Is by Derek Webb

Author:Derek Webb
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: epub, ebook, QuarkXPress
ISBN: 111-1-11-111111-1
Publisher: Parthian Books
Published: 2014-01-05T16:00:00+00:00

8

Big is Beautiful

In we all went, through the large glass doors of the entrance hall. Mr Phillips went up to someone dressed in a uniform, who kept looking over at us while nodding at something Mr Phillips was saying to him.

We just hung around taking it all in. I’d never been to the Science Museum before so I didn’t know what to expect. Clever Trev, needless to say, reckoned he’d been loads of times. He was probably born there.

‘Right, we’ll go through here first,’ announced Mr Phillips. ‘Follow me.’

So, with Mr Phillips at the front and JCB at the rear we marched through the Science Museum. Whenever we got to a particularly uninteresting pile of junk, Mr Phillips would stop and point enthusiastically at it.

‘Ah, this is a particularly interesting exhibit, isn’t it Mr Bartholomew?’

‘Mm yes,’ JCB peered at it inquisitively.

‘It’s a pump, probably for pumping out the water from mines. Driven by steam as you can see.’

‘A Watt is it?’ asked Trevor Smart, smugly. ‘A steam pump, Smart. I just told you. You should wash your ears out.’

‘No, I mean is it a Watt steam pump? Ah, it is, there’s the label: “Boulton and Watt”. See?’

‘Oh, right. Yes, quite correct Smart.’ Mr Phillips sounded pretty narked at Trevor out-smarting him. ‘Yes, this was made by James Watt, inventor of the steam engine. Has anyone heard of James Watt before?’

‘I have, Sir,’ yelled out Clever Trev, his glasses steaming over with excitement.

‘I know you have, Smart. Anyone else?’

If anyone had they weren’t letting on. Nobody bothered raising their hands at any rate. But that didn’t stop Mr Phillips going on and on. Listening to him was really mindnumbing. He could probably patent himself as a cure for insomnia.

‘Here, you see, as that piston is forced in and out by the pressure of steam it pushes that arm there, which causes that huge wheel to rotate. What do you think of that? Morgan?’

Personally I thought it would be a good idea if Mr Phillips was under the huge wheel as it rotated, but I guessed that wasn’t the answer he was expecting.

‘Wow,’ I said.

‘There’s no need to be cheeky, Morgan,’ said Mr Phillips curtly. ‘Right, well, let’s get on. There’s much more to see.’

A chorus of groans met that remark, but on we went. The next room had loads of old trains in it. There was one called the Rocket which JCB nearly wet himself over, he was so excited. I couldn’t see why. Rockets were things that a few years before had landed on the moon. This rocket looked like it would have difficulty making a landing on a scrap heap. Opposite it was a really enormous green steam engine. It was pretty impressive, I’ll give it that.

The wheels alone were much taller than me. ‘Caerphilly Castle,’ said Isabel as she came and stood beside me.

‘Yes, I know,’ I replied. ‘It’s got the name there, over the wheel.’

‘Beautiful isn’t it?’ continued Is, and she seemed quite lost for a second.

‘Well, I wouldn’t go that far,’ I laughed.

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