Litchfield enquirer. [volume] (Litchfield, Conn.) 1829-current, 1839-04-25
FrSm he Knicksvbocksr for APrI.
THE FIRST LOCOMOTIVE.
BT ONE WHO SAW IT.

Hudson, on board the first steam boat that |
moved on the waters Of any river, with pas. !
sengers. Among the voyagers, was man
had known for some years previous, by the |
name of Jabez Doolittle. He was an indus |
trious and ingenious worker in sheet-lron,
tin, and wire but his great success lay in
wire-work, especially in making "rat-traps;"
and for this his last and best invention in that
line, he had just secured a patent and with
a specimen of his work, he was then on a
Journey through the state of New York, for
the purpose Of disposing of what he called
"country rights !" or, in other words, to sell
the privilege of catching rats, according to
his patent trap. 1t was very curious trap,
as simple as it was ingenious; as most inge-
NOUS things are, after they are invented. 1t
was an oblong wire box, divided into two
compartments a rat entered one, where the
bait was hung, which he no sooner touched,
than the door at which he entered fell. His
only apparent escape was by funnel-shap-
ed hole into another apartment, in passing
which, he moved another wire, which instant
ly reset the trap; and thus rat after rat was
furnished the means of following in the
footsteps of his illustrious predecessor" un-
ill the trap was full. Thus it was not simply
a trap to catch rat, but trap by which rats
trapped rats, ad infinitum.
This trap, at the time to which allude,
absolutely divided the attention OF the pas
sengers; and for my part, it interested me
quite as much as did the stean-engine be-
cause, perhaps, could more easily compre.
bend its mystery. To me, the steam-engine
was Greek; the trap was plain English
him studying the engine with great avidity
and perseverance, insomuch that the engi.
neer evidently became alarmed, and declin-
ed answering any more questions.
"Why, you needn't snap off so tarnal
short" said Jabez ;"a body would think you
hadn't got patent for your machine. If l
can't NEEDLE with you on the water, as nigh
as lean calculate, I'll be up to you on land,
one Of these days."
These ominous words fell on my ear, as
saw Jabez issue from the engine room, fol-
lowed by the engineer, who seemed evident
ly to have got his steam up.
4Well," said I, =" Jabez, what do you think
of this mighty machines" "Why," he re-
piled, If that critter hadn't got riled up so
soon, body could tell more about it /; but
reckon I've got leetle notion ont ;" and
then taking me aside, and looking carefully
around, lest some one should overhear him,
he then and there assured me in confidence,
in profound secrecy, that if he didn't make
wagon go by steam before he was two years
older, then he'd give up invention. l at first
ridiculed the idea; but when thought of
that rat trap, and saw before me man with
sharp twinkling gray eyes, a pointed nose,
and every limo of his visage channel of in
vestigation and invention, could not resist
the conclusion that if he ever did attempt to
mcddle with hot water, we should hear more
oft.
Time went on. Steamboats, multiplied
but none dreamed, or if they did, they never
told their dreams, of a steam wagon for
even the name of locomotive" was then as
unknown as "loco foco" When, about
year after the declaration of the last war
with England, (and may it be the last y got
letter from Jabez marked "private," tel
ling me that he wanted to see me most despe-
rately, and that must make him a visit at
his place nigh Wallingford. On reaching
told me he believed he " had got the notion"
Notion-what notion?" Inquired.
"Why," says he, "that steam wagon I
tell'd you about spell ago; but it has pref
ty nigh starved me out :" and sure enough,
he did look as if he had been on the anxious
seat, as he used 10 say when things puzzled
him.
81 have used up," said he, "plaguey nigh
all the sheet-iron, and old stove pipes, and
mill wheels, and trummei heads in these
parts, but I've succeeded; and for fear that
some ofthese cute folks about here may have
got peep through the key -hole, and will
trouble me when come to get a patent, Eye
sent for you to be witness for you was the
first and only man ever limited the notion
to; in fact" continued he, 81 think the most
curious part of this invention is, that as yet !
don't know any one about here who has been
able to guess what I'm about. They all
know it is an invention Of some kind, for
that's my business, you know but some say
it is a thrashing. machine, some say distil-
lery and of late, they begin to think it
shingle.splitter; but they'll sing another tune
when they see it spinning along past the
stage coaches" added he, with knowing
chuckle, "won't they 2"
This brought us to the door of an old clap
boarded, dingy, long, one story, building,
with window or two in the roof, the knot.
holes and cracks all carefully stuffed with
old rags, and over the door he was unlocking,
was written, in bold letters, "No ADMIT
TANcE." This was his "sanctum sanctorum."
There it stood, occupying the centre of all
previous conceptions, rat traps, churns, ap.
ple-parers, pill-rollers, cooking Stoves and
shingle-splitters, which hung or stood around
it; or. as my Lord Byron, says, with refer
ence to more ancient but not more impor-
tant invention
"Where each conception was heavenly guest,
N Iny u HhbmOEI6utys HUU StOOu
Star-like around, until they gathered to God"
And there il stood, "the concentrated focus"
of all previous inventive genius, The FIRST
LOCOMOTIVE"
An implanted, unpublished, unadorned,
oven.shaped mass, Of double-rivetted sheet
iron. with cranks. and pipes, and trummel
heads, and screws, and valves, all firmly
braced on four firmly. made travelling
wheels.
ITS curious critter to look at, saws ia.
bez. "but youth like 1t better when you zee it
in notion"