Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-09-30

secured on the sd. which resulted in a sue
eessful passage Of the bill ny a vote Of 50
to So.
While the vote was being taken Prof.
Morse sat in the gallery, his frame trem-
bling from intense anxiety and excitement
The only record now to be found of this
latter proceeding in the Congressional
Globe which professed to give verbatim
reports Of the sessions OF Congress. is the
1888
Electro and Animal Magnetism.
ION motion Of Mr.. Kennedy Of Mary
land the committee took up the bill to
authorize a series OF experiments to be
made In order to test the merits of Morse's
| electromagnetic telegraph. The bill ep-
propriates $4,000, to be expended under the
direction Of the Postmaster General.
ION motion of Mr.. Kennedy the words
Postmaster General were stricken out ana
Secretary of the Treasury inserted.
Mr.. Cave johnson wished to have q
word to say on the bill AS the present
had done much to encourage science he
Cid not wish to see the science of mesmer-
ism neglected and overlooked. He there
fore proposed that one-half of the appro-
priation be given to Mr.. Fisk to enable him
Morse.
MIR. Houston thought that Millerism
| should be also included in the benefits OF
the appropriation.
MIR. Stanley said he should have no OBJ
JeSuou W tHe appropriation Tor meSmeriC
| experiments. provided the gentleman from
Tennessee Mr Cave Johnson) was the sub
ject "a laugh.)
MIR. Cave johnson said he should have
no objection provided the gentleman from
North Carolina (Mr. Stanley was the oper-
ator. Great laughte-)
Several gentlemen called for the reading
of the amendment, and il was read nv the
clerk, as follows:
Provided that one-half of the said sum
shall be appropriated for trying mesme-ic
experiments, under the direction Of the
Secretary of the Treasury
Mr.. 5. Mason rose to a point of order
He held that the amendment was not bona
fde, and that such amendments were cal
culated to injure the character of the
House. He appealed to the chair to rule
the amendment out of order.
THE chairman said ii was not for him to
judge of the motive of members in Offering
amendments. and he could not therefore un-
dertake to pronounce the amendment not
bona fide. Objections might be raised to 1t
on the grounds that ii was not sufficiently
analogous in character to the bill, under
consideration, but in the opinion of the
chair it would require scientific analysis
to determine how far the magnetism of
| mesmerism was analogous to that to be
employed in telegraph. uaughter.) He
| therefore ruled the amendment in order.
ION taking The vote the amendment was
| rejected. Yeas, %; nays not counted.
The bill was then laid aside. to be re-
ported"
On FEBRUARY rs, 1913, tne 1olloWing ap-
peared in the Globe: ION motion of Mr.. J.
p. Kennedy the bill making appropriation
| to test the value Of Morses magnetic tele-
| graph was taken up, and under the opera
ton of the previous question passed. Yeas.
| 81; nays. 3d.
Tried to Defeat the Bill.
Several members Of the House who had
! opposed the bill united in a determined
effort to defeat its passage in the Senate.
The amount of business before that body
was exceedingly large. and as the session
rapidly drew to close the chances of its
being acted on were rendered more and
more doubtful. On the last day Of the ses-
| sion, March 3, 1S43, a ruling was adopted
that each bill should be acted on in it's turn
| as shown in the calendar. At o'clock in
| the evening Mr.. Morse, who Rad sat
| throughout the entire day in the gallery.
left the building, dispirited, and well nigh
| broken hearted, feeling assured that there
was not the slightest chance of his bill be-
| ing passed that session. The Senate Ie-
manned in session until midnight, and just
before that hour the telegraph bill was
reached and passed. President Tyler was
on the floor, and attached his signature to
the bill. before the midnight hour.
| AS Prof. Morse came down to breakfast
| the next morning he was met by Miss An
ME G. Ellsworth. daughter of the then
commissioner of patents, who was the first
| to inform him of the realization of his
fondest hope. The professor was overcome
pected and to the young lady who had
borne the glad tidings he gave the prom
Use that she should indite the first message
sent over the line.
Prof. Morse then went about perfecting
| his arrangements for constructing a line
| between Washington and Baltimore, select
| ing these two cities for the reason that he
desired to be as near as possible to the seat