The Washington times., 1917-03-03

steam carriage would be able to run
On them.
The growing conviction that this
was the root of the trouble, coupled
with public concentration upon the
railroad, led to a pronounced hiatus in
the designing of steam vehicles dur
ing the forties, fifties, sixties, and sew
entities. Nevertheless, some effective
work is to be placed IN this period OF
calm. In 1850, describing a specimen
of the steam roller type, of particu-
larly offensive appearance, the Scien-
tific American said: an ascending
steep hills, by moving a handle with
out stopping) the power is multiplied
two and a half times and the speed
consequently reduced to four miles
per hour on hills, with an inclination
of one in ten inches" The fact that
our editorial predecessor had no name
for a gearshift, but had tn Identify it
by describing it, would seem to be
pretty good evidence that this was its
first use.
Shows Modern Trend.
After this period of repose, there
began a movement which has its cul-
mination in the steam car Of the pres
ent day and in which a very definite
thread OF historical continuity is to
be traced. 1t became generally recog-
Rized that the boiler in which a large
volume of water is heated In bulk to
maintain a steam pressure, constant
or changing but slowly, was inher-
emily incapable of the desired heXi-
bility. Inventors for the first time
deliberately turned their attention to
a single phase of the steam carriage
problem-the development of a boiler
which would deliver steam in small
amounts, rapidly variable at the driv-
er's will.
The first attack was through re-
duction in size of the boiler, with
change of fuel. In 1879 a car was
exhibited in London which burned
benzoline in small jets. heating a
pound of water at a time. When 1t
became clear that this idea, as here
and elsewhere employed. was but
moderately successful, recourse was
had to more or less radical structural
changes in the boiler itself.
The period from 1884 to 1890 was
largely given over to experiments Of
this sort, under the enterprising lead
of Messrs. de Dion, Bouton, and Tre-
pdIu IuCy IuTnCO OUT
a large variety OF generators, as they
called them, and an even greater as
sortment of vehicles. The former
usually had several concentric shells,
with some or all of the spaces be-
tween taken up by tubes, the object
being rapid vaporization and improv-
ed circulation. The latter, speaking
of steam carriages in distinction from
the tricycles which this firm turned
out in some quantity, were OF a not
ably improved type.
Carriage Bodies Kept.
While the absence of all effort TO
mask the source of power left the
machines with a certain suggestion
of the road engine, they were invari-
ably built along carriage lines so far
as concerned the body, and 1t was
able to turn in an unprecedentedly
short radius, and in general to make
cars of the pure steam roller type
look foolish.
But the performances of all these
carriages made 1t clear that some
new principle was needed, rather
than an adaptation of an old one.
This was found in the flash boiler
II pech hnO"n lot some time,
but 1t remained for Serpollet, after
several others had failed, to show its
applicability to the problem of steam
traction. We again quote from an
old issue OF the Scientific American
December 21, 1s91):
M. Serpoliet's inexplosive Eener-
ator was described by us al the time
II was presented to engineers and
the public. AS is well known, 1t con-
sists of a capillary metallic tube, In
which water. when injected, is imme-
diately converted into steam. This
remarkable generator, which contains
but a few cubic centimeters of water
and :ho steam in reserve, seemed to
us at the very outset admirably
adapted for satisfying certain evI-
gencies. especially those of the eco
nomical and practical propulsion OF
vehicles"
That this opinion was not hasty Is
now clear. Serpollets car was a COM
plete success. Not only that, but II
sounded the death knell of the steam
roller type. The soundness of tho