New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1857-06-27

caturs asd should it be universally adopted it would
be great step toward universal language.
May not hope that this discussion will lead to the
Offering of eight appropriate symbols by friend
Of PROGRESS.
POs2akeep.ie June q, 1857.
" HOW TO USE STEAM ON THE CANALS
To The Editor Of The N. y. Tribune
SIR: In your paper of the Goth inst " Fulton
informs us that it is more than twenty years since he
first a canal boat propelled by steam; that he has
looked with interest every attempt Of the kind,
&C.; and " after observing many failures the
/" questions arose-Is success impossible or do the
experimenters not sufficiently understand the sub
Sc ieot For years have believed it is the latter;
s. and have not doubt that can point out the
- path to perfect success" He then proceeds to
give us his reflections and specuations. Then bis
plan for propelling canal boat by steam, and lastly
Inakesa proposition to aid" and one who may
wish to try again upon the basis he has Indicated
AS the writer hereof has been one of " the ex-
permenters" but whether he did or does sufficiently
understand the subject to experiment integently or
not may not become him to say, yet he believes he
has acquired an experience and the knowledge of some
important facts which would be of great value to
Fulton" or to any else who may make the next
experiment. III ad the first experimenters published
fhe knowledge which they acquired and the causes
of their failure, Of the succeeding operators
might have succeeded long since What an invaluable
library would be n collection of all the unsuccessful
experiments that have been made in mechanics alone.
Every one begins his experiments with theories and
reasonirgs based upon certain known or supposed
facts. But unfortunately, many facts received "a
certain and known are facts after all. They are
but the pterences of Of authority; that 49,
one in whom the public have cOnhdence-whOse "lpse
dixtp has been repeated till the world comes to be-
Iieve that it fact established after the most rigid
Baconien method Now, although "Fultons" five
propositions and his reasOnlngs are generally pretty
near the truth, yet to one no has made experiments
1t is evident enough that he is asde of and may be-
come snagged on some of these supposed t1ctS. lie
alludes to very important one IN express words
and though he does not distinctly ndorse IT, yet II Is
obvious that il influences all his subsequent specula
1ons Abiding TO the failure OF one Of the canal steam
boats, with side wheek, like common steamboat,
De SAYS II said that 1t injured the banks of the
raaddIe W heels of any kind 10 sad" by Canal
commissioners, and reiterated by all the Canal Eng
neers and repeated by editors, and never heard the
subject of prOpelling boats on canals by wheels
preached in conversation, but at T0S sad they
would impure the banks yes, destroy them. But
Inoc from 0eta9f erPes'Ief that just the reverse OF
this is true. "FultOn" has very correctly described,
as far as be goes, the effect and action Of boat
drarcn through the water. He says
q cS w. The form of the boat and the other in the uphill
work perform. The water confined by the banks rises
cause to run by advances, The boat has thus
nun continually against sort OF inclined plane ,
This true only when drawn by horses or propelled
by wind but not when propelled by wheels, especially
sde-srhees. But much more than this the water being
heaped up before the boat dlsturbs its level just IN
proportion, and there Is an equal depression at the
Stern sort of vacuum to fill which, the water behind
the boat rushes after it like an angry pursuing wave
but the wave in advance every now aud then, as IT
WERE rushes backward, by or under the boat, meet Its
pursuing fellow wave Just astern with all the momen-
fum which they have acquired-they rise, double up
ard plunge headlong one or both banks greatly
washing and abradng them when not protected
. 1,,thff
and splashng of the forward and rear waves occurs
every few moments. more or less often, according to
the velocity of the boat. When passenger packets
were in vogue have often witnessed races between
riyal boats and when speed Of four or five miles an
hour was attained the swell or forward wave would
raise so high as TO elevate the bow several degrees,
and leave the stern dragging In The mud ana al every
eioh or ten rods Of progress the two opposing waves
would meet astern, double up and plunge over or
against the banks. So great was this bow wave that
defenders could know, by the rising of the water in
fie lock and its running the gates, when the boat
was approaching, though at the distance of half a
mile and even at three-quarters of a mile. But on
the contrary when boat is propelled by wheels, es,
pecially Sdcrheeis there IL no wave before IT, ana
instead of pursuing wave at the stern, there is
steady gentle current backward from the paddle
wheels which scarcely rPpes the grass on the banks
When steam boat was approaching the locks nav
zone before aud marked the wster-ne on the sides OF
lie lock- and when the speed of the boat was at the
rate of six or eight miles hour and the boat within
two rods of the lock the rise of water would not ex
coed inch TIL the DOal chtefeu INC oCh huu Wv
we have always heard this r0ddle about injury to the
banks from padde.whees being so much greater than
that from towing by horses, when Just the converse is
true.
In the year 1893, some dozen of individuals asso'
cated themselves together in joint stock company,
for the purpose of building a canal steamboat, and
testIg the feasibility Of propelng boats by steair
The superintendent of construction and directing the
experiments was committed myself and two Others.
We prosecuted our operations during the Summers OF
1888, "a and 35. Our boat was eight feet wide and
seventy eight feet long. We used sde-wheels of DIFF
at the bow and two abaft mdships. We tried three
different kinds of engines; one the principle of the
reacting or Avery engine; of eight inch bore and
twenty inch stroke standing upright aud with two ly
wheels: and lastly two horizontal cylinders six-inch
bore and two feet stroke, working at right angles
directly on cranks of the whee-shaf Our boiler was
poor im perfect specimen of the tubular, locomotive
And too small for our engines, and the cause OF
our final failure; perhaps should say the want of
funds to replace said boiler with larger and better
one was the real cause. For, when we had overcome
all difficulties and discovered the elements of success,
1he expense as usual having outn our calculations
the stockholders would not furnish the necessary
means 10 secure that which to those who had
closely watched the experiments was perfectly certain
by the expenditure OF a few more hundred dollars.
BY these experiments established 10 my satisfac-
tion the following facts viz that boat eight feet
wide and IS feet long, could be propelled by side
wheels even on the old narrow and shallow Ere ca
nal six or eight miles an hour, cheaper than by
horses, al three -four miles and not damage the
banks half as much. But during the - years that
have since elapsed boilers and engines have been
gre atty improved, while the canal itself has been en-
iarged and the bridges thereon eerdted, two items o
great advantage and in favor Of the ner trial. soou;
the success Of which with my present knowledge and
experience, / should have, with Fulton not the