CHAPTER XIIIDICK MAKES HIS SECOND APPEARANCE
When Mr. Ackerman's car rolled up to the hotel later in the morning the puzzle no longer lacked a solution for in the automobile beside the steamboat magnate sat Dick Martin, the lad of the pocketbook adventure. At first glance Steve scarcely recognized the boy, such a transformation had taken place in his appearance. He wore a new suit of blue serge, a smartly cut reefer, shiny shoes, a fresh cap, and immaculate linen. Soap and water, as well as a proper style of haircut had added their part to the miracle until now, with face glowing and eyes alight with pleasure, Dick was as attractive a boy as one would care to see.
"I have brought Dick along with me, you see," the New Yorker explained, when the three were in the car and speeding up Fifth Avenue. "He and I have been shopping and now he is coming home to stay with me until we hear from one of the schools to which I have written. If they can find a place for him he will start at once. Then he is going to study hard and see what sort of a man he can make of himself. I expect to be very proud of him some day."
The lad flushed.
"I am going to do my best," said he, in a low tone.
"That is all any one can do, sonny," declared Mr. Ackerman kindly. "You'll win out. Don't you worry! I'm not."
He smiled and Dick smiled back timidly.
"Have you been up to Mr. Ackerman's house yet and seen the boats?" Stephen asked, to break the pause that fell between them.
"His collection, you mean? Sure! I'm—staying there."
"Living there, sonny," put in the financier.
"Then I suppose he's told you all about them," went on Stephen, a hint of envy in his tone.
"I haven't yet," laughed their host, "for there hasn't been time. Dick only left the hotel yesterday and we have had a great deal to do since. We had to go to his lodgings and say good-by to the people there who have been kind to him and tell them why he was not coming back. And then there were errands and many other things to see to. So he has not been at home much yet," concluded Mr. Ackerman, with a kindly emphasis on the final sentence.
Dick beamed but it was evident that the magnitude of his good fortune had left him too overwhelmed for words.
Perhaps neither of the boys minded that there was little conversation during the drive for there was plenty to see and to Dick Martin, at least, anautomobile ride was such an uncommon experience that it needed no embellishments. They rode up Morningside Drive and back again, looking down on the river as they went, and exclaiming when some unusual craft passed them. Evidently Mr. Ackerman was quite content to let matters take their natural course; but he was not unmindful of his guests and when at last he saw a shadow of fatigue circle Dick's eyes and give place to the glow of excitement that had lighted them he said:
"Now suppose we go back to the house for a while. We have an hour or more before Stephen has to rejoin his father and you two chaps can poke about the suite. What do you say?"
Steve was all enthusiasm. He had been quietly hoping there would be a chance for him to have another peep at the wonderful steamboats.
"I'd like nothing better!" was his instant reply. "I did not see half I wanted to when I was there before, and we go home to-morrow, you know. If I don't see your ships and things to-day I never shall."
"Oh, don't say that!" Mr. Ackerman said quickly. "You and Dick and I are going to be great friends. We are not going to say good-by and never see one another any more. Sometime you will be coming to New York again, I hope. However, if he wants to have a second glimpse of our boats now we'll let him, won't we, Dick?"
Again the boy smiled a timid smile into his benefactor's face.
"I wish you'd tell me about this queer little old-fashioned boat." Page 181."I wish you'd tell me about this queer little old-fashioned boat."Page181.
It did not take long to reach the house and soon the three were in the wonderful room with its panorama of ships moving past the windows and its flotilla of still more ships decorating the walls.
"Now you boys go ahead and entertain yourselves as you please," Mr. Ackerman said. "I am going to sit here and read the paper; but if there is anything you want to ask me you are welcome to do so."
Stephen strolled over to the mantelpiece and stood before the model of the quaint side-wheeler that had held his attention at the time of his first visit; then he stole a furtive glance at the man in the big chair.
"Did you really mean, Mr. Ackerman," he faltered, "that we could ask you questions?"
"Certainly."
"Then I wish you'd tell me about this queer little old-fashioned boat, and how you happened to put it between this up-to-date ocean liner and this battleship."
The elder man looked up.
"That boat that interests you is a model of Fulton's steamboat—or at least as near a model as I could get," explained he. "I put it there to show the progress we have made in shipbuilding since that day."
Steve laughed.
"I see the progress all right," replied he, "but I am afraid I do not know much about Fulton and his side-wheeler."
Mr. Ackerman let the paper slip into his lap.
"I assumed every boy who went to school learned about Robert Fulton," answered he, half teasingly and yet with real surprise.
"I suppose I ought to have learned about him," retorted Stephen, with ingratiating honesty, "and maybe I did once. But if I did I seem to have forgotten about it. You see there are such a lot of those old chaps who did things that I get them all mixed up."
Apparently the sincerity of the confession pleased the capitalist for he laughed.
"I know!" returned he sympathetically. "Every year more and more things roll up to remember, don't they? Had we lived long ago, before so many battles and discoveries had taken place, and so many books been written, life would have been much simpler. Now the learning of all the ages comes piling down on our heads. But at least you can congratulate yourself that you are not so badly off as the boys will be a hundred years hence; they, poor things, will have to learn all about whatwehave been doing, and if the world progresses as rapidly in history and in science as it is doing now, I pity them. Not only will they have to go back to Fulton but to him they will probably have to add a score of other inventors."
