CHAPTER I.

INFANCY AND BOYHOOD.

It is with some hope that the veil which has so long obscured the merits of an unfortunate and ingenious man, shall be lifted, that these pages have been written Justice to the memory of one whose conceptions and anticipations far exceed the shallow wisdom of his cotemporaries, demands that, on the roll of those who have benefitted their country shall be placed the name of John Fitch, the successful inventor of the steamboat, who demonstrated the merits of his invention beyond the power of denial. The record of his trials and sufferings is now to be placed before a generation able to appreciate his qualities. The invention of the steamboat has been a matter of importance to the civilized world. It is our aim to show that such a machine was not only suggested in the United States, but that it was brought to such practical perfection, as to be used for purposes of freight and passage many years before it was usefully emploved in any other country, and many years before the luckier but less original demonstration, by the adapter of the ideas of others, Robert Fulton.

Very much of the story of the life of John Fitch was written by himself, in compliance with the desire of his friend, the Rev. Nathaniel Irwin, of Bucks County, Pennsylvania, who, during the course of an acquaintance extending through several years had always taken an interest in the fortunes of the ingenious and struggling enthusiast. In the first page of his written autobiography, Fitch testifies his attachment to Mr. Irwin, in the following quaint manner:

TO THE WORTHY NATHANIEL IRWINE, OF NESHAMINEY.

SIR­I was a bigott in your beliefs and doctrines which you so zealously, and with the greatest ingenuity that I ever heard from a Pulpit, weekly support, I should think that the word Reverand would bearly do you justice and for fear if I used that word, it might be imputed to the function of a Christian preacher, I omitted it; but, Sir, you may be assured that I rever you more than any man, but not because you are a Christian Preacher, but because I esteem you one of the most valuable citizens of Pennsylvania and have frequently felt a secret Pain that such an exalted Genius should be confined to the pitiful business of Neshaminey congregation, whilst many of the first offices of Government are filled by those much less deserving.

The last conference I had with you, Sir you requested a detail of my life. I, sir, would not have gratified even Mr. Irwine himself in this, were it not for several reasons: the first is, I have already made myself so noticed that I never can in future conceal myself; and knowing, Sir, that there is every malignant disposition, as well as friends, to Laudable endeavours; and the curious of this world will hardly be satisfied without some story to tell if they have to frame stories out of their own brain respecting me; but a Principle reasons is this­my life sir has been filled with such a variety of Chances which will afford such useful lessons to mankind I think I should hardly do my duty which I owe to my fellow men, was I to suppress it.

From that autobiography, commenced Jan 12, 1790 , which was afterward deposited in the Philadelphia Library, we take the greater part of the curious and interesting facts which will be related in these pages

The Fitch family were supposed, by the descendant whose eventful story is about to be told, to be of Saxon origin. Thomas Fitch, the great-great-grandfather of John Fitch, became by descent the proprietor of an estate near Brantry [Braintree] in Essex, England, and after, it is presumed, an honest and peaceful life, died, leaving five sons. Those descendants left England shortly after their father's death, and emigrated to New England, bringing their mother with them. Joseph Fitch, the greatgrandfather of John Fitch, purchased one-twentieth part of the township of Windsor, Hartford County, in the Province of Connecticut. He had three sons­Joseph, Nathaniel and Samuel. The two latter died unmarried, after having wasted their estates. Their brother Joseph patterned after their improvidence, but did not adopt their views as to the benefits of celibacy. He married, had two sons, Joseph and John, and died insolvent, leaving his children to the charity of the world. Joseph Fitch, the father of the subject of our biography, was brought up in an industrious and affluent family settled at Hartford, where he was taught to read, write, and cipher. His studies were of such a nature that he acquired a taste for astronomy, mathematics, and natural philosophy, in none of which he attained any brilliant proficiency. In due time he married Sarah Shaler, of Bolton, an active, enterprising, good woman. During her life there were born to this couple three sons and three daughters.

John Fitch was the fifth child, and was ushered into what to him was a world of misfortune, on the 21st of January, 1743, old style. The house where his parents resided was situate upon the boundary line between the townships of Windsor and Hartford; but, as the greater part of the dwelling was in Windsor, John always understood that his birthplace was in the latter. When the boy was about four years old he was sent to " a dame school," maintained by a tax on the residents of the township. Mrs. Rockwell, the mistress, found in young Fitch no inapt scholar, and during the first summer he learned to spell such words as "Commandment" and "Jerusalem" with facility. Whilst at this school he met with his first great misfortune. His mother died when he was about four years and eight months old. The children of the family then were Joseph, Augustus, Sarah, Anne, John, and Chloe. The bereaved father soon found the management of this progeny to be a task which he was incompetent to discharge with propriety, and he accordingly turned his attention to the serious business of wooing a second wife. His choice was determined by prudence, and it fell upon Abigail Church, of Hartford, a maiden lady, who was "an orderly, easy-tempered, good woman," and "had some little property."

