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MEMOIRS
OF THE
DISTINGUISHED MEN OF SCIENCE
OF GREAT BRITAIN
LIVING IN THE YEARS 1807-8.
AND APPENDIX.
WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY
ROBERT HUNT, F.R.S., &c.
COMPILED AND ARRANGED BY
WILLIAM WALKER, JUNIOR.
Second Edition.
"The evil, that men do, lives after them;
The good is oft interred with their bones."
SHAKSPEARE.
LONDON:
E. & F. N. SPON, 16, BUCKLERSBURY.
1864.
LONDON:
W. DAVY AND SON, PRINTERS, GILBERT STREET,
OXFORD STREET, W.
CONTENTS.
PAGE
ALLEN, WILLIAM 1
BAILY, FRANCIS 2
BANKS, SIR JOSEPH 4
BENTHAM, BRIGADIER-GENERAL SIR SAMUEL 7
BOULTON, MATTHEW 13
BRAMAH, JOSEPH 15
BROWN, ROBERT 18
BRUNEL, SIR MARK ISAMBARD 21
CARTWRIGHT, REV. DR. EDMUND 24
CAVENDISH, HON. HENRY 27
CHAPMAN, WILLIAM 30
CONGREVE, SIR WILLIAM 34
CROMPTON, SAMUEL 35
DALTON, JOHN 41
DAVY, SIR HUMPHRY 44
DOLLOND, PETER 49
DONKIN, BRYAN 51
FRODSHAM, WILLIAM JAMES 53
GILBERT, DAVIES GIDDY 53
HATCHETT, CHARLES 56
HENRY, DR. WILLIAM 58
HERSCHEL, SIR WILLIAM 61
HOWARD, EDWARD CHARLES 63
HUDDART, CAPTAIN JOSEPH 64
JENNER, DR. EDWARD 67
JESSOP, WILLIAM 72
KATER, CAPTAIN HENRY 75
LESLIE, SIR JOHN 77
MASKELYNE, DR. NEVIL 81
MAUDSLAY, HENRY 83
MILLER, PATRICK 86
MURDOCK, WILLIAM 87
MYLNE, ROBERT 90
NAYSMITH, ALEXANDER 91
PLAYFAIR, JOHN 92
RENNIE, JOHN 96
RONALDS, FRANCIS 99
RUMFORD, COUNT 102
RUTHERFORD, DR. DANIEL 107
SMITH, WILLIAM 107
STANHOPE, CHARLES, EARL 112
SYMINGTON, WILLIAM 114
TELFORD, THOMAS 117
TENNANT, CHARLES 122
THOMSON, DR. THOMAS 124
TREVITHICK, RICHARD 126
TROUGHTON, EDWARD 132
WATSON, RICHARD, BISHOP OF LLANDAFF 134
WATT, JAMES 137
WOLLASTON, DR. WILLIAM H. 142
YOUNG, DR. THOMAS 145
APPENDIX.
BLACK, DR. JOSEPH 150
CORT, HENRY 152
IVORY, JAMES 155
PRIESTLY, JOSEPH 157
PREFACE TO SECOND EDITION.
THE following brief memoirs were originally compiled for the purpose
of accompanying the Engraving of "The Distinguished Men of Science of
Great Britain living in 1807-8, assembled at the Royal Institution."
As, however, "The Memoirs" were found to have a considerable sale,
independent of the Engraving, it has been found necessary to produce
a second edition. All the lives have been carefully revised, and
considerable additions made, while, in order to render the present book
a more complete compendium of the great men of that period, an Appendix
has been added, containing the Memoirs of Black, Cort, Ivory, and
Priestly, who unfortunately were, from different reasons, unable to be
included in the group in the Engraving.
With the exception of the notices of Trevithick, Tennant, Maudslay,
Francis Ronalds, and one or two more, these memoirs necessarily contain
little information which has not been previously published in some
shape or other. The authorities from which the present particulars have
been taken are given at the end of each memoir; and the writer claims
no further merit than that of having compiled and arranged the works of
others, whose language, in most cases, it would indeed be presumption
in him to alter, further than was necessary to present to the public in
a clear, brief, and (it is hoped) readable form, the doings of men who
must ever be held in the grateful remembrance of their country.
INTRODUCTION.
THE influences of human thought on the physical forces which regulate
the great phenomena of the universe,--and the operation of the powers
of mind, on the material constituents of the planet, which is man's
abiding place, form subjects for studies which have a most exalting
tendency. Thought has made the subtile element of the thunderstorm
man's most obedient messenger. Thought has solicited the sunbeam to
betray its secrets; and an invisible agent, controlled by light,
delineates external nature at man's request. Thought has subdued the
wild impulses of fire, and heat is made the willing power to propel
our trains of carriages with a bird-like speed, and to urge--in proud
independence of winds or tides--our noble ships from shore to shore.
Thought has penetrated the arcana of nature, and, by learning her laws,
has imitated her works. Thus, Chemistry takes a crude mass,--rejected
as unworthy and offensive,--it recombines its constituent parts, and
gives us, the grateful odours of the sweetest flowers, and tinctures
which rival nature in the intensity and the beauty of its dyes.
