manifesting a proper sense of what is due to the public as well as to themselves, by providing their vessels with suitable means of counteracting the great dangers to which they exposed, by accidents from fire. Scarcely had the "Great Western" steam ship, to which all eyes are now so anxiously directed-got under weigh on her voyage from London to New York, than this magnificient trophy of British mechanical skill, had nearly fallen a victim to devouring flames. Shortly after passing the Nore on Saturday morning, a smell of burning oil for some time attracted the attention of flames issuing from above the boilers. The dense volume of smoke that filled and issued from the engine-room, drove every person on deck, preventing any one from descending to stop the engines, or to work a powerful forcing-pump, that was there placed for the purpose of extinguishing any fire that might occur.

The most strenuous exertions, however, were made by all on board for the suppression of the flames; one of Merryweather's portable fire-engines, (described at page 226, of your xxiv, volume,) being stationed on the deck it was instantly got to work, and a powerful jet of water was by this means successfully directed into the midst of the fire, through openings speedily cut in the deck for that purpose.

The fire originated in the accidental ignition of the patent felt, with which the boilers and steam-pipe were covered to prevent loss by the radiation of heat, and to keep the engine-room as cool as possible. The workmen, had improperly used a quantity of red-lead and oil in coating the boilers, &c., with the felt, particularly with that part of the boilers in contact with the chimney; when the felt had once ignited the flames spread like wild-fire, and but for the precautions adopted by the Great Western Steam-Ship Company, for so speedily extinguishing fire, there is no doubt their first vessel would have been sacrificed. It is a curious circumstance, that the fire-engine was only put on board by Mr. Merryweather late on Friday night, at a very short notice; and in less than twelve hours it proved the means of saving this beautiful vessel from threatened destruction.

The 64 Sirius," now the aspiring rival of the "Great Western," was very near

being destroyed by fire in the river a few months since, and was only preserved by the timely and efficient application of a similar portable engine, which they had on board, and was quickly brought to bear upon the flames.

The tendency of accidents of this kind is to show, that forcing-pumps fixed in the engine-rooms, which I have hitherto strongly advocated, are not always to be relied upon, as access to that part of the vessel is so extremely liable to be cut off. A portable fireengine stationed on deck may almost always be depended upon, for should the smoke be at all overpowering, the engine can be lowered into a boat alongside, to windward, and worked with the utmost certainty and effect. The proprietors of the Great Western" have wisely adopted both plans, and there is every reason to believe as well as to hope that the precautions they have taken will insure constant safety. I remain, Sir, Your's respectfully, WM. BADDELEY.

London, April 2, 1838.

BLURTON'S PATENT APPARATUS FOR MILKING COWS.

Sir, I was much amused (in fact I thought it was a hoax,) about two years ago, on reading in your list of English patents the announcement that one had been granted to a Mr. Blurton of Uttoxeter, Stafford, for "an improved method of, and apparatus for,extracting milk from cows and other animals." From the singularity of the thing, I was in weekly expectation of seeing an account of the invention in your useful Magazine, more particularly as I have cows not a few grazing on the pastures of Devonshire. I was, however, disappointed; and being in town a short time ago, determined to examine Mr. Blurton's specification at the patent Inrolment oflice. Here I paid a shilling, and was told no such specification had been inrolled, and was about to depart in high anger at you Mr. Editor, for being party (perhaps unwittingly) to what I then thought to be a deception-when a gentleman who happened to be examining a specification informed me that there were two other offices where the document I wanted

might be deposited, the Rolls Chapel, and Petty Bag. Thanking him for his civility, I proceeded to the former mentioned office, and for three and sixpence, procured the information of which I was in search. Having read over the description of the invention, and seeing it was not such nonsense as I had expected, I was, in the simplicity of my heart, about to make a few notes in my pocketbook of the principal points of the description. In this I was stopped, and told that it was contrary to the rules of the office; but that I might read it as long as I liked. Being blessed with a good memory, and having an hour or two to spare, I determined to learn the specification by heart. I very soon got the pith of it, and now send you an account of the method and apparatus, which I hope you will deem sufficiently interesting to publish in your Magazine.

