The Hillsdale standard. [volume] (Hillsdale, Mich.) 1851-1909, 1863-12-08
"a TRUE STORY.

city OF Boston, England, Mt. William
Watts, a plumber aud gazier. To this occu
patton he added that Of shoemaker. have
seen bis portrait; he was a short. plump per
sonage, with cunning grey eyes--a sharp mar
in city Of sharp dealers. i ~ ~
Now, at that time shot making was but 9
very partially developed art, and consisted in
merely letting drops Of lead fall into yesse
Of water from height of but two or ,hre,
feet, which caused The drops suddenly 10 COO
into rounded form. But as the metal die
not thoroughly soIidfy before it reached The
water tho sudden contact Of it with thu later
caused a slight indentation on tho surface Of
every shot exactly on the point where il frs
toutched the liquid. La fact it destroyed or
rather prevented perfected sphericity-a sligh
imperfection TO all appearance, but quite siff
cisnt to prevent the itl le missiles from travel
ing in a straight line when sent from thei
gun.
Mr.. Watts was bit Of sportsman him,elf
and seeing that with the shot as then made he
could not secure a certain aim, he investigated
the matter. and soon camp 10 the conclusion
thatsimperfect sphoricity was the cause of the
shot flying wide Of the mark. The FAULT as
certained, the question next was how to cor
rect i'll He racked his brain day ard night
hoping to discover some method Of making q
perfectly round shot-many were the expert
Ineut ho made, but all 10 vain, and at last he
gave up thu idea 10 despair.
But Mr.. Watts had wife who was not so
easily beaten, sud she set her wits to work a'so
She was remarkably quiet, thoughtful wo
man, and took it into het head as there was a
cure for almost every i'll SO there might be a
remedy for bad shot. She was one of those
who didn't know what impossibilities meant.
The idea having entered her mind, there it re
NAMED, and we al know that il woman
sets her hearto on accomplishing anything, ac
couIplish it she will. Day after day she
watched the process Of shot ma ing, as sho sat
by the water tank knitting away for dear life
but saying never word, though eye, brain
were not unemployed for moment. So
matters weIt on FOR many months-Mr. Watts
became desponding-his business fell of, aud
poverty stared him 10 the face. Rather than
make imperfect shot, he cared not to max ks
any, and he must have gone to ruin had il
not been for dream.
Not his dream-but Mrs. Watts. And let
me assure the reader that what am relating
is strictly true. don't believe in dream rev,
elations myself-'-I mean nperstitiously y-aud
! fancy this dream may be very we'll account
ed for on rational grounds enough.
One night Mr.. Watts was suddenly aroused
from a comfortable slumber by a vigorous
shake of his shoulder. Rubbing his eyes; and
God blessing himself, he sat bolt upright in
bed, and perceived with great surprise, for the
moon was shining into his chamber, that his
usually quiet wife was pacing the ro)m ex
claiming, not Eureka but something very
much to the same effect, 81 have found out
how to do it," and then she added-"Get up
directly William, I've made your fortune"
N N SMalla sisa Hsi 70 lefG"ahT &$ vision si' Of the
night,
She had dreamed for rather thought in her
sleep) that if the drops Of melted lead were al.
lowed to fall through the air from considera-
bic hight, so as to get througbly hardened be-
fore thew reached the water, their perfectly
spherical forms would not be damaged BY the
sudden contact Herewith. Now, whether the
good lady bad so unconsciously arrived at this
conclusion 10 the course of her meditations on
bis subject, as to cause her mind to he i'm
ptressed with it during the hours Of sleep l
leave psychologists to determine. only 10
late the fact But Mrs. Watts was an emi
nently truthful woman. and to her dying day
she declared that the idea came to her in a
dream and in no other way.
The next morning Mr.. and Mas. Watts in
great secrecy tryed the experiment. Opposite
their house was lofty old church tower-that
of Mary ladcliffe- and this tower was select
ed for the scene Of operations. TIE sexton
was peighbor. From him the key borrowed,
and by eight o'clock Mr.. Watts was there with
charcoal brazier, some lead bucket of wat
or and shot card(or mouIdI as the imple.
ment vas called, through which the melted
lead was poured or strained to form drops.
You may be:sure they locked themselves 10.
The staircases Of the tower were circular, so
that "well' was formed from the top to the
bottom--ju,t the thing required. At the
summit Mr. Waits fixed bis 'card, while at the
bottom Mrs. Watts stood beside the bucket Of
water, op the added contents of which, before
long, so much might depend.
All was at length ready, and down dropped
tho molten shower of glieteuing globules Of
metal Kissing and scattering they fell into
the water, until all tho leal.. above was used,
and then, with eager haste, Mrs. Watts
plunged her hands 10 the now warm fluid, and
drew some of the shot therefrom. Exanin.
ing them eagerly she had the inexpre'sble
delight Of seeing that each and all weio fault
less I! perfectly aud entirely spherical. The
problem was solved; the triumph achieved
aud, as she ssid, she had made hor hrsbqnd's
fortune.
Mr. Watts speedily procured patent, and
AWAITS Patent Shot" was patronzed by King
George the Third and his scape gracs son, the
Prince Of Wales. In fact, it superseded all
other sorts, aud Mr.. Watts in a bri,f period
realized an enormous fortune.