No truth was ever developed to man, in answer to his laborious toils,
which did not sooner or later benefit the race. Every such development
has been the result of the continuous efforts of an individual mind;
therefore it is that we desire to possess some memorial of the men to
whom we are indebted.
We have advanced to our present position in the scale of nations by the
efforts of a few chosen minds. Every branch of human industry has been
benefited by the discoveries of science. The discoverers are therefore
deserving of that hero-worship which, sooner or later, they receive
from all.
The following pages are intended to convey to the general reader a
brief but correct account of the illustrious dead, whose names _are_
for ever associated with one of the most brilliant eras in British
science. It will be remembered that, in the earliest years of the
present century, the world witnessed the control and application of
steam by Watt, Symington and Trevithick; the great discoveries in
physics and chemistry by Dalton, Cavendish, Wollaston and Davy,--in
astronomy by Herschel, Maskelyne and Baily; the inventions of
the spinning-mule and power-loom by Crompton and Cartwright; the
introduction of machinery into the manufacture of paper, by Bryan
Donkin and others; the improvements in the printing-press, and
invention of stereotype printing, by Charles Earl Stanhope; the
discovery of vaccination by Jenner; the introduction of gas into
general use by Murdock; and the construction (in a great measure) of
the present system of canal communication by Jessop, Chapman, Telford
and Rennie. During the same period of time were likewise living Count
Rumford; Robert Brown, the botanist; William Smith, "The Father of
English Geology;" Thomas Young, the natural philosopher; Brunei;
Bentham; Maudslay; and Francis Ronalds, who, by securing perfect
insulation, was the first to demonstrate the practicability of passing
an electric message through a lengthened space; together with many
others, the fruits of whose labours we are now reaping.
The following pages briefly record the births, deaths, and more
striking incidents in the lives of those benefactors to mankind.
"Lives of great men all remind us we may make our lives sublime."--The
truth of this is strongly enforced in the brief memoirs which are
included in this volume. They teach us that mental power, used
judiciously and applied with industry, is capable of producing vast
changes in the crude productions of Nature. Beyond this, they instruct
us that men, who fulfil the commands of the Creator and employ
their minds, in unwearying efforts to subdue the Earth, are rarely
unrewarded. They aid in the march of civilization, and they ameliorate
the conditions of humanity. They win a place amongst the great names
which we reverence, and each one
"becomes like a star
"From the abodes where the Eternals are."
ROBERT HUNT.
WILLIAM ALLEN, F.R.S.
Born August 29, 1770. Died December 30, 1843.
William Allen, the eminent chemist, was born in London. His father was
a silk manufacturer in Spitalfields, and a member of the Society of
Friends. Having at an early period shown a predilection for chemical
and other pursuits connected with medicine, William was placed
in the establishment of Mr. Joseph Gurney Bevan in Plough Court,
Lombard Street, where he acquired a practical knowledge of chemistry.
He eventually succeeded to the business, which he carried on in
connection with Mr. Luke Howard, and obtained great reputation as a
pharmaceutical chemist. About the year 1804, Mr. Allen was appointed
lecturer on chemistry and experimental philosophy at Guy's Hospital,
at which institution he continued to be engaged more or less until the
year 1827. He was also connected with the Royal Institution of Great
Britain, and was concerned in some of the most exact experiments of the
day, together with Davy, Babington, Marcet, Luke Howard, and Dalton.
In conjunction with his friend Mr. Pepys, Allen entered upon his
well known chemical investigations, which established the proportion
of Carbon in Carbonic Acid, and proved the identity of the diamond
with charcoal; these discoveries are recorded in the 'Philosophical
Transactions' of the Royal Society, of which he became a member in
1807. The 'Transactions' for 1829 also contain a paper by him, based on
elaborate experiments and calculations, concerning the changes produced
by respiration on atmospheric air and other gases. Mr. Allen was mainly
instrumental in establishing the Pharmaceutical Society, of which he
was president at the time of his death. Besides his public labours as
a practical chemist, he pursued with much delight, in his hours of
relaxation, the study of astronomy, and was one of the original members
of the Royal Astronomical Society. In connection with this science, he
published, in 1815, a small work entitled 'A Companion to the Transit
Instrument.'
Many years before his death Mr. Allen withdrew from business, and
purchased an estate near Lindfield, Sussex. Here while still engaged
in public schemes of usefulness and benevolence, he also carried out
various philanthropic plans for the improvement of his immediate
dependants, and poorer neighbours. He erected commodious cottages on
his property, with an ample allotment of land to each cottage, and
established Schools at Lindfield for boys, girls, and infants, with
workshops, outhouses, and play-grounds. About three acres of land were
cultivated on the most approved system by the boarders, who also took
a part in household work. The subjects taught were land-surveying,
mapping, the elements of Botany, the use of the barometer, rain-gauge,
&c., and there was a good library with various scientific and useful
apparatus.
Mr. Allen died at Lindfield, the scene of his zealous benevolence, in
the seventy-fourth year of his age.--_English Cyclopædia_, London,
1856.--_Monthly notices of the Royal Ast. Soc._ vol. 6, Feb., 1844.
