Page:Scientific American - Series 1 - Volume 001 - Issue 02.pdf/1



VOLUME I.

Each number will be furnished with from two to five original engravings, many of them elegant, and illustrative of New Inventions, Scientific Principles, and Curious Works; and will contain, in addition to the most interesting news of passing events, general notices of the progress of Mechanical and other Scientific Improvements; American and Foreign Improvements and Inventions; Catalogues of American Patents; Scientific Essays, illustrative of the principles of the sciences of Mechanics, Chemistry and Architecture; useful information and instruction in various Arts and Trades; Curious Philosophical Experiments; Miscellaneous Intelligence, Music and Poetry.

This paper is especially entitled to the patronage of Mechanics and Manufacturers, being the only paper in America devoted to the interests of those classes; but is particularly useful to farmers, as it will not only apprise them of improvements in agricultural implements, but instruct them in various mechanical trades, and guard them against impositions. As a family newspaper it will convey more useful intelligence to children and young people, than five times its cost in school instruction. Another important argument in favour of this paper, is, that it will be worth two dollars at the end of the year when the volume is complete, (Old volumes of the New-York Mechanic, being now worth double the original cost, in cash.)

This invention has been tested by actual operations, and is evidently the first successful attempt ever made for reducing the power of wind to the regularity of water or steam power, for driving such machinery as requires a steady motion. It will be seen by the engraving and explanation that this wind-wheel is so constructed as to face the wind from any direction, while its power and motion are applied to drive machinery, or millwork, of any kind, which may be located in any direction, or at any reasonable distance, from the main wheel. The expense of a large mill of his kind will not exceed half that of an ordinary wind-mill of the old fashion. The Inventor will authorize any person to build and use this invention, who will put the same in operation within three months. For further intelligence apply at this office.

.—On a stout upright post, A, is mouted a frame consisting of two posts, B B, and two beams, C C, with a vane, D. A horizontal shaft, E is mouted on the two frame-posts, and from the head, or windward end of this shaft, eight arms project which support eight sails, two of which, F F, appear in the drawing. These sails are so hung or mounted on the arms as to be moveable;--each arm being round and passing through two cross cleats which are attached to each sail. The horizontal shaft being hollow, as small iron rod passes through it, extending from G to H, where it connects with eight short arms, I I. From the end of each short arm, a small rod extends back, and is connected to its parallel sail near the leeward corner thereof: so that by the sliding of the centre rod and arms to windward, the position of all the sails are changed, being thereby drawn up to the wind, that the main wheel may be put in motion by the wind. The leeward end of the centre rod passes through the head of a vertical lever, G, which is connected to the vane by a pivot at J, (the vane being suppored by the two pairs of cleats, with space enough to admit the lever to pass between.) A arm or branch is attached to the centre rod, each side of the lever, that the rod may be moved forward and backward thereby. A short vertical shaft extends from K to L, being supported by the two beams. The knee, K M, is so mounted that one arm thereof is connected by a small rod to the vertical lever, G J, while the other arm connects with a vertical rod which extends down the centre of the vertical shaft, and connects with the ends of two knees, each of which is supported by the pivot O, between two short arms which project from the vertical shaft for that purpose. The ends of the other arms of these knees are connected to two vertical planks or iron bars, P P; these planks being also partly supported by another set of arms and knees, Q Q. The vertical shaft has a pinion at the top which is turned by the gear-wheel, which is mounted on a short hollow cylinder, S, which turns on the main post, A, and carries a smaller gear-wheel, which gives motion to another wheel on the head of a parallel shaft T. From this shaft, the power and motion of the wind-wheel may be carried and communicated to any mill or machinery in any direction. A small rope is attached to the vertical lever at, and passes thence over the pulleys, V W X, and down the centre of the main upright post, but passing out at the side thereof a few feet from the ground, that it may be hauled down occasionally, when the mill is to be put in motion. The pully, V, is connected to an Iron weight, Y, the use of which will be explained. By this arrangement it will be seen that when the rope is hauled down, the weight, Y, is elevated; but its own gravity prevailing, it draws forward the lever, which drives forward the centre rod, with the short arms, I I, and thus draws the sails to the wind, and the wind-wheel is put in motion, which communicates motion to the shaft, K L, and cases the bars, P P, to press outward, by centrifugal force. By this the motion is regulated; for, whenever the motion of the wind-wheel exceeds the requisite velocity, the centrifugal force of the bars, overcoming the gravity of the weight, Y, (which ordinarily rests on teh beam) depresses the rod K, by which the other arm of teh knee forces back the lever G, with the centre rod and short arms, so as to throw the sails partly out of the wind, thus preventing the increas of speed beyond the gauged rate. The arms of the wind-wheel are supported by wire braces, which meet the point Z.

