Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1872-02-03
The Telegraph controversy.

recent editorial in The STAR in regard to
the question TO whom is due the credit of giving
the magnetic telegraph to mankind has drawn
forth several communications, some Of which
have appeared in THE STAR, and we are also in
receipt Of a mass OF documentary evidence in
the matter.
The facts developed by an examination of
this testimony are to the following effect: Some
discoveries rendering the electro magnetic tele
graph possible were made by Oersted of Copen-
hagen, in the year 1919; others were made by
AIagO ard Davy and Ampere in 1920, and by
Sturgeon in 1s25. but none of them reached the
point OF discovering means of making the wire
practically serviceabe over any considerable
distance. The difficulty was deemed insuper-
able, and Nr. Barlow, of the Royal Military
Academy, OF WOolwich, England, in his in
yCstigations published in 1925, declared ad.
vtTsely upon the possibility of a telegraph.
Nothirg feasible in the way of discovery was
made for two or three years after thosgh ii seems
to be established that Harrison Gray Dyar, an
American, put a short working line of telegraph
III opera on Long Island in 1877 or 1S2s. He
used common electricity, and not electro mag
netism, ami but one wire, which operated with
a spark that left red marks upon paper
chemically prepared. The device of working it
by an alphabet by spaces of time between sparks
was very nearly in principle that used by Prof.
Morse; and it is noted as a rather curious CO.
incidence that Morse was the brother-in-law of
Charles Walker, who was the legal counsel of
Dyar at the time of Dyar's experiments on the
electric telegraph. bysr asserts that Morse
who was not a man of any scientific attainments
got his ideas of operating wire telegraph from
his (MOrse's) brother-in-law, the latter having
derived them from him while acting as his
counsel years before. However, this question
only affects the validity of Morse's claim to the
invention of the mode of working the telegraph
The great difficulty in the way of operating the
wire at any distance had not been met until
Prof. Henry, in 1S2s, made discovery of the fact
that galyanic current could be transmitted
TO a great distance with so small a dminution of
force as TO produce mechanical effects adeauate
to the desired object, by means of a galyapic in
tensity battery. Prot. Morse subsequently
availGd himself of this discovery by Prof Henry
10 make telegraphy PraeticabIe-and profitable
to himself. Professor Henry, who took out no
Patent Tor his discovery, seems in this as in
his other valuable scientific labors to have
sought for no other reward than 1.-THE conscious
ness of advancing science, the pleasure of dis
covering new truths. and the scientific reputa
ton 10 which these labors would entitle him"
Up to 1>fs Morse seems TO have fully con-
coded that he was indebted to the discovery
ct Prof. Henry TO enable him to make
the magnetic telegraph successful. At that
time Morse got into litigation with other par
ties over his claim TO the. monopoly OF teIe-
graphic rights, and he appears to have deemed
II necessary TO his interests to depreciate the
Importance of the discoveries of Henry. The
concurrent testimony, however, of leading tele-
graphic authorities, and of the very men who
were associated with Morse in telegraphic
patents, go to show that he merely availed him
self OF Henry's discoveries, and applied them to
his machine. 1t does not appear that Morse
lever made single original discovery in cleo
tricity, magnetism, or electro magnetism appli-
cable to the invention of the telegraph"
Under the circumstances il is not difficult 10
decide TO whom should be awarded the chief
honor Of giving the magnetic telegraph to the
world.