Demand for arbitrators. Further correspondence with Lords Grenville and Howick.

Lord Howick will have a conversation with your Lordship on the mode of finally setteling with me, As the papers which I have from time to time written to Successive Ministers and to his Lordship may not be at hand at the time of such conversation, And as a right understanding of submarine Navigation with all its probable consequences Is I conceive of much importance to this government I beg your Lordships attention to the following observations which shall be as concise as possible, And I hope it will be admitted by your Lordship that whatever may be the effect of any Scientific discovery on the interest or politics of this country, It is better his Majesty’s Ministers should be acquainted with it than remain uninformed, And I conceive Investigation the more necessary when it is considered that discoveries in the Sciences have from age to age changed the whole art of war and the politics of nations. That being slow in the operation their consequences cannot be traced by ordinary men, who being creatures of habit and Guided by existing things consider new discoveries as Visionary or trivial Such were the Ideas of the Inventions of printing, gunpowder and the Mariners Compass had their authors Shown their consequences they would not have been believed by their Contemporaries.

So my Lord when I say that I have discovered a mode of attacking Ships of war which if prosicuted to its Ultimate powers and rendered fameliar to all nations must from necessity destroy the existing system of military marines and alter the whole politics of Europe I do not expect to be believed by any but men of penitrating Judgement and Sound Sense nor do I expect them to believe me untill they have see the whole of the engines and had ample proof of the simple mode of using them and their certain destructive effects Now my Lord if this be a truth it is certainly important to know it, if it be false the conviction that it is so will be equally important for then there will be nothing to guard against, hence to place this Subject in its true light I have proposed to Lord Howick to form a committee compossed of Your Lordship Lord Moria Lord Sydmouth Lord Erskin Mr. Fox Mr. Windham Sir george Shee and Alexander Davison Esqr. the members of this committee are all friends to government to them I will exhibit all the machinery and modes of using it and Reasoning from Experiments already made endavour to Shew what may be done leaving to the committee to Judge whether my preceding assertion is true. And for Such communications I make no demand, but Should the committee find my assertion supported by facts It will be acknowledged that I have a high Interest in this produce of my own mind and that I have a right to prosecute it to the acquirement of fortune or fame, I have mentioned to Lord Howick my Views on fortune, the committee will Judge whether it be the interest of government to acceed to my proposal and whether the terms Specified are the best security which I can give that this subject shall not be further prosicuted by me My Lord I beg you to be Assured that I have every disposition to act in the most liberal and honorable manner towards this government At the Same time I must Acknowledge that I never will abandon my private interest Till satisfied by specific Stipulations and I hope my Lord that this fair proposal to investigate all the principles and this undisguised mode of Acting will inspire your Lordship and Every member of the committee with a confidence that what I agree to Shall be scrupeleusly and honorably adheared to. Should your Lordship require any private conversations on this subject I shall be happy to wait on you at an appointed hour.

P. S. Just as I was finishing this letter I was informed by Mr. Tucker that Lord Howick and your Lordship had decided not to have any thing to do with the submarine boat My Lord I never wished this government to introduce such boats into practice. But it is Stipulated in my contract that if for any reason government do not think proper to practice my mode of war Arbitrators Shall be appointed and if it appears to the majority that enemies Vessels can be Destroyed by my means at less expence and Risque than by any method now in practice I shall receive 40,000 £ hence as the Submarine boat makes part of my System it must come under the consideration of the arbitrators.

Previous publications dealing with this portion of Fulton’s career have inclined to the view that consideration of his plan for a submarine boat had been discarded soon after he came to England. From the postscript to the above letter it appears that Fulton was not informed that the submarine had been rejected until May, 1806, or two years after his arrival in England. Undoubtedly it was held under serious and secret consideration. Even if Fulton did not construct such a boat for the British Government, the latter reserved the right so to do until it was decided to drop all thought of adoption, or even of further investigation of any form, of under-water attack.

