Samuel F. B. Morse, His Letters and Journals
by
Samuel F. B. Morse
Part 1 out of 7
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SAMUEL F.B. MORSE
HIS LETTERS AND JOURNALS
IN TWO VOLUMES
VOLUME I
[Illustration: Samuel F.B. Morse]
SAMUEL F.B. MORSE
HIS LETTERS AND JOURNALS
EDITED AND SUPPLEMENTED
BY HIS SON
EDWARD LIND MORSE
ILLUSTRATED
WITH REPRODUCTIONS OF HIS PAINTINGS
AND WITH NOTES AND DIAGRAMS
BEARING ON THE
INVENTION OF THE TELEGRAPH
VOLUME I
1914
TO MY WIFE
WHOSE LOVING INTEREST AND APT CRITICISM
HAVE BEEN TO ME OF GREAT VALUE
I DEDICATE THIS WORK
"It is the hour of fate,
And those who follow me reach every state
Mortals desire, and conquer every foe
Save death. But they who doubt or hesitate--
Condemned to failure, penury and woe--
Seek me in vain and uselessly implore.
I hear them not, and I return no more."
Ingalls, _Opportunity_.
PREFACE
Arthur Christopher Benson, in the introduction to his studies in
biography entitled "The Leaves of the Tree," says:--
"But when it comes to dealing with men who have played upon the whole a
noble part in life, whose vision has been clear and whose heart has been
wide, who have not merely followed their own personal ambitions, but have
really desired to leave the world better and happier than they found
it,--in such cases, indiscriminate praise is not only foolish and
untruthful, it is positively harmful and noxious. What one desires to see
in the lives of others is some sort of transformation, some evidence of
patient struggling with faults, some hint of failings triumphed over,
some gain of generosity and endurance and courage. To slur over the
faults and failings of the great is not only inartistic: it is also
faint-hearted and unjust. It alienates sympathy. It substitutes unreal
adoration for wholesome admiration; it afflicts the reader, conscious of
frailty and struggle, with a sense of hopeless despair in the presence of
anything so supremely high-minded and flawless."
The judgment of a son may, perhaps, be biased in favor of a beloved
father; he may unconsciously "slur over the faults and failings," and lay
emphasis only on the virtues. In selecting and putting together the
letters, diaries, etc., of my father, Samuel F.B. Morse, I have tried to
avoid that fault; my desire has been to present a true portrait of the
man, with both lights and shadows duly emphasized; but I can say with
perfect truth that I have found but little to deplore. He was human, he
had his faults, and he made mistakes. While honestly differing from him
on certain questions, I am yet convinced that, in all his beliefs, he was
absolutely sincere, and the deeper I have delved into his correspondence,
the more I have been impressed by the true nobility and greatness of the
man.
His fame is now secure, but, like all great men, he made enemies who
pursued him with their calumnies even after his death; and others,
perfectly honest and sincere, have questioned his right to be called the
inventor of the telegraph. I have tried to give credit where credit is
due with regard to certain points in the invention, but I have also given
the documentary evidence, which I am confident will prove that he never
claimed more than was his right. For many years after his invention was a
proved success, almost to the day of his death, he was compelled to fight
for his rights; but he was a good fighter, a skilled controversialist,
and he has won out in the end.
He was born and brought up in a deeply religious atmosphere, in a faith
which seems to us of the present day as narrow; but, as will appear from
his correspondence, he was perfectly sincere in his beliefs, and
unfalteringly held himself to be an instrument divinely appointed to
bestow a great blessing upon humanity.
It seems not to be generally known that he was an artist of great
ability, that for more than half his life he devoted himself to painting,
and that he is ranked with the best of our earlier painters.
In my selection of letters to be published I have tried to place much
emphasis on this phase of his career, a most interesting one. I have
found so many letters, diaries, and sketch-books of those earlier years,
never before published, that seemed to me of great human interest, that I
have ventured to let a large number of these documents chronicle the
history of Morse the artist.
Many of the letters here published have already appeared in Mr. S.
Irenaeus Prime's biography of Morse, but others are now printed for the
first time, and I have omitted many which Mr. Prime included. I must
acknowledge my indebtedness to Mr. Prime for the possibility of filling
in certain gaps in the correspondence; and for much interesting material
not now otherwise obtainable.
Before the telegraph had demonstrated its practical utility, its inventor
was subjected to ridicule most galling to a sensitive nature, and after
it was a proved success he was vilified by the enemies he was obliged to
make on account of his own probity, and by the unscrupulous men who tried
to rob him of the fruits of his genius; but in this he was only paying
the penalty of greatness, and, as the perspective of time enables us to
render a more impartial verdict, his character will be found to emerge
triumphant.
His versatility and abounding vitality were astounding. He would have
been an eminent man in his day had he never invented the telegraph; but
it is of absorbing interest, in following his career, to note how he was
forced to give up one ambition after another, to suffer blow after blow
which would have overwhelmed a man of less indomitable perseverance,
until all his great energies were impelled into the one channel which
ultimately led to undying fame.
In every great achievement in the history of progress one man must stand
preeminent, one name must symbolize to future generations the thing
accomplished, whether it be the founding of an empire, the discovery of a
new world, or the invention of a new and useful art; and this one man
must be so endowed by nature as to be capable of carrying to a successful
issue the great enterprise, be it what it may. He must, in short, be a
man of destiny. That he should call to his assistance other men, that he
should legitimately make use of the labors of others, in no wise detracts
from his claims to greatness. It is futile to say that without this one
or that one the enterprise would have been a failure; that without his
officers and his men the general could not have waged a successful
campaign. We must, in every great accomplishment which has influenced the
history of the world, search out the master mind to whom, under Heaven,
the epoch-making result is due, and him must we crown with the laurel
wreath.
Of nothing is this more true than of invention, for I venture to assert
that no great invention has ever sprung Minerva-like from the brain of
one man. It has been the culmination of the discoveries, the researches,
yes, and the failures, of others, until the time was ripe and the
destined man appeared. While due credit and all honor must be given to
the other laborers in the field, the niche in the temple of fame must be
reserved for the one man whose genius has combined all the known elements
and added the connecting link to produce the great result.
As an invention the telegraph was truly epoch-making. It came at a time
when steam navigation on land and water was yet in its infancy, and it is
idle to speculate on the slow progress which this would have made had it
not been for the assistance of the electric spark.
The science of electricity itself was but an academic curiosity, and it
was not until the telegraph had demonstrated that this mysterious force
could be harnessed to the use of man, that other men of genius arose to
extend its usefulness in other directions; and this, in turn, stimulated
invention in many other fields, and the end is not yet.
It has been necessary, in selecting letters, to omit many fully as
interesting as those which have been included; barely to touch on
subjects of research, or of political and religious discussion, which are
worthy of being pursued further, and to omit some subjects entirely. Very
probably another more experienced hand would have made a better
selection, but my aim has been to give, through characteristic letters
and contemporary opinions, an accurate portrait of the man, and a
succinct history of his life and labors. If I have succeeded in throwing
a new light on some points which are still the subject of discussion, if
I have been able to call attention to any facts which until now have been
overlooked or unknown, I shall be satisfied. If I have been compelled to
use very plain language with regard to some of those who were his open or
secret enemies, or who have been posthumously glorified by others, I have
done so with regret.
Such as it is I send the book forth in the hope that it may add to the
knowledge and appreciation of the character of one of the world's great
men, and that it may, perhaps, be an inspiration to others who are
striving, against great odds, to benefit their fellow men, or to those
who are championing the cause of justice and truth.
EDWARD LIND MORSE.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
APRIL 27. 1791--SEPTEMBER 8, 1810
Birth of S.F.B. Morse.--His parents.--Letters of Dr. Belknap and Rev. Mr.
Wells.--Phillips, Andover.--First letter.--Letter from his father.--
Religious letter from Morse to his brothers.--Letters from the mother to
her sons.--Morse enters Yale.--His journey there.--Difficulty in keeping
up with his class.--Letter of warning from his mother.--Letters of
Jedediah Morse to Bishop of London and Lindley Murray.--Morse becomes
more studious.--Bill of expenses.--Longing to travel and interest in
electricity.--Philadelphia and New York.--Graduates from college.--Wishes
to accompany Allston to England, but submits to parents' desires
CHAPTER II
OCTOBER 31, 1810--AUGUST 17, 1811
Enters bookshop as clerk.--Devotes leisure to painting.--Leaves shop.--
Letter to his brothers on appointments at Yale.--Letters from Joseph P.
Rossiter.--Morse's first love affair.--Paints "Landing of the Pilgrims."
--Prepares to sail with Allstons for England.--Letters of introduction
from his father.--Disagreeable stage-ride to New York.--Sails on the
Lydia.--Prosperous voyage.--Liverpool.--Trip to London.--Observations on
people and customs.--Frequently cheated.--Critical time in England.--Dr.
Lettsom.--Sheridan's verse.--Longing for a telegraph.--A ghost
CHAPTER III
AUGUST 24, 1811--DECEMBER 1, 1811
Benjamin West.--George III.--Morse begins his studies.--Introduced to
West.--Enthusiasms.--Smuggling and lotteries.--English appreciation of
art.--Copley.--Friendliness of West.--Elgin marbles.--Cries of London.--
Custom in knocking.--Witnesses balloon ascension.--Crowds.--Vauxhall
Gardens.--St. Bartholomew's Fair.--Efforts to be economical.--Signs of
war.--Mails delayed.--Admitted to Royal Academy.--Disturbances, riots,
and murders
CHAPTER IV
JANUARY 18, 1812--AUGUST 6, 1812
Political opinions.--Charles R. Leslie's reminiscences of Morse, Allston,
King, and Coleridge.--C.B. King's letter.--Sidney E. Morse's letter.--
Benjamin West's kindness.--Sir William Beechy.--Murders, robberies, etc.
