"war. 66 * My health suffered so much by a seafaring life, that I was obliged to give it up, much against my inclination, and "return to my academical habits. I was happy to find Mr. "Watt settled in Glasgow, as fond of science as ever. Our "acquaintance was renewed; I believe, with mutual satisfac"tion, for I had now acquired some knowledge. I had lived "in the closest intimacy with the late Admiral Sir Charles "Knowles, and had been a good deal employed in marine surveys. I had been employed by the Admiralty to make "the observations for the trial of Mr. Harrison's famous timepiece; in short, my habits had been such, that I reckoned "myself more on a par with Mr. Watt, and hoped for a "closer acquaintance. Nor was I disappointed. I found "him as good and kind as ever, as keen after the acquisition "of knowledge, and well disposed to listen to the information "I could give him concerning things which had not fallen "in his own way. But I found him continually striking into "untrodden paths, where I was always obliged to be a fol"lower. 66 66 "Our acquaintance at this time became very intimate, " and I believe neither of us engaged far in any train of thought without the other sharing in it. I had had the "advantage of a more regular education: this frequently "enabled me to direct or confirm Mr. Watt's speculations, "and put into a systematic form the random suggestions of "his inquisitive and inventive mind. This kind of friendly "commerce knit us more together, and each of us knew the "whole extent of the other's reading and knowledge. I was "not singular in this attachment. All the young lads of our "little place that were any way remarkable for scientific pre"dilection were acquaintances of Mr. Watt; and his parlour 66 was a rendezvous for all of this description. Whenever any "puzzle came in the way of any of us, we went to Mr. "Watt. He needed only to be prompted; everything be"came to him the beginning of a new and serious study; "and we knew that he would not quit it till he had either "discovered its insignificance, or had made something of it. "No matter in what line,-languages, antiquity, natural his"tory,-nay, poetry, criticism, and works of taste; as to "anything in the line of engineering, whether civil or mili"tary, he was at home, and a ready instructor. Hardly any "projects, such as canals, deepening the river, surveys, or the "like, were undertaken in the neighbourhood without con"sulting Mr. Watt; and he was even importuned to take the charge of some considerable works of this kind, though "they were such as he had not the smallest experience in. "When to this superiority of knowledge, which every man "confessed in his own line, is added the naïve simplicity and "candour of Mr. Watt's character, it is no wonder that the "attachment of his acquaintances was strong. I have seen "something of the world, and am obliged to say that I never saw such another instance of general and cordial attach"ment to a person whom all acknowledged to be their "superior. But this superiority was concealed under the "most amiable candour, and liberal allowance of merit to 66 every man. Mr. Watt was the first to ascribe to the ingenuity of a friend things which were very often nothing "but his own surmises, followed out and embodied by another. I am well entitled to say this, and have often "experienced it in my own case. 66 66 66 "But the circumstance which made Mr. Watt's acquaint"ance so valuable to me, was the trait of character I have 66 already mentioned. Everything became to him a subject "of new and serious study,-everything became science in his "hands; and I took every opportunity of offering my feeble "aid, by prosecuting systematically, and with the help of "mathematical discussion, thoughts which he was contented "with having suggested or directed. I thus shared the "fruits of his invention; and with gratitude I here acknow 66 ledge my obligations to him for that strong relish which I "thus acquired for rational mechanics, and which I have "cultivated with great assiduity and pleasure all my life. I "also shared with Mr. Watt a good deal of that subsidiary knowledge, which he acquired as so many stepping-stones "in his way to some favourite objects. He learned the "German language in order to peruse Leupold's 'Theatrum "Machinarum :'-so did I, to know what he was about. "Similar reasons made us both learn Italian; and so of "other things. And I cannot here pass over another circum"stance which endeared Mr. Watt to us all he was without "the smallest wish to appropriate knowledge to himself; " and one of his greatest delights was to set others on the "same road to knowledge with himself. No man could be "more distant from the jealous concealment of a tradesman; " and I am convinced that nothing but the magnitude of the "prospect which his improvement of the steam-engine held "out to him and his family, could have made Mr. Watt refuse "himself the pleasure of communicating immediately all his "discoveries to his acquaintances. Nay, he could not conceal "it; for, besides the frankly imparting it to Dr. Black, to "myself, and two or three more intimate friends, he disclosed "so much of what he had been doing, that had it been in "London or Birmingham, I am confident that two or three patents would have been expedited, for bits of his method, by bustling tradesmen, before he [would have] thought "himself entitled to solicit such a thing. 