Economy of this Invention It has been very generally and very justly remarked, that of the numerous speculators and projectors in me chanical inventions, very few, if almost any, derive be nefit or emolument either from their genius or their la bour ; but that those who succeed them very frequently do. The causes of this phenomenon are of the first im portance, to both the man of science, who devotes his time, his labour, and generally the most valuable part of his life to pursuits of this kind, and also to the capi talist, who, allured by the prospect of exorbitant profit, after expending large sums in untried speculations, ninety-nine times in a hundred finds his golden dream suddenly interrupted, and heavy loss the consequence of embarking in the dark, with no other guides to (bred. his course but cupidity and credulity. The experience of this invention affords a very fair, and, if properly con sidered, a very salutary, lesson to both these descrip tiOns of people; and the author of this article does not know how he can discharge a more important, or more useful duty, than to present to others the results of long and dearly purchased experience. In the expec tations of profit to be derived from every new inven tion, it is necessary, in the first instance, to examine, with as much accuracy as the nature of the business will admit, 1st, What is likely to prove the reduction of labour, and, consequently, of expellee attending the improve ment, supposing it to be completely successful.
2d, Of what nature is the business, and what pros pect does it present of employment, extension, and per manence.
3d, Under the peculiar circumstances of the case, what capital will it require, both to overcome the con stant impediments attendinz new experiments ; to ma tore the invention ; and, filially, to establish the upon such a scale of magnitude, as will ultimately IT mu Iterate the adventurers.
Respecting the first of these points, the prospects al tending the completion of this discovery were sufficient ly alluring. The tambouring business had been est blished in Scotland for upwards of twenty years, and might have been very safely assumed, that front twenty to thirty thousand people were either constantly or oc casionally employed in it. During all this period, al though, in common with every other branch of the mus lin manufacture, it had undergone occasional vicissi tudes, still, after every stagnation, it had constantly re vived, alai become equally or more flourishing than ever. Consequently, it seemed sufficiently rational to assume, that it had la come a permanently established trade in the country ; which, although subject to the vicissitudes common to all trades, and especially to those whose ba sis is rather founded on luxury than actual necessity, presented every prospect of holding a certain place in the general mass of manufactures at all times. It seem ed further warrant Who to conclude, that every improve ment, which, by diminishing labour, must ultimately lower the price of the commodity produced, would con tribute to its further extension, by bringing it within the reach of the most numerous class of the community, woo were withheld, not by want of desire, but by want of wealth, from obtaining it. The monopoly attending c possession of the exclusive right of manufacture, also held out the most flattering temptation to the pos sessors, by affording a prospect of bringing the whole trade almost under their immediate controul. Such prospects might very naturally be supposed to operate powerfully, both upon.thc inventor, and those who em
barked with him in the speculation ; and, indeed, it would have required a more than ordinary share of mo deration, not to have been sanguine in the anticipation of success.
Respecting the capital necessary. it was more difficult to form any precise or definite idea. Much must de pend on the scale of magnitude upon which the busi ness was to he conducted, and how soon its returns would be sufficient to furnish the means of its own ex tension, as far as prudence would warrant. When the business was begun, the first difficulty which presented itself, was the most proper means of providing the re quisite machinery. At this time the patent had not been taken, and it became necessary, therefore, that a me chanical establishment should be provided, both in or der to preserve the'secret until legally secured, and to furnish the means of executing, with facility and dis patch, such improvements as must be constantly sug gesting themselves in an infant undertaking.
The number of mechanics, and the tools and mate rials necessary for their work, required a very great ex penditure before any return could be expected ; and with the difficulties attendant on first experiments, it was upwards of twelve months before eight machines were completed. Mien the machines were set to work, al most the whole depended upon keeping the needles in a proper working state ; and from the similarity of their construction, men bred to the stocking manufacture, were deemed the fittest for this purpose. But in order to induce these men to abandon the profession to which they had been bred, it was necessary, in the first in stance, to hold out at least some stimulus of advantage; consequently the wages were high, generally about se ventecn or eighteen shillings weekly. With the disad vantages of a new business, and the impossibility of at once paying wages proportional to the quantity of work, this large sum in a great measure counteracted the di minution of price produced by the quantity wrought by the machine, and the work was not very greatly cheaper than that done in the ordinary way. In order to get rid of this, which in a great degree counteracted the saving, it was proposed to employ boys, who might be procured for five or six shillings a week, and merely keep one or two men as superintendants. The reduction of price now became much greater, and the business afforded a much fairer prospect of success; but as the formation of the pattern was still entirely at the discretion of the worker, it was found almost impracticable to get giddy children to pay proper attention to the quality of the work. Conscious that if these defects were not reme died, the improvement must be still inefficient, the in ventor set himself to contrive some means by which the pattern might be subjected to regular mechanical laws, instead of discretionary operations, upon the accuracy of which certain reliance could not be placed, and had proceeded to a certain extent with his improvements, when he was dispatched to London to procure the patent, and execute the specification. Upon his return, the im provements were completed, and he now indulged the flattering hope that he had at length matured his inven tion. The other partners, entering into his views, pur chased the lease of a large house, with a steam engine, and removed the work to the new situation. Two ma chines were immediately set to work, and, besides great improvement in the work, the average quantity was more than tripled.