During the time of the courtship, John was kept at school, where his advancement was satisfactory. His father was necessarily and frequently away from home whilst engaged in " paying attentions" to Miss Church, and the house, during such expeditions, seems to have been left in the charge of the children. Upon one of those occasions, after John had returned from school, it being near the dusk of the evening, he and his youngest sister, Chloe, were alone in the house. Augustus and Sarah were in the barnyard milking the cows. Chloe had some important little secret to tell her brother­having received some gift during the day vhich she wished to show him. Lighting a candle, she went with it to the far side of the room, and while searching for the present, unfortunately set fire to two bundles of flax which were upon the floor. The inflammable material started into a blaze. Little John seeing it, ran and seized one of the burning bundles, which was so heavy that he could only carry it by resting it against his knees. He conveyed it in this manner to the chimney, and cast it down on the hearth, his hands being sadly burned, and his hair on fire. The latter he quenched, and then seized the second bundle, which was also ablaze, and put it on the hearth, where he tramped out the fire until it was extinguished. Whilst he was engaged in this heroism, his sister, affrighted, had fled to the barnyard, where, in her agitation, she must have said something which was misunderstood. Whilst little Johnny was yet smoking, his hair nearly singed off his head, his hands and feet blistered and smarting, and his eyes full of dust and cinders, his brother Augustus rushed in, and, without asking a word of explanation, fell upon the young hero, boxed his ears and beat him most severely. This was the reward for his bravery. He felt the injustice which was done him, and, on his father's return, made complaint, but received no redress. This incident seemed to him in after years to be the first in a career in which his efforts to do good were misunderstood and punished, instead of being rewarded. At a later period, after having labored to convince his countrymen of the value of the steamboat, and receiving nothing but distrust, indifference, and the punishment of poverty and neglect, he reverted to this childish occurrence, as if to show that a malignant fate had pursued him almost from his infancy. "This, sir," says he, addressing the Rev. Mr. Irwin, "being what I may call the first act of my life, seemed to forebode the future rewards I was to receive for my labors through life, which have generally corresponded exactly with that."

About two years after the death of the mother of John, his father having won the affections of Miss Church, brought her home and established her in the position of wife, and ruler over the destinies of her step-children. The change, as it often happens, soon produced some alteration in the family. Joseph and Augustus were apprenticed to learn trades; Sarah was married at sixteen years of age; Anne was most of the time with her uncle, John Fitch, in Massachusetts; so that, generally, there were only at home, the father, his wife, and John and Chloe. After Joseph had been away for a year he returned. He had learned to be a cooper, and set up that business at his father's house. John was permitted to go to school until he was about ten years of age, being subject, however, to many demands for his services, and being required to relinquish his studies during busy seasons, whenever his father thought it would be more for his benefit to employ his son at home. Joseph Fitch was a stern, close man, who lived in rigid economy, and had but little liberality of principle where the happiness of others ought to have been consulted. He was very economical, and spent but little upon self-indulgence. His son says of him, however, in a tone of thankfulness, or admiration, it is difficult to determine which, that he had " always plenty of victuals in the house," and was " never out of cider but two weeks," during all the time that he lived with him. Little John beeame at school "quite a scholar." Before he was ten years old he "could say the New England primer all by heart, from 'Adam's fall' to the end of the catcchism." There was at his father's house an old copy of Hodder's arithmetic, which he got hold of and studied without assistance. He had a natural aptitude for figures, and when nine years of age had mastered addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, and could tell " how many minutes old" he would be when he reached ten years of age. He had now become a great enthusiast, and describes himself as "almost crazy for learning." Yet his father took him from school and put him to work, although he was so small that he could not swingle more than two pounds of flax, or thresh more than two bushels of grain in a day. For this "pitiful, trifling labor" he was deprived of the benefit of education, which he looked upon as a serious piece of injustice. Yet, he observed, in reference to his father's conduct, "There was a great deal to plead for him. He was educated a rigid Christian bigot, a most strenuous Presbyterian, and carried it to such excess, that I dare not go in the garden to pick currants, or in the orchard to pick, up an apple on the Sabbath, and he probably thought that the extent of his duty towards me was to teach me how to read the Bible, that I might find the way to heaven, and when he had done that he felt perfectly easy, and if I could earn him 2d per day, it ought not to be lost." Still his father did not prevent him from studying at home. He was at his book mornings and evenings, was a very zealous student, and got through Hodder as far as "Alligation Alternate."

