Daily National Intelligencer

PERPETUAL MOTION.
Messrs. Gales and Seaton,
Permit me thro' the medium of your useful
paper to answer a scribbler who signs himself
a friend to genius. If that gentleman is a friend
to genius, it appears he possesses but a Small
portion of genius himself-when he calls
Mr. Redheifer's machine a gross imposition,
a trick too stupid to deserve the credit of in-
genuity, yet at the same time acknowledging
himself unable to point out where that trick
lies. Such conduct is very singular for a
judge giving judgment before he knows whe-
ther he is right or wrong, or before he has any
evidence against the accused. He further says,
he will give one hundred dollars to be allowed
to satisfy himself by examination. Such a
man could not be satisfied short of tearing the
machine to pieces-perhaps breaking it all to a-
toms & rending it asunder. Can any person that
is possessed of common understanding think
that a machine like that could be had for so
so trifling a sum? Is it supposed that I
would comply with a request made in so
ungenerous a form ? No, never. If this friend
to genius will give me one thousand dollars
for the machine, he may take his own time for
Examination. and I will bet one thousand dol-
lars more, that it contains no clock-work or
watch-work about any part of said machine:
and I am willing to venture one thousand more
that it will run three months without stopping
of itself. I will further say, and do agree to give
the gentleman one hundred dollars, one half
in advance, provided he will allow me to satis-
fy myself with respect to his machine, which
he carries on his shoulders. It appears that
some dispute has arisen, whether, or not, this
gentleman has any brains in his machine-for
my part, I think it to be a deception; but if he
will agree to have the part unscrewed so that I
can examine for myself, I will grant him his
before mentioned request, and then the philo-
sophical gentry, as you call them, will be bet-
ter able to decide which deception deserves
the most credit.
But let me ask you, gentlemen, if that man is
a law giver, or has he power to prosecute with-
out a law to justify him? for his threats seem
powerful, but they come from one whom I con-
sider a fool, and I meet them undaunted and
with disdain, as I would the enemies of my
country. If this pretended genius, as I must
call him, was of much character, why did he
not give his name in print, and so immortalise
a genius and claiming so great a preference in
opinion to other gentlemen, as it appears? I
would like to know the reason. It may be, how-
ever, he is not in blame for that; for many gen-
tlemen think not that attention or respect would
have been paid if they knew rightly the source
from which it came: because, it is hard to make
people believe that beaver could be furnished
from a sheep's back. This man puts me in
mind of a savage which is well known to this
country, that shows no quarters if he once gets
advantage, for he gets behind the tree and
darts his arrow, and, if lucky with his shot,
comes on with his tomahawk. I shall not at-
tempt to explain on the principles of this ma-
chine, but leave that for the genius before men-
tioned. I can risk the patience of my readers
no further, but content myself with the hopes
that he will come forward and meet me at my
proposal, like a man of honor
LEANDER UMFREY
Feb. 28-3t