FRANCIS BAILY, F.R.S. &c.
Born April 28, 1774. Died August 30, 1844.
This eminent English astronomer was born at Newbury in Berkshire, and
received his education at the school of the Rev. Mr. Best of that town,
where he early showed a propensity to physical inquiry, obtaining
among his schoolmates the nickname of 'the Philosopher of Newbury.'
Francis Baily quitted this school, when fourteen years old, for a
house of business in the city of London, and remained there until his
twenty-second year, when, desirous of the enlargement of views which
travel affords, he embarked for America in 1795. Mr. Baily remained
there nearly three years, travelling over the whole of the United
States and through much of the western country, experiencing at various
times great hardships and privations.
Shortly after his return to England he commenced business in London as
a stockbroker, and was taken into partnership by a Mr. Whitmore, in the
year 1799. While engaged in this business he published several works on
Life Annuities, one of which, entitled 'The Doctrine of Life Annuities
and Insurances analytically investigated and explained,' was published
in 1810, with an appendix in 1813, continuing to this day to be a
standard work on the subject, and it may serve to give some idea of the
estimation in which it was held, to mention, that when out of print,
copies used to sell for four to five times their original value.
Although Mr. Baily was thus actively devoting himself to matters of a
direct commercial interest, he was still able to find time for works of
a more general nature: in 1810 he wrote his first astronomical paper on
the celebrated Solar Eclipse, said to have been predicted by Thales,
published in the 'Philosophical Transactions' for 1811, and in 1813
published a work entitled 'An Epitome of Universal History.' Astronomy,
however, was his chief pursuit; and shortly after the celebrated
fraud of De Beranger on the Stock Exchange in 1814, (in the detection
and exposure of which Baily had a considerable share), this science
absorbed more and more of his attention. His accounts of the Eclipse of
1820; of the Annular Eclipse of 1836, which he observed at Jedburgh;
and the Total Eclipse of July 8, 1842, with its marvellous revelation
of the rose-coloured protuberances of the solar atmosphere, since known
as 'Baily's Beads,' are among the most interesting and classical of his
writings.
In January, 1823, the Royal Astronomical Society was founded, chiefly
through the suggestions of Francis Baily and Dr. Pearson, and for the
first three years of its existence Mr. Baily filled the office of
Secretary, sparing no exertions on its behalf, watching over its early
progress with paternal care, and as the Society grew and prospered,
contributing to its transactions many copious and valuable papers.
In 1825 Baily retired from the Stock Exchange, having acquired a
considerable fortune, and shortly afterwards took a house in Tavistock
Place, giving his whole attention to the furtherance of astronomical
science. Here, he executed that grand series of labours which has
perpetuated his name, and the building in which the Cavendish
experiment of weighing the earth was repeated, its bulk and figure
determined, and the standard of British measure perpetuated, must
continue to be a source of interest to scientific men for many
generations to come. The chief works to which Mr. Baily devoted himself
during this later portion of his life are:--
1. The Remodelling of the Nautical Almanac.
2. The Determination of the length of the Seconds Pendulum.
3. The Fixation of the Standard of Length.
4. The Determination of the Density of the Earth.
5. The Revision of the Catalogues of the Stars.
6. The Reduction of Lacaille's and Lalande's Catalogues; and
7. The Formation of a New Standard Catalogue.
The benefits which not only astronomy but all England have derived from
these laborious investigations, can hardly be too much appreciated.
But a short time elapsed, after Baily had completed his observations
on the pendulum, and determined the standard of length,--being thereby
enabled to compare his new scale with the imperial standard yard,--when
the conflagration of the Houses of Parliament in 1834 took place, and
both the latter standard, and the original one by Bird (that of 1758)
were destroyed. When it is considered that Baily's repetition of the
Cavendish Experiment involved untiring watching for more than 1200
hours, and this, too, by one who in early life seemed only able to find
food for his vigorous mind amidst the hardships and fatigues of travel,
it affords a remarkable instance how a man, active and full of ardour
in early youth, can yet be enabled, by the strength of his character,
to concentrate the full force of his powers upon a series of researches
apparently the most wearying and full of disappointment, an example
well fitted for the earnest consideration of all who imagine that the
energies of their minds can alone be satisfied by stirring scenes or a
life full of activity and adventure. Mr. Baily's last public appearance
was at Oxford, to which place he went with some difficulty, to receive
the honorary degree of Doctor of Civil Law. He was distinguished by
great industry, which was made more effective by his methodical habits;
and also by a suavity of manner which greatly enlarged the circle of
his friends. In fact, Mr. Baily effected in the last 20 years of his
life, a greater number of complete and refined researches than most
other philosophers have accomplished during a whole lifetime.--_Memoir
of Francis Baily, by Sir John Herschel, Bart._ London, 1856.
SIR JOSEPH BANKS, BART., C.B., P.R.S.
MEMBER OF THE INSTITUTE OF FRANCE, ETC.
Born February 12, 1743. Died June 19, 1820.
Sir Joseph Banks, President of the Royal Society for upwards of forty
years, was born in Argyle Street, London. He was the eldest son of Mr.