Mr.

In the common way of milking by the hand, the operation is simply to squeeze out as much milk at a time as the teat contains; on taking away the hand, the teat again fills from the udder, and is again squeezed out; and so on until the whole milk is drawn from the cow. Blurton's invention is to keep the hole in the teat open, by putting a tube or pipe into it, by which means, he says, the whole of the milk will run out of the cow without intermission in a continuous stream. He states that the tubes will not hurt the cow, and that she does not appear so uneasy at being milked in this way, as by the milk-maid. As, however, with a plain tube, air might get into the udder and produce pain and inflammation, Mr. B. adds, to the mouth of the tube what he calls a liquid valve”— which consists of a little cup, into which the milk first runs, and overflows into the milk pail; the mouth of the pipe is thus always under the milk, and when it has stopped running from the cow, the cup and pipe will be full,-so that no air can get into the udder. A pipe is to be put into each teat about an inch up, and milk will flow from the whole of them at once into the pail which is to hang by ropes or straps over the cow's hind quarter. Mr. Blurton states that in this way, one person can milk nearly a dozen cows at a time.

This, Mr. Editor, is styled the age of invention, and really the term would appear to be well applied. One would

have thought the milk-maid's occupation was the least likely of any to be trenched upon by the march of machinery. What a world of poetical similes and charming rural descriptions is Mr. Blurton's apparatus destined to destroy, should it ever come into general use. The milk-maid, with snow-white pail and nut-brown visage will give place to a rival of the rougher sex, armed with the Blurton tube; and the song, so musical to rustic ears, must henceforth cease. I should like to know how the cows look upon this departure from ancient practice, and whether they chew the cud of sweet or of bitter fancies over days departed. Had Mr. Blurton flourished in those unintellectual days, when great men were raised to the dignity of stars in heaven, as well as on earth, he and his apparatus would undoubtedly have obtained a prominent place in the Via Lactea.

I am, Sir,

SIMPLE

Your obedient servant,

LACTARIUS.

LETTER-COPYING MACHINE.

Sir,-A short time since I read some papers, in your valuable Magazine of science, upon copying machines. If you deem the following account of a very simple one, which I contrived for my own use some years since, likely to interest your readers, it is much at your service.

The object of this contrivance is to afford to the traveller a portable instrument for copying letters, &c. It consists simply of a brass tube 14-inches long and diameter. One end, which has a bottom soldered into it and a cover fitted to it, contains a small bottle of copying ink. To the inside of the cover of the other end is attached a brush for the purpose of damping the paper. The space between is occupied by sheets of copying paper together with some oiled paper and thick blotting or filtering paper in a cover. To use the instrument it is only necessary to place a sheet of copying paper between the leaves of blotting paper, which have been previously wetted with the brush, and to let it reinain till sufliciently damp-or, more expeditiously, to damp the copying paper itself with the brush and allow the dry blotting paper to absorb the superfluous

Sir, I had just glanced at your 760th Number, when I received a note from a friend of mine, informing me that the leading article in it contained a description of Messrs. Seawards' patent slide valves; and as my friend believes I have some claim to priority in this invention, or at least of having anticipated Messrs. Seaward in pointing out the use and advantages of the scheme, I feel myself called on to say a few words regarding my claim, and Messrs. Seawards' patent, when the invention appears to be attended with such beneficial results in marine steam-engines.

In order to shew you what I claim as my invention, I beg to refer you to the accompanying drawing and specification, copied from one, made in 1832, by which I think it will be readily perceived that the engraving of Messrs. Seawards' patent slides would serve equally well to illustrate my plan without presenting

any sensible difference in the respective arrangements of the several parts.