--Morse and Leslie paint each other's portraits.--The elder Morse's
financial difficulties.--He deprecates the war talk.--The son differs
from his father.--The Prince Regent.--Orders in Council.--Estimate of
West.--Alarming state of affairs in England.--Assassination of Perceval,
Prime Minister.--Execution of assassin.--Morse's love for his art.--
Stephen Van Rensselaer.--Leslie the friend and Allston the master.--
Afternoon tea.--The elder Morse well known in Europe.--Lord Castlereagh.
--The Queen's drawing-room.--Kemble and Mrs. Siddons.--Zachary Macaulay.
--Warning letter from his parents.--War declared.--Morse approves.--
Gratitude to his parents, and to Allston
CHAPTER V
SEPTEMBER 20, 1812--JUNE 13, 1813
Models the "Dying Hercules."--Dreams of greatness.--Again expresses
gratitude to his parents.--Begins painting of "Dying Hercules."--Letter
from Jeremiah Evarts.--Morse upholds righteousness of the war.--Henry
Thornton.--Political discussions.--Gilbert Stuart.--William Wilberforce.
--James Wynne's reminiscences of Morse, Coleridge, Leslie, Allston, and
Dr. Abernethy.--Letters from his mother and brother.--Letters from
friends on the state of the fine arts in America.--"The Dying Hercules"
exhibited at the Royal Academy.--Expenses of painting.--Receives Adelphi
Gold Medal for statuette of Hercules.--Mr. Dunlap's reminiscences.--
Critics praise "Dying Hercules"
CHAPTER VI
JULY 10, 1813--APRIL 6, 1814
Letter from the father on economies and political views.--Morse
deprecates lack of spirit in New England and rejoices at Wellington's
victories.--Allston's poems.--Morse coat-of-arms.--Letter of Joseph
Hillhouse.--Letter of exhortation from his mother.--Morse wishes to stay
longer in Europe.--Amused at mother's political views.--The father sends
more money for a longer stay.--Sidney exalts poetry above painting.--His
mother warns him against infidels and actors.--Bristol.--Optimism.--
Letter on infidels and his own religious observances.--Future of American
art.--He is in good health, but thin.--Letter from Mr. Visger.--Benjamin
Burritt, American prisoner.--Efforts in his behalf unsuccessful.--Capture
of Paris by the Allies.--Again expresses gratitude to parents.--Writes a
play for Charles Mathews.--Not produced
CHAPTER VII
MAY 2, 1814--OCTOBER 11, 1814
Allston writes encouragingly to the parents.--Morse unwilling to be mere
portrait-painter.--Ambitious to stand at the head of his profession.--
Desires patronage, from wealthy friends.--Delay in the mails.--Account of
_entree_ of Louis XVIII into London.--The Prince Regent.--Indignation at
acts of English.--His parents relieved at hearing from him after seven
months' silence.--No hope of patronage from America.--His brothers.--
Account of fetes.--Emperor Alexander, King of Prussia, Bluecher, Platoff.
--Wishes to go to Paris.--Letter from M. Van Schaick about battle of Lake
Erie.--Disgusted with England
CHAPTER VIII
NOVEMBER 9, 1814--APRIL 23, 1815
Does not go to Paris.--Letter of admonition from his mother.--His
parents' early economies.--Letter from Leslie.--Letter from Rev. S.F.
Jarvis on politics.--The mother tells of the economies of another young
American, Dr. Parkman.--The son resents constant exhortations to
economize, and tells of meanness of Dr. Parkman.--Writes of his own
economies and industry.--Disgusted with Bristol.--Prophesies peace
between England and America.--Estimates of Morse's character by Dr.
Romeyn and Mr. Van Schaick.--The father regrets reproof of son for
political views.--Death of Mrs. Allston.--Disagreeable experience in
Bristol.--More economies.--Napoleon I.--Peace
CHAPTER IX
MAY 8, 1815--OCTOBER 18, 1816
Decides to return home in the fall.--Hopes to return to Europe in a
year.--Ambitions.--Paints "Judgment of Jupiter."--Not allowed to compete
for premium.--Mr. Russell's portrait.--Reproof of his parents.--Battle of
Waterloo.--Wilberforce.--Painting of "Dying Hercules" received by
parents.--Much admired.--Sails for home.--Dreadful voyage lasting
fifty-eight days.--Extracts from his journal.--Home at last
CHAPTER X
APRIL 10, 1816--OCTOBER 5, 1818
Very little success at home.--Portrait of ex-President John Adams.--
Letter to Allston on sale of his "Dead Man restored to Life."--Also
apologizes for hasty temper.--Reassured by Allston.--Humorous letter from
Leslie.--Goes to New Hampshire to paint portraits.--Concord.--Meets Miss
Lucretia Walker.--Letters to his parents concerning her.--His parents
reply.--Engaged to Miss Walker.--His parents approve.--Many portraits
painted.--Miss Walker's parents consent.--Success in Portsmouth.--Morse
and his brother invent a pump.--Highly endorsed by President Day and Eli
Whitney.--Miss Walker visits Charlestown.--Morse's religious
convictions.--More success in New Hampshire.--Winter in Charleston, South
Carolina.--John A. Alston.--Success.--Returns north.--Letter from his
uncle Dr. Finley.--Marriage
CHAPTER XI
NOVEMBER 19, 1818--MARCH 31, 1821
Morse and his wife go to Charleston, South Carolina.--Hospitably
entertained and many portraits painted.--Congratulates Allston on his
election to the Royal Academy.--Receives commission to paint President
Monroe.--Trouble in the parish at Charlestown.--Morse urges his parents
to leave and come to Charleston.--Letters of John A. Alston.--Return to
the North.--Birth of his first child.--Dr. Morse and his family decide to
move to New Haven.--Morse goes to Washington.--Paints the President under
difficulties.--Hospitalities.--Death of his grandfather.--Dr. Morse
appointed Indian Commissioner.--Marriage of Morse's future mother-in-law.
--Charleston again.--Continued success.--Letters to Mrs. Ball.--
Liberality of Mr. Alston.--Spends the summer in New Haven.--Returns to
Charleston, but meets with poor success.--Assists in founding Academy of
Arts, which has but a short life.--Goes North again
CHAPTER XII
MAY 23, 1821--DECEMBER 17, 1824
Accompanies Mr. Silliman to the Berkshires.--Takes his wife and daughter
to Concord, New Hampshire.--Writes to his wife from Boston about a
bonnet.--Goes to Washington, D.C.--Paints large picture of House of
Representatives.--Artistic but not financial success.--Donates five
hundred dollars to Yale.--Letter from Mr. De Forest.--New York
"Observer."--Discouragements.--First son born.--Invents marble-carving
machine.--Goes to Albany.--Stephen Van Rensselaer.--Slight encouragement
in Albany.--Longing for a home.--Goes to New York.--Portrait of
Chancellor Kent.--Appointed attache to Legation to Mexico.--High hopes.--
Takes affecting leave of his family.--Rough journey to Washington.--
Expedition to Mexico indefinitely postponed.--Returns North.--Settles in
New York.--Fairly prosperous
CHAPTER XIII
JANUARY 4, 1825--NOVEMBER 18, 1825
Success in New York.--Chosen to paint portrait of Lafayette.--Hope of a
permanent home with his family.--Meets Lafayette in Washington.--Mutually
attracted.--Attends President's levee.--Begins portrait of Lafayette.--
Death of his wife.--Crushed by the news.--His attachment to her.--Epitaph
composed by Benjamin Silliman.--Bravely takes up his work again.--
Finishes portrait of Lafayette.--Describes it in letter of a later date.
--Sonnet on death of Lafayette's dog.--Rents a house in Canal Street, New
York.--One of the founders of National Academy of Design.--Tactful
resolutions on organization.--First thirty members.--Morse elected first
president.--Reelected every year until 1845.--Again made president in
1861.--Lectures on Art.--Popularity
CHAPTER XIV
JANUARY 1, 1826--DECEMBER 5, 1829
Success of his lectures, the first of the kind in the United States.--
Difficulties of his position as leader.--Still longing for a home.--Very
busy but in good health.--Death of his father.--Estimates of Dr. Morse.--
Letters to his mother.--Wishes to go to Europe again.--Delivers address
at first anniversary of National Academy of Design.--Professor Dana
lectures on electricity.--Morse's study of the subject.--Moves to No. 13
Murray Street.--Too busy to visit his family.--Death of his mother.--A
remarkable woman.--Goes to central New York.--A serious accident.--Moral
reflections.--Prepares to go to Europe.--Letter of John A. Dix.--Sails
for Liverpool.--Rough voyage.--Liverpool
CHAPTER XV
DECEMBER 6. 1829--FEBRUARY 6, 1830
Journey from Liverpool to London by coach.--Neatness of the cottages.--
Trentham Hall.--Stratford-on-Avon.--Oxford.--London.--Charles R. Leslie.
