A history of the growth of the steam-engine . nd others who hadattempted to introduce the compound or double-cylinderengine on land, had not convinced all engineers that itmight not yet be made a successful rival of the then stand-ard type ; and the three or four steamers which were built 303 THE MODERN STEAM-ENGINE. for the Hudson River at the end of the first quarter of thenineteenth century are said to have been very successfulvessels. Carrying 75 to 100 pounds of steam in their boil-ers, the Swiftsure and her contemporaries were by that cir-cumstance well fitted to make that form of engine
A history of the growth of the steam-engine . nd others who hadattempted to introduce the compound or double-cylinderengine on land, had not convinced all engineers that itmight not yet be made a successful rival of the then stand-ard type ; and the three or four steamers which were built 303 THE MODERN STEAM-ENGINE. for the Hudson River at the end of the first quarter of thenineteenth century are said to have been very successfulvessels. Carrying 75 to 100 pounds of steam in their boil-ers, the Swiftsure and her contemporaries were by that cir-cumstance well fitted to make that form of engine economi-cally a success. This form of engine was built occasionallyduring the succeeding quarter of a century, but only becamea recognized standard type after the close of the epoch tothe history of which this chapter is devoted. That latestand greatest advance in the direction of increased efficiencyin the marine steam-engine was, however, commenced verysoon after Watts death, and its completion was the workof nearly a half-century. ^CC-^.. CHAPTER VI. THE 8TEAM-EN0INE OF TO-DAT. . And, last of all, with inimitable power, and with whirlwindsound, comes the potent agency of steam. In comparison with the past,what centuries of improvement has this single agent comprised in the shortcompass of fifty years! Everywhere practicable, everywhere efficient, it hasan arm a thousand times stronger than that of Hercules, and to which hu-man ingenuity is capable of fitting a thousand times as many hands asbelonged to Briareus. Steam is found in triumphant operation on the seas;and, under the influence of its strong propulsion, the gallant ship— Against the wind, against tlie tide,Still steadies with an upright keel. It is on the rivers, and the boatman may repose on his oars; it is on high-ways, and exerts itself along the courses of land-conveyance; it is at thebottom of mines, a thousand feet below the earths surface; it is in themills, and in the workshops of the trades. It rows, it
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, bookidc, booksubjectsteamengines
