The writing automaton

An original fiction passage set in the nineteenth century.

Before the doors opened, Mr Avery polished the brass fingers of his automaton until each joint reflected the lamps. Posters outside the town hall promised a machine that ‘NEVER HESITATES, NEVER ERRS’. Avery had objected to those words when the printer suggested them, but he had not ordered their removal. A wealthy collector was expected to attend, and the sale would pay the debts of Avery’s workshop.

The automaton sat at a desk, dressed in the dark coat and white collar of a clerk. When the mayor asked it to write ‘Edmund Price’, its hand lowered obediently. It formed the first letter, shuddered and dragged the pen across the paper in a long black wound. Laughter travelled through the front rows. Behind the curtain, the mayor whispered that they could blame the jolting carriage journey and attempt the performance again the following evening.

Avery looked at the ink spreading across the page. Then he removed the automaton’s coat and opened the panel in its chest. The audience saw wheels, wires and a bent steel pin. ‘There is no intelligence to disappoint you,’ he said. ‘Only workmanship, and mine has failed here.’ He held up the pin instead of concealing it in his palm. When a girl near the stage asked what it controlled, he explained how it guided the writing hand. His voice became steadier as further questions replaced the laughter.

The mayor cancelled the next performance, and the collector departed before Avery had closed the machine. Several visitors demanded their money back. Yet a watchmaker’s apprentice remained beside the stage, copying the arrangement of the wheels into a notebook. Avery answered him until the lamps were extinguished. Outside, one of the grand posters had torn loose and was curling in the rain.

“Mr Avery’s response to the failed demonstration appears brave and honest, even though it costs him the success he wanted.”

Evaluate how successfully the writer presents this idea. Support your judgement with detailed references to the passage.