66 66 66 "I doubt not but all this will be looked upon by some as " mere panegyric. The ignorant are insensible to the pleasures of science, and have no notion of the attachments "which this may produce; and the low-bred minds whose "whole thoughts are full of concealment, rivalship, and money-making, can hardly conceive a mind that is not "actuated by similar propensities. But I have a better opinion of those * on whose feelings and judgment the issue 66 66 The special jury, in the cause Boulton and Watt versus Hornblower "and Maberly." 66 "of this cause is to depend. I wish to show these gentlemen "what were my opportunities of seeing the steps by which "Mr. Watt arrived at his final discovery; and I am not "afraid that they will misinterpret the satisfaction I feel in "having this opportunity of expressing my sentiments of "attachment to Mr. Watt. There is perhaps but one other "person now alive * who was a witness to every step of the ❝ invention, and I regret exceedingly that his extreme illness "makes it impossible for my friend to avail himself of his "testimony. The thoughts of doing him an essential service "have supported me in my journey hither, under very con"siderable suffering; and when I find that not only the "fortune but the fair name of a most worthy man is con"cerned, I think that nothing less than life could have "excused me from the sound duty of every good citizen"the support of eminent talents and worth against the vile "aspersions of low-bred and ignorant pretenders. 66 66 "I think it was in the summer of 1764, or perhaps in the spring of that year, that the Professor of Natural Philosophy in the University desired Mr. Watt to repair a pretty "model of Newcomen's steam-engine. This model was at "first a fine plaything to Mr. Watt and to myself, now a "constant visitor at the workshop; but, like everything "which came into his hands, it soon became an object of "most serious study. This model being an exact copy of a "real engine, the motion of the piston behoved to be the In con 66 66 same, and the strokes to be much more frequent. sequence of this, the boiler was unable to supply more than "a few strokes. The boiler was made to boil more violently; "but this, instead of continuing the motion by a more plen"tiful supply of steam, stopped the machine altogether; and "we attributed this to the statical resistance to the entry of "the injection, which came from a height not much exceed"ing a foot. The injection-cistern was placed higher, but "without effect. It was long before the true cause was * Dr. Black. † Mr. Watt has informed us that it was in the winter of 1763-4. F "thought of, and in the mean time many observations were "made on the performance. 66 66 66 66 66 * "Mr. Watt had learned from Dr. Black somewhat of his "late discovery of the latent heat of fluids and of steams. "The Doctor had established his doctrine by means of in"controvertible experiments in the case of congelation and liquefaction; but had not yet devised any very simple and popular experiments for showing the much greater quantity "of heat which is contained in steam in a latent state. But "the great variety of curious and abstruse phenomena which were explicable by this branch of the theory made it a "subject of much conversation among the young gentlemen at College. Mr. Watt was one of the most zealous partisans "of this theory, and this little job of the model came opportunely in his way, and immediately took his whole atten"tion. He made many curious experiments; and Dr. Black publicly acknowledges, in his lectures, his obligations to Mr. "Watt for the chief experiments by which he illustrates and supports his theory. I had not yet studied chemistry, and "Mr. Watt was my first instructor. My mind was fired with "the inexhaustible fund of instruction and entertainment "which I now saw before me; and I was more assiduous in "my attendance on Mr. Watt's occupations than ever, and "studied the little model as much as he did. He very early saw that an enormous quantity of steam was wasted. The 'great heat acquired in an instant by the cylinder, by the "admission of a few grains of water in the form of steam, was an incontestable proof of the great quantity of fire contained "in it; and as this could come only from the coals, Mr. Watt "saw at once that the chief improvements that the engine "was susceptible of must consist in contrivances for increasing "the production, and for diminishing its waste. He greatly "improved the boiler by increasing the surface to which the 66 66 66 66 *Note in the handwriting of Mr. Watt.-"Dr. Robison is mistaken in "this. I had not attended to Dr. "Black's experiment or theory on "latent heat, until I was led to it in "the course of experiments upon the "engines, when the fact proved a "stumbling-block which the Doctor assisted me to get over.-J. W." 66 |