'I have not asserted publicly my right as first and sole
inventor,' he says, 'because I wished to preserve the peaceful unity of
the invention, and because I could not, according to my contract with
Professor Morse, have got a patent for it.'
The powers of the telegraph having been demonstrated, enthusiasm took
the place of apathy, and Morse, who had been neglected before, was in
some danger of being over-praised. A political incident spread the fame
of the telegraph far and wide. The Democratic Convention, sitting in
Baltimore, nominated Mr. James K. Polk as candidate for the Presidency,
and Mr. Silas Wright for the Vice-Presidency. Alfred Vail telegraphed
the news to Morse in Washington, and he at once told Mr. Wright. The
result was that a few minutes later the Convention was dumbfounded to
receive a message from Wright declining to be nominated. They would not
believe it, and appointed a committee to inquire into the matter; but
the telegram was found to be genuine.
On April 1, 1845, the Baltimore to Washington line was formally
opened for public business. The tariff adopted by the Postmaster-General
was one cent for every four characters, and the receipts of the first
four days were a single cent. At the end of a week they had risen to
about a dollar.
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