Star.
London, England, 1817-05-09 00:00:00

STEAM BU-4TS.

The Public having been Lichen() hitt vey imper-
fectly informed of the re.tl eireumstaincei of tide late
dreadful explosion of the N •rwich Stem ?Acker, tl.e
following particuViri, copied from the Phibioph;eal
favzinc and "'anal, ought to he made generally
known

" The boiler was a cylindrical vessel, about eight
feet long and four feet two inches in diameter, of
wrought iron, excepting one end, which was made
of cast iron. The latter gave way, and was propel-
led towards the stem of the vessel, While the body of
the boiler was thrown in a horizontal direction out of
the stern, sweeping all before tt ; at the same time
that the concussion of the air and steam completely
unroofed the vcsael tro:n one end to 'the
" When the explosion- took place Mete were `.22
people im hoard, of whom wily tour remained 'taut t.
Nine were kiiled.,• and the lemainder. Mare'or less
wounded ;solid of latter three•iire•rinie dealithe
engine-map, named Diggitisi. being mie:Of them.
" As.might beez,)ectvd, evintitaa'spread a
very general alarm, and proved injoiiiius to tAetu•
*inessof vess'elsr ern plore d in 'rearm Ifaieig lion ; . from
an idea that aecidests of this kindcaniint be gitairded
agaimf, but;must .be•eapucted Wit matter of cunt- .
'aloft ocmarrenceg -from the natint +-of • the moving
power. employed respecially.if the steam engine 'be
what is nommenl7, sailed w high proteins eagine, that
is au engine' worked• with steam of forty pounds pies.
sure per square inch, mr upwasslL That people is.
norant of the: properties and- Management of iteam
-should reason -thus is not wonderful, but that men
who call themselves engineers-should assist in pe(;pa-
,.
. gating such errors, is surprising.
" Every accident of this kind may be traced either
to faulty construction, or criminal mismanagement.
II a boiler Oiin be made to work Welt under a
.kifiS•
sire of four pounds per inch, it is self-evident that
one made teat, fifteen. or twenty times the strength,
may be worked' with equal safety undir a'pvessuie of
forty, of,:zty, or of eighty pinottli•the inch.' Mat
competent engineer would 'avow that lie could 'riot
make a boiler sufficiently strong-to resift a pressure
of 20a, or even 300 pounds per inch ? I.' at it 'the
safety valve of the boiler .be locked slowa, whaler
constructed to resist tom pounds or 44.10 pounds, what
can 'be expected but an'explosion ? * •
" Fruits all that wirliave been abletOleirn (*spec.
ting the explosion at Norwich,-we: hive no` doubt
whatever that it was owing to faulty' constiticiian,
criminal hardihood of the engine-man, and
mismansgument. The built Oat made of two anus
of materials, of different expansive-power's atheif
its-
fluenced 'by changes 'or teniperifirfe; .11his'Volgt-t
never to take place. The 'east•iron -Vic! was 'afititWe,
with a double cirtular rim -at -a inglit aliglestO le, like
the lid of a snuff bog ; was trliplied over ;bit find
of the wrought iron e) • die double
rim and the interposed kylindec of-wrought iiclnliiere
-passed no toes ous boh r oils the inside, and iteie were
secured by suteW-nuts on the. outside--that is, in.'sucit
a -manner 'that the' very operation of setewilig•fr9nie
the outland a tendency to fracture the cast-iron end
at the turn of its rim to a right angl 'The 'space
between the rim and die cygnder wan joio'
usual cement. The plate 'itself was Only, as •we ate
informed, about three guakrt of an lath in ihit'ine:t !
And it was usual to raise..tlie steam to n.
.pressure- of
rerocnty IL'unde the inch beScote starting for the voy;ge.
tit toe time the eapiostortook place, the attendant
',engineer was sit tiV acrosktlie boiler, working • borne
a screw into some paft of tllernachincry, c.ostiquently
io.t attending to the height cf.lris steam,a;-0. possibly,
from his pottion, pro,:v.e;iog the vps,silsilify of,sbe
salt ty valve rsiting 'to a4tostitl:dae: esospet-of any
,*steam, whatever tbe q:ai Fs:Ai/414.k t: while ap she
same time the, end ef hkii-fr,Plll.ll4e
Lent to hazard sucli a pressure at seventy pounds per
inch ; it Oilly a few ~....2,tetb of hear were then
added, the c::p,lnAiv? f,. c, would very soon be
sioub.ed ! haleed, we kiie every reason to -

