The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1900-09-16
ARP'S EXAMINATIONS
Deaths of Friends Makes the
Philosopher Sad.
Three Died on the Same Day. Colonel
and Mynapp Moore and Dr. Goe-
tchius. All Good Friends
of His.

Of His.
How like butterfly our thoughts
fit from flower to flower feeding upon
the ever-changing mental foods. some
times they soar to heaven or nestle
among the stars, but their home is
here among our people, our friends
and kindred and the concerns OF our
daily life. Who has not wondered
how he came to be thinking of this
thing or that and traced it back to
something wholly irrelevant, but
leading on by shadowy lines. But
little while ago L was sadly thinking
about the sudden death of three more
of nv good friends-friends whom [
loved and everybody loved who know
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 jour
ney and destination was so suddenly
changed, for he had bought his ticket
for Tallulah Falls. there to spend his
vacation. and was to take the train
at 3 O'Clock. He rose from his bed
al
spirit soaring heavenward. Then |
thought about Mrs. Barbauld's lines
| that fit so well:
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
brighter cline
| Bid me good morning.
Then l ruminated about that won
| derful woman. How she was the first
| to write story books for the children
and hymns for the church and how
| her life was spent in the schOolroom
among the children that she loved.
And then | recalled that beautiful
| hymn that she wrote:
How blest the righteous when he
| dies,
When sinks the weary soul to rest,
! How mildly beam the closing eyes,
How gently heaves the expiring
breast
And then | thought of the words
! Of Balaam, upon which the hymn was
| founded. oh! may | die thedeath of
| the righteous and may my last end
! be like His" And this reminded me
| of those other words of BALKAN:
What hath God wrought" That was
| the first message sent over a tele-
| graph wire. 1t was sent from Wash
| ingtOn to Baltimore by Miss Anna
! Ellsworth, the daughter of the com
missioner OF patents. She had been
very kind to Professor Morse and he
! had promised that she should send
/ the first message. This was sent on
/ the oath of May, 1914, and two days
later the second message was sent
from Baltimore to Washington, an
nouncing that James X. Polk had
been nominated for president | re-
member all this, for ] was in college
then. But still the people were in
| credulous and waited for the mail
| train to bring the news. Then | rumi-
mated on the hard lot of great inven-
tors. and how Morse spent all of his
| small estate and received but little
| encouragement, being so utterly poor
that he had to go 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 a line to
BaltimOre-and how at the very last,
| when he was in despair and had
given up all hope, Congress did at mid
night, ON the last day of the session,
pass the bill for $4,000 and Anna
! Ellsworth came running to him in de-
lighted haste and told him the good
news. What an agOnizing life he had
| led all during these three years, for
he had been refused help at home and
had been to England and to France
IN search of it and found it not. Now
| Just think of it. After he had built
his first line and his success was es-
! tabllshed he offered his patents 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 hundred
| millions. But, he died full of wears
and full of hOnOrs, and even France
| made him a donation of 1905 900 francs.
| what a wonderful man-perhapS the
greatest all around man that ever
| llVed-for he was a painter of distinc-
ton and renown, the pupil and the
peer of Aston and West, and the city
of Charleston was his best friend and
l
Monroe and Lafayette. He was a
sculptor, an architect, philosopher
and a poet, and would have reached
the top in all had he not become so
absorbed in Harvesting the lightning.
| AS matter of course he was kept in
litigation several years and other par
ties tried to steal his invention. but
the Supreme court of the United
States did finally affirm everything
that he claimed. He died in 1872 in
his eighty-tirst year.
Here my thoughts rested for a
| while and then returned to Dr.
Goetchius and the many otherfgriends
who have gone before and have left
me almost alone. How fondly our
minds cling to the friends Of our
youth-our schoolmates and college
mates-and every now and then we
hear of another who has dropped ouI
OF line, and like the barber in bar
Der shop, old Father Time whispers
next. My dear old friend Jim War
rem still lives to greet me when
come, and SO does Chess Howard and
DIR. Alexander and his brother and
! Evan Howell Then | recalled the