468
Extensive adoption of Newcomen’s Engine. [Book IV.
ment to Savery’s engine, but I am well inform’d that Mr. Newcomen wasas early in his invention, as Mr. Savery was in his, only the latter beingnearer the court, had obtain’d his patent before the other knew of it; onwhich account Mr. Newcomen was glad to come in as a partner to it.”(Hydrostatics, 342.) That is, as a partner to his own invention.
To Newcomen and his associate belongs the honor of laying the found-ation for the modern engine. The piston engine of Worcester had beenforgotten, Papin’s was an abortion, and Savery probably never thought ofone; hence, whether the Dartmouth mechanicians were aware of its pre-vious employment or not, to them a large share of merit is justly due.They were moreover amiable and unassuming in their manners, and seemto have passed through life without exciting much of that envy that em-bitters more or less the nights and days of successful inventors. Fromsuch men, who can withhold expressions of approbation and esteem ? Hadthey been members of the Roman church, they should have been canonized—could we believe in the efficacy of prayers for the dead, we would havemasses performed for the repose of their spirits—and had we the power,every contributor to useful mechanism should be commemorated by anapotheosis.
Cawley died in 1717, but the date of Newcomen’s decease has notbeen ascertained.
General adoption of Newcomen and Cawley’s engine—Leopolde machine—Steam applied as a moverof general machinery—Wooden and granite boilers—Generating steam by the heat of the sun—Floats—Grecn-hoqses and dwellings heated by steam—Cooking by steam—Explosive engines—Vapor engines—English , French and American motive engines—Woisard’s air machine—Vapor of mereury—Liquefiedgases—Decomposition and recomposition of water.
Newcomen and Cawley’s engines were found to answer the purposeof raising water so well, that in a few years they were introduced intoRussia , Sweden , France and Hungary ; and about 1760, one was importedby the proprietors of the old copper mine near Belleville, New Jersey .They in fact imparted a new and very beneficial impulse to mining opera-tions, and quickly raised the value of mining stock. Deluged works wererecovered, old mines deepened, and new ones opened, in various districts,both in Great Britain and Continental Europe r nor were they confined todraining mines, but were employed to raise water for the use of townsand cities, and even to supply water-wheels of mills. By exciting theattention of ingenious men to their improvement, they became the meansof extending manufactures generally, and introduced one which had neverbefore been known in the World, viz. the fabrication of motive engines —amanufacture upon which the wealth, power and bappiness of nations aredestined in a great degree hereafter to depend.