310 THE SCIENTIFIC PAPERS OF 



fairly, and he believed personally he would be disposed to afford the 

 invention every trial it required ; but, if the experiment at Ports- 

 mouth was to be taken as evidence of the anxiety of the Admiralty 

 to inquire into the merits of new inventions, he thought in this 

 case an injury had been done to the inventor. There was nothing, 

 he thought, more destructive to the interests of an inventor than 

 an imperfect trial. 



Mr. Reed thought it due to the Admiralty to say that the 

 experiment was not initiated by them. They merely gave per- 

 mission to Mr. Daft to put down some plates prepared on his 

 system, but they were in no way pledged to go on with the ex- 

 periments. At the same time, having gone to the extent they did, 

 it might have been desirable that they should have continued the 

 experiments further. He merely wished to say that the Admiralty 

 did not initiate the experiments and then suddenly drop them. 



The Chairman said that altered the case in some respects ; but 

 he maintained that even the sanctioning of experiments implied, 

 he thought, a continuation of them ; those who were practically 

 acquainted with the difficulties appertaining to the introduction of 

 inventions, would appreciate more than official personages could 

 possibly do, the great hindrance caused by incomplete experiments 

 to the progress of an invention. If the intervention of the 

 Government were entirely refused, the inventor was free to act as 

 he pleased ; but from the moment he placed his invention in the 

 hands of Government, he was practically shut out from the public 

 until a verdict upon it had been pronounced. He thought the 

 Government might spend a few thousands a year very well in 

 making really serious experiments upon questions of this nature. 

 Even if such an invention as this were tried upon a merchant ship 

 it would be no convincing proof to the Government of its merit. 

 The Government must make its own experiments to determine its 

 value. "With regard to the mechanical mode of joining the plates, 

 he thought it sufficient for this invention if it was admitted that 

 there was no inconvenience thus caused. He did not think any 

 great weight was to be attached to the question of the buckling 

 of the plates ; if the back-strap was carefully put on, there 

 would be no fear of fracture unless, as mentioned by Mr. Eeed, the 

 back-strap had the fibre in the wrong direction. He thought 

 Mr. Mackie had brought the whole subject very ably and fairly 



