Read Ebook: Torpedo War and Submarine Explosions by Fulton Robert

Font size: 10 px 15 px 20 px 25 px 30 px 35 px

Background color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Text color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Apply/Save settings

Ebook has 391 lines and 116095 words, and 8 pages

THOUGHTS -- On the probable effect of this invention 20 Estimate of the Force to Attack so Formidable a Blockade Fleet 32 Manner of Arranging the Boats Until Wanted 33 First Mode of Attack 35 Second Mode of Attack 36

ON -- the imaginary inhumanity of Torpedo war 40

A VIEW -- of the political economy of this invention 43

EDITOR'S PREFACE

In view of the prominent part played in the present World War by torpedoes and submarines, the subject of our Extra No. 35 is peculiarly timely.

The original of 1810 is very scarce, only one copy having been sold at auction in many years: nor are copies to be found in any but a few of our libraries. Fulton's claims for his invention have been fully substantiated and some of his predictions, made more than a century ago, are remarkably interesting, in view of the events of the past five months. His estimate of our population in 1920 has already been exceeded in fact, and only his plan of affixing torpedoes to their prey by means of harpoons seems--for it was made in the days of wooden ships--fantastic, in these days of iron clads. He could not foresee that almost exactly a century would elapse before his invention would be extensively used--though he cautiously says "it is impossible to foresee to what degree torpedoes may be improved and rendered useful."

In the Joline collection of autograph letters, sold this month, was an extremely interesting letter of Fulton's, addressed to Gen. William Duane. A part reads:

"New York, March 1, 1813

I am happy to find you continue the firm friend to torpedoes; an infant art which requires only support and practice to produce a change in Maritime affairs of immence importance to this country. Expecting the enemy here, I have not been idle, I have prepared 9 torpedoes with locks that strike fire by concussion, and four with clockwork locks."

The letter is of great interest throughout, and tells of his plans for blowing up the enemy or driving them from New York waters, his regret that he had not enough torpedoes for the Chesapeake; and contains a list of the cost of various sorts, &c.

We regret that we could not secure permission to copy the whole of it.

TORPEDO WAR, &c.

Gentlemen,

In January last, at Kalorama, the residence of my friend Joel Barlow, I had the pleasure of exhibiting to Mr. Jefferson, Mr. Madison, and a party of gentlemen from the senate and house of representatives, some experiments and details on Torpedo defence and attack; the favourable impression which the experiments appeared to make on the minds of the gentlemen then present; and my conviction that this invention, improved and practised to the perfection which it is capable of receiving, will be of the first importance to our country, has induced me to present you in the form of a pamphlet a description of my system, with five engravings, and such demonstrations as will give each of you an opportunity to contemplate its efficacy and utility at your leisure; and enable you to form a correct judgment on the propriety of adopting it as a part of our means of national defence. It being my intention to publish hereafter a detailed account of the origin and progress of this invention, and the embarrassments under which I have laboured to bring it to its present state of certain utility; I will now state only such experiments and facts as are most important to be known, and which, proving the practicability of destroying ships of war by this means, will lead the mind to all the advantages which we may derive from it. I believe it is generally known that I endeavoured for many years to get torpedoes introduced into practice in France, and in England; which, though unsuccessful, gave me the opportunity of making numerous very interesting experiments on a large scale; by which I discovered errors in the combinations of the machinery and method of fixing the torpedoes to a ship; which errors in the machinery have been corrected: and I believe I have found means of attaching the torpedoes to a vessel which will seldom fail of success. It is the result of my experience which I now submit to your consideration; and hoping that you will feel an interest in the success of my invention, I beg for your deliberate perusal and reflection on the following few pages. Gentlemen who have traced the progress of the useful arts, know the years of toil and experiment, and difficulties which frequently pass, before the utility and certain operation of new discoveries have been established; hence it could not be expected, that torpedoes should be rendered useful without encountering many difficulties; and I am aware, that in the course of farther essays other difficulties will appear; but from my past experience I feel confident, that any obstacle which may arise can be surmounted by attention and perseverance: of this gentlemen will be better able to judge, after examining the following facts and details:

Note on vessels of war of the United States

From which a comparative estimate may be made of their expence, and the expence of armed Torpedo boats; also the degree of protection which a given sum would effect, expended in either way.

