THE GROWTH OF THE STEAM-ENGINE. 275 



cent, of the average cost of horse-power, a traction-engine capable of 

 doing the work of twenty-five horses being worked at as little expense 

 as six or eight horses. 



68. Now, thirty years after the defeat of the intelligent, coura- 

 geous and persistent Hancock and his co-workers in the scheme of ap- 

 plying the steam-engine usefully on the common road, we find strong 

 indications that, in a new form, the problem has been again attacked 

 and at least partially solved. It was formerly supposed that success 

 in the transportation of passengers by steam on post-routes would 

 lead to the application of that motor to the movement of heavy loads 

 and to agricultural purposes generally. When, after so long a trial, 

 the experiment finally seemed to have failed of success, it was be- 

 lieved that steam could not be applied to heavier work on common 

 roads. As we have now seen, however, it appears probable that the 

 inventors of that day attacked the problem at the wrong point, and 

 that, on the common road, the transportation of heavy loads by 

 steam being accomplished with economical success, under ordinarily 

 favorable circumstances, it may prove introductory to the use of 

 steam in carrying passengers and light freight at higher velocities. 



One of the most important of the prerequisites to ultimate suc- 

 cess in the substitution of steam for animal power on the highway is 

 that our roads shall be well made. 



As the greatest care and judgment are exercised, and an immense 

 outlay of capital is considered justifiable, in securing easy grades and 

 a smooth track on our railroad routes, we may readily believe that 

 similar precaution and outlay will be found advisable in adopting the 

 common road to the road-locomotive. 



It is undeniably the fact that, even when relying upon horse-power, 

 far less attention has been paid to the improvement of our roads than 

 true economy would dictate. With steam-power, the gain by careful 

 grading and excellence of construction of the road-bed becomes still 

 more important. The animal mechanism is less affected in its power 

 of drawing heavy loads than is the machine. With the horse, a bad 

 road impedes transportation principally by resisting the movement 

 of the load rather than of the animal, while with the traction-engine 

 the motor is as seriously retarded as the train which follow r s it, and 

 frequently much more, on soft ground. 



Steam, therefore, cannot be expected to attain its full measure of 

 success on rough and ill-made roads; but where highways are intelli- 

 gently engineered and thoroughly well built, or where Nature has 

 relieved the engineer and the road-builder of the expensive work of 

 grading, as throughout a very large extent of the Western and South- 

 ern portion of our country, we may expect to see the road-locomotive 

 rapidly introduced. 



The earliest and most perfect success of the traction-engine, and 

 its probable successor, the steam-carriage, may be expected to occur 



