Samuel F. B. Morse, His Letters and Journals: In Two Volumes, Volume IIMorse, Samuel Finley Breese
History
Samuel F. B. Morse, His Letters and Journals: In Two Volumes, Volume II
Morse, Samuel Finley Breese
Morse, Samuel Finley Breese, 1791-1872; Telegraph
Others of his fellow-passengers gave testimony to the same effect, and
Captain Pell stated under oath that, when he saw the completed instrument
in 1837, he recognized it as embodying the principles which Morse had
explained to him on the Sully; and he added: "Before the vessel was in
port, Mr. Morse addressed me in these words: 'Well, Captain, should you
hear of the telegraph one of these days as the wonder of the world,
remember the discovery was made on board the good ship Sully.'"
Morse always clung tenaciously to the date of 1832 as that of his
invention, and, I claim, with perfect justice. While it required much
thought and elaboration to bring it to perfection; while he used the
published discoveries of others in order to make it operate over long
distances; while others labored with him in order to produce a practical
working apparatus, and to force its recognition on a skeptical world, the
basic idea on which everything else depended was his; it was original
with him, and he pursued it to a successful issue, himself making certain
new and essential discoveries and inventions. While, as I have said, he
made use of the discoveries of others, these men in turn were dependent
on the earlier investigations of scientists who preceded them, and so the
chain lengthens out.
There will always be a difference of opinion as to the comparative value
of a new discovery and a new invention, and the difference between these
terms should be clearly apprehended. While they are to a certain extent
interchangeable, the word "discovery" in science is usually applied to
the first enunciation of some property of nature till then unrecognized;
"invention," on the other hand, is the application of this property to
the uses of mankind. Sometimes discovery and invention are combined in
the same individual, but often the discoverer is satisfied with the fame
arising from having called attention to something new, and leaves to
others the practical application of his discovery. Scientists will always
claim that a new discovery, which marks an advance in knowledge in their
chosen field, is of paramount importance; while the world at large is
more grateful to the man who, by combining the discoveries of others and
adding the culminating link, confers a tangible blessing upon humanity.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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