BRAMAH. 17 



of Boulton and Watt versus Hornblower and Maberly, tried in 

 December 1796. On the expiry, however, of Boulton and Watt's 

 patent, Bramah introduced several valuable improvements in the 

 details of the condensing engine, the most important of which was 

 his " four-way cock," which was so contrived as to revolve continu- 

 ously instead of alternately, thus insuring greater precision with 

 less wear of parts. In this patent, which he secured in 1801, he 

 also proposed sundry improvements in the boilers, as well as modifi- 

 cations in various parts of the engine. In the year 1802, Bramah 

 obtained a patent for a very elaborate and accurate machine for pro- 

 ducing smooth and parallel surfaces on wood and other materials. 

 This was erected on a large scale at Woolwich Arsenal, and proved 

 perfectly successful. The specification of the patent includes the 

 description of a mode of turning spherical surfaces either convex or 

 concave, by a tool moveable on an axis perpendicular to that of the 

 lathe, and of cutting out concentric shells, by fixing in a similar 

 manner a curved tool, nearly of the same form as that employed by 

 common turners for making bowls. Bramah also invented machinery 

 for making paper in large sheets, and for printing by means of a 

 roller, composed of a number of circular plates, each turning on the 

 same axis, and bearing twenty-six letters capable of being shifted 

 at pleasure, so as to express any single line by a proper combination 

 of the plates. This was put in practice to number bank-notes, and 

 enabled twenty clerks to perform the labour which previously had 

 required one hundred and twenty. In 1812 he projected a scheme 

 for main-pipes, which was, however, in many respects, more ingeni- 

 ous than practicable. In describing this, he mentions having em- 

 ployed a hydrostatic pressure equal to that of a column of water 

 twenty thousand feet high (about three and a half tons per square 

 inch). Mr. Bramah made several improvements in the bearings of 

 wheels, and suggested the use of pneumatic springs formed by pistons 

 sliding in cylinders, in place of the usual metal springs for carriages. 

 He likewise improved the machines for sawing stones and timber, 

 and suggested some alterations in the construction of bridges and 

 canal locks. He died in his sixty-sixth year, his last illness having 

 been occasioned by a severe cold caught during the month of Novem- 

 ber, while making some experiments with his hydraulic press on the 

 tearing up of trees in Holt Forest. He was a cheerful, benevolent, 

 and affectionate man, neat and methodical in his habits, and knew 

 well how to temper liberality with economy ; greatly to his honour 

 he often kept his workmen employed solely for their sake, when the 

 stagnation of trade prevented him from disposing of the products 

 of their labour. As a manufacturer he was distinguished for his 

 promptitude and probity, and was celebrated for the exquisite finish 

 which he gave to his productions. At his death he left his family in 

 affluent circumstances, and his manufacturing establishments have 

 since his death been continued by his sons. Unfortunately, Mr. 



