The county record. [volume] (Kingstree, S.C.) 1885-1975, 1900-09-13
Death of Friends Makes the Phllos,
Opher Sad.
fHREE DIED ON The SAME DAY
CoIoneIs Moore and nynatt and Dr.
Goetchius-They Were All Oood
Friends of His.

among our people, Our friends anu
kindred and the concerns Of our daily
life Who has not wondered how he
came to be thinking Of tn ) thing or
that and traced it back to something
wholly irrelevant, but leading ou by
shadowy lines. But little while ago
was sadly thinking about the sudden
death of three more of my good friends
friends whom loved and everybody
loved who knew them Mr.. Moore, OF
Auburn; Colonel Mynatt, OF Atlanta,
and DR.. Goetchius, Of Rome, LEFT us on
the same day. They were good men
and the world was made better by their
presence.
was thinking especially about DR..
Goetchius, the preacher, whose journey
and destination was so suddenly chang
ed. for he had bought his ticket for Tai
lulah Falls, there to spend his vacation,
and was to take the train at 3 o'clock
He rose from his bed at 2 and at he
was dead and his spirit soaring heav-
onward. Then 1 thought about Mrs
Barbauld's lines that fit so we'll:
Life, we have been long together
In pleasant and in cloudy weather,
'Tis hard to part when friends are dear,
Perhaps twill cost a sigh or tear.
Then steal away-give little warning;
Choose thine own time,
Say not goodnight, but in some bright
er cline
Bid me good morning"
Then | ruminated about that Won
derful woman How she was the first to
write story books for the children and
hymns for the chruch and how her life
was spent in the schoolroom among
the children that she loved. And
then l recalled that beautiful hymn
that she wrote:
How bleast the righteous when he
dies,
When sinks the weary soul to rest,
How mildly beam the closing eyes,
How gently heaves the epirins
breast"
And then | thought Of the words OF
Balaam, upon which that hymn was
founded. "Oh, may / die the death Oh
the righteous and may my last end be
like His" And this reminded me OF
those other words of Balaam: What
hath God wrought" That was tn?
first message sent over a te.egraps
wire. 1t was sent from Washington tc
Baltimore by Miss Anna Ellsworth, the
daughter of the commissioner of pat
ents. She had been very kind to Pro-
fessor Morse and he had promised that
she should send the first message.
This was sent on the oath day OF May.
1874. and two days later the second
message was sent from Baltimore tc
Washington, announcing that James H.
Polk had been nominated fer presi-
dent. remember all this. for was in
college then. But still the people Were
incredulous and waited for the mall
train to bring the news. Then
ruminated on the hard lot Of great in
yentors. and how Morse spent all ol
his small estate and received but little
announcement. being. so utterly poor
that he had to 60 without food at times
for twenty-four hours, and how he
pleaded with congress for three years
in vain for an appropriation to help
him perfect and build line to Balt,'
more-and how at the very last. wien
he was in despair and had given up al
hone. congress did at midnight, on the
last day of the eesSion. pass the bill fol
$40 600, and Anna Ellsworth came
running to him in delighted haste and
told him the good news. What an ago.
nizing life he had led during all these
wears. for he had been refused hsiE
at home and had been to England a2d
TO France in search Of il and found II
not. Now just think Of it, After he had
built his first lines and his success was
established he offered his patient to the
United States for 100000 and it was
refused and he was constrained to sell
TO private parties. an invention that
soon came to be worth one hundre
millions. But he died full of years
and full of honors. and even France
made him a donation CT 400, ,OoO franc.
What a wonderful man-perhaps thE
greatest al around man that ever hveC
for he was a painter of distin2tio'
and renown, the pupil and the pee: CT
Ailston and West and the city oil
Charleston was his best friend and pa
tron and has now his portraits CT Moa-
roe and Lafayette. He was s,uiptor'
an architect. & philosopher and a po |:
and would have reached the top in al
had he not become 30 absorbed II
harnessing the lightning. AS a matter
of course he was kept in litigation Ssv'
eral years and other parties tried tc
steal his invention. but the Suprf me
curt OF the United States did finally
affirm everything that he claimed. DE