It is now but ten days since its publication, yet without a single advertisement in any paper I have been obliged to engage extra assistance to simply inclose my circulars to parties, who are writing and even _telegraphing_ for agencies and machines, while many have traveled long distances to personally engage agencies. The Superintendent of the Company makes similar _complaints_. * * * * * HUNT'S IMPROVED STEAM PACKING PISTON. Engineers are aware that there are more or less objections to the use of the ordinary spring pistons, owing to the changing tension of the springs, the necessity of frequent adjustment, and the impossibility of the packing rings adapting themselves to the varying pressures of the steam on the piston. A number of attempts have been made to produce a self packing or steam expanding piston, which will act always with the pressure of the steam and the velocity of the engine. The advantages of such a piston will be readily appreciated by practical engineers, especially drivers of locomotives, working, as they nearly all do, at a very high pressure of steam. The general complaint against the several packings in use on our railroads is, that they "pack too tight," and rapidly wear out the rings, while the only remedy has been, the extremely uncertain one of contracting the openings by which steam is admitted under the ring, or rings, to expand them. The obvious objection to such an arrangement is, that it allows the steam to act on the rings with its full force during slow motion, as when a train is starting, while if effective under any circumstances, it will be so only at comparatively high piston speed. The efficacy of such a remedy, if it possesses any, is in fact inversely as the piston speed. [Illustration: Fig.1] Fig. 1 is a perspective of the piston itself, or the "spider," with its follower and its rings removed, which are shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 3 is a cross section of another form of the piston, to be presently described, but which will serve to explain that shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Next to the core of the spider are two narrow internal rings, A, in Figs. 1 and 3; surrounding these two outer rings, B, the cross section of which is of L-form, as seen in Fig. 3. The lips of these outer rings extend to the whole thickness of the piston. The flange head of the piston, and also the follower, are turned beveling on their edges to admit the steam around the annular space thus formed under the rings, B. These spaces are plainly exhibited at C, in Figs. 2 and 3. Both inner and outer rings are adjusted to the bore of the cylinder by means of the gibs, D, and set screws seen in Fig. 1. [Illustration: Fig.2]