The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1849-03-22

CnrOnOXr0pns
To THE EpIroRo OF TaK NEw YORK HRRALp,-
In several instances, very erroneous positions
have been taken IN reference to my late invention,
from the fact that the persons attempting to make
what thst invention consists. The late publication
OF Mr.. w. Q. Bend, in your paper as quoted In the
Ne1U York Herald, is an instance.
MIR. Bond hastily and enormously assumes that
which clock Is made to close and break the tele.
graphic circuit. and thus cause an electro.magnet
TO beats OF that clock at any distance say
from Cambridge, so as to be "audlble at New York,
Washington, and Cincinnati" Had my invention
been nothing than this, II would have produced
no new effects; for the same thing had been done SIX
or seven years ago by BAN, by Whe atstone, and by
Stenhell, who, also, by means of the motion OF
this distant electro magnet, put other clocks at
those distant stations IN synchronous motion with
the original or parent clock !; these secondary
clecks being without pendulums or weights, and
being driven by the reciprocatiOns of the magnet
acting very much as the click does upon the racket
wheel of saw mill to urge the log against the
saws
My invention produced all OF these old effects
IN a new manner, which did not, as proved by ex.
pertinent, change In the least the rate of going OF
the clock, eIdanger at all the durability of Its
correct performance. But the special advantages of
my invention did not consist even In these I'M
provements. The most Important part OF it consist
ed in such a combination of clOck-work and cleo
trio, or electromagnetic machinery, as constituted
a complete electromagnetic, or distant time
writer, by which the clock not only made Its
movements visible and audible at distance,
but 1t printed down currently permanent time
scale, like tape measure, leelble in hours ten
minutes, minutes, seconds fractions of seconds;
and, moreover, enabled the observing astronomer,
by touching key, to print, or lntercaats into that
1t was thus, that on the night OF the 18th of
January last, my clock al Cincinnati printed Its
tlme.scale, not only at that place, but also at the
same moment duplicate at Philadelphia, in both
n xuh, IF tlv
graduated, were imprinted the time to exact frac-
tons of seconds, at which star passed the several
wires of the Waisset telescope at the Philadelphia
CbseIvatO
The advantages of this printing method of astro-
nomical recording, over the former auncular or
ocular mode, have been pointed out by the several
distinguished astronomers who have made reports
to the late Congress on the subject especially do
they express themselves gratlfed with the minute
and accurate mode Iof subdlv,dlng the second,
which have attained. None but practical n.
tronomer can appreciate these advantages
The appropriation made by Congress is intended
to be compensation to me not only for the cree
ton Of chronograph upon my plan, at the Nation
al Observatory, but for the right to the government
10 use my invention with all of the improvements
meats already devised make no lnconsiderabe
part of the improvement which Is now to be devel-
oped at Washington. The honor conferred upon
me by Congress, It seems, is an envlable one; but
predisposed IN my favor by the TACT voluntarily
presented by Senator Benton, that had already
performed a decade OF annual scientific services
to my country in the investigation of Its terrestrial
magnetism, without pay. am now superintend-
ing the construction Of some of the machinery In
New York, and was about to proceed to Boston
the same business 1t Is very painful to me that
a gentleman tor whom l have had so
siderately publish charges against me which
are absolutely, though l presume not know
ingly, untrue, duplicating not only. myself, but
others, who, presume, are equally innocent with
surprised at this course pursued by Mr. Bond, from
the fact that, at an early period of my invention,
! sent him most confdng and cordial letter, an
nouncing to HIM nay invention OF the printing me-
the printed .illet, as did to severa! other SCI
entlfic gentlemen, and even requested his co-ope-
ration in the perectng Of some of the subordinate
parts, which were very much in the line OF Mr..
Credit was given by me, in my first publication
at Cincinnati, to Mr.. Bond, for suggesting new
mode Of breaking the elecnic circuit by clock &C.
ton, different from that of BAN, Wheatstone or
Steinhili. Yet that new mode has not, SO far,
believe, been tested. My own mode OF breaking
circuit is not modification of Mr.. Bonds, but
10 an original one, invented and made by me, in
l845. Mr. Walker has also named Mr.. Bonds
suggestion In his report Congressional Doc. Fl
The mode OF breaking circuit is not essential to
the performances OF my chronograph in the printing
method OF observing. for any one of al! that have
been invented may be adopted provided it does
not interfere with, or injure the performance of
the clock, a property which my mode has been ex-
perlmentslly proved to possess. Thus, my inven-
tlon, which, like most others, is new comblna-
ton Of things already known in order to obtain
new end useful result, 80 far from being identical
with MIR Bonds, and plagiarism or piracy from
it, does not include his invention or any part of
it, as constituent element. JOHN LOCKE.
New York, March 20, 1S40.
-Such Instruments are the common magnetic clocks
Of Europe and the continent
It . similar specimen Of chronographic print
Ing and similar one to DR.. Back, Superintendent Of
the U. Coast Survey, which caused him to say, in
recording by his electro ghetto clock which
tirey fulAl AL the conditions required BY the astro
nomer.n (Cong Ex Doc. No. 2l,p.2)