1SSG.I NEW YORB ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 137 ki~iinand ~~ni~c~ien-leguniinoiisgenera, not before identified in the Cretaceoiis flora of N. America. The most interesting and unespectcd discovery among the aiigiosperms is that of iiunicrous specimens of a hclianthoid com- posite flower, tlirec to four inches in diameter, in wliicli the ray- florets (?)were scarions and persistent like those of HcliocJwysi~~~~. 7’:ikcn altogether, this flora is of snrprisiiigly high botanical rank, quite as much so as that obt:iined from any Tertiary strata., and perhaps as any local flora of iin equal nnmber of arborescent spccics in tlie vegetation of the present time. February 1, 1SS6. REGULARBUSINESS MEETING. The President, DR. J. S. NEWBERRY,in tlie chair. Sixty-five persons present. The following persons were elected Resident Members: MR. LEVIHOLBROOH, WILLIAMG. ANDERSDK,N.D. WILLIANJ. HOFFMAN,M.D., Curator of the Anthropological Society of Washington, D. C., was elected Corresponding Member. MR. P. H. DUDLEYread :I paper on THE INCEPTION AND PROGRESS OF RAILWAYS. (Illustrated with lantern views.) The inception of the vast railroad systems antedates the intro- duction of steam, though the latter gave the impetus to their present devclopmeii t. It was the imperative demand for better facilities for trans- porting coals and ores from the mines, and stones from the quarries, that led to the introduction of wooden rails to furnish better mays for the passage of wagons, carts, and finally minia- .ture cars. Short cast-iron rails replaced those of wood, thus ireparing the way to receive and develop the greatest type of Lnman progress-tlie locomotive and its accompaniments. Newcomen’s seemingly crude steam engine of 1710 was.a grand conception, a great advance upon ,Suvery’s, mliich raised water 138 TRANSACTIONS OF THE [FEB. 1, bnt did not have moving parts. Newcomen found great diffi- ciilty in having his engine tried at the tin mines to pump water. It masnot automatic. A boy was employed to turn the faucet for the introduction of steam into the cylinder to raise the piston, which lowered the pump rods on the other end of the malking- beam; the boy then closed this faucet, and turned another for tlic injection of water to condense the steam, thus forming n vaciiiini beneath the piston when thc air pressure depressed the piston, raising the pump rods and the water. At first the con- densing wnter siirrounded the cylinder, and the engine was very slow in action; n leak occiirring, the strokes of the engine were mnch increased, and caused alarm :it the rapidi ty. This led to the water injection pipe. Humphrey Potter, a boy employed to turn the faucets, soon grew tired of his work, :ind invented and applied some levers and strings to open and close the faucets, thus rendering the engine antomatic, and increasing its speed and safety. Beighton improved tho inventions of Potter, making them n part of the mechanism. In 1763, James Watt, a ph~losophical-iiistrumellt maker, entered the employ of the University of Glasgow. Their model of Newcornen’s engine had been sent to London for repairs, and he induced the faculty to have it returned so that he could study :mcl repair it. He was well versed for his time in the principles of latent heat, having studied nuder Dr. Black, and mas able to appreciate the enormous loss of heat caused at each stroke by heating and then cooling the cylinder. He designed the separate condenser and air punip, thus avoiding the cooling of the cylin- der, and introducing greater economy in the amount of fuel con- sumed. His s~~ecificatioiisin his patent of 1769 for the construction of engines are still rnodels for study in principles. In mechan- ical execution he encountered dificulties which me .cannot appreciate, with our present plants for constructing work of almost any size. Newcornen’s engine is now represented by the Cornish pump- in engines. katt converted the reciprocal motion into rotary motion, making n motor for general purposes. This is represented to- day by the marine condensing engine. Ideas respecting locomotion mere developing on every hand;. and while many are willing to ascribe the invention of the loco- motive to one mnn, the probabilities are that it m:is due to many minds, as me know its construction has been. Watt patented, in 1769, a steam carriage, but did not construct one. Uuguot’s locomotive of 1769 wonld run for a few minutes, 1886.1 NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 139 until the snpply of steam was exhausted. One riinning in the streets of Paris at about three miles per hour turned over, and \vas considered dangeroils by the authorities and locked tip in