OCR Text |
Show An Ancient Invention. Archimedes of 8yracuse, when ho was In Egypt, tnvontcd the earliest machine ma-chine for pumping bilge water out of the holds of ships. The Instrument was also used In the Delta for purposes of Irrigation. Dlordoros Slculus twice refers to It in hU writings. A curious modol of such an Instrument, probably of the late Ptolemaic period, has been found In Lower Egypt. It consists of a terracotta cylinder with a scrow Inside In-side It, ten Inches long and four and a hulf Inchos In diameter. Near the center of tho outsldo Is a band with cross-pieces. These may reprcsont footholds, foot-holds, and suggest that tho machine was worked after tho manner of tho treadmill. Such screws were probably made of wood. |