On May 14, Fulton again writes to Lord Grenville:

Since writing to your Lordship on the 10th Inst Lord Howick has agreed to decide on my Contract by arbitrators, I now beg you Lordship will have the goodness to give orders that my accounts which are with Mr. King may be immediately setteld. They have no connection with the final decision on my contract they have been 4 months moving from office to office and now wait your Lordships decision

My Lord when I was Invited to this country I was led to believe that every reasonable attention would be paid to my demonstrations propositions and claims. I was therefore disposed from the first to do everything in the most liberal and open manner. I have uniformly acted on this principle And I have hoped for equal attention and liberality from each of His Majestys ministers with whome I may have to act. My Lord mine is no common Case; Tis my Sincere wish and the real interest of this government which I will hereafter explain that everything relative to this business may be setteled in the most friendly manner hoping to have the pleasure of arranging with your Lordship on this principle

From the above it appears that his previous requests to Lords Howick and Grenville for the appointing of arbitrators had met with a generally favorable response. But sometimes diplomats agree “in principle” and then avoid arriving at a settlement of such inconvenient things as defined details.

There still remained much letter writing, threats and begging before the arbitrators were actually named, during which time Fulton came very near giving public proof that he had lost his temper.

More than three weeks after Lord Howick had informed Fulton that he had decided to submit the contract to arbitration, nothing had been done as shown by the following letter to Lord Grenville’s secretary:

Yesterday Lord Howick informed me that Lord Grenville had mentioned to him two or three persons whome he thought fit arbitrators. I beg you will speak to his Lordship to decide on two as soon as possible which decision becomes urgent in consequence of my being under the necessity of sailing for America About the 10th of July—

That this business may proceed with the least possible delay, and trouble to Ministers I Conceive the best mode will be to name one person first who with my friend Mr. Davison or Mr. McArthur will [first] arrange the terms of the Arbitration bond: then they being arbitrators [proceed] associated to two others [Can proceed] can proceed to the examination of the Machinery the principles of application and a decision on the contract.

I beg Sir to hear from you on this Subject as Soon as possible

On June 17th he again writes to Mr. King:

Anxious to Know the progress of my affairs and [conceiving that] conceiving that there can be no objection or obstacle to prevent the immediate naming of Arbitrators on the part of government I will take the liberty of waiting on you tomorrow between the hours of 11 and 12 to have a few minuets conversation on this subject.

No reply having been received within two days, his impatience and irritation overcame his control of his nerves and on June 19th, he takes pen in hand to begin the inditing of three letters. Considering that of these letters one is addressed to the chief of the most powerful government then existing, a government that controlled the affairs of the world, another to the member of the cabinet in charge of the Navy, and both written by a man who had been for two years and still was in the employ of the government, they leave unbroken few rules for the proper conduct of official correspondence. At this time Fulton’s feelings were like the actions of a series of his bombs—a state of prolonged and violent explosions.

One of the letters is addressed to Mr. King, whose first name Fulton does not seem to know, the second to Lord Grenville, and the third a covering letter to Lord Howick. The corrections show that Fulton spent some time in composing these communications, a task of no small difficulty in view of Fulton’s position and the disturbed condition of his temper. The two dates on the Grenville letter indicate that Fulton slept on it for one night, while the lapse into his earlier degree of disregard of orthography is perhaps further evidence of his emotions. The delay of one day in transmittal saved him, as similar delays have saved others. Perhaps some kind friend came to his guidance on the morrow, or perhaps a night’s rest had calmed somewhat his troubled spirit; whatever the reason, according to the footnote to the Howick letter he refrained from forwarding any of the three.

It is not difficult to picture what Lord Grenville’s outburst would have been had he received Fulton’s letter of June 19th–20th. The man who had not feared to break with the all-powerful Pitt, and who had become premier of England, would hardly have taken kindly to Fulton’s ultimatum nor his threat to write a letter to The Times.

by your silence on my Several letters permit me to say that you have treated me in a most ungentleman like manner; Inclosed is a letter for Lord Grenville which you will please to read and present to his Lordship, by it you will perceive the line I mean to pursue I have more favours to bestow on this government than Ministers will ever bestow on me and I am now about to put that, to the proof should they drive me to such necessity.

