, 1889-04-24
John Ericsson.

The more the recently completed life
and work of John Ericsson is cOntempla-
ted, the more remarkable and %praisewOr-
thy it appears. Not only his wonderful
fertility of invention, his vast aud intimate
acquaintance with physical laws, and the
ingenuity which he displayed in bringing
them into the service of mankind, but his
u%nfagging industry, his modest and re.
firing disposition, his remarkable freedom
from the greed for praise and Sl0ly aud
wealth, marked him as a man among ten
thousand, whom, in honOuriug, mankind
hOnOurs itself.
Calling at his u~npretentious residence
on the day of his death, We were ushered
into what answered as his parlOr. This
room, instead of being filled with,rich fur.
niture and works of art, or with gbudy
trappings such as are usually considered
necessary in such an apartment, contain
ed nothing but a few chairs and a center
table, while around the room were other
tables which contained Il great number of
beautiful models of his inventions, IN )st of
them carefully protected by covers of
glass. 1t is true these models hal cost
much more than the finest furniture and
fittings could have cost, but to most peO-
pie these would have been a poor and un'
satisfactory substitute. Yet to Ericsson
they were far more interesting, more
beautiful and more cOmpaniOnable, than
anything else could have been. In that
part of the room where the finest picture
would naturally be looked for, hung an
engrOSSed copy of the resolution of thanks
passed by the legislature Of New York
Immediately after the naval bIttl0 i'll
Hampton Roads, which demonstrated that
his genius had saved a nation, and made
necessary the rebuilding of the navies Of
the world. The furnishing Of this room is
an excellent index to the character of the
man. Caring nothing for mere display
nor for luxuriance, his whole life and
thought were entirely devoted to the work
for which nature evidently intended him.
Those who hold that a mans achievements
on earth are dependent mainly upon the
amount and persistence Of his labor will
find abundance of evidence that i'll him
there was a remarkable natural talent or
genius, without which he could not have
accomplished nearly so much while, on
the other hand, those who claim that fl ON
natural abilities or genius come the grea-
test and most beneficent results will find
that John EricSSom'S fame rests as much
upon his ability and willingness to perform
nara ana continuous laO0ur. lie possess
ed to IA remarkable degree the power to
labour, coupled with the genius neceS-
sary to direct that la6Our and make it
fruitful of good to mankind. We do not
now recall a single name associated with
so many important and notable inventions,
any one of which would nave made him ia.
nous and secured for him an honorable place
in history. And the name of John Ericsson
has never been connected with a single
scheme for making money at the expense
of others. What little money has been re.
ceived by him, or others who have had any
thing to do with his inventions, has been
honestly earned and UNNECESSARILY more
than full value given for it.
His invention Of the screw propeller
alone conferred a benefit upon commerce,
and gave an impetus to civilization, the
value of which it is impossible to compute,
and ages hence, when our GOAL beds shall
have become exhausted, it is not unlikely
that his latest work on the problem of con.
verting the suns energy directly into mo.
tive power will point out to humanity the
way to prevent its own extinction.
The final ceremonies designed to do him
honour were held in old Trinity. and it. is