24 Book of Steamships 



Hulls took out a patent in 1736 for 

 the making of a steamship, whose duty 

 would be to act as a tug. It is not quite 

 certain that the vessel was actually built, 

 though one account says that the boat 

 was built, fitted with a rear paddle-wheel, 

 and tried as a tug. 



In any case the design could not have 

 been really successful, or we should not 

 have had to wait practically a half-cen- 

 tury before we got another step forward. 

 We can say that Hulls ranks with Mur- 

 doch of the locomotive in that each 

 designed something the world was wait- 

 ing for, and each appeared to have left 

 the work of development to others. 



Still pursuing our parallel of the 

 growing-up of the locomotive and the 

 marine engine, we find that the next 

 effort in both directions belongs to France. 

 In fairness to La Belle France, Cugnot's 

 steam carriage deserves to rank before 

 the achievement of Murdoch, though 

 again it is only fair to say that the Scots- 



