Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-05-05
FULTON AN IMP0STOR.
JAMES RUMSEY, OF VIRGINIA
THE FIRST STEAM NAVIGATOR.

A Protest Against HonOrs to Fulton for
What ne is Said to Have Borrowed
From Dead Mans Ideas and Letters.
When at Shepherdstown Monday, says
a Roanoke. Va, letter to the Philadelphia
Press, enjoyed the pleasure of long
chat with Col. Alexander II. Boteler, one
of the first citizens Of West Virginia.
The Colonel is an antiquarian, and pro-
badly few are better acquainted with the
history of Virginia. He has just COM
pleted a little book which, when pub
lished, will upset the notion that Fulton
was the first inventor of the steamboat.
Col Boteler saws that when the statue of
Fulton is presented to the United States
the voice of West Virginia will be raised
against this most unrighteous act, for he
has in his possession the original docu-
ments which will prove that Rumsey. of
Shepherdslown, was the first to utilize
steam in navigation, and that Fulton,
then a young artist in London, knew
Rumsey, and on his death appropriated
his secret. After an inquiry covering
over thirty years Mr.. Boteler has all the
documents to prove his position.
In the course of the chat on this subject
sir. Boteler took down from his shelf one
of the large quart0 census volumes, and
said:
''There. read that; imagine such
statement as that being officially pro-
mulgated under the seal of the United
States" Below is the paragraph referred
to:
JAMES RUMsEY's INVENTION.
s'James Rumsey, of fShepherdstown, Va,
it appears, constructed a boat in 1874,
propelled by a series Of Setting poles,'
which was exhibited before General
of in, pos. nla
Va, and he received a certificate of its
efficiency from the General dated
'this- 7th day of September, 1884,
The character of this boat is, how
ever, somewhat doubtful. Four years
later Rumsey constructed a boat
upon plan which might have been sug-
gested by or borrowed from Thomas Too
good, DIR. John Allen or DR.. Franklin. 1t
consisted in the employment of steam to
pump water into the bottom OF the boat
and force it out again at the stern, the
resistance moving the boat forward. The
question in dispute with Fitch was
whether this first mechanical S'p0le boatn
was operated by steam. Rumsey could
not operate his boat in this country on
account of Fitch's patents, and he went
to London, where he took out several
patents and made some experiments on
the Thames.
The Colonel continued: "It is evident
that the man who wrote the above was
not conversant with his subject. / am
enabled to prove by contemporary testi-
mony that the first successful application
of steam TO the practical purposes of nav
igation were made on the Upper Potomac
here at Shepherdstown by James Rumsey,
a citizen of Virginia, more than twenty
years before Robert Fulton's experiment
on the Hudson, and many months before
John Fitch, the contemporary rival Of
Rumsey, had ever heard or imagined that
steam couid be used for any useful pur-
poses whatever; that, while he did use
poles in shallow streams among his ear
liest attempts, he ultimately discarded
them."
''When was the first experiment made
at ShepherdstownY'
81 have the original in the letter de-
scribing it, written by Major Henry Be-
dinger. More than one hundred persons
were present, among others Horatio
Gates, of revolutionary fame. Bedinger
stood next TO Gates, who, through field
glasses, watched the preliminaries with
the deepest interest. Then, when all was
complete and the boat with half her bur-
den on board moved up the stream against
the Potomac current, the old soldier
threw up his hat and enthusiastically eX-
claimed:
t''My God, she movesp''
THE INVENTORS TRIBULATIONs.
Mr.. Boteler also told me that he has
some of Rumsey's original letters though
| it is supposed that many of them fell into
| the hands of Robert Fulton. 1t appears
| that after the achievements on the Poto-
| mac Rumsey went to London and engaged
| to build boat on the Thames. He met
with the difficulties so common to inven-
| tors, and, in 1870, he was in debt and in
| trouble. He writes that
stThe horrors of a London goal stare me
| in the face, and am made the subject OF
| playhouse wit"
His death occurred about this time. To
raise money Rumsey had consented to de-
| liver a series of lectures, and, attracted
| by curiosity to see an American who was
| at work on such a wild scheme as steam
navigation, a large crowd assembled.
| Rumsey was very much agItated; he
mounted the platform, uttered a few in-
| coherent sentences, was handed glass of
wine by friend, suddenly tell back, was
carried out and died next day. ~
When Rumsey died Fulton was in Lon
don, and, according to some letters that
Rumsey sent his brOther-in-law in Shep-
| herdstown, Fulton was his intimate
| friend. These letters Mr.. BOteler has.
and they will be published for the first
| time in his forthcoming book. He claims
they support the supp0sition that Living
ston and Fulton got Ramsey's ideas, and
| have received credit for what Rumsey
really did. l have no doubt that patriotic
| Pennsylvanians will be found to question
Mr.. Boteler's position; for myself / can
| only say that he has the data and docu-
ments, and is fortified every step of the
| WaV