Part 1

Transcriber's Notes

Changes to the text (corrections to typographical errors) are listed at the end of the book.

On page 45, in the reference "Beccheri's Physica Subterranea, Lipsiæ, 1738 (with supplement), 8vo., 1681-80;", no satisfactory explanation of "1681-80" has been found. Note that the publication date of Physica Subterranea is 1669.

In Figure 2 on page 82, the following denote the conventional symbols for planetary bodies: [Sun], [Moon], [Mercury], [Venus], [Mars], [Jupiter], [Saturn], [Uranus].

On pages 83 & 84 in the explanation of Plate III, a single quote is used to denote the decimal point: this convention has been retained.

In this Plain Text version of the e-book, the Latin-1 character set only is used. Italic typeface is denoted by surrounding _underscores_; small caps typeface is denoted by ALL CAPS; superscript symbols are preceded by caret (^).

[Asterism] denotes three stars (asterisks).

[oe] represents the oe-ligature.

* * * * *

SCIENTIFIC STUDIES:

OR

PRACTICAL, IN CONTRAST WITH CHIMERICAL PURSUITS;

EXEMPLIFIED IN TWO POPULAR LECTURES.

I.

THE LIFE OF EDWARD SOMERSET, SECOND MARQUIS OF WORCESTER, INVENTOR OF THE STEAM ENGINE.

II.

CHIMERAS OF SCIENCE: ASTROLOGY, ALCHEMY, SQUARING THE CIRCLE, PERPETUUM MOBILE, ETC.

With Illustrative Diagrams.

BY

HENRY DIRCKS, C. E., LL.D., F.C.S., M.R.S.L., F.R.S.R., &c. &c.

AUTHOR OF "THE LIFE OF THE MARQUIS OF WORCESTER;" "WORCESTERIANA;" &c.

LONDON: E. & F. N. SPON, 48, CHARING CROSS, S.W. 1879.

INTRODUCTION.

It forms a necessary part of popular lectures that they should possess breadth with brevity, and interest without too great profundity. It is possible to see a large extent of country from a lofty tower without being cognizant of every blade of grass, the perfume of blossoms, or the notes of the sweetest songsters of the groves. In like manner the popular lecturer has to present only so much to the eye of the mind as will give the prominent features of his theme, omitting those details over which the scholar, or the true lover of his subject, dwells with the affection of a fond parent over a darling child.

We must look with astonishment at a man of noble birth, who in a period of civil commotion, with a monarch for his friend, and a court at his command, secluded himself during his youth in a stately ancient tower, engaged in abstruse studies and wonderful mechanical operations; and who, late in life, amidst the terrors of civil war was found turning his inventive faculties, like another Archimedes, to the construction of means of defence, and terrible weapons of offence. But it is only those who become immersed in studies, whether of theology, philosophy, or kindred mental pursuits, who can appreciate the growing appetite for what appears to unlettered men as the driest of all dry occupations. The mere pleasure-seeker knows not how much is lost, and how little is gained by sharing the most brilliant gaieties of fashionable life.

Look at the ancient astrologers, whose pursuits were once as pure and noble as those of modern astronomers. Amidst wild theories, superstitious beliefs, empirical systems, and pagan divination, a rupture became inevitable: one side adopted stellary divination or Astrology, the other Astronomy, or the simple and true study of the stars.

Whatever a man's intellectual pursuits may be, he has the advantage over the mere man of fashion of being engaged in employments which the longest life cannot exhaust.

But intellectual pursuits partake either of the negative or the positive; they are useful or useless, and when useless they fritter away and render nugatory the talent that might have been better employed.

The Marquis of Worcester affords an eminent example of genius of a high order, grandly and effectively directed towards the advancement of man's political and social position. His contemporary, Dr. John Dee, the Astrologer, together with his friend Kelly, the Alchemist, may be appropriately distinguished as representing a class chimerically inclined, and hurtful to the well-being of society; while a less eminent and less blameable section of chimerical labourers are those of whom the worst we can say is, that they waste much valuable time, energy, and fortune, through attaching themselves to mathematics, mechanics, and other learned pursuits, only in search of marvellous, instead of useful applications.

