The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-09-07
THE IRON LIFEBoAT.
An Iron Boat Once Thought to be the
Dream of a Lunatic.
From 81 Nicholas

Dream of Lunatic.
From st. Nicholas.
But such work as this, successful as 1t
was, was only what we might call amuse-
ment-there was far more serious work to
perform. From 1880 to 1910 the young man
was spending all his spare time and
money at work upon boat which should
not only save lives, but which could not
be crushed on the rocks when the waves
were hurting themselves shoreward. His
cork-lined boats were successful, and
were giving him a worldwide fame as
an inventor and philathropist; but he
felt that, unless he could invent boat
of some other material than wood his
object was but half attained.
He resolved to try iron. Those of his
friends who knew of this step looked up
on him as many an inventor is looked up
on in our own day-as little less than
lunatic. Iron for boat? Why, it would
take such a vast amount OF wood to float
the iron that 1t would be impossible to
propel the boat, to say nothing of having
it breast the waves of a furious gale and
go out through the storm to a wrecked
shipi The idea, they said, was simply
preposterous. The young man acknowl-
edged the apparent force of the argument,
but he believed there was a way out of
the difficulty He started in the path
alone. He found many cruel and dis
heartenlng difficulties in the way, but he
bravely met all trouble. and he ably main
tanned his high purpose and won at last
a magnificent victory, not only for him
SELF but for all mankind.
In his later years Mr.. FrancE loved to
tell Of the trials of that crNical time.
Amid his later honors he never forgot the
days when at one moment he seemed so
near to success, and at another so near
to the saddest of failures.
X was now the year 1S4l. He had taken
HIS family-for he was married-to a coun-
try place where they could live more
cheaply than in the city. He had the use
of a room in a house on Anthony street, in
the city of New York, in which to carry
on the work of his inventions, by the IA
vor of MVndert Van Shoick, a gentleman
who was much interested in the outcome
of the matter Here, shut I'm from all the
world in sore poverty, he worked for
twelve months, a long. discouraging,
weary year. The end to be gained was TO
make iron float on water, something which
his best friends thought the dream of
lunatic. Day by day and night by night
he worked ceaselessly. He denied himself
all luxuries, all comforts He met with fail
ure after failure.
He found himself one day at the close of
the year reduced to actual want-and his
object not attained. He had but a pittance
in his pocket. He was hungry. but he need
ed one more piece OF iron TO make one last
supreme effort. He went out to junk shop
with his last % cents. He bought his piece
of iron for 10 cents. With the rest of the
money he bought bread and molasses. All
that night he worked. In the morning he
found that the rats had stolen the piece
of bread which he had saved for his break
fast. but the labor of the night had
brought victory He had solved the prob
lem! He had conquered in the fiercest bat
tie of his life. He had achieved the sue
cess he sought and this victory meant
the saving Of the lives OF many thousands
Of his fellow-men.
The corrugation OF iron. forming ridges
in lines along the sides of the boats had
been invented. BY this aid he was enabled
to make the iron float, for he could bend
1t and shape it to the curved form of
boat. and the bendings or ridges in the
sides took the place of all stays, supports.
ribs timbers, furnishing in themselves the
support and strength. while nothing was
adde to the weight. The metal was put un-
der great pressure to do this, but II stayed
In place. and the victory was won.