Samuel F. B. Morse, His Letters and Journals: In Two Volumes, Volume IIMorse, Samuel Finley Breese
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Samuel F. B. Morse, His Letters and Journals: In Two Volumes, Volume II
Morse, Samuel Finley Breese
Morse, Samuel Finley Breese, 1791-1872; Telegraph
"My warm-hearted, generous friend, Sir William O'Shaughnessy, was on
board, and, being a surgeon, he at once took it in hand and dressed it,
tell Susan, in good hydropathic style with cold water. I felt so little
inconvenience from it at the time that I assisted throughout the day in
laying the cable, and operating through it after it was joined, and had
the satisfaction of witnessing the successful result of passing the
electricity through twenty-five hundred miles at the rate of one signal
in one and a quarter second. Since then Dr. Whitehouse has succeeded in
telegraphing a message through it at the rate of a single signal in three
quarters of a second. If the cable, therefore, is successfully laid so as
to preserve continuity throughout, there is no doubt of our being able to
telegraph through, and at a good commercial speed.
"I have been on my back for two days and am still confined to the ship.
To-morrow I hope to be well enough to hobble on board the Agamemnon and
assist in some experiments."
The accident to his leg was more serious than he at first imagined, and
conditions were not improved by his using his leg more than was prudent.
"_August 3, eleven o'clock A.M._ I am still confined, most of the time on
my back in my berth, quite to my annoyance in one respect, to wit, that I
am unable to be on board the Agamemnon with Dr. Whitehouse to assist at
the experiments. Yet I have so much to be thankful for that gratitude is
the prevailing feeling.
"_Seven o'clock._ All the ships are under way from the Cove of Cork. The
Leopard left first, then the Agamemnon, then the Susquehanna and the
Niagara last; and at this moment we are off the Head of Kinsale in the
following order: Niagara, Leopard, Agamemnon, Susquehanna. The Cyclops
and another vessel, the Advice, left for Valencia on Saturday evening,
and, with a beautiful night before us, we hope to be there also by noon
to-morrow.
"This day three hundred and sixty-five years ago Columbus sailed on his
first voyage of discovery and discovered America."
"_August 4._ Off the Skelligs light, of which I send you a sketch. A
beautiful morning with head wind and heavy sea, making many seasick. We
are about fifteen miles from our point of destination. Our companion
ships are out of sight astern, except the Susquehanna, which is behind us
only about a mile. In a few hours we hope to reach our expectant friends
in Valencia and to commence the great work in earnest.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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