--Samuel Rogers.--Seated with Academicians at Royal Academy lecture.--
Washington Irving.--Turner.--Leaves London for Dover.--Canterbury
Cathedral.--Detained at Dover by bad weather.--Incident of a former
visit.--Channel steamer.--Boulogne-sur-Mer.--First impressions of
France.--Paris.--The Louvre.--Lafayette.--Cold in Paris.--Continental
Sunday.--Leaves Paris for Marseilles in diligence.--Intense cold.--
Dijon.--French funeral.--Lyons.--The Hotel Dieu.--Avignon.--Catholic
church services.--Marseilles.--Toulon.--The navy yard and the galley
slaves.--Disagreeable experience at an inn.--The Riviera.--Genoa
CHAPTER XVI
FEBRUARY 6, 1830--JUNE 15, 1830
Serra Palace in Genoa.--Starts for Rome.--Rain in the mountains.--A
brigand.--Carrara.--First mention of a railroad.--Pisa.--The leaning
tower.--Rome at last.--Begins copying at once.--Notebooks.--Ceremonies at
the Vatican.--Pope Pius VIII.--Academy of St. Luke's.--St. Peter's.--
Chiesa Nuova.--Painting at the Vatican.--Beggar monks.--_Festa_ of the
Annunciation.--Soiree at Palazzo Sunbaldi.--Passion Sunday.--Horace
Vernet.--Lying in state of a cardinal.--_Miserere_ at Sistine Chapel.--
Holy Thursday at St. Peter's.--Third cardinal dies.--Meets Thorwaldsen at
Signor Persianis's.--Manners of English, French, and Americans.--Landi's
pictures.--Funeral of a young girl.--Trip to Tivoli, Subiaco.--Procession
of the _Corpus Domini_.--Disagreeable experience
CHAPTER XVII
JUNE 17, 1830--FEBRUARY 2, 1831
Working hard.--Trip to Genzano.--Lake of Nemi.--Beggars.--Curious
festival of flowers at Genzano.--Night on the Campagna.--Heat in Rome.--
Illumination of St. Peter's.--St. Peter's Day.--Vaults of the Church.--
Feebleness of Pope.--Morse and companions visit Naples, Capri, and
Amalfi.--Charms of Amalfi.--Terrible accident.--Flippancy at funerals.--
Campo Santo at Naples.--Gruesome conditions.--Ubiquity of beggars.--
Convent of St. Martino.--Masterpiece of Spagnoletto.--Returns to Rome.--
Paints portrait of Thorwaldsen.--Presented to him in after years by John
Taylor Johnston.--Given to King of Denmark.--Reflections on the social
evil and the theatre.--Death of the Pope.--An assassination.--The
Honorable Mr. Spencer and Catholicism.--Election of Pope Gregory XVI
CHAPTER XVIII
FEBRUARY 10, 1831--SEPTEMBER 12, 1831
Historic events witnessed by Morse.--Rumors of revolution.--Danger to
foreigners.--Coronation of the new Pope.--Pleasant experience.--Cause of
the revolution a mystery.--Bloody plot foiled.--Plans to leave for
Florence.--Sends casts, etc., to National Academy of Design.--Leaves
Rome.--Dangers of the journey.--Florence.--Description of meeting Prince
Radziwill in Coliseum at Rome.--Copies portraits of Rubens and Titian in
Florence.--Leaves Florence for Venice.--Disagreeable voyage on the Po.--
Venice, beautiful but smelly.--Copies Tintoret's "Miracle of the Slave."
--Thunderstorms.--Reflections on the Fourth of July.--Leaves Venice.--
Recoaro.--Milan.--Reflections on Catholicism and art.--Como and
Maggiore.--The Rigi.--Schaffhausen and Heidelberg.--Evades the quarantine
on French border.--Thrilling experience.--Paris
CHAPTER XIX
SEPTEMBER 18, 1831--SEPTEMBER 21, 1832
Takes rooms with Horatio Greenough.--Political talk with Lafayette.--
Riots in Paris.--Letters from Greenough.--Bunker Hill Monument.--Letters
from Fenimore Cooper.--Cooper's portrait by Verboeckhoven.--European
criticisms.--Reminiscences of R.W. Habersham.--Hints of an electric
telegraph.--Not remembered by Morse.--Early experiments in photography.--
Painting of the Louvre.--Cholera in Paris.--Baron von Humboldt.--Morse
presides at Fourth of July dinner.--Proposes toast to Lafayette.--Letter
to New York "Observer" on Fenimore Cooper.--Also on pride in American
citizenship.--Works with Lafayette in behalf of Poles.--Letter from
Lafayette.--Morse visits London before sailing for home.--Sits to Leslie
for head of Sterne
CHAPTER XX
Morse's life almost equally divided into two periods, artistic and
scientific.--Estimate of his artistic ability by Daniel Huntington.--Also
by Samuel Isham.--His character as revealed by his letters, notes, etc.--
End of Volume I
ILLUSTRATIONS
MORSE THE ARTIST (Photogravure)
Painted by himself in London about 1814.
HOUSE IN WHICH MORSE WAS BORN, IN CHARLESTOWN, MASS.
REV. JEDEDIAH MORSE AND S. F. B. MORSE--ELIZABETH ANN MORSE AND SIDNEY
E. MORSE
From portraits by a Mr. Sargent, who also painted portraits of the
Washington family.
THE DYING HERCULES
Painted by Morse in 1813.
LETTER OF MORSE TO HIS PARENTS, OCTOBER 18, 1815.
MR. D. C. DE FOREST--MRS. D. C. DE FOREST
From paintings by Morse now in the gallery of the Yale School
of the Fine Arts.
LUCRETIA PICKERING WALKER, WIFE or S. F. B. MORSE, AND TWO CHILDREN
Painted by Morse.
STUDY FOR PORTRAIT OF LAFAYETTE
Now in New York Public Library.
ELIZABETH A. MORSE
Painted by Morse.
JEREMIAH EVARTS
From a portrait painted by Morse and owned by Sherman Evarts, Esq.
DE WITT CLINTON
Painted by Morse. Owned by the Metropolitan Museum, New York.
HENRY CLAY
Painted by Morse. Owned by the Metropolitan Museum, New York.
SUSAN W. MORSE. ELDEST DAUGHTER OF THE ARTIST
SAMUEL F.B. MORSE
HIS LETTERS AND JOURNALS
CHAPTER I
APRIL 27. 1791--SEPTEMBER 8, 1810
Birth of S.F.B. Morse.--His parents.--Letters of Dr. Belknap and Rev. Mr.
Wells.--Phillips, Andover.--First letter.--Letter from his father.--
Religious letter from Morse to his brothers.--Letters from the mother to
her sons.--Morse enters Yale.--His journey there.--Difficulty in keeping
up with his class.--Letter of warning from his mother.--Letters of
Jedediah Morse to Bishop of London and Lindley Murray.--Morse becomes
more studious.--Bill of expenses.--Longing to travel and interest in
electricity.--Philadelphia and New York.--Graduates from college.--Wishes
to accompany Allston to England, but submits to parents' desires.
Samuel Finley Breese Morse was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts, on the
27th day of April, A.D. 1791. He came of good Puritan stock, his father,
Jedediah Morse, being a militant clergyman of the Congregational Church,
a fighter for orthodoxy at a time when Unitarianism was beginning to
undermine the foundations of the old, austere, childlike faith.
These battles of the churches seem far away to us of the twentieth
century, but they were very real to the warriors of those days, and,
while many of the tenets of their faith may seem narrow to us, they were
gospel to the godly of that tune, and reverence, obedience, filial piety,
and courtesy were the rule and not the exception that they are to-day.
Jedediah Morse was a man of note in his day, known and respected at home
and abroad; the friend of General Washington and other founders of the
Republic; the author of the first American Geography and Gazetteer. His
wife, Elizabeth Ann Breese, granddaughter of Samuel Finley, president of
Princeton College, was a woman of great strength and yet sweetness of
character; adored by her family and friends, a veritable mother in
Israel.
Into this serene home atmosphere came young Finley Morse, the eldest of
eleven children, only three of whom survived their infancy. The other two
were Sidney Edwards and Richard Carey, both eminent men in their day.
Dr. Belknap, of Boston, in a letter to a friend in New York says:--
"Congratulate the Monmouth Judge [Mr. Breese] on the birth of a
grandson.... As to the child, I saw him asleep, so can say nothing of his
eye or his genius peeing through it. He may have the sagacity of a Jewish
rabbi, or the profundity of a Calvin, or the sublimity of a Homer for
aught I know. But time will show forth all things."
This sounds almost prophetic in the light of future days.
[Illustration: HOUSE IN WHICH MORSE WAS BORN, IN CHARLESTOWN, MASS.]
The following letter from the Reverend Mr. Wells is quaint and
characteristic of the times:--
MY DEAR LITTLE BOY,--As a small testimony of my respect and obligation to
your excellent Parents and of my love to you, I send you with this six
(6) English Guineas. They are pretty playthings enough, and in the
Country I came from many people are fond of them. Your Papa will let you
look at them and shew them to Edward, and then he will take care of them,
and, by the time you grow up to be a Man, they will under Papa's wise
management increase to double their present number. With wishing you may
never be in want of such playthings and yet never too fond of them, I
remain your affectionate friend,
WM. WELLS.
MEDFORD, July 2, 1793.
Young Morse was sent away early to boarding-school, as was the custom at
that time. He was taken by his father to Phillips Academy at Andover, and
I believe he ran away once, being overcome by homesickness before he made
up his mind to remain and study hard.