Guns 54 First cost, dollars 302,718 Annual expence when in commission, dollars 100,000 Draft of water, feet 23

Guns 18 First cost, dollars 60,000 Annual expence in commission, dollars 38,000 Draft of water, feet 15

First cost, fitted for sea, dollars 12,000 Annual expence in commission, dollars 11,000 Men 36 Number of gun boats of the United States 167

This Work having been published in haste, the errors of the press, and those of diction, shall be corrected in the second edition.

PLATE I

The experiment was of the most satisfactory kind, for it proved a fact much debated and denied, that the explosion of a sufficient quantity of powder under the bottom of a vessel would destroy her. There is now no doubt left on any intelligent mind as to this most important of all facts connected with the invention of Torpedoes; and the establishment of this fact alone, merits the expenditure of millions of dollars and years of experiment, were it yet necessary, to arrive at a system of practice which shall insure success to attacks, with such formidable engines. For America, I consider it a fortunate circumstance that this experiment was made in England, and witnessed by more than a hundred respectable and brave officers of the Royal navy; for, should Congress adopt Torpedoes as a part of our means of defence, lords Melville, Castlereagh, and Mulgrave, have a good knowledge of their combination and effect. Lord Grenville, Earls Gray and St. Vincent, have on their minds a strong impression of their probable consequences. Sir Home Popham, Sir Sidney Smith, and Colonel Congreve, the latter now celebrated for his ingenious invention of Pyrotecnic arrows or rockets, were my friends and companions in the experiments; they are excellent and brave men, and from my knowledge of those noblemen and gentlemen, and their sentiments on this subject, I can predict that they would feel much disposed to respect the rights, nor enter the waters of a nation who should use such engines with energy and effect.

PLATE II

Represents the anchored Torpedo, so arranged as to blow up a vessel which should run against it; B is a copper case two feet long, twelve inches diameter, capable of containing one hundred pounds of powder. A is a brass box, in which there is a lock similar to a common gun-lock, with a barrel two inches long, to contain a musket charge of powder: the box, with the lock cocked and barrel charged, is screwed to the copper case B. H is a lever which has a communication to the lock inside of the box, and in its present state holds the lock cocked and ready to fire. C is a deal box filled with cork, and tied to the case B. The object of the cork is to render the Torpedo about fifteen or twenty pounds specifically lighter than water, and give it a tendency to rise to the surface. It is held down to any given depth under water by a weight of fifty or sixty pounds as at F: there is also a small anchor G, to prevent a strong tide moving it from its position. With Torpedoes prepared, and knowing the depth of water in all our bays and harbours, it is only necessary to fix the weight F at such a distance from the Torpedo, as when thrown into the water, F will hold it ten, twelve, or fifteen feet below the surface at low water, it will then be more or less below the surface at high water, or at different times of the tide; but it should never be so deep as the usual draught of a frigate or ship of the line. When anchored, it will, during the flood tide, stand in its present position; at slack water it will stand perpendicular to the weight F, as at D; during the ebb it will be at E. At ten feet under water the waves, in boisterous weather, would have little or no tendency to disturb the Torpedo; for that if the hollow of a wave should sink ten feet below what would be the calm surface, the wave would run twenty feet high, which I believe is never the case in any of our bays or harbours. All the experience which I have on this kind of Torpedo is, that in the month of October 1805, I had one of them anchored nine feet under water, in the British Channel near Dover; the weather was severe, the waves ran high, it kept its position for twenty-four hours, and, when taken up, the powder was dry and the lock in good order. The Torpedo thus anchored, it is obvious, that if a ship in sailing should strike the lever H, the explosion would be instantaneous, and she be immediately destroyed; hence, to defend our bays or harbours, let a hundred, or more if necessary, of these engines be anchored in the channel, as for example, the Narrows, to defend New-York.

