, 1878-04-12
Clocks.


In early Christian ages any device
this purpose, whether it was a sun di
clepsydra, sand-glass or clock, receiv
the general name of hologium, deriv
from two Greek words signifyiug hol
teller. Down to the 14th century, t
word clock (Anglo.S Saxon, clucgd; CT
nnn, 9locke) was applied only to the b'
upon which the hour determined by t
horologue was rung.
The invention of clocks, such as ha
certainly been in use for the last hal
dozen centuries, has been ascribed, wit
out sufficient proof, to various ingeniol
men from Archimedes, u. G, 220, to Ro
ert Walingford, Abbot of st. Albans,
1926. From numerous illusions to hor
togid, however, and TO their strikin
spontaneously, in the 18th century, it ma
be inferred that genuine clocks existe
considerably before the days of the lat
ter worthy, and indeed there is still OK
tant a description of one sent, in 123>
by the Sultan of Egypt to the Empero
Frederick the H.. This, like many of tn
other early clocks, must have been yer.
ingenious but highly complicated contriv
ance. ut resembled celestial globe IL
which the sun, moon, and planets moved
being impelled by weights and wheels
80 that they pointed out the hour, day,
and night, with certainty" Complexity,
indeed, has been in all ages marked
characteristic in the early stages of nearly
all important inventions. But while in
the days of old, fond of mystery
and delighting in displays of ingenuity
on its own account, this complication was
often regarded as merit; in our mystery.
hating epoch, when the object of all in.
ventive ability is economical utility, it is
always justly considered defect which
ingenuity and experience are constantly
striving to lessen.
The first clock on record, which in ac-
curacy of movement and simplicity of
construction approached the clocks of the
present time, was made for Charles the V.
Of France, by Henry de Wick, in 1870.
The representation of this, however, still
extant shows that its movements were
produced by vibrating balance instead
offs spring or pendulum, the latter Of which
was not invented until three centuries
later. This important invention, like
most inventions Of value, is matter of
dispute; but like many ether useful dis
coveries, it was probably made by various
persons independently, and almost sim
ultaneously, when the state Of science had
become ripe for it. But there is no re-
corded proof Of its use before the discov-
cry of Galileo at Florence, in 1889, by
observation of swinging chandelier in
the cathedral, that a pendulum vibrated
in arcs of different lengths in the same
time, il the arcs were small. Huygens,
however, is now admitted by all to have
been the first to apply the pendulum to
clocks, in the early part of the 18th CEN
tury. This application, together with
the invention by his contemporary, DR..
Hooke, of an escapement by which the
pendulum was only required to oscilate
q small arc, substantially completed the
method of clock-making in general use
at the present day.
Many ofthe best clocks, nowadays, how
ever, are driven by spring coiled up in
barrel IN the same manner as ia watches,
which, indeed, may be justly considered as
small clocks, in which the weight and pen
dulum arereplaced by the main. spring and
balance, the latter of which is composed
Of baance-Wheel and a balance or hair
spring. The invention, by Hautville,
about 1722, of lever escapement for
the motion of the scope wheel,
together with subsequent improvements
on his device, has rendered time pieces of
this style models of accuracy, compact
ness and cheapness.
To this country is due the credit of
about thirty years ago, the
of clocks and watches by
machinery-an important innovation on
the Old-fashioned, manual methods still
almost universally in vogue in Europe.
By this means greater nicely is attained
in cutting out the various parts than is
possible by the slovenly hand labor of
Transatlantic craftsmen. Moreover, the
polishing of the leaves Of the pinions and
the teeth of the wheels, as we'll as the
grinding Of the face of the pallet-stones
to their proper angles, are processes that
are performed with much greater facility
and accuracy 10y the use of machinery
than by hand; while the various parts,
beingimade to q gauge, can be readily,
cheaply and accurately replaced in case
of injury by use or accident. So admir-
able for accuracy, durability and cheap:
ness are the time. pieces made in this way,
that English clock-makers loudly com
plain that they are yearly losing many
branches of the theological trade through
their inability to compete not only in
foreign, but even in their domestic mar
kets, with the cheaper and better produc-
tons of our manufacturers. A forcible
Illustration Of this truth was offered, a
couple of weeks ago, by a large shipment
of American machine made watches,
bought, after careful examination ami
by the English Government
for the use of engineers and conductors
On its railroads in British India.
The beautiful Cricket" we are Offering