The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1871-06-22
seas are exhausted. /"

VI spring VaiSg WaSers tufnSu 10
Summerfeld and remarked: "Eords
are empty, theories are ideal-but
facts are things"
81 take you at your word" So
saying he approached the bowl,
emptied it Of nine-tenths of its con-
tents, silently dropped the potassi-
um-coated pill into the liquid. The
potassium danced around the edges
of the vessel, funiing, kissing and
blazing, as it always does, and seem
ed on the point of expiring, when
to my astonishment and alarm a
sharp explosion took place, and in
a second of time the water was blaz-
ing in a red, lurid column half way
to the ceiling.
''For Gods sake" I cried, eek
tinguish the flames or we shall set
the building on freP'
"Had I put the potassium into
the bowl as you prepared it," he
quietly remarked, "the building
would indeed have been consumed. y
Lower and lower fell the Pickering
flames, paler and paler grew the
blaze, until finally the fire went out
and I rushed up to see the effect of
the combustion.
Not drop of water remained in
the vessel! Astonished beyond
measure at what I had witnessed
and terrified almost to insanity, I
approached Summerfield and tremb-
lingly inquired: 'To whom, sir, is
this tremendous secret known?'-
''To myself alone," he responded; /;
"and now answer me a question: Is
it worth the money!"
It is entirely unnecessary to re-
late in detail the subsequent events
connected with the transaction. I
viii only add a general statement
showing the results Of my negotia-
tion. Having fully satisfied myself
that Summerfeld actually held in
his hands the fate of the whole
world, with its millions of human
beings, and by experiment having
tested the combustion of sea water,
with equal facility as fresh, 1 next
deemed it my duty to call the atten-
tion of a few of the principal men
in San Francisco to the extreme
Importance of Summerfeld's dis
covery.
A leading banker, a bishop,
chemist, two State university pro-
fessors, a physician, a judge, and
two Protestant divines were select
! ed by me to witness the experiment
on a large scale. This was done at
a small sandhill lake near the sea-
shore, but separated from it by
ridge of lofty mountains, distant
not more than ten miles from San
Francisco. Every single drop of
water in the pool was burnt up in
less than fifteen minutes. We next
did all we could to pacify Summer
field, and endeavored to induce him
to lower his price and bring it with
in the bounds of a reasonable pos
sibiIity, but without avail. He be-
gan to grow urgent in his demands.
The subcommittee soon commenc-
ed work amongst the wealthiest
citizens of San Francisco, and by
appealing to the terrors Of a few
and the sympaties of all succeeded
in raising one-half the amount with
in the prescribed period. I shall
never forget the woe-begone faces
of California street during the
month of October. The outside
world and the newspapers spoke
most learnedly of a money panic
a pressure of business, and the dis
turbances in the New York gold
room. But to the initiated there
was an easier solution Of the enig-
ma. The pale specter of death
looked down upon them all, and
pointed with his bony finger to the
fiery tomb of the whole race, al
ready looming up in the distance
before them. Day after day I
could see the dreadful ravages Of
this secret horror; doubly terrible
since they dared not divulge it
Still, do all that we could, the mo-
ney could not be obtained. The
day preceding the last one, Sum
merfeld was summoned before the
committee, and full information
given him of the state of affairs
Obdurate, hard and cruel, he still
continued. Finally, proposition
was started that an attempt should
be made to raise the other half of
the money in the city Of New York.
To this proposition summerfeld
ultimately yielded, but with extreme
reluctance. It was agreed in com
mittee that I should accompany
him thither, and take with me, in
my own possession, evidences Of !
the sums subscribed here; that a
proper appeal should be made to
the leading capitalists, scholars and |
clergymen of the metropolis; and /
that, when the whole amount was
raised, it should be paid over to /
Summerfeld, and bond taken from /
him never to divulge his awful Sc