanics, pneumat- ics, and hydraulics was required. His dwelling became the resort of the ingenious and scientific from every quarter, and frequently to such a degree as to impede him in the regular prosecution of his pursuits. In 1775, when the act for the regulation of gold coin was pass- ed, he was unexpectedly appointed to the office of stamper. In 1778, he published his " Inquiry into the Original State and Form- ation of the Earth ;" being a work of many years 1 labor, and one by which he obtained considerable reputation. He was chosen a member of the Royal Society, May 13, 1779. He was also a member of some other philosophical societies, which admitted him to their respective bodies without his previous knowledge. But so remote was he from every thing that might savor of ostentation, that this circumstance was only known to very few of his confiden- tial friends. Previous to his admission, he had inserted several different papers in their philosophical transactions. In the summer of 1783, he made a second visit to Ireland, with a view to examine the Giant's Causeway, and other northern parts of that island, which he found to be almost entirely composed of volcanic matter ; an account and representations of which were inserted in the second edition of his " Inquiry." During this ex- 346 FOREIGN MECHANICS. cursion he erected an engine for raising water from a well to* the summit of a hill in a bleaching ground at Tullidoi, in the county of Tyrone. This engine was worked by a current of water, and for its utility and ingenuity was unequalled, perhaps, in any country. In 1787 he published his " Attempt towards obtaining Invariable Measures of Length, Capacity, and Weight, from the Mensura- tion of Time." Though for some years previous to his death Mr. Whitehurst felt himself declining, yet his ever active mind remitted not of its accustomed exertion. Even in his last illness, before being con- fined entirely to his chamber, he was proceeding at intervals to complete a Treatise on Chimneys, Ventilation, and Garden Stoves, including some other plans for promoting the health and comfort of society. He was sensible of his approaching dissolution; and on Monday, February 18, 1788, in the seventy-fifth year of his age, terminated his laborious and useful life. He died in the very house where had recently lived and died another celebrated self- taught genius, James Ferguson. However respectable Mr. Whitehurst may have been in mechan- ics, he was of far higher account with his acquaintances and friends on the score of his moral qualities. To say nothing of the upright- ness and punctuality of his dealings in all transactions relative to business ; few men have been known to possess more benevolent affections than he, or, being possessed of such, to direct them more judiciously to their proper ends. He was a philanthropist in the truest sense of the word. Though well known to many of the great, to whose good graces flattery -is generally the readiest path, it is to be recorded to his honor, that he never once stooped to that degrading mode of obtaining favor, which he regarded as the lowest vice of the lowest mind. He had, indeed, a settled abhor- rence, not of flattery only, but of every other deviation from truth, at whose shrine he may be said to have been a constant worship- per. The truth of things he was daily, more or less, in the habit of investigating, and truth of action he exemplified in the whole tenor of a long and singularly useful life. JAMES HARGREAVES, THE INVENTOR OF THE SPINNING JENNY. THIS individual was a weaver at Stand Hill, near Blackburn : though illiterate and humble, he must be regarded as one of the great inventors and improvers of the cotton manufacture. His principal invention, and one which showed high mechanical genius, was the spinning jenny ; a machine, as tradition affirms, which owed its title to a fair damsel by the name of Jane. The date of this invention was some years before Arkwright obtained the patent for his water frame ; and differs so completely from that machine, that there can be no suspicion of its being other than a perfectly original invention. It may be necessary to explain to some readers, that the cotton was formerly, and is still, reduced from the state of the fleecy roll called a carding, into the state of spun thread, by repeated, though similar operations ; the first draws out the carding, and gives it a very slight twist, so as to make it into a loose thread, about the thickness of a candle-wick, in which state it is called a roving or slubbin ; the subsequent processes draw out the roving much finer, and at length reduce 'it into yarn. The jenny, like Arkwright's machine, was intended to spin the roving into yarn ; but, unlike Arkwright's, was incapable of being applied to the preparation of the roving itself. Hargreaves is said to have received the original idea of his machine from seeing a one-thread wheel overturned upon the floor, when both the wheel and spindle continued to revolve. The spindle was thus thrown from a horizontal into an upright position ; and the thought seems to have struck him, that if a number of spindles were placed upright, and side by side, several threads might be spun at once. He contrived a frame, in one part of which he placed eight rovings in a row, and in another part a row of eight spindles. The rovings, when extended to the spindles, passed be- tween two horizontal bars of wood forming a clasp, which opened and shut somewhat like a parallel ruler ; when pressed together, this clasp held the threads fast. A certain portion of roving being extended from the spindles to the wooden clasp, the clasp was closed, and was then drawn along the