bet .ew,

~~,

I

that oathe present occasion the steam was wilfully
urged to a degree beyond all prudence. In fact, the
explosion seems to have taken place from precisely
the same kind of blameable and obstinate conduct
which has so frequently occasioned serious mischief'
to passengers in stagecoaches. A rival steam-boat
was started at the same time, and the engine-maN of
the one that exploded had been heard to declare, that
lie would beat the other in the voyage, and was then
actually urging his steam to outrun the other boat.
" But, because stupid pretenders venture some-
times to -meddle with an agent with whose powers
they are not sufficiently acquainted ;• and risque their
own lives, and endanger others,,lapemploying boilers
se! ich they have not subjected tdacold-water proof's,
would any one be so foolish as to propose parliamen-
tary interference to put an end to the use of steam of
high temperature in any of the machinery or nume-
rous processes carried en in this country I Yet there
are men, who either from stupidity, or from some-
thing more blameable, have been talking in this
foolish way. As well might it be suggested, that
xnen should be prohibited from riding on horse-back,
or travelling in carriages, because numerous acci-
ektits are thus occasioned which could not possibly
happen if people were compelled to walk upon their
fZ:er. ; or that at any rate, if carriages must be used,
they ought only to be waggons, nut coaches, which
by their quicker driving are every now and then
breaking people's limbs, if not their necks.
" Away with such quackery ! No improvement
of any magnitude was ever yet introduced into the
machinery employed in our various manufactures,
that was nut attended with more or less tick in its iti-
fancy. Steam engines and steam of high pressure,
may be, and ate, used by men of science' and intel-
ligence with as perfect safety as any of the utter
powers of nature that have been Made subservient to
the wafts or to the convenience and comfort of man.
" Diggius, who was before a common labourer,
was first employed to attend a steam engine in the
brewhouse ot Alderman Paueson, of Norwich. In
Mr. Patteson's service lie was so obstinate and fool-
hardythat his employer often reproved him, and was
obliged to interfere and to make him rake out the
fire. His master was absolutely afraid at last to go
into the premises.
“ When he left this employ, whether dismissed for
obstinacy, or tired of the reproofs of his prudent
master, we know not, he w4s engaged as engine-
man to the Hope steam packit'Sbif.t. We have becii:
in!ormed by Mr. Watts, a -i;'ilse.Ctable engineer of
Norwich, that while in thatboat be has frequently'
detected him urging the steatb'to I2U pounds the
inch=-how touch higher he may have urged it at
times no person can tell.
" From the Hope lie Vent to the Telegraph, and
while he attended that vessel be went on precisely in
the same mad manner; and when the niischiet oc.
curred was actually trying a race against a rival
packet, which had got the start of the Telegraph,
determined either to pass her or force the Telegraph
into her wake. In fact, in place of steam of 60
pounds, as has been supposed, be must from his
Aucwn mode of 'filing have had steam of 120Ibs. or
probably much higher.
approaching explosion was ii,timated by a
leak at the joiLitig of the cast-iron end. The man,
Marmed by the effects of his own folly, lost his re-
collection, and was attempting none can tell what,
and had got on the top of the boiler when it exploder'.
" The boiler was so defective in construction, that
the only wonder is that it did not explode long before;
for it was more common with him to have steam at
from 100 to 120 than even at nibs. per inch.

