Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1858-10-08
THE GAZETTE.
FRIDAY MORNING, OCTOBER s, 1858
INVENTION OF THE STEAM ENGINE.

INVENTION OF THE STEAM ENGINE.
In 1913 it appears that such thing as
steam vessel VAS known in Spain. This is
fact not widely circulated. AT that date Span.
lard exhibited in the presence OF Charles V.
and all his court, in the hsrbor of Barcelona,
a vessel of 200 tons, propelled by an engine,
the construction of which was a secret to all
inform Us that there was great cauldron of
boiling water within, and two wheels on the
outside which moved the vessel. The treas
urer of the kiugdom objected to it's intro
duction. 1t seems to have been quite per-
feet, since the objections urged against it
were that it was too complicated, very ex'
pensiee, and the boiler apt to explode. But
Spain was not ripe for it; the world was not
ripe for it. The inventor, Disguised with
the want of appreciation displayed by the
court, took the engine out OF the vessel. al
lowed the ship to rot in tue arsenal, ana Ms
secret persisted with him in bio grave.
One century later and the same problem
was offered to France. A celebrated female
EQUALLY renowned for her beauty, immorali-
ties. misfortunes and longevity also, for she
died at the age of 1874 years--'he famous
Marie de pOrme, so we'll known to the read
ers of moderu fction--has furnished US, 10
letter to an sdnirer, writtea in l64l, these
most astonishing details. The celebrated
Marquis of Worcester was then on visit To
Madame in Paris, and with her visited mad
house 10 the capital. While crossing the
courtyard of that dismal establishment the
lady was almost paralyzed with terror, and
while c'insing to her companion she saw
frghtul face looking through the bars of a
window Of a building, and heard these strange
words: al am not mad am not mad! l
have made discovery which shall Enrich the
kingdom that adopts IT." The question WAS
asked BY one Of the vis.ers, what Is 1t that
this man has discovered? Tho answer to
the visiter, with q hooking laugh, was, "Oh,
it's not much; it's something about the pow
er Of steam" Aud so the lady laughed that
o man should 60 mad about so frivolous thing
as that.
This man, it seems, came from Normandy
to bring before the king his discovery of the
fact that steam could be used to navigate the
ocean, and 10 short there was nothing that
he did not claim could be done by the power
of steam. Cardinal Richelieu was uppermost
then, and though be was most ssgacious and
enlightened as worldly wisdom goes, yet be
turned bis back on the inventor. The man
followed him from place to place, and the
Cardinal, getting tired of his pertinacity, sent
him to the mad house. The man even wrote
q book on the subject Of his thoughts, enti-
tied Moving Powers. The Marquis Of Wor.
cester was much interested in this book and
used some Of it's ideas afterwards 10 his own
works. So We see that France 10 l64l, as
Spain in 1913, proved her inability to take
up and WELD this mortal thunderbolt.
The problem was reserved for the Anglo
Saxon race to grapple with and conquer, and
thereafter the mechanical skill OF England
was turned to this invention with various sue.
cess, till in the middle of the last century, al
ter the idea had been floating for POD years
in Ingenious minds, the steam engine, that
scarcely iDanimste Titan, that llvIng. burn-
ing mechanism, was brought to perfection by
James Watt. Tbeuceforth the engines OF la
Dor, marshslled by the power which Watt
brought forward, were to make their blood
less triumph, not for the destruction but for
the blessing of mankind. All hail to thee,
mute, interchangeable agent of strength, work
ing in deep mines, moving along the path.
ways of trade, toiling in the service OF man!
No fatigue can palsy thy herculean arm! No
trampled hosts writhe under Thy feet! No
widowed hearts bleed at thy benehcent vic
tories!
England solved the problem, but it seems
as if it were the will of Providence that she
should not 20 so far as to apply steam to the
navigation of the ocean. This part of the
problem remained for the other branch OF the
Anglo Saxon rsce-the branch OF that West
ern Hemisphere whose expanded territories
are traversed by some Of the noblest rivers,
and separated from Epglsnd by an almost
worldwide ocean. The thoughts OF the men
of the last century after the Revolution, were
turned to the development OF steam. One OF
those men attracted the attention OF him whom
nothing escaped that belonged to the welfare
of bis couptry-of Wsshipgton--aod be ex-
pressed his satisfaction at the experiments OF
Rumsey. 1t seems almost providentlal that
steam was not invented in ocean naSigallon
at the time Of the Revolution, for II would
have given her vast resources and powers to
bear more swiftly and directly on the s'rug-
ling colonists, with what effect no one can
tell.
But the Revolutionary period was passed,
and independence established. the hUur
had come and the man was there. ln the
year 1899, the thought became mature IN
Ful,on's mind. and Chancellor Livingston
took deep interest in the scheme OF water
navigation by steam. They applied TO the
New York Legislature for an act OF incorpo
ration. | am sorry to say shat America at
that time did not seem alch wiser than
Franco and Spain bad been before her
Livingston tells US that the young men OF
the Legislature, when tired # the sFaser
matters of the law, would call up thc steam
bill, as they called it, and have little icu.
Young America did not ~ that OCCASION
show himself much wiser than than bis seni-
ors. But, nothing discouraged, fo'top ana
bis coadiutors persevered, and twenty years
had not passed away before steam was i0und
on our sounds, lakes, and great rivers, ana
that at a time when it Was known only ty
bearsay 10 Europe. This was all that was
needed then. Twenty years more elapsed
before English capital was first applied to tss
of the ocean itself by s'ean--
which America little needed, bot which Eng
land desired a. giving to her access t" tue
Western world .-Ed,ccrd Eceretfs Speech
at Ddnrers
IMPLEMENTS, &c.
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