horizontal frame to a con- siderable distance from the spindles, by which the threads were lengthened out, and reduced to the proper tenuity ; this was done 24* 348 FOREIGN MECHANICS. with the spinner's left hand, and his right hand, at the same time, turned a wheel, which caused the spindles to revolve rapidly, and thus the roving was spun into yarn. By returning the clasp to its first situation, and letting down a presser wire, the yarn was, wound upon the spindle. With this admirable machine, though at first rudely constructed, Hargreaves and his family spun weft for his own weaving. Aware of the value of the invention, but not extending his ambition to a patent, he kept it as secret as possible for a time, and used it merely in his own business. A machine of such powers could not, however, be long concealed ; but when it became the subject of rumor, instead of gaining for its author admiration and grati- tude, the spinners raised an outcry that it would throw multitudes out of employment, and a mob broke into Hargreave's house, and destroyed his jenny. So great was the persecution he suffered, and the danger in which he was placed, that this victim of popular ignorance was compelled to flee, as the inventor of the fly -shuttle had before him. Thus the neighborhood where the machine was invented lost the benefit of it, yet without preventing its general adoption ; the common and appropriate punishment of the igno- rance and selfishness which oppose mechanical improvements. Hargreaves retired to Nottingham in 1768, where he entered into partnership with Mr. Thomas James, a joiner, who raised sufficient money to enable them to erect a small mill. He took out a patent for the jenny in 1770, the year after Arkwright had taken out his. The patent was " for a method of making a wheel or an engine of an entire new construction, and never before made use of, in order for spinning, drawing, and twisting of cotton, and: to be managed by one person only ; and that the wheel or engine will spin, draw, and twist sixteen or more threads at one time, by a turn or motion of one hand and a draw of the other." The following is the inventor's description of the process : " One person, with his or her right hand, turns the wheel, and with the left hand takes hold of the clasps, and therewith draws out the cotton from the slubbin box ; and being twisted by the turn of the wheel in the drawing out, then a piece of wood is lifted by the toe, which lets down a presser wire, so as to press the threads so drawn out and twisted, in order to wind or put the same regularly upon bobbins which are placed on the spindles." The number of spindles in the jenny was at first eight ; when the patent was ob- tained it was sixteen ; it soon came to be twenty or thirty ; and no less than one hundred and twenty have since been used. Before quitting Lancashire, Hargreaves had made a few jennies for sale j and the importance of the invention being universally JAMES HARGREAVES. 349 appreciated, the interests of the manufacturers and weavers brought it into general use, in spite of all opposition. A desperate effort, though, was made in 1779 probably in a period of temporary distress to put down the machine. A mob rose and scoured the country for several miles around Blackburn, demolishing the jen- nies, and with them all the carding engines, water frames, and every machine turned by water or horses. It is said the rioters spared the jennies which had only twenty spindles, as these were by this time admitted to be useful, but those with a greater num. ber, being considered mischievous, were destroyed, or cut down to the prescribed dimensions. It may seem strange that not merely the working classes, but even the middle and higher ranks of people, entertained a great dread of machinery. Not perceiving the tendency of any inven- tion which improved and cheapened the manufacture, to cause an extended demand for its products, and thereby to give employment to more hands than it superseded, those classes were alarmed lest the poor rates should be burdened with workmen thrown idle. They therefore connived at, and even actually joined in the opposi- tion to the machinery, and did all in their power to screen the rioters from punishment. This devastating outrage left effects more permanent than have usually resulted from such commotions. Spinners and other capi- talists were driven from the neighborhood of Blackburn to Man- chester and other places, and in consequence it was many years before cotton spinning was resumed at Blackburn. Hargreaves went to Nottingham in 1768, and worked for a while in the employment of Mr. Shipley, for whom he secretly made some jennies in his dwelling. He was induced, by the offers of Mr. Thomas James, to enter into partnership with him ; and the latter raised sufficient money, on mortgage and loan, to build a small mill in Hockley, where they spun yarn for the hosiers with the jenny. The patent was obtained in 1770. Finding that several of the Lancashire manufacturers were using the jenny, Hargreaves gave notice of actions against them : the manufacturers met, and sent a delegate to Nottingham, who offered Hargreaves three thousand pounds for permission tcr use the machine ; but he at first demanded seven thousand, and at last stood out for four thousand. The negotiation being broken off, the actions proceeded ; but before they came to trial, Hargreaves' attorney was informed that his client, before leaving Lancashire, had sold some jennies to obtain clothing for his children, of whom he had six or seven. In consequence, the attorney gave up the actions, in despair of obtaining a verdict. 