OF THE LATE JOHN KENNEDY, ESQ. 153 



they came to see the new machine in 1793. They approved 

 of it, and thought it practical. Mr. Humphrey^ of Glasgow, 

 a good mechanic and millwright, succeeded Mr. Owen as 

 manager, who also approved of the scheme, and got in- 

 structions to apply this steam power to the fine work 

 produced by the mules in Piccadilly mill ; and to make 

 its advantages available he coupled two of one hundred 

 and forty-four together, so that he saved one-half of the 

 steam gearing, and obtained a reduction in the price of 

 spinning, the spinner having double the number of spin- 

 dles to operate upon. Mr. Humphrey made an improve- 

 ment in the four wheels already described, by keeping 

 them always in gear with a loose clutch between the two 

 wheels on the rim shaft, which was alternately fastening 

 the small driving wheel, and then relieving it and fastening 

 the larger one which accelerated the speed of the rim, and 

 furnished with a loose and fast pulley as already described. 

 This prevailed for some years, when I thought it might be 

 simplified, which was done by adopting three pullies, 

 namely, one on the small wheel, another on the large 

 wheel, and a loose pulley. The driving strap, which was 

 on the loose pulley when the mule was at rest, was 

 removed to the pulley on the smaller wheel when the 

 rollers were to work, and then to the pulley on the larger 

 wheel which accelerated the rim and spindles, until the 

 thread was completed, when the strap being removed to 

 the loose pulley, the whole machine came to rest, and the 

 thread was put up by the spinner in the ordinary way, I 

 was at this time able to construct the sun and planet 

 wheels for the acceleration of the speed of the spindle in 

 the following way : — The sua and planet wheels had only 

 two wheels and one pulley with a clutch that fastened the 

 sun wheel when the accelerated motion was required. But 

 though this and many other modifications were introduced, 

 the four wheels prevailed. Some of these, for convenience, 



SER. III. VOL. I. X 