Both boys joined in the steamboat man's hearty laugh.
"Well, who was Fulton, anyway, Mr. Ackerman?" Stephen persisted.
"If you want me to tell you that Robert Fulton was the first American to make a successful steamboat I can give you that information in a second," was the reply. "But if you wish to hear how he did it that is a much longer story."
"I like stories," piped Dick from the corner of the couch where he was sitting.
"So do I," echoed Steve.
"Then I see there is no help for me!" Mr. Ackerman answered, taking off his spectacles and putting them into the case.
With an anticipatory smile Stephen seated himself on the great leather divan beside the other boy.
"Before the steamboat came," began Mr. Ackerman, "you must remember that paddle wheels had long been used, for both the Egyptians and the Romans had built galleys with oars that moved by a windlass turned by the hands of slaves or by oxen. Later there were smaller boats whose paddle wheels were driven by horses. So you see paddle wheels were nothing new; the world was just waiting for something that would turn them around. After the Marquis of Worcester had made his steam fountain he suggested that perhaps this power might be used to propel a boat but unfortunately he died before any experiments with the idea could be made. Various scientists, however, in Spain, France, England and Scotland caught up the plan but after struggling unsuccessfully with it for a time abandoned it as impractical. In 1802 Lord Dundas, a proprietor in one of the Englishcanals, made an encouraging start by using a tow-boat with a paddle wheel at its stern. But alas, this contrivance kicked up such a fuss in the narrow stream that it threatened to tear the banks along the edge all to pieces and therefore it was given up and for ten years afterward there was no more steamboating in England."
The boys on the couch chuckled.
"In the meantime in America thoughtful men were mulling over the problem of steam navigation. Watt's engine had opened to the minds of inventors endless possibilities; and the success of the early railroads made many persons feel that a new era of science, whose wonders had only begun to unfold, was at hand. In Connecticut there lived a watchmaker by the name of John Fitch, who, although he knew little of the use of steam, knew much about machinery. Through the aid of a company that furnished him with the necessary money he built a steamboat which was tried out in 1787 and made three miles an hour. Of course it was not a boat like any of ours for it was propelled by twelve oars, or paddles, operated by a very primitive steam engine. Nevertheless, it was the forerunner of later and better devices of a similar nature, and therefore Fitch is often credited with being the inventor of the steamboat. Perhaps, had he been able to go on with his schemes, he might have given the world something really significant in this direction; but as it was he simply pointed the way. His money gave out, the companywould do nothing further for him, and after building a second boat that could go eight miles an hour instead of three he became discouraged and intemperate and let his genius go to ruin, dying later in poverty—a sad end to a life that might well have been a brilliant one. After Fitch came other experimenters, among them Oliver Evans of Philadelphia who seems to have been a man of no end of inventive vision."
"Wasn't he the one who tried sails on a railroad train?" inquired Steve, noting with pleasure the familiar name.
"He was that very person," nodded Mr. Ackerman. "He evidently had plenty of ideas; the only trouble was that they did not work very well. He had already applied steam to mills and wagons, and now he wanted to see what he could do with it aboard a boat. Either he was very impractical or else hard luck pursued his undertakings. At any rate, he had a boat built in Kentucky, an engine installed on it, and then he had the craft floated to New Orleans from which point he planned to make a trip up the Mississippi. But alas, before his boat was fully ready, there was a drop in the river and the vessel was left high and dry on the shore."
"Jove!" exclaimed Dick involuntarily.
"Pretty tough, wasn't it?" remarked Mr. Ackerman.
"What did he do then?" demanded Stephen. "Did he resurrect the boat?"
"No, it did not seem to be any use; instead he had the engine and boiler taken out and put into a saw mill where once again hard luck pursued him, for the mill was burned not long after. That was the end of Oliver Evans's steamboating."
Mr. Ackerman paused thoughtfully.
"Now while Fitch and those following him were working at the steamboat idea here in America, Robert Fulton, also a native of this country, was turning the notion over in his mind. Strangely enough, he had not intended to be an inventor for he was in France, studying to be a painter. During a visit to England he had already met several men who were interested in the steam engine and through them had informed himself pretty thoroughly about the uses and action of steam. In Paris he made the acquaintance of a Mr. Barlow and the two decided to raise funds and build a steamboat to run on the Rhone. This they did, but unfortunately the boat sank before any degree of success had been achieved. Then Fulton, not a whit discouraged, told the French Government that if they would furnish the money he would build a similar boat to navigate the Seine. The French, however, had no faith in the plan and promptly refused to back it."
"I'll bet they wished afterward they had!" interrupted Dick.