When he was about eleven years old he heard of a book which would give him "information of the whole world." This treasure was Salmon's Geography. He asked his father to buy it for him, but the investment was greater than his frugality would allow him to indulge in. In this emergency John cast about for some means to raise money sufficient to purchase it. Having hit upon a plan, he requested of his father permission to plant potatoes on some headlands on the farm, and obtained the desired license. On a training day, when all others who had time were enjoying themselves at the muster, this little farmer devoted his holiday to the task of digging up the ground and planting his stock. He cultivated this small patch through the season, at noon, and after his regular work was done in the evening. The result of the adventure was the growth of several bushels of potatoes, which were sold in the fall for ten shillings. A merchant in the neighborhood, who was going to New York, engaged to buy the coveted book, but when he purchased it the cost was twelve shillings, leaving the poor little fellow two shillings in debt, a vast and troublesome obligation; in addition to which his frugal father called upon him to return potato-seed equal to the quantity originally loaned him to plant. Good luck soon enabled him to discharge this heavy debt. He studied his prize with intense energy, and in a short time was "the best geographer, according to Salmon, which Connecticut could produce." No question could be asked him about any nation, its situation, population, boundaries, chief towns, &c., which he could not answer "according to Salmon."

Having now attained some geographical knowledge, and having been instructed by his father in surveying as far as he himself understood it, the young Fitch began to have considerable conceit of his abilities. A very amusing exemplification of his self-sufficiency had been given before that time. Among the neighbors of the Fitch family, was his Excellency, Governor Roger Wolcott, father of Oliver Wolcott, afterwards a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and governor of Connecticut. He had a piece of meadow land adjoining the Fitch farm, and sometimes during mowing time, would come beneath the shade of the trees where the laborers were resting. John was a pert, forward, smart little boy, and the governor having some pieces of land to apportion off, requested the father that he would allow his son to carry the chain for him while making the surveys. The youngster was hugely flattered at this honor, and his good opinion of himself was much enhanced by the deference which Governor Wolcott paid to his suggestions. He consulted him upon all doubtful points, and seemed to adopt all his recommendations without hesitation as to their correctness. They surveyed several small tracts lying upon the Podunck river, a very crooked stream. John, being expert in "Hodder," was ready in his calculations of the parts left out by the tortuous character of the watery boundary, and in estimating what ought to be taken in to reduce the whole to square measure. As a specimen of the operations of the boy of eleven years old, with the great man who had honored him with his confidence, the following is told. "He asked me," said Fitch, "how we should go square across the end that we did not go out or in, but square off with the lines the first run." I instantly told him thus:­

"As we had a four pole chain, that we would begin at the bush at the corner, and measure off two poles upon the trail that we had made through the grass, and for him to hold one end of the chain at that place, and I would walk round with the other end through the grass, and then he should hold the other end at the bush, whilst I trampled the grass in another circle, and one pole from where the grass was trampled both ways would be a square from the first line. The old gentleman indulged me in this experiment, but what his views were I don't know, but I did it on the same principles that I now raise a perpendicular on paper, but did not know at that time a single geometrical problem, and he laid off the end line according to my perpendicular. There was another thing which has ever been a mystery to me. He had measured off one piece for one Isaac Morton, which was to contain one acre, and it happened to be just thirty poles in length. He asked me 'how wide we should go to make one acre.' I readily answered, 'six rods.' He seemed to doubt, or rather question with me if I was right. I positively asserted that I was, and told him that '40 rods long and 4 rods wide was an acre, and 20 rods long and 8 rods wide was an acre, and that 30 and 6 was a medium between the two.' The old gentleman laid it out agreeably to my direction. In this I honestly cheated him, but did not know it till some years after. I can impute it to nothing but an oversight in him, as his abilities as a surveyor cannot be doubted."

