184].] 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



99 



inventor offered to go into details confidentially with one or two of the 

 distinguished officers present. In answer to a question from Sir Henry 

 Hardiage, the in%-entor stated that without a battering train he could 

 transport on a mule's back the means of destroying the strongest for- 

 tress in Europe. No doubt this is very startling, but, hearing what 

 we iiave, we cannot pronounce it impossible ; and as in every particu- 

 lar the inventor has done what he has undertaken to accomplish, it is 

 only fair to give him credit for the performance of more than has yet 

 been disclosed. The existence of these tremendous powers is placed 

 bevond all doubt, and the inventor asserts them to be completly under 

 his control, which, from what our informant has had an opportunity of 

 observing, he believes to be really the case. The instrument that 

 wrought so terrible an effect on Saturday, lifting into the air a boat 

 weighing two and a half tons, and filled in with five and a half tons of 

 solid timber, and displacing at least fourteen or fifteen tons of water 

 was only 18 lb. weight. Our informant has handled it and kicked it 

 round a room when charged with its deadly contents, so portable and 

 at the same time so safe is it — a point of vast importance, when we 

 remember the daily accidents that are occurring from the detonating 

 shells now used in our service. At Acre most of those employed burst 

 before they reached their object, and they are liable to explode when 

 rolling about a ship's deck, as was proved by the fatal accidents on 

 board Her Majesty's ship Medea, off Alexandria, and the Excellent, at 

 Portsmouth, and are dangerous to carry in a common ammanition cart 

 on a rough road. Whether Lord Melbourne will condescend to examine 

 into this matter, and secure these mighty powers for this country, or 

 permit them to pass into the hands of our enemies, is more than we 

 can venture to predict, but about which we cannot think England will 

 remain indifferent. The inventor has requested us publicly to return 

 his thanks to Mr. Boyd for his great krndness in permitting him the 

 use of his grounds not only on this but on several occasions. — Times. 



IMPROVED TIRE OF A RAILWAY WHEEL. 



Annexed is a small sketch of a section of the tire of a railway 

 wheel, showing a new mode of fixing the outer tire. 



Many accidents, particularly to the machinery of locomotive en- 

 gines, have occurred from the bolts (which are used in general, but in 

 my improvement are not necessary) breaking, and allowing the tire to 

 work off laterally, and to come in contact with the working gear. The 

 improvement consists in having a groove turned out of the wheel, and 

 a corresponding tongue on the inside of the tire, as shown in the sketch, 

 which prevents the possibility of the tire coming off, but by its break- 

 ing, a contingency which but seldom happens. 



H. W. 



Manchester, Feb. it/i, 1S41. Railway Tunes. 



HISTORY OF THE LONDON AND BIRMINGHAM RAILWAY 

 By THOMAS ROSCOE, 



Assisted in the Historical Details by Peter Lecount. 



Sir — In your last number a communication appears from Mr. Lecount, 

 animadverting on the use of his name in the above work, and also on 

 the publishers for not paying him for his services. Having had the 

 entire direction of the publication of this book, I feel it necessary to 

 say that these statements are grossly incorrect, and that I am ready to 

 prove this when called upon. 



Mr. Lecount says " after page 32 I had nothing whatever to do with 

 it, and my name being connected with it is a perfect hoax upon the 

 public." So far from this being correct, I can produce scores of pages 

 of Mr. Lecount's manuscript which are printed in various parts of the 

 volume ! It is extremely impleasant to bring forward the names of gen- 

 tlemen, and I will here merely remark, that the manner in which his 



name is printed on the title page of the volume, was agreed to by him- 

 self, in my presence, at the suggestion of his solicitor at Birmingham! 

 Indeed if it were improperly uspd, an injunction could readily be ob- 

 tained to restrain such an imposition on the imblic — but Mr. Lecount 

 finds it easier to write scurrilous remarks, than establish that which 

 has no foundation in truth. 



By implication he charges the publishers with breach of agreement, 

 wilfully mis-stating facts. He says, " what I furnished for that work 

 although done under a written agreement, has never got me a sight of 

 sixpence of the publisher's money." If such were in reality the case, 

 Mr. Lecount would not be long in claiming his right. I deny, in un- 

 qualified terms, any treatment of Mr. L. otherwise than the most 

 honourable. For what services he rendered, he was remunerated by 

 having a pamphlet of about lOU pages printed, which was afterwards 

 " wasted," a single copy only being kept to prove the fact of its hav- 

 ing been printed ; and I have now before me, in Mr. Lecount's hand 

 writing, a memorandum of the cancelling of the original agreement 

 which was for a pecuniary consideration. 



I am. Sir, your obedient servant, 



Wareing Webb. 



Casile Street, Liperpool, 

 February 18, 1841. 



ERRORS IN SCIENTIFIC BOOKS. 



Sir — It is a little surprising that a few of the most gross and palpa 

 ble errors as represented in some of the Plates, both in the old and 

 new editions of " Tredgold on the Steam Engine," should have remained 

 so long unnoticed, particularly in Europe, where so very many skilful 

 and scientific mechanics are continually poring over works in every 

 department of science. 



The first and only error, I shall no/u draw your attention to, is on 

 plate No. n, where, in the figure of a steam engine pumping water 

 from a mine, the pump rod is connected with the piston rod ;, h, to 

 produce a parallel motion in both it and the pump rod, which exhibits 

 a profound ignorance of mechanics, on the very face of it, (as there 

 delineated) for though the piston rod will move parallel, the lifting 

 pump rod at the other end of the beam will not. 



I have heard of a London waiter getting a quart of wine into a pint 

 decanter, but never heard of the diagonal of a square (or of a parallelo- 

 gram) being crammed into either diameter of it. I have heard also of 

 a man who affirmed that nothing rcai impossible, and that he could bite 

 his omi ear off; but after repeated contortions of the head and other 

 attempts and trials, he gave it up: observing, however, that he Icnerv 

 it could be done with a sudden Jerk. Perhaps a diagonal can be crammed 

 into the square, as represented in the figure alluded to, in Europe, but 

 to us ignorant folks in the Western World it looks rather "slanting- 

 dicular," makes us rather sceptical, and indeed seems impossible to 

 accomplish, even with a sudden jerk : but, like our inquisitive neigh- 

 bours, the Yankees, if it can be done, we are " kind a' curious" to know 

 how. 



As books of science are generally published to instruct the unleanied 

 or uninitiated, it would be as well to have the figure 5, on Plate X (A) 

 engraved so as to be understood, because as there represented, it novy 

 requires a person who already understands his business, to understand 

 how to construct the parallel motion as there represented. The same 

 figure is repeated in the following plate, No. X (B). 



If the insertion of this little inquiry is not inconsistent with your 

 sense of duty to the public, please to notice it in your useful publica- 

 tion, and you may perhaps hear again from. 



Your very obedient servant, 



Robert Rational. 



British North America, 

 January 20, 184). 



RSVIE-W^S. 



Papers on Subjects connected milh the Duties if the Corps o/ Royal 

 Engineers. Vol. IV. London ; Weale, 1840. 



We mentioned in our last our favourable impressions as to the 

 manner in which the character of this interesting work is maintained, 

 and it gives us pleasure this month also to bear further testimony 

 towards it. 



The volume is appropriately preceded by a memoir of the pro- 

 fessional life of the late Thomas Drummond, from the pen of Captain 



P 2 



