The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1869-01-01
/ The magnetic acknowledgement OF
Professor MOrse-Enteresting State.


Professor Morse-Enteresting State.
menfs, DC.
The banquet rendered to Professor Sam
uel F. B. Morae, in recognition Of his
eminent services to his country and the.
world, ~ took place in New York on Tuesday
evening, and was participated in by q COM
pany of gentlemen well known in itera-
ture, law, art, arms, commerce, and poll
tics. The Chief Justice of the United
States presided, and the whole affair was On
intellectual treat. Professor Morse, in re-
ply to complimentary toast, made g
speech; in which he related the following
interesting facts
In 1889, on board an American ship
in her voyage from Havre to New York, the
first telegraph was conceived and its essen
tial pecuIiarities brought forth and elabo-
rated. In 1885, according to the concur
rent testimony Of many witnesses, it lisped
its first accents, and automatically record
ed them in this city. 1t was feeble child
indeed, upgainly in its dress, stammering
in its speech but it had then all the dis
tinctive features and characteristics Of its
present manhood. I need not trouble you
with the maladies Of it's unfedged infancy,
mainly the results Of its parents struggles
against poverty; and the influence of the
substantial incredulity of those who could
have rescued it from its obscurity. Itfound
friend-an efficient friend-in MIR. Alfred
Vail, of New Jersey, who, with his father
and brother, furnished the means to give
the child decent dress preparatory to its
visit to the seat Of Government.
In the winter Of 1887 and 1888 it was
presented before Congress. The session of
1887 and 1888 passed away with no other
action on the subject of the telegraph than
o unanimously favorable report from the
House Committee of Commerce. An inter-
val of four years occurred before the atten-
| ton of Congress could be again reused to
consider the matter.
The temper of the House is easily in
| ferred. Men Of character, men of erudi-
ton, men VINO IN ii ordinary affairs had fore
sight, were wholly unable to forecast the
future Of the telegraph. was told at the
time by many personal friends in the House
| that the bill finally passed more out of de-
ference to my personal standing than from
any just appreciation of the Importance of
the invention, compliment which, however
gratifying to personal pride, was fully Offset
ny pSlOOlflhE VIC INV SoshiotS VI sAAS 3SooAo Va
my labors. Motions disparsging to the in
vention were made, such as propositions to
appropriate part of the SUM to telegraph
| to the moon.
The majority of Congress did not concur
| in this attempt to defeat the measure by
ridicule, and the bill was passed by the close
vote of eighty-nine to eighty-three. An
other year witnessed the triumphant sue
! cess of the test of its practicabil;ty.
The invention indicated it's character as
a substantial reality it was no longer a
chimera, visionary scheme to extort mo-
ney from the public Golfers. Its inventor
was no more subjected to the suspicion Of
lunacy, nor ridiculed in the halls of Con-
gress.
Ny earliest desires and intentions were
that the Government should possess the
control Of such power as I could not but
foresee was inherent in the telegraph
Vast as it's pecuniary value doomed up III
| the minds of some, in the contemplation Of
it's future, was neither dazzled with it
visions of untold wealth, nor tempted tt
make an ex,ortionate demand upon the Co.
vernment for its possession.
| / offered the whole invention to the Co.
vernment for the sum of one hundred hos.
sand dollars. Strange as it may now seem
no response was made to this ofer-no no
| tice was taken of it, except to request from
the Postmaster General report on the
general subject of the telegraph.