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Zadobras near Crichoff Monday May 4/14 1789
Hond. Sir.
I am now alone. Sam is before this, I hope, at Kieff, or
in his way from thence to Chisson. I left him on Thursday sennight at Propoisk, a town
upon the Soje about 40 miles from hence by land, but double or treble
the way by water, pursuing his course on board his new-invented
Serpentine or Vermicular Barge, whichever you please to call it.
Of this barge you will expect some description. It consists of 6 diffe—
—rent boats, connected together by a particular mechanism & so as to
form but one, but pliable in every direction in the manner of a
snake. Each boat or link as we call it is 42 feet in length: consequently the length of
the whole is 252 feet. The two head-links are taken up entirely
with oars: as is the fore-half of the 3d, and the whole of the sixth.
In the first limb are 36 oars: in the 2d, 40: in the rowing part of the
3d, 20: in the 6th 24: in all, 120: besides two at the head of the
head limb, and I think as many at the tail of the tail-limb, to ans-
-wer the purpose of the rudders. There are 2 ranks of rowers on each side:
consequently 4 are seen of a row when you look across the boat.
The back half of the third limb, and the whole of the 4th and 5th, constitute the
habitable part of the barge; which I must lose no time in telling you, is
destined for his Majesty's use, if she will vouchsafe to set foot in it. The
breadth of this habitable part is, throughout, 13F.5I. in the inside: on the
outside, from the bottom of the windows, the boat breadth is continued on each side 1F— 8I.
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Identifier: | JB/540/347/001 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 540.
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1787-05-04 |
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540 |
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347 |
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001 |
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Correspondence |
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Jeremy Bentham |
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