—In Buffalo and in Pittsburg they are about to establish works for smelting copper—the material to be obtaind on Lake superior. A much better location for such works would be at St. Louis. There is a large supply of excellent copper ore fifty miles from St. Louis and works established here for its manufacture would possess very great advantages over others that will be compelled to send thousands of miles for their ore. A very large buisnessbusiness [sic] in the manufacture of copper might be successfully carried on at this place. As several of our worthy citizens are interested in the Meramec copper mines, we hope they will adopt means to have the business carried on extensively.—St. Louis Era.

—Tasso being told that he had a fair opportunity of taking advantage of a very bitter enemy;—"I wish not to plunder him," said he, "but there are things I wish to take away from him; not his honour, his wealth or his life—but his ill will."

—The nearer bells are hung to the ground, other things being equal, the further they can be heard. Dr. Franklin has stated, that some years ago, the inhabitants of Philadelphia had a new bell imported from England, and in order to judge of the sound the bell was raised on a triangle in the great street of that city, and struck as it happened on a market day; when the people coming to market were surprised on hearing the sound of a bell at a greater distance from the city than they had ever heard any bell before. This circumstance excited the attention of the curious; and it was discovered that the sound of the bell when struck in the street, reached nearly double the distance it did when raised in the air.

says that in a single room, in one of the factories of the York company, there are fifty young women—each of these past four weeks has earned over twenty dollars, and one has actually earned and received thirty dollars.

The United States furnishes a population of 14 to every square mile for the inhabited portions of the country and 7 to the square mile for the whole teritoryterritory [sic] embraced within the limits of the federal jurisdiction.—Contrast this present occupation of the soil with the population of the most thickly peopled portions of Europe, and it will be seen that there is ample room for us to increase our numerical strength and not be crowded either. Belgium has 280 to the square mile; Holland 254, and Great Britain and Ireland 206, Russia has but 28 to the square mile, and Sweden and Norway only 13. France has 158; Italy 175; Germany 147; Austria 127; and Switzerland 133.

—During the last forty years, commitments for crime have increased from 5,000 to 31,000 per annum, in England, although the population has increased only about sixty per cent during the same period.

I—Agriculture, including Instruments and Operations.

Winnowing Machine—Thomas Cole and John Littlefield, Allensville, Ind., Aug. 7th.

Do. Thomas Chandler, Rockville, Ill. and Asa D. Reed, Miles, Mich., Dec. 7th.

Winnowing, wheat fans—David Watkins, Port Republic, Va., Feb. 2nd, and William Stanley, Jamestown, N. C., Nov. 18th.

Class II—Metallurgy, and manufactures of metals and instruments therefor.

Anvils, machine for making—John Taylor, Shadegap, Penn., Jan. 31st.

Bolt in door-fastenings, mode of operating—Albert Bingham, Boston, Mass., June 5th.

Buckles—Julius W. Hatch, Manlius, N. Y., Feb. 20th.

Do. Isaac B. Verplank, Menta, N. Y., March 9th.

Do. Henry Lawrence, Manlius, N. Y., July 13th

Cutlery, cleaning and polishing—William Vine, New York, N. Y., Feb. 28th.

Curry Comb—Thomas Wilkinson Cambridge, N. Y., Aug. 16th.

Drill or Borer, governing the feed of—John B. Grout, Bermingham, Mich., May 30th.

Drilling Machines—Amos Morgan, Wooster, O. May 13.

Forges, blacksmiths'—Frederick A. Stuart, Catherine, N. Y., July 1st.

