24 YEAR-BOOK OF FACTS. 



journeys over rough and mountainous roads at the rate of eight miles 

 an hour ; there can, therefore, be no doubt that carriages propelled 

 by steam can be used for the purpose of traffic on common roads. 

 A journey of 140 miles made in two days, at a cost of less than Id. 

 per mile for fuel, proves this ; and the tact that no accident to man 

 or beast was caused by the steam- carriage during the whole journey, 

 answers the objections as to frightening horses. — Mechanics' Ma<jazi.uc. 



NEW AND UNLIMITED MOTIVE POWER. 



Mr. S. B. Rogers, in a letter to the Mining Journal, proposes a 

 new application of gas, or gases, by which the power of one man may 

 be augmented to that of more than 26 6-10ths horses or l'do times the 

 initial force originally put in action. This invention or application 

 of a new element of force will not only equal the gigantic power of 

 steam, but. actually surpass it in the effect produced more than 

 twenty-fold. The cost of machines for originating the new power 

 will he considerably less, in both weight and value, than an equal 

 power derived from steam. There will be no boilers required in this 

 case, and consequently explosions could never take place, neither 

 would engine-houses and stacks be necessary. The power will ho 

 originated from the atmosphere, to the extent of ten pounds 

 pressure on a square inch of surface (the usual available power of 

 Boulton and Watt's condensing steam-engine), and limited only by 

 the capacity of the machine employed, and the motive element made 

 use of, the cost of which "element"' will be, in a manner, nothing, or 

 at most one penny per horse- power per day of 24 hours. 



In the year 1823-4 an engine was contrived by Mr. Samuel 

 Brown, not Sir Samuel Brown, the chain-cahle and chain-pier 

 inventor, but a contemporary engineer of great renown. These 

 machines were worked in several shapes, as stationary anil marine 

 engines ; and one of the first screw propellers was a small boat be- 

 longing to " Brown's Gas Engine Company," which was worked on 

 the Thames. The Gas Engine Company fell to the ground in the 

 dreary times which succeeded the great panic in lf>2.">, when many 

 valuable undertakings were lost, but Brown to the day of his death 

 laboured at his engine. The Croydon Canal was drained by one of 

 these machines, on its conversion into a railway, and Mr. Brown's 

 propositions were seriously entertained for draining the Haarlem 

 Meer, but death put a stop to his proceedings, and his engine 

 (pregnant with almost inexhaustible powers) seems to have died with 

 him out of the recognition of the scientific world. This engine 

 was worked by means of the creation ofa vacuum in a cylinder by the 

 combustion of hydrogen or ooal gas. Mr. Brown's own description 

 of his invention is si follows: — "Inflammable gas is introduced 

 along a pipe into an open cylinder, or vessel, whilst a flame placed 



on the outside of, hut near to, the cylinder is constantly kept 

 burning, and at times conns in contact with and ignites the i_'as 



therein : the cylinder is then closed air tight, and the outside Same 

 is prevented from communicating with the gas in the cylinder. The 

 gas continues to flow into the cylinder for a short space of time, when 



