I sold an engine for a rubber manufactory in Cleveland, Ohio, and some months after received a letter from the proprietor saying he had been adding to his machinery and the engine would not drive it all and would not give its guaranteed power, and he wanted me to come immediately and see what was the matter with it. On going into the boiler-room I saw that the steam-gauge showed only 55 pounds pressure. I asked the engineer why he carried so little pressure, and he told me that the safety-valve was set to blow off at 60 pounds, which he considered to be all the pressure a boiler ought to carry; that he had been an engineer several years on the Lakes, where 60 pounds was the greatest pressure allowed. I asked the proprietor if he had his boiler insured; he said he had, in the Hartford Boiler Insurance Company. I said I supposed that company had an agent in Cleveland. He said: “Yes, and his office is around the corner on this block, and if you want to see him I presume I can have him here in ten minutes.” Pretty soon he appeared, and I said to him: “I understand you have insured this boiler.” “Yes.” “Have you made a personal examination of it?” “I have.” “What would you consider a safe pressure to carry?” “One hundred and twenty pounds.” [Illustration: Mr. Porter’s Fly-wheel.] “Would you hold it insured at that pressure?” “Certainly, it would be perfectly safe.” “Now,” said I to the proprietor, “you will observe that my guarantee of power assumes a pressure of 85 pounds, and you have no excuse for not carrying that pressure, and if you do so you will have no trouble; as for the practice on the Lakes, if you will come to New York we will show you that on our river and sound steamboats the practice is to carry only 25 pounds pressure.” He readily agreed to carry the higher pressure, which he found ample; so I was fooled into going to Cleveland pretty much for nothing. Afterwards I went there to a better purpose. CHAPTER XXV Engine for the Cambria Iron and Steel Company.