Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VII.djvu/251

 FITCH 243 duct of Steno may be obstructed, so that the saliva dribbles out on the cheek instead of passing into the mouth ; the remedy is to estab- lish the passage from the fistula to the mouth by puncture and the introduction of silk or flex- ible wire, and then paring and uniting the edges of the external opening. In urinary fistula there is an opening from the perineum into the ure- thra, through which the urine dribbles wholly or in part ; it is generally caused by urinary ab- scess and extravasation into the soft parts. For its relief all strictures should be dilated, the urethra brought to a healthy condition, and the fistula stimulated to contract and granulate by external applications. Sometimes there is a communication between the urethra and the rectum. But the most disgusting and difficult to remedy are the vesico-vaginal and recto- va- ginal fistulas, in the former of which the bladder, and in the latter the rectum communicates with the vagina ; both of these affections are the con- sequences of the laceration and sloughing after tedious labor ; the most successful method of treatment is by paring the edges of the fistula and uniting them by sutures. A fistula may communicate with any of the abdominal viscera, or with any part of the body, on the surface or deep-seated, which may be diseased from ab- scess, dead bone, or the presence of a foreign substance. FITCH, Ebenezer, an American clergyman, the first president of Williams college, born in Nor- wich, Conn., Sept. 26, 1756, died in West Bloomfield, N. Y., March 21, 1833. He gradu- ated at Yale college in 1777, where in 1780 he was appointed tutor, and continued to act as such for several years. In 1790 he was chosen preceptor of the academy in Williamstown, Mass., and when in 1793 it grew into and was incorporated as Williams college, he was elected its first president, which office he filled till 1815, when, resigning, he was chosen pastor of the Presbyterian church in West Bloomfield, N. Y. This charge he held till 1827, and after his resignation continued to preach occasional- ly almost till his death. FITCH, John, an American inventor, and the pioneer in steam navigation, born in Windsor, Conn., Jan. 21, 1743, died in Bardstown, Ky., in June or July, 1798. He worked on his fa- ther's farm till the age of 17, when he was em- ployed for some time on coasting vessels, and then became apprentice to a clock maker. On reaching manhood he commenced business as a brass founder in a small way, failed in an at- tempt to manufacture potash, married unhap- pily, separated from his wife, and settled in New Jersey as a button maker and silversmith. When the revolutionary war broke out, he was elected a lieutenant in the New Jersey line ; but on meeting with some real or supposed in- justice he left the service, and was employed by New Jersey as armorer of the troops. Driven away by the invading army, he engaged in his trade of silversmith in Bucks co., Pa., till the approach of the enemy again made it necessary for him to shift his quarters. He next supplied the American troops at Valley Forge with to- bacco, beer, and other articles, in which he drove a prosperous business, resulting in a con- siderable accumulation of depreciated conti- nental money. With this he purchased Vir- ginia land warrants and removed to Kentucky, where he was appointed deputy surveyor. Being captured by the Indians, he was marched through the wilderness to the British post at Detroit, where he was detained some time as a prisoner. He was at length exchanged, and finding his way again to Bucks co., formed a company for the survey and purchase of lands in Kentucky and Ohio. On his return from these surveys, by which he acquired several hundred acres of land, he petitioned congress for an appointment as surveyor, and while awaiting the unsuccessful result of his appli- cation prepared a map of the N. W. country, which he engraved on a sheet of copper and printed on a press of his own manufacture. In April, 1785, the idea occurred to him of propel- ling a carriage along an ordinary road by the force of steam. After a week's study he aban- doned it as impracticable, and devoted himself to the application of steam to the propulsion of vessels. He immediately sought to interest leading men in Pennsylvania in the project ; in August following he addressed a petition to congress in regard to it, and in September pre- sented a drawing of the boat, models, and tube boiler to the American philosophical society. He next petitioned the legislature of Virginia for aid. James Madison presented his memo- rial, and Patrick Henry, then governor, took an interest in the plan. But the legislature was slow, and Fitch conceived the plan of raising the necessary funds by the sale of his map. He accordingly executed a bond to Gov. Henry in the sum of 350, conditioned that if he should sell 1,000 copies of his map at 6s. 8d., he would in nine months thereafter exhibit a steam- boat in the waters of Virginia. Nothing came of it. The assembly of Pennsylvania was next applied to, and encouraged him to the extent of a favorable report of a committee. The as- sembly of Maryland did the same; but there were no funds in her exchequer. The legisla- ture of New Jersey rejected a proposition to grant 1,000, but gave Fitch an exclusive priv- ilege for 14 years for the use of boats propelled by fire or steam. Disappointed in these efforts, Fitch formed a private company, and in April, 1786, the working model of a steam engine with a one-inch cylinder was the humble com- mencement of his enterprise. In three months' time he moved a skiff on the Delaware by his new contrivance at a speed satisfactory to the associates. In March, 1787, a bill vesting in John Fitch exclusive rights in the steamboat passed the legislature of Pennsylvania, and sim- ilar laws were enacted in Delaware and in New York. In August of that year a new steam- boat was tried on the Delaware, with an engine of 12-inch cylinder. Though the boat did not