Steamboat Development 35 



conceivably lose the command of the 

 sea. 



Still Britain remained unmoved and 

 Bell began to carry his ideas to foreign 

 governments. Here, except that the 

 American Government seemed rather more 

 interested, Bell's efforts were also wasted. 



Already, as we have just seen, experi- 

 ments were under way in the States, and 

 to further investigation the Government 

 deputed Robert Fulton to correspond 

 with Bell. Strange to say, the two men 

 were already well acquainted, Fulton 

 having visited Bell on several occasions. 

 We may be quite sure that Bell fired the 

 imagination of Fulton, and to such good 

 purpose that in 1807 Fulton had his first 

 vessel running on the Hudson. 



So far steamers on American waters 

 had been experimental, but with the 

 coming of the Clermont, real success was 

 achieved. We have some interesting 

 details of this little vessel, which is said 

 to have greatly alarmed some Dutch 



