Worshipful Clockmakers' Company of London, The—Incorporated August 22, 1631, under special charter by King Charles I of England. Was given the sole privilege of regulating the watch and clock trade in and for ten miles around London.
Webster, Ambrose—Mechanical superintendent, and later assistant superintendent, of the Waltham factory until his resignation in 1876. He systematized the work in the shop, standardized the measuring system, and forced automatic machinery to the front. He designed the first watch factory lathe with hard spindles and bearings of the two taper variety. He made the first interchangeable standard for parts of lathes. He invented many machines now in use, among them being the automatic pinion cutter.
Weight-Clock—A clock whose driving power is a weight suspended by a cord wound on a drum or cylinder.
Weights—The first clocks were made with a weight on a cord which was wound around a cylinder connected with the train. The weight descending caused the cylinder to revolve, setting the train in motion. Too rapid unwinding was prevented by the escapement. The weight as a driving power is still used, especially in large clocks.
Wheel, Count—The wheel carrying the locking-plate in a striking mechanism.
Year—Astronomically, the period of time occupied by the earth in making one complete revolution around the sun. The calendar year is an arbitrarily determined division of time, approximating more or less closely the astronomical year. See [Calendar, Gregorian].
Zech, Jacob—Of Prague. Invented the fusee about 1525. The Society of Antiquaries possesses an example of his handiwork—a table time-piece with a circular brass-gilt case 9¾" in diameter and 5" high. For minute description see Archaeologia vol. xxxiii.
Zero—A time-telling term originating or at least made common during the Great War. Word commonly used in a military sense to indicate a secret instant of time from which an attack in its various stages is scheduled.
