"arch formed by trees, you see the church in which he was "interred, and no other object whatsoever except the monuIt is a sarcophagus standing upon a pedestal, on "ment. M: S: Gulielmi Small, M.D. MDCCLXXV. ❝ and upon the pedestal are inscribed some verses written by “Dr. Darwin, a copy of which, with a slight sketch of the "view from one of the windows of the building, I herewith "Ye gay and young, who, thoughtless of your doom, "If chance ye enter these sequester'd groves, "For Science, Virtue, and for SMALL she mourns.' Mr. Day also, who had hastened to England from Brussels as soon as he heard of the severe illness of his friend, (although unfortunately too late to be present with him in his last hour), and whose mind was long in recovering from the gloom caused by the loss of one whom he had always venerated as a wise and faithful instructor, composed the following epitaph on his "guide, philosopher, and friend:"— Beyond the rage of Time, or Fortune's power, *That of St. Philip, Birmingham. "O taught on reason's boldest wings to rise, "O friend to truth, to virtue, and mankind! The "sepulchred grove" of Soho has fallen; the "sarco"phagus," -or, rather, cenotaph, has perished; and the romantic grounds surrounding Mr. Boulton's mansion, with their woods and waters, little more than a century ago an unpeopled and uncultured waste, then transformed into a series of smiling gardens and shaded lawns, have now become the site of other houses, multiplying in proportion to the immense development of the steam-engine and its results in that central and busy district of our great manufacturing country. But not so soon will be forgotten the refinement of mind, the ardour in scientific pursuits, the community of sentiments, and the warmth of friendship, which long cheered those scenes with their sunshine, and seem still to visit them with a distant gleam. The passing of the Act of Parliament which ensured to Mr. Watt and his assignees the exclusive right to "make, use, "exercise, and vend" the steam-engines of his invention, now enabled him to arrange finally with Mr. Boulton the system on which their partnership and proposed manufacture of engines should be conducted. Of the great difficulties that still remained to be overcome in the further prosecution of their undertaking, we may form some faint estimate from the remarkable fact, that "at the period of the construction "of the first steam-engine upon the new principles at Soho, "the intelligent and judicious Smeaton, who had been invited "to satisfy himself of the superior performance of the engine by his own experiments upon it, and had been convinced of "its great superiority over Newcomen's, doubted the practicability of getting the different parts executed with the requi"site precision; and augured, from the extreme difficulty of 66 66 * Account of the Life and Writings of Thomas Day, Esq.' (by Mr. Keir), p. 93. 1791. "attaining this desideratum, that this powerful machine, in "its improved form, would never be generally introduced. Such," adds the relator of this curious anecdote, the late Mr. Boulton, "was at that period the low state of the me"chanic arts, as fully to justify his opinion; but a school of "workmen, in every relevant branch, was speedily and successfully instituted, and the forms and construction of the "machine were perfected with a skill and accuracy till then "unknown in the execution of large machinery." 66 The general curiosity that had begun to be excited throughout England as to the nature and comparative utility of the new engines, gave promise of at least a fair remuneration, if they could be successfully manufactured. So far back as 1771, Dr. Small had written to Mr. Watt,-" At present I am "to tell you something of consequence, about which it will "be proper to speak with Dr. Roebuck, to whom I offer my "best respects. A friend of Boulton and me in Cornwall "sent us word four days ago that four or five copper-mines "are just going to be abandoned, because of the high price of "coals, and begs me to apply to them instantly. The York Building Company delay rebuilding their engine, with great "inconvenience to themselves, waiting for yours. Yesterday application was made to me, by a mining company in Derbyshire, to know when you are to be in England about fire"engines; because they must quit their mine if you cannot "relieve them." And, in April, 1775, "There are several "engines," says Mr. Boulton, "now wanted in Cornwall; "some of the proprietors of mines are impatient to know the " event of our Bill and the terms we will propose. I have "ventured to say to Mr. Glover, (who was requested to wait 66 66 66 66 upon us on that subject), that we will undertake and contract "to make an engine or engines capable of doing any quantity "of work that shall be requested and described, for as little money as common engines will cost that are capable of "doing as much work; and we will guarantee them to do "that work with half the expense of fuel that common ones Speech at the Public Meeting in Freemasons' Hall, in 1824. 66 66 "will require, provided we are allowed a sum that shall be "equal to its further savings over and above the said half." In August or September, 1775, "Wilkinson hath been here, "and says that all his neighbours are impatient to see the " event of his engine. Some, he says, have suspended their "new erections until his is finished; and all of them, he "is sure, will have their engines altered, which he says "will be a better trade than new erections, and that work "alone will be sufficient for our lives." In March, 1776, "I rejoice at the well-doing of Willey engine," (that which had been made for Mr. Wilkinson), " as I now hope and "flatter myself that we are at the eve of a fortune. I wish "to see you at Soho as soon as possible; there are many things want you, and I find myself exceedingly hurried. People are daily coming to see the engines. Cornwall "begins to inquire how we go on. I will reserve particulars " until I see you." And, later in the same year, “I have an application for an engine from a distiller at Bristol, to raise "15,000 ale gallons per hour 60 feet high; I have another "for a coal mine in Wales, another for a Mr. Langdale, of "Holborn, a distiller, and another for Mr. Liptrap, at Mile "End, a distiller." "If we had a hundred wheels ready made, " and a hundred small engines like Bow engine, and twenty large ones executed, we could readily dispose of them." "We have a positive order for an engine for Ting-Tang mine, "and from what I heard this day from Mr. Glover, we may "soon expect other orders from Cornwall. Our plot begins "to thicken apace, and if Mr. Wilkinson don't bustle a little "as well as ourselves, we shall not gather our harvest before "sunset. * I perceive we shall be hard pushed in "engine work, but I have no fears of being distanced, when "once the exact course or best track is determined upon." 66 66 Yet, even then, the expectations of both the partners were very far indeed from being exorbitant, as to the profits to be derived from the important branch of manufacture on which they were preparing to enter. "It may be difficult," writes Mr. Boulton to Mr. Watt, in July, 1776,-more than a year after the Act of Parliament had been obtained,-" to say |