W. Banks, a gentleman of considerable landed property, whose family
was originally of Swedish extraction, although it had been settled in
England for several generations. The early life of Joseph Banks was
passed principally at Revesby Hall, his father's seat in Lincolnshire,
and his education was for several years entrusted to a private tutor;
in his ninth year he was sent to Harrow and four years after to Eton,
from whence he proceeded to Christ's College, Oxford.
During his residence at college, he made considerable progress
in classical knowledge, but evinced at the same time a decided
predilection for the study of natural history. Botany in particular
was his favourite occupation, and one to which his leisure hours were
devoted with enthusiastic ardour and perseverance. An anecdote is told
of Mr. Banks being on one occasion so intent on exploring ditches
and secluded spots, in search of rare plants, as to have excited the
suspicions of some countrymen, who, conceiving that he could have no
innocent design in acting thus, seized the young naturalist, when
he had fallen asleep exhausted with fatigue, and brought him as a
suspected thief before a neighbouring magistrate. After a strict
investigation he was soon liberated, but the incident occasioned much
amusement in the neighbourhood.
In the year 1761 Mr. Banks lost his father, and in 1764, on coming of
age, was put in possession of his valuable estates in Lincolnshire.
Mrs. Banks, soon after the death of her husband, removed with her
family from Lincolnshire to Chelsea, as a spot likely to afford her son
Joseph peculiar advantages in the study of botany, from the numerous
gardens in the vicinity devoted to the culture of rare and curious
plants of every description. And now it was that the great merit of Mr.
Banks shone forth. With all the incitements which his age, his figure,
and his station naturally presented to leading a life of idleness, and
with a fortune which placed the more vulgar gratifications of sense
or of ordinary ambition amply within his reach, he steadily devoted
himself to scientific pursuits, and only lived for the studies of a
naturalist. He remained out of Parliament, went little into any society
but that of learned men, while his relaxation was confined to exercise
and to angling, of which he was so fond, that he would devote days
and even nights to it. Whilst living at Chelsea, Mr. Banks formed the
acquaintance of Lord Sandwich, afterwards first Lord of the Admiralty,
who as it happened had the same taste, and to the friendship of whom
he was in after life indebted for essential aid in the furtherance of
his numerous projects for the advancement of scientific knowledge.
Soon after attaining his 21st year, Mr. Banks undertook a voyage to
Newfoundland and the Labrador coast, for the purpose of exploring the
botany of those unfrequented regions. On his return, he brought home
valuable collections not only of plants, but also of insects and other
natural productions of that district. In 1768, he obtained leave from
Government, through the interest of Lord Sandwich, to embark in the
ship commanded by the great navigator Cook, who had been commissioned
to observe the transit of Venus in the Pacific ocean, by the
observation of which phenomenon the sun's parallax might be measured,
and to fulfil also the usual object of a voyage of discovery.[1]
In order to turn to the best account all opportunities that might
occur during the voyage, Mr. Banks made most careful preparations.
He provided himself with the best instruments for making all kinds
of scientific observations, and for preserving specimens of natural
history, and persuaded Dr. Solander, a distinguished pupil of Linnæus,
to become his associate in the enterprise. He also took with him two
draughtsmen, to delineate all objects of interest that did not admit of
being transported or preserved, and four servants. This voyage occupied
three years; during that period all engaged in it incurred many and
severe hardships; several, including three of the attendants of Dr.
Solander and Mr. Banks, losing their lives. The results were highly
important, the observations necessary for making the solar parallax
were made with perfect success. The manners of the natives in the
Society Islands had been examined, and the singular state of their
society ascertained. Their products, vegetable, mineral, and animal,
as well as those of New Holland, New Zealand, and New Guinea, had been
fully explored, and a considerable share of the fame, which accrued
to Captain Cook and his associates in the enterprise, was due to Mr.
Banks, who brought home a splendid collection of specimens from those
countries.
No sooner had Mr. Banks returned from this expedition than he
commenced, with unabated vigour after a few months repose, preparations
for another. Having been prevented from joining Captain Cook's second
expedition, chiefly through the influence of Sir Hugh Pallisser with
the admiralty, he undertook the equipment of a ship at his own expense;
and, taking with him Dr. Solander, Dr. Lind, Dr. Von Troil, a Swedish
naturalist, and others, he sailed for Iceland in 1772. After exploring
during two months that interesting region of volcanoes he returned
to England, enriched with many valuable specimens, and still more
valuable information respecting the productions of the country. A fine
collection of books and manuscripts were purchased and presented by
Mr. Banks to the British Museum, and Dr. Von Troil, in whose hands Mr.
Banks, with his wonted aversion to literary fame, left the subject,
published a full and interesting account of the voyage.
A great part of the knowledge resulting from the various travels of
Mr. Banks were communicated by him, at different times, in papers to
the Royal Society, of which he had been elected a fellow as early as
the year 1766. On the resignation of Sir John Pringle, in 1778, Mr.
Banks was elected President of this Society, an honour he continued to
hold until his death. During the whole of his life Sir Joseph enjoyed
the favour of the king, forming a kind of connecting link between
his scientific compeers, and the courtly circles of the aristocracy.