The job of surveying thus commenced, was not completed upon that day. The Governor left his chain with little John, and gave him directions how to lay out some other pieces of ground, which task was completed by the young surveyor entirely to his own satisfacticn. When the Governor came to the house of the father to receive the chain, the boy proudly produced it with the notes of his work, and was not unreasonable in expecting some remuneration for his labor; but the Governor coolly received the chain as a matter of right, placed it in his saddlebag, and without deigning to notice his fellow-laborer, or even to thank him for his trouble, rode away with much dignity. This was a great disappointment to the young associate; but he solaced himself with the thought that he ought to have expected such treatment. Gov. Wolcott was a prudent man, and very careful of the means which he possessed. This disposition had already been proved by an incident which happened some time before, the memory of which was preserved in the Fitch family, as a perpetual monitor of the niggardly disposition of the Governor. At that period, it was the custom, in Connecticut, to make the mending of roads a township affair, and the assistance of all ablebodied residents was demanded at certain times for that purpose. It was a constant practice of the road-repairing parties to keep a sufficient store of New England rum for the solace of themselves and travellers. The latter were always requested to take a drink whenever they reached the place where the roadmenders were stationed. It was a portion of the etiquette of such occasions, that the invitations should always be accepted; and it was equally a trait of good manners to recompense the voluntary hosts for the liberality which they thus exercised. It was a rare thing in any one to disregard such requests; and it was considered mean for a person to pass on without making some contribution to replenish the bottle. It once happened, when Joseph Fitch, with many others, were mending the highway near the farm, that Gov. Wolcott, majestically arrayed in scarlet, was passing along on his way to Hartford. The bottle was tendered him, and he did not refuse it, but, taking a generous dram, recompensed the expectant hosts who looked for a liberal donation, with a single copper. The circumstance so chagrined Joseph, that he was determined to make visible commemoration of the paltry gift. He took the farthing to his father's house, and punched a hole in it. He got a post and set it firmly in the ground on the edge of the road; and, procuring a scarlet rag to make it more conspicuous, nailed the copper and the rag to the post, as a memento of the Governor's avarice, and as a hint to other travellers that they were expected to pay more liberally for their rum. "This," said John Fitch, many years afterward, "was a mean way of getting money, but the Governor took an improper way to suppress it, and one which was very imprudent in the first officer of the government." The circumstance certainly proved that he was very careful of his wealth, and it explained very satisfactorily the reason why the boy, who had been so useful to him in surveying, received no pecuniary acknowledgment.

The situation of the lad at this time was very uncomfortable. He had a strong desire to acquire knowledge; but with this disposition there was little sympathy. His father and brother were more anxious that he should work in the field than go to school and study. His labors were severe, and so heavy that he ascribed his weak and stunted condition to them. He was small boned and diminutive­a condition of body which continued until he was about eighteen years of age, and then he "started up all at once," (without giving nature time to consult herself,) into a disproportioned shape. When he was about thirteen years of age, his father so far relaxed his stern demands upon him for labor, that he permitted him to go to school for about six weeks. In that time he got through the arithmetic, and had learned all that the school-master could teach of mathematics. The latter suggested that he would instruct the boy in surveying, if the proper instruments were procured. The demand for the necessary outlay was not agreeable to the father of John; but, after earnest solicitation, he consented to make the advance, he went to Hartford, and procured a scale and dividers, which were received by his son with warm expressions of gratitude. With these simple implements he became proficient, in two weeks, in what was then called surveying in New England. But he learned "nothing of logarithms, or of calculation by latitude and departure, but only geometrically."

This was the last opportunity of studying allowed him by his family. He wished to perfect himself in the science of astronomy, but that taste met with no encouragement. Foiled in his most ardent wishes, he became at length discouraged, and, abandoning his books, fell gradually into the ways of boys of his own age, and devoted to play such hours as were permitted him to abstain from labor, and which formerly he had diligently dedicated to study. When he was about fifteen years old, his father hired him out one winter to Roswell Mills, for eleven shillings a month. Mills kept a large country store at Simsbury, in Hartford County. The principal article of payment for the goods sold to customers was pork, of which large quantities were received. Here the boy served faithfully, and acquired the friendship of Mr. Mills, who, afterwards abandoning store-keeping, took up the practice of the law at Windsor.

At the age of seventeen, John became heartily disgusted with the farm labor which had been imposed on him. He was desirous of obtaining some other employment, but was undecided whether he should go to sea, or become an apprentice to learn some trade. On a day, when all the residents of the parish, who were supposed to be able to work, were invited to assist in raising a new and stately meeting-house at Windsor, Fitch, who was affronted by not receiving an invitation to participate, procured a horse and rode over to Rocky Hill, on the Connecticut river, at which place a number of coasting vessels were usually to be found. Here he made an agreement with one Captain Abbott, to go with him upon a voyage to New York. Returning home, he secured all the money which he possessed, about three shillings, and, informing his father of his determination, was presented with twenty shillings and his blessing. His experience on board the craft belonging to Capt. Abbott was not of a nature to add to any happy anticipations which he might have had of the pleasures of a life upon a vessel. The mate, one Starr, treated him with roughness. He would not permit him to sleep at night in a berth, although some in the craft were vacant, but compelled him to slumber on a chest much shorter than he was, and without covering. The next day he was abused and beaten by this ruffian, and at night again banished to his chest. This treatment was sufficient to admonish him as to what he might expect during the voyage; and, as the vessel still laid at Rocky Hill, he quitted it on the second day, and engaged himself with one Capt. Ebens, who was bound for Rhode Island. By the latter he was treated with some humanity, and had nothing to complain of. They met with a severe storm in Providence, much to the discomfort of the young voyager, who, during its continuance, had no sanguine hope of safety. Capt. Ebens went to Providence and Newport, and after having been away five weeks, John returned to Rocky Hill, and sought his father's house.