The figure to the right of the plate is an end view of the Torpedo H. H shews its lever forked, to give the better chance of being struck.

Having described this instrument in a way which I hope will be understood, I may be permitted to put the following question to my readers, which is, knowing that the explosion of one hundred pounds of powder, or more if required, under the bottom of a ship of the line, would destroy her, and seeing, that if a ship in sailing should strike the lever of an anchored torpedo, she would be blown up, would he have the courage, or, shall I say, temerity, to sail into a channel where one or more hundred of such engines were anchored? I rely on each gentleman's sense of prudence and self-preservation, to answer this question to my satisfaction. Should the apprehension of danger become as strong on the minds of those who investigate this subject as it is on mine, we may reasonably conclude that the same regard to self-preservation, will make an enemy cautious in approaching waters where such engines are placed; for, however brave sailors may be, there is no danger so distressing to the mind of a seaman, or so calculated to destroy his confidence, as that which is invisible and instantaneous destruction.

The consideration which will now present itself, is, that the enemy might send out boats to sweep for and destroy the Torpedoes. It is therefore proper to examine the nature of such an operation, and its chance of success. Suppose two hundred Torpedoes to be placed in three miles of channel, the enemy's boats, in attempting to sweep for them, would be exposed to the fire of our land batteries, or necessitated to fight our boats, for whenever they leave their ships and take to boats, we can be as well armed and active at boat fighting as they; and thus opposed by batteries and boats, they would have three or more square miles of channel to sweep, which, even if successful, would be a work of time, and were they to get up some of the Torpedoes, they could not ascertain if all were destroyed, for they could not know whether five or five hundred had been put down; nor could they prevent our boats throwing in additional numbers each day and night. It therefore amounts to an impossibility for an enemy to clear a channel of Torpedoes, provided it were reasonably guarded by land batteries and row boats. Added to the opposition which might be made to the enemy, there is a great difficulty in clearing a channel of Torpedoes with any kind of sweep or drag, so as to establish full confidence in sailing through it. It is only they who put them down and know the number, that could tell when all were taken up. To facilitate the taking of them up, I have, since Plate II was engraved, thought of a very useful and simple piece of mechanism which, being screwed to the box C, will hold the Torpedo under water at any given depth, and for any number of days. They may be set to stay under water a day, week, month, or year, and on the day which shall be previously determined, they will rise to the surface; at the same instant each will lock its lever H so that it cannot strike fire, and the Torpedo may be handled with perfect safety. Not having time to engrave this improvement, it shall be exhibited to Congress in a working model, by which it will also be better understood.

I will now suppose the enemy to be approaching a port; a signal announces them; our boats run out and throw into the channel two hundred Torpedoes, set each to 15 days. Should the enemy sail among them, the consequence will teach future caution; should they cruise or anchor at a distance, what could they do? They not knowing the number of Torpedoes which were put down, nor the day on which they were to rise to the surface, could not have their boats out exposed to our fire, and waiting from day to day for a time uncertain. Whereas, our officers, knowing the number which were put down, and the day they were to rise to the surface, would have their boats ready to take them in, and at the same time replace them with others set for ten, fifteen, twenty, or more days. Viewing this subject in all its bearings, the impression on my mind is, that it would be impossible for an enemy to enter a port where anchored Torpedoes were thus used, without their incurring danger of such a kind, that courage could not guard them from its consequences. Prudence and justice would warrant their abandoning such an enterprise; and the probability is, that knowing us to be thus prepared, they never would attempt it, or should they, and only one vessel were to be destroyed, we might calculate on its good effect to protect us from future hostile enterprises.

