Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1872-04-12

president of this association, and oc
cupied the position for sixteen years.
In 1920 he returned to Europe and re-
mained there for three years. His return
to America in 1892 must be forever mem
orable, for in that year, while returning
from Havre in the packet ship Sully, he
first laid the foundation for his great in
vention. While in college, his attention
had been carefully directed to chemistry
and other branches Of natural philosophy.
On board the Sully discussion of recent
discoveries in electromagnetic took
place, and in the course of It an observa.
tisn was made which planted in the mind
of Morse the seeds of his great invention.
Before he left the ship he had mapped out
the rough plan of telegraphic system,
including even a writing telegraph. His
original idea was to pass strip of paper
saturated with a chemical preparation
which would be decomposed when
brought in connection with the wire along
which the electric current was passing,
and thus form an alphabet by marks
varying in width and number. With this
idea in his brain he steadily followed his
profession after his return to New York,
devoting his leisure to his scientific pro
iect. In 1885 he completed his first appar-
atus, an extremely rude one, as may be
supposed, sufficient to enable him to com
municate with a person half mile dis
tant, but not capable Of receiving an an
swer back from the opposite extremity.
In 1886 this instrument was shown in
successful operation. This was in its
rudest and elementary form the we'll
known Morse instrument, in which the
paper was indented by a needle. Legis-
iators, it is unnecessary to say, do not
look with much favor on inventors, and
Morse found his proposition for aid, sub
mitted in 1S37-38 to Congress, received
very coolly. He then went TO England
and was there refused patent. In France
he obtained 6reuet d5nUentiOH. On his
return to America he was indefatigable in
trying to persuade Congress to enable him
| to practically test his invention. AT last,
when all hope was abandoned, it allotted
him $4,000 on March 4, 1S43. In 1874 he
had constructed the line between Wash
| ington and Baltimore, and sent over its
wires the first message, "What had God
wrought" Within 16 years nearly 40, 900
miles were in full working order. Curl
ously enough, in 1887 two other inventors
| had discovered a system of telegraphy-
| Wheatstone, in England, inventing the
Interchangeable instrument, and Steur
bell, in Bavaria, constructing a recording
telegraph, which, however, was of too
complex character to come into general
use. Honors poured in on Morse. Yale
honored her academic roll by enrolling
him among her Doctors of Law. The
Sultan of Turkey sent him a diamond dec
oration. The King of Prussia gave him
a gold medal of merit, set in massive
snuff-box. The rulers OF Wurtemburg
and Austria were not behindhand. By
France he was made Chevalier of the
Legion of Honor, and by Denmark q
Knight of the Dannebrog In 1858, 1sa-
bella, the Catholic, sent him the cross of
the Knights Commander of the order
which bears her name.
In 1857, the representatives of ten coun-
tries which had been benefited by his Ia
Dor, assembled in Paris and voted him a
grant of 400, 900 francs. In London and
Paris grand dinners were given to him.
The first submarine cables were laid by
Morse across New York harbor in 1S42,
an achievement which was rewarded by
the American Institute with its gold
medal In 1s43, Mr.. Morse first broached
the project of the Atlantic telegraph. His
claim to his share in the invention of the
telegraph has been bitterly contested in
and out of the public courts. His merit
appears to rest not on the discovery OF the
principles of the telegraph, but on the
adaptation of already ascertained princi
pies to the work he undertook to perform
The latest events in the public life of Mr.
Morse were his recent appearance at tb'
Inauguration of Franklin's statue in Print
ing House Square, and some time pre-
viously his presence at the unveiling o
his own statue in Central Park, and
the grand demonstration which took plac'
in the evening, at the Academy of Music
when congratulations were sent to tn
'father of the telegraph" from the tele
graphic fraternity dittused throughout tn
world Chicago Times, April 3.