The Haynes steering sketch also worries me. If that vertical post came up thru that slot in the floor the crank had to be long as the sketch shows in order to get over to the driver conveniently. Then if he tried to make a complete circle with it he could not reach far enuf forward to do it easily. And he had to make a turn or two be cause H shows bevel gears of about same size so the post had to make same number of turns the worm made. Sketch herewith to illustrate my thought.
Yrs for the historical facts Chas. E. Duryea=
[Illustration: FIGURE 17.--LETTER EXPLAINING the circuit breaker spring and the brass projection on top of the ignition chamber. Mr. Mitman was, at the time, curator of engineering in the U.S. National Museum.]
The two pistons were first pinned together into a single unit which was probably ringless, since it is believed the walls of the outer piston were too thin to admit rings. Because the piston no longer struck the exhaust valve, a short rod had to be screwed into the pistonhead; this pushed the valve shut at the completion of the exhaust stroke. The remaining problem, the opening of the exhaust valve, was solved by screwing a device to the side of the cylinder which operated from the sidewise motion of the connecting rod. This device shifted a small spacer between the piston and the striker arm of the exhaust-valve rod, permitting the piston to push open the exhaust valve. On alternating strokes the spacer shifted back out of the cylinder; therefore, no contact was made between piston and striker arm. Sometime in February 1893, the altered engine was successfully started.
At last the transmission could be tested. Will Russell had come upstairs to watch the trial, and according to a statement by him, given April 30, 1926, Frank, standing to the right of the engine and behind the rear axle, reached forward and with the combination tiller-belt-shifter, moved the belt into driving position. The carriage started forward, but as it approached the wall of the building Frank discovered that he could not get the belt back into the neutral position. In desperation, he grasped the rear axle with both hands and was dragged a short distance, attempting to stop the machine, before it struck the wall. He had, however, sufficiently retarded it so that no damage was done.