Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1894-06-14


in the Senate chamber until the last,
and just five minutes before the n i'd
night hour-the time of adjournment
he saw the opportunity and pro-
cured the help Of Senator at whose
side he was sitting. This Senator
moved the passage of the bill for hui
manitys sake, for the nations sake,
and it was passed.
Professor Morse said to Miss Ellis
worth: You shall have the privi-
lege OF sending The first message over
the first line when it is constructed. !"
He Immediately went to work to
carry out his plans, which required
more than year to complete. He
put advertisements in the leading
newspapers of New York, Baltimore
and Washington for bids to furnish
100 tons Of lead pipe and four insu-
lated wires. The~ bids were let and;
the materials were supplied, and the
lead pipe, with two wires, was laid
eighteen inches under the ground
from Mount Glare depot in Ralti-
more to the Relay House, a distance
Of nine miles. When the test was
made it was found that the electric
current would not pass from one end
of the line to the other. There was
a leakage somewhere which could not
be found, and Professor Morse was
forced to abandon that plan. He
then adopted that of elevating the
wires on poles, and completed the
two wires from baltimore to Wash
ington by May "a, 1914.
Professor Morse had an Office in
the Supreme Court rooms in the Cap
itol On the eventful morning the
connection was completed, and after
testing the current of electricity was
found to be perfect and strong.
Morse and then Miss Ellsworth were
at the instrument in the office at the
Capitol. Alfred Vail was at the Mount
Clare depot in Baltimore. And now
Professor Morse called upon Miss Ellis
worth to send the first message, which
had been suggested to her by her
mother: "What God hath wrought
"a genuine inspiration. This was
flashed across the wire from Wash
ington to Baltimore and the first mes
sage had been sent.
How the Earth's Help Was Discovered.
AS first put into operation the tel
egraph employed two wires to form
the circuit, Professor Morse not know
ing that the earth would compete
the circuit Amos Kendall, then
Postmaster General, is authority for,
the story telling how Morse discov-
cred that the earth was conductor
of electric ty. After about ten days
working countryman came into the
office in the Capitol to tell Professor
Morse that one of his wires was down
out at Bladensburg. Morse said he
guessed not-the wires were working
all right" and paid no atten tion to
the information. The next day an
other man came in and said that if
Professor Morse did not look out wag
ons would catch in his wires and tear
them all to pieces; that both wires
were down at Bladensburg.
Morse wanted to dispute the mans
statement even then, but finally de-
termined to go out and see for him
self. He found that more than 100
yards of wire had been torn out by
passing wagons, and the ends were
grounded. Then for the first time it
dawned upon him how the earth
might be of assistance in telegraphy.
He connected the ends, returned to
the city and ran the two wires to the
ground, not knowing that one would
be sufficient. Then he had two wires
to Baltimore and could operate one
or both. Professor Morse ordered
additional instruments and put the
second wire into service.