the age of invention-第27章

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hat　he　has　planted　and　others　have　gathered　the　fruits。　The　advantages　of　a　career　in　life　should　not　be　estimated　exclusively　by　the　standard　of　dollars　and　cents；　as　it　is　too　often　done。　Man　has　just　cause　for　regret　when　he　sows　and　no　one　reaps。〃



CHAPTER　VIII。　PIONEERS　OF　THE　MACHINE　SHOP

There　is　a　tinge　of　melancholy　about　the　life　of　such　a　pioneer　as　Oliver　Evans；　that　early　American　mechanic　of　great　genius；　whose　story　is　briefly　outlined　in　a　preceding　chapter。　Here　was　a　man　of　imagination　and　sensibility；　as　well　as　practical　power；　conferring　great　benefits　on　his　countrymen；　yet　in　chronic　poverty；　derided　by　his　neighbors；　robbed　by　his　beneficiaries；　his　property；　the　fruit　of　his　brain　and　toil；　in　the　end　malevolently　destroyed。　The　lot　of　the　man　who　sees　far　ahead　of　his　time；　and　endeavors　to　lead　his　fellows　in　ways　for　which　they　are　not　prepared；　has　always　been　hard。

John　Stevens；　too；　as　we　have　seen；　met　defeat　when　he　tried　to　thrust　a　steam　railroad　on　a　country　that　was　not　yet　ready　for　it。　His　mechanical　conceptions　were　not　marked　by　genius　equal　to　that　of　Evans；　but　they　were　still　too　far　advanced　to　be　popular。　The　career　of　Stevens；　however；　presents　a　remarkable　contrast　to　that　of　Evans　in　other　respects。　Evans　was　born　poor　（in　Delaware；　1755）　and　remained　poor　all　his　life。　Stevens　was　born　rich　（in　New　York　City；　1749）　and　remained　rich　all　his　life。　Of　the　family　of　Evans　nothing　is　known　either　before　or　after　him。　Stevens；　on　the　contrary；　belonged　to　one　of　the　best　known　and　most　powerful　families　in　America。　His　grandfather；　John　Stevens　I；　came　from　England　in　1699　and　made　himself　a　lawyer　and　a　great　landowner。　His　father；　John　Stevens　II；　was　a　member　from　New　Jersey　of　the　Continental　Congress　and　presided　at　the　New　Jersey　Convention　which　ratified　the　Constitution。

John　Stevens　III　was　graduated　at　King's　College　（Columbia）　in　1768。　He　held　public　offices　during　the　Revolution。　To　him；　perhaps　more　than　to　any　other　man；　is　due　the　Patent　Act　of　1790；　for　the　protection　of　American　inventors；　for　that　law　was　the　result　of　a　petition　which　he　made　to　Congress　and　which；　being　referred　to　a　committee；　was　favorably　reported。　Thus　we　may　regard　John　Stevens　as　the　father　of　the　American　patent　law。

John　Stevens　owned　the　old　Dutch　farm　on　the　Hudson　on　which　the　city　of　Hoboken　now　stands。　The　place　had　been　in　possession　of　the　Bayard　family；　but　William　Bayard；　who　lived　there　at　the　time　of　the　Revolution；　was　a　Loyalist；　and　his　house　on　Castle　Point　was　burned　down　and　his　estate　confiscated。　After　the　Revolution　Stevens　acquired　the　property。　He　laid　it　out　as　a　town　in　1804；　made　it　his　summer　residence；　and　established　there　the　machine　shops　in　which　he　and　his　sons　carried　on　their　mechanical　experiments。

These　shops　were　easily　the　largest　and　bestequipped　in　the　Union　when　in　1838　John　Stevens　died　at　the　age　of　ninety。　The　four　brothers；　John　Cox；　Robert　Livingston；　James　Alexander；　and　Edwin　Augustus；　worked　harmoniously　together。　〃No　one　ever　heard　of　any　quarrel　or　dissension　in　the　Stevens　family。　They　were　workmen　themselves；　and　they　were　superior　to　their　subordinates　because　they　were　better　engineers　and　better　men　of　business　than　any　other　folk　who　up　to　that　time　had　undertaken　the　business　of　transportation　in　the　United　States。〃*

*　Abram　S。　Hewitt。　Quoted　in　Iles；　〃Leading　American　Inventors〃；　p。　37。


The　youngest　of　these　brothers；　Edwin　Augustus　Stevens；　dying　in　1868；　left　a　large　part　of　his　fortune　to　found　the　Stevens　Institute　of　Technology；　afterwards　erected　at　Hoboken　not　far　from　the　old　family　homestead　on　Castle　Point。　The　mechanical　star　of　the　family；　however；　was　the　second　brother；　Robert　Livingston　Stevens；　whose　many　inventions　made　for　the　great　improvement　of　transportation　both　by　land　and　water。　For　a　quarter　of　a　century；　from　1815　to　1840；　he　was　the　foremost　builder　of　steamboats　in　America；　and　under　his　hand　the　steamboat　increased　amazingly　in　speed　and　efficiency。　He　made　great　contributions　to　the　railway。　The　first　locomotives　ran　upon　wooden　stringers　plated　with　strap　iron。　A　loose　end〃a　snakehead〃　it　was　calledsometimes　curled　up　and　pierced　through　the　floor　of　a　car；　causing　a　wreck。　The　solid　metal　T…rail；　now　in　universal　use；　was　designed　by　Stevens　and　was　first　used　on　the　Camden　and　Amboy　Railroad；　of　which　he　was　president　and　his　brother　Edwin　treasurer　and　manager。　The　swivel　truck　and　the　cow…catcher；　the　modern　method　of　attaching　rails　to　ties；　the　vestibule　car；　and　many　improvements　in　the　locomotive　were　also　first　introduced　on　the　Stevens　road。

The　Stevens　brothers　exerted　their　influence　also　on　naval　construction。　A　double　invention　of　Robert　and　Edwin；　the　forced　draft；　to　augment　steam　power　and　save　coal；　and　the　air…tight　fireroom；　which　they　applied　to　their　own　vessels；　was　afterwards　adopted　by　all　navies。　Robert　designed　and　projected　an　ironclad　battleship；　the　first　one　in　the　world。　This　vessel；　called　the　Stevens　Battery；　was　begun　by　authority　of　the　Government　in　1842；　but；　owing　to　changes　in　the　design　and　inadequate　appropriations　by　Congress；　it　was　never　launched。　It　lay　for　many　years　in　the　basin　at　Hoboken　an　unfinished　hulk。　Robert　died　in　1856。　On　the　outbreak　of　the　Civil　War；　Edwin　tried　to　revive　the　interest　of　the　Government；　but　by　that　time　the　design　of　the　Stevens　Battery　was　obsolete；　and　Edwin　Stevens　was　an　old　man。　So　the　honors　for　the　construction　of　the　first　ironclad　man…of…war　to　fight　and　win　a　battle　went　to　John　Ericsson；　that　other　great　inventor；　who　built　the　famous　Monitor　for　the　Union　Government。

Carlyle's　oft…quoted　term；　〃Captains　of　Industry；〃　may　fittingly　be　applied　to　the　Stevens　family。　Strong；　masterful；　and　farseeing；　they　used　ideas；　their　own　and　those　of　others；　in　a　large　way；　and　were　able　to　succeed　where　more　timorous　inventors　failed。　Without　the　stimulus　of　poverty　they　achieved　success；　making　in　their　shops　that　combination　of　men　and　material　which　not　only　added　to　their　own　fortunes　but　also　served　the　world。


We　left　Eli　Whitney　defeated　in　his　efforts　to　divert　to　himself　some　adequate　share　of　the　untold　riches　arising　from　his　great　invention　of　the　cotton　gin。　Whitney；　however；　had　other　sources　of　profit　in　his　own　character　and　mechanical　ability。　As　early　as　1798　he　had　turned　his　talents　to　the　manufacture　of　firearms。　He　had　established　his　shops　at　Whitneyville；　near　New　Haven；　and　it　was　there　that　he　worked　out　another　achievement　quite　as　important　economically　as　the　cotton　gin；　even　though　the　immediate　consequences　were　less　spectacular：　namely；　the　principle　of　standardization　or　interchangeability　in　manufacture。

This　principle　is　the　very　foundation　today　of　all　American　large…scale　production。　The　manufacturer　produces　separately　thousands　of　copies　of　every　part　of　a　complicated　machine；　confident　that　an　equal　number　of　the　complete　machine　will　be　assembled　and　set　in　motion。　The　owner　of　a　motor　car；　a　reaper；　a　tractor；　or　a　sewing　machine；　orders；　perhaps　by　telegraph　or　telephone；　a　broken　or　lost　part；　taking　it　for　granted　that　the　new　part　can　be　fitted　easily　and　precisely　into　the　place　of　the　old。

Though　it　is　probable　that　this　idea　of　standardization；　or　interchangeability；　originated　independently　in　Whitney's　mind；　and　though　it　is　certain　that　he　and　one　of　his　neighbors；　who　will　be　mentioned　presently；　were　the　first　manufacturers　in　the　world　to　carry　it　out　successfully　in　practice；　yet　it　must　be　noted　that　the　idea　was　not　entirely　new。　We　are　told　that　the　system　was　already　in　operation　in　England　in　the　manufacture　of　ship's　blocks。　From　no　less　an　authority　than　Thomas　Jefferson　we　learn　that　a　French　mechanic　had　previously　conceived　the　same　idea。*　But；　as　no　general　result　whatever　came　from　the　idea　in　either　France　or　England；　the　honors　go　to　Whitney　and　North；　since　they　carried　it　to　such　complete　success　that　it　spread　to　other　branches　of　manufacturing。　And　in　the　face　of　opposition。　When　Whitney　wrote　that　his　leading　object　was　〃to　substitute　correct　and　effective　operations　of　machinery　for　that　skill　of　the　artist　which