In 1781 he was made a baronet; in 1795 was invested with the order
of the bath; and, in 1797, became a member of the privy council. He
did not, however, engage much in politics, but used the influence he
had acquired chiefly in the promotion of scientific objects, and the
encouragement of those who pursued them.
Sir Joseph Banks's published works bear little proportion either to
his scientific labours or his exertions on behalf of learned men, nor
are his real claims to the gratitude of posterity much known. He it
was who may truly be said to have planted and founded the colony of
Botany Bay. He was the real founder of the African Association, and
by his scientific exertions the productions of other climates were
diffused over each portion of the globe. Thus he brought over into
Europe the seeds of the South Sea lands, having previously distributed
to the latter those of Europe. To him are we indebted for many of
the beautiful plants which adorn our gardens and shrubberies. The
sugar-cane of Otaheite was transplanted by him into the colonies, the
bread fruit tree of the Pacific introduced into the tropical soil of
America, and the flax of New Zealand brought into Europe. While among
animals, the black swan and the kangaroo were brought from Australia
and introduced into this country by this eminent man.
Sir Joseph Banks was married but had no family. He continued to fill
the honourable office of President of the Royal Society for the
unprecedented period of nearly forty-two years, enjoying, during that
time, the correspondence and confidence of most of the distinguished
men of learning both of this and other nations. His name was enrolled
amongst the associates of almost every academy and learned society
in Europe. His house and table were ever open for the reception and
entertainment of all those who were eminent for their scientific
attainments, with that spirit of liberality so conducive to the union
of interests and co-operation of efforts, requisite for the cultivation
of knowledge. During the latter part of his life Sir Joseph Banks was
a great sufferer from the gout, and during the last fourteen years was
almost deprived of the use of his feet and legs. At last, he gradually
sank under the exhausting effects of this ailment, and died at his
villa at Spring Grove, Hounslow, in the seventy-eighth year of his age.
He was succeeded in the chair of the Royal Society by Dr. Wollaston for
the remainder of the year, until the election of Sir Humphry Davy on
the anniversary of the Society in November.--_Memoir of Sir J. Banks,
by Dr. P. M. Roget, Encyclopædia Britannica_, Eighth Edition.--_Welds'
History of the Royal Society, with Memoirs of the Presidents._ London,
1848.--_Brougham's Lives of Philosophers._ London and Glasgow, 1855.
BRIGADIER-GENERAL SIR SAMUEL BENTHAM.
Born January 11, 1757. Died May 31, 1831.
Sir Samuel Bentham was the youngest son of Jeremiah Bentham, and
brother of Jeremy, the celebrated jurist. He was placed when very
young at a private school, from whence, at the age of six, he was
sent to Westminster. His father occupied a house in Queen's Square
Place, in the stable-yard of which were spacious workshops, let to a
carpenter; here Samuel used to spend all his leisure time, and soon
acquired considerable skill in handling tools, for when only thirteen
years old he had managed to construct with his own hands a carriage,
for a young friend and playmate, Miss Cornelia Knight. At the age of
fourteen he exhibited so strong a taste for naval matters, that his
father yielded to his wishes, and bound him apprentice to the master
shipwright of Woolwich Dockyard. At that time the superior officers
of a royal dockyard were exempted from keeping their apprentices at
hard labour, so that time might be allowed for general instruction.
Samuel, however, soon perceived that practical manipulation was no less
essential than theoretical knowledge, and used therefore to work at
the dock side till breakfast-time, and devote the rest of the day to
scientific acquirements. In time, Samuel and his master were removed
from Woolwich to Chatham Dockyard, by which he was enabled to obtain
a practical knowledge of the behaviour of vessels at sea; for he was
often permitted to sail in the British Channel, and sometimes extended
his voyages further. About this period his brother, Jeremy Bentham,
had returned from college, and used to instil into him many of the
first ideas of political economy: on these occasions Samuel would take
advantage of the Saturday afternoons to _walk_ from Chatham to his
brother's chambers in Lincoln's Inn.
At the end of his seven years' apprenticeship, Samuel spent another
year in the other royal dockyards, and at the Naval College at
Portsmouth. He then went to sea as Captain Macbridge's guest, whose
ship was one of Lord Keppel's fleet, and on this occasion he suggested
sundry improvements in the apparatus of a ship, which were executed
in Portsmouth Dockyard. In consequence of the abilities manifested
by Bentham, many advantageous appointments were offered him; these
were, however, refused, and in 1780 he embarked for the Continent, in
order to obtain greater experience in the different practices in the
art of naval construction. After having visited Holland he proceeded
to Russia, and was well received at St. Petersburgh by the English
Ambassador, Sir James Harris, who introduced him to the best society,
and through whose means he became acquainted, among others, with Prince
Potemkin, and the celebrated traveller, Pallas. Whilst on a visit to
the large manufactory of Count Demidoff, Bentham constructed a sort
of amphibious vehicle, in the form of a boat, and capable of serving
as an ordinary wheel-carriage, and also, when necessity required, of
being navigated across, or along a stream of water. This invention
he subsequently patented, and likewise extended its utility by
constructing the carriages so as to serve as army baggage-waggons, a
supply of which Prince Potemkin ordered to be furnished to a regiment
at Jassy. They were also introduced into England about the year 1793,
when the Duke of York requested that one should be built for the
English service, which was successfully tried on the River Thames. In
gratitude to Count Demidoff for the facilities which he had afforded
him in constructing this carriage, Bentham invented for the use of the
Count's factory, a wood-planing machine, which could also be used for
making mouldings by changing the cutting tool.
