DISCOURSE OF W. B. TAYLOR: — NOTES. 389 



professed great surprise at the contents of the paper when I showed 

 it to him, but especially at the remarks on Dr. BarloVs results 

 respecting telegraphing, which were new to him, and he stated at 

 the time that he ^^'as not aware that any one had even conceived 

 the idea of using the magnet for such purposes. 



"With sentiments of esteem, I remain, yours truly, 



"h. D. Gale. 

 " Prof. Jos. Henry, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.'^ 



A simple reference to published documents, abundantly estab- 

 lished the indisputable originality and priority of Henry's successful 

 researches; and conclusively exposed the falsity of Professor Morse's 

 remaining allegations. The following summary from the historic 

 evidence, as stated by Henry himself, is certainly (in the language 

 of the committee of the Regents) "within what he might fairly 

 have claimed : " 



"From a careful investigation of the history of electro-magnet- 

 ism in its connection with the telegraph, the following facts may be 

 established : 



"1. Previous to my investigations the means of developing 

 magnetism in soft iron were imperfectly understood, and the electro- 

 magnet which then existed was inapplicable to the transmission of 

 power to a distance. 



" 2. I was the first to prove by actual experiment that in order 

 to develop magnetic power at a distance, a galvanic battery of inten- 

 sity mast be employed to project the current through the long con- 

 ductor, and that a magnet surrounded by many turns of one long 

 wire may be used to receive this current. 



" 3. I was the first actually to magnetize a piece of iron at a 

 distance, and to call attention to the fact of the applicability of my 

 experiments to the telegraph. 



" 4. I was the first to actually sound a bell at a distance by means 

 of the electro-magnet. 



"5. The principles I had developed were applied by Dr. Gale 

 to render INIorse's machine effective at a distance. 



"The results here given were among my earliest experiments; in 

 a scientific point of view I considered them of much less impor- 

 tance than what I subsequently accomplished ; and had I not been 

 called upon to give my testimony in regard to them, I would have 

 suffered them to remain without calling public attention to them, a 

 part of the history of science to be judged of by scientific men who 

 are the best qualified to pronounce upon their merits." * 



* Smithsonian Report for 1857, p. 106. 



