Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1879-11-28
before many years You will have the
price Of telegraph stock put Oh that
board Of course, as was perfectly

natural, the Professors friend looked
at him with amazement. The devils
ing of his telegraphic machinery 50
fully absorbed his mind that the neigh
borhood in which he lived, good,
straightforward people, could hardly
understand him. a son mentions the
fact that. as he was playing as child
lin a public square, some compassion
ate friend of the family, looking at
him, said: "Poor child, it would be
q hundred times better if your father
would pay more attention to you, in
stead Of working over his old wires,
which never can come to anything
When Morse was taking daguerro-
types on top of the building at the
corner of Nassau and Beekman streets,
Samuel Colt. the inventor of the re-
Volver, was friend of the electrician.
Colt had his mind full Of a torpedo for
the defense of the coast, which was to
be exploded by an electric circuit. As
Morse had the wires and battery, the
dabbler in torpedoes found the neees-
sary machinery ready at hand. On
one occasion, when Morse was absent,
an experiment was to be tried on the
roof of the house, with slight charge
of powder, which was to be confined
under drum Of figs. The gentleman
who tells this story wss then mere
lad, light of weight and was exactly
the convenient resisting medium which
Colt wanted. 1t was agreed that the
boy should stand on the box while the
powder was fired. just as all prepa-
rations were completed, and the lad
stood on the box, Professor Morse ap-
peared, who took in the situation at a
glance. Stop" he cried, "Colt, bid
that boy get down. If you want to
try the experiment, jump up in his
place" There is not the eighth of
pound Of powder there said Colt,
''but I am agreed l will get up in
the boys place Professor, do you
touch the key Touch the key Morse
did. An explosion followed, and it
was all Colt could do, who was man
of large build, to prevent himself be.
Ing hurled over into the street below.
IF the boy had stood there he would
have been certainly lifted into the air
1t was evident that then Professor
Morse knew that explosions were in
tensifed in accordance with the means
employed to fire peculiar substances,
and must have had an inkling of the
effects of what is now called the vi
bratory influence of detonating sub
stances. "Once," says an informant,
Gin Professor Morse's later life, be
wanted package of papers, which,
he told me, were on his table. | se-
cured volulninous bundle of docu.
ments, and having brought them
down, presented them 20 the Profess
sor. you have made mistake;
these are not the papers l wanted
Still though they are of no moment
now. at one time they caused me
certain amount Of disturbance. They
the vouchers paid by me for
lawyers. costs. and expenses in de-
Tending my telegraph. | once took
the trouble to add up the figures. |
can't give it exactly now, but the ag-
gregate ought to foot up something
very close on to $500,o0t' Prof.
Morse's charities were endless All
the impecunious Of the United States
made him their milch COW. He gave,
if not wisely, at least well, and mast
have, during the last twenty years cf
his life, dispensed a fortune in small
sums.