All chimeras are built on assumptions, and so far are "castles in the air;" in many forms they are simply ridiculous; but when they pretend to the supernatural they are pernicious and often wicked.

In the two lectures now presented for his perusal, the reader will find both these topics illustrated by suitable lives and authentic evidence.

H. D.

_London, February, 1869._

I.

Lecture ON THE LIFE OF EDWARD SOMERSET, SECOND MARQUIS OF WORCESTER.

"He was a man, take him for all in all, We shall not look upon his like again."

DELIVERED AT THE LITERARY INSTITUTION, GREENWICH, 16TH FEBRUARY, 1864.

LECTURE I.

The Biographer of Edward, second MARQUIS OF WORCESTER, naturally finds some difficulty in rendering prominent the political position that nobleman enjoyed in the 17th century; or of impressing the minds of his hearers or readers with a just sense of the wonderful genius of the author of the "Century of Inventions," even although the fact be established of that remarkable man being also the true and first inventor of a veritable steam engine.

When we consider the eventful period in which he lived, (from 1601 to 1667,) and his personal character, together with the social, political, and romantic incidents of his life, the career of the Marquis of Worcester cannot fail to interest and instruct us. He was at once the most fortunate and unfortunate of men, living in times of mingled enlightenment, superstition, and civil discord, and finally finding himself cast on the tender mercies of a corrupt Court; the possessor of a high order of mechanical genius, yet proscribed politically and theologically; most loyal, yet falling the victim of puritanism; and closing his life neglected by a Sovereign whose father had been the chief ruin of his patrimony.

Descended from the Plantagenets, Edward Somerset, second MARQUIS OF WORCESTER, is supposed to have been born about, or soon after 1601, the records to establish his natal year being wanting. His father, Henry Somerset, created first Marquis of Worcester by Charles I., was married on the 16th June, 1600, at Blackfriars; Queen Elizabeth, attending in great state, graciously danced at the wedding ball; and the festivities of the occasion were continued for three days.

We obtain little information respecting the Marquis of Worcester until about the twenty-seventh year of his age, when he married Elizabeth, daughter of Sir William Dormer, eldest son of Lord Dormer of Weng, and sister of Robert, Earl of Carnarvon. It is not known where he was educated, but it was certainly neither at Oxford nor Cambridge. Mention is made of his preceptor, Mr. Adams, at Raglan Castle, the baronial seat of the lords of Raglan, in Monmouthshire. There is every probability, however, that he finished his education at some foreign university. His son and heir, Henry, born in 1629, was created by Charles II. the first Duke of Beaufort, and from him the present Duke of Beaufort is the eighth of that rank in lineal descent.

It was during the first or second year of his married life that he engaged the services of Caspar Kaltoff, whom he employed as a practical assistant, to work out his numerous mechanical experiments, and whom he extols as an "unparalleled workman, both for trust and skill."[1] There are still to be seen on one side of the Keep--or citadel of Raglan Castle, the remains of grooves in the wall, probably for the insertion of large metal pipes, in some way or other connected with the waterworks which are known to have been erected there, and which were most likely carried out by Kaltoff, under his master's directions.

[1] Dedication to "The Century of Inventions."

Becoming a widower in 1635, his lordship married in 1639, his second wife, Margaret, second daughter and co-heir of Henry O'Brien, Earl of Thomond.