"I presume they did," agreed Mr. Ackerman. "It is very easy to see one's mistakes after a thing is all over. Anyway, Mr. Barlow came back toAmerica, where Fulton joined him, and immediately the latter went to building a steamboat that should be practical. On his way home he had stopped in England and purchased various parts for his engine and when he got to New York he had these set up in an American boat. You must not for a moment imagine that everything about this first steamboat of Fulton's was original. On the contrary he combined what was best in the experiments of previous inventors. He adopted the English type of engine, the side paddle, everything that seemed to him workable. Barlow and a rich New Yorker named Livingston backed the enterprise. Now some time before the State of New York, half in jest and half in irony, had granted to Livingston the sole right to navigate the New York waters by means of ships driven by steam or fire engines. At the time the privilege had caused much mirth for there were nothing but sailing ships in existence, and there was no prospect of there ever being any other kind of vessel. Hence the honor was a very empty one and nobody expected a time would arrive when it would ever be of any value to its owner. But Livingston was a shrewder and more far-seeing man than were the old legislators at Albany, and to Fulton he was an indispensable ally."
The boy listened breathlessly.
"How these three men managed to keep their secret so well is a mystery; but apparently they did, and when Fulton suddenly appeared on the Hudsonwith a steamboat named theClermontfor Mr. Livingston's country seat on the Palisades, the public was amazed. A model of the boat with a miniature engine had previously been tried out so the three promoters had little doubt that their project would work, and it did. As the new craft moved along without any sails to propel it the sensation it made was tremendous. People were divided as to whether to flee from it in terror or linger and marvel at it. It is a pity that the newspapers of the period did not take the advent of this remarkable invention more seriously for it would have been interesting to know more of the impression it created. As it was little is recorded about it. Probably the very silence of the press is significant of the fact that there was scant faith in the invention, and that it was considered too visionary a scheme to dignify with any notice. However that may be, the newspapers passed this wonderful event by with almost no comment. History, however, is more generous and several amusing stories have come down to us of the fright theClermontcaused as she crept along the river at dusk with a shower of vermilion sparks rising from her funnel. One man who came around a bend of the stream in his boat and encountered the strange apparition for the first time told his wife afterward that he had met the devil traveling the river in a sawmill."
There was a shout of laughter from the boys.
"The trial trip, to which many distinguishedguests were invited, took place a few days later, and after improving some of the defects that cropped up the steamboat was advertised to run regularly between New York and Albany. Now if you think this announcement was hailed with joy you are much mistaken," continued Mr. Ackerman, smiling to himself at some memory that evidently amused him. "On the contrary the owners of the sailing ships which up to this time had had the monopoly of traffic were furious with rage. So vehemently did they maintain that the river belonged to them that at last the matter went to the courts and Daniel Webster was retained as Fulton's counsel. The case attracted wide attention throughout the country, and when it was decided in Fulton's favor there was great excitement. Every sort of force was brought to bear to thwart the new steamboat company. Angry opponents tried to blow up the boat as it lay at the dock; attempts were made to burn it. At length affairs became so serious that a clause was appended to the court's decree which made it a public crime punishable by fine or imprisonment to attempt to injure theClermont."
Mr. Ackerman paused to light a fresh cigar.
"From the moment the law took this stand the success of the undertaking became assured and it is interesting to see how quickly the very men who jeered loudest at the enterprise now came fawning and begging to have a part in it. Other steamboats were added to the line and soon rival firmsbegan to construct steamboats of their own and try to break up Fulton's monopoly of the waters of the State. For years costly lawsuits raged, and in defiance of the right the New York legislature had granted to Livingston, the fiercest competition took place. Sometime I should like to tell you more of this phase of the story for it is a very exciting and interesting yarn. Yet in spite of all the strife and hatred that pursued him Fulton's river-boats and ferries continued to run."
"The State stuck to its bargain, then," murmured Steve, "and left Livingston the rights awarded him?"
"No," replied Mr. Ackerman. "For a time they clung to their agreement; but at last the courts withdrew the right as illegal, and poor Livingston, who had sunk the greater part of his fortune in the steamboat business, lived to see the fruit of his toil wrested from him. In point of fact, I believe the decision of the courts to have been a just one for no one person or group of persons should control the waterways of the country. You can see the wisdom of this yourself. Nevertheless, the decree hit Livingston pretty hard. It was the first step in the destruction of a monopoly," added Mr. Ackerman whimsically. "Since then such decrees have become common happenings in America, monopolies being considered a menace to national prosperity. Certainly in this case it was well that the Supreme Court of the United States decided that all waters of the country should be free tonavigators, no matter in what kind of vessel they chose to sail."
"It was tough on Fulton and his friends, though, wasn't it?" observed Dick, who was plainly unconvinced as many another had been of the justice of the arguments.
"Yes," agreed Mr. Ackerman, smiling into his troubled eyes, "I grant you it was tough on them."
CHAPTER XIVA STEAMBOAT TRIP BY RAIL
It was with a sense of deep regret that Stephen bade good-by to Mr. Ackerman and Dick and returned to the hotel to join his father. For the steamboat financier he had established one of those ardent admirations which a boy frequently cherishes toward a man of attractive personality who is older than himself; and for Dick he had a genuine liking. There was a quality very winning in the youthful East-sider and now that the chance for betterment had come his way Steve felt sure that the boy would make good. There was a lot of pluck and grit in that wiry little frame; a lot of honesty too, Stephen reflected, with a blush. He was not at all sure but that in the matter of fearlessness and moral courage the New York lad had the lead of him. Certainly he was not one who shrank from confessing when he had been at fault which, Steve owned with shame, could not be said of himself.
