he
was enabled to enlarge his business somewhat--one of his new mules
containing upwards of 360 spindles and another 220 spindles. The mules
were worked for many years, in fact, up to the sixties, when they passed
into the hands of Messrs. Dobson & Barlow, the eminent cotton machinists
of Bolton. One of the mules made by Crompton is shown in Fig. 24.

In the early part of 1812 an agitation for a government grant in
recognition of Crompton's work made great progress. Mr. Perceval, the
then Prime Minister, was proceeding to the House of Commons to move that
a grant of L20,000 be made to Crompton, when he was shot by an assassin
named Bellingham. There is no doubt, had this disastrous affair never
happened and Perceval made his proposal, a grant much larger than was
actually voted (L5000) would have been made.

There is no doubt that this grant was altogether inadequate, seeing that
larger sums had been voted to other investigators and inventors about
this time.

Owing to his lack of business ability, and to ill fortune combined, poor
Crompton did not get out of this money what he might have done. Several
ventures turned out altogether very differently than he expected. He
became poorer and poorer, and was only protected from absolute want by
subscriptions and assistance provided by his true friends in the trade,
notably Mr. Kennedy, a Manchester manufacturer.

Image: FIG. 25.--Portrait of Samuel Crompton. (_By the kind
permission of W. Agnew & Son, Manchester._)

At the age of 74 he died, 26th June, 1827. He was interred in Bolton
Parish Churchyard, where a plain granite tomb sets forth the
following:--"Samuel Crompton of Hall ith Wood, Inventor of the Mule,
born 3rd December, 1753, died 26th June, 1827."

A noble monument of him is to be found standing on Nelson Square,
Bolton, in front of the General Post Office.

CHAPTER IX.

THE MODERN SPINNING MULE.

=The Self-Actor Mule.=--In the preceding chapter there has been detailed
the particulars of the invention of the "Mule" by Samuel Crompton. Since
that event the mule has been the object of over a century of constant
and uninterrupted improvement and development, especially in the details
of greater or less importance.

The Self-Actor Mule of to-day represents and embodies the inventions of
hundreds of the most intelligent men ever connected with any industry in
the world's history. It is universally acknowledged to be one of the
most