The lot of the man who sees far ahead of
his time, and endeavors to lead his fellows in ways for which
they are not prepared, has always been hard.
John Stevens, too, as we have seen, met defeat when he tried to
thrust a steam railroad on a country that was not yet ready for
it. His mechanical conceptions were not marked by genius equal to
that of Evans, but they were still too far advanced to be
popular. The career of Stevens, however, presents a remarkable
contrast to that of Evans in other respects. Evans was born poor
(in Delaware, 1755) and remained poor all his life. Stevens was
born rich (in New York City, 1749) and remained rich all his
life. Of the family of Evans nothing is known either before or
after him. Stevens, on the contrary, belonged to one of the best
known and most powerful families in America. His grandfather,
John Stevens I, came from England in 1699 and made himself a
lawyer and a great landowner. His father, John Stevens II, was a
member from New Jersey of the Continental Congress and presided
at the New Jersey Convention which ratified the Constitution.
John Stevens III was graduated at King's College (Columbia) in
1768. He held public offices during the Revolution. To him,
perhaps more than to any other man, is due the Patent Act of
1790, for the protection of American inventors, for that law was
the result of a petition which he made to Congress and which,
being referred to a committee, was favorably reported.
Pages:
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176