The Logan Republican. [volume] (Logan, Utah) 1902-1924, 1914-09-01


have been wrought in the last cen
fury, which. in cfvilised lands have
amounted almost TO recreation.
That progress has been due in great
part to the application Of mechanics.
The steam engine was perfected by
mechanical genius. In great measure
electricity has become mans servant
from the same cause.
II 10 q natural thought that certain
men we're raised up for certain pur.
poses or to meet and master some
particular crisis.
Grant had wearied Of the army, re-
signed, tried farming and failed, and
had settled down az clerk in Q tan
merry where, save for the upheaval
Of 1861, he would have ended his
days unknown to the world. though
his friends in his darkest days were
settled in the conviction that with
the opportunity offered he would
prove to be q great soldier. Sher.
man was educated rs a soldier and,
engineer; he tried teaching and
banking. and had finally attached
himself 10 b street car company in
st. Louis when the call came in 1861
John Ericsson was born in Sweden,
went to England as q youth. then he
l came to America and all the time
was studying problems to be solved
| through mechanics.
James b. Eads was born in Lau-
renceburg. Indiana. May %. 1920, and
was educated a. b civil engineer,
When the war came in 1861 he, like
Ericsson turned to see what could
be done to improve boats propelled
by steam to make them more effective
| and capable of greater resistance
against attack. Ericsson's work was
for the sea, ads for river craft. Eric
son produced the revolving turret
ship, Eads built ironclads for the
rivers. Both served their purposes,
but the principle on which Ericsson
worked was the truer one, for it was
capable of fitting any ship, no mat
ter how big, while Ead's had limita-
tions, which were controlled by the
size of the craft and the power of
guns. A modern gun would destroy
an Eads ironclad with three shots on
an Ericsson ship few more layers.
of steel would have made the shots
impotent to harm the craft.
But the ships of both served their
purpose. When the war closed Eads
turned to other problems. His first
great work was building the bridge
at st. Louis. 1t was a marvel when
completed; 1t remains a marvel still.
The best description we ever saw
of it was story told Of Red Cloud
the famous Sioux war chief. After
the Sioux were finally subdued, Red
Cloud, with other chiefs, was taken
to Washington to see the great white
father" and to be given an object
lesson of what the country that he
had been fighting so long really was.
They went via st. Louis. On his re-
turn home Red Cloud was asked what
he saw that most impressed him.
His answer-so the story runs was
MS follows:
Him railroad no much, plenty wag-
ons, no more. Him city no much.
all same plenty big wickiups. but you
savie, him bridge over big water, st.
Louis, him all same spider web. Me
look out. Me see; me no breathe.
We suspect that 1t would have at
fected old Archimedes the same way.
The war, SO the historian says
opened the Mississippi from It's source
to its mouth to commerce. But 1t dic
not. The difference between the ear
| nest DOlltitldh ahu siiS
river IL, that the first often has to'
much mouth, the latter has too man!
mouths. This made 1t difficult 10
ships to enter the river or to depa'
from it, and at best permitted oni
ships of light draft to enter.
Eads turned his attention TO 1t an
declared that with the willows grow
I, ing on the banks he could make inat'
0 then sink them, continuing the rive
to narrower limits, which won'd II
n crease the speed of the current wit
the result that the river would scol
u out a deeper channel for itself. III
idea he pressed upon congress &c
a. sion after session and was answers
by the Few who were familiar vii
" the classics, with such remarks al
q. | .tN.a 49,, xyo,,ld fain ha N spCOI