Furnace, reverberatory, for smelting or puddling iron. Wm. Green, Woodbridge, N. Y. Jan 16th.

Furnace for Smelting Iron—Leman Bradley, Sharon, Ct., Nov. 18th.

Machinery for trimming hinges, butt blanks—Cyrus Kenny, Troy, N. Y.

Moulds for butt hinges—Benjamin F. Harley and John D. Morris, Philadelphia, Pa., Feb 12th.

Planing and dressing the knuckles on the inner sides of butt hinges—Gage Stickney, Blackwoodtown, N. J., Dec. 15th.

Machine for bending the knuckles of wrought iron butt hinges—Cyrus Kenny, Troy, N. Y., Aug. 23.

Machine for making wrought iron butt hinges—Cyrus Kenny, Troy, N. Y., Aug 7th.

Invention of Flask for moulding hinges—Thomas Loring, Gloucester, N. J., Feb. 7th.

Coating iron and copper with tin and other metals—Edmund P. Morewood, Great Britain, now in New York, Sept. 17th.

Process of reducing iron and other ores to the metalic state, by coating there with certain fluxes—James Tower, Madison, O., Dec. 7th.

Process of manufacturing iron and steel—Thomas Southall and Charles Craftingsen, Kidderminster Eng., Feb. 8th, U. S. A. Sept 14th.

Mode of obtaining wrought iron from the ore—Simeon Broadmedow, N. Y., May 30th.

Labels for mail bags—Oren S. North, New Britain, Ct., March 13th.

Mortice for door-latches—Wm. Wilson, Northampton, Mass., Nov. 26th.

Metalic laths for fire-proof ceilings of houses—Palmer Sumner, New York, April 25th.

Door-lock—Linus Yale, Springfield, Mass. June 13th.

Improvement in locks for doors, banks, safes, &c.—Marcus R. Stephenson and Oliver Edwards, Boston, Mass., April 17th and July 9th.

Combination door-lock—M. R. Stephenson and O. Edwards, Boston, Mass, April 17th.

Combination door-lock—Robert Newell, New York, Sept. 17th.

Door-lock, permutation, for vaults, &c.—D. W. Maples, Geneva, N. Y., Dec. 4th.

Manufacture of metal—Arthur Wall, Great Britain, issued in England Nov. 18th, 1843, and in the United States Aug. 10th, 1844.

Method of making patters for casting hallow ware—Ezra Ripley, Troy, N. Y., Aug. 31st.

Feeder for nail-cutting machine—Caleb Tobister, Allegheny, Pa., Dec. 31st.

Apparatus for separating, washing, or dressing ores—Nicolas Troughtoe, England, issued in Eng. July 23rd, 1842, in the U. S. July 22d. 1844.

Arranging and sticking pins into paper—De Grasse Fowler, North Bradford, Ct., Sept. 20th.

Machinery for manufacture of lead pipes—Charles and George E. Sellers, Cincinnati O. March 9th.

Improvement in door-plates—J. H. Grout and F. M. Ray, New York. March 20th.

Method of making door-plates and signs, of separate types, &c.—Edmund Morris, Philadelphia, April 25th.

Spike machines—Samuel Reynolds, Bristol, R. I., July 26th.

Manufacture of steel—S. Broadmeadow, New York, May 25th.

Method of making vessels of soft metal—John Rand, August 7th.

Class III—Manufactures of fibrous and textile substances, including machines for preparing fibres of wool, cotton, silk, fur, paper, &c.}}

Weaving tuscan braid—Elisha Fitzgerald, New York, Oct. 16th.

Portable bonnet—Thomas Hammond, New York, Oct. 30th.

Apparatus for pressing bonnet tips—Thos. Kendall, New York, Sept. 3d.

Carding machine—self-stripping card for carding fibrous substances—H. Barbour and J. Oleason, Lowell, Mass., Dec 4th.

Mode of brushing and winding cloth—Reuben C. Varnel, West Somers, N. Y., March 13th.

Invention of machinery for folding and measuring cloth—Silus C. Durgin, North Chelmsford, Masa., March 9th.