Thomas Jefferson to George Hargraves, 29 August 1814
To George Hargraves
Monticello Aug. 29. 14.
Sir
Your favor of Aug. 4. came safe to hand, covering the description of a torpedo. I should readily have forwarded it to the government had it been within their plan to try the experiments which these machines require. but I understand that so many of these flowed in upon them as to oblige them to decline attention to them; and to leave it to individuals to put them in practice, offering a great reward for every vessel destroyed, the value of the vessel I believe. I therefore return the paper to you. I doubt moreover whether the description is such as that a machine could be made from it. from a circumstance mentioned in your letter I presume the paper is of mr Bushnell who sent me, while in Europe, a description of his Turtle, which I had inserted in the Philosophical transactions, and is one of the most ingenious devices which has been yet proposed in this way.
Th: Jefferson
PoC (DLC); on verso of reused address cover of missing letter from Alexander Garrett to TJ, 21 Aug. 1814; at foot of text: “Mr George Hargrave”; endorsed by TJ. Enclosure not found.
TJ sent David Bushnell’s description of his turtle to the American Philosophical Society, which reported it “worthy of publication” on 22 June 1798 ( , Minutes [MS in PPAmP]) and published it in , Transactions 4 (1799): 303–12.
Index Entries
- American Philosophical Society; TJ forwards material to search
- American Philosophical Society; Transactions search
- Bushnell, David; submarine inventor search
- Bushnell, David; torpedoes of search
- Hargraves, George; forwards D. Bushnell’s torpedo drawings search
- Hargraves, George; letters to search
- submarines; invented by D. Bushnell search
- torpedo (mine) search