The following letter is the first one written by him of which I have any
knowledge:--
ANDOVER, 2d August, 1799.
DEAR PAPA,--I hope you are well I will thank you if you will Send me up
Some quils Give my love to mama and NANCY and my little brothers pleas to
kis them for me and send me up Some very good paper to write to you
I have as many blackberries as I want I go and pick them myself.
SAMUEL FINLEY BREESE MORSE
YOUR SON
1799.
This from his father is characteristic of many written to him and to his
brothers while they were at school and college:--
CHARLESTOWN, February 21, 1801.
MY DEAR SON,--You do not write me as often as you ought. In your next you
must assign some reason for this neglect. Possibly I have not received
all your letters. Nothing will improve you so much in epistolary writing
as practice. Take great pains with your letters. Avoid vulgar phrases.
Study to have your ideas pertinent and correct and clothe them in an easy
and grammatical dress. Pay attention to your spelling, pointing, the use
of capitals, and to your handwriting. After a little practice these
things will become natural and you will thus acquire a habit of writing
correctly and well.
General Washington was a remarkable instance of what I have now
recommended to you. His letters are a perfect model for epistolary
writers. They are written with great uniformity in respect to the
handwriting and disposition of the several parts of the letter. I will
show you some of his letters when I have the pleasure of seeing you next
vacation, and when I shall expect to find you much improved.
Your natural disposition, my dear son, renders it proper for me earnestly
to recommend to you to _attend to one thing at a time_. It is impossible
that you can do two things well at the same time, and I would, therefore,
never have you attempt it. Never undertake to do what ought not to be
done, and then, whatever you undertake, endeavor to do it in the best
manner.
It is said of De Witt, a celebrated statesman in Holland, who was torn to
pieces in the year 1672, that he did the whole business of the republic
and yet had time left to go to assemblies in the evening and sup in
company. Being asked how he could possibly find time to go through so
much business and yet amuse himself in the evenings as he did, he
answered there was nothing so easy, for that it was only doing one thing
at a time, and never putting off anything till to-morrow that could be
done to-day. This steady and undissipated attention to one object is a
sure mark of a superior genius, as hurry, bustle, and agitation are the
never-failing symptoms of a weak and frivolous mind.
I expect you will read this letter over several times that you may retain
its contents in your memory, and give me your own opinion on the advice I
have given you. If you improve this well, I shall be encouraged to give
you more as you may need it.
Your affectionate parent,
J. MORSE.
This was written to a boy ten years old. I wonder if he was really able
to assimilate it.
I shall pass rapidly over the next few years, for, while there are many
letters which make interesting reading, there are so many more of the
later years of greater historical value that I must not yield to the
temptation to linger.
The three brothers were all sent to Phillips Academy to prepare for Yale,
from which college their father was also graduated.
The following letter from Finley to his brothers was written while he was
temporarily at home, and shows the deep religious bent of his mind which
he kept through life:--
CHARLESTOWN, March 15, 1805.
MY DEAR BROTHERS,--I now write you again to inform you that mama had a
baby, but it was born dead and has just been buried. Now you have three
brothers and three sisters in heaven and I hope you and I will meet them
there at our death. It is uncertain when we shall die, but we ought to be
prepared for it, and I hope you and I shall.
I read a question in Davie's "Sermons" the last Sunday which was this:--
Suppose a bird should take one dust of this earth and carry it away once
in a thousand years, and you was to take your choice either to be
miserable in that time and happy hereafter, or happy in that time and
miserable hereafter, which would you choose? Write me an answer to this
in your next letter....
I enclose you a little book called the "Christian Pilgrim." It is for
both of you.
We are all tolerable well except mama, though she is more comfortable now
than she was. We all send a great deal of love to you. I must now bid you
adieu.
I remain your affectionate brother,
S.F.B. MORSE.
I am tempted to include the following extracts from letters of the good
mother of the three boys as characteristic of the times and people:--
CHARLESTOWN, June 28, 1805.
MY DEAR SON,--We have the pleasure of a letter from you which has
gratified us very much. It is the only intelligence we have had from you
since Mr. Brown left you. I began to think that something was the matter
with respect to your health that occasioned your long silence.... We are
very desirous, my son, that you should excel in everything that will make
you truly happy and useful to your fellow men. In particular by no means
neglect your duty to your Heavenly Father. Remember, what has been said
with great truth, that he can never be faithful to others who is not so
to his God and his conscience. I wish you constantly to keep in mind the
first question and answer in that excellent form of sound words, the
Assembly Catechism, viz:--"What is the chief end of Man?" The answer you
will readily recollect is "To Glorify God and enjoy Him forever."
Let it be evident, my dear son, that this be your chief aim in all that
you do, and may you be so happy as to enjoy Him forever is the sincere
prayer of your affectionate parent....
The Fourth of July is to be celebrated here with a good deal of parade
both by Federalists and Jacobins. The former are to meet in our
meeting-house, there to hear an oration which is to be delivered by Mr.
Aaron Putnam, a prayer by your papa also. And on the hill close by the
monument [Bunker Hill] a standard is to be presented to a new company
called the Warren Phalanx, all Federalists, by Dr. Putnam who is the
president of the day, and all the gentlemen are to dine at Seton's Hall,
otherwise called Massachusetts Hall, and the ladies are to take tea at
the same place. The Jacobins are to have an oration at the Baptist
meeting-house from Mr. Gleson. I know nothing more about them. The boys
are forming themselves into companies also; they have two or three
companies and drums which at some times are enough to craze one. I can't
help thinking when I see them how glad I am that my sons are better
employed at Andover than beating the streets or drums; that they are
laying in a good store of useful knowledge against the time to come,
while these poor boys, many of them, at least, are learning what they
will be glad by and by to unlearn.
July 30, 1805.
MY DEAR SONS,--Have you heard of the death of young Willard at Cambridge,
the late President Willard's son? He died of a violent fever occasioned
by going into water when he was very hot in the middle of the day. He
also pumped a great deal of cold water on his head. Let this be a warning
to you all not to be guilty of the like indiscretion which may cost you
your life. Dreadful, indeed, would this be to all of us. I wish you would
not go into water oftener than once a week, and then either early in the
morning or late in the afternoon, and not go in when hot nor stay long in
the water. Remember these cautions of your mama and obey them strictly.
A young lady twenty years old died in Boston yesterday very suddenly. She
eat her dinner perfectly well and was dead in five minutes after. Her
name was Ann Hinkley. You see, my dear boys, the great uncertainty of
life and, of course, the importance of being always prepared for _death_,
even a _sudden death_, as we know not what an hour may bring forth. This
we are sensible of, we cannot be _too soon or too well_ prepared for that
all-important moment, as this is what we are sent into this world for.
The main business of life is to prepare for death. Let us not, then, put
off these most important concerns to an uncertain to-morrow, but let us
in earnest attend to the concerns of our precious, never-dying souls
while we feel ourselves alive.
In October, 1805, Finley Morse went to New Haven to enter college, and
the next letter describes the journey from Charlestown, and it was,
indeed, a journey in those days.
NEW HAVEN, October 22, 1805.
MY DEAR PARENTS,--I arrived here yesterday safe and well. The first day I
rode as far as Williams' Tavern, and put up there for the night. The next
day I rode as far as Dwight's Tavern in Western, and in the morning, it
being rainy, Mr. Backus did not set out to ride till late, and, the stage
coming to the door, Mr. B. thought it a good opportunity to send me to
Hartford, which he did, and I arrived at Hartford that night and lodged
at Ripley's inn opposite the State House. He treated me very kindly,
indeed, wholly on account of my being your son. I was treated more like
his own son than a stranger, for which I shall and ought to be very much
obliged to him. The next morning I hired a horse and chaise of him to
carry me to Weathersfield and arrived at Mr. Marsh's, who was very glad
to see me and begged me to stay till S. Barrell went, which was the next
Monday, for his mother would not let him go so soon, she was so glad to
see him. I was sorry to trouble them so much, but, as they desired it,
and, as Samuel B. was not to go till then, I agreed to stay and hope you
will not disapprove it, and am sorry I could not write you sooner to
relieve your minds from your anxiety on my account, and am sorry for
giving my good parents so much trouble and expense. You expend and have
expended a great deal more money upon me than I deserve, and granted me a
great many of my requests, and I am sure I can certainly grant you one,
that of being _economical_, which I shall certainly be and not get money
to buy trifling things. I begin to think _money_ of some importance and
too great value to be thrown away.
Yesterday morning about ten o'clock I set out for New Haven with S.
Barrell and arrived well a little before dark. I went directly to Dr.
Dwight's, which I easily found, and delivered the letter to him, drank
tea at his house, and then Mr. Sereno Dwight carried me to Mr. Davis's
who had agreed to take me. While I was at Dr. Dwight's there was a woman
there whom the Dr. recommended to Sam. B. and me to have our mending
done, and Mrs. Davis or a washerwoman across the way will do my washing,
so I am very agreeably situated. I also gave the letter to Mr. Beers and
he has agreed to let me have what you desired. I have got Homer's Iliad
in two volumes, with Latin translation of him, for $3.25. I need no other
books at present.
S. Barrell has a room in the north college and, as he says, a very
agreeable chum.
Next spring I hope you will come on and fix matters. I long to get into
the college, for it appears to me now as though I was not a member of
college but fitting for college. I hope next spring will soon come.