It must have been about this period of his life that the Marquis of Worcester made one of his most singular and perplexing mechanical experiments, which he exhibited at the Tower before Charles I., several of his Court, some foreign ambassadors, and the lieutenant of that fortress. As he names Sir William Balfour (who held the latter appointment from 1630 to 1641) we can arrive at an approximate date. The mechanical surprise which he states he thus presented to gratify his royal master, was no other than a gigantic wheel, 14 feet in diameter, weighted with 40 weights of 50 lbs. each, equal to 2000 lbs., by means of which we are left to infer that the wheel maintained a rotatory motion, without assistance from any external aid whatever; that it was in fact, a realization of that long sought for curiosity--perpetual motion. As he wrote deliberately a statement of this circumstance fifteen years later, or more, which he afterwards printed, we are left without any grounds to suppose otherwise than that he deceived himself, or was deceived, from interested motives, by persons in his employment. The circumstance is scarcely worth notice except as a singular proof that such a hallucination could exist in the mind of the same genius that perfected the first practical steam-engine. We can only say that if the mystery could be cleared up, although it would be of little or no value to mathematics or mechanics, it would go far to elevate the scientific character of the Marquis, though he was not the only celebrity of his time infatuated with a thorough belief in the possibility of solving the paradox.

The Marquis of Worcester, born at the close of Queen Elizabeth's reign, is not mentioned as appearing at the Court of James I; his courtier life most likely commenced later, in the reign of Charles I, who was about his own age, and with whose career, the fortunes of both the Marquis of Worcester, and his father, family, and friends, were unhappily but too intimately interwoven.

It requires a visit to Raglan Castle fully to realise the grandeur, nobleness, and strength of that romantically situated, and almost regal stronghold. It wears all the solemnity that antiquity can bestow, it is so gothic, so solid, and embowered, as it were, in a constant dubious shade. Then it is so extensive in its bounds, its apartments are so capacious, and its massy walls so lofty and so finely chiseled and proportioned, that when we consider there is no quarry within any reasonable distance, nor any river or stream for conveyance, the whole structure assumes the mystery of absolute romance. Its historic associations also rivet the attention of every beholder who is acquainted with the part it played in determining the fate of that great struggle between the Crown and the Parliament, which commenced in 1640, and ended with the establishment of a Commonwealth.

The county of Monmouth is eminently distinguished for its scenery, its green hills and dales presenting a beautifully wooded and highly picturesque landscape from every point of view. The village of Raglan is a small unpretending hamlet, principally remarkable for its parish church, which contains the chapel of the Beauforts, the resting place of several members of the Somerset family. Peering above lofty neighbouring trees, the Donjon, Keep, or Citadel of Raglan Castle is a conspicuous object; itself very lofty and standing on a considerable eminence, it commands a most delightful and extensive panoramic view of the surrounding country in that fertile district.

The Castle may be described as consisting of two portions, distinguished by two courts and two fortified arched entrances. The grand entrance, between two hexagonal towers, leads to the paved court, with the closet tower or library to the right, a withdrawing or ball-room overhead, and a banqueting or stately hall to the left, which last apartment attracts much notice from its great size and remarkable state of preservation. Externally situated is the Citadel or Tower of Gwent, surrounded with a broad moat over which there appears to have been a drawbridge on one side, and on the other, adjoining the castle a permanent stone bridge.

During his youth, the Marquis of Worcester, as Lord Herbert, resided at the Castle, and may have had his laboratory, workshop, and study conveniently situated in the Citadel; at all events, in connection with his early career, the ruined remains of the family mansion cannot be visited without intense interest. His father was a noble minded, hearty, generous man, living in princely state; an extensive and wealthy landed proprietor, and in case of need capable of defending his Citadel against any foe whatever. This last necessity made itself conspicuous between the years 1640 and 1641, when the civil war broke out. After the fatal battle of Naseby, 14th June, 1645, Charles I. three times rested at the Castle, staying there in all twenty-seven days. The strength of that fortress enabled it to resist the Parliamentary arms longer than any other stronghold--its surrender following very shortly after that of Pendennis Castle.