For several days he had not thought of his automobile escapade but now once more it came to his mind, causing a cloud to chase the joyousness from his face. Alas, was he never to be free of the naggingmortification that had followed that single act? Was it always to lurk in the background and make him ashamed to confront the world squarely? Well, it was no use regretting it now. He had made his choice and he must abide by it.
Nevertheless he was not quite so spontaneously happy when he met his father at luncheon and recounted to him the happenings of the morning.
"Mr. Ackerman is taking a big chance with that boy," was Mr. Tolman's comment, when a pause came in the narrative. "I only hope he will not disappoint him. There must be a great difference between the standards of the two. However, Dick has some fine characteristics to build on—honesty and manliness. I think the fact that he showed no coward blood and was ready to stand by what he had done appealed to Ackerman. It proved that although they had not had the same opportunity in life they at least had some good stuff in common. You can't do much with a boy who isn't honest."
Stephen felt the blood beating in his cheeks.
Fortunately his father did not notice his embarrassment and as they soon were on their way to a picture show the memory that had so importunately raised its unwelcome head was banished by the stirring story of a Californian gold mine. Therefore by the time Stephen was ready to go to bed the ghost that haunted him was once more thrust into the background and he had gained his serenity. No, he was not troubled that night by dreams of his folly nor did he awaken with anyremembrance of it. Instead he and his father chatted as they packed quite as pleasantly as if no specter stood between them.
"Well, son, have you enjoyed your holiday?" inquired Mr. Tolman, as they settled themselves in the great plush chairs of the parlor car and waited for the train to start.
"Yes, I've had a bully time, Dad."
"I'm glad of that," was the kind reply. "It was unlucky that my business took up so much more of my time than I had expected and that I had to leave you to amuse yourself instead of going about with you, as I had planned. It was too bad. However, if you have managed to get some fun out of your visit that is the main thing. In fact, I am not sure but that you rather enjoyed going about alone," concluded he mischievously.
Stephen smiled but did not reply. There was no denying that he had found being his own master a pleasant experience which had furnished him with a gratifying sense of freedom and belief in his own importance. What a tale he would have to tell the fellows at home! And how shocked his mother would be to hear that he had been turned loose in a great city in this unceremonious fashion! He could hear her now saying to his father:
"I don't see what you were thinking of, Henry, to let Stephen tear about all alone in a city like New York. I should have worried every instant if I had known what he was doing. Suppose anything had happened to him!"
Well, mercifully, nothing had happened,—that is, nothing worse than his falling into the hands of a detective and being almost arrested for robbery, reflected the boy with a grin.
Perhaps Mr. Tolman interpreted his thoughts for presently he observed with a smile:
"It is time you were branching out some for yourself, anyway, son. You are old enough now to be treated like a man, not like a little boy."
As he spoke he looked toward Stephen with an expression of such pride and affection that the force of it swept over the lad as it never had done before. What a bully sort his father was, he suddenly thought; and how genuinely he believed in him! Why not speak out now and clear up the wretched deception he had practiced, and start afresh with a clean conscience? With impulsive resolve he gripped the arms of the chair and pulled himself together for his confession. But just at the crucial moment there was a stir in the aisle and a porter followed by two belated passengers hurried into the train which was on the brink of departure. That they had made their connection by a very narrow margin was evident in their appearance, for both were hot and out of breath, and the stout colored porter puffed under the stress of his haste and the heavy luggage which weighed him down.
"It's these two chairs, sir," he gasped, as he tossed the new leather suit case into the rack. "Is there anything else I can do for you?"
"No," replied the traveler, thrusting a bill into the darkey's hand. Already the train was moving. "Keep the change," he added quickly.
"Thank you, sir! Thank you!" stammered the vanishing negro.
"Well, we caught it, didn't we, Dick? It didn't look at one time as if it were possible. That block of cars on the avenue was terrible. But we are off now! It was about the closest shave I ever made." Then he turned around. "Hullo!" he cried. "Who's this? Bless my soul!"
Both Mr. Tolman and Steve joined in the laugh of amazement.
"Well, if this isn't a great note!" went on Mr. Ackerman, still beaming with surprise. "I thought you people were not going until the afternoon train."
"I managed to finish up my business yesterday and get off earlier than I planned," Mr. Tolman explained. "But I did not knowyouhad any intention of going in this direction."
"I hadn't until this morning," laughed the financier. "Then a telegram arrived saying they could take Dick at the New Haven school to which I had written if he entered right away, at the beginning of the term. So I dropped everything and here we areen route. It was rather short notice and things were a bit hectic; but by turning the whole apartment upside down, rushing our packing, and keeping the telephone wire hot we contrived to make the train."
"It is mighty nice for us," put in Mr. Tolman cordially. "So Dick is setting forth on his education, is he?"
"Yes, he is starting out to make of himself a good scholar, a good sport, a good athlete, and I hope a good man," returned the New Yorker.
