WATT AND PIRATE ENGINES

WILLIAM SYMINGTON AND JAMES WATT'S PATENT

SYMINGTON'S PIRATE ENGINES

In 1769 James Watt patented the most significant advance in steam engine design since the advent of the Newcomen engine - the invention of the separate condenser. This patent was extended for 25 years by an Act of Parliament on 22 May 1775 which conferred to Boulton and Watt the exclusive right to "make, use and vend" the steam engines of his invention. ^[1] Thereafter, the Birmingham firm of Boulton and Watt would dominate the field of steam engine manufacture. In protecting their monopoly, the company spent much of the 1790's in litigation against their competitors whom Watt labelled in his correspondence as antagonists, aggressors and "hordes of pirates". ^[2]

INDUSTRIAL ESPIONAGE

Watt kept his competitors under close surveillance. He was well aware of William Symington's engines, which he regarded as "pirate engines", which infringed his own patent and which were "attempts to evade our exclusive privileges". ^[3] Boulton and Watt engaged their employees, notably James Lawson, engine erector and engineer, and John Rennie to spy on the engines built by their competitors. John Rennie closely examined Symington's Bay mine engine at Wanlockhead in 1791 and reported back to Watt with his findings which are now held in the Boulton and Watt Archive in Birmingham.

WATT'S PATENT

Enrolled on 29 April 1769, James Watt's patent Number 913 was for his "NEW INVENTED METHOD OF LESSENING THE CONSUMPTION OF STEAM AND FUEL IN FIRE ENGINES." The description of the invention lists a number of improvements on the Newcomen steam engine which was then in common use; the single most important was his invention of the separate condenser.

In his patent narrative, Watt offered a series of basic principles but he gave no mechanical details or any description of the apparatus and the patent document was not supported by any plans or illustrations. Watt's key innovation of the separate condenser was itemised as the second of a total of seven so-called "principles" which were designed to reduce the consumption of steam and fuel. The first of these was that the cylinder was to be kept hot by enclosing it in a wooden case and by various other means. Relegated to second place was the concept of the separate condenser: “Secondly, in engines that are to be worked wholly or partially by condensation of steam, the steam is to be condensed in vessells distinct from the steam vessells or cylinders, although occasionally communicating with them. These vessells I call condensers, and whilst the engines are working, these condensers ought at least to be kept as cold as the air in the neighbourhood of the engines by application of water or other cold bodies." The third concept related to the use of a pump to remove condensate the "air pump", "whatever air or other elastic vapour is not condensed by the cold of the condenser, and may impede the working of the engine, is to be drawn out of the steam vessells or condensers, by means of pumps wrought by the engines themselves, or otherwise.” The fourth related to employing "the expansive force of steam to press on the pistons." Watt's fifth principle concerns a method of achieving circular motion which is incomprehensible without a diagram. The sixth was to somehow work engines by the alternate contraction and expansion of steam. His final "principle" related to sealing the piston and other engine parts with a range of substances including oil, wax and animal fat.

WILLIAM SYMINGTON'S 1787 PATENT

In 1787 William Symington was awarded Patent Number 1610 for his "Steam Engine, on Principles Entirely New." The description of his invention is illustrated by three detailed coloured drawings. (See the separate section on this patent) William's concept of a new form of steam engine comprised an adaptation of the Newcomen engine with a condensing chamber incorporated in the base of the cylinder and separated from the working chamber by a second piston. William regarded his design as an improvement on the "old fire engine" invented by Newcomen; he believed that his engine was simpler and more effective than a Watt engine.

THE SYMINGTON PIRATE ENGINE FILE

Within the Boulton and Watt Archive which is kept at the Birmingham Library is a section relating to engines built by other engineers, the so-called pirate engines. ^[4] The file dedicated to the engines of William Symington contains the following items:

1. A hand written report on Symington's new engine at Wanlockhead, dated Lead Hills, 25 May 1791: " We are now pretty well satisfied the improvement of the Fire Engine found out by our neighbour Mr. Symington will ans.r the Expectation he & his friends form from it…." The report is unsigned but is unmistakably in the hand of John Rennie. Rennie was surprised to see evidence of the apparent reduction in the consumption of coal as compared with the Watt engine.

