AGRICULTUilAL Mt-SEUM 363 



ihr othrr bo, as soon as t]]c principle ;-fha)I bo lipplied. I 

 have waited a.s an r.unihle j^iippiiant petitioner, on Coii- 

 grcs*!, for two Vviiole sessions, endeavoring to induce 

 th Mil to extend the time to patenteer?, whieh would en- 

 aljle them to draw to theii- aid nionied men, this is not yet 

 done, Init the prospeets have brightened. 



On Sunday, 2Gth Airj^ust last, I passed in the Phoenix 

 steam boat, from Philadelphia to Bristol, about ^;^venty 

 miles distant, and was highly delighted to find my hopes 

 so far realized. She mijved in.ijestical!y through the wa- 

 ter [lussing row boat-;, will) such riiiiidity tliat it was 

 ^'ain for tliem to attempt to board, if they fell astein ; 

 oi'i'ering a safe, commodious and cerlahi passage to trav- 

 ellers, against wind or tide. 



I was, however, sorry to Pnfl, in conversation with 

 Mr. Stevens, sou of .iohn Stevens, es( . tlie ow.ier, 

 tliat he did not appear to l»e fiilly convinced, that there 

 \vas one thing still wanting, to enable him to stem 

 the rapid current in the Mississippi — viz. th) rpp'i- 

 j-alion of the irresistible pow^-r of elastic stjam, when ir- 

 is sufficiently confined, iroiii which \ve may obtain any 

 power we may want, and keep it up, t/) work, the engine 

 with very little more expense of fuel. 



The application of this j)rlneij)ie to my engine is what 

 I have patented, the use of whieh having been explocied 

 as unconlinable, ungovernaltle, chsadvanlag^ous, and dan» 

 gcrous, for one hundred years pas'. It was not known 

 and used before I discovered an error in the rule forcal- 

 cuhiting, and a true rjie for ascertaining its power t:> 

 burst the boiler, & the thickness of tiie ir«»i: necessary to 

 hold it, arranged an engine, and a])plied it successful]}'. 



The principle of confining and retaining tlie steam, t) 

 gain power, save fuel, to lessen the size and weight of 

 the engine, to simplify it by rendering a condcjiser unne- 

 cessary in most cases, and to lessen the qu ntity ^i water 

 iiecessary to work an engine thereby to fit it for bo;:ts, or 

 carriages^ also m;lls to be set any where on wells^ was 



