Imagine his surprise, therefore, next morning, when a young woman, Miss Annie G. Ellsworth, congratulated him at breakfast on the passage of his bill. At first he could scarcely believe the good news, but when he found that Miss Ellsworth 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 chamber 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, as dictated by Miss Ellsworth, "What hath God wrought!" The telegraph was a great and brilliant achievement, and brought to its inventor well-earned fame. Morse married a second time and lived in a beautiful home on the Hudson, where, with instruments on his table, he could easily communicate with distant friends. Simple and modest in his manner of life, he was a true-hearted, kindly Christian man. He was fond of flowers and of animals. The most remarkable of his pets was a tame flying-squirrel that would sit on his master's shoulders, eat out of his hand, and go to sleep in his pocket. [Illustration: Telegraph and Railroad.] In his prosperity, honors were showered upon him by many countries. At the suggestion of the French Emperor, representatives from many countries of Europe met at Paris to determine upon some suitable testimonial to Morse as a world benefactor. These delegates voted him $80,000 as an expression of appreciation for his great invention. Before his death, also, a statue to his memory was erected in Central Park, New York. In 1872 this noble inventor, at the ripe age of eighty-one, breathed his last. The sincere expression of grief from all over the country gave evidence of the place he held in the hearts of the people. REVIEW OUTLINE THE ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH. THE YOUNG ARTIST AND HIS TEACHER. MORSE GOES TO YALE COLLEGE. HIS SUCCESS IN DRAWING. WITH THE PAINTER WEST IN LONDON. MORSE'S INTEREST IN INVENTION. TWELVE YEARS OF BITTER STRUGGLE. THE STORY OF MORSE AND YOUNG STROTHERS. MORSE'S SCHEME DEBATED IN CONGRESS. SUCCESS AT LAST. TO THE PUPIL 1. What was the new problem? 2. Tell the story of Morse and the painter, Mr. West. 3. How was the idea of the telegraph suggested to Morse? 4. Give an account of Morse's trials and sufferings. 5. What honors were showered upon him? 6. Describe Morse. What do you admire in his character? CHAPTER XXIV Abraham Lincoln the Liberator of the Slaves [1809-1865] [Illustration: Abraham Lincoln.]