' He
and she, you know, were close friends."
Another friend was Robert Fulton of steamboat fame. I have truly heard
Paine enthusiasts declare that our "infidel" was the authentic
inventor of the steamboat! In any case, he is known to have "palled"
with Fulton, and certainly gave him many ideas.
There were, to be sure, annoyances. He was, in spite of Mme. de
Bonneville's affectionate protection, still an object of persecution.
Two clergymen were especially tireless in their desire to reform this
sterling reformer. I believe their names were Milledollar and
Cunningham. Janvier tells this anecdote:
"It was during Paine's last days in the little house in
Greenwich that two worthy divines, the Rev. Mr. Milledollar
and the Rev. Mr. Cunningham, sought to bring him to a
realising sense of the error of his ways. Their visitation
was not a success. 'Don't let 'em come here again,' he said,
curtly, to his housekeeper, Mrs. Hedden, when they had
departed; and added: 'They trouble me.' In pursuance of this
order, when they returned to the attack, Mrs.
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