The Washington herald., 1913-12-21
Tremendous Progress Since
Richard Trevithick Took
Out His First Patent in
the Year 1902.

We have been in>possession of the loco
motive for a hundred years 1t may be
useful to trace briefly the various steps
that have led to the present majestic en-
g:nes, the power and poetry of which are
a part of modern life. In this task one
is helped by a recent article in the
London Times.
Richard Trevithick. a Cornish engineer,
seems to have been the first in the field.
In 1902 he patented, interalia, the applica-
ton of his ''puffer" engine. as it was
called, to steam carriages, and had not
long to wait for an opportunity Of show
ing what he could do. Samuel Homphray,
proprietor Of the Penydarren Iron Works,
in South Wales, who was cognizant Of
Trevithick's inventions, made a wager of
500 gJIineas with Mr.. Hill, of the neigh
boring Plymouth works, that he could
replace horses by steam in drawing
loads of iron from the furnace along the
tramway to Navigation House, over nine
miles away, and return with the empty
trucks. Trevithick quickly got to work
for Mr.. Homphray and in 1903 made lit
tie tram engine which eventually proved
satisfactory in spite Of few defects.
The plateway was unequal to its weight
and many plates broke, but the wager
was -afterward set to work an iron roll
ing mill. The versatile inventor, al
though he made other travelling en-
gines'' to run on rails or else on the
road, received scant encoura agement.
One of the tram engines of Trevithick's
design was made at Newcastle-on-Tyne
in 1906 for Mr. Christopher Blackett,
proprietor OF wylam ColIiery, whence 1t
was to work wagons on the tremway
down to the River Tyne. On trial 1t did
not prove a success. for the master mind
was not there to overcome the number
less difficulties that beset any radical
departure from the beaten track, and
consequently 1t never reached Wylam-
The question of haulage remained acute
and was forced to the front again by
the bad times of 1872 The taxation nee
essary to support our Napoleonic wars.
the shortage Of horses and the rise In
the cost OF provender made 1t almost
innpossible to keep the colliery going any
longer, situated as It was, five miles from
the staithes on the Tyne, where the coal
had to be shipped in keels or lighters.
In October Of 1872 Mr.. Blackett, therefore,
decided to try again and see II anything
could be done with steam power. He
asked William Hedley, the colliery viewer
q. e., manager or overseer) to undertake
the Job, because Trevithick, who had
been approached. had declined the busi-
ness, being otherwise employed.
The engineers in those days were under
the impression that smooth wheels would
slip on smooth lines Obviously cogwheel
traction from London to Edinburgh would
have been unpleasant Hedley did not
share the accepted view, and made ex-
periments with a little model which sstis-
fed him that the friction or adhesion OF
smooth wheels On smooth rails was suffi-
cient To make quite sure, he constructed
an underframo on four wheels the fun
width Of the colliefy plateway. which was
worked by men at cranks standing on
platforms attached to the frame. Dif-
ferent known weights of iron were placed
on IT, and wagons from two up to six in
number attached successfully. The re-
lationship between the weights and the
load when slipping took place was found
to be practically the same in every case.
With the assistance of Timothy Hack
worth, the enginewright of the colIiery
subsequently well known as locomo-
tive ensineer). Jonathan Foster, the
blacksmith, and Tommy Waters, a Gates
head iron founder, Hedley began the
construction OF the steam engine. II had
a single horizontal cylinder and a fly
wheel, while the boiler was Of cast iron
with the fire tube straight through 1t. The