Show I 1 the vie half hale old inventor repels with vigor an attach on her ifer aud and ailin IV Y sou tt it t is an off infamous lie sirl tho the speaker ii was as a hale man of 80 tall anil ani straight solidly built with keen 0 piercing eyes eyell a very koman roman nose and firm mouth his iron gray side bide whiskers and hia bia gon ral fill appearance were reminders of a ofilio fine old english gentleman his name Erics ericsson sou he is lq the ina who mho unveiled the tile first steam fire engine the first modern armed steam vessel the caloric on engine ine the tile iron plated monster and IQ t tc solar engine and baa bas patented altogether about a thousand mechanical inventions in in the past fifty years he ire has lim now completed his latest in anven en tion tho the Da destroyer ft a partially armored iron vessel capable of navigating vi the cost in any weather and designed to uso use submarine artillery capable of reaching the vulnerable part of armored ships and of destroying in an instant any tiny iron plated vessel now afloat capt ericsson Erics soa is is very achievement and effs aroud is very energetic reni remark ark was occasioned by a per usual of a postal card which bad been sent to the sun and read as follows follomon to the el EDITOR arron of the sun san sir Erics sons torpedo was built by stock company largely composed of government proved dead failure project now to indemnify these parties by burden on alie government ern ment had 17 it proved a success they would have held on to her it is an infamous I 1 lie ic thundered capt E ericsson in tho tile voice of a diddle a aged god sea ca captain 1 I do not know of an enemy I 1 have in the tile world who could say such a thin tiling I 1 am sure I 1 never deserved such a slander government officials fici als why they haven tany any money to put into inventions like that and I 1 am not in the tile habit of go going ino to them for my ideas the till destroyer e y is mine no she is finished and d liea I 1 a at the navy yard now she is all ready I 1 to go out and fight an all enemy as s soon oon aa ai her explosive ivo i projectiles jec tiles can be put on board no stock company chiefly composed of government officials has had bad anything to do with her I 1 built her and paid forber for her proved a dead failure that is aai an infamous fal falsehood and I 1 cannot pot fee what can bo be a mans motive in saying that the destroyer is nota not a success she has been inspected by many officers of tho the navy tho X hy ause vessel 1 has been finished six months an and d ia now in charge of the government officers if this government wants to buy tho tile desh desnoyer De oyer she is for eale it does not make any any d difference if fe retice to mo me whether this go government ern buys huys her or not the elie secretary of the navy wrote to me asking me to submit plans for euch such a vessel and I 1 have dono done so he albo BO advised tho the senate committee that such a vessel ought to be built and he lie favors the tile purchase of the destroyer if they hazo aier they will save a year that is all there is about it the vessel is now well known all over the world I 1 have taken out patents in in every coll country that can have a navy I 1 am now in in negotiation with several governments for the building of a on oil this plan I 1 am notified that it is tho the only plan of protecting our harbors against the incursions of monitors there is not at presen tany means in cans of resisting the armored ships of the formidable charter uk actor by r other maritime ruari time i actions our seaports are hi ih fact is there was a very strong Jul influence at work to get got tho the ampro illation lation to build the new turret v sels of what uso use would fauch I 1 asels vs els be when fit attacked tacked by the Dedro yelI they would not bo be capable of protecting our harbors j 1 I think I 1 have served iho life country enough to be exempt from such mil ilin attack it is not at all strange that he file navy department should come collie to me for advice in this matter I 1 have had a good deal of experience peri ence a and nd I 1 know what I 1 am doing is tho tile only safe eafe way to protect our harbor there was a proposition made to me to have a trial of f my vessel vessel b by a board of naval nava officers in in a certain tain way and anti one condition of it was that I 1 should bear the tile expense why should I 1 bear the expense there is no reason mason why a private citizen should go tp such expense andi refus refused etl tolo to lo it I 1 capt ericsson Er iceson still lives at 36 Boach Street where ho he has lias kept bachelors hall liall for fifteen years iho jo ia as active ag as a man of 50 and spends 1 most of hia time at home inon among a tile beautiful models of his wonderful 0 n a e r ru 1 iii long |