18 April 1840. But although his rotatory motor was recognised to be sound in principle—‘a new and most ingenious means of applying a neglected, cheap, and almost boundless source of power’—it was not an industrial success. With characteristic judgment Armstrong sought a more attractive solution of his great problem.
In the autumn of the same year (1840) one William Patterson was employed on a fixed high-pressure steam-engine at Cramlington Colliery. When he put one hand on the safety valve, while the other was exposed to a jet of steam from a chink in the boiler, he experienced a shock. Many persons investigated the phenomenon, but Armstrong first arrived at correct conclusions, which were published in papers on ‘the electricity of effluent steam’ (Phil. Mag. 1841–3). He applied his results to the construction of a hydro-electric machine, which consisted essentially of an insulated boiler, from which steam at high pressure escaped through specially designed nozzles. This formed the most powerful means of generating electricity then known, and it is still used for the production of electricity of high tension. In 1844 ‘our talented young townsman’ gave two ‘very interesting lectures on hydro-electricity,’ and it is recorded that ‘the perspicuity of his language,’ his ‘ingenious and effectual’ illustrations, and ‘his happy manner of explaining . . . the subject could scarcely be excelled’ (Lit. and Phil. Soc. Report). The small hydro-electric machine used for these experiments was subsequently presented by Lord Armstrong to the Durham College of Science at Newcastle.
The uses and application of water at the time chiefly absorbed his attention, and he studied the subject in all its bearings with characteristic public spirit. As the population increased the Tyne became undrinkable, and the supply of pure water inadequate. In 1845 proposals were brought forward to form an accumulation reservoir at Whittle Dean, and to bring the water by 24-inch pipes, then the largest in the world, to Newcastle. Armstrong’s was the master mind which directed the movement (History of the Water Supply of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 1851). Messrs. Donkin, Stable, & Armstrong were the solicitors to the company, and at the first general meeting of shareholders, 28 July 1845, Armstrong was appointed secretary. The directors’ report presented to the second annual meeting, 25 Feb. 1847, announced his resignation with an expression of regret. About this time, in conjunction with Thomas Hawksley [q.v, Suppl.], he invented a self-acting valve, which is still extensively used by water companies, to close the pipe automatically when the velocity of the water passing through it exceeds a certain limit, so as to check the loss of water in case of a leak occurring beyond the valve. Armstrong’s interest in the Whittle Dean Water Company continued throughout his life. On the death of Mr. A. L. Potter in 1855 he was elected chairman. He held this office till 1867, and it was largely owing to his able direction that it developed into the important Newcastle and Gateshead Water Company.
‘Perseverance generally prevails’ was Armstrong’s favourite motto. For many years he considered the best way of employing water power before he arrived at the conclusion that water would be more useful as a means of distributing than of obtaining energy. On this principle he planned a crane, every motion of which was derived from hydraulic power. In 1845 he delivered three lectures to the Literary and Philosophical Society; the first and last treated respectively of the spheroidal state of liquids and the characteristics of electricity. The second (3 Dec.) was ‘on the employment of a column of water as a motive power for propelling machinery,’ It was illustrated by experiments: ‘a beautiful model, representing a portion of the quay of this town, with a crane upon it, adapted to work by the action of the water in the street pipes, was placed upon the floor.’ The model worked perfectly, but Armstrong ‘stated that he did not advocate the immediate adoption of his plan, because any plan, however useful, might be injured if forced prematurely forward before the age was ready to receive it.’ Nevertheless, on 14 Jan. 1846 he obtained permission from the corporation to erect an hydraulic crane at the head of the quay. This was so great a success in loading and discharging ships that on the following 9 Nov. he asked to be allowed to erect four others, at the same time making valuable suggestions for facilitating the handling of the merchandise of the port. Armstrong took out his first patent—for ‘apparatus for lifting, lowering, and hauling’—on 31 July 1846.
Armstrong’s scientific attainments were now widely recognised, and on 7 May 1846 he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society as ‘a gentleman well known as an earnest investigator of physical science, especially with reference to the electricity of steam and the hydro-electric machine.’ Among those who attested his qualifications were Faraday, Grove, and Wheatstone. Much