My whole journey from Charlestown here cost me L2 16_s._, and 4_d._, a
great deal more than either you or I had calculated on. I am sorry to be
of so much trouble to you and the cause of so much anxiety in you and
especially in mama. I wish you to give my very affectionate love to my
dear brothers, and tell them they must write me and not be homesick, but
consider that I am farther from home than they are, 136 miles from home.
I remain
Your ever affectionate son,
S.F.B. MORSE.
It would seem, from other letters which follow, that he had difficulty in
keeping up with his class, and that he eventually dropped a class, for he
did not graduate until 1810. He also seems to have been rooming outside
of college and to have been eager to go in.
It is curious, in the light of future events, to note that young Morse's
parents were fearful lest his volatile nature and lack of steadfastness
of purpose should mar his future career. His dominating characteristic in
later life was a bulldog tenacity, which led him to stick to one idea
through discouragements and disappointments which would have overwhelmed
a weaker nature.
The following extracts are from a long letter from his mother dated
November 23, 1805:--
"I am fearful, my son, that you think a great deal more of your
amusements than your studies, and there lies the difficulty, and the same
difficulty would exist were you in college.
"You have filled your letter with requests to go into college and an
account of a gunning party, both of which have given us pain. I am truly
sorry that you appear so unsteady as by _your own account_ you are....
"You mention in the letter you wrote first that, if you went into
college, you and your chum would want brandy and wine and segars in your
room. Pray is that the custom among the students? We think it a very
improper one, indeed, and hope the government of college will not permit
it. There is no propriety at all in such young boys as you having
anything to do with anything of the kind, and your papa and myself
positively prohibit you the use of these things till we think them more
necessary than we do at present....
"You will remember that you have promised in your first letter to be an
economist. In your last letter you seem to have forgotten all about it.
Pray, what do your gunning parties cost you for powder and shot? I beg
you to consider and not go driving on from one foolish whim to another
till you provoke us to withdraw from you the means of gratifying you in
anything that may be even less objectionable than gunning."
These exhortations seem to have had, temporarily, at least, the desired
effect, for in a letter to his parents dated December 18, 1805, young
Morse says: "I shall not go out to gun any more, for I know it makes you
anxious about me."
The letters of the parents to the son are full of pious exhortations, and
good advice, and reproaches to the boy for not writing oftener and more
at length, and for not answering every question asked by the parents. It
is comforting to the present-day parent to learn that human nature was
much the same in those pious days of old, differing only in degree, and
that there is hope for the most wayward son and careless correspondent.
The following letters from the elder Morse I shall include as being of
rather more than ordinary interest, and as showing the breadth of his
activity.
CHARLESTOWN, December 23, 1806.
To THE BISHOP OP LONDON,
REV'D AND RESPECTED SIR,--I presume that it might be agreeable to you to
know the precise state of the property which originally belonged to the
Protestant Episcopal Church in Virginia.
I have with some pains obtained the law of that State respecting this
singular business.
I find that it destroys _the establishment_ and asserts that "all
property belonging to the said (Protestant Episcopal) Church devolved on
the good people of this Commonwealth (i.e., Virginia) on the dissolution
of the British Government here, in the same degree in which the right and
interest of the said Church was therein derived from them," and
authorizes the overseers of the poor of any county "in which any glebe
land is vacant, or shall become so by the death or removal of any
incumbent, to sell all such land and appurtenances and every other
species of property incident thereto to the highest bidder"--"Provided
that nothing herein contained shall authorize an appropriation to _any
religious purpose whatever_."
I make no comments on the above. I believe no other State in the Union
has, in this respect, imitated the example of Virginia.
I take the liberty to send you a few small tracts for your acceptance in
token of my high respect for your character and services.
Believe me, sir, unfeignedly,
Your obedient servant,
J. MORSE.
December 26, 1806.
LINDLEY MURRAY ESQ.,
DEAR SIR,--Your polite note and the valuable books accompanying it,
forwarded by our friend Perkins, of New York, have been duly and
gratefully received.
You will perceive, by the number of the "Panoplist" enclosed, that we are
strangers neither to your works nor your character. It has given me much
pleasure as an American to make both more extensively known among my
countrymen.
I have purchased several hundred of your spelling books for a charitable
society to which I belong, and they have been dispersed in the new
settlements in our country, where I hope they will do immediate good,
besides creating a desire and demand for more. It will ever give me
pleasure to hear from you when convenient. Letters left at Mr. Taylor's
will find me.
I herewith send you two or three pamphlets and a copy of the last edition
of my "American Gazetteer" which I pray you to accept as a small token of
the high respect and esteem with which I am
Your friend,
J. MORSE.
Young Morse now settled down to serious work as the following extracts
will show, which I set down without further comment, passing rapidly over
the next few years. He was, however, not entirely absorbed in his books
but still longed for the pleasures of the chase:--
"May 13, 1807. Just now I asked Mr. Twining to let me go a-gunning for
this afternoon. He told me you had expressly forbidden it and he
therefore could not. Now I should wish to go once in a while, for I
always intend to be careful. I have no amusement now in the vacation, and
it would gratify me very much if you would consent to let me go once in a
while. I suppose you would tell me that my books ought to be my
amusement. I cannot study all the time and I need some exercise. If I
walk, that is no amusement, and if I wish to play ball or anything else,
I have no one to play with. Please to write me an answer as soon as"
possible.
June 7, 1807.
MY DEAR PARENTS,--I hope you will excuse my not writing you sooner when I
inform you that my time is entirely taken up with my studies.
In the morning I must rise at five o'clock to attend prayers and,
immediately after, recitation; then I must breakfast and begin to study
from eight o'clock till eleven; then recite my forenoon's lesson which
takes me an hour.
At twelve I must study French till one, which is dinner-time. Directly
after dinner I must recite French to Monsieur Value till two o'clock,
then begin to study my afternoon lesson and recite it at five.
Immediately after recitation I must study another French lesson to recite
at seven in the evening; come home at nine o'clock and study my morning's
lesson until ten, eleven, and sometimes twelve o'clock, and by that tine
I am prepared to sleep.... You see now I have enough to do, my hands as
full as can be, not five minutes' time to take recreation. I am
determined to study and, thus far, have not missed a single word. The
students call me by the nickname of "Geography."
"_June 18, 1807._ Last week I went to Mr. Beers and saw a set of
Montaigne's 'Essays' in French in eight volumes, duodecimo, handsomely
bound in calf and gilt, for two dollars. The reason they are so cheap is
because they are wicked and bad books for me or anybody else to read. I
got them because they were cheap, and have exchanged them for a handsome
English edition of 'Gil Blas'; price, $4.50."
In the fall of 1807 Finley Morse returned to college accompanied by his
next younger brother, Sidney Edwards. In a letter of March 6, 1808, he
says: "Edwards and myself are very well and I believe we are doing well,
but you will learn more of that from our instructors."
In this same letter he says:--
"I find it impossible to live in college without spending money. At one
time a letter is to be paid for, then comes up a great tax from the class
or society, which keeps me constantly running after money. When I have
money in my hand I feel as though I had stolen it, and it is with the
greatest pain that I part with it. I think every minute I shall receive a
letter from home blaming me for not being more economical, and thus I am
kept in distress all the time.
"The amount of my expenses for the last term was fifteen dollars,
expended in the following manner:--
Dols. Cts.
"Postage $2.05
Oil .50
Taxes, fines, etc. 3.00
Oysters .50
Washbowl .37-1/2
Skillet .33
Axe $1.33 Catalogues .12 1.45
Powder and shot 1.12-1/2
Cakes, etc. etc. etc. 1.75
Wine, Thanks. day .20
Toll on bridge .15
Grinding axe .08
Museum .25
Poor man .14
Carriage for trunk 1.00
Pitcher .41 14.75-1/2
Sharpening skates .37-1/2 Paid for
Circ. Library .25 cutting wood .25
Post papers .57
Lent never to be returned .25
$14.75-1/2 15.00-1/2
"In my expenses I do not include my wood, tuition bills, board or washing
bills."
How characteristic of all boys of all times the "etc., etc., etc.,"
tacked on to the "cakes" item, and how many boys of the present day would
bewail the extravagance of fifteen dollars spent in one term on extras?
In a postscript in this same letter he says: "The students are very fond
of raising balloons at present. I will (with your leave) when I return
home make one. They are pleasant sights."
College terms were very different in those days from what they are at
present, for September 5 finds the boys still in New Haven, and Finley
says, "There is but three and a half weeks to Commencement."
In this same letter he gives utterance to these filial sentiments: "I now
make those only my companions who are the most religious and moral, and I
hope sincerely that it will have a good effect in changing that
thoughtless disposition which has ever been a striking trait in my
character. As I grow older, I begin to think better of what you have
always told me when I was small. I begin to know by experience that man
is born to trouble, and that temptations to do evil are as countless as
the stars, but I hope I shall be enabled to shun them."
This is from a letter of January 9, 1809:--
"I have been reading the first volume of Professor Silliman's 'Journal'
which he kept during his passage to and residence in Europe. I am very
much pleased with it. I long for the time when I shall be able to travel
with improvement to myself and society, and hope it will be in your power
to assist me.
"I have a very ardent desire of travelling, but I consider that an
education is indispensable to me and I mean to apply myself with all
diligence for that purpose. _Diligentia vinrit omnia_ is my maxim and I
shall endeavor to follow it.... I shall be employed in the vacation in
the Philosophical Chamber with Mr. Dwight, who is going to perform a
number of experiments in _Electricity_."