"A pretty big order, isn't it, Dick?" laughed Mr. Tolman.
"It seems so," returned the boy.
"It is not a bit too big," interrupted Mr. Ackerman. "Dick knows he hasn't got to turn the trick all in a minute. He and I understand such things take time. But theycan be doneand we expect we are going to do them."
He flashed one of his rare smiles toward his protégé and the lad smiled back frankly.
"I expect so, too," echoed Mr. Tolman. "You've got plenty of backers behind you, Dick, and you have a clear path ahead. That is all any boy needs."
"You're going back to school, aren't you, youngster?" Mr. Ackerman suddenly inquired of Stephen.
"Yes, sir. I start in next week."
"Decided yet whether you will be a railroad man like your Dad, or a steamboat man like me?" went on the New Yorker facetiously.
"Not yet."
"Oh, for shame! It should not take you any time at all to decide a question like that," the capitalist asserted teasingly. "What's hindering you?"
Stephen gave a mischievous chuckle.
"I can't decide until I have heard both sides," said he. "So far I know only half the steamboat story."
"I see! In other words you think that between here and New Haven I might beguile the time by going on with the yarn I began yesterday."
"That thought crossed my mind, sir,—yes."
"You should go into the diplomatic service, young man. Your talents are being wasted," observed Mr. Ackerman good-humoredly. "Well, I suppose I could romance for the benefit of you two boys for part of the way, at least. It will give your father, Steve, a chance to go into the other car and smoke. Where did we break off our story? Do you remember?"
"Where the United States said anybody had the right to sail anywhere he wanted to, in any kind of a boat he chose," piped Dick with promptness.
"Yes, yes. I recall it all now," said Mr. Ackerman. "The courts withdrew the grant giving Livingston the sole right to navigate the waters of New York State by means of steamboats. So you want to hear more about it, do you?"
"Yes!" came simultaneously from both the boys.
"Then all aboard! Tolman, you can read, or run off and enjoy your cigar. We are going on a steamboat cruise."
"Push off! You won't bother me," was the tolerant retort, as the elder man unfolded the morning paper.
Mr. Ackerman cleared his throat.
"Before this decree to give everybody an equal chance in navigating the waters of the country was handed down by the courts," he began, "various companies, in defiance of Livingston's contract, began building and running steamboats on the Hudson. Two rival boats were speedily in operation and it was only after a three years' lawsuit that they were legally condemned and handed over to Fulton to be broken up. Then the ferryboat people got busy and petitioned the New York Legislature for the right to run their boats to and fro between the New York and New Jersey sides of the river, and it is interesting to remember that it was on one of these ferry routes that Cornelius Vanderbilt, the great American financier, began his career."
"I never knew that!" ejaculated Dick, intent on the story.
"After the ruling of the Supreme Court in 1818 that all the waters of the country were free there was a rush to construct and launch steamers on the Hudson. The route was, you see, not only the most direct one between Albany and New York but it also lay in the line of travel between the eastern States and those of the west which were just being opened to traffic by the railroads and ships of the Great Lakes. Now you must not for a moment imagine that in those days there were any such vast numbers of persons traversing the country as there are now. Our early Americansworked hard and possessed only comparatively small fortunes so they had little money to throw away on travel simply for its own sake; moreover the War of 1812 had left the country poor. Nevertheless there were a good many persons who were obliged to travel, and it followed that each of the Hudson River lines of steamers was eager to secure their patronage. Hence a bitter competition arose between the rival steamboat companies."
He paused and smiled whimsically at some memory that amused him.
"Every inducement was offered the public by these battling forces. The older vessels were scrapped or reduced to tug service and finer steamboats were built; and once upon the water the engines were driven at full speed that quicker trips might lure passengers to patronize the swifter boats. Captains and firemen pitted their energies against one another and without scruple raced their ships, with the result that there were many accidents. In spite of this, however, the rivalry grew rather than diminished."
"It must have been great sport," remarked Stephen.
"Oh, there was sport in plenty," nodded Mr. Ackerman. "Had you lived during those first days of Hudson River transportation you would have seen all the sport you wanted to see, for the steamboat feud raged with fury, the several companies trying their uttermost to get the trade away from the Fulton people and from one another. Moneybecame no object, the only aim being to win in the game. Fares were reduced from ten dollars to one, and frequently passengers were carried for nothing simply for the sheer spite of getting them away from other lines. Vanderbilt was in the thick of the fray, having now accumulated sufficient fortune to operate no less than fifty boats. Among the finest vessels were those of the Emerald Line; and theSwallowand theRochester, two of the speediest rivals, were continually racing each other. The devices resorted to in order to ensnare passengers were very amusing: some boats carried bands; others served free meals; and because there were few newspapers in those days, and only limited means for advertising, runners were hired to go about the city or waylay prospective travelers at the docks and try to coax them into making their trip by some particular steamer."
"That was one way of getting business!" laughed Steve.