When civil war was raging in this country, when King and Parliament were in opposition, when Puritan, Protestant, and Papist sought for mastery, when cavaliers met roundheads in mortal conflict, and every man stood in fear of his neighbour, the Marquis of Worcester could no longer remain a mere student of mechanism and of mathematical problems: if like Archimedes in one sense, he was now seen, unlike him, buckling on his armour, raising troops, and doffing the student's gown to become the soldier. Alas! his military career forms no brilliant page in the annals of his country's history. He was essentially neither a statesman, nor a military man. He was bold, courageous, and energetic, but he could neither be fierce nor ferocious on occasion. He tampered with opponents, lost means of surprise, and was ever being tricked by the cunning and chicanery of adversaries not over-scrupulous in their promises or proceedings. His very goodness of heart, urbanity and uprightness were the sources of his utter ruin. Himself incapable of deceit, he was perpetually being made the victim of it: those who appeared his assured friends, and had every reason to be so, proving in any emergency shallow, empty, and worthless. Flattered by Charles I. he became instrumental in assisting that Prince from his parent's private fortune; and when that was exhausted, the King sapped the property of the son, repaying both with titles, promises, and valueless bonds. He created the Marquis of Worcester Earl of Glamorgan, during his father's life-time; and, inducing him to raise Irish troops to fight against English subjects, he completed the Earl's ruin; for, that untoward enterprise failing, and being followed by the fall of Raglan Castle, and the victories of the Cromwellian army, the Marquis of Worcester had to quit his native land to seek refuge, with many other political refugees, at the Court of France. His wife, who had been residing at Raglan Castle, obtained leave from the Parliament in 1646 to flee to Paris, where the Marquis also arrived in 1648.

The Marquis was proscribed both as a Papist and a rebel. Throughout his political career the religion of his father and himself had made many weak-minded men their enemies; but that his loyalty should be considered rebellion was nothing more than might be expected from the dominant party of those troubled times: although undoubtedly the result of that great moral earthquake benefited our nation.

His only son, Henry, sat in the Cromwellian Parliament, and this fact may, in part, explain the circumstance that most probably induced the Marquis of Worcester to visit London in 1652; for he must have been well-advised before committing such an apparently rash act. He was immediately incarcerated in the Tower, from which he was released in two years and a quarter, no doubt on his parole, as in 1655 a warrant was signed by Cromwell to pay the Marquis of Worcester the sum of _three pounds per week_ for his maintenance.

He was utterly beggared; what was he to do? It seems to have occurred to him to turn his mechanical ingenuity to account, the Pretender's monetary consideration being insufficient for the purpose intended. This high-minded nobleman in the same year wrote his remarkable "Century of Inventions," although it was not printed until eight years afterwards. The title-page declared its production to have been "at the instance of a powerful friend," who was, as we have reason to think, no other than Colonel Christopher Coppley, or Copley, who had served in the Parliamentary army of the North, under the command of General Fairfax; for agreements were drawn up between them to secure a participation in any benefits arising from introducing the steam engine, or water-commanding engine, as it was then called.

It is not to the historic page, but to the calm unobtrusive volumes of scientific record, that we must turn to be enlightened with respect to the mental and mechanical achievements of the Marquis of Worcester; and we must at the same time not overlook the fact, that many branches of science were, in his day, but just emerging from that thraldom of empiricism, which had for centuries clouded every department of philosophical research.

The Marquis of Worcester was so essentially a scientific, and not a literary man, that Horace Walpole acted most inconsistently in classing him among his _Royal and Noble Authors_. That brilliant cynic, however, had a purpose to serve, and although he found in the Marquis a vein of pursuit of which he was totally ignorant, he presumed to criticise the "Century," and to question its author's veracity; a charge which, if established, even in a minor degree, would serve a political purpose, by proving the Marquis to be unreliable in other respects, and thus weakening his authority in religion and politics. But the dilettante Walpole, a connoisseur in paintings and works of _vertu_, was, in matters of science, more ignorant of the Marquis of Worcester's worth, than was the equally satirical Voltaire of Shakspeare's genius. Hume, the historian, attracted by the sparkling wit of Walpole, adopted without examination, his plausible criticism, unconscious of its superficiality and absolute untruthfulness in every respect.

