Page:Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography (1900, volume 2).djvu/408

short time invented the elevator, the conveyer, the drill, the hopper-boy, and the descender, the appli- cation of which to mills worked by water-power effected a revolution in the manufacture of flour. In 1786-'7 he obtained from the legislatui'e of Maryland and Pennsylvania the exclusive right to use his improvements in flouring mills, and Maryland gave him a similar privilege with regard to steam carriages. It was not till 1799 or 1800 that he was able to set about the con- struction of a steam carriage. Finding that his steam-engine dif- fered in form as well as in princi- ple from those in use, he secured a patent, and ap- plied it to mills more profitably

than to carriages.

This was the first steam-engine constructed on the high-pressure principle ; and to Evans, who had conceived the idea of it in early life, and in 1787 and again in 1794^'5 had sent to England drawings and specifications, the merit of the invention be- longs, although it has been common to assign it to Vivian and Trevithick, who had had access to Evans's plans. In 1803-'4, by order of the board of health of Philadelphia, he constructed the first steam-dredging machine used in America. It con- sisted of a scow, with a small engine to work the machinery for raising the mud. The machine, which he named the " Orakter Amphibolos," pro- pelled itself on wheels to the Schuylkill, a distance of one ^nd a half mile, was fitted with a paddle- wheel in the stern, and navigated the river to its junction with the Delaware. This is believed to have been the first instance in America of the ap- plication of steam-power to the propelling of land- carriages. He predicted the time when such car- riages would be propelled on railways of wood or iron, and urged the construction of a railroad be- tween Philadelphia and New York, but was alwaj^s prevented by his limited means from prosecuting his mechanical experiments to the extent he de- sired. He was the author of " The Young Engi- neer's Guide " (Philadelphia, 1805 ; translated into French, Paris, 1821); and of the "Miller and Millwright's Guide " (Philadelphia, 1797 ; Paris, 1830; i4th ed., with additions by Thomas P. Jones) ; and he also published a description of an improved merchant flouring mill, by C. and 0. Evans (Philadelphia, 1853).

EVANS, Thomas, Quaker, b. in Philadelphia in 1798: d. 25 May, 1868. In 1827-'8 he opposed the Unitarian views of Elias Hicks in a series of able jxapers in the " Friend." In 1837 he narrowly esca23ed shipwreck on a voyage to Charleston, S. C, and, from over-exertion at the pumps, his health was irreparably injured. From 1837 till 1854 he edited, with his brother William, " Tlie Friend's Library," a collection of standard religious writ- ings by eminent members of the society, in four- teen volumes. He was the author of " An Expo- sition of the Faith of the Religious Society of the Friends " (Philadelphia, 1828).

EVANS, Thomas Wiltberarer, dentist, b. in Philadelpiiia, Pa., 23 Dec, 1823 ; d. in Paris, France, 14 Nov., 1897. At the early age of fourteen he was apprenticed to a well-known silversmith, who was also a maker of dental appliances. In 1841 he entered the office of Dr. John D. White, of Phila- delphia, with whom he remained two years, mean- while following a regular course at the Jefferson medical college. He established himself as a den- tist in Maryland, and afterward in Lancaster, Pa., where he acquired kn extensive practice. His early familiarity with metals, and especially with gold-foil, enabled him to fill cavities, which up to that time had been considered impracticable. Many teeth that would otherwise have been ex- tracted were filled by him, and he made an ex- hibition of his achievements at the Franklin in- stitute in Philadelphia. About 1848 he went to Paris, where, under the patronage of Napoleon III., he became distinguished, and in time he treat- ed many of the crowned heads of Europe. Dr. Evans was active in the establishment of the Red cross society, and in organizing the American am- bulance corps that was sent out under its auspices with the French army in 1870. At the downfall of the empire in September, 1870, he aided the Empress Eugenie to escape, and, although the story is told in several ways, it is generally accepted that the empress, after leaving the Tuileries, was taken to Dr. Evans's residence for refuge. She was hur- ried into his carriage and driven beyond the walls of the city, while he held in front of her face an open newspaper, which he was apparently reading. Dr. Evans's fortune was estimated at many mill- ions, including a valuable collection of souvenirs, which he has received from his titled patients. He was the proprietor of the " American Register," a weekly journal issued in Paris ; purchased a daily, which was issued in the English language in that city; and published several books, including "The Memoirs of Heinrich Heine " (London, 1884). He visited his native land in 1897.

EVANS, William, agriculturist, b. in Cavan, Ireland, in 1786 ; d. in Montreal, Canada, in 1857. He emigrated to Canada in 1819, and settled in Monti'eal, where he was made secretary to the first agricultural society founded there. In 1837 he contributed a series of letters upon agriculture to the " Courier," which were published in pamphlet form. He established the " Canadian Quarterly " and the " Agriculturist and Industrial Magazine." In 1842 he edited the " British American Cultiva- tor " in Toronto. When he returned to Montreal in the following year he founded the " Canadian Agricultural Journal," of which he was editor un- til a short time before his death. He frequently contributed to the " Gazette," in Montreal, on agri- cultural subjects, and in 1858 was appointed secre- tary and treasurer of the board of agriculture in Lower Canada. He published " Theory and Prac- tice of Agriculture " (Montreal, 1835).

EVARTS, Jeremiah, philanthropist, b. in Sunderland, Vt.. 3 Feb., 1781; d. in Charleston. S. C., 10 May, 1831. He was graduated at Yale in 1802, and, after some time spent in teaching, studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1806, and practised that profession in New Haven for about four years. From 1810 till 1820 he edited the "Panoplist," a religious monthly magazine published in Boston. In 1812 he was chosen treasurer of the American board of commissioners for foreign missions, and in 1820, when the " Panoplist " was discontinued and the "Missionary Herald" was issued by the board in its stead, he took charge of the latter periodical. He was chosen correspond-