The Portland daily press., 1893-07-14

interview might as well come to an end
at once
's'Pardon me, will come to business
AS told you, am q professor Of sci
ence, and have made discovery which
is worth millions-yes, sir, millions.
''T need not tell you of the anxious
days and sleepless nights it has cost me.
No matter; | have succeeded at last,
and you are the first man I have ever
approached with my secret I did not
do that until I was satisfied you were the
safest one could find
Gas he spoke he opened small bag
which he carried and took out three or
four Walls to place upon the table.
+" Education based upon scientific re-
search, he remarked, has made a star
Ting advance within the past few years.
But no man has gone further into the
unfathomable depths than myself You
have d basin Of water here. Pardon me
if I appropriate it to my own use.'
81 bowed in acquiescence. too much
surprised to speak.
"He quickly unsealed one of the vials
and poured it's contents into the basin Of
water. Then from another he sifted
BLUSH colored powder upon the surface
Of the liquid, which no sooner had touch
ed the other than it began to hiss, foam
and sparkle until there came report
like a pistol shot, and column Of lurid
flame leaped up to the ceiling. I started
back with a cry of terror.
"sDon't be alarmed. he assured me,
with smile; 'sthe water will soon burn
out
sThe fire soon began to grow pale and
to diminish in height, when it finally
died out altogether, and I saw that the
basin was empty.
sc How much do you think that secret
is WORTH asked my visitor, still show
ing his white teeth between his parted
lips.
ssWhat do you mean? cried.
Sit down and be composed, and I
will quickly explain. Then as sank
into the nearest seat, at a loss what to
do or say, he continued:
's'Seeing is believing, so have shown
to you what can do to impress upon
you more deeply the power that pos
sess. You have seen that basin OF water
burn like SO much oil, and now you
will believe me when / tell you that I
have unlocked one of natures great Sc
crets and that the key lies in that small
vialr
ellis demoniacal smile as he spoke
made me shudder.
i" I do not understand you, faltered.
IF you mean that you can burn wa
ter
g Haven't done itY he cried. why,
man alivel don't you realize the impor-
lance Of that secret? In those walls are
held the component agents able to sepa-
rate the constituent parts of water and,
freeing the same, set them at war with
each other, which must result in com
bustion and total humiliation.
g Think of that and realize that ] hold
in my hand the destiny of the world
Let me throw ever so little of those won
derful properties into the Atlantic and
dare you contemplate theresult? In one
instant nucleus of fire would be formed
to grow swiftly in size, separating the
gases of water and feeding upon them
until the shores of Europe and America
would be wrapped in sheet of flame.
g No deluge that ever drowned the
world could extinguish the conaagration,
but would rather transport the fiery le-
gions to the very pillars of the heavens,
and it would spread from shore to shore
and from ocean to ocean, until it had in
folded the globe in it's seetling embrace.
Every creature Of the sea, the air and
the land would perish-ay, the earth it
self would melt into fervent heat
During this startling speech he had
worked himself into fearful frenzy to
fix his intent gaze upon me as he con-
cluded with a light that burned into my
inmost being. felt I was in the pres
ence Of q mailman.
g oh, WELL said, with what calm
ness I could command, we won't antici-
pate so dreadful catastrophe as you SO
wildly describe. But it is evident you
have made remarkable discovery. / am
anxious to know just how you accom-
plished it,
Which is my secret he said, with
another smile, and I saw that my dis
passionate speech had had soothing eff
feet upon him. The man was evidently
sane except on that one subject.
"sYou are the most sensible man I
have met, he soon resumed, and l am
going to inpart enough Of my secret to
you SO you will act with good faith in
assisting me in direction where I am
powerless.
TT needs not my words to tell you
that water is composed of two gases,
hydrogen and oxygen, in parts as Q to
/. United in that proportion these
elements are impervious to fire. Every
schoolboy knows chat But mix them in
any other proportion, and heat, fame,
combustion, are the immediate conse-
quence.
Now, I have discovered the key
which unlocks the affinity holding 60
gsther the constituent parts of water.
A few grains of this powder are sufficient
to dismember its warlike elements, when
the funeral pyre of the human race is
;,,dlo5 O g Cor t,;o acf ia