Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-02-25
HENRY PORTRAIT IN
NATIONAL GALLERY
Picture of Smithsonian's First
Secretary Moved From
Capitol.
HIS WORK IMPORTANT

A portrait of Joseph Henry. first to
be elected secretary of the Smithsonian
Institution, has just been transferred
by a Senate resolution from the Cap
itol to the Smithsonian Institution.
where it has been hung in the National
Gallery of Art, in the new building OF
the National Museum. This painting.
which is by Henry like. has been for
some time in the office of the sergeant
alarms of the Senate, but has now
been deposited in the institution which
Henry practically organized in 1S46 and
administered for thu next thirty-two
years.
At a session of the board of regents of
the Smithsonian Institution. held in the
Vice Presidents room at the Cap1toi on
December g. 1916. Joseph Henry of Prince
ton was elected secretary of the insti-
tuition. Among his first duties was the
was Immediately adopted by the board.
1t was so broad in it's conception and so
wise in its provisions that it has suffered
but few changes to this day.
Owes Lasting Debt.
To Prof Henry 0799-1s7S) the world
of science and industry owes lasting
debt. says bulletin from the Smithsonian
Institution, for il was he. who. in great
measure, made possible many of the
achievements of modern electrical en-
cheering 1t has been said that Henry.
as one of the greatest physical expert
did more toward the develop
ment of the science Of electricity than
any American since Franklin.
In the words of DR.. Samual Pierpont
Langley, later secretary OF the Smith
sonian Institution himself:
at was not given to Henry to play in
public the part enacted by Franklin. but
in the first great crisis of the republic,
Henry, the scientific man, was counselor OF
that other great American, Abraham
Lincoln. in every scientific aspect of the
conduct of the war or the conduct of at
fairs; and out of the needs of scientific
work on behalf of the government, which
that crisis disclosed. and guided largely
by the suggestion of Henry. many of our
most useful and most important estab
lishments have arisen.
Developed Electro-Magnet.
Henry developed the electro-magnet,
Grated it by a current transmitted from
a battery through a considerable length
of wire. In 1881 he sent current
through a mile of copper wire and pro-
duced an audible signal at the other
end, thereby demonstrating for the
first time the principle of the tele-
graph. He was also the inventor of
the principle of the Geographic relay.
which today permits the sending of
to great distances, and it was
he who first used the earth as re-
turn circuit for his one-wire signals.
His experiments with alternating mag
Of and rantIlSinn nrn1Era1
the first magnetic engine, or oscillator.
which was the forerunner of our mod
ern motors. Henry patented none Of
his inventions, however, but gave them
to the world. for. as Dickerson put it.
Pure science was his beloved. and
he could not make merchandise of her"
Science later honored him by bestowing
his name-"Henry'-on the standard
electrical unit of induction.
Meteorological Observations.
While secretary of the institution
Henry inaueurated the system of daily
observations out of
which grew the United States weather
bureau, the daily weather forecasts of
which you read every day. During 1s4S-
40 he established a system of meteoro-
logical observations. instruments were
throughout the country and
within year about 400 volunteer OBJ
servers were reporting to the instftu-
ton. Henry also applied the electric
telegraph as a ready means of trans
hitting daily weather reports, a method
which was continued by the institution
until the beginning Of the civil war.
On a large map in the Smithsonian
building the daily reports from many
quarters of the country were indicated
by suitable symbols.
During his active service on the
lighthouse board from 1852 to 1877. and
as it's head from 1871, Henry improved
the existing methods for operations
and signaling. He was also much in
terested in terrestrial magnetism and
acoustics.
Other Henry Relics.
The painting of Mr.. Henry is, of
course. not the only monument and
relic here pertaining to this celebrated
physicist and early secretary of the in
stitution. In the collections of the Ma
tional Museum there are his original
electro magnetic apparatus used in
1881. the electric battery used in 1892
to operate his signals. some other ap-
paratus used in 1929 to 1912 in inves-
tigating the laws of magnetism and q
number of other personal relics.
The National Museum is also in DOS