Wichita eagle., 1888-02-22
WHEN TELEGRApHY WAS YOUNG.
First Results of Professor Morse's Dis.
coyery-A Weeks Earnings in ISt5.

when I went west from Washington
that SPRING said Mr.. John w. Kirk, an
old friend of Professor Morse, IL took
along with me samples of the indented
strips Of paper as they came frsm the re-
ceivin4 instrument. An enthusiast, L
talked Of telegraphy To everybody | met
In Columbus, Cincinnati, indianapolis
and other western centers | met college
professors business men and other people
ranked high for intellect, knowledge and
common sense, and all, or nearly all, were
pronounced skeptiCs a. To the practicable
ity of MorseS idea And am putting IL
Il little mild, think. in saying that the
impression wasnt long in getting abroad
that was "a little off," | meant well,
but | didn't know. The last | remember
of some OF my friends out there they were
still plying me.
II was in Indiana in the autumn after
congress had made thirty thousand dol
lar appropriation To Morse for his expert
mental line. The congressman of that
district was up for reelection. Poor, de-
luded man, he had unfortunately voted
for that appropriation. He lad been for
years the political pride Of the district.
The people out there would give him any
thing he'd take if they had the giving Of
1t. OF course he didn't doujt that he
would be reelected AS II by acclamation;
but before election day he saw things diff
ierently 4 yonng man whom nobody
had ever heard much of before got an OPP
position nomination and went stumping
all over the district, and before long the
fight became very warm. Il have not one
word TO say against my opponent so the
young man always began his speech.
Hes gentleman; his character cannot
be impeached he is honest. reasonable,
well informed, good neighbor, and n real
nice man But, gentlemen, while he was
in congress ne voted your money away
upon claptrap things like this, and the
nominee, producing "a congressional docu-
inent, proceeded 10 read the text OF tho
bill which appropriated $50, 600 for
Morse's experiments. Thirty thousand
dollars he would exclaim. Thirty thou
sand OF your bard-esrned dollars, gentle
men. For what Why To settle-listen
10 the bill, gentlemen--to settle the prac-
ticability of sending messages by cleo
tricity over wires stretching long dis
tances. What do you think of II. gentle
mem Yes, my opponent Is n good man:
he means well; but really, has his resi-
dence in Washington helped him any IL
he had stayed here at home with US,
would he ever have voted our money away
for such crazy purpose' still, IL you
think 10 right To vote for n man who can
be fooled in this way, gentlemen, all right,
but
The old man was defeated
Mr.. Kirk told this further incident that
from an irresponsible source would sound
much like romance: Just after the first
telegraph Office was opened tn Washing
ton, occupying little room over the city
pOstofflce, member Of the cabinet en-
tered one day in n hurry, and handing in
bulky document directed the operator
10 Telegraph IL over % Baltimore right
away" II was closed with a great seal,
which the operator proceeded 70 break,
much to the astonishTnent of the state--
man, who, Directing, declared that the
paper contained state secret, and Of
cial eye.
But I can't telegraph IL without read
IT," insisted the operator.
"Weu, then, you can't send Il at ell -
and the high official left, excited and
threatening He believed he was being
trified with His idea was that the tele-
graph WIS a sort OF aerial express for the
whiskiny 81 packages through air-prob-
ably ~ hitching them on 70 the wire by
good tough piece n Irvine.
Here IL entertainment IN trznscTip. Of
the earnings 81 tina, original Washington
telegraph Office for the FIRST week-in
April, i545-that IT was open for regular
business: