The Story of Brunel

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22356, 29 February 1936, Page 5 (Supplement)

The Story of Brunel

THE MAN WHO BUILT THE FIRST THAMES TUNNEL

CHAPTER 11.

"DRTJNEL and his companions had many hardships during the surveying expedition but they, were friendly with the Indians, and did their work so well that Brunei was engaged to survey a line for a canal connecting the Hudson River with Lake Champlain. It was the turning point in the young engineer's' life, and he was soon appointed Chief Engineer of New York. For several years he did good work in America, organising the sea defences of New York, but the desire to see England was too strong for him to resist, and in 1799 he bade farewell to America. In March he landed at i' almouth with letters of introduction to many' famous people.

Brunei and Miss Kingdom were married, and it is pleasant to know that nearly half a century later, when he had become famous, he wrote to his wife: "To you, my dearest Sophia, I am indebted for all my success." Two months after landing in England he took out his first patent, which was for a drawing apparatus something like the pantograph, and a little later he invented a machine for winding cotton thread into balls. This gave a tremendous stimulus to the use of cotton, but, while thousands of pounds were realised by manufacturers from its use, Brunei made nothing out of it, as he had failed to protect the invention. Everything interested him. One of his ingenious contrivances was a machine for shuttling cards for a feeblehanded friend. But his principal invention at this time was a machine for making blocks for pulleys used on ships. At the beginning of the nineteenth century these blocks were all cut by hand, and the needs of tho Navy wero so great that contractors were unable to cope with the flood of orders. Brunei produced an apparatus which would turn out the blocks, not only more rapidly, but more accurately than they could be made by hand, and he expected the contractors would take up his invention with eager enthusiasm. But he bad a rude shock, for they opposed his machine with might and main, fearing that if tho apparatus were adopted the price of blocks would come down and they would lose their monopoly.

But Brunei was not to be beaten. Ho obtained introduction to the Admiralty, and after a great deal of trouble he managed to get his invention adopted by the Government. He was to receive a guinea a day and travelling expenses during the erection of the apparatus, and additional remuneration was to bo decided when it was proved what the machine could do. Still, however, every obstacle was placed in his way. Competent mechanics could not be obtained, and the authorities did not help him. Yet he triumphed over all difficulties in'spite of them, and when tho machine was completed it was able to make all the blocks the whole of the British Navy wanted. Even now every kind of petty obstacle was placed by tho authorities in tho way of Brunei, and the delay in paying him for his splendid services so affected his mind and health that he was attacked by a nervous fever, which laid him low for weeks. He had literally to beg for his living, urging pathetically upon the mighty Lords of the Admiralty the needs of his family; and when at last a payment was made it was for £IOOO only, which did not cover the cost of models, drawings and experiments. Yet in the first year alone the country had saved £24,000 through Brunei's work, and ten men, by the aid of his machine, could do more and better work than 110 men before. Eventually the inventor was paid £17,000, a miserably inadequate reward, when we remember the huge pensions that were being granted to politicians. , . | Brunei now made a series of useful inventions, including a machine foi bending timber and a circular saw, which roused tho ire of the sawyers, at that time an influential class. Brunei was loudly denounced as a foreigner. That was an abuse ho had often had to put up with. Once, when giving evidence in a court of law, counsel tried to discredit him because he \vas a foreigner. , _ , ~ " You are a Frenchman, I believe, Mr. Brunei," said tho lawyer. " Oh, yes," replied Brunei, 1 am from Normandy, the country from which your oldest nobility derive their titles. After erecting sawmills for the Government ho built a mill for himself <it Battersea. Then, in 1809, he saw the remains of Sir John Moore s gallant army land at Bortsniouth, and learned that it was largely for want of shoes

that the army had sustained its heavy losses. The poor soldiers had had to drag their mutilated limbs along with lacerated feet wrapped in rags bound round with string, partly owing to the roguery of contractors, who swindled the Government, and partly owing to tho fact that it was impossible to get shoes made fast enough for the armies in the field. Brunei thought out the question of machinery for making boots, and in 1811 he patented the first boot-making machine the world had ever seen. It was tho parent of all the marvellous machinery that now exists in this trade —perhaps tho most wonderful machinery in tho world. But he was just too late, for as he was ready the war ended, and Brunei lost over £3OOO, besides having expensive factory premises left on his hands. Ho petitioned the Treasury to grant him £4500 toward his losses, but all in vain. His sawmills at Battersea were almost totally destroyed by fire in 1814, and from that time he met with great financial trouble, until, seven years later, ho was actually thrown into prison for debt. Thero ho remained for months, until tho Government was induced to make him a grant of £SOOO to pay his debts and get him out. Before going to prison ho had been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, and somo years after coming out of prison ho was to become a vicepresident, the only foreigner who had held that office. (To be Continued.)