The Grit-advocate., 1901-09-20
VALUABLE IDEAS NOW LOST TO The
WORLD.
Marvellous Scientific Discoveries Made by
Brniny Men Who Refused t" Divulge
Their secrets-some Interesting Cases
A 1smoks-Consuming Device.

OF the business world OF the present
day, have been wantonly destroyed or
lost though the eccentricities or dis
torted Imagination OF the inventor.
The story of some of these lost in
ventions is interesting. 1t is hardly
twenty years since John Weymouth.
the Wolverhampton engineer and de-
signer discovered the motive power
OF heat, exhibited it in one OF the
simplest, cheapest and NEST useful en-
gines imaginable, and then deprived
the world Of its benefits. He had pro-
duced beforehand a round dozen Of ex-
cellent inventions. which still bear his
name. including the modern revolving
chimney cowl: and. having made
large fortune. he developed himself to
harnessing the ordinary heat Of fire
and making a new power of it. The
idea was laughed at by all his friends,
but, after four years Of study and ex-
perimenting, he produced stationary
engine that gave double the power OF
any steam-driven mechanism at about
third the cost. and also a small
model heat locomotive large enough
to draw truck with a man in it. He
invited a committee of scientists and
engineers. including Profs. Huxley and
Forbes Brown, and showed them that
his two machines worked to perfec-
tion. The affair made great stir. and
it proved that great power Of un-
limited scope had been discovered.
Weymouth was flooded with offers of
huge sums for his invention. but. for
no apparent reason. except. perhaps
the alleged madness of genius, he alb
solutely refused to either bring 1t out
himself OF sell the secret. He an
nounced himself satisfied with the tri
umph Of the invention and before his
death, year later. he destroyed all
the papers and plans explaining the
system, and removed the essential
parts Of the two engines. These en-
gines are still possessed by his heirs.
but nobody has been able to make
anything OF them. Still stranger was
the famous loss of the recipe for the
manufacture Of diamonds some fifteen
years ago. Herbert Warner who
alone discovered and held the secret
OF diamond making. did not live to
wreck the diamond industry, as peo
pie thought he would, and the circus
stances OF the loss were mystericus
and tragic. Inferior diamonds can
still be produced artificially. but only
at cost OF about ten times their
value. Warner. after years Of experi-
menting. was able to turn out eenu-
inc diamond of large size and OF the
first water. at the cost of a small fIac
ton of the complete stones worth
He, like Weymouth. of heat power
fame, manufactured his diamonds be-
fore an audience of scientists, ana rr';
dnced three fine stones. which were
tested and pronounced faultless Two
Gf them are still in existence and ore
the greatest curiosit;es the jewe! world
has ever seen. But within a fortnight
Of this triumph. before any of the new
stones were put on the market. War
ner utterly disappeared from his hose
in Harley street, London. leaving no
trace whatever. So complete was his
disappearance that from that day to
this not the smallest explanation has
been hit upon. Then there is the lost
secret OF the wonderful new metal
called 'talium." which would certainly
have been worth many millions ster-
ling to the nation and the inventor
Grantley Adams discovered it jus.
eight years ago, and during its short
life 1t was one of the greatest won
ders of the science and commerce"