﻿MECHANICAL 
  TKANSPOKT 
  MITMAN 
  531 
  

  

  To 
  Evans, 
  unacquainted 
  with 
  Huygens' 
  experiment, 
  this 
  sug- 
  

   gested 
  a 
  new 
  source 
  of 
  power. 
  He 
  worked 
  long 
  in 
  an 
  effort 
  to 
  apply 
  

   it 
  and 
  was 
  again 
  about 
  to 
  give 
  up, 
  when 
  by 
  chance 
  a 
  book 
  describing 
  

   the 
  Newcomen 
  atmospheric 
  steam 
  engine 
  fell 
  into 
  his 
  hands. 
  Read- 
  

   ing 
  this 
  revived 
  his 
  hopes 
  somewhat, 
  for 
  he 
  learned 
  something 
  definite 
  

   of 
  the 
  properties 
  of 
  steam, 
  and 
  it 
  gave 
  him 
  also 
  some 
  encouragement 
  

   as 
  to 
  the 
  merit 
  of 
  his 
  idea 
  of 
  applying 
  the 
  expansive 
  force 
  of 
  steam 
  

   directly 
  to 
  move 
  the 
  piston. 
  He 
  even 
  ventured 
  to 
  talk 
  about 
  steam 
  

   power, 
  but 
  soon 
  learned 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  rather 
  unhealthy 
  for 
  anyone, 
  

   least 
  of 
  all 
  an 
  insignificant 
  apprentice, 
  to 
  talk 
  openly 
  about 
  such 
  

   absurdities. 
  

  

  For 
  the 
  next 
  8 
  or 
  10 
  years 
  Evans 
  tried 
  his 
  hand 
  at 
  different 
  jobs, 
  

   constantly 
  looldng 
  for 
  a 
  chance 
  to 
  create 
  some 
  mechanical 
  device 
  

   to 
  replace 
  manual 
  labor. 
  At 
  one 
  time 
  he 
  did 
  design 
  a 
  machine 
  for 
  

   pricldng 
  holes 
  in 
  leather 
  to 
  hold 
  the 
  teeth 
  of 
  a 
  wool 
  carder, 
  but 
  his 
  

   big 
  opportunity 
  came 
  in 
  1782, 
  when 
  his 
  two 
  older 
  brothers 
  who 
  were 
  

   millers, 
  suggested 
  that 
  he 
  join 
  them 
  in 
  building 
  a 
  new 
  flour 
  mill 
  

   near 
  his 
  home. 
  It 
  took 
  four 
  or 
  five 
  years 
  to 
  build, 
  but 
  when 
  done 
  

   the 
  new 
  mill 
  was 
  the 
  only 
  one 
  in 
  the 
  country 
  equipped 
  with 
  elevators, 
  

   conveyors, 
  drills, 
  and 
  a 
  ''hopper 
  boy," 
  all 
  of 
  Evans' 
  design, 
  for 
  the 
  

   mechanical 
  handling 
  of 
  the 
  grain, 
  meal, 
  and 
  flour. 
  With 
  this 
  equip- 
  

   ment 
  the 
  mill 
  could 
  be 
  operated 
  by 
  one 
  man 
  instead 
  of 
  the 
  four 
  

   who 
  were 
  needed 
  in 
  the 
  old-fashioned 
  mills. 
  

  

  Confident 
  that 
  his 
  ship 
  would 
  soon 
  come 
  in, 
  and 
  even 
  before 
  the 
  

   mill 
  was 
  finished, 
  Evans 
  petitioned 
  the 
  Legislatures 
  of 
  Pennsylvania 
  

   and 
  Maryland 
  for 
  exclusive 
  rights 
  on 
  his 
  flour-mill 
  improvements, 
  

   and 
  also 
  (it 
  took 
  a 
  lot 
  of 
  courage 
  to 
  add 
  this) 
  to 
  use 
  steam 
  wagons 
  

   on 
  the 
  roads 
  of 
  the 
  States. 
  Pennsylvania 
  granted 
  the 
  flour-mill 
  

   rights 
  in 
  1786 
  but 
  made 
  no 
  reference 
  to 
  the 
  petition 
  for 
  steam- 
  wagon 
  

   rights. 
  The 
  following 
  year 
  Maryland 
  granted 
  both 
  requests, 
  stating 
  

   with 
  regard 
  to 
  the 
  steam 
  wagon 
  that 
  "it 
  would 
  doubtless 
  do 
  no 
  

   good, 
  but 
  certainly 
  could 
  do 
  no 
  harm." 
  With 
  these 
  grants 
  Evans 
  

   and 
  his 
  brothers 
  started 
  out 
  hopefully 
  to 
  sell 
  their 
  flour-mill 
  machin- 
  

   ery, 
  but 
  not 
  a 
  single 
  miller 
  in 
  Maryland, 
  Pennsylvania, 
  Delaware 
  

   or 
  Virginia 
  would 
  have 
  anything 
  to 
  do 
  with 
  "such 
  rattle 
  traps." 
  

   This 
  was 
  most 
  disheartening 
  to 
  Evans 
  for 
  it 
  meant 
  delay 
  in 
  taking 
  

   up 
  steam-wagon 
  experiments, 
  but 
  for 
  the 
  next 
  year 
  or 
  two, 
  while 
  

   his 
  brothers 
  ran 
  the 
  mill, 
  Evans 
  continued 
  pestering 
  millers 
  to 
  buy 
  

   his 
  equipment, 
  and 
  was 
  finally 
  rewarded 
  with 
  one 
  order 
  from 
  the 
  

   Eilicotts 
  in 
  Maryland, 
  whose 
  mills 
  were 
  located 
  in 
  what 
  is 
  now 
  Elli- 
  

   cott 
  City. 
  

  

  Taking 
  his 
  share 
  of 
  the 
  profits 
  from 
  this 
  installation, 
  Evans 
  moved 
  

   to 
  Philadelphia 
  about 
  1790, 
  and 
  for 
  the 
  succeeding 
  10 
  years 
  or 
  more 
  

   lived 
  a 
  hand-to-mouth 
  existence, 
  selling 
  an 
  occasional 
  bit 
  of 
  flour- 
  

   mill 
  machinery 
  and 
  supplies. 
  He 
  even 
  wrote 
  a 
  book 
  called 
  the 
  

   82322—30 
  35 
  

  

  