.... Wirt Robinson, nephew and chief assistant 

 of Moncure Robinson (who was at that time chief 

 engineer engaged in the construction of the Richmond 

 & Fredericksburg Railroad of Virginia) was sent to 

 England to examine the question of locomotive power, 

 and to contract for engines for that first Virginia 

 railroad. In company with him, I had visited all the 

 shops that at that time were building locomotives, 

 and he had contracted for several, one of which was 

 being shipped on the Philadelphia packet ship, 

 Algonquin, on which we had taken our homeward 

 passage. 



Some accident delayed the starting of the vessel for 

 about a week; and although we had already been 

 over the Liverpool and Manchester Railroad, all of 



this week's delay was devoted to examining it and its 

 locomotives more in detail, often accompanied by 

 engineers connected with the road. We had several 

 very pleasant interviews with George Stephenson, 

 who afforded us every facility. At that time he was 

 having constructed for America a number of full 

 crank four-wheel complex locomotives, with the 

 cylinders under the smoke-box, without either trucks 

 or pilot wheels. He explained very fully his train of 

 reasoning and his experiments that led to his adoption 

 of tubular boilers. He was no doubt the originator of 

 the multi-tubular boiler to which the great success 

 of the present system of locomotive engines owes so 

 much .... [52] 







Ficure 57. — Saxton's magnetoelectric machine, which was 

 built for display in the Adelaide Gallery. The machine is a 

 direct-current generator. The commutator consists of disk 

 (e) and double-pointed needle (e'). The lower side of the disk 

 is partly immersed in mercury in the cup (d). A current 

 path is completed when a needle point makes contact, during 

 a part of each half-revolution, with the mercury. From 

 Mechanics' Magazine (London, May 3, 1834), vol. 21. 



134 