Having been taught by experience, that the many disadvantages which are enumerated in the article descriptive of Messrs. Seawards' patent steam-engine slide-valves are (particularly with large sea-going engines) fully verified in practice, I was led to devise several modes of obviating the difficulties complained of, and amongst them I invented the arrangement of nosles and slides shewn in my drawing in the early part of the year 1832. About this time I was engaged by the Dublin and London Steam Marine Company to furnish a design of a pair of large marine engines, for a vessei which the Company contemplated building. In this design I included my newly invented nosles, having first consulted the managing director of the company; and from the design thus prepared the drawing I now send you was copied.

As the responsibility for the due performance of these valves, being new, would have rested wholly with the company, and not with the contractors for the engines, it was proposed by the directors, that the opinion of some scientific engineer of acknowledged eminence should also be obtained on the subject, before the directors finally closed with the firm who were about to make the eugines, and Mr. William Brunton was named as a gentleman whose opinion would be received with confidence by the directors. I proceeded shortly afterwards from Dublin to London for the purpose of waiting upon that gentleman with the drawings, and particularly to explain to him my views regarding the double nosles and slidevalves. I left the drawings with Mr. Brunton by his request, that he might have time to consider and report on the matter, and they were afterwards sent by Mr. Brunton to the care of Mr. W. I. Smith, the company's agent, 16 Johnstreet, Crutched-friars, in a tin case (which I believe was unsealed,) to be forwarded to Dublin. Mr. Brunton reported favourably of my scheme for the double nosles and slides, and the engines would have been forthwith executed under my directions with them, had not the company at the moment, on an unexpected offer made a purchase of the "William Fawcett" steam vessel.

I have now before me a letter which I received from one of the directors of Dublin and London Steam Marine Company, dated August 27,1832, from which I extract the following:

"Messrs. declined yesterday to come to a definite agreement regarding the new vessel, until furnished with specification, such as to enable them to judge as to the comparative expense between the engines for the new vessel, and those of the

I must therefore entreat your particular attention to the completion of the requisite specification of the great part of the engines with a description of the minor details, sufficient to guide their judgment as to expense. I would not, if I was you, in the present stage of the business enter into particulars regarding the double nosles; but in every thing else it would be desirable that you possessed them of our wishes to have a pair of engines of first-rate execution," &c.

I subsequently introduced my plan of nosles to the notice of Mr. Williams,

I

managing director of the City of Dublin Steam Packet Company, and left with him a moving diagram of the valves, shewing how they balanced each other, and the way in which they were actuated by one eccentric. Mr. Williams appeared to entertain the same favourable opinion regarding them as Mr. Richard Bourne had previously done. As I made no secret of the scheme, the diagram thus submitted might have been inspected by fifty persons for aught I know. I remember Mr. Williams making some proposition at the time, for applying my valves to two new cylinders which he contemplated putting in (I think) the "Leeds" steam vessel; but I was called to London on business about this time, and the subject again dropped. thought no more of the matter until my attention was called to a pair of engines on board the "Emerald," at that time belonging to the Gravesend Diamond Company. I had occasion to go to Messrs. Seawards' works, and was met just as I was about entering the gateway by one of their foremen who knew me, and asked me if I had seen Mr. Seawards' new invented patent slidevalves? I said "No, I have not? I know nothing about them." "Well," said he, "will you come with me on board the Emerald' lying in the canal yonder, and look at them; the covers are off now, and you can see the inside of the nosles; we had some of the Lords of the Admiralty on board yesterday (he continued), and Mr. Ewart, and Mr. William Brunton, the civil engineer, who thinks there is nothing like them." Well, we got on board; I had a full view before me of the first practical example of my plan, both in principle and in detail; the latter of which, I confess, struck me as presenting a remarkable coincidence in mechanical design with my own. On returning to the works I briefly mentioned to Mr. Samuel Seaward that I had been upon the eve of applying precisely the same arrangement of valves to one or two pairs of marine engines, but I had not the least idea at the time that Mr. Seaward contemplated obtaining a patent for them, especially as these nosles had been publicly exhibited in action on the river, and the engines sold to the Diamond Company. Of course I can have no idea as to the period at which Messrs.

