Page:Rudimentary Treatise on the Construction of Locks (1853).djvu/9



reader is entitled to know the origin of the small work which he holds in his hands.

In August 1852, being about to write a short article on Locks for a Cyclopædia of Useful Arts, of which I am the editor, I consulted my esteemed and lamented friend, the late Professor Cowper, of King's College, as to the desirability of explaining to the general reader the defects of some of our English locks, which, previous to the celebrated "lock controversy" of 1851, had borne a high character for skilful construction, beauty of workmanship, and undoubted security. Professor Cowper expressed his strong conviction that by exposing the defects of our locks, the cause of mechanical science, as well as the public in general, would be benefited; that if our locks were defective, inventors would be stimulated to supply the defects, and the art of the locksmith would be raised accordingly. He considered that Mr. Hobbs had made a considerable step in advance in the constructive details of his art, not only in having detected the weak points of some of our best English locks, but also in having introduced two or three new locks, which appeared to be more secure than any of those previously produced. Professor Cowper gave me an introduction to Mr, Hobbs, who placed at my disposal a variety of literary materials relating to the history and construction of locks, and stated his intention at some future time of bringing out a small book on the subject, if he could meet with a publisher. I recommended him to offer the work to Mr. Weale, for insertion in his series of Rudimentary Works. This was accordingly done, and I was invited to prepare the work; but as my engagements did not leave me sufficient leisure to write the book, I requested my friend Mr. George Dodd to put the materials together, and to search for