B is a copper case to contain one hundred or more pounds of powder; C a cork cushion to give the whole Torpedo such a buoyancy, that it will be only from two to three pounds heavier than salt water. To ascertain such weight, when it is charged with powder and the lock screwed on, it is put into a large tub of sea water. C is to have fifteen or twenty inch-holes bored in its sides and top, to let the water rush in and the air out, otherwise, the air would prevent its immediately sinking. A is a cylindric brass box, about seven inches diameter and two inches deep, in which there is a gun-lock with a barrel two inches long, to receive a charge of powder and a wad, which charge is fired into the powder of the case B. In the brass box A there is also a piece of clockwork moved by a spring, which being wound up and set, will let the lock strike fire in any number of minutes which may be determined within one hour. K is a small line fixed to a pin, which pin holds the clockwork inactive; the instant the pin is withdrawn the clockwork begins to move, and the explosion will take place in one, two, three, or any number of minutes for which it has been set; the whole is so made as to be perfectly tight and keep out the water, although under a pressure of twenty-five or thirty perpendicular feet. D is a pine box two feet long, six or eight inches square, filled with cork; it is ten or fifteen pounds lighter than water, and floats on the surface; the line from it to the Torpedo is the suspending line, which must be of a length in proportion to the estimated draft of water of the vessel to be attacked; vessels of a certain number of guns usually draw within a few feet of the same draft of water; the suspending line should be from four to eight feet longer than the greatest draft of the vessel, that it may bend round the curve of her side, and lay the Torpedo near her keel. From the Torpedo and the float D, two lines, each twenty feet long, are united at E, from thence one line goes to the harpoon, the total length of the line from the Torpedo to the harpoon being about fifty feet, according to the length of the vessel to be attacked, will, when the ship is harpooned in the bow, bring the Torpedo under her bottom near midship. See the harpoon. It is a round piece of iron, half an inch diameter and two feet long, the butt one inch diameter, the exact calibre of the harpoon-gun; in the head of the harpoon there is an eye, the point six inches long is barbed, the line of the Torpedo is spliced into the eye of the harpoon, a small iron or tough copper link runs on the shaft of the harpoon, to the link the Torpedo-line is also tied, and at such a distance, that when the harpoon is in the gun it will form a loop as at H, but when fired, the link will slide along to the butt of the harpoon, and, holding the rope and harpoon parallel to each other, the rope will act like a tail or rod to a rocket, and guide it straight; without this precaution, the butt of the harpoon would turn foremost, and make a very uncertain shot. F is the harpoon-gun, made strong, and to work on a swivel in a stanchion fixed in the stern-sheets of a boat. My experience with this kind of harpoon and gun, is, that I have harpooned a target of six feet square fifteen or twenty times, at the distance of from thirty to fifty feet, never missing, and always driving the barbed point through three inch boards up to the eye, which practice was so satisfactory, that I did not consider it necessary to repeat it. The object of harpooning a vessel on the larboard and starboard bow, is, to fix one end of the Torpedo-line, then, if the ship be under sail, her action through the water will draw the Torpedo under her; if she be at anchor, the tide will drive it under her, where, at the expiration of the time for which the clockwork was set, the explosion will destroy her.

PLATE IV, Fig. 1

Such boats would be active well armed, and, if good men, may be said to be strong handed, and well prepared to make good a retreat, or act on the defensive, in case of encountering the enemy's boats.

Fig. 2

A, shews a Torpedo, with the harpoon-line fixed to the centre of its end; when the line is thus fixed, the tide cannot drive the Torpedo under a vessel, for the pressure of the current being equal on both sides, it will hang perpendicular to its suspending box of cork C, Fig. 2, and remain as at B, where, exploding, it would blow the water perpendicular to C, and up the side of the ship; the lateral movement of the water from B to E would give her a sudden cant to one side, but do her no injury. This has been proved by the following practice.

