Lewistown gazette. [volume] (Lewistown, Pa.) 1843-1944, 1850-08-23
New Series-yOI. 4-Tc. 44.
Electro 0-Magnetism as a Motive POwcT-a.
The Important Question Settled.


Professor Page, in the Lectures which
he is now delivering before the Smithsonian
Institution, states that there is no longer
any doubt of the application Of this power
as a substitute for steam. He exhibited
the most imposing experiments ever wit
messed in this branch of science. An i'm
mense bar of iron, weighing one hundred
and sixty pounds, was made to spring up
by magnetic action, and to move rapidly
up and down, dancing like feather IN hta
air, without any visible support. The
force operating upon this bar he stated to
average three hundred pounds through ten
inches of its motion. He said he could
raise this bar one hundred feet as readily
as through ten inches, and he expected no
difficulty in doing the same with bar
weighing one ton, or hundred tons. He
could make a pile-driver, or forge-ham-
mer, with great simplicity, and could make
an engine with a stroke of six, twelve,
twenty, or any number of feet.
The most beautiful experiment we ever
witnessed was the loud sound and brilliant
flash from the galvanic spark, when pro-
duced near certain point in his great
magnet. Each snap was as loud as pis-
tol; and when he produced the same spark
at little distance from this point, it made
no noise at all. This recent discovery he
stated to have practical bearing upon the
construction of an electromagnetic engine.
Truly, great power is here and where
is the limit TO it /!
He then exhibited his engine, Of between
four and five horse power, operated by
battery contained within a space of three
cubic feet. 1t looked very unlike mag
netic machine. 1t was reciproeating en-
CINE of two feet stroke, and the whole
engine and battery weighed about one ton.
When the power was thrown on by the
motion of lever, the engine started off
magnificently, making one hundred and
fourteen strokes per minute though, when
it drove circular saw ten inches in diam
eter, saving up boards an inch and quar-
ter thick into laths, the engine made but
about eighty strokes per minute. There
was great anxiety on the part of the spec
tators to obtain specimens of these laths,
to preserve as trophies of this great me-
chanical triumph. The force operating
upon his magnetic cylinder throughout the
whole motion of two feet, was stated to be
six hundred pounds when the engine was
moving very slowly, but he had not been
able to ascertain what the force was when
the engine was running at working speed,
though it was considerably less. The
most important and interesting point, how
ever, is the expense of the power. Pro-
fessor Page stated that he had reduced the
cost so far, that 1t acas less than steam
under many and most considerations,
though not SO low as the cheapest steam
engines. With all the imperfections of
the engine, the consumption of three pounds
of zinc per day would produce one horse
power. The larger his engines, Contrary
TO what has been known BEFORE the greater
the economy. Professor Page was himself
surprised at the result. There were yet
practical difficulties to be overcome the
battery had yet to be improved; and it re-
manned yet to try the experiment on
grander scale, to make power of one
hundred horse, or unconstitutional hatei-
fgencPr.