Ferracino, Bartolomeo

, a celebrated self-taught mechanic, was born at Bassano, in the territory of Padua, in 1692. His first occupation being that of a sawyer, for his parents were very poor, he invented a saw which worked by the wind, and went on progressively to several more curious inventions, such as making clocks in iron, hydraulic machines, &c. till he was noticed by the great men of Italy. In his native town of Bassano, he constructed a famous bridge over the Brenta, remarkable for the boldness of its design, and the solidity of its construction. He died soon after the completion of this work. An history of his life and inventions was published at Venice in 1764, by a writer whose name was Memo, 4to. ²