Imagine his surprise the next morning, when a young woman, Miss Ellsworth, congratulated him at breakfast upon the passage of his bill. At first he could scarcely believe the good news, but when he found that she was telling him the truth his joy was unbounded, and he promised her that she should choose the first message.
By the next year (1844) a telegraph-line, extending from Baltimore to Washington, was ready for use. On the day appointed for trial Morse met a party of friends in the chambers of the Supreme Court at the Washington end of the line and, sitting at the instrument which he had himself placed for trial, the happy inventor sent the message selected by Miss Ellsworth: “What hath God wrought!”
The telegraph was a great and brilliant achievement, and brought to its inventor well-earned fame. Now that success had come, honors were showered upon him by many countries. At the suggestion of the French Emperor, representatives from many countries in Europe met in Paris to decide upon some suitable testimonial to Morse as one who had done so much for the world. These delegates voted him a sum amounting to eighty thousand dollars as a token of appreciation for his great invention.
In 1872 this noble inventor, at the ripe age of eighty-one, breathed his last. The grief of the people all over the land was strong proof of the place he held in the hearts of his countrymen.
Some Things to Think About
- Tell all you can about John Fitch’s steamboats.
- Give examples which indicate young Fulton’s inventive gifts. Imagine yourself on the banks of the North River on the day set for the trial of the Clermont, and tell what happened.
- What and where was the National Road?
- In what ways was the Erie Canal useful to the people?
- Describe the first railroads and the first trains.
- Tell what you can about Morse’s twelve toilsome years of struggle while he was working out his great invention. How is the telegraph useful to men?
- What do you admire about Morse?
- Are you making frequent use of your map?
CHAPTER XIV