Bentham's stay in Russia was prolonged for a greater period than he
originally intended, from his having become attached to a Russian
lady of considerable rank and beauty; but although this attachment
was mutual, nothing came of it, owing to the opposition of the lady's
relatives, on the score of Bentham being a foreigner. During this
period Bentham had the direction of the Fontanka Canal, in connection
with which he invented a peculiar form of pile-driving machine, in
which the weight was attached to a sort of endless ladder, moved by
a man stepping on it, on the principle that a man's weight exceeds
considerably his muscular strength.
After the completion of the canal, Prince Potemkin induced Bentham
to accept military service, and appointed him to the command of a
battalion stationed at Critcheff, in White Russia, with the rank
of lieutenant-colonel. As the prince's manufactories were in the
neighbourhood of Critcheff, Bentham offered to superintend them. This
offer was gladly received; and as the management of the works had been
previously grossly misconducted, the lieutenant-colonel soon perceived
the necessity of his own constant inspection of what was going on, and
for this purpose contrived a panoptican building or inspection-house,
the centre of which commanded a view of all its parts. His brother
Jeremy was on a visit whilst he was devising this panoptican, and the
contrivance has frequently on this account been attributed to Jeremy,
although in his works Jeremy repeatedly says it was his brother's. Up
to this time the panoptican principle has only been adopted in gaols;
but Jeremy Bentham has shown that it is equally desirable for a great
variety of buildings.
Bentham's next invention was a sort of jointed vessel, for the
conveyance of the Empress Catherine down the Dnieper and its affluents,
which were shallow, tortuous, and their navigation much impeded by
sandbanks and sunken trees. This vessel was in six links, drawing only
six inches of water when loaded, and with 124 men at the oars on board.
Many more were constructed on the same principle, for carrying the
produce of the prince's establishments and manufactories to the Black
Sea.
On the breaking out of war with Turkey, Bentham was sent to the
south with his battalion, of which, according to orders, he had made
sailors and shipwrights; and shortly afterwards, by the joint order of
Souvaroff and Admiral Mardvinoff, he was commanded to fit out vessels
at Cherson to oppose the enemy. It happened that he had the sole
command of the arsenal at Cherson, in which he found an immense stock
of ordnance of all descriptions, but no better navigable vessels than
the pleasure-galleys which had brought the empress and her suite down
the Dnieper. But nothing daunted, Bentham set to work. He reflected
that it is not size of vessel which ensures victory, but that it is
gained by the fleet that can throw the heaviest weight of missile in
the shortest time, joined to the facility of manœuvring vessels.
Strengthening his vessels as well as he could, he fitted them with as
heavy artillery as they could possibly bear, and when all was finished,
took the command of the flotilla himself, and had the satisfaction of
engaging the Turks on three separate days, in all of which actions
he was equally victorious, notwithstanding the enemy's flotilla were
doubly as numerous and powerful. For these three victories Bentham
received from the empress a like number of honourable rewards--rank in
the army, a gold-hilted sword, and the Cross of the Order of St. George.
Sir Samuel Bentham now returned to the army, and by his own choice
was appointed to the protection of the eastern frontier of Siberia,
his command extending from the northern part of the Ural Mountains to
the confines of Russia in the Chinese dominions. After holding this
appointment for a couple of years, during which period he established
schools for his troops, and introduced other improvements into their
condition, Bentham obtained leave of absence to visit England.
Here commences another epoch in Sir Samuel's life. Arrived in England,
he found his brother Jeremy absorbed in investigations relative to
jurisprudence. Jeremy, however, had not forgotten his brother's
Panoptican, but had proposed its adoption for the County Gaol of
Middlesex. This led to some explanations with the ministers, who
ultimately entrusted Jeremy Bentham with a thousand convicts, of
whose labour he was to make the best use he could. In the meanwhile
Samuel went to visit the principal manufactories in England; he found
that steam-engines were used for giving motion to machinery for
spinning cotton, but in no case were they applied to machinery for the
working of wood, metal, &c.; nor, in fact, were there any mechanical
apparatuses for saving labour, with the exception of turning-lathes,
and some boring tools worked by horses, for making ships' blocks.
Bentham therefore patented, in 1791, his machinery for planing and
making mouldings, specifying the improvements which he had made on
the machine constructed ten years before for Count Demidoff. His
brother's arrangements for the industrial employment of convicts
having been concluded, Sir Samuel considered that the most profitable
means of employing them would be the working of machines for saving
manual labour, which at the same time ensured accuracy of work; he
therefore exerted his mechanical genius to perfect several engines he
had previously contrived in Russia, and patented his inventions in the
specification (No. 1951). This specification includes machines for
sawing, boring, and many other operations necessary for the working of
wood or metal.
