616

EAKLY STEAM NAVIGATION.

with M r . Rumsey. I am confident that he never conceived me to be a rival in navigating boats, until hefound his own plan hopeless and mine likely to succeed.

In his third page he says, “ I wrote to General Washington lOthMarch 1785, that I intended applyingboth powers to a boat built after the model of the one he saw at Bath ; but the disadvantages beforementioned still remained and as I could gain truth only by successive experiments, incredible delays wereproduced — and though my distresses were greatly increased thereby, &c.”—It is truly amazing thatthough he had long before this letter, been making progress in Steam engines, and gaining truth bysuccessive experiments, and incredible delays , insomuch that at the time of his proposing to get cylinderscast at Governor Johnson’s works in October 1785, he had the principal part of his work untouched ; Isay it is amazing, that these incredible delays should all vanish as in an instant, and that between the timeof his failing at Governor Johnson’s works in October or November 1785, and the first of Decemberfollowing, he should have completed his whole machinery, ready to be put on board.—A Steam-engineis a complex piece of work, and his subsequent transactions show that he found it so; for it has takenhim from the summer of 1786 (when he removed his works from Frederick-town) to the winter of1787 to make them ready for a fair experiment. No person therefore can be brought to believe, thathis first machinery could have been conjured together in little more than 30 days.—Nb such thinghappened — I have already sufficient proof to the contrary, and have no doubt but a multitude ofcorroborating witnesses will voluntarily offer themselves, when this pamphlet gets down to Frederick-town and Shepherds town, where I shall take some pains to have it circulated. It is truth alone I am insearch of, in order to wipe off the imputation from my ow T n character ; for as to stability of title to myexclusive rights, I shall not cast away an anxious thought about it.—I am secured by my laws — andmy “ coadjutors ,” as M r . Rumsey is pleased to term them, I am sure have no sort of apprehension aboutthe monies they have risqued ; and only wish that I should remove any aspersions that may be unjustlycast upon me—Thus far it may be said they have an interest in my success, because a law in my favourin Maryland is yet depending.

I must not yet quit the subject of M r . Buckley’s letter in his third page, from whence it is plainly tobe gathered, that subsequent to his letter of 10th March 1785, to General Washington he meant to tell theworld he was busily employed in -private experiments on Steam Engines , and that although his firstsetting pole boat 11 Bore the pelting of ignorance and ill nature,” yet he did not set about makmga Steam-engine, for this boat, until (as he calls it) the critical moment when a M r . Fitch with hisSteam-engine came out, asserting that he was the first inventor of Steam, and that “ I had gotten whatsmall knowledge I had from him.”—Nov T as all his experiments were privately conducted, and he doesnot pretend to have begun his boat engine, until Mr. Buckley had sent notice that I charged him withstealing knowledge from me ; I would ask any man where I was to obtain the grounds for my charge 1it could not be until I had begun my own engine, and made it every where public—then it followsthat my pretended complaint against him must have been subsequent to my own works and prior to thebeginning of his works for his boat in JYovember (as he callsit) which from his own statement haslaid a fair and just foundation for my claim of public priority, for private priority is out of the question,as M r . Henry, M r . Ellicott and M r . Paine are before us both.

Nay even after the real Steam-engine for his boat was actually begun, we find-it kept as the mostprofound secret, and from Charles Morrow’s deposition it is declared, the boat came to Sheperds-townearly in the fall of 17S5 ; that M r . Bams went to Baltimore shortly after to have some machinery cast;and on his return from Baltimore was sent to Frederick-town in order to have some other things made(which could not consistently with Governor Johnson’s letter be earlier than the beginning of November)and about the middle of November they were all finished viz. a boiler , two cylinders , pumps , pipes }