Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-09-28
The Duke of weIliDgtOn's Experiment
HarDer's Draooer, October.

AdTBcFS OFHCeFs DctDJeFs
In a ground floor room in one of the
large public buildings of London a man
sat writing at table covered with papers.
He was a short, strongly built figure,
with a prominent nose and face hard
and massive as a granite statue, wearing
the set look peculiar to men who have
surmOunted great difficulties and con-
fronted great perils. Few, indeed, had
had more practice in both than this man,
for he was no other than the Duke of
Wellington, and his browning victory at
Waterloo was still but few years old.
There was the tinkle of a bell outside,
and then a murmur of voices in the
ante-roOm; but the Duke never raised his
head from his writing, even when his
Secretary entered and said: ''If it please
your Grace, that man with the bullet
proof breastplate has called again, and
wishes very much to see your Grace for
moment The Dukes face darkened, as
well as it might, for the man in question
was the most pertinaeious bore whom he
had ever encountered. The bullet-proof
cuirass was his own invention, and ne
never lost a chance of declaring that the
safety of the whole British army depended
upon its instant adoption of this ''un-
paralleIed discovery" which he carried
about with him, and exhibited at all times
and in all places. Had this been all. he
unluckiIy, he had cOntrived to interest in
his invention one or two of the Dukes
personal friends, and to get from them let
tiers of recommendation which even Wei
lington could not easily disregard. Some
thing must clearly be done, however; for
although the fellow had hitherto been
kept at bay, he was evidently determined
to give the Duke no peace till the matter
had been fully gone into. For moment
Wellington looked so grim that the
Secretary began to hope for the order
which he would gladly have obeyed, viz,
to kick the inventor into the street forth
with. But the next instant the iron face
cleared again, and over it played the
very ghost Of a smile, like a CLEAN Of
winter sunshine upon precipice. s'Show
HIM in,n said he, briefly. The observant
Secretary noted both the tone and the
smile that accompanied it; and he in
wardly decided that it would have been
better for that inventor if he had not in
sisted on seeing the Duke. In came the
great discoverer-at tall, slouching, shabby,
lightly red-nosed man, with wOuld-be
jaunty air, which gave way little, how
ever, before the sIron Dukes" penetrat-
ing glance. 81 am glad to think that your
Grace appreciates the merits of my inyen-
tion,' said he, in patronizing tone.
''They are, indeed, too important 10 be
undervalued by any gres commander.
Your Grace cannot fail to remember the
havoc made by your gallant troops at
w aterloo among the French cuirassiers,
whose breastplates were not bulletproOf;
whereas, if" EfHaVe you got the
thing with you % interrupted Wellington.
The inventor unwrapped a very snowy
looking cuirass Of polished steel, and was
Just beginning long lecture upon its
merits, when the Duke cut him short by
asking: FAre you quite sure it is bullet
proOfg' ''Quite sure, your Grace"
! ''Put it on, then, and 60 and stand in that
corner" The other wonderingly obeyed.
''Mr. Temple" shouted Wellington to his
| Secretary, tell the sentry outside to load
with ball cartridge, and come in here to
test this cuirass. Quick now" But
quick though the Secretary was, the in
ventor was quicker still. The moment
he realized that he had been set up there
on purpose to be fired at, and to be shot
dead on the spot if his cuirass turned out
to be not bullet-proof after all, he leaped
headlOng through the open window with
a yell worthy of Blackfoot Indian, and,
darting like a rocket across the court
yard, vanished through the outer gate
way; nor did the Duke of Wellington,
from that day forth, ever see or hear of
him again,