Nor did the general confine himself to mere verbal descriptions of
his machines; many of them were constructed and erected under his
own eye, in Queen's Square Place, amongst which may be mentioned an
apparatus for making wheels, and another for making all the parts of
a window-sash frame; both of these leaving nothing for the skilled
workman to do, save putting the pieces together. There were also planes
of various descriptions, saws for cutting extremely fine veneers,
machines for boring, dovetailing, cutting stone, &c., &c. Machines for
metal-work were not, however, attempted, on account of the difficulty
of obtaining the necessary power for working them, the Queen's
Square Place apparatus being all worked by men. The fame of this
machinery attracted many visitors, amongst others Mr. Secretary Dundas
(afterwards Lord Melville), who stated in the House of Commons that it
opened a new era in the manufacturing prosperity of the country.
But the circumstance which completely changed Bentham's future destiny,
was the frequent visits of Earl Spencer and the Lords of the Admiralty,
who soon perceived the advantages which would accrue to the state
by engaging the general in the British service. Various proposals
were made by the Admiralty to engage him permanently in the public
service; but Bentham refused all in which he had not the individual
responsibility. Ultimately a new office was created for him, under the
name of Inspector-General of Naval Works; not, however, without the
fierce opposition of the Naval Board, who, although unable to change
the title of the office, managed to reduce the salary from the sum of
2000_l._ per annum, as originally proposed, to 750_l._ nominal, with
an addition finally agreed upon of 500_l._ a year--in all, 1250_l._
per annum. Notwithstanding this opposition, Bentham, convinced of
the services he could render, gave up the honours and riches which
awaited him in Russia--amongst others, an estate promised him on his
return--and determined to devote his energies to his native country,
regardless of all pecuniary advantages. During the interval which
elapsed before the actual institution of his new office, Bentham was
authorized by the Lords of the Admiralty, early in 1795, to build seven
experimental vessels; into these he introduced many improvements,
amongst which may be mentioned diagonal braces, metallic tanks for
water, metallic canisters for powder, means for filling the magazine
with water in case of fire, safety lamps, &c.
Appointed Inspector-General of Naval Works in 1796, the whole of Sir
Samuel's energies were henceforward directed towards the improvement of
naval arsenals, and the introduction of his machinery for shaping wood,
with steam-power to give it motion. This introduction of steam-power
into the naval dockyards of Great Britain experienced at first the most
violent opposition; and it was not until 1797 that any progress was
made towards the furtherance of his object. During the same year Sir
M. Isambard (then Mr.) Brunel presented himself to the general, for
the purpose of bringing before his notice certain machinery for making
blocks. Bentham was at that time fully engaged by Lord St. Vincent in
organizing a better mode of managing timber in the royal dockyards,
and it occurred to him that Brunei would be likely to influence the
public in favour of machinery for working wood, and therefore proposed
that he should be engaged for that purpose, recommending at the same
time the adoption of his apparatus for shaping blocks, to which
Brunel's machines were solely confined[2]--a measure which has had the
effect of giving almost the entire merit of the Portsmouth machinery
to Brunel. This statement is made without any intention of detracting
from Sir Isambard's well-earned reputation, but simply in justice to
Bentham, who, singularly free from an inventor's jealousy, himself
officially stated:--"In regard to the machinery, I was afterwards
satisfied that Mr. Brunel had skill enough to have contrived machinery
to have answered the same purposes, had he not found mine ready to his
hand."
To describe all Bentham's subsequent improvements, not only in
machinery, but also in the economy of the management of the dockyards,
would take too much space. By his energetic efforts and inventive
genius, the wood mills, metal mills, and millwrights' shop were
established at Portsmouth. In 1800, he proposed to the Admiralty a
steam dredging-machine, of which he gave drawings, similar to the ones
now in such general use; and the efficacy of this invention has since
realized the most sanguine hopes of its designer. Notwithstanding the
great value of Bentham's services, he seems to have experienced little
gratitude on the part of the government. During the year 1805, he was
requested by the Admiralty to proceed to Russia, and commence building
in that country ships of war for the British navy. On his consenting,
and arriving at St. Petersburgh, he found, much to his surprise,
that nothing had been done to facilitate his mission; and although
personally received with great kindness by the emperor, he was unable
to obtain the required permission to build vessels of war for Great
Britain.
Returning to England in 1807, he learnt that his office had been
abolished, and that henceforth he would be amalgamated with the Naval
Board. Nothing but the necessity of supporting his family, made Bentham
accept this new post, which gave him the title of Civil Engineer and
Architect of the Navy--an employment for which he had manifested
peculiar talents, although not educated for it, but excluding him at
the same time from all interference in ship-building, for which he
had served a regular apprenticeship, and had subsequently manifested
extraordinary talents. When this office also was abolished, about the
year 1812, Sir Samuel, by the desire of Lord Melville, applied for
some compensation for loss of office, and likewise for a remuneration
for his services. On account of the loss of office, Bentham's salary
was continued; but during the discussion which arose regarding the
statement of services which Sir Samuel had drawn up at the request of
the Admiralty, although, on coming to the metal mills, Lord Melville
said, "There Sir Samuel stands upon a rock," it proved a slippery one;
for under the pretext that it would be necessary to apply to parliament
for so large a sum as a year's savings effected by the introduction of
the metal mills, no remuneration was ever accorded to Bentham for any
one of his services.