I immediately had a large tub made, then filling a copper case with powder, I screwed on to it the clockwork lock, and tied to it the pine box C, then suspending the whole Torpedo by a line in the tub of seawater; the end of the suspending line was tied to one end of a scale-beam. I then filled the pine box C with cork, until the whole volume of the Torpedo and box of cork would, when just covered with water, hold three pounds in equilibrio in the scale on the other end of the beam. The Torpedo being then three pounds heavier than water, had a sufficient tendency to sink; and being so balanced, would, while under water, be easy moved by a slight pressure to either side. Then, instead of tying the coupling line to the end of the Torpedo, as at A, I tied it to a bridle, as at B, which presenting the side on an angle to the tide, the pressure of the current in the direction of the arrow, would cause the Torpedo to sheer from B to G. This arrangement perfectly succeeded to sheer the Torpedo from its perpendicular C, and the side of the vessel to E, near the keel, a position, near which it should be to do execution. In this situation, the explosion being under the vessel, would have a great body of water to remove laterally, before it could get out by a line curving round her side. The water, when acted on in so instantaneous a manner as by the explosion of one hundred or one hundred and fifty pounds of powder, does, for the instant, operate like a solid body; hence the explosion raises the vessel up with a great force, acting on a small portion of her bottom, which portion giving way, is the same in effect, as though a high sea had lifted her fifteen or twenty feet, and let her down on the point of a rock of three or four feet diameter. This, I believe, accounts for the certain destruction which will follow all explosions that take place near the keel. In all cases when the explosion is under water, the action will be perpendicular to the surface, as from B to C, for in the perpendicular, there are less particles to remove, and less resistance than in any diagonal, as for example, from B to D.

The French papers, giving an account of the attack of captain Siccombe and lieutenant Payne, acknowledged that the Torpedoes blew up along side of the gun-brigs, but gave them only a violent shock and cant to one side; they spoke of the engines as things of little consequence and not to be feared. It is now, however, evident, that they owed the safety of the two brigs to the trifling circumstance of the Torpedoes not being properly balanced in water, and the coupling lines not being tied to a bridle, so as to make the Torpedoes sheer under the bottoms of the brigs.

Fig. 3

Is a bird's eye view of a ship of the line, either at anchor or under sail, and the Torpedo boats rowing on to the attack. I am sensible that there are strong prejudices against the possibility of row-boats attacking a ship or ships of the line, with any reasonable hope of success; I will, therefore, commence my reasoning and demonstrations by the following questions. What is the basis of the aggression and injustice of one nation towards another? Is it not a calculation on their power to enforce their will? What is the basis of all courage and obstinate perseverance in battle? Is it not a calculation on some real or presumed advantage? A frigate of 30 guns is not expected to engage a ship of eighty guns, for every rational calculation is against her, and to strike her colours would be no dishonour. If I now prove that all the calculations are in favour of the Torpedo boats, it shall hereafter be no dishonour for a ship of the line to strike her colours, and tamely submit to superior science and tactics.

I will run my calculations against a third rate, an 80 gun ship, she being the medium between first rates of 110 guns and fifth rates of 44 guns. I will suppose her to enter one of our ports or harbours in a hostile manner; her draft of water, when loaded, is twenty-two feet; her full complement of men six hundred. Were we to oppose to the enemy an 80 gun ship, she would cost four hundred thousand dollars; we would also have to give her a full complement of six hundred men. If she engaged the enemy, the chances are equal that she would be beaten; if an obstinate engagement, she might have from one to two hundred men killed and wounded, and be so shattered as to require repairs to the amount of forty or fifty thousand dollars; she might be taken and lost to the nation, and add to the strength of the enemy. It is now to be seen if six hundred men and a capital of four hundred thousand dollars, the value of an eighty gun ship, cannot be used to better advantage in a Torpedo attack or defence.

The pay and provisions for six hundred men, whether in an 80 gun ship or in Torpedo boats, may be estimated, for the present, to amount to the same sum annually.