350 FOREIGN MECHANICS. The spinning business was carried on by the partners with mo- derate success, till the death of Mr. Hargreaves, which took place at his own house, near the mill, in April, 1778. In his will he directed a guinea to be given to the vicar for preaching his funeral sermon. His widow received four hundred pounds from Mr. James, for her husband^ share in the business. It is a consolation to the admirers of genius to know, that this benefactor to his country was enabled to live in comfort, though not in affluence, on the fruits of his invention. JOSEPH BRAMAH, THE INVENTOR OF THE HYDROSTATIC PRESS. JOSEPH BRAMAH, one of the greatest mechanics England has ever produced, was the oldest son of a small farmer, and was born on the 13th of April, 1749, at Stainsborough, in Yorkshire. He exhibited at a very early age an unusual talent for mechanical contrivances, and succeeded, when quite a boy, in making two violoncellos, which were found to be very tolerable instruments. His hours of relaxation from the business of the farm were gene- rally spent in a neighboring blacksmith-shop, between whose tenant and himself was shared the merit of several ingenious pieces of mechanism. An accidental lameness in his ankles unfitting him for agricul- tural labor, he was apprenticed in his sixteenth year to a carpenter and joiner. At the expiration of his " time," he went to London in search of employment, where, by his industry and exertions, he soon became a master. His now extended means enabled him to indulge his mechanical taste, and he quickly became known as a man possessing a fine invention as well as great executive skill. In 1784, he produced the admirable lock which bears his name, and which was considered the most perfect mechanism of its kind that had ever been produced, and even to this day is scarcely rivalled for safety, durability, elegance, and simplicity. The pe- culiar character of this lock depends on the arrangement of a number of levers, or sliders, to preserve, when at rest, a uniform situation, and to be only pressed down by the key to a certain depth, which nothing but the key can ascertain, the levers not having any stop to retain them in their required situation, except JOSEPH BRAMAH. 351 that which forms part of the key. He added afterwards some modifications, for allowing the key to be varied at pleasure. The report that one of these locks had been readily opened before a committee of the House of Commons, by means of a common quill, was a gross misrepresentation of the fact ; the quill having, in reality, been previously cut into the required shape from the true key. An experiment which was only made to show the per- fection of the workmanship, and the very small force requisite to overcome the resistance when properly applied. It has been stated that one of these locks, after having been in use many years, and opened and locked not less than four hundred thousand times, was apparently as perfect as when first constructed. The invention for which he will probably be best known to posterity, is his hydrostatic press, which is described in the succeeding para- graph : The principle of this machine is this : if a given pressure, as that given by a plug forced inwards upon a square inch of the surface of a fluid confined in a vessel, is suddenly communicated to every square inch of the vessel's surface, however large, and to every inch of the surface of any body immersed in it, thus if we attempt to force a cork into a vessel full of water, the pressure will not merely be felt by the portion of the water directly in . the range of the cork, but by all parts of the mass alike ; and the liability of the bottle to break, supposing it to be of uniform strength throughout, will be as great in one place as another. And a bottle will break at the point wherever it is the weakest, however that point may be situated relatively to the place where the cork is applied ; and the effect will be the same whether the stopper be inserted at the top, bottom, or side of the vessel. It is this power which operates with such astonishing effect in the Hydrostatic Press. The annexed engraving represents a press made of the strongest timbers, the foundation of which is com- monly laid in solid masonry. A B is a small cylinder, in which moves the piston of a forcing pump, and C D is a large cylinder, 352 FOREIGN MECHANICS. in which also moves a piston, having the upper end of its rod pressing against a moveable plank E, between which and the large beam above is placed the substance to be subjected to pressure, as, for example, a pile of new-bound books. By the ac- tion of the pump handle, water is raised into the small cylinder, and on depressing the piston, it is forced through a valve at B into the large cylinder, and raises the piston D, which expends its whole force on the bodies confined at E. Now, since whatever force is applied to any one portion of the fluid extends alike to every part, therefore the force which is exerted by the pump upon the smaller column, is transmitted unimpaired to every inch of the larger column, and tends to raise the moveable plank, E, with a force as much greater, in the aggregate, than that impressed upon the surface of the smaller, as this surface is smaller than that of the larger column ; or (which is the same thing) as the number of square inches in the end of the piston B is less than that of the piston D. The power of such a machine is enormously great ; for supposing the hand to be applied at the end of the handle with a force of only ten pounds, and that this handle or lever is so constructed as to multiply that force but five times, the force with which the smaller piston will descend will be equal to fifty pounds ; and let us suppose