It is, of course, only a curious coincidence that these two sentences
should have occurred in the same letter, but it was when travelling, many
years afterwards, that the first idea of the electric telegraph found
lodgment in his brain, and this certainly resulted in improvement to
himself and society.
In February, 1809, he writes: "My studies are at present Optics in
Philosophy, Dialling, Homer, beside disputing, composing, attending
lectures etc. etc., all which I find very interesting and especially Mr.
Day's lectures who is now lecturing on _Electricity_."
Young Morse's thoughts seem to have been gradually focusing on the two
subjects to which he afterwards devoted his life, for in a letter of
March 8, 1809, he says: "Mr. Day's lectures are very interesting. They
are upon Electricity. He has given us some very fine experiments. The
whole class taking hold of hands formed the circuit of communication and
we all received the shock apparently at the same moment. I never took an
electric shock before. It felt as if some person had struck me a slight
blow across the arms.... I think with pleasure that two thirds of this
term only remain. As soon as that is passed away, I hope I shall again
see home. I really long to see Charlestown again; I have almost forgotten
how it looks. I have some thoughts of taking a view of Boston from
Bunker's Hill when I go home again. It will be some pleasure to me to
have some picture of my native place to look upon when I am from home."
And in August, 1809, he writes to his parents: "I employ all my leisure
time in painting. I have a great number of persons engaged already to be
drawn on ivory, no less than seven. They obtain the ivories for
themselves. I have taken Professor Kingsley's profile for him. It is a
good likeness of him and he is pleased with it. I think I shall take his
likeness on ivory and present it to him as my present at the end of the
year.... I have finished Miss Leffingwell's miniature. It is a good
likeness and she is very much pleased with it."
NEW HAVEN, May 29, 1810.
MY DEAR PARENTS,--I arrived in this place on Sabbath evening by packet
from New York. I left Philadelphia on Thursday morning at eight o'clock
and arrived in New York on Friday at ten....
I stayed in New York but one night. I found it quite insipid after seeing
Philadelphia. [The character of the two cities seems to have changed a
trifle in a hundred years, for, with all her faults, no one could
nowadays accuse New York of being insipid.] I went on board the packet on
Saturday at twelve o'clock and arrived, as I before stated, on Sabbath
evening. We had, on the whole, a very good set of passengers from New
York to this place. On Sunday we had two sermons read to us by one of
them, Dr. Hawley, of this place, and in the evening we sang five psalms,
and during the whole of the exercises the passengers conducted themselves
with perfect decorum, although one of the sermons was one hour in
length....
June 25, 1810.
MY DEAR PARENTS,--I received yours of the 23d this day and receive with
humility your reproof. I am extremely sorry it should have occasioned so
many disagreeable feelings. I felt it my duty to tell you of my debts,
and, indeed, I could not feel easy without. The amount of my buttery bill
is forty-two or forty-three dollars.
Mr. Nettleton is butler and is willing I should take his likeness as part
pay. I shall take it on ivory, and he has engaged to allow me seven
dollars for it. My price is five dollars for a miniature on ivory, and. I
have engaged three or four at that price. My price for profiles is one
dollar, and everybody is ready to engage me at that price.... Though I
have been much to blame in the present case, yet I think it but just that
Mr. Twining should bear his part.
I had begun with a determination to pay for everything as I got it, but
was stopped in this in the very beginning, for, in going to Mr. T. to get
money, I have five times out of six found him absent, sometimes for the
whole day, sometimes for a week or two weeks, and once he was absent six
weeks and made no sort of provision for us. Mrs. T. is never trusted with
money for us. Now in such case I am obliged by necessity to get a thing
charged, and I have found by sad experience that a bill increases faster
than I had in the least imagined....
"_July 22, 1810._ I am now released from college and am attending to
painting. All my class were accepted as candidates for degrees. Edwards
is admitted a member of [Greek: Phi][Greek: Beta][Greek: Kappa] Society,
and is appointed as monitor to the next Freshman Class. Richard is chosen
as one of the speakers the evening before Commencement.
"Edwards and Richard are both of them very steady and good scholars, and
are much esteemed by the authority of college as well as their fellow
students.
"As to my choice of a profession, I still think that I was made for a
painter, and I would be obliged to you to make such arrangement with Mr.
Allston for my studying with him as you shall think expedient. I should
desire to study with him during the winter, and, as he expects to return
to England in the spring, I should admire to be able to go with him."
In answer to this letter his father wrote:--
CHARLESTOWN, July 26, 1810.
DEAR Finley,--I received your letter of the 22d to-day by mail.
On the subject of your future pursuits we will converse when I see you
and when you get home. It will be best for you to form no plans. Your
mama and I have been thinking and planning for you. I shall disclose to
you our plan when I see you. Till then suspend your mind.
It gives us great pleasure to have you speak so well of your brothers.
Others do the same and we hear well of you also. It is a great comfort to
us that our sons are all likely to do so well and are in good reputation
among their acquaintances. Could we have reason to believe you were all
pious and had chosen the "good part," our joy concerning you all would be
full. I hope the Lord in due time will grant us this pleasure.
"Seek the Lord," my dear son, "while he may be found."
Your affectionate father,
J. MORSE.
[ILLUSTRATION: ELIZABETH ANN MORSE AND SIDNEY E. MORSE
ILLUSTRATION: REV. JEDEDIAH MORSE AND S.F.B. MORSE
From portraits by a Mr. Sargent, who also painted portraits of the
Washington family]
September 8, 1810.
DEAR MAMA,--Papa arrived here safely this evening and I need not tell you
we were glad to see him. He has mentioned to me the plan which he
proposed for my future business in life, and I am pleased with it, for I
was determined beforehand to conform to his and your will in everything,
and, when I come home, I shall endeavor to make amends for the trouble
and anxiety which you have been at on my account, by assisting papa in
his labors and pursuing with ardor my own business....
I have been extremely low-spirited for some days past, and it still
continues. I hope it will wear off by Commencement Day....
I am so low in spirits that I could almost cry.
It was no wonder that he was down-hearted, for he was ambitious and
longed to carve out a great career for himself, while his good parents
were conservative and wished him to become independent as soon as
possible. Their plan was to apprentice him to a bookseller, and he
dutifully conformed to their wishes for a time, but his ambition could
not be curbed, and it was not long before he broke away.
CHAPTER II
OCTOBER 31, 1810--AUGUST 17. 1811
Enters bookshop as clerk.--Devotes leisure to painting.--Leaves shop.--
Letter to his brothers on appointments at Yale.--Letters from Joseph P.
Rossiter.--Morse's first love affair.--Paints "Landing of the Pilgrims."
--Prepares to sail with Allstons for England.--Letters of introduction
from his father.--Disagreeable stage-ride to New York.--Sails on the
Lydia.--Prosperous voyage.--Liverpool.--Trip to London.--Observations on
people and customs.--Frequently cheated.--Critical time in England.--Dr.
Lettsom.--Sheridan's verse.--Longing for a telegraph.--A ghost
After his graduation from Yale College in the fall of 1810, Finley Morse
returned to his home in Charlestown, Mass., and cheerfully submitted
himself to his parents' wishes by entering the bookshop of a certain Mr.
Mallory.
He writes under date of October 31, 1810, to his brothers who are still
at college: "I am in an excellent situation and on excellent terms. I
have four hundred dollars per year, but this you must not mention out. I
have the choice of my hours; they are from nine till one-half past
twelve, and from three till sunset."
But he still clings to the idea of becoming a painter, for he adds: "My
evenings I employ in painting. I have every convenience; the room over
the kitchen is fitted up for me; I have a fire there every evening, and
can spend it alone or otherwise as I please. I have bought me one of the
new patent lamps, those with glass chimneys, which gives an excellent
light. It cost me about six dollars. Send on as soon as possible anything
and everything which pertains to my painting apparatus."
The following letter was written at some time in 1810 or 1811. It was
addressed to Mr. Sereno E. Dwight:--
"Mr. Mallory a few days since handed me a letter from you requesting me,
if possible, to sketch a likeness of young Mr. Daggett. Accordingly I
have made the attempt and take the present opportunity of forwarding you
the results. The task was hard but pleasurable. It is one of the most
difficult undertakings to endeavor to take a portrait from recollection
of one whose countenance has not been examined particularly for the
purpose. When I made the first attempt, not a single feature could I
recall distinctly to my memory and I almost despaired of a likeness, but
the thought of lessening the affliction of such a distressed family
determined me to attempt it a second time. The result is on the ivory. I
then showed it to my brothers, to Mr. Evarts, to Mr. Hillhouse, to Mr.
Mallory, and to Mr. Read, all of whom had not the least suspicion of
anything of the kind, and they have severally and separately pronounced
it a likeness of young Mr. Daggett. This encouraged me, and I made the
two other sketches which are thought likewise to be resemblances of him.
"If these or any one of them can be recognized by the afflicted family as
a resemblance of him they have lost, it will be an ample compensation to
me to think that I have in any degree been the means of alleviating their
suffering...."
On December 8, 1810, he writes to his brother: "I have almost completed
my landscape. It is 'proper handsome,' so they say, and they want to make
me believe it is so, but I shan't yet awhile."
