d scope to follow the bent of his own
inclinations."

"Very good, Willis; for argument's sake, let us take your headstrong
young man, or rather the steam, for granted, and let us admit that it
is as elastic as ever you please--but what then?"

"Then you must imagine a piston in a cylinder, forced upwards when
the steam is heated, and falling downwards when the steam is cooled.
Next fancy this upward and downward motion regulated by a number of
wheels and cranks that turn two wheels on each side of the ship,
keeping up a constant jangling and clanking, the wheels or paddles
splashing in the water, and then you may form a slight idea of the
thing."

"Oh!" cried Jack, "we invented a machine of that kind for our canoe,
with a turnspit. Do you recollect it, Fritz?"

"Yes, I recollect it well enough; and I also recollect that the canoe
went much better without than with it."

"You spoke just now," continued Willis, "of rival nations, who pounce
like birds of prey upon every new invention; and so it is with the
steamship. An American, named Fulton, made a trial in the Hudson with
one in 1807--that is about five years ago--and I believe the Yankees,
in consequence, are laying claim to the invention."

"Now that you bring the thing to my recollection," said Fritz, "the
idea of applying steam in the arts is by no means new, although, I
must candidly admit, I never heard of it being used in propelling
ships before. The Spaniards assert that a captain of one of their
vessels, named Don Blas de Garay, discovered, as early as the
sixteenth century, the art of making steam a motive power."

"I don't believe that," said Jack.

"Why?"

"Because a real Spaniard has never less than thirty-six words in his
name. If you had said that the steam engine was discovered by Don
Pedrillo y Alvares y Toledo y Concha y Alonzo y Martinez y Xacarillo,
or something of that sort, then I could believe the man to have been a
genuine Spaniard, but not otherwise."

"Spaniard or no Spaniard, the Spanish claim the discovery of steam
through Don Blas; the Italians likewise claim the discovery for a
mechanician, named Bianca; the Germans assign its discovery to
Solomon de Causs; the French urge Denis Papin; and the English claim
the invention for Roger Bacon."

"You have forgotten the Swiss," said Jack.

"The Swiss," replied Fritz, with an air of dignity, "put forward no
candidate: steam and vapor and smoke are not much in their line. They
disc