Page:Life of Sir William Petty 1623 – 1687.djvu/147

 16. A method to furnish ye pesthouses with medicines for theire mony.

17. Bookes of devotion for every house.

Proposalls.—When 100 per week dy, the Plague is begun. If there dye fewer than 120ths, out of ye bills, of all diseases within a yeare after, then W. P. is [to] have 20sh per head for all lesse and to pay 10sh per head for all above it.

Every family removed being to provide 10£ for ye charge of going and coming, and of 4 monthes rent. Or a gratuity of with W. P. his insurance.

'' ' An Attempt to demonstrate that an Engine may be fix'd in a good Ship of 5 or 600 Tonn to give her fresh way at Sea in a Calm. ' ''

In May 1673, Sir Edward Spragge caus'd the Experiment to be made in a Dogger of about 80 Tonn, and found it effectually to answer his purpose. He intended to have promoted it, so as to have it fix'd in some Frigatts against the next Summer; but his Death put a stop to the undertaking, and tho' great endeavors have been used to set it on foot divers times since, it has not yet met with any encouragement.

The Description.—1. The Engine is to consist of an Axis or Shaft of about 35 foot in length, or more or less in proportion to the bredth of the ship, for it must extend itself without board, about 3 foot on each side.

2. This Axis is to be placed in a Frigat, lofty, betwixt Decks and to ly athwart ship, even with the upper deck, or perhaps riseing an inch or two, that it may not ly lower betwixt Decks then the Beams of the Ship. Upon the middle of the Axis shall be placed a substantiall Trundle head.

3. On each end of the Axis, without-side the ship, is to be fix'd a wheele of about 7 foot diameter, with 12 Stemms issuing out of each wheele, and a Paddle or Oar at the end of each Stem of 3 feet square upon the flat; the Stemms to be of such a length that those Paddles which hang perpendicular may be quite dipt in the water to the Stem.

4. To make this Axis and the Paddle wheels turn round, so as the Paddles may take hold of the water in the nature of Oars one after another successively.