82 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER 



SEPT, 33, isar. 



character for honesty and diligence, and descrihed 

 kiim as inured to greater hardships ttinn might be 

 expected from his appearance. V.e was accord- 

 ingly engaged as a fi!)atoe-hoy, to siiperi:iti nd a 

 spinning engine so called. His mean appearance 

 procured him accommodation in the pace which 

 his design made the most acceptable to liim, — the 

 niill. While otli.r.s slept, he was awake, and dil- 

 igcnt'y emp'oyed in his arduous and dangerous 

 unilertaking. He had possessed liimselfof a dark 

 lantern, tinder box, wax candles, and a case of 

 mathematical instruments: in the day time these 

 were secreted in tlie hole under the stairs where 

 he used to sleep ; and no per.son ever indicated 

 the least curiosity to ascertain the ] ossesslons of 

 so mean a lad. He thus went on making draw- 

 iusrs of every part of this grand and useful machi- 

 nery : the priest often inquired after his poor boy 

 at the works, and through his agency Lonibe con- 

 veyed his drawings to Glover and Unwiiis ; with 

 them models were made from the drawings, and 

 despatched to England piecemeal in bales of silk. 

 These originals are still, we believe, jreserved in 

 the Derby miHs. 



After Loudie had completed his design, he still 

 remained at the mill, wailing until an English ship 

 should be un the point of sailing for England. 

 When this liuppened, lie left the works and has- 

 tened on board. But meanwhile his absence had 

 occasioned suspicion, and an Italian brig was des- 

 patched in pmsuit ; but the Eng ish vessel happi- 

 ly proved the better sailer of the two, and escaped. 

 It is said that the priest was put to the torttu-e ; 

 but the correspondent of the " Gentleman's IMaga- 

 zine," to which we are indebted for most of the 

 facts we have stated, says that after Mr Loinbe's 

 return to England, an Italian priest was much in 

 his company ; and he is of opinion that this was 

 cither the priest in cpiestion, or at least another 

 confederate in the same affair. Mr Londie also 

 brought over with him two natives accustomed to 

 the manufacture, for the sake of introducing which 

 he had incurred so mucli hazard. 



After his return, Mr John Lombe appears to 

 have actively ex,"rtcd himself in fm-wanling the 

 works undertaken by him and liis brother. Sir 

 Thomas, at Derby ; but lie ilid not live to witness 

 their completion. He dii il on tlie | remises, on 

 the 16th of Novejiiber, 1722, in the 29th year of 

 his aiie. The common account of his death is, 

 that the Italians, exasperated at the injury done to 

 their trade, sent over to England an artful woman, 

 who associated with the parties in the character of 

 a friend ; and liaviug gained over one of the na- 

 tives who originally accompanied Mr Londie, ad- 

 ministered a 1 oison to him of which he ultimately 

 died. 



We recur to Sir 'I liomas Lombc's statemcnl, 

 already quoted, fen- the most antlicntic particulars 

 respecting the progress of llie v. ork. The docu- 

 ment itself is entitled, "A Brief Slate of the Case 

 relating to the Machine erected at Derby, for ma- 

 king Italian Organz;ne Si'k, which vvas discovered 

 and brought into England, with the utmost difli- 

 eulty and liazard, and at the sole expense of Sir 

 Thomas Loml>e." It conniiences with stating the 

 capabilities of the machine. "This machine per- 

 forms the work of making 'talian organzine silk, 

 which is a manufacture made out of tiue raw silk, 

 by reducing it to a haril twisted, line, and even 

 thread. This silk makes the warp, and is abso- 

 1 itely necessary to mix with and cover the Turkey 

 a d other coarser silks thrown here, which are 



used for shute ; so that without a constant supply 

 of this fine Italian organzine silk, very little of the 

 said I'urkev and other silks could be used, nor 

 could the silk-weaving trade be carried on in Eng- 

 'an<l. This Italian organzine (or thrown) silk has 

 in all times past been bought with our money, 

 ready made (or worked) in Italy, for want of the 

 art of making it here ; whereas now, by working 

 it ourselves out of fine Italian raw silk, the nation 

 saves nearly one-third part ; and by what we make 

 out of fine China raw silk, above one-half of the 

 price we pay for it ready worked in Italy." T he 

 paper goes on to state, that " the machine at Derby 

 has 97,746 wheels, movements, and individual 

 parts, (which work day and night,) all which re- 

 ceive their motion from one large water wheel, 

 and are governed by one regulator ; and it em- 

 ploys 300 persons to attend and supply it with 

 work." After stating the difficulties which had 

 been siu-.mounted in introducing this improve- 

 ment, the paper thus concludes : " Upon the in- 

 troduction of which [this improvement], his late 

 most gracious Majesty granted a patent to the said 

 Sir Thomas Lombe, for the sole making and use 

 of the said engines in England, for the term of 

 fourteen years. Upon which he set about the 

 work and raised a large pile of building \ipon the 

 river Derwent at Derby, and therein erected the 

 said machine ; but before the whole could he com- 

 pleted several yeiirs of the said term were expired. 

