Page History: Early History of Wood-Working Machines (1870)
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Page Revision: 2012/12/09 20:16
A portion of the historical matter contained in the
Construction and Operation of Wood Working Machines, prepared by the editor of this Journal in 1870, having recently been several times quoted without even acknowledgment of its source, it has been decided to reprint the matter here, or so much of it as may have an interest to our readers. It will be proper to say that a good many of the facts presented are derived from a memoir of Sir Samuel Bentham, prepared by his wife, a very rare book, of which a copy was presented to the author by George Bentham, Esq., director of the Kew Botanical Gardens, London, son of Sir Samuel Bentham.
"As Bentham's inventions constitute nearly all that was known of wood-cutting machines in the eighteenth century, their history at that period cannot be much else than an account of his labors and inventions, which we are sorry to say, comes down to us only through his patents and scraps of history gathered from the record of the English dockyards, where his machines were first applied to public use.
Brigadier-General Samuel Bentham, Inspector-General of the naval works of England, received a thorough classical, and it is presumed, scientific education, at the Westminster School of London, which no doubt ranked high as an institution of learning at that time (1770). After completing his education, his predilection for naval affairs led to his being bound to the master-shipwright of Woolwich Dockyard, where he served the regular apprenticeship of seven years, becoming familiar with all kinds of practical manipulation in wood and metal, and receiving the best scientific instruction that could then be obtained. After completing the term of his apprenticeship at Woolwich, he spent some eighteen months in visiting other dockyards, to familiarize himself with peculiarities of their tools and work not known at Woolwich.
In 1779 Bentham was directed by the Government to make a tour in the north of Europe to examine the progress of ship-building and other arts. During this tour, while in Russia, he invented the first planing machine for wood, at least the first that could be called an organized operating machine. There is no doubt but that this was the original conception of a machine for smoothing the surface and giving dimensions to wood. It is to be regretted that no accurate description of the invention, so far as perfected at that date, has been preserved. Whether it operated by what, in his subsequent patents, he terms "rotative" motion, or whether it was a reciprocating machine, is, so far as the author can learn, left to conjecture. It would, however, be inferred from his first patent in England, of 1791, that it worked upon the later principle, for "planing and making mouldings" by some means that bore a close analogy to the hand operations of the times. He communicated his invention to the British Ambassador at St. Petersburg, who advised him to keep his invention for England, which seems to have been done, as there is no account of his having made any public use of it while in Russia. He afterwards accepted a military commission in Russia, with the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel, and became the manager, or commandant, of extensive factories for the production of glass, metals, cordage, works in wood, etc. His very successful management of these works would, from accounts, lead us to suppose that he invented many new and useful machines ; but of these there seems (in England) to be no record. He returned to England in 1791, about which time his brother, Jeremy Bentham, the celebrated writer on political economy, had received from the Government an appointment to introduce industrial prisons in England. This kind of labor being almost devoid of skill, the talents of his brother were called into use to devise machines that would make the labor more profitable, and at the same time replace, to some extent, the want of skill of the convicts. To construct these machines, most of which were for working wood, the residence of Jeremy Bentham at Queen's Square Place, Westminster (now a part of London), was, with its capacious outhouses, converted into the first manufactory of wood-cutting machines. 103 years ago this factory was established, and, as we are informed, was not found to be sufficiently large, and a building, No. 19, York Street, was also occupied, which would lead us to suppose that a great many machines were made, and that the extent of the business fully entitles it to the distinction of being called the first general factory of such machines. Professor Willis, in a lecture before the Society of Arts in 1852, states that 'there were constructed machines for all general operations in wood-work, including planing, moulding, rebating, grooving, mortising and sawing, both in coarse and fine work, in curved, winding, and transverse directions, shaping wood in complicated forms, and that further, as an example, that all parts of a highly-finished window-sash were prepared, also all the parts of an ornamental carriage-wheel were made, so that nothing remained to be done by hand but to put the component parts together.' These machines were examined by members of His Majesty's Administration, and received official notice and commendation in the House of Commons in 1794. Sir Samuel Bentham was next commissioned to visit different dockyards, and to detemine how far his machines could be applied to facilitate ship-building. At this time he refused a flattering offer from the Emperor of Russia, in order to accept this commission, choosing rather to give his country the benefit of his services than to reap a greater pecuniary reward that awaited him in Russia.
His report was no doubt very favorable as to the employment of machines, but it was not until 1797 that the Admiralty consented to their introduction. It should have been mentioned that during the time of his manufacture of machines at Westminster and York Street, patents were taken out describing all the different operations performed. After the Admiralty decided to adopt his machines in 1797, they were manufactured under the direction of Jeremy Bentham, and forwarded from time to time to Portsmouth and Plymouth, where they performed, so far as any record shows, all that was claimed for them.
The bills specify lathes, saws, machines for cutting, tenons for boring, also for boring bitts and squaring tools, 'and many other machines for different kinds of work.' Machines were also devised by Bentham to facilitate block making, an operation that is yet classed among the most difficult, His machines, however, for this purpose did not seem to be perfect, for in 1810 he was joined by Brunei who had invented a machine for "shaping block shells." Brunei was at that time employed under Bentham to assist in the various operations, and to perfect his own machine, which must have had the endorsement of Bentham. In 1803, Sir Samuel, as Inspector General, advised the Admiralty to adopt many additional machines that had already been approved, and to permit the erection of steam engines to drive them, and they were accordingly ordered. The several dockyards were fitted with engines for sawing, planing, boring, tenoning, mortising, etc., and apart from better construction and the greater experience in their use, it is fail to infer they had nearly all the functions found in modern machines for these purposes. Their labor-saving capacity is sufficiently attested by the fact that Brunei, who had perfected and assisted in their construction and operation, was rewarded by being allowed, as a premium for his inventions, the estimated savings of one year's work over hand labor in the dockyards, which amounted, as we are informed, to the very large sum of 16,000 pounds sterling.
In 1813 arbitrators were appointed on the part of the Government to settle with Jeremy Bentham, who, after the examination of numerous witnesses, allowed him the sum of ,£20,000 for machines furnished to the dockyards and penitentiaries. From the testimony given before this commission we learn that 'Sir Samuel Bentham prepared a system of machinery for the employment of men without skill. In 1793 patents were taken out on these inventions. The testimony states that no skill was required in the use of these machines; they were introduced into the dockyards and worked by common laborers.' The use of the machine saved nine tenths of the labor. ‘A table could be made at one half the expense by their use,' etc., which goes to show that the machines were at least effective.
The machines and appliances for working wood that were invented and practically applied by Sir Samuel Bentham previous to the year 1800 may be enumerated as follows:
Machine for planing and forming mouldings — Improved planing and moulding machine (rotary)—Wedging guard for circular saws — Segmental circular saw — Conical cutters for dovetail grooves — Undulating carriage, to form wave mouldings — Compound cutter heads to work two or more sides at once — The slide rest — Tubular boring implements (core boring) — Crown saws (or cylinder saws) — Reciprocating mortise machine — Rotary mortising machine — Radius arm for sawing segments — Tracer guide for sawing irregular forms — Bevel and curvilinear sawing — Machine for grinding saw-blades —Taper gauge for sawing — Grooving table — Vertical adjustment of saws in benches — T rebating machine — Sectional cutters — Pivoted table for mortise machines — Forked or double mortise chisels — Gauge lathe, with slide rest — Rotary cutter for forming screw threads on wooden screws — Double grooving saws — Rack feed for planing machines — With many other things."
Information Sources
- Industry Magazine Apr 1894, pages 215-217