Sir Humphry Davy, Bart. S7 



of wire gauze, which, however strongly the flame may burn, 

 its passage beyond the wire is prevented, it is supposed by 

 its cooling power. This was a most important present to 

 the lowly miner, and formed a vast addition to the interests 

 of humanity. Numerous objections were brought forward 

 on the publication of this discovery, some of which were 

 correct, while others were groundless, but all of them con- 

 tributed to stimulate the inventor to improve his instru- 

 ment as completely as possible, and do not deserve the 

 titles of " carping" and ** disingenuity," and other un- 

 worthy terms, which have been applied to them by Dr. 

 Davy, and which confer any thing but credit on his work. 

 It is now admitted that the lamp of Davy is completely ef-» 

 fective in principle, and that all the accidents which have 

 occurred since its introduction have been produced by the 

 carelessness of the workmen. On the 11th of October, 

 1811, he was presented with a service of plate, of the value 

 of £1200 by the associated coal owners of Newcastle and 

 its neighbourhood. He received also a splendid gilt vase 

 from the late Emperor Alexander of Russia. 



Notwithstanding that the whole of the credit of this dis- 

 covery was given to Sir Humphry, there is strong rea- 

 sons to suspect that Dr. Clanny and Mr. Stevenson 

 anticipated him in the principles upon which it was con- 

 structed, as appears from the Report of a select Committee 

 of the House of Commons appointed to investigate the sub- 

 ject. *'The principle of its construction," says the Report, 

 ** appears to have been practically known to the witnesses 

 Clanny and Stevenson previously to the period when Davy 

 brought his wonderful mind to bear upon the subject." 

 Davy even admitted privately in the case of Stevenson that 

 this gentleman deserved some credit ; but, unfortunately, 

 such opinion was never stated in public. In a letter to 

 Mr. Lambton (now Lord Durham) he says, *' The general 

 impression of the scientific men in Loudon, which is con- 

 firmed by what I heard at Newcastle, is, that Stevenson 

 had some loose idea floating in his mind, which he had un- 

 successfully attempted to put in practice till after my la- 

 bours were made known ; then he made something like a 

 safe lamp, except that it is not safe.'* If Davy had shown 

 a disposition to give any credit to those who were labouring 



