The Fremont weekly journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1867-1877, 1871-11-24
A TRUE AND REMARKABLE
STORY.

A TRUE AND REMARKABLE
STORY.
In 1853 Mr.. Thomas Sheehan, now
as well as then of Dunkirk, New
York, foreman in the blacksmith de
partment Of the Erie Railway shops
at that place, patented, through the
Scientific American Patent Agency,
a submarine grapple, which, though
an ingenious invention, proved to be
one for which there was little de-
mand.
This was his first invention; and
the cost of its completion, together
with one years struggle to manu-
facture and introduce it, completed,
exhausted Mr.. Sheehan's means,a and
reduced him to the EXTREMIST power
ty. Now Mr.. Sheehan, though not
fortunate in inventing, making, and
selling submarine grapples, had, in
conjunction with his good spouse,
been eminently successful in increas-
ing his family, which comprised
eight children at the close Of the
year of struggle above menti oned.
Eight children, and an empty lar
der, are rather stern facts when a
father is called upon to meet them
and in this case our inventor s
troubles were increased by the not
unnatural complaints of his wife, who
accused him of having left a good
situation to pursue a chimera, thus
reducing his family to pauperism.
In fact, the good woman was deci-
dedly bitter, and her acerbity, added
to the really desperate condition Of
Mr.. Sheehan's finances, produced in
him mental state under which some
men would have permanently gone
to the bad.
Not SO our inventor. He kept a
stiff upper lip, and sought long and
anxiously to provide support for the
hungry mouths that appealed to him
for food.
1t did not subtract from the trou
BILE of this critical period in Mr..
Sheehan's life, to discover that his
failure had been due, in great mea-
sure to the derelictions of partner
whom he had taken in with him to
aid in conducting the grapple bust
ness, and who he found had taken
undue advantage of his position, sci
ling mares for which no returns were
ever made to the firm, and other
wise misconducting himself.
rsJust. at this crisis Mr.. S. D. Col
well, an old friend of Mr.. Sheehan
and General Freight Agent of the
Erie Railway, at Dunkirk, CHANGED
TO meet our inventor in the streets
Of that thriving town, and accosted
him, with
sWell, Thomas, how are the crap
pies? l heard they have used you
up" aoa
"Yes," was the answer; "the crap.
pies have done my business; l wish
1 had never seen them"
Throw 'em away" advised Mr.
Colwell. "Have you any now fin.
lshedT'
81 have one almost done," said
Thomas.
Finish that; 1 will pay you forty
dollars for it, and bave it used fol
picking up coal at the dock. The
money will help you in your present
emergency, and you can go back to
your old place in the shop and earn
good living for your family"
Il will" said Thomas.
Back to his humble home went
our inventor with new hope in his
breast, and set himself to finish the
grapple with all due speed. But
alas, upon what slender threads dc
the fortane of men hang! A tap, the
only one our inventor had of the size
required, suddenly snapped asunder,
and,as it was essential to the progress
of the work, he must have a new one
or he could not go on.
In this strait, he applied to his
wife to lend him twenty-five cents to
buy the necessary steel to forge the
tap. But she, having no faith in the
grspple, refused, for the two very
good reasons-frst, that she believed
the money would be thrown away if
she gave it to her husband; and sec
ond, that she had not the money to
give him, even if so disposed. The
refusal was seasoned with some very
hot word spice that made it very un-
palatable to Thomas. But he be-
thought him of a merchant, who, in
brighter days, had seen the color of
his money, and who, perhaps, would
now give him credit for the small
modicum of steel he required for the
tap.
To this merchant he hied, and,
somewhat reluctant to prefer his re
quest, began beating about the bush
and, finally straying into politics, hot
words passed between them, and our
friend, feeling his manliness would
suffer to keenly by asking credit for
the steel, came away without it.
With no definite purpose he went
home,pondering upon how he should
surmount this, now no trihing, OBJ
stacle of the broken tap.
He found his wife making ley for
soft soap, but her aciditv in no wav
neutralized by the alkaline reaction.
Despondent and discouraged, he sat
down, in no very enviable mood, when
he CHANGED to spy a piece Of iron ly-