Seaward's attention began to be occupied with or when they invented that, which has brought forth such gratifying and highly interesting testimonials, as those given by the commander of H. M steam vessel "Volcano," and Mr. John Sinclair, engineer of the Russian steam vessel "Naslednik;" but this I know, that the facts I have stated occurred at the period aforesaid, and attended with all the concomitant circumstances which I have described. Buten

tertained no more idea of patenting the thing than I should of patenting the double nosles of a Cornish expansive engine. In fact, after the subsidence of that enthusiasm with which most new projects are fostered by their authors, I began to look upon the arrangement as too complicated for marine purposes, and did not much regret the accidental circumstance which prevented their introduction in a pair of engines of such magnitude as those I had designed; for without being able to entertain any different opinion regarding the objections to the ordinary packed D slide-valves, particularly in very large engines, I was led to devise another description of valve of great simplicity in construction, requiring no hemp packing nor greater attention from the engineer than any other part of the engines require. These valves have lately been brought into operation in a pair of engines built by Messrs. John and Edward Hall, at the Dartford Iron Works, and now working on board the Humber Union Steam Company's new ship "Wilberforce." The cylinders of these engines are each of them 60 inches in diameter, with a stroke of 6 feet, and doing a duty of at least 300 horse power. So little friction attends the working of these valves, that one man can readily handle both engines, although the leverage power is only as 2 to 1, and the levers themselves little stronger than parlour fire-irons; notwithstanding which the valves are perfectly steam-tight. As some proof that they are so, I may mention, that the boilers by which these large engines are supplied with steam, are of no greater dimensions than the boilers in the steam-vessel "Vivid," belonging to the same company, and adapted for a pair of 90-horse engines only; yet the Wilberforce" boilers maintain a steady and uniform pressure

of steam, keeping the pistons moving with a velocity of 260 feet per minute, and propelling the vessel when fully loaded at the rate of above twelve miles per hour through the water.

In conclusion, I beg to recapitulate the substance of the foregoing statement of facts, and to observe, that if called for, I can produce abundant testimony as to the pains I took to introduce the use of precisely the same description of actuating valves, which it appears Messrs. Seaward subsequently invented, and by the use of which, their marine engines have been so materially improved. I promulgated the plan of double nosles and slide-valves, arranged exactly as shewn in the drawing which was submitted to Mr. W. Brunton for his opinion in the early part of 1832. I remain, Sir, Yours, &c.

FRANCIS HUMPHREY.

Dartford, March 12, 1838.

Abstract from Specification. —“ Each cylinder is to be provided with two nosles, one attached to the fore part of the cylinder, and the other to the after part, constructed in the following manner, that is to say:

The nosle marked A in the elevation, is for the purpose of admitting the steam into the cylinder, and must be provided with two flat cast iron sliding-valves bb, 4 inches thick cach, accurately fitted and ground upon the faces of two cast iron back plates e c, having apertures in them, of 4 inches by 24 inches, as shewn in drawing No. 2 the sliding-valves bb, are to be connected together by a rod of malleable iron d, with joints of steel, provided with steel pins, tempered and accurately fitted to the joints, cast on the sliding valves at ee, so that each valve may not only slide upon the surface of its respective back plate with accuracy, but that each valve may also be at liberty to move off the back plates by any internal and undue pressure accumulating within the cylinder.

The nosle marked B in the elevation, is for the purpose of allowing the steam to escape from the cylinder into the condenser, and is likewise to be provided with two flat sliding-valves of cast iron ff, and two surface plates gg, fitted and ground together, precisely similar to the steam valves, but with this difference in their dimensions, namely, the valves ff, in the nosle B, must be planed or fitted by some other suitable means all over their surfaces, and so proportioned, that each valve will fit its respec