We would here notice the probable cause of the Marquis's indefatigable study of, and attention to, practical mechanics. As in the time of Charles II., so also during the reign of his father, there is reason to believe that some distinguished public officer was appointed to superintend Government works connected with the army and navy, and that they were situated at Vauxhall. It was probably a department similar to that held in 1661, by Sir Samuel Morland, designated Master of Mechanics. Otherwise how are we to account for the Marquis of Worcester's devoting his time, his energies, and his very fortune to inventions affecting mechanical appliances generally, and particularly to those connected with naval and military affairs, and hydraulic engines?

One of his inventions (No. 56) he exhibited to Charles I. at the Tower, and of another (No. 64) being an improvement in fire-arms, he observes it was "tried and approved before the King (Charles I.), and an hundred Lords and Commons." Then his great invention, the "Water-commanding Engine," was set up at Vauxhall in 1663, where it was certainly at work in 1667, or probably three years later. All these circumstances wear the aspect of royal patronage, of public employment, and of the possession of influence suitable to the holder of a dignified position.

This view of the high and honourable public official position held by the Marquis is also borne out by the petition of William Lambert, about 1664, to be found in the State Paper Office. It was addressed to Charles II. and sets forth:--"That your petitioner was founder to his late Majesty of blessed memory, in Vauxhall, under the Marquis of Worcester, for gun and water-work, or any other thing founded in brass." Nothing surely can be more certain than that the Marquis's was a public situation, and his "Century" affords ample evidence of his aptitude in _that_ respect for the post which he filled; nor can we better account for his numerous improvements in fire-arms, cannon, sailing vessels, fortifications, and embankments.

His "Century of Inventions" is the mere syllabus or outline of a proposed larger work, for he concludes with the statement of his--"meaning to leave to posterity a book, wherein under each of these heads the means to put in execution and visible trial all and every of these inventions, with the shape and form of all things belonging to them, shall be printed by brassplates,"--the usual substitute at that time for copperplates. It is most unfortunate that he did not live to complete his projected publication. But in common candour let it not be forgotten that, the promise thus placed before us was published in 1663, not long before the devastating plague, which almost depopulated the metropolis in 1665, and the terrible conflagration of 1666, which laid waste the city of London; and that it was in the midst of the accumulated calamities thus inflicted on society, that his health appears to have suddenly given way; aged, harassed, disappointed, and dismayed, he was prematurely called to his long rest on the 3rd of April, 1667; but whether he died at Vauxhall, at the family town mansion, Worcester House, in the Strand, or at some other place is unknown; so little was he understood or esteemed for his intellectual capacity at the period of the Restoration. As though it were not a sufficient infliction to be ruined, dishonoured, oppressed, and neglected while living, it would almost appear that events conspired to lessen, if possible, the lustre of his memory by the dark shades of apocryphal history; which ascribed the invention of the steam-engine to the pretended fact of the Marquis while in imprisonment, having seen a pot lid blown off by the expanding steam; made out against him a false case of political forgery; and, worse than all, scandalously forged a letter in Paris to make it appear that in 1641 the Marquis borrowed his idea of the steam engine from Salomon De Caus, during a visit to the Bicêtre, at Paris. The fact that this same De Caus died at Paris, and was buried in the Church of La Trinité, in February, 1626;[2] shows how requisite it is for rogues to remember historical dates.

[2] See _Worcesteriana_, 8vo. 1866, page 257.

On the 3rd of June, in 1663, the Parliament passed an Act securing to the Marquis of Worcester the full benefit and profit of his "Water-commanding Engine," for the term of ninety-nine years. And in the same year he printed his memorable "Century," in the Dedication of which he alludes to the above Act, as one by which he feels "sufficiently rewarded."