Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-01-28
NAPOLEON'S LOST CHANCE
Might Have Made France Mistress of
the Sea.
EXPERIENCE ON THE SEINE
Faith Of Robert r. Livingston Justi-
fied-Coming Celebration
at Bordeaux.
BY WILLIAM e. CURTIS.

written FOR The Star and the Chicago Record
Herald
The late Lord Acton. professor of his
tory at Cambridge University, who laid
the plan of the Cambridge History Of the
World" was once asked what was the
greatest event in the nineteenth century
Without a moments hesitation he an
swered:
THE accidental sinking Of Fulton's
steamer in the River Seine in 1904. If it
had been successful Napoleon would have
been able to land his forces wherever he
pleased and the conquest of the British
Isles might have followed"
That Napoleon recognized such possi-
bility is shown by letter written by him
July 81, 1904. just as he was starting for
his Austerlitz campaign. He instructed
his minister of Marine, M. De Champagny
to appoint a committee of the French
Academy to investigate Fultons inven-
ton. and to report to him within eight
days. saying with irritation that much
time had already been lost. and conclud-
ing his instructions with the remark:
1T is possible that the invention Of this
American may change the face Of the
world
DIR. Edward Everett Hale says: "In
early life 1 knew an old man named Ed
ward Church. who had introduced steam
navigation on the continent of Europe.
He told me that he was the roommate of
Robert Fulton for several years. while
Fulton was making his experiments with
torpedoes and paddle-wheel boats run by
steam on the Seine in Paris. Fulton was
q Pennsylvania. the son of an Irish I'M
migrant, who settled in Lancaster county,
When he was only thirteen years old the
boy made toy boats that were propelled
by paddle wheels. He became a painter,
and at the close Of the revolution went
to Lonodn with letter of introduction to
Benjamin West, who procured for him the
patronage of the nobility In painting min
iature portraits. He abandoned painting
mind was always busy with contrivances
for labor-saving machinery and for the
solution of difficult problems. In 1898 he
steam engines. and tried to persuade the
Earl Of Stanhope and other rich men to
furnish the money to build paddle
wheeled vessel to be propelled by one OF
them.
Experience In Paris.
'In 1874 he made the acquaintance OF
Joel Barlow. the poet. who used to live in
q house that stood north Of the present ex-
tension of street. In Washington, and
when Barlow went to Paris to escape the
displeasure of the British government Full
ton went with him. While there Fulton In
vented the panorama and painted the first
that was eve exhibited. With the proceeds
OF that invention he made experiments in
the River seine with submarine boats and
torpedoes, and In 1901 was employed by the
French government to blow up English
nh ps In the channel. But his submarine
boat was pronounced impracticable and IS
torpedoes were ineffective.
'sThen he built the working model Of the
first steamboat ever floated. sixty feet long
engine and propelled by padle wheel In
the stern. 1t was moderately SUCCESSFUL In
plying the Seine and naturally excited q
great deal Of interest. The boat was built
IA l,,v. bad hxvp Doh
ert r. Livingston. United States ambassa-
dor to France Napoleon directed NJ. De
Champagny. his minister Of marine to APP
point a, committee of members OF the
French Academy to make an investigation,
and one of the commission was the cele-
brated NJ. Montgolier, the inventor of bal
looms.
'sMr. Church told me-" continued DR.. Hale.
"that shortly after daylight on the morning
Of the day In July. 1906 whe nthis commits
sion was to make the test, he and Full
ton were awakened from their sleep by
frantic knock at their door: and when they
INQUIRED who was there, the voice of the
sailor who had charge of the little steamer
cried out:
Monsieur Fulton! Oh. Monsieur Full
ton, The boat has sunk to the bottom of
the Seine"
''Church said that they dressed them
selves hastily and ran down to the river.
where they found that the boatman's story
was true. In some way or other the little
had sprung a leak. had filled with water,
and had gone to the bottom.
1.-THE committee of the French Academy
never made the test" continued DR.. Hale.
"Fulton raised the wreck, rebuilt 1t and ran
Il on the Seine all summer, but Church
told me that Napoleon took no further In
terest in It. He said that a boat that would
sink so easily would be useless for his pur
poses.
Success With the Clermont.
Mr. Livingston, however, continued to
take a deep interest in the invention, and
with his assistance Fulton transferred his
experiments TO Hohoken. n. j., where, with
the aid of Nicholas Roosevelt. great-great-
granduncIe of the President, he constructed
q side-wheel steamboat called the Clermont,
I'm honor of Mr.. Livingston's sumner home
on the banks of the Hudson. James Watt
designed the engine. which was built by
Boulton K Co. at Soho, London, and reached
New York In good order On August IL,
1897, the Clermont left New York city and
made the passage of 40 miles to Albany In
thirty-two hours. The remainder of that
summer regular trips were made every
week, and the British minister to the United
States. who had a summer home on the
Hudson. reported the fact to his govern
ment with the remark that No gentlemen
of my staff would be willing to trust his life
in IL.
IF that little model had not been crush
ed against the banks of the Seine upon
that hateful night in July" said DIR. Hale,
what might have happened? AS Napo-
leon himself remarked the face of the
world might have been changed"
In the winter of 1S07-S the "Clernont'
was rebuilt, and steam navigation has been
maintained uninterrupted from that day.
Shortly after Fulton established steam fer
ries between New York and Brooklyn and
between New York and New Jersey and
before he died, in February, 1915, Ave
steamboats, were navigating the waters of
the Hudson. In the spring of 1903 he mar
RED Harriet. daughter of Walter Living
ston and niece of his patron Robert r.
Livingston. At the time of his death he
was experimenting with a submarine boat
called the Nautilus. He built the Fulton
the first steamship of war for the United
States navy, In 1910. and spent several
months as the guest of Joel Barlow at
kalorama. In the city OF Washington,
where he was engaged in torpedo expert
ments down in the valley of Rock creek,
where the Geological Gardens of Washing
ton are now located. He endeavored to in
terest President Jefferson In the matter,
and wrote him several letters, which are
preserved in the Library of Congress, beg
ging him to appoint a commission of army
officers to cooperate in his experiments;
but jefferson paid no attention to the mat
ter. The submarine boats of today and the
marine torpedoes which are now commonly
used by all the navies of the earth are
based uDon the theories first advanced by