The state of affairs was distressing enough. The few engines that we could manage to finish we could only build, in many of their parts, on new lathes, which were used by them as long as they dared to, before sending them to their owners. But I kept up a brave heart. At any rate the personal influence of Mr. Whitworth remained. Indeed I already saw its value in many ways. Then the pattern-shop, foundry and smith-shop were equal to our requirements, and I felt confident that Mr. Hoyle could induce Mr. Whitworth to have the improvements and changes made, especially in the lathes and boring-machines, which would make it possible for us to do the work. Mr. Hoyle had become famous in the shop as the only man who had ever been able to influence Mr. Whitworth. He had lately given a striking example of his power. Mr. Whitworth was, years before, the designer of the box frame, which gave to many machine tools a rigidity incomparably superior to that which could be got by any method of ribbing. This box system was then established in universal use, both in England and on the Continent. Not long before my coming Mr. Whitworth had been looking into the cost of the cores that these box forms required, and concluded that he could not allow such an expense any longer, and ordered a return to the method of ribbing. The superintendent and foremen, to whom this order was communicated, were amazed at so ruinous and indeed insane a step. No one else dared to open his mouth; but Mr. Hoyle undertook the task of dissuading him from it, and after a long struggle finally succeeded in inducing him to rescind his order. So I confidently looked to him for the salvation of the engine. Then suddenly a new trouble arose. After a delay of some months, the agreement between Mr. Whitworth and myself, reduced to writing by his solicitor, was put into my hands for signature. I found that it corresponded with our verbal agreement, except that Mr. Whitworth reserved to himself the right to make alterations in the engine, in any respect whatever, in his discretion. To say that I hesitated about signing such an abandonment would not be true; I never thought of such a thing as signing it. Mr. Whitworth was probably the only man in the world who would have thought of making such a demand, and was certainly the last man in the world to whom it should be granted.