"And often a very effective way, too," rejoined Mr. Ackerman. "In June of 1847 a tremendously exciting race took place between theOregonand theVanderbilt, then a new boat, for a thousand dollars a side. The steamers left the Battery at eleven o'clock in the morning and a dense crowd turned out to see them start. For thirty miles they kept abreast; then theOregongained half a length and in passing the other boat bumped into her, damaging her wheelhouse. It was said at the time that the disaster was not wholly an accident. Certainlythere were grounds for suspicion. As you may imagine, the calamity roused the rage of the competing boat. But the commander of theOregonwas undaunted by what he had done. All he wished was to win the race and that he was determined to do. He got up a higher and higher pressure of steam, and used more and more coal until, when it was time to return to New York, he discovered that his supply had given out and that he had no more fuel."
"And he had to give up the race?" queried Dick breathlessly.
"Not he! He wasn't the giving-up kind," said Mr. Ackerman. "Finding nothing at hand to run his boilers with he ordered all the expensive fittings of the boat to be torn up and cast into the fire—woodwork, furniture, carvings; anything that would burn. In that way he kept up his furious rate of speed and came in victorious by the rather close margin of twelve hundred feet."
"Bully for him!" cried Dick.
But Stephen did not echo the applause.
"It was not a square race," he said, "and he had no right to win. Anyway, his steamboat must have been pretty well ruined."
"I fancy it was an expensive triumph," owned Mr. Ackerman. "Without doubt it cost much more than the thousand dollars he won to repair the vessel. Still, he had the glory, and perhaps it was worth it to the company."
"Were there other races like that?" Dick asked.
"Yes, for years the racing went on until there were so many fires, explosions and collisions, that the steamer inspection law was put through to regulate the conditions of travel. It certainly was high time that something was done to protect the public, too, for such universal recklessness prevailed that everybody was in danger. Boats were overloaded; safety valves were plugged; boilers carried several times as much steam as they had any right to do, and many lives had been sacrificed before the government stepped in and put a stop to this strife for fame and money. Since then the traffic on the Hudson has dropped to a plane of sanity and is now carried on by fine lines of boats that conform to the rules for safety and efficient service."
"And what became of Mr. Vanderbilt?" interrogated Dick, who was a New Yorker to the core and had no mind to lose sight of the name with which he was familiar.
"Oh, Mr. Vanderbilt was a man who had many irons in the fire," replied Mr. Ackerman, smiling at the boy's eagerness. "He did not need to be pitied for just about this time gold was discovered in California and as the interest of the country swung in that direction Vanderbilt, ever quick to seize an opening wherever it presented itself, withdrew some of his steamers from the Hudson and headed them around to the Pacific coast instead."
"And your family, Mr. Ackerman, were mixed up in all this steamboat rumpus?" commented Steve suddenly.
"Yes, my grandfather was one of the Hudson River racers and quite as bad as the rest of them," the man replied. "Nevertheless he was a stanch, clever old fellow, and because he did his part toward building up the commerce and prosperity of the nation I have always regarded him with the warmest respect. I do not approve of all his methods, however, any more than I approve of many of the cut-throat business methods of to-day which sometime will be looked back upon with as much shame as these have been. There are moments, I must confess, when I wonder if we, with all our supposed enlightenment, have made any very appreciable advance over the frank and open racing done by our forefathers on the Hudson," reflected he half-humorously. "Perhaps we are a trifle more humane; and yet there is certainly much to be desired in the way we still sacrifice the public to our greed for money. An evil sometimes has to come to a climax to make us conscious of our injustice. Let us hope that our generation will not be so blind that it will not heed the warnings of its conscience, and instead delay until some such catastrophe comes upon it as pursued the racing boats of the Hudson River."
CHAPTER XVTHE ROMANCE OF THE CLIPPER SHIP
It was with genuine regret that Mr. Tolman and Stephen parted from Mr. Ackerman and Dick when the train reached New Haven.
"We shall not say good-by to Dick," Mr. Tolman declared, "for he is not to be very far away and I hope sometime he will come to Coventry and spend a holiday with us. Why don't you plan to do that too, Ackerman? Run over from New York for Thanksgiving and bring the boy with you. Why not?"
"That is very kind of you."
"But I mean it," persisted Mr. Tolman. "It is no perfunctory invitation. Plan to do it. We should all be delighted to have you. There is nothing in the world Mrs. Tolman loves better than a houseful of guests. Doris will be home from college and I should like you to see what a fine big daughter I have. As for Steve—"
"I wish you would come, Mr. Ackerman," interrupted the boy.
Mr. Ackerman hesitated.
"I tell you what we'll do," replied he at length. "We'll leave it to Dick. If he makes a good recordat school and earns the holiday we will accept your invitation. If he doesn't we won't come. Is that a bargain, youngster?" he concluded, turning to the lad at his side.
The boy flushed.
"It is a rather stiff one, sir," he answered, with a laughing glance.
"I think that's playing for too high stakes, Ackerman," Mr. Tolman objected. "It is a little rough to put all the burden on Dick. Suppose we divide up the responsibility and foist half of it on Stephen? Let us say you will come if both boys make good in their studies and conduct."
Dick drew a breath of relief at the words, regarding the speaker with gratitude.
"That is a squarer deal, isn't it?" continued Mr. Tolman.
"I think so—yes," was Dick's response.
"And you, Steve—do you subscribe to the contract?"