This shows the right frame of mind for an artist, and yet, like most
youthful painters, he attempted more than his proficiency warranted, for
in this same letter he adds: "I am going to begin, as soon as I have
finished it [the landscape], a piece, the subject of which will be
'Marius on the Ruins of Carthage.'"
On December 28, 1810, he writes: "I shall leave Mr. Mallory's next week
and study painting exclusively till summer."
He had at last burst his bonds, and his wise parents, seeing that his
heart was only in his painting, decided to throw no further obstacles in
his way, but, at the cost of much self-sacrifice on their part, to
further in every way his ambition.
January 15, 1811.
MY DEAR BROTHERS,--We have just received Richard's letter of the 8th
inst., and I can have a pretty correct idea of your feelings at the
beginning of a vacation. You must not be melancholy and hang yourself. If
you do you will have a terrible scolding when you get home again. As for
Richard's getting an appointment so low, if I was in his situation, I
should not trouble myself one fig concerning _appointments_. They cost
more than they are worth. I shall not esteem him the less for not getting
a higher, and not more than one millionth part of the world knows what an
appointment is. You will both of you have a different opinion of
appointments after you have been out of college a short time. I had
rather be Richard with a dialogue than Sanford with a dispute. If
appointments at college decided your fate forever, you might possibly
groan and wail. But then consider where poor I should come. [He got no
appointment whatever.] Think of this, Richard, and _don't_ hang
_yourself_. [It may, perhaps, be well to explain that "appointments" were
given at Yale to those who excelled in scholarship. "Philosophical
Oration" was the highest, then came "High Oration," "Oration," etc.,
etc.] I have left Mr. Mallory's store and am helping papa in the
Geography. Shall remain at home till the latter part of next summer and
then shall go to London with Mr. Allston.
The following extracts from two letters of a college friend I have
introduced as throwing some light on Morse's character at that time and
also as curious examples of the epistolary style of those days:--
NEW HAVEN, February 5, 1811.
Dear Finley,--Yours of the 6th ult. I received, together with the books
enclosed, which I delivered personally according to your request.
Did I not know the nature of your disorder and the state of your
_gizzard_, I should really be surprised at the commencement, and, indeed,
the whole tenor of your letter, but as it is I can excuse and feel for
you.
Had I commenced a letter with the French _Helas! helas!_ it would have
been no more than might reasonably have been expected considering the
desolate situation of New Haven and the gloomy prospects before me. But
for you, who are in the very vortex of fashionable life and surrounded by
the amusements and bustle of the metropolis of New England, for you to
exclaim, "How lonely I am!" is unpardonable, or at most admits of but one
excuse, to wit, that you can plead the feelings of the youth who
exclaimed, "Gods annihilate both time and space and make two lovers
happy!"
You suppose I am so much taken up with the ladies and other good things
in New Haven that I have not time to think of one of my old friends.
Alas! Morse, there are no ladies or anything else to occupy my attention.
They are all gone and we have no amusements. Even old Value has deserted
us, whose music, though an assemblage of "unharmonious sounds," is
infinitely preferable to the harsh grating thunder of his brother. New
Haven is, indeed, this winter a dreary place. I wrote you about a month
since and did then what you wish me now to do,--I mentioned all that is
worth mentioning, which, by the way, is very little, about New Haven and
its inhabitants.
Since then I have been to New York and saw the Miss Radcliffs, and, in
passing through Stamford, the Miss Davenports. The mention of the name of
Davenport would at one time have excited in your breast emotions
unutterable, but now, though Ann is as lovely as ever, your heart
requires the influence of another Hart to quicken its pulsations.... Last
but not least comes the all-conquering, the angelic queen of Harts. I
have not seen her since she left New Haven, but have heard from her
sister Eliza that she is in good health and is going in April to New York
with Mrs. Jarvis (her sister) to spend the summer and perhaps a longer
time, where she will probably break many a proud heart and bend many a
stubborn knee. I fear, Morse, unless you have her firmly in your toils, I
fear she may not be able to withstand every attack, for New York abounds
with elegant and accomplished young men.
You mention that you have again changed your mind as to the business
which you intend to pursue. I really thought that the plan of becoming a
bookseller would be permanent because sanctioned by parental authority,
but I am now convinced that your mind is so much bent upon painting that
you will do nothing else effectually. It is indeed a noble art and if
pursued effectually leads to the highest eminence, for painters rank with
poets, and to be placed in the scale with Milton and Homer is an honor
that few of mortal mould attain unto.... I wish, Finley, that you would
paint me a handsome piece for a keepsake as you are going to Europe and
may not be back in a hurry. Present my respects to Mr. Hillhouse. His
father's family are well. Adieu.
Your affectionate friend,
JOS. P. ROSSITER.
From this letter and from others we learn that young Morse's youthful
affections were fixed on a certain charming Miss Jannette Hart, but,
alas! he proved a faithless lover, for his friend Rossiter thus reproves
him in a letter of May 8, 1811:--
"Oh! most amazing change! Can it be possible? Oh! Love, and all ye
cordial powers of passion, forbid it! Still, still the dreadful words
glare on my sight. Alas! alas! and is it, then, a fact? If so 't is
pitiful, 't is wondrous pitiful. Cupid, tear off your bandage, new string
your bow and tip your arrows with harder adamant. Oh! shame upon you,
only hear the words of your exultant votarist--'Even Love, which
according to the proverb conquers all things, when put in competition
with painting, must yield the palm and be a willing captive.' Oh! fie,
fie, good master Cupid, you shoot but poorly if a victim so often wounded
can talk in terms like these.
"Poor luckless Jannette! the epithets 'divine' and 'heavenly' which have
so often been applied to thee are now transferred to miserable daubings
with oil and clay. Dame Nature, your triumph has been short. Poor foolish
beldam, you thought, indeed, when you had formed your masterpiece and
named her Jannette, that unqualified admiration would be extorted from
the lips of prejudice itself, and that, at least, till age had worn off
the first dazzling lustre from your favorite, your sway would have been
unlimited and your exultation immeasurable. My good old Dame, hear for
your comfort what a foolish, fickle youth has dared to say of your
darling Jannette, and that while she is yet in the first blush and bloom
of virgin loveliness--'_next_ to painting I love Jannette the best.'
Insufferable blasphemy! Hear, O Heavens, and be amazed! Tremble, O Earth,
and be horribly afraid!"
In spite of this impassioned arraignment, Morse devoted himself
exclusively to his art for the next few years, and we have only
occasional references in the letters that follow to his first serious
love affair.
We also hear nothing further of "Marius on the Ruins of Carthage"; but in
February, 1811, he writes to his brothers: "I am painting my large piece,
the landing of our forefathers at Plymouth. Perhaps I shall have it
finished by the time you come home in the spring. My landscape I finished
sometime since, and it is framed and hung up in the front parlor."
At last in July, 1811, the great ambition of the young man was about to
be realized and he prepared to set sail for England with his friend and
master, Washington Allston. His father, having once made up his mind to
allow his son to follow his bent, did everything possible to further his
ambition and assist him in his student years. He gave him many letters of
introduction to well-known persons in England and France, one of which,
to His Excellency C.M. Talleyrand, I shall quote in full.
SIR,--I had the honor to introduce to you, some years since, a young
friend of mine, Mr. Wilder, who has since resided in your country. Your
civility to him induces me to take the liberty to introduce to you my
eldest son, who visits Europe for the purpose of perfecting himself in
the art of painting under the auspices of some of your eminent artists.
Should he visit France, as he intends, I shall direct him to pay his
respects to you, sir, assured that he will receive your protection and
patronage so far as you can with convenience afford them.
In thus doing you will much oblige,
Sir, with high consideration
Your most ob'd't. Serv't,
JED. MORSE.
In another letter of introduction, to whom I cannot say, as the address
on the copy is lacking, the father says:--
"His parents had designed him for a different profession, but his
inclination for the one he has chosen was so strong, and his talents for
it, in the opinion of some good judges, so promising, that we thought it
not proper to attempt to control his choice.
"In this country, young in the arts, there are few means of improvement.
These are to be found in their perfection only in older countries, and in
none, perhaps, greater than in yours. In compliance, therefore, with his
earnest wishes and those of his friend and patron, Mr. Allston (with whom
he goes to London), we have consented to make the sacrifice of feeling
(not a small one), and a pecuniary exertion to the utmost of our ability,
for the purpose of placing him under the best advantage of becoming
eminent in his profession, in hope that he will consecrate his
acquisitions to the glory of God and the best good of his fellow men."
Morse arrived in New York on July 6, 1811, after a several days' journey
from Charlestown which he describes as very terrible on account of the
heat and dust. People were dying from the heat in New York where the
thermometer reached 98 deg. in the shade. He says:--
"My ride to New Haven was beyond everything disagreeable; the sun beating
down upon the stage (the sides of which we were obliged to shut up on
account of the sun) which was like an oven, and the wind, instead of
being in our faces as papa supposed, was at our back and brought into our
faces such columns of dust as to hinder us from seeing the other side of
the stage.
"I never was so completely covered with dust in my life before. Mama,
perhaps, will think that I experienced some inconvenience from such a
fatiguing journey, but I never felt better in my life than now."
The optimism of youth when it is doing what it wants to do.
He had taken passage on the good ship Lydia with Mr. and Mrs. Allston and
some eleven other passengers, and the sailing of the ship was delayed for
several days on account of contrary winds, but at last, on July 13, the
voyage was begun.
