The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1853-11-02

nose, and every line of his yisage a chan
mel Ct investigation and invention. |
could not resist the conclusion. that if he
really ever did attempt to meddle with
hot water, we should hear moro oft.
Time went on Steamboats, multipli-
ed but none dreamed, or if they did,
they never told their dreams, of steam
wagon for even the name of "locomo-
tive" was then as unknown as "loco -foco." D."
When. about year after the dcclara-
ton of the last war with England, (aRd
may ii be the last y | got letter from
Jabez. marked private" telling me that
he wanted to see me most desperately"
and that must make him visit at his
place, nigh Wallingford" The din of
arms, and the destruction of insurance
companies, the smashing of banks, and
suspension of specie payments, and vari-
Gus other inscparable attendants on the
show and 'pomp and circumstances of
glorious war" had, in the mean time. en-
tirely wiped from momory my friend Ja-
bcz, and his wonderful rat trap But [
obcycd his summons, not knowing but
that something Of importance to the ar.
my or navy might come of it. On reach
ing his residence. imagine my surprise,
when lie told me he believed he had
got the notion"
Motion what notion ?" I inquired
why" says he, that stcam-icagoa |
tcll'd you about spell ago !" but" ad
ded he, lit has pretty nigh starved me
M. ~ o,I cur, ,,,ou,,L ho l;d 1nol- q .
if he had been on the anxious seat as
he used to say when things puzzled him.
IL have used up" said be, 'plagucy
nigh all the sheet iron, and old stove
pipcs.and mill.whoels, and truunel heads,
in these parts. but I've succeeded; and
for fear that some of these cute folks a
bout here may have got peep through
the key-holc, and will trouble me when
| come to get patent, I've sent for you
to be witness; for you was the first
and only man | ever hntcd the notion
to in fact continued he, 81 think the
most curious part of this invention is
that, a, yet, | don't know any one about
here who has been able TO guess what
Tn about They all know it is an III
vcntion of some kind, for that's my bu-
sincss, you know; but some say it is II
thrasking machine, some distillery
and, of late, they begin to think its a
shiuglc-splittcr but they'll sing another
tune, when they sec it spinning along
past the stagc-coachcs," added he, with
a knowing chucklc, won't they ?"
This brought us to the door of an old
clVp-boarded, dingy, long, one-story bull
ding, with a window or two in the roof
the knot holes and cracks all carefully
stuffed with old rags, aud over the door
was written, in bold letters, NO Admit
tance." This was his "sanctpm Sancto-
rum" I could occupy pages in descrip
tion of it, for every part exhibited cvi-
dencc of its uses. The patent office, at
u ashington, like your magazine, Mr.
Editor. may exhibit finished produc
tous" of inventive genius ;" but if you
could look into the portfolios of your
contributors to every quarter Of the t.
Mon. and see there the sketches of half
finished essays still-born poems, links
and fragments Of ideas and conceptions
which "but brcathed and died. yor
might form some motion" of the accu
mutation of'notions" that were presented
to me, on entering the workshop Of ia
bcz Doolittlc. But to my text again
sThe Frsf Locomotive" There ii stood
occupying the centre of all previous con
ccptions-rat-traps, churns, apple-parers
pill-rolcrs, cooking-stoves and shingle
splitters. which hung or stood around ii
or as by Lord Byron says, with refer
encc to more ancient but not more i'll
portant invention:
"whcre each conception was a hcaycnl
guest,
A ray of Immortality, and stood
Star-like around, until they gathered TO
God"
And there it stood, "thc concentrated
focus" of all previous rays of inventiv
genius The First Locomotive"
, An unpainted, unpolished. unadorned
oven-shaped mass, of doublc-riyited sheet
iron, with cranks, and pipes, and trunncl
heads, screws and valves, all firmly base
on four strongly made travelling wheels
, "Its a curious critter to look at" say
Jabez, but you'll like it better whe
you sec it in motion"
q He was BY this time igniting a quaint
+ ty Of charcoal, which he had stuffed III
S der the boiler. IL filled the b'iler
4 says he, "arter stopped working he
yesterday, and it han't leaked dro
n since 1t will soon bile up; the cot
' is iirst-ratc.n
/ Sure enough, the boiler soon gave ev
y dcncc of troubled waters when b
J. pushing one Slide, and pulling anothe
the whole machine, cranks aud psito
n was in motion.
N "It works slick, don't it ?" said Jabe
"But," | replied, sit don't move"
J. "You mean" said he, 'the travelliu
Of wheels don't move we'll, / don't mei
c. they shall, till l get my patent, YC
&c see" he added, crouching down, 18th
d trunnel. head there-that small cog-wheC
o We'll, that's out of gear just yeti wh'
&c ! turn Mat into gear, by this crank,
v fits, you see, on the main travelling whe
IN and then the whole scrape will move,
ty nigh as | can calculate, little slow
b. than chain lightnin', and darn'd leet
nd too But it won't do to give it Il
IS. aforo get the patent. There is on
al one thing yet" he continued, "thai
nix hau't contrived- that is simI
Ia matter-and that is the shortest mo
on of stoppin' on her. My first notion
III to see how fast | can make her woi
s." without smashing all to bits, and tha
ar, done by screwing down this upper valN
ne and Tll show vou-ii