176 pkesident's aduress. 



Jonathan, came to CornwalHn 1745 and built steam engines. He 

 had six sons of whom four assisted him in his business as 

 engineers. The fourth son, Jonathan Carter Hornblower, who 

 was born in 1753 at Chacewater, was a man of distinguished 

 ability and in July, 1781, patented the double cylinder steam 

 engine, some form of which is now almost universally used, not 

 only for fixed engines, but for steam boats and locomotives of 

 great power. In a letter which was published in the Edinborough 

 Encyclopedia, p. 1192, Hornblower says : 



"In the year 1776 I determined to make a small steam 

 engine for my own amusement, but wished to produce something 

 new I made a model which succeeded so well that I recom- 

 mended it to my father He was of opinion that as I had 



proposed a lid on the steam vessels and a rod of iron to move 

 through a collar of tow in the lid, there would be more friction 

 than could be dispensed with ; and also that as the pistons would 

 require frequent repair, the cylinder lids must be unscrewed as 

 often as that was done. I therefore had no other thought at that 

 time about it than to amuse some of my friends by a working 

 model. In 1778 Mr. Watt came into the country with his much 

 improved steam engine ; and seeing him make use of our cylinder 

 lid and piston rod in the same manner as I had proposed to apply 

 them, the matter was again revived and a friend directing me 

 where to find a representation by a copper plate of thirty years 

 standing of a Steam-engine with a lid on the cylinder and a rod 

 moving through it connected to the piston, I therefore completed 

 another model on a larger scale, in 1781, obtained a patent and 

 have since proved it to be capable of producing nearly the effect 

 of any other steam engine, with the same quantity of fuel. 



' ' In plate are two steam vessels or cylinders closed at 



top and bottom ; in which are two pistons that are fastened to two 



iron rods These are connected to the inner end of the great 



lever, the largest at the extremity and the small one at a proper 

 distance between that and the lever wall, they are turned very 

 true and move through a collar of tow and grease quite steam 

 tight," &c. 



In 1792 a bill was introduced in parliament to extend the 

 term of Hornblower's patent and the "case" (or petition) in 

 favour of the bill com.mences as follows : — 



