The task was one of no
small difficulty. It was necessary to provide against
irregularities arising from the motion of a ship at sea, and to
obviate the effect of alternations of temperature in the machine
itself, as well as the oil with which it was lubricated. A
thousand obstacles presented themselves, but they were not enough
to deter Harrison from grappling with the work he had set himself
to perform.
Every one knows the beautiful machinery of a timepiece, and the
perfect tools required to produce such a machine. Some of these
tools Harrison procured in London, but the greater number he
provided for himself; and many entirely new adaptations were
required for his chronometer. As wood could no longer be
exclusively employed, as in his first clock, he had to teach
himself to work accurately and minutely in brass and other
metals. Having been unable to obtain any assistance from the
Board of Longitude, he was under the necessity, while carrying
forward his experiments, of maintaining himself by still working
at his trade of a carpenter and joiner. This will account for
the very long period that elapsed before he could bring his
chronometer to such a state as that it might be tried with any
approach to certainty in its operations.
Harrison, besides his intentness and earnestness, was a cheerful
and hopeful man. He had a fine taste for music, and organised
and led the choir of the village church, which attained a high
degree of perfection.
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