September, 1830, among those present was James Nasmyth, subsequently the
inventor of the steam hammer. Mr. Nasmyth was a good freehand draughtsman,
and he sketched the Rocket as it stood on the line. The sketch is still in
existence. Mr. Nasmyth has placed this sketch at our disposal, thus earning
the gratitude of our readers, and we have reproduced as nearly as possible,
but to a somewhat enlarged scale, this invaluable link in the history of
the locomotive. Mr. Nasmyth writes concerning it, July 26, 1884: "This
slight and hasty sketch of the Rocket was made the day before the opening
of the Manchester and Liverpool Railway, September 12, 1830. I availed
myself of the opportunity of a short pause in the experimental runs with
the Rocket, of three or four miles between Liverpool and Rainhill, George
Stephenson acting as engine driver and his son Robert as stoker. The
limited time I had for making my sketch prevented me from making a more
elaborate one, but such as it is, all the important and characteristic
details are given; but the pencil lines, after the lapse of fifty-four
years, have become somewhat indistinct." The pencil drawing, more than
fifty years old, has become so faint that its reproduction has become a
difficult task. Enough remains, however, to show very clearly what manner
of engine this Rocket was. For the sake of comparison we reproduce an
engraving of the Rocket of 1829. A glance will show that an astonishing
transformation had taken place in the eleven months which had elapsed
between the Rainhill trials and the opening of the Liverpool and Manchester
Railway. We may indicate a few of the alterations. In 1829 the cylinders
were set at a steep angle; in 1830 they were nearly horizontal. In 1829 the
driving wheels were of wood; in 1830 they were of cast iron. In 1829 there
was no smoke-box proper, and a towering chimney; in 1830 there was a
smoke-box and a comparatively short chimney. In 1829 a cask and a truck
constituted the tender; in 1830 there was a neatly designed tender, not
very different in style from that still in use on the Great Western broad
gauge. All these things may perhaps be termed concomitants, or changes in