Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-11-06
THE ASCENDING LADDER.

IRON the methodlcal viewpoint Of
- tho Quaker teacher IN charge.
there was no more exasperating
pupil in the little Lancaster
school OF the eighteenth century's lat
ter end than Bob Fulton. the dreamy
youngstcr with thoughts wandering far
ahcld from the duh. narrow road OF
book learning. and fingers that gave
more tune TO picture-malSing than
ciphoriug Even Quaker's temper
will turn. and one morning when fob
/ crts stupidity and negligence had
! reached The limit OF endurance. the
| worthy drab gentleman emphasized his
words OF admonition by sharp rap
I on the culprits knucklcs But genius
always rises 70 the most unexpected
occasion.
sir" said Robert with "a squciching
glance and dignity, n came here 20
nave something beat into my brains,
not into my knuckles"
The brains needed no beating. how
ever. to stir them to activity when 10
| came 10 any live interest OF the dnv
End there was plenty OF electricity Ia
the air OF a Pennsylvania town IN
those revolutionary seventies. II goes
without saying Bob was patriot TO his
finger tips-which busted themselves IN
! drawing caricaturcs OF any neighhor
with even so much as mote OF Tory
ism in his eye.
That was pure JOY. but fate soon de-
creed sad test Of his loyalty. In i7iS
the supply OF Lancaster candles ran
so low that the authorities recon-
mendcd that the little towns dcnizena
should not illuminate their houses on
the coming Fourth. Think what that
meant to boy Of 10 who had had
ftaH.. al Hs. IA
and might easily never have another.
considering the fatal way the hateful
old HOLSTERS claws were digging into
the little American army And Bob
had saved up such a lot of candles for
that bright purpose, II was a stupen-
dous moment OF Weighing In the balance.
Then came an inspiration. The can
dies we're heroically given up-but dis
posed OF in the shop OF Mr. Fisher
who sold powder and shot
our rulers have requested the citi-
zens TO refrain from illuminating their
windows and streets" the boy OK
planned. AS good citizens we should
comply with their request, and ! pre-
fer Illuminating the heavens with
skyrockcts."
DIT gr9ndiloquent, but from the
heart that loved its native land and
from the brain OF prococious young
ster who produced his skyrockets salts
factorily enough by means Of a few
sheets Of pasteboard and a modest pur-
chase OF powder.
Later, sudden passion for buying
small supplies OF quicksilver for a boys
dead-sel secret, his clam-lilIo silence on
the subject together with his alert
habit OF mind and noted nimbleness OF
fingers, won for him the cognomen OF
quicksilver Bob"
Haunting the gun shops Of tho enter
prislng little manufacturing town, his
originality, his convincing dia grams
often made his betters I'm years gasp
But there was nothing OF the intellec-
tual prig anbout him. Scarcely less than
his genius for invention was his genius
for making friepis Proprietor aud an
prentice alike greeted him with vel
coming smile.
A year after the Fourth OF July epi-
sode, this genius for friendship led to
the 4-year-oid boy becoming intimate
with a young man Of rs named Gumpf.
Gumpf's father was an enthusiastic
hsherman-of sufficient good nature to
consent 10 his son and his chum GO
ing along; not so guileless favor as il
might seem at first blush, for the an
glers boat had to be pushed about by
a pole. aud the cabin boys" were called
upon to make their passage good
Bob Fulton was no shitk-except at
foolish lessons-and poled strenuousIy
enough, but he always went home
thinking hard, and when flint strikes
flint, fash OF light results An op-
perfume invitation to visit an aunt in
the country gave him a chance to work |
out his snapshot solution Of the prob |
lem at hand, and In a week he had a |
perfect little model OF boat with pad |
die wheels. The model was left in the !