that the head of the larger piston contains the smaller fifty times, then the force exerted to raise the press board will equal two thousand five hundred pounds. A man can indeed easily exert ten times the force supposed, and can therefore exert a force upon the substance under pressure equal to twenty-five thousand pounds ! Here, too, the mere application of the puny force of a child's arm is sufficient to tear up trees by the roots, and crush bars of iron as though they were pieces of wax. If as an invention for developing power it is equal in importance to the steam engine, but unlike it, its use is not limited by any circumstances of a local nature, for it does not depend on a consumption of any extraneous substance whatever ; two small pipes, each fitted with a piston and a little water, which for years needs no replenishing, gives to an ordinary man in all situations the strength of a giant. This machine, one of the most admirable in the whole -compass of the arts, has been called, by some envious blockheads, " Pas- caPs Machine; 11 and, in their descriptions, they almost say Pascal invented it ; but that ingenious philosopher has about as much claim to this great honor, as the old woman who first discovered her beard and her wrinkles in her polished pewter platter, had to be considered as the inventress of the Newtonian telescope ! Before Bramah^s time, Bonifaces were obliged to trudge to the JOSEPH BRAMAH. 353 cellar for every drop of the beverage they measured out to their customers, or have their barrels placed in waiting on the same level with their parlor. In most states of the weather this was a hazardous position, and in some atmospheres very injurious; but Bramah, by his elegant "Beer Machine," enabled them to pump up into the measure, in the bar, the fermented juice contained in the various casks in the cellar. Machinery for smoothing surfaces was another of his elaborate and beautiful specimens of mechanism. It was erected at the Woolwich Arsenal with perfect success : the axis of the principal shaft was supported on a piston in a vessel of oil, which diminished the friction considerably, and could be accurately measured by means of a small forcing pump. He introduced also a mode of turning spherical surfaces either convex or concave, by a tool moveable on an axis perpendicular to that of the lathe ; and fixing a curved tool in the same position, he cut out concentric sheets. He. also described machinery for making paper in large sheets ; for printing by means of a roller, composed of a number of circu- lar plates, turning on the same axis, each bearing twenty-six let- ters capable of being shifted at pleasure, so as to express any single line by a proper combination of the plates. This was put in practice to number bank notes, and enable the clerks to do six where before they could only number one. In 1812, he produced his project for main pipes, which in some parts was more ingenious than practicable. In describing them, he mentions having employed an hydrostatic pressure equal to that of a column of water twenty thousand feet high, (about four tons for every inch.) He also asserts that he can form five hundred tubes, each five feet long, capable of sliding within each other, and of being extended in a few seconds, by the pressure of air forced into them, to a length of two thousand five hundred feet ; with this power he proposed to raise wrecks, and regulate the descent of weights. His improvements in wheel carriages con- sisted in fixing each wheel to a separate moveable axis, having its bearings at two distinct points of its length, but loosely enclosed between those points in a cylinder filled with oil ; in another, op- posite wheels were to be fixed on the same axis, though with the power of turning very stiffly round it to lessen the lateral motion on rough roads ; and he suggests pneumatic springs, formed by pistons sliding in cylinders, as a substitute for springs of metal : latterly he improved the machines for sawing stones and timber, and suggested some alterations in the construction of bridges and canal locks. His last illness was occasioned by a severe cold, 354 FOREIGN MECHANICS. taken during some experiments in tearing up of trees in a forest. He died on the 9th of December, 1814. Bramah was a sincere and unostentatious follower of the pre- cepts of Christianity : his conversation was animated, and to much facility of expression he added the most perfect independence of opinion : he was a cheerful, benevolent, and affectionate man neat and methodical in his habits and knew well how to temper liberality with economy. Greatly to his honor, he often kept his workmen employed, solely for their sake, when the stagnation of trade prevented him disposing of the products of their labor. As a manufacturer, he was distinguished for his promptitude and in- tegrity, and celebrated for the exquisite finish which he gave to his productions. ANECDOTES, DESCRIPTIONS, ETC., ETC., RELATING TO THE MECHANIC ARTS. Progress of Invention illustrated. THE progressive stages through which even some of our sim- plest tools have to pass, ere they arrive at their final state of per- fection, is sometimes astonishing. The simple process of drawing a cork will furnish the necessary illustrations. The inventor of bottles is unknown ; but these were in use centuries before corks were thought of, and these, again, were employed for generations before a convenient method was hit upon for their extraction. The exhilarating contents could then only be tasted by what was technically called " be- heading the bottle." More expert practitioners had many opportunities of showing their skill in removing the impediment by a