ON BOARD THE LYDIA,
OFF SANDY HOOK, July 15, 1811.
MY DEAR PARENTS,--After waiting a great length of time I have got under
way. We left New York Harbor on Saturday, 13th, about twelve o'clock and
went as far as the quarantine ground on Staten Island, where, on account
of the wind, we waited over Sunday.
We are now under sail with the pilot on board. We have a fair wind from
S.S.W. and shall soon be out of sight of land. We have fourteen very
agreeable passengers, an experienced and remarkably pleasant captain, and
a strong, large, fast-sailing ship. We expect from twenty-five to thirty
days' passage.... We have a piano-forte on board and two gentlemen who
play elegantly, so we shall have fine times. I am in good spirits, though
I feel rather singularly to see my native shores disappearing so fast and
for so long a time.
I am not yet seasick, but expect to be a little so in a few days. We
shall probably be boarded by a British vessel of war soon; there are a
number off the coast, but they treat American vessels very civilly.
He kept a careful diary of the voyage to England and again resumed it
when he returned to America in 1815. The voyage out was most propitious
and lasted but twenty-two days in all: a very short one for that time. As
the diary contains nothing of importance relating to the eastern voyage,
being simply a record of good weather, fair winds, and pleasant
companions, I shall not quote from it at present.
It was all pleasure to the young man, who had never before been away from
home, and he sees no reason why people should dread a sea voyage.
The journal of the return trip tells a different story, as we shall see
later on, for the passage lasted fifty-seven days, and head winds, gales,
and even hurricanes were encountered all the way across, and he wonders
why any one should go to sea who can remain safely on land.
LIVERPOOL, August 7, 1811.
MY DEAR PARENTS,--You see from the date that I have at length arrived in
England. I have had a most delightful passage of twenty days from land to
land and two in coming up the channel.
As this is a letter merely to inform you of my safe arrival I shall not
enter into the particulars of our voyage until I get to London, to which
place I shall proceed as soon as possible.
Suffice it to say that I have not been sick a moment of the passage, but,
on the contrary, have never enjoyed my health better. I have not as yet
got my trunks from the custom-house, but presume I shall meet with no
difficulty.
I am now at the Liverpool Arms Inn. It is the same inn that Mr. Silliman
put up at; it is, however, very expensive; they charge the enormous sum,
I believe, of a guinea or a guinea and a half a day.
If I should be detained a day or two in this place I shall endeavor to
find out other lodgings; at present, however, it is unavoidable, as all
the other passengers are at the same place with me. You may rest assured
I shall do everything in my power to be economical, but to avoid
imposition of some kind or other cannot be expected, since every one who
has been in England and spoken of the subject to me has been imposed upon
in some way or other.
You cannot think how many times I have expressed a wish that you knew
exactly how I was situated. My passage has been so perfectly agreeable, I
know not of a single circumstance that has interfered to render it
otherwise, through the whole passage. There has been but one day in which
we have not had fair winds. Mr. and Mrs. Allston are perfectly well. She
has been seasick, but has been greatly benefited by it. She is growing
quite healthy. I have grown about three shades darker in consequence of
my voyage. I have a great deal to tell you which I must defer till I
arrive in London.... Oh! how I wish you knew at this moment that I am
safe and well in England.
Good-bye. Do write soon and often as I shall.
Your very affectionate son,
SAML. F.B. MORSE.
Everything was new and interesting to the young artist, and his critical
observations on people and places, on manners and customs, are naive and
often very keen. The following are extracts from his diary:--
"As to the manners of the people it cannot be expected that I should form
a correct opinion of them since my intercourse with them has been so
short, but, from what little I have seen, I am induced to entertain a
very favorable opinion of their hospitality. The appearance of the women
as I met them in the streets struck me on account of the beauty of their
complexions. Their faces may be said to be handsome, but their figures
are very indifferent and their gait, in walking, is very bad.
"On Friday, the 9th of August, I went to the Mayor to get leave to go to
London. He gave me ten days to get there, and told me, if he found me in
Liverpool after that time, he should put me in prison, at which I could
not help smiling. His name is Drinkwater, but from the appearance of his
face I should judge it might be Drinkbrandy.
"On account of his limiting us to ten days we prepared to set out for
London immediately as we should be obliged to travel slowly.... Mr. and
Mrs. Allston and myself ordered a post-chaise, and at twelve o'clock we
set out for Manchester, intending to stay there the first night.... The
people, great numbers of whom we passed, had cheerful, healthy
countenances; they were neat in their dress and appeared perfectly
happy....
"Much has been said concerning the miserable state in which the lower
class of people live in England but especially in large manufacturing
cities. That they are so unhappy as some would think I conceive to be
erroneous. We are apt to suppose people are unhappy for the reason that,
were we taken from our present situation of independence and placed in
their situation of dependence, we should be unhappy; not considering that
contentment is the foundation of happiness. As far as my own observation
extends, and from what I can learn on inquiry, the lower class of people
generally are contented. N.B. I have altered my opinion since writing
this....
"Thus far on our journey we have had a very pleasant time. There is great
difference I find in the treatment of travellers. They are treated
according to the style in which they travel. If a man arrives at the door
of an inn in a stage-coach, he is suffered to alight without notice, and
it is taken for granted that common fare will answer for him. But if he
comes in a post-chaise, the whole inn is in an uproar; the whole house
come to the door, from the landlord down to boots. One holds his hand to
help you to alight, another is very officious in showing you to the
parlor, and another gets in the baggage, whilst the landlord and landlady
are quite in a bustle to know what the gentleman will please to have.
This attention, however, is very pleasant, you are sure to be waited upon
well and can have everything you will call for, and that of the nicest
kind. It is the custom in this country to hire no servants at inns. They,
on the contrary, pay for their places and the only wages they get is from
the generosity of travellers.
"This circumstance at first would strike a person unacquainted with the
customs of England as a very great imposition. I thought so, but, since I
have considered the subject better, I believe that there could not be a
wiser plan formed. It makes servants civil and obliging and always ready
to do anything; for, knowing that they depend altogether on the bounty of
travellers, they would fear to do anything which would in the least
offend them; and, as there is a customary price for each grade of
servants, a person who is travelling can as well calculate the expense of
his journey as though they were nothing of the kind."
"_London, August 15, 1811._ You see from the date that I have at length
arrived at the place of my destination. I have been in the city about
three hours, so you see what is my first object.... Mr. and Mrs. Allston
with myself took a post-chaise which, indeed, is much more expensive than
a stage-coach, but, on account of Mrs. Allston's health, which you know
was not very good when in Boston (although she is much benefited by her
voyage), we were obliged to travel slowly, and in this manner it has cost
us perhaps double the sum which it would have done had we come in a
stage-coach. But necessity obliged me to act as I have done. I found
myself in a land of strangers, liable to be cheated out of my teeth
almost, and, if I had gone to London without Mr. Allston, by waiting at a
boarding-house, totally unacquainted with any living creature, I should
probably have expended the difference by the time he had arrived.... I
trust you will not think it extravagant in me for doing as I have done,
for I assure you I shall endeavor to be as economical as possible.
"I also mentioned in my letter that I could scarcely expect to steer free
from imposition since none of my predecessors have been able to do it.
Since writing that letter I have found (in spite of all my care to the
contrary) my observation true. In going from the Liverpool Arms to Mr.
Woolsey's, which is over a mile, I was under the necessity of getting
into a hackney-coach. Upon asking what was to pay he told me a shilling.
I offered him half a guinea to change, which I knew to be good, having
taken it at the hank in New York.
"He tossed it into the air and caught it in his mouth very dexterously,
and, handing it to me back again, told me it was a bad one. I looked at
it and told him I was sure it was good, but, appealing to a gentleman who
was passing, I found it was bad. Of course I was obliged to give him
other money. When I got to my lodgings I related the circumstance to some
of my friends and they told me he had cheated me in this way: that it was
common for them to carry bad money about them in their mouths, and, when
this fellow had caught the good half-guinea in his mouth, he changed it
for a bad one. This is one of the thousand tricks they play every day. I
have likewise received eleven bad shillings on the road between Liverpool
and this place, and it is hardly to be wondered at, for the shilling
pieces here are just like old buttons without eyes, without the sign of
an impression on them, and one who is not accustomed to this sort of
money will never know the difference.
"I find, as mama used to tell me, that I must watch my very teeth or they
will cheat me out of them."
"_Friday, 16th, 1811._ This morning I called on Mr. Bromfield and
delivered my letters. He received me very cordially, enquired after you
particularly, and invited me to dine with him at 5 o'clock, which
invitation I accepted.... I find I have arrived in England at a very
critical state of affairs. If such a state continues much longer, England
must fall. American measures affect this country more than you can have
any idea of. The embargo, if it had continued six weeks longer, it is
said would have forced this country into any measures."
"_Saturday, 17th._ I have been unwell to-day in some degree, so that I
have not been able to go out all day. It was a return of the colic. I
sent my letter of introduction to Dr. Lettsom with a request that he
would call on me, which he did and prescribed a medicine which cured me
in an hour or two, and this evening I feel well enough to resume my
letter.
"Dr. Lettsom is a very singular man. He looks considerably like the print
you have of him. He is a moderate Quaker, but not precise and stiff like
the Quakers of Philadelphia. He is a very pleasant and sociable man and
withal very blunt in his address. He is a man of excellent information
and is considered among the greatest literary characters here. There is
one peculiarity, