ORIGINATES STEAM GUN-BOATS. 97 



to be told is even more remarkable. He was the originator 

 of the gun-boats now generally introduced into the English 

 and French Navies. Had Mr. Smith's advice and sjigges- 

 tions been taken advai^age of when first offered, we should 

 not have presented the absurd spectacle we did, when lying 

 helplessly idle off Cronstadt during the Russian war. 



Some years ago, when the Duke of Wellington was stay- 

 ing at Tedworth, Mr. -Smith communicated to the great 

 Captain his notions respecting gun-boats. The Duke 

 listened, as he always did, with attention to the squire's 

 remarks, but gave no opinion at the time respecting the 

 subject of them. Next morning, as they were both walking 

 on the terrace after breakfast, the Duke said, " Smith, I have 

 been thinking that there is a good deal in what you said 

 last night about those gun-boats, and I should advise your 

 writing to the First Lord of the Admiralty," then Lord 



, which advice Mr. Smith accordingly followed, but 



received no answer. Some time after, when walking down 

 Regent Street, he met the First Lord, whom he knew person- 

 ally, and asked him, in the course of conversation, if he had 

 received his letter containing suggestions for the introduc- 

 tion of gun-boats. The First Lord replied that he had, but 

 tb*at the Admiralty could not pay attention to all the 

 recommendations made to them. Upon this, Mr. Smith 

 took off his hat, and turning away from him with a stately 

 bow, observed, "What his Grace the Duke of Wellington 

 has considered worthy of attention, I think your Lordship 

 might at least have condescended to notice." 



Yet within ten years from this interview, a fleet of our 

 formidable "vixen craft" successfully traversed the ocean, 

 and did good service in China. Little perhaps did the 

 spectators, who proudly gazed not long since upon the 

 goodly swarm of those dark hulls at Spithead, know that 

 the projector of them was a fox-hunter, and that to a fox- 

 hunter's clear head and far-seeing eye was the gallant 

 Wildman mainly indebted for "the single little vessel" 



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