THE CRADLE OF THE MODERN NAVY. 21 



eject a black 12-inch wooden ball which the "strong man" was to catch when it was 

 impelled across the stage. On the evening of the first performance, all hands hav- 

 ing been furnished free tickets, repaired to Tony Pastor's Theater, then at Spring 

 Street and Broadway. The fire-cracker exploded all right, but the man in the ex- 

 citement of the moment forgot to pull the string at the right instant, and the ball 

 did not make its appearance till just enough interval had elapsed to spoil the illu- 

 sion. This slip caused amusement rather than astonishment as intended, but they 

 got things to synchronize better the next night and the apparatus traveled all over 

 the country and later was developed into a gun which shot a woman into the air and 

 she was caught in a net. 



The double stage at the Madison Square Theater, located on 24th Street just west 

 of the Fifth Avenue Hotel, was designed and constructed there. One stage was built 

 on top of the other and was raised and lowered by hydraulic power. The scenery 

 was set on one while the play was acted on the other, and there was little delay be- 

 tween acts. Mr. Reynolds had this in charge, and some of us who worked on it had 

 free admission to see Hazel Kirke, a play which had a long run there. 



Captain Ericsson was at work on harbor defense at this time and developed, 

 after years of trials, the Destroyer, which carried a submarine gun and discharged 

 by compressed air a projectile 30 feet long, loaded with 350 pounds of explosive. 

 A test was made for General Grant and it performed what its designer claimed for 

 it. It hit a target 10 feet square, 10 feet below the surface of the water, travers- 

 ing the distance — 300 feet — in less than three seconds. This was a torpedo-boat but 

 not a submarine, and torpedo-boat destroyers are of similar design now. On the 

 afternoon the Destroyer was launched the works had a half-holiday and beer 

 was supplied to all the men. It was thought that Captain Ericsson might come to 

 see the launching but he was satisfied to wait till his secretary, Taylor, and his en- 

 gineer, Lassoe, same home to tell him that it was successful and that she drew just 

 as much water as he had calculated. 



John P. Holland, a school teacher, had his first successful submarine tor- 

 pedo boat built there, which for years made underwater trips of long duration in 

 the harbor and waters about New York. 



Ericsson built a small steam-engine at this time which, at the rate of 1,300 revo- 

 lutions per minute, drove the electric lighting plant of the works without any repair 

 or renewal of any brasses for about twelve years. 



A duplicate of this engine, beautifully nickeled and handsomely mounted, he pre- 

 sented to the King of Sweden. 



Col. Edwin Stevens of Hoboken, whose grandfather and father built the Ste- 

 vens Battery and who was himself a capable mechanical engineer, owned the fer- 

 ries running from New York to Hoboken. Desiring to improve his ferry-boats he 

 designed some with twin screws fore and aft. These were built at the DeLamater 

 Iron Works and proved to be such a great success that practically all New York 

 ferry-boats were afterwards of the double-end screw type. 



To continue to recount the varied character of work performed at these works 