dexterous twist of the fingers ; or, if that were impracticable, teeth were called in as their natural auxiliaries : here, however, in many cases, it was doubtful whether the cork would follow the teeth, or the teeth remain in the cork; and if an obstinate remnant would remain, a nail was a ready means of dislodging the stubborn plug, particle by par- ticle. When at any time, through an impatience of the nibbling labor, or a despair of accom- plishing a clean extraction at all, it was resolved to send the obstacle the wrong way; this was then, indeed, an invaluable instrument. A pair 25 T 356 ANECDOTES, of skewers, or forks, inserted " witchwise,"' would sometimes accomplish those difficult cases which had baffled the exertions of all the natur- als. Twisting the lower extremity of the " bare bodkin" into a spiral form, and adding a handle to it, was the thought of a master genius ; and in this shape mankind for ages were contented to avail themselves of its services ; and even at the present hour, some barbarous, uncouth coun- tries and districts may be named where it is still the extractor in most general use. In our coun- try, it must be in the recollection of many, that this was in numerous cases a very inefficient machine ; and no one hostess ever before con- ferred such a favor upon all bottle suckers as that lady who first conceived the idea of placing a button at the end of the screw-worm. Hence- forth the decanting process was a mere matter of routine. When, in her green old age, death laid his hand on the inventress, a piratical screw- maker also took to himself the credit and profit of the button. Yet the fair originator shall be ne'er forgotten, even although her master-piece, some years later, was eclipsed, and may yet be superseded by the King's screw, which can receive no addition to its beauty or convenience. Another illustration can be found in the shoemaker's awl, which is a much simpler instrument, even than the cork-screw. The first awls were plain, conical pundits, that made a round hole in the leather. It was soon discovered that this form was erro- neous, for the hole thus made was never more than half filled with the two waxed threads crossing each other. Geometry teaches us that these two threads, being like two small circles enclosed by a third, occupied but one half of the space of the hole. The conical awl was then flattened, and had an oval form as to its section given to it ; and some time afterwards the awl was so filed as to give it four faces, the section being something in the shape of a lozenge ; but still the awl was straight. Although this straightness is useful in many cases, yet it was improper in the business of shoemaking. Suppose it were wished to sew together, DESCRIPTIONS, ETC. 357 quite close to the edge, two pieces of leather, one placed upon the other, and that a straight awl is used ; the hole that it will make will constantly push out the leather towards the edge and give it a convex form, and when the sewing is done the edge will exhibit a row of festoons, which it will be necessary to rub down by means of a knife, in order to give a regular edge to the pieces, but which, 6y this means, will lose much of its strength. Now, if, on the contrary, a crooked awl is used, and pushed in properly, it may be brought very near the edge, by making it describe the arc of a circle, whose convexity is opposite to the edge. By this simple means the festooned appearance of the edge produced by the straight awl will not be formed, and of course the strength of the leather will be preserved undiminished, and the sewing itself will be strong. Unfortunately, the name of the person who conceived the idea of bending the awl is lost. Illustration of the Ignorance of Foreigners respecting American Inventions. The ignorance of foreigners in relation to our country and its improvements in the mechanic arts, is well illustrated in the fol- lowing conversation related by Allen, in his Travels, as having passed between himself and a Flemish gentleman, in a stage coach in Holland. In speaking of steam, he says : " Our artisan was also eloquent in his eulogium upon steam navigation, having for the first time in his life made the passage from Rotterdam to Antwerp in the steam-packet. In a few years, he observed, steamboats would be in use in all parts of the country, and even in the United States of America we might not be long without them. His surprise was great, when informed that steam, boats were in general use on most of the large rivers of the Union, where they were first successfully put into operation, some twenty years ago. " The subject of mechanical inventions having been thus intro- duced, I described to him several of the curiously constructed machines invented by Americans. He continued to listen to an account of the nail machine, which cuts and heads nails from a flat bar of iron as fast as a man can count them. The machine for making weavers 1 reeds or slaies seemed to strike attention as a won- derful invention, whereby the mechanism is made to draw in the flattened wire from a reel, to insert it between the side pieces, to cut it off at the proper length, and finally, to bind each dent firmly in its place with tarred twine, accomplishing the whole operation 358 ANECDOTES, without the assistance of an attendant, in a more perfect manner than can be performed by the most skilful hand. He had never before heard of these machines : although possessed of a good share of intelligence, yet the complicated operations of the mechanism for accomplishing processes which he supposed could only be brought about by manual dexterity, appeared to him almost in- credible. But when I described to him Blanchar