The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1883-09-29
0ur Oliu.
Invention and Strikes.

which we are about to recount from the
pages of the Leisure Hour.
When the Great Britain steamship was
projected in 1889, it was at first intended
that she should be driven by paddles, and
for this purpose paddle-shaft was re-
uuired of size and diameter such as had
never yet been forged. But it proved that
there was not forge-hammer in England
or Scotland powerful enough for the pur-
pose. The engineer applied to Mr.. Mas
myth, and the result must be described by
himself:
This letter Immediately set me a-think-
ing. How was it that the existing ham
mers were incapable of forging wrought
iron shaft of thirty inches diameter? Sim
ply because of their want of compass, of
range and fall, as we'll as of their want of
power of blow. A few moments rapid
thought satisfied me that it was by our
rigidly adhering to the old traditional
form of smiths d-hammer-of which
the forge and tilt hammer, although driven
by water or steam power, were mere en-
larged modifcations-that the difficulty
had arisen; as, whenever the largest forge
hammer was tilted up to its full height, its
range was so small that when piece Of
work of considerable size was placed on the
anvil the hammer became gagged" so
that, when the forging required the most
powerful blow, it received next to no blow
at all, as the clear space for the fall OF the
hammer was almost entirely occupied by
the work on the anvil.
The obvious remedy was to contrive
some method by which ponderous block
of iron should be lifted to a sufficient
height above the object ON which it was
desired to strike blow, and then to let the
block fall down upon the forging, guiding
it in its descent by such simple means as
should give the required precision in the
persuasive action of the falling mass. Fol
lowing out this idea, got out my Scheme
Book, on the pages Of which | generally
thought out, with the aid Of pen and pen
Gil, such mechanical adaptations as had
conceived in my mind, and was thereby
enabled to render them visible. | then
rapidly sketched out my steam hammer,
having it all clearly before Inc in my
minds eye In little more than half an
hour after receiving Mr.. Humphries' letter
narrating his unlooked-for difficulty, had
the whole cOntrivance, in all its executant
details, before me in a page Of my Scheme
Book The date of this first drawing was
the 24th of November, 1899.
My hammer, as thus first sketched,
consisted of, first, massive anvil on which
to rest the work; second, block of iron,
constituting the hammer or blows giving
portion; and, third, an inverted steam cyl
inder, to whose pistoE-rod the hammer
block was attached All that was then
required to produce most effective hammer
was simply to admit steam of sufficient
pressure into the cylinder, so as to act on
the under-side of the piston, and thus to
raise the hammer block attached to the end
of the piston-rod By a very simple ar
rangement of a slide-valve, under the con-
troll of an attendant, the steam was allowed
to escape, and thus permit the massive
block of iron rapidly to descend by its own
gravity upon the work then upon the anvil.
Thus, by the more or less rapid manner
in which the attendant allowed the steam
to enter or escape from the cylinder, any
required number or any intensity of blows
could be delivered. Their succession might
be modified in an instant. The hammer
might be arrested and suspended according
to the requirements of the work. The
workman might thus, as it were, think in
blows. He might deal them out on to the
ponderous glowing mass, and mould or
knead it into the desired form, as if it were
lump of clay; or pat it with gentle taps
according to his will, or at the desire of the
forgeman.
The simplicity and the efficiency of the
contrivance led to its speedy introduction
into all countries. The inventor did not
sufficiently benefit by this, having taken
out no patent; which he secured, however,
for the remarkable application of the prin-
ciple of the steam-hammer to the driving
of piles.
The Devonport Docks were to be ex-
tended, and an immense portion of the
shore of the Hamoaze had to be walled in
so as to exclude the tide. To effect this,
vast amount of pile-driving was necessary
and the contractors inquired of Mr.. Nasmyth
whether he could apply the principles of
his steam-hammer for the purpose. Two
instruments were at once constructed, and,
amidst great curiosity on the part of the
workmen in the dock-yard, were set to
work The plan was to fix movable
steam-hammer, with four-ton hammer
blocks, on the top of the pile which was to
be driven. The shoulder of the pile acts
as the sole supporter of the hammer-block
and cylinder. This heavy weight of itself
tends to drive the pile down, while the ''mo-
mentum given by the repeated fall of the
hammer, at eighty blews the minute, brings
the constant dead-weight into full action.
The account of the first trial of this re-
markable invention is very graphic and in
teresting:
There was great deal of curiosity in
the dock yard as to the action Of the new
machine. The pile driving machine men
gave me good-natured challenge to vie
with them in driving down pile. They
adopted the old method, while | adopted
the new one. The resident managers
sought out two great pile logs of equal size
and length-seventy feet long and eighteen
inches square At a given signal we started
together. 1 let in the steam, and the ham,
mer at once began to work. The four-ton
block showered down blows at the rate of
eighty a minute; and in the course of four
and half minutes my pile was driven
down to its required depth. The men
working at the ordinary machine had only
begun to drive 1t took them upward of
t,oelue hours to complete the driving of
their pile.
Such saving of time in the performance
of similar work-by steam versus manual
labor-had never before been achieved.
The energetic action of my steam-hammer
sitting ON the shoulders Of the pile high up
aloft, and following it suddenly down, the
rapidly hammered blows keeping time with
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