"Yes, I'll sign," grinned Stephen.
"Then the agreement is clinched," exclaimed his father, "and it will be the fault of you two young persons if we do not have a jolly reunion at Thanksgiving time. Good-by Ackerman! Good-by, Dick. Good luck to you! We are pinning our faith on you, remember. Don't disappoint us."
"I'll try not to," the boy answered, as he stepped to the platform.
"Dick is a fine, manly young chap," observed Mr. Tolman, after the train was once more underway and he and Stephen were alone. "I have a feeling that he is going to make good, too. All he needed was a chance. He has splendid stuff in him. There isn't a mean bone in his body."
Stephen moved uncomfortably in his chair and a guilty blush rose to his cheek but apparently his father did not notice it.
"You liked Mr. Ackerman also, didn't you, son? Indeed there is no need to ask for he is a genius with young people and no boy could help liking a man of his type. It is a pity he hasn't a dozen children, or isn't the leader of a boy's school."
"He is corking at story-telling!" was Steve's comment.
"He certainly is. I caught some fragments of his Hudson River tale and did not wonder that it fascinated you. What a remarkable era that was!" he mused.
"There were a lot of questions I wanted to ask him," Stephen said.
"Such as?"
"Well, for one thing I was curious to know what happened after the steamers on the Hudson were proved a success."
"I can answer that question," replied his father promptly. "After the river boats had demonstrated their practicability steamships were built for traffic along short distances of the coast. Owing to the War of 1812 and the danger to our shipping from the British, however, the launching of these new lines did not take place immediately; but intime the routes were established. The first of these was from New York to New Haven. You see, travel by steam power was still so much of a novelty that Norwich, first proposed as a destination, was felt to be too far away. It was like taking one's life in one's hands to venture such an immense distance from land on a steamboat."
Stephen smiled with amusement.
"But gradually," continued Mr. Tolman, "the public as well as the steamboat companies became more daring and a line from New York to Providence, with Vanderbilt'sLexingtonas one of the ships, was put into operation. Then in 1818 a line of steamers to sail the Great Lakes was built; and afterwards steamships to travel to points along the Maine coast. The problem of navigation on the rivers of the interior of the country followed and here a new conundrum in steamboat construction confronted the builders, for the channels of many of the streams were shallow and in consequence demanded a type of boat very long and wide in proportion to its depth of hull. After such a variety of boat had been worked out and constructed, lines were established on several of the large rivers, and immediately the same old spirit of rivalry that pervaded the Hudson years before cropped up in these other localities. Bitter competition, for example, raged between the boats that plied up and down the Mississippi; and in 1870 a very celebrated race took place between theNatchezand theRobert E. Lee. The distance to be covered was 1218 milesand the latter ship made it in three days, eighteen hours, and thirty minutes. The test, however, was not a totally fair one since theNatchezran into a fog that held her up for six hours. But the event illustrates the keen interest with which men followed the progress of American shipping; and you can see how natural it was that after the river boats, lake steamers, coastwise vessels and tugs had had their day the next logical step (and very prodigious one) was the—"
"The ocean liner!" ejaculated Stephen.
"Precisely!" nodded his father. "Now there are two separate romances of our ocean-going ships. The first one is of the sailing vessels and is a chronicle of adventure and bravery as enthralling as any you could wish to read. I wish I had time to tell it to you in full and do it justice, but I fear I can only sketch in a few of the facts and leave you to read the rest by yourself some time. You probably know already that whalers went out from Gloucester, New Bedford, and various of our eastern ports and often were gone on two or three-year cruises; and when you recall that in those early days there not only was no wireless but not even the charts, lighthouses, and signals of a thoroughly surveyed coast you will appreciate that setting forth on such a voyage for whale-oil (then used almost exclusively for lighting purposes) took courage. Of course the captains of the ships had compasses for the compass came into use just before the beginning of the Fifteenth Century andwas one of the things that stimulated the Portuguese and Spaniards to start out on voyages of discovery. The Spaniards built ships that were then considered the largest and finest afloat, and probably Columbus caught the enthusiasm of the period and with the newly invented compass to guide him was stirred to brave the ocean and discover other territory to add to the riches of the land he loved. It was a golden age of romance and adventure and the journeys of Columbus grew out of it quite naturally. But in America shipping had its foundation in no such picturesque beginning. The first vessel made in this country was constructed as a mere matter of necessity, being built at the mouth of the Kennebec River to carry back to England a group of disheartened, homesick settlers."
He paused thoughtfully a moment.
"Even the ships of later date had their birth in the same motive—that of necessity. The early colonists were forced to procure supplies from England and they had no choice but to build ships for that purpose. At first these sailing packets were very small, and as one thinks of them to-day it is to marvel that they ever made so many trips without foundering. As for our coastwise ships, up to 1812 they were nothing more than schooner-rigged hulls."
"I wonder where the wordschoonercame from," commented Steve.