After the restoration of peace in 1814, Sir Samuel retired to France,
for the economical education of his children. In 1827 he returned to
England, where he remained until his death in 1831, at the age of
seventy-four.--_Papers and Practical Illustrations of Public Works of
Recent Construction_, &c. London, 1856.
MATTHEW BOULTON, F.R.S. L. and E. &c.
Born at Birmingham, Sept. 3, 1728. Died Aug. 17, 1809.
This skilful, energetic, and farseeing man, who, by his extended views
and liberal spirit of enterprise, contributed so greatly towards the
successful introduction of Watt's condensing steam-engine, commenced
life at Birmingham as a maker of buttons and shoe-buckles. Matthew
Boulton received an ordinary education at a school at Deritend. He
was, however, gifted with rare endowments, and of these he made the
best use; with a thorough knowledge of business, great prudence, and
admirable tact, he combined boldness of spirit, quickness of thought,
and promptitude of action. At the death of his father, Boulton became
possessed of considerable property, and desirous of extending his
commercial operations, purchased, about the year 1762, a lease of
Soho, near Handsworth, where he founded that establishment which has
become renowned as the nursery of English mechanics. The hill from
which this place derived its name was, at that time, a bleak and
barren heath, at the bottom of which rippled a small stream. Boulton's
instinctive mind saw the uses to which these waters might be turned.
By collecting them into a pool, and pouring their united weight upon a
water wheel, he became possessed of a motive-power sufficient to set
in motion various machines, by whose agency were fabricated articles
in gold, silver, and tortoise-shell, and plated and inlaid works of
the greatest elegance and perfection. On the side of the hill, Boulton
built extensive workshops, and dwellings capable of holding many
hundreds of workmen, and erected a mansion for himself surrounded
by beautiful grounds, where he lived as a prince among his people,
extending hospitality to all around. In 1767, Boulton, finding that the
motive-power which he possessed was inadequate to the various purposes
of his machinery, erected a steam-engine upon the original construction
of Savery. This, however, in turn was found to be insufficient for the
objects required, and Boulton then had the discernment to perceive that
they might be very completely attained by the adoption of the various
improvements lately made in the steam-engine by James Watt. In 1773
he entered into partnership with this great scientific inventor, and
induced him to settle at Soho and superintend personally the erection
of his new steam-engines. This bold but clear-sighted act of Boulton
was destined to crown with honour a reputation, already rising, and
built upon the firm foundation of uprightness and integrity. "Had Watt
searched all Europe," says Playfair, "he could not have found another
man so calculated to introduce the machine to the public in a manner
worthy of its reputation." Its sale as an article of commerce was
entirely conducted by him, and the skilful and liberal way in which
he performed this difficult task brought in time its own reward; yet
as great a sum as 47,000_l._ had to be expended upon the steam-engine
before any profit resulted to its owners. In process of time, however,
wealth flowed into the hands of Boulton and Watt; and in the year 1800
Mr. Watt was enabled to retire from the firm possessed of a large
competency, and leaving the exclusive privilege of the sale of the
engine to Boulton. Boswell, who visited Soho in 1776, shortly after
the manufacture of steam-engines had been commenced there, was greatly
struck by the vastness and contrivance of the machinery. "I shall never
forget," he says, "Mr. Boulton's expression to me when surveying the
works: 'I sell here, sir, what all the world desires to have--_Power_.'
He had," continues Boswell, "about 700 people at work; I contemplated
him as an iron chieftain, and he seemed to be the father of his
tribe."[3]
In 1785 Mr. Boulton was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, and
two or three years after this, turned his attention to the subject of
coining, to the improvement of which art he devoted the last twenty
years of his life. He erected extensive machinery for this purpose,
and by uniting some processes originating in France with new kinds of
presses, he was enabled to obtain great rapidity of action combined
with the utmost perfection in the articles produced; so much so, that
having been employed by the British Government to recoin the whole
of the British specie, he rendered counterfeits nearly impossible
by the economy and excellence of his work. In addition to this, Mr.
Boulton planned and directed the arrangement of the machinery in
the British Mint, and executed that for the coining department. He
also constructed the machinery for the great national mints of St.
Petersburgh and Copenhagen; his son, to whom the establishment at Soho
devolved upon his death, doing the same for the extensive and splendid
establishments of the East India Company at Bombay and Calcutta.
Boulton died August 17, 1809, in his eighty-first year, and his remains
were borne to the grave by the oldest workmen connected with the works
at Soho; five hundred persons belonging to that establishment joined
in the procession, which numbered among its ranks several thousand
individuals, to whom medals were given recording the age of the
deceased and the date of his death.--_Stuart's Anecdotes of the Steam
Engine._ London, 1829.--_Muirhead's Translation of Arago's Life of J.
Watt._ London, 1839.
JOSEPH BRAMAH.
Born April 13, 1749. Died December 9, 1814.