" This 'mischief occurred precisely in the same
way as many of the numerous accidents (as they are
called) which befall stage to:tches, when foolish
drivers urge their horses to an undue speed.
" What ;meson in his senses—who that is competent
even to give an opinion—who that aims only at what
is direct, proper, and laudable, would contend 'hat '
such a case as this should be mad: a ground-work I
fur alarm ?—a pretext for putting down the use of
steam of high pressure In engines, or in the different
manufactures of a country whose prosperity depends
so much on her superiority in all the resources of in-
genuity, of enterprise, andisf intellect?
“ Who that seeks the Welliirit nf,the community
would lend his aid to atop the priikress of British in-
genuity and industry, and compel the nation to re,
trogtade is our various arts, by exciting and spread-
ing among the ignorant groundless alarms, instead of
fairly informing them of the imprudence and critui-
ual mismanagement that have produced the mischief?
le Are all the contrivances and processes which re-'
quire compressed air to be pdt down. because tie air
vessel may posibly be burst ?—They must, if the'
use of high pressure steam is to be exploded.
Notwithstanding any accidents that have yet hap
paned to persons travelling by steam vessels, it' dues
nut appear that the danger to individuals is greater
than in travelling by stage coaches, the mischiefs
from which have -become so frequent as, long ago,
to have ceased to excite that alarm which is produced
by such accidents as occur in the use of any powerful
agent to which the public *teeniest lanailvd by its
novelty mod importance. In the nature of things,
the accidents that have occurred will produce their
own remedy ; and any thing like Parliamentary in-
terference would be su highly injudicious, that it is
impossible to calculate or even to foresee the extent
of mischief that might thus be produced to the ma-
nufactures and mining interests of the country, as
well as to every landholder on whose estate valuable
Minerals may hereafter be discovered.
• Every boiler intended to be used tsader steam of high pres-
ort, should be previously proved by injecting, by means of a
heft pump, cold water into it, while the safety valve is loaded
with sir or algkt times the weight that is to be employed when
working with steam. Efficient boilers may be made of copper,
of wrought Or of cast Iron, due regard befog had to the nature
and Mauve strength of the material. The boiler should always
have two velvet (one of which shpuld be out of the reach of the
Irdd an% and &MALI be alto furnished with what may be
a mercurial valve—an Iron tube in the form of an inverted
mom; of a prep, length, 111111 with mercury to a height an-
awerabie to thoipsollere to la" employed.

Wednesday was the Second Dsy of Drawing. The
Ticket No. 7895, a Priie of 5e20,000, was Sold. in
Shares, at SWIFT and Co.'s Offices. Nos. I I. Poultry,
12, dulling Cross, and 31, •Aldgate High-street,
'Acre theiortunate Holders may receive the value
on demand. Toesday, May the 20th, is the Last
Day—the Wheel contains 2 Prizes of £20,000, 4 of
£2OOO, 4 of 41000, 6 of £5OO, :cc. Ecc.

THE EVENING STAR.

LONDON.

FRIDAY, MAY 9,181 t.
PRICE OF STOCKS THIS DAY AT TWELVE MCLOCK:
Cons. 7411—U0. for Aec. 71179—Reduced 7111
5 per Cent. Navy, 10x1 193-4 per Cent. tin
ludas Bonds 75 77 pre.—Eachequerßs 104. 17e. pr.