"The legend goes that the termscoonwas acolloquialism used when skipping stones. When a pebble glanced along the top of the water it was said toscoon," answered his father, with a smile. "After the War of 1812 was over and our American vessels were safe from possible attack, and after the country itself had recovered somewhat from the stress of this financial burden so that men had more money to invest in commerce, we began to branch out and build finer vessels; and when it came to rigging them there seemed to be no name to apply to the arrangement of the sails. The story goes that one day as one of these new ships sailed out of Gloucester harbor a fisherman watching her exclaimed with admiration, 'See herscoon!' The phrase not only caught the public fancy but that of the shipbuilders as well, and the wordschoonerwas quickly adopted."
"I never knew that before!" announced Steve, when the narrative was concluded.
"Slowly the models of ships improved," went on his father, without heeding the interruption. "Vessels became larger, faster, more graceful. Even the whalers and fishing smacks took on more delicate lines. Merchants from Salem, Gloucester, New Bedford invested their hard-earned savings in whalers and trading ships, and many of them made their fortunes by so doing. The sailing packets that went to Liverpool began to make excellent time records. Although the English were now using steamers for trans-Atlantic travel they had not perfected them to a sufficient extent tomake their trips faster than those of sailing ships."
"About how long did it take them to cross?" inquired Stephen.
"The average time to Liverpool was from nineteen to twenty-one days," was the answer. "And for the return voyage from thirty to thirty-five."
"Whew, Dad! Why, one could walk it in that time!" exclaimed the lad.
"It was a long time," his father agreed. "But it is not fair to measure it by present-day standards. Think how novel a thing it was to cross the ocean at all!"
"I suppose so," came reflectively from Stephen.
"It was not long," continued his father, "before the English improved their engines so that their steamers made better time, and then our American sailing packets were left far behind. This, as you can imagine, did not please our proud and ambitious colonists who were anxious to increase their commerce and build up their young and growing country. Something must be done! As yet they had not mastered the enigma of steam but they could make their sailing ships swifter and finer and this they set to work to do. Out of this impetus for prosperity came the remarkable clipper-ship era.
"We shall probably never see such beautiful ships again," continued Mr. Tolman, a trifle sadly. "Youth and romance go hand in hand, and our country was very young, and proud and eager inthose days. Our commerce was only beginning and the far corners of the world were strange, unexplored and alluring. It is like an Arabian Night's Tale to read of those wonderful ships built to carry merchandise to China, India and other foreign ports. Speed was their aim—speed, speed, speed! They must hold their own against the English steamers if they would keep their place on the seas. For in those days the methods of packing produce were very primitive, and it was imperative that such perishable things as tea, dried fruits, spices and coffee should be rushed to the markets before the dampness spoiled them. If they mildewed they would be a dead loss to the merchants handling them. Moreover as cable and telegraph were unknown there was no way to keep in touch with the demands of the public, or be sure of prices. Therefore every merchant hurried his goods home in the hope of being the first in the field and reaping the largest profits."
"More racing!" exclaimed Stephen.
"It was racing, indeed!" returned his father. "Ships raced one another back from China, each trying desperately to discharge her cargo before her rival did. Like great sea-birds these beautiful boats skimmed the waves, stretching every inch of canvas to be the winner at the goal. As a result the slow merchant packets with their stale cargoes could find no patrons, the clippers commanding not only all the trade but the highest prices for produce as well. Silks, chinaware, ivory, bamboo—allthe wealth of the Orient began to arrive in America where it was hungrily bought up, many a man making his fortune in the East India trade. Of this fascinating epoch Hawthorne gives us a vivid picture."
"It must have been great to travel on one of those ships!" said Stephen.
"It was not all pleasure, by any means, son," Mr. Tolman replied. "Often the vessels encountered hurricanes and typhoons in the treacherous Eastern waters. Sometimes ships were blown out of their course and wrecked, or cast ashore on islands where their crews became the prey of cannibals."
"Jove!"
"It had its outs—this cruising to distant ports," announced his father. "Moreover, the charts in use were still imperfect and lighthouse protection was either very scanty or was lacking entirely."
"What became of the clipper ships?"
"Well, we Americans never do anything by halves, you know. When we go in we go in all over," laughed his father. "That is what we did with our clipper ships. We were so pleased with them that we built more and more, sending them everywhere we could think of. Many went around to California to carry merchandise to the gold searchers. At last there were so many of these swift vessels that they cut into one another and freight rates dropped. Besides, steamboats were coming into general use and were now running onall the more important ocean routes. The day of the sailing ship was over and the marvelous vessels were compelled to yield their place to the heralds of progress and become things of the past. Nevertheless, their part in our American commerce will never be forgotten and we have them to thank not only for the fame they brought our country but also for much of its wealth."
With a quick gesture of surprise he rose hurriedly.
"See!" he exclaimed. "We are almost home. We have talked 'ships and sealing-wax' for hours."
"It hasn't seemed for hours," retorted Stephen, springing to collect his luggage.
"Nor to me, either."
"Some time I'd like to hear about the ocean liners," ventured the boy.
"You must get Mr. Ackerman to tell you that story when he comes to visit us Thanksgiving," was the reply, "if hedoescome. That part of it seems to be up to you and Dick."
"I mean to do my part to get him here," Steve announced. "I hope Dick will plug, too."
"I rather think you can trust him for that," was the quiet answer.