 Then the King of Sardinia, in whose country we 

 buy the greater part of our supply of organzine 

 silk, being informed of his success, jjrohibited the 

 exportation of Piedmontese raw silk ; so that he- 

 fore the said Sir Thomas Lonibe could provide a 

 full supply of other raw silk proper for his pur- 

 pose, a ter his engine, train up a sufficient iiumber 

 of work-folk, and bring the manufacture to per- 

 fection, almost the whole of the said fourteen 

 years were run out. Therefore, as he has not 

 Intherto received the intended benefit of the afore- 

 said patent, and in consideration of the extraordi- 

 nary nature of his undertaking, the very great 

 expense, hazard, and difficulty, he has undergone, 

 as well 2S the advantage he has hereby procured 

 10 the nation !;t his own expense, the said Sir 

 Thomas Lombe humbly ho])ns the parliament will 

 grant him a further term for the sole making and 

 using his engines, or such other recompense as in 

 their great wisdom shall seem tneet." 



The Parliament considering the matter of much 

 public importance, thought it best to give him a 

 grant of iCl4,000, on condition that the invention 

 should be thrown open to the trade, and that a 

 model of the machine should be deposited in the 

 Tower of London for public ins|.ection. 



[Fiirthe New Encland Farmer.] 



AKNUAL, EXHIBITION OP THE MASS.ICHU- 



SETTS HORTICULTUKAL SOCIETY. 



1 he Annual I'^xhibition of Fruits and Flowers, 

 of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, took 

 place on Wednesday the 16th and '] hursday the 

 17th inst. ; and the place selected was the Odeon, 

 situate I in Federal street, in Boston, 'i his edifice, 

 which was formerly known as the Federal street 

 Theatre, has lately been taken on a long lease by 

 a nmsical society, from whom it has received its 

 present name of Odeon, a name signifying a place 

 where odesave sung. It has also been transfoimcd 

 to a place of [lublic worship : the stage having 

 been converted into an altar ; at the extreme end 

 of which is the fine organ. The area having on 



this occasion been cleared, formed, by a slight but 

 new arrangement, a tnagnificent Hall, of lofty 

 height, and sjiacious dimensions, with a skylight 

 in the centre. The gallery leading from the ves- 

 tibule, being closely studded on either side with 

 pines, formed like a forest, a dark but jileasing 

 avenue of entrance. 



The fruits which were on this occasion exhibit 

 ed, were altogether uncommonly fine, and of kinds 

 and of qualities superior to those of former years 

 And the disjilay of the flowers and the fruits, and 

 the skilful arrangement of the whole, in all itf 

 parts, produced an effect confessedly surpassinij 

 anything of the kind before witnessed. 



We remarked that the exhibition, and by farth< 

 most invaluable specimens and varieties of flowers 

 and more esj)ecially of fruits, consisted of neu 

 kinds, in very great proportion ; — or, of those kinJ: 

 mostly which ten or twelve years ago, were un 

 known to our country, even in name. Thanks t( 

 those enlightened individuals, who with untirin 

 zeal have ransacked earth, recalling home to tliei 

 country all that might serve to adorn, and all tha 

 might be eminently useful, for trial in our climatr 

 and on our highly favored shores. 



The days of exhibition were unusually fine, an 

 the concourse of visitors very numerous, both fror 

 the city, and from various and remote parts of th 

 country. 



On the second day, a discourse was delivere 

 at the Odeon, by Professor' J. L. Russell, of Salen 



'1 he following is the account of the 



EXHIBITION OF FRUITS. 



By E. Vose, of Dorchester, President of tH 

 Society. — Pears : Bartlett, Passe Colmar, Tillin/ 

 ton, Urbaniste, Wilkinson, Cushing, Capiaiimon 

 Marie Louise, Lewis, Mouille Bouche, or Vei 

 Longue. — Peaches: Grosse Mignonne, Early Yor 

 — Melons : Persian Muskmelon, Green flcsbi 

 Cantaloupe. Also, a basket of various kinds 

 fine fruit. 



_R. Manning, of Salem. — Pears : Summer Roi 

 Bowdoin, Raymond, Saunders' Beurre, St Ghisia 

 .\utumn Superb, Ronville, Buffum, Cushing, Vei 

 Longue, Lowrie's Bergamott, Washington, Pop 

 Scarlet Major, Julienne. — Plums : Breevort's Pi 

 pic Bolmer, Late Green Gage. — .4ipples : Rambo 

 Franc, Alexander, Lyscom, New American Cr; 



Samuel Philhrick, of Brookline. — Pears: i'x 

 Vaet, Andrews, Capiaumont, Colmar Souvera 

 Verte Longue, Wilkinson, Washington, Seckel, 

 Rareripe Peaches. 



Nathaniel Davenport, of Kilton. — Chelmsfa 

 Pears ; Snow Peaches. 



A. D. ^Villiams, of Roxhury. — Pears : CapiH 

 mont. Apples : Porter, and three handsome i 

 rieties of the Red, Peaches : Golden, Purf 

 Clingstone. 



Samuel Downer, of Dorchester.^ — Pears : R 

 Vaet, Na|)oleon, Beurre Diel, Fulton, Blecckf 

 Meadow, Capiaumont, Lewis, Andrews, Urhan» 

 Cushing, Heathcot, D'Aremberg, which has son 

 times been confounded with the Gloux Morce 

 St Gliislain, Lo,vell, Williams' Bonchretien (Bo 

 ktl), CatiUao, Iron Pear, Beurre Knox and bn 

 ches of the same, Seckel and branches of c 

 Crassanne, Golden Beurre of Dr Holbrook. j 

 pies: Fine Red, Old Pearmain, Punipkin Sw( 

 Porter, Ram's Horn (fine red), FidI Pippin, 

 Siberian Crab and Yellow Siberian Crab, 

 blanches of both varieties. Lady Apple, Nonsu 

 Winter Sweet, 



wl 



