The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1903-10-30
YOUTHFUL
WIZARD
i Precocious Boy Of a
New York Village
WILLIAM WEBB DAVIS HIS NAME
low He Built an Automobile and
Then Converted 1t Into a
Steamboat.
WILLIAM WEBB DAVIS HIS NAME

The Wizard of Hadison, n. j., and
57s faithful man, Friday, known 10
-as1v as Soup, are worth special men
sirm Madison is not a town that mas
evgsr attracted any particular atten
ion except on one occasion l"c
years ago, when a flood washed UP
tae bodies in one of its Oldest GENE
eeriag. Notwithstanding its seeming
r1Eonspicuousness the town has
-aizard'-one William Webb Davis,
r. son of William Webb Davis, a
vhoIesaIe merchant of New York.
Although only Is years old, the
Wizard of Madison has succeeded in
accomplishing two rather remarkable
5ings. He has invented and operated
4 automobile with direct driver,
saa he has nayigated a steamboat OF
MS own built on the waters of the
Eassaic river as high up as New
2IoVidence
Perhaps the value of these feats
alU he overlooked by the casual read
zr unless it is explained that all the
automobiles which are in use today
save operated with a clutch, and that
la inventor has ever been able to put
8rau the market a car with an abSo-
lut= direct driver The feat OF run
ing a sidewheeI steamboat on the
P2ssaic river as high up as New
Providence is remarkable because OF
ms very shallow water there. In the
language Of the wizard. the fish IN
lbose waters have to stand on their
neads in order to dampen their gills.
Madison never had an idea until
asl summer that it contained a nat
rral born Fulton Edison. The news
leaked out when the Eagle, its weekly
paper, put in a new printing press.
The engine which was designed TO run
Ehe press would not develop suthcent
power and the efforts Of all the me-
cnanical engineers in the town could
not make it do any better. Finally
the wizard. who had just put on long
trousers and who is still a prep" at
-he Stevens institute, volunteered his
services. and within "a hours the
Eagles new engine was developing
enough power SO the wizards under
study. Soup, says. TO not only run OH
the entire edition of the paper and
10 all the Job work required of 1t, but
also to heat and light the town-had
L ever been called upon.
Shortly after establishing his repu-
engineer, the wizard and his friend
SpllD came to the conclusion that II
WAS about time Madison supported an
automobile Taking the duty upon
themselves, they located an automo-
bile factory in a shed connected with
the Davis stable. A dry goods box
was secured for body. Steam gener-
ated by gasoline was settled upon as
the power, ana boiler was made or
a piece of wrought iron piping eight
inches long This pipe was capped
AZ both ends and four tubes were In
serted traversely by boring holes in
he sides OF the boiler. SO far as the
wizard knows his system Of piping
was original.
When he had his engine completed
ne rugged up a running gear with a
bicycle chain and SprOcket wheel at
cached to the rear axle. The wheels
1ere taken from a toy wagon and a
gasoline stove burner was used at
drst to generate steam. Later wood
was used. because the inventors
iunds ran out.
When all was ready Soup gave the
Ear shove and she shot out into
Main street like a regular red devil.
Madison's leading grocer happened
20 be in the way, and he narrowly
escaped being run down, for which
ne threatened suit. The trial trip was
such a success the Wizard and Soup
look daily runs on the roads about
Madison. going frequently two OIL
three miles. and in the course Of q
week the Coffin" which was what
everybody called the machine caused
no less than a dozen horses to rur
away. Enough litigation was propos
ed by the surrounding farmers tc
keep the Wizards family estate tee
up for about a generation, and ther
he decided to turn the disturber into
4 steamboat.
After being finished in the stable
she was sent TO New Providence on {
friendly farmers wagon and launch
ed. Like the Coffin, whose engine sh,
contained, the Ark runs. Gasoline i
used to generate her steam, and sh
is geared very low, so her half horse
power engine devlops, the Wizar'
calculates, about one horsepower
She is u feet long, three feet 81