The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-11-10
lDl0TlC INVENTIONS.
WILDE WANTED TO wIPE OUT THE
JAPANESE NAVY.

A Frenchmnn who Wanted to Whip
the. Prussians With HOrsehies.
Mules Used as Gun Carriages-Wild
Freaks of Feather-Brains-Ja
Russell Lowell and the Man with
the Patent Draught.
From the Hartford Times.
John Wilde, the Rhode Islander, who
set off for China a few months ago, to
do such wonderful things. has got back
home again. Wilde had a great scheme.
It was to spread over the surface of the
sea, about the Japanese navy, a certain
combustible liquid, and then, by COM
busting it. send the whole kit to Davy
Jones locker. This would probably save
China and incidentally put money in
Johnny's little purse.
But, somehow, Wilde's invention didn't
work; in fact after four trials upon an
old abandoned gunboat which the Chinese
kindly let him have to experiment upon,
it failed to do her any material damage.
50 Johnny came marching home.
Wild as Wtde's idea may seem, it is
scarcely so wild, after all, as some of
those which from time to time have been
offered to the French government.
one Partisan genius had a scheme for
overcoming the enemies of France by
sending out against them trained squad
rons of horsefiies. The training of these
winged auxiliaries was to be conducted
in this manner: The only food allowed
them was to be blood, which they could
secure in no other way than to take
from the artificial epidermis of dummy
soldiers clothed in the Prussian uniform.
Then, when the war broke out, the flies
We're to be given daily a little of the juice
of certain poisonous plants, and at me
proper time turned out in the path of
Possibly, the inventor Of this had in
mind an actual occurrence during our
own war when regiment was positively
put to rout by a colony of wild bees.
Another ingenious person submitted a
scheme for the educating OF war dogs. IN
times of peace he would train French
dogs to bite lay figures wearing Prussian
helmets, in order that on the outbreak of
war the kennels of the whole country
might be modified and let loose on the
"Crryy 'Havocg and let lose the dogs of
Stin another individual presented a pat
ent explosive bullet which was TO be
! charged with pepper. Inc OBJECT OF TINS
bullet, the inventor explained, was two
fold. In the first place, its discharge
would blind the enemy, and then, again,
| the great demand for pepper in the time
| of war would stimulate the trade of the
French colonies, and so increase the reVe-
| nue. of the country.
Another scheme presented was Tor send
| ing large quantities of poisoned needles,
| as if I'M charity to the enemy's generals,
| who would, of course, distribute them TO
| their forces, and so poison the unfortunate
Then there were proposals for .bridg-
] ing rivers by means of ropes attached TO
| canon balls, and photographer suS-
| gested a novel kind of captive SHELL Whlch,
| on breaking over the fortlned position OF
| the enemy, would disclose small cam
era attached to a parachute. The enc
mys fortifcations would be instantane-
| ously photographed and the apparatus
/ hauled back by a string.
In England in the early part of the CEN
fury, some one proposed that mules
| should not only be used for gun-carriers,
but gun-carriages as we'll; ana the story
| goes that the ordnance select committee
/ bility of this time-saving idea. A noun
tain gun was strapped fast to cradle
resting on a pack saddle, so that the
rnuZzle pointed over the mules tail. The
I followed by the committee, and sundry
I officers and civilians interested in artil-
/ lery experiments. on arriving, the gun
/ was loaded and the mule turned until
] piece of slow-match tied TO the gun vent
] was ignited, and the result impatiently
\ awaited. Fizzi went the match, back
/ went the astOnished animals ears and
! - movement never anticipated by the ex-
! perimentalists, who found their interest
| suddenly intensified by considerations re-
] gardng their personal safety The score
| the committee dispersed in divers direc-
| lions. and the llustriOus visitors executed
! impulsive strategic movements with more
| speed than dignity. Then came hangt
| and away went the shot In one direction
/ while the mule turned a somersault in
the other and prone on its back kicked