the arsenal. In 1784, Murdocli, an associate with Watt, made a working model ot a locomotive, bnt no further steps were taken. Oliver Evans, of Phil:rdelphia, mas at this tinie busy with liis experiments upon high pressure engines, and in 1787 pitented his steam carriage. In 1794-96 he scnt Mr. Joseph Siunpsoii to England with his drawings, where they were sho\vn to ni;tny engineers, and it was said that they were copied withotit giving him credit. In 1801, he constructed his Oiwctoi* An~phibolzcs, wliich mounted on wheels, was propelled by its steam power through the streets of Pliiladelpl~iain the presence of 20,000 people, one and one-half miles to tlie Schuylkill. There it was launched, and then, by a wheel in the stern, propelled nrotincl to the Delaware front of the city, a distance of sixteen miles. He mas an advocate of steam locomotion, iind is accredited with say- ing “tliiit tlie time would come mhcn a party could start from Washin ton, breakfast in Baltimore, dine in Philadelphia, and sup in -8ew York.” Tlic realizirtion exceeds the prophecy, yet for such remarks he was considered insane. Trevithick and Vivian patented a steam carriage in 1802 wliicli was a high pressore engine. It was run in-the streets of London, but they mere so rotigli and uneven it mas abandoned as a failure. In 1804 they constructed one to rtin upon the tram roads, and it \vils tried upon the lIcrthyr Tydvil Railway, in South Wales, drawing ten tons at D speed of five miles per hour. This mas also :huidoned ; tl!e great difficulty being insufficient adhesion. To remedy this, ‘l’iwithick recommended and caused to be placed upon the periphery of liis driving wheels, projecting bolts and grooves, which proved successfnl for this purpose, but pkoduced a series of blows which broke the cast-iron rails. In 1811, Mr. Blenkinshop, of Leecls, took out a patent for IL rack mil and the necessary mechanism to work in it. I call attention to this; as an improved form, Abt’s system, lins receutly been brought forward to work mountain lines of heavy gradients. To secure sufficient trxtion, Nr. Chapman, in 1812, stretched R chain in the road bed mliich also passed around a groove in drum under the engine. In 1813, Xr. Brnnton brought ont his mechanical traveller, the cylinders connecting directly with the legs, which moved the locomotiye by a series of impulaes. A velocity of two and a half miles per hour mas obtained, and R tractive power of four horses. In tlie same gear, Mr. Blackett, who had long experimented 140 TRANSACTIONS OF THE [PEB. 1, with Trevitliick’s locomotives, commenced a series of tests with Mr. Hedley to ascertain the amount of adhesion tliat could be obtained per ton weight of locomotive, and tlie amount of tr:ic- tion required to draw the trains. They disc:irded the empiricism of tlie day, and found tlie locomotive would have sufficient adlie- sioii to draw the trains witliout the use of rack rails or ropes. Tliey brought out tlic famous “ Puffing Billy,” wliicli is claimed to be the oldest locomotive that did actual service. It began to draw coal in 1813 and continued in nse until 1SG2, mhen it mas purchased to be lmservcd in tlic South Kensington Museum, London. Mr. Tv. TV. Evans, wlio liad visited the museum several tinies to see it, sags ‘‘ tlie wooden frame was only brought to size wlicre attaclinicnts were to be made.” It liad two cylinders and gfiissliopper beams. Tlie boiler mas Zagged; the ends put on instead of in; the flanges projecting upivards. The cylinders have the appearance of being doublc, the outside one being of boiler iron. It liad a crank shaft mitli which con- iiectioiis were made from the beams, giving it motion, tlieiice by gear wheels to tlie driving axles. The fire door mas :it tlic same end as tlie smoke-stack, wliicli mas next to the tender; the axles were square. ‘l‘lic wlieels under the engine are doubtless of more recent construction, as they are of present forms. The rails beneath tlie engine are similar to those first used. The question of transportation and railways was being agitated in this country, and in 1812, Col. Jolin Stevens published his pamphlet on riiilways, liis gencr:d ideas beiiig quite similar, it is said, to those of to-day. He stated, “a velocity of 50 miles per hour could be obtained, but a sliced of 20 to 30 miles monld be more convenient.” In 1814, 31r. George S teplieiison’coostrncted his first locomo- tive, which mas geared. It would draw thirty tons at a speed of 4 niiles per hour. It liad two cylinders, each Ys24 inches; n boiler 8 ft. long and 34 inches in diameter, having one internal flue of 20 inches. Tlie speed of the locomotive was limited by its low capacity for generating steilni.