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Transactions of the American Institute. 



arm witli the balance-bar, so tliat an upward nioYement of the cham- 

 ber sliall cause the pinion to engage the upper rack, and vice versa. 

 In this simple and elegant manner a to-and-fro movement of the rack 

 is obtained dependent on the varying water-level ; and this motion is 

 utilized by simpl}' connecting the rack, by means of chains, with the 

 supply-valve or pump. 



Mr. I^Torman Wiard said all appliances of this kind are simply 

 pump meters, or bulk measures. What we want to know is th'e 

 pounds of water in the boiler. 



Mr. T. D. Stetson remarked that it is xcyj important to maintam 

 a level of water in locomotives and steam fire engines, whore th'e 

 tubes are very numerous and the water spaces consequently very 

 narrow. This macliine appears to be a sensible, practical one. This 

 apparatus, he thought, w^ould keep the water to within half an inch 

 of the ordinary level. 



Mr. James Montgomery stated that the best instrument for this 

 purpose was that of Mr. Worthington, who invented a percussion 

 gauge, which strikes the water and shows its exact height. Some 

 years ago he proposed and tried a system of weighing the water by 

 placing the boiler containing it on a scale beam, and this showed 

 how many pounds of water had been worked off. But, op reflection, 

 he threw this away, as he was satisfied that the people would UQt 

 pay for a device like this. 



Mr. N. Wiard remarked that he had seen steam coming from the 

 lower gauges of boilers, while water showed from the upper ones. 



Mr. Charles E. Emery said that we may take it for granted that 

 when a boiler is found to have water on the top and steam at the 

 bottom, it is a defective one, and should be condemned at once. In 

 good boilers water will never uncover the crown-sheet. In badly 



