"I wonder why we didn't think of something like that long ago," said his father. "Almost anybody could rig up an old boat like that."
"Yes, I wonder, too," said Christopher. "It looks easy enough, now that Bob has shown how it is done."
When Robert Fulton became a man, he did not forget his experiment with the old fishing boat. He kept on, planning and thinking and working, until at last he succeeded in making a boat with paddle wheels that could be run by steam.
He is now remembered and honored as the inventor of the steamboat. He became famous because he was always thinking and studying and working.
THE CALIPH AND THE GARDENER
There was once a caliph of Cordova whose name was Al Mansour. One day a strange merchant came to him with some diamonds and pearls which he had brought from beyond the sea. The caliph was so well pleased with these jewels that he bought them and paid the merchant a large sum of money. The merchant put the gold in a bag of purple silk which he tied to his belt underneath his long cloak. Then he set out on foot to walk to another city.
It was midsummer, and the day was very hot. As the merchant was walking along, he came to a river that flowed gently between green and shady banks.
He was hot and covered with dust. No one was near. Very few people ever came that way. Why should he not cool himself in the refreshing water? He took off his clothes and laid them on the bank. He put the bag of money on top of them and then leaped into the water. How cool and delicious it was!
Suddenly he heard a rustling noise behind him. He turned quickly and saw an eagle rising into the air with his moneybag in its claws. No doubt the bird had mistaken the purple silk for something good to eat.
The merchant shouted. He jumped out of the water and shouted again. But it was no use. The great bird was high in the air and flying towards the far-off mountains with all his money.