EXPERIMENTS WITH A SUBMARINE
Lord Hawksbury wrote Fulton, “If you should be disposed to accept active
employment from the British government, you may rely on the most liberal
treatment and recompense proportioned to your efficient service.” No
wonder that Fulton departed happily from France.
Arriving in London, he established himself in lodgings and tried once
more to order the engine for the American boat; he also tried to induce
the British Ministry to accept his submarine torpedo. As his work in
France had been publicly known, he signed his letters to the English
statesmen “Robert Francis,” an assumed name which was no secret to the
English but served to protect the torpedo project from the notice of
French spies, should there be any.
At Boulogne, Napoleon was gathering his army for a possible invasion
of England. France, enriched fifteen million dollars by the American
purchase of Louisiana, was prepared to strike a new blow. History made
rapidly during those days; maps and ruling powers were changing. Fulton
swung his energies to a fresh scene of action at a crucial time.
He was indeed “playing with fire.” Fulton’s danger during his submarine
experiments in the harbor of Brest, was small compared with the risk
he would run should he fall into the hands of the French while using
torpedoes against them. Fulton had been told by Napoleon’s commission
that any one employing such weapons of destruction would certainly be
hung if captured by the enemy; how much greater the likelihood now if
France found the spurned machines effectively turned against Napoleon’s
troops.
For so it was. Fulton was in England only two days when he proposed
to the Ministry a practical trial of his plunging vessel, describing
it as thirty-five feet long, having power to sail like an ordinary
fishing-boat, with a capacity for machinery and provisions for six
persons for twenty days at sea, capable of plunging and remaining three
hours under water without aid. When necessary to renew air, the boat need
not appear above the water, but approaching the surface, could project
two tubes, one to discharge the foul air already breathed, the other to
take in fresh air, accomplishing the change in two minutes, when the
boat could plunge again to remain another three hours below.
In this manner he promised that a crew could conceal themselves under
water during a day of twelve hours, on renewing the air three times, and
could remain many days in the neighborhood of an enemy without detection.
He proposed a submarine expedition to destroy the French fleets at
Boulogne and Brest “as they now lie.” It was a daring plan, but Fulton
admitted no possibility of defeat and offered personally to conduct the
siege. He asked the aid of a good machinist to assist in fitting out
the vessels, and an active sea-officer with power to choose one hundred
hardy seamen from the fleet who were good swimmers,—also about forty
tons of powder and seven thousand pounds, English money, to fit out the
expedition.
But the British halted their judgment. Delay was irksome and Fulton urged
the appointment of a committee to consider his plan.
Lord Sidmouth, who had sent Dr. Gregory to call upon Fulton in Paris,
was no longer in power; but had been succeeded by the Right Honourable
William Pitt, a relative of Lord Stanhope. The latter, with Lord Viscount
Melville, First Lord of the Admiralty, finally drew up a contract, which
was witnessed by Sir Home Popham, and was signed by Fulton in his own
name.
Although Fulton was officially engaged by the English government, his
plan was still under consideration, and the actual expedition met with
several postponements. Pitt, although impressed by Fulton’s drawings and
arguments, said that if the torpedo were introduced into naval practice
it would in time destroy all military marines, and, as England’s pride
and strength was in her navy, he hesitated to encourage a plan which
might injure it.
In fact, Pitt was hoping for peace rather than war; and for several
months the project languished.
We can imagine with how much pleasure Fulton accepted an invitation to
breakfast with Mr. Pitt on the 20th of July at his country house near
Putney Common. Sir Home Popham also was present and Fulton noted that
“Lord Melville was expected but did not arrive.”
Fulton noted in his book of memoranda, that “during breakfast he
explained the general principles of submarine navigation and attack which
appeared to give pleasure and make a strong impression.” The enthusiasm
of the inventor prevailed. Little by little he won by argument the
approval of the half-sceptical British statesmen.
Finally Mr. Pitt directly asked Sir Home Popham if an agreement could be
reached and Sir Home assented, saying Mr. Pitt’s “perusal and signature
alone were wanting.” Then Mr. Pitt read and signed the papers, and
delivered them to Sir Home Popham, with orders to call upon Lord Melville
for his signature.
This was another red-letter day in Fulton’s history,—indeed in the
history of the world’s naval warfare. For the signed papers were a
contract with the inventor to fit out a British torpedo expedition
against the French fleet at Boulogne. Sir Home left early, bearing the
precious documents, and Mr. Pitt when alone with Fulton remarked upon the
extraordinary invention which seemed to “go to the destruction of all
fleets.”
Fulton replied, “It was invented with that view.” He added in his book of
memoranda:
“As I had no desire to deceive him or the government, I did not hesitate
to give as my opinion that this invention would lead to the total
annihilation of the existing system of marine war.”