Here is an establishment of fifty boats with their Torpedoes, and armed complete, for 24,300 dollars; the economy 375,700 dollars. It is evident the ship could not put out fifty boats to contend with our fifty; she could not, in fact, put out twenty; therefore, as to boat fighting, the enemy could have no chance of success, and would have to depend for protection on her guns and small arms. Unless in a case of great emergency, the attack should be in the night, for if an enemy came into one of our harbours to do execution, the chances would be much against her getting out and to any great distance before night. In a night usually dark, rowboats, if painted white, and the men dressed in white, cannot be seen at the distance of three hundred yards; and there are nights so dark, that they cannot be seen if close under the bow. I might here draw into my calculations on chances that an enemy, who understood the tremendous consequences of a successful attack with Torpedoes, would not like to run the risk of the night being dark. But in any night, the fifty boats closing on the vessel in all direction, would spread or divide her fire, and prevent it becoming concentered on any one or more boats. Boats which row five miles an hour, and which all good boats can do for a short time, run at the rate of one hundred and forty yards a minute. At the distance of three hundred yards from the ship, they take the risque of cannon shot, which must, from necessity, be random and without aim, on so small a body as a boat, running with a velocity of one hundred and forty yards a minute. At two hundred yards from the ship, the boats must take the chance of random discharges of grape and cannister shot; and at one hundred yards from the ship, they must run the risque of random musket; each boat will, therefore, be two minutes within the line of the enemy's fire before she harpoons, and two minutes after she has harpooned before she gets out of the line of fire, total, four minutes in danger: the danger, however, is not of a very serious kind, for, as before observed, no aim can be taken in the night at such quick moving bodies as row-boats; yet some men might be killed, and some boats crippled; in such an event, the great number of boats which we should have in motion, could always help the unfortunate. But what would be the situation of the enemy, who had their six hundred men in one vessel? The Torpedo boats closing upon her, twenty-five on the larboard and twenty-five on the starboard bow, some of them would certainly succeed to harpoon her between the stem and main chains, and if so, the explosion of only one Torpedo under her would sink her, killing the greatest part of the people who were between decks, and leave those who might escape to the mercy of our boats to save them.

I now beg of my reader to meditate on this kind of attack, and make up his mind on which are in the greatest danger, the six hundred men in the ship or the six hundred men in the boats? Are not the chances fifty to one against the ship, that she would be blown up before she could kill two hundred men in the boats? Should this appear evident, or be proved by future practice, no commander would be rash enough to expose his ship to such an attack.

To give a fair comparative view of the two modes of fighting, I have, in these calculations, made the number of men on each side equal; by the same rule, if twenty ships of 80 guns were to come into one of our ports, we should be necessitated to have one thousand boats and twelve thousand men; but such a preparation would not be necessary. It can never be necessary for us to have more boats than are sufficient to meet the boats which the enemy could put out to oppose us; an 80 gun ship, which is to work her guns, cannot be encumbered with many boats; they usually have:

They may, in some cases, have two more boats, total number, six; therefore, twelve boats on our part would be sufficient to attack an 80 gun ship; particularly as all our boats would be built expressly for running, and our business is to run to harpoon and not to fight; for this purpose our six oarsmen, in each boat, never quit their oars, while our four marines keep up a running fire. The six or eight boats, if the enemy could put out so many, could not prevent our twelve boats closing on the ship. If our boats came into contact with the boats of the enemy, the contest would be reduced to boat fighting; the ship could not use her cannon or small arms against us without firing on her own boats. If we succeeded to drive the boats under the guns of the ship, we should follow so close, that her guns and small arms could not be used, for in the night and amidst a number of boats in confusion, they could not discriminate between friends and enemies. On this theory, if twenty ships of 80 guns, or a force to that amount, were to enter one of our ports, two hundred and forty boats, with two thousand, eight hundred and eighty men would be sufficient, and perhaps more than sufficient, for the attack; and the following view of chances exhibits a strong probability, that such a force of Torpedo boats and men would destroy the twenty ships of the line within one hour.