The question respecting Catholic Emancipation
produced some little discussion last night in the House
of Peers, where two Petitions on the subject were pre-
sented by the Earl of DONOUOHMORE. These Peti-
tions will be taken into consideration this day week.
Mr. GuarraN's Motion en the same question comes
on this night in the Commons.
Mr. Hanvev having last night made hit promised
motion for a Committee to examine into the causes
of the explosion of the Norwich Steam Packet, we
have in another column inserted some particulars re-
specting that event, which deserve great attention.
On a question of this nature danger is always to be
apprehended from any thing like injudicious inter-
ference. We were happy to hear a few very sensible
remarks made by Mr. Cueweo, who seems to have
made himself acquainted with this as with most of
the improvements of the country. A Committee,
however, has been appointed. Let us tape that they
will take a tight view of this question, and report that
it does not appear to he or.e calling for Parliamen-
tary interference. We can easily imagine that the
Members will he assailed with alarming statements
'and mach apparent sympathy for Cos danger to
which the public may be exposed ; but we are not of
the number who can be induced to believe that a
British House of Commons can be surprised into
measures ruinous to the Mining, Landed and Mann-
factoring interests, merely to serve makers of particu-
lar steam engines, or particular boilirs. Mr. HARVEY
has been misinformed, or he would not have stated
that a cast iron is more dangerous than a wrought
iron boiler s both are equally safe if previously sub-
jected to proof—neither are sale without it.. But—
:should Parliament interpose its authority even to
compel this proof ?—No, by no means. The Pro-
prietors of Steam Engines, whether employed in
Mining, in Manufactories, or in Navigation, will at-
tend to this for their own sakes—in fact the accident
at Norwich will do more to insure the due attention
of Proprietors and their engine-min in future, than
any Act of Parliament can effect.

A Dutch Mail arrived this mnrning. The papers
which it brings are quite barren of intelligence. The
following Are the only notices worth extracting:

" All the equipages of his Grace the Duke of
Wellington have left Paris, and have arrived succes•
sively at his head-quarters at Monte St. Marie, as
well as the persons belonging to his household. The
Generals also,•and supaior Officers, who have been
fur some time absent on leave from the head-quarters,
either in England or elsewhere, are beginning to re-
turn ; but it seems that the Duke's absence will be
longer than was expected.
es In the latter part of April la-ge quantities of
cons .leave been delivered Foto the magazines of the
Allied troops at Cambray, Valenciennes, and Man-
beuge : happily this has had no bad influence on the
market prices, and we Batter ourselves, with reason,
that they will continue to decline." ,

The Paris Papers of Tuesday arrived this morning.
The Emperor of AUSTRIA hat announced his in-
tention of making a tour through the Eastern pro-
eipces of his monarchy early in the month ofJune.—'
At Vienna it is rumoured, that this tour has some
connection with the relations- between Austria and
Russia, and that a meeting will take place between
the two Emperors somewhere in dallies. The
Emperor FRANCIS is to be attended by Prince Mar-
i

The dispute between the King of WIRTEPOSERO
and his States has terminated. A majority of the
Diet have acceded to the declaration required by his
Majesty, recognizing the consolidation of the old and
new States, and abjuring all distinction between New
and Old Wirtemberghers. The dissentient members,
to the number of thirty-two, have been told by his
rMajesty, that since they do not choose to acknow-
ledge a principle so essential to the irtegritj and
prosperity of the kingdom, they may. return to their
homes, and be !ill order new elections to supply
their places.
The accounts from Switzerland continue to be of
the most distressing nature. The measures taken in
the Canton of Schaffhausen to alleviate the public
distress, by fixing a maximum price of corn, have, as
we anticipated, only produced an increase of mis-
chief. The few foreigners who used to come to the
markets have remained, it is said, entirely away, and
carried their provisions to other places. The citizens
themselves refused for a long time to sell at the maxi-
mum, and it was nut till the evening of the first mar-
ket day after the Ordonnance, and in consequence of
particular arrangements, that the indispensable pur.
chases could he made.

The spirit of restriction, however, still maintains
its delnsive sway ; and the example of Schaffhausen
has not prevented other Cantons from adopting mea-
sures nearly as pernicious. In Zug they have prohi-
bited the espostation of hotter; and in Schwitz the
exportation of hay—while a free export of both
would have been the surest means of enabling the
inhabitants to purchase the bread whith they. want.
Emigration, in the mean while. is assuming a most
alarming activity-1.200 fans& to passed lutphaas on
the 23d ultimo, to embark for America. Six bun-
dled so.:ceeded them ale next day, and ewes were on
the war.—freuch Funds, May 5, 66 1. 65 a.