I wrote to your Lordship on the 5th 10th and 14th of May, And to Mr. King on the 30th of May & 6th of June, to which letters I have not received any answer nor assurance, that my [business] Claims on government shall be speedily and honorably setteled. As, time presses hard upon me for for three months past I informed Lord Howick and your Lordship that I should Sail for america In July, I am driven from necessity to urge in the strongest manner that my concerns with governmt may be immediately and finally setteled, hence Should my rights Continue to be treated with silent indifference, the letters which I may hereafter have occasion to write to your Lordship must from necessity be through the medium of the public prints, But I yet hope that so disagreeable an alternative may be avoided And that your Lordship will se the Justice and propriety of immediately naming your Arbitrators and of their immediately proceeding to a discision on my Claims,

My Lord Much [and Silent] experience has made me conscous of the powers of the engines I possess. I am also sensible of my own resources and means of Action I convinced the late Ministers of them they felt them and treated me with that attention Justice and civility which should satisfy a rational man. [And] Since the new Ministry has been formed I have repeatedly offered to your Lordship and Lord Howick to Submit the whole of my Assertions, demenstrations and claims to Men of science and Arbitration by which means [government] Ministers may become acquainted with scientific facts interesting to the nation, and Justice may be done to me, more liberal and honorable terms cannot be proposed, these terms I have a right to demand [them] and My Lord I now do demand them, I look to your Lordship and Lord Howick for prompt Justice I demand it as my right And I never will Submit to [receive] plead for it as a favour

My Lord if I have not before monday next Satisfactory Assurance that Arbitraters Shall be immediately Named on the part of Government And my [Claims] Business [immediately] proceeded upon in a prompt and liberal manner I will on the commencement of next week put this letter in the public prints and proceed to publish such details and demonstrations As will put it in the power of the nation to Judge if my rights, the Justice of Ministers And the importance of a Subject extremely interesting to [them] every Englishman.

As yet I can neither see nor heard from Lord Grenville nor Mr. King. Inclosed Is a copy of a letter which I have written to his Lordship degrading neglect, to a man in my situation, compels me to take the measures which I have adopted;

These three letters not delivered for the present the following two Substituted,

The two letters that he substituted were addressed one to Mr. King and the other to Lord Howick.

The copy of the King letter, now in the possession of the writer, is dated but not signed. In it he still gave vent to some of the bitterness and threats contained in the letter to Lord Grenville, but in gentler tone. As the censure is not now addressed to Lord Grenville but to his secretary the irritating character is much softened.

Your Silence on my several letters Is a want of politeness and an Injustice which I feel in the most sensible manner I have offered His Majestys Ministers the Most rational and honorable terms, by proposing to submit my whole plans to men of science and arbitrators if Ministers have not time or doubt their own [power] ability to Judge of the powers and consequences of new inventions how can they expect to arrive at truth or get correct Ideas but through the medium of Men of Sciences, of their own appointment, to refuse such a proposal and what is worse to treat it with contempt is injustice to the nation and to me and is [the] sufficient to sink any man or men in the opinion of the [nation] public. I hope I Shall not be driven to the necessity of appealing to the public opinion on this point but that I Shall have prompt and reasonable attention immediately paid to my claims I hope sir for your immediate answer

The letter to Lord Howick is a model of self-restraint as compared with the violent outburst of the withheld epistle to Lord Grenville:

I have not as yet seen or heared from Lord Grenville nor Mr. King nor received any assurance that my business shall be speedily setteled In a thing so Just and Simple as the naming of two Arbitrators why should such unnecessary delays and injustice be [extended to me] exercised toward me? Will Ministers necessitate me to lay my Claims before the public, and force me to such demonstrations and disclosure of facts as must be disagreeable to all parties and of serious consequence to the nation; My Lord I look to your Lordship and Lord Grenville for prompt Justice I demand it as my right and will not Submit to ask it as a favor. I am Conscious of my own Strength and resources I convinced the late ministers of them, they felt them and treated me with Justice attention and civility, I have offered to convince your Lordship and His Majesty present Ministers, of the truth of these powers by submitting the whole to men of Science and Arbitrators Your Lordship has intimated that [you] you doubted your own [capacity] power to Judge of the [power or] effect and ultimate consequences of my Inventions, then how do you expect to arrive at truth but through the medium of men of Science

My Lord this is common sense and [the Nation] Men of sense and the Nation will not approve of any other line of conduct in this Business—

My Lord 3 months ago I informed you that my plans were laid for Sailing to America In July this is still my intention the time is fast approaching. And one of the gentlemen who [was] agreed to act As my arbitrater must shortly leave town for these reasons I must [Insist on] [beg Insist] [beg] hope for your immediate decision, and answer to this letter.

As one reads these letters beginning with the moderate request to Lord Grenville on May 5th, the unwritten matter between the lines suggests that Fulton was not very hopeful of obtaining either a satisfactory financial award or the personal treatment that he felt he was entitled to receive.