“But,” said Mr. Pitt, “in its present state of perfectionment those who
command the seas will be benefited by it, while the minor maritime
powers can draw no advantage from what is now known.”
“True, unless plunging or submarine vessels were introduced into
practice,” answered Fulton. “It probably would be some years before any
nation could bring such a vessel to perfection—at all events there would
be time to fit future politics to future circumstances; if at present
the French preparations can be destroyed by submarine attack, it will
convince Bonaparte and the whole world that Frenchmen never can make a
descent on England, for any future fleet prepared by them may be burnt in
like manner.”
Fulton notes that little more was said. It was agreed that the torpedo
attack should take place at Boulogne as soon as the engines could be
prepared, and, after agreeing to call again upon Mr. Pitt during the
week, Fulton returned to London.
But the acceptance was for only one-half of his project. Torpedoes were
to be used, set with clock-work for future explosion, and these weapons,
leaded so they floated below the surface of the water, were to be towed
by catamarans, or rafts, consisting of two long sidewise planks, so
placed that a man sat between them on a submerged seat. He guided the
raft toward the enemy’s ship, attached the torpedo to the anchor-cable,
and then paddled away, under water if need required, leaving the
clock-work agent of destruction to float broadside beneath the vessel,
with the turn of the tide, for later explosion.
In the dusk of the evening of October 2d, 1804, several catamarans, led
by the flag-ship _Monarch_ with Admiral Keith in command, stole quietly
into the harbor of Boulogne. Seamen, in black jerseys, waistcoats and
trousers, with black caps pulled over their faces, managed to paddle
each raft into position, attach the torpedoes and get away in safety.
But the French ships swung about and avoided the bombs; only one wrought
destruction upon a small vessel with a crew of twenty-one men. The other
bombs drifted ashore and exploded without serious harm, and at early
dawn the British sailed away, without losing a man, but with so slight
accomplishment that it was termed a failure. Fulton was present, as were
also Sir Home Popham and Viscount Melville. The inventor’s disappointment
must have been great.
The attack was followed by a storm of protest in England. It was
considered unlawful warfare,—the just idea of mercy construed as unfair
such a form of siege. Others made fun of it, and a merry wag wrote a
ballad for the newspaper, supposedly sung by the Secretary of War:
See here my casks and coffers,
With triggers pulled by clocks!
But to the Frenchman’s rigging
Who first will lash these blocks?
Catamarans are ready,
(Jack turns his quid and grins)
Where snugly you may paddle
In water to your chins.
Then who my blocks will fasten,
My casks and coffers lay?
My pendulums set ticking
And bring the pins away?
“Your project new?” Jack mutters,
“Avast! ’Tis very stale,—
’Tis catching birds, land-lubbers,
By salt upon the tail.”
In December another trial of the submarine torpedo-boat was made against
the Red Fort in the harbor of Calais. Only one of the two bombs exploded
and little damage was done.
So passed several months,—months of entreaty on Fulton’s part,—months
of cautious planning on the part of the British statesmen. It was an
open secret that they did not like that sort of warfare. Any man less
persevering than Fulton would have thought their lack of interest a
sufficient dismissal.
But Fulton eagerly continued to plead for a more extended trial of
his new device. He explained that the partial failure of the early
attempts was due to lack of knowledge in the men employed to handle the
explosives. He lost no faith in his plan and urged that it be adopted “as
a system” by the English fleet. Finally his persistence was rewarded; Mr.
Pitt gave permission for a public demonstration of his plan at Walmar
Roads, near Deal Harbor, within a mile of Mr. Pitt’s country residence,
Walmar Castle.
Fulton secured the Danish brig _Dorothea_—a prize of war—and anchored
her within safe range from the shore, in easy sight of the crowd of
distinguished visitors whom he invited to witness the experiment. The
rumor spread that “Mr. Francis,” who had invented and built the machines
used by Sir Home Popham against the enemy’s ships at Boulogne, was to try
to blow up a three hundred ton brig with one of his novel catamarans. A
multitude assembled on the beach eager to see the explosion.
Fulton wrote a letter to Lord Castlereigh, the next day, which gives a
fine account of all that happened. He says:
“Yesterday about four o’clock, I made the intended experiment
on the brig, with a carcass of one hundred and seventy pounds
of powder; and I have the pleasure to inform you that it
succeeded beyond my most sanguine expectations. Exactly in
fifteen minutes from the time of drawing the peg and throwing
the carcass into the water, the explosion took place. It
lifted the brig almost bodily and broke her completely in
two. The ends sunk immediately and in one minute nothing was
to be seen of her but floating fragments; her main mast was
broken in three places; her beams and knees were thrown from
her decks and sides, and her deck planks were rent to fibers.
In fact, her annihilation was complete, and the effect was
most extraordinary. The power, as I had calculated, passed in
a right line through her body, that being the line of least
resistance, and carried all before it. At the time of her going
up, she did not appear to make more resistance than a bag of
feathers, and went to pieces like a scattered egg-shell.”
