Fulton and Bell afterwards showed the power of
steamboats in navigating the rivers of America and Britain.
After various experiments, it was proposed to unite England and
America by steam. Dr. Lardner, however, delivered a lecture
before the Royal Institution in 1838, "proving" that steamers
could never cross the Atlantic, because they could not carry
sufficient coal to raise steam enough during the voyage. But
this theory was also tested by experience in the same year, when
the Sirius, of London, left Cork for New York, and made the
passage in nineteen days. Four days after the departure of the
Sirius, the Great Western left Bristol for New York, and made the
passage in thirteen days five hours.[1] The problem was solved;
and great ocean steamers have ever since passed in continuous
streams between the shores of England and America.
In an age of progress, one invention merely paves the way for
another. The first steamers were impelled by means of paddle
wheels; but these are now almost entirely superseded by the
screw. And this, too, is an invention almost of yesterday. It
was only in 1840 that the Archimedes was fitted as a screw yacht.
A few years later, in 1845, the Great Britain, propelled by the
screw, left Liverpool for New York, and made the voyage in
fourteen days. The screw is now invariably adopted in all long
ocean voyages.
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