Let the attack be in the night. The enemy must be at anchor; twenty vessels could not keep under way in narrow waters which could not be well known to their pilots. If they put out their boats, they could not bring into action more than six good boats from each ship, total, one hundred and twenty boats. Each ship would be a point from which their boats could depart, or to which they could retreat, total, twenty positions; in these twenty positions, twelve thousand men would be exposed to Torpedo explosion, which is the same, in effect, as a mine under a fortification. We, with two hundred and forty boats, exposing only two thousand, eight hundred and eighty men, would have the whole of our shores to depart from or retreat to; being the assailants, and having it in our power to approach in every direction, the enemy could not know a feint from a real attack, nor could they tell which ship we would attack first; they, consequently, could not concentrate their boats; each vessel would be necessitated to keep her own boats on the look-out, and to aid in protecting her; while we should have the power to divide our force, or concentre one hundred boats on one vessel, as circumstances might require; hence, every thing is in favour of the success of the Torpedo attack, while the greatest danger is to be apprehended for the ships.

Having given my experience and theory on anchored and harpoon Torpedoes: a system, which I hope will, by every friend to America and humanity, be considered of some interest to the United States. I am aware of the doubts which may arise, as to the success of harpooning, in the minds of men in general, and particularly of those who have no experience, who are so impressed with the imaginary tremendous fire of an 80 gun ship, or a ship of war, that the question has often been put to me, where will you find men who have courage to approach in boats within twenty feet of an 80 gun ship, to harpoon her? I answer, that the men in the boats, who are not more than three minutes within the line of the enemy's fire, are not so much in danger, nor does it require so much courage, as to lie yard-arm and yard-arm, as is usual in naval engagements, and receive broadsides, together with grape-shot and volleys of small arms, for forty or sixty minutes. It is not so great a risque, nor does it require so much courage, as to approach a vessel in boats, climb her sides, and take her by boarding, yet this has frequently been done. This risque is not so great, nor does it require so much courage, as to enter a breach which is defended by interior works and close ranges of cannon, flanked by howitzers or carronades loaded with cannister or grape-shot, and the parapet crowded with infantry; yet such breaches have been forced, and cities taken by assault, with numerous examples of this kind. I hope there can be no doubt of sufficient courage to make a Torpedo attack. In the instances of captain Siccombe and lieutenant Payne, before mentioned, they considered the risque of so little importance, that they went to the attack without any apparent concern; and the sailors, who were offered a few guineas for each gun of a vessel which they should destroy, used all their influence with the officers to be permitted to be of the party. But I will not propose a project so novel, and look to others to execute it. If Torpedoes be adopted as a part of our means of defence, with a reasonable number of men organized and practised to the use of them, if it be thought proper to put such men under my command, and an enemy should then enter our ports, I will be responsible to my fellow-citizens for the courage which should secure success. While I propose this, I wish it to be understood, that I do not desire any command or public employment. My private pursuits are the guarantee of an independence and freedom of action, which is always grateful to my feelings; they are useful and honourable amusements, and the most rational source of my happiness.

Thirty-two pounds of copper, at seventy-five cents a pound .00

A lock in a brass box, water-tight 20.00

One hundred pounds of powder, twenty cents a pound 20.00

In page 22, I have given an estimate for a clockwork and harpooning Torpedo.

The Torpedo will cost 0.00 Each boat, armed complete 336.00

To compare Torpedoes with the usual marine establishments, and the superior protection which they give, for any specific sum expended, I have stated this prospect of economy; but I do not consider economy, in the commencement of such a system, as an object of primary importance. Let our fellow-citizens be convinced. Convince the people of Europe of the power and simple practice of these engines, and it will open to us a sublime view of immense economy in blood and treasure. As we are not in actual hostility, and have no opportunity to try experiments on an enemy, my opinion is, that we should immediately prepare for such an event; and to satisfy the public, we should, without loss of time, make the following experiment:

Share on: WhatsApp @Hash Facebook Tweet