The unbelieving statesmen were convinced by this demonstration before
their very eyes. Fulton was of course happy and satisfied; and wrote to
Benjamin West (whom he affectionately addresses as “Mammy”), giving a
graphic account of the event.
DOVER, Oct. 16th, 1805.
MY DEAR MAMMY WEST;
You have perhaps seen in the papers a French account of a
little blow-up which took place at Boulogne on the first of
this month; it was an experiment on a small scale to try the
effect of four of my submarine bombs or torpedoes. They were
carried in by two small boats which the French have magnified
to many fire-ships with a formidable attack of boats, etc.,
which shows that they were much frightened or that the public
must be amused with a long story; however, the torpedoes did
not produce the desired effect and I saw a great prejudice
arise in the minds of the officers against them: but sure of
their effects and convinced that they had only been badly
applied, I the next day purchased a strong Danish brig of 250
tons, determined to blow her up and at the same time give the
officers a lesson how to act: the brig was soon put in order,
ballast and water casks were laid in, and sails bent as if
intended for a voyage; she was then surveyed and acknowledged
on all sides to be as strong as any of the craft at Boulogne:
Everything being ready she was on Monday morning sent to Walmar
road and anchored opposite Walmar Castle, about half a mile at
sea. The public curiosity was soon excited, who expected the
experiment to be made about 4 o’clock; but that evening and the
next morning passed in practicing my men. About 3 yesterday I
came on there and walked down the beach where I made the signal
of attack: instantly one of my long galleys rushed forward and
grappled the torpedo line in the cable of the tug. The force
of the tide then pressed the torpedo, which was set to fifteen
minutes, under her bottom, and in fifteen minutes the awful
explosion took place: it lifted the whole body of the vessel
almost out of water and broke her completely in two in the
middle; the mainmast and pumps were blown out of her and in one
minute nothing of her was to be seen but floating fragments.
The torpedo contained 170 pounds of powder. The experiment was
the most complete that could be desired but most tremendous
and frightful and carries with it one reflection which gives me
some pain, that in vessels thus attacked it will be impossible
to save the men, and many a worthy character must perish.
All doubts are now removed on the power and simplicity of
this invention. The defects which have attended it was bad
management which is now corrected.
Yours truly,
ROBT. FULTON.
Success was apparently at hand, but again it eluded him. A strong
combination of national forces turned the tide of war. Austria and Russia
combined forces against Napoleon and the emperor was forced to break camp
at Boulogne to transfer the seat of war to Central Europe; nor was this
all; on October 21st, less than a week after Fulton’s demonstration of
torpedo warfare, Nelson with his banner “England expects every Man to
do His Duty,” won the great victory at Trafalgar, routing the forces of
France and Spain, and disposing of any Napoleonic dream of conquest over
England on the high seas. Great Britain held supremacy on the ocean,—she
needed no new weapon of destruction; and with the artillery of France
silenced, the country was unlikely to listen further to Fulton’s plan.
The old way was considered the best way. Pitt was called “the greatest
fool that ever existed, to encourage a mode of war which they who
commanded the seas did not want, and which if successful would deprive
them of it.”
So faded again Fulton’s dream of universal peace through the stratagems
of war. Yet he was under contract with the British government to
supply the invention, which he found, after many inquiries, they did
not want. They offered to grant him an annuity if he would promise to
suppress the submarine torpedo and agree that _neither England nor any
other country_ should adopt it. Fulton sent a fearless reply to the
Arbitration Committee who made the suggestion. He declared that he would
never consent to the abandonment of his project. “In fact, I will do
my utmost to make it a good philosophic work and give it to the world.
I will then form a committee of the most respectable men of America
and proceed regularly in experiments on a large scale, publishing the
result from time to time and thus drawing the attention of the ingenious
and enterprising to such pursuits. I shall hope to succeed in my first
object, that of annihilating all military marines and giving liberty to
the seas.”
The English probably smiled contentedly at the ardor of the enthusiast.
Fulton continued:
“Gentlemen, a man who has the candor to give you this in writing has
but little deception or fear in his character and will not abandon so
glorious an enterprise for trifling rebuffs or mean consideration.
“At all events, whatever may be your reward, I will never consent to let
these inventions lie dormant should my country at any time have need of
them. Were you to grant me an annuity of twenty thousand pounds a year, I
would sacrifice all to the safety and independence of my country. I hope
that England and America will understand their mutual interest too well
to war with each other. And I have no desire to introduce my engines into
practice for the benefit of any other nation.”[2]
[2] On the 6th of June, 1914, the writer laid aside work upon this
volume, to serve as sponsor for the U. S. Submarine Tender _Fulton_,
launched at Quincy, Massachusetts,—the first vessel of its type in our
navy, to serve as Mother of the Fleet of Torpedoes.