2. "Description of Symington's Engine": A handwritten description, unsigned and not dated, but prepared for William Symington: "Mr. Symington's improved Steam Engine mentioned…

3. A Plan of Mr Symington's engine at Mr Walkers, Bakers row, Coldbath fields which depicts an engine with a cylinder measuring 22 inches in diameter, with a four foot stroke.

Watt would have been well aware of William Symington's experiments with the steam engine from the summer of 1786, when William demonstrated his model steam carriage in Edinburgh. Watt was troubled when he received intelligence that a Symington engine was to be erected at Wanlockhead. On 28 September 1787, Watt wrote to Boulton "as soon as they can rely fully on the new engine, the old one is to be pulled down and Symington is to put up one of his in the engine house, and on that answering ours is to be stopt." Matthew Boulton, responding from Chacewater on 1 Oct. 1787, wrote to reassure James Watt, at Harper's Hill, Birmingham: "as to Symington's new Engine I have no doubt but it will go the same road as his Wheel Carg. & therefore don't vex but let it go". ^[5] Watt must have been less than thrilled when his friend, Professor John Robison, wrote to him from Edinburgh on 7 February 1788 with the news: "I hear that Symington's engine at Wanlockhead is working very well, giving ten strokes of eight feet per minute, with a load of twelve pounds, but I am told that the steam supports a Column of water five feet high" ^[6]

LITIGATION

The firm of Boulton and Watt became heavily involved in litigation throughout the 1790's.

Watt elected to pursue the larger engine builders who posed the greater threat. Legal action was initiated against a number of competitors, notably in 1793 against Edward Bull who had been an engine erector for Boulton and Watt who was building engines in Cornwall ^[7] and later against the firm of Hornblower and Maberly. In Lancashire, Bateman and Sherratt of Salford were the main opponents who were doing a "roaring trade". ^[8] Sherratt built the engine for the Duke of Bridgewater's trial steamboat, the Buonaparte.

Watt enlisted the support of such luminaries as Professor John Robison. On 11 October 1796, Watt wrote to Robison in Edinburgh complaining: "Ever since the Engine business was supposed to be profitable, Boulton and Watt have been molested with pirates of the invention", and seeking his support and asking him to affirm that "the method to be of my invention and not used or practised by others at that time."

The court proceedings were protracted, with legal opinion at first divided as to the soundness and validity of Watt's 1769 patent. In 1796, Boulton and Watt pursued an action against engine builders Hornblower and Maberly in the Court of Common Pleas. Having lost in the Court of Common Pleas, Hornblower and Maberly brought a writ of error against Boulton and Watt. The case was referred to the Court of the King's Bench which ultimately established the validity of Watt's patent in 1799. ^[9]

Watt had been granted Letters Patent in 1769, within the jurisdiction of England and Wales and the town of Berwick upon Tweed, for his "Method of Lessening the Consumption of Steam & Fuel in Fire Engines." In his description of the invention, Watt enumerated a series of concepts or "principles" but he did not describe the mechanism or construction of the condenser and air pump. His description lacked detail and precision and Watt provided no plans to illustrate his concepts. The concept of the separate condenser was but one aspect mentioned in his series of "principles".

Years later, the engineer John Farey (1791-1851) wrote in his seminal work on the Steam Engine, published in 1827, that Watt's patent specification was "a series of definitions of principles of action, insufficient without any description of the means of putting them into effect" and that the court should have been considered the patent to be invalid. A principle was not a patentable invention, yet the Courts of the day had found in Watt's favour. ^[10]

No legal action was ever initiated against William Symington. On 5 January 1796, Watt wrote to his son, James Watt Junior, warning him of the danger of "making too free with injunctions" and instructing him not to proceed against "small pirates." Furthermore, he realised that there was no certainty that Symington had infringed Watt's patent: "we did not attack Symington because his invasion was not so clear & because his engines were bad ones & very expensive". ^[11] There was also some uncertainty whether Watt's patent would encompass engines built in Scotland.

There is no evidence to confirm that William Symington made any deliberate attempt to evade Watt's patent. William Symington had set out to design a simpler and more efficient steam engine and was a very young engineer when he experimented with and modified the Watt engine at Wanlockhead. Thereafter he patented his own concept which was an attempt to improve and simplify the Watt engine and which eliminated the need for a separate air pump.

In 1801 William Symington patented his unique system for boat propulsion which he employed in the steam tug "Charlotte Dundas" in 1803. His patent was for "A New Method of Constructing Steam Engines" but the mechanism he described was "peculiarly adapted for navigating boats, vessels, or rafts in canals or rivers." He believed that he had patented a general concept of steam propulsion. However, his specification described a quite specific mechanical system comprising an engine with a horizontal cylinder which drove a wheel through a crankshaft. When he took legal action against Henry Bell he found that his patent offered no protection and his challenge to Bell failed. It was ironic that his detailed description of the mechanism was no protection, yet the broader concept of the steam boat could not be patented. His patent was useless.

REFERENCES

Dickinson, H. W. and Jenkins, Rhys, James Watt and the Steam Engine 1927

Muirhead, James Patrick, The Life of James Watt with Selections from his Correspondence. Second Edition. London 1859

Robinson, E. and McKie, Douglas, Editors, Partners in Science Letters of James Watt and Joseph Black Constable, London 1970

Williamson, George, Memorials of James Watt Constable, Printed for the Watt Club 1856

^[1] 15 Geo. III, clxi, London (1775)

^[2] Robinson, E. and McKie, Douglas, Editors, Partners in Science Letters of James Watt and Joseph Black Constable, London, 1970

^[3] Williamson, George, Memorials of James Watt, Watt Club, 1856 page 219, Letter dated 24 April 1790 from Watt to Robert Cullen, Patrick Miller's Advocate in Edinburgh

^[4] Boulton and Watt Archive MS 3147/5/1353b, Pirate and Other Engineer's Engines 1780-1799

^[5] Boulton and Watt Archives MS 3147/3/11 Number 9

^[6] Robinson, Eric and McKie, Douglas, Eds., Partners in Science James Watt & Joseph Black London 1970 Pages 161 and 162 letter 113

^[7] Blackstone, Henry, Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Courts of Common Pleas and Exchequer Chamber 5^th Edition London 1837 Boulton and Watt v Bull pages 463-500

^[8] Boulton to Southern 29 May 1796

^[9] Durnford, T. Charles and East, Edward Hyde, Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Court of King's Bench… Volume 8 Philadelphia 1811 Hornblower and Maberly v Boulton and Watt pages 95-108

^[10] Farey, John, A Treatise on the Steam Engine, Historical, Practical, and Descriptive. London 1827, pages 649-650

^[11] Boulton and Watt Archives MS 3147/3/25 Number 19 (Industrial Revolution Series One, Reel 200 1787)

APPENDIX 1

JOHN RENNIE'S REPORT ON THE SYMINGTON ENGINE AT WANLOCKHEAD

Descriptn of Symington's Engine Lead Hills 25 May 1791

We are now pretty well satisfied the improvement of the Fire Engine found out by our neighbour Mr. Symington will ans.r the Expectation he & his friends form from it.

The Experiment which was tried upon Messrs. B.&W. Engine here gave them so much encouragement that the mining Gentlemen in whose employment he was at WanlockHead have erected a new one on Symington's plan, executed entirely by his directions.

The Cylinder was 44 I. diar. & the working Barrell is 14 I. diar. & the depth to be lifted is 40 fathoms- having met with the water in this shaft they are now sinking with the Engine which at present draws 37 fathoms, burning no more than 10 of our loads of coal in 24 Hours- Each load being 12 Dutch stones, equal to 1.2.16 and makes 7 strokes in 2 Minutes. On calculation I think you will find that 40 fathoms of a 14I. Pump will be equal to 10 lbs pI. of the Cylinder- The Model which he first made worked 11 lbs to the Inch & we have no doubt but this Engine w.d exceed that so much that they may go 5 or 6 fathoms deeper than they first intended- I will endeavour to give you what Idea I can of the Engine- The Cylinder is open at the Top like the old Engines & the Piston works without any water upon it, having a very simple Contrivance, which seems to ansr. The purpose of water, by means of which if the Piston is not tight at any time it draws steam & not air- The Cylinder is 11 feet long; in the Bottom of which is a Piston that he calls the Medium, making a Partition between the steam & the cold water- The Cylinder Bottom is immersed in cold water for a few Inches covering 2 valves in the Bottom Flanch of the Cylinder, which at the Front of the Cylinder is produced for 18 or 20 Inches in order to admit steam when the steam valve is open & allows the Piston to ascend- The Elasticity of the steam in the Cylinder presses down the medium 6 or 8 Inches, which forces out at the above valves the Injection Water & condensed steam of the preceding stroke-The water that in the old Engine feeds the Boiler being thus made almost cold, by mixing with the water in which the bottom of the Cylinder stands, he is under the Necessity of lifting it with a small Pump & carrying it thro' the flues to be heated & then rises up into his cistern to feed the Boiler- There is a spiral flue of 14 I. round the Cylinder by which can be admitted either part or the whole of the heat of the fire after it has passed round the Boiler-I observe that the Cylinder is kept so hot that little or no Condensation appears in it between the strokes, even at the interval of the stroke

The same mining Company have an……….

3&4 years ago, the Cylinder of which is 55 Inches Diar & they consider that Burden on the 2 Engines equal, the Pump being 12 I. diar. & the depth 56 fathoms, the stroke of both Engines 8 feet-

When Symington's Engine was set to work B&W's burning 15 loads of Coals in 12 Hours & Symington's was at the same number of strokes, the water being turned into the shaft for that purpose, & it did not burn quite 7 Loads, B&W's is in good Condition.

I did not believe there to be so much difference till I saw the size of the Fire on the Grate, the smallness of which surpris'd me.

If I understand right I think that no more steam is wasted when the Engine is minded properly than what it takes to fill the Cylinder every stroke.

APPENDIX 2

WILLIAM SYMINGTON'S OWN DESCRIPTION OF HIS ENGINE IN B&W PAPERS

Mr Symington's improved Steam engine mentioned in the printed paper, works by the pressure of the atmosphere, having an open Cylinder, as in the old Engine. The principal improvement is in the condensation of the Steam by a new and simple method. This is effected by introducing a Second Piston into the Cylinder which moves betwixt the Steam passage and the bottom; & below which the steam is condensed. Its uses are to prevent the injection water from jeting high into the Cylinder, to prevent the steam from being condensed when filling the Cylinder, by coming in contact with the injection water thrown in the preceding stroke, & by its descent, to expel that water thro a valve placed for that purpose. The motions of this piston are produced without in the least degree extracting from the power of the Engine, and experience hath shewn it to be the most compleat method of producing a vacuum adapted in the Steam Engine; for, when loaded with 12 lb upon each square in in the are (sic) of the piston, this Engine can with ease perform fourteen eight feet strokes per minute, upon a consumption of coal as little as that of the most improved Engine in use. It remedies the imperfection of the Old Engine, & as neither air nor hot water pumps are used,

Almost equal in Simplicity which renders it easily managed and kept in repair.

Mr. Symington, the Inventor of this Engine, having been equally attentive to saving of Fire, and increase of Power, obtained these Ends by a simple Construction, and Method of condensing the Steam, so that at each Stroke as perfect a Vacuum is produced as the Nature of Steam and Water will admit, and any Person acquainted with the common old Fire Engine may easily manage and keep this one in Repair. By a comparative Trial betwixt Mr. watt's and this Engine, at Wanlockhead Lead Mines, in Scotland, in the Course of las Summer, it appeared, both Engines having a Cylinder 36 Inches diameter; consuming the same quantity of Coal, and making an equal Number of Eight Strokes per Minute, Mr. Symington's wrought with a Power equal to12 lib. For each Square Inch contained in the Area of the Piston; whilst Mr. Watt's wrought with a Power equal only to 9 ½ lib. Per Square Inch; that is to say, his Engine did at least one fifth more Work than Mr. Watt's, upon the same Consumption of Fuel.

Having secured his property by Patent, he offers the Use of this much Improved Engine, and its various Application by a new and advantageous rotatory Motion, to all those who are concerned in Mines, Stamps, Water Works, Draining of Fens & Lakes, Grist Mills, Saw Mills, Breweries, or other Manufactories which require great Mechanical Power. He intends to give, make and put it up, upon most reasonable Terms.

The following notes are written on the plan for Mr. Walker's engine:

Mr Symingtons Engine at Mr Walkers, Bakers row, Coldbath fields

turns, 1 pair small edge staves 3 feet diar.- say 3 turns p.

2 grinding mortars like snuff mills-for white lead about 20 turns pmi. – 2 stamp heads slow

1 pair six feet edge staves- 1 pair Rollers about 8 inch 2 feet long

pumps its own water 300 ? on ? piston

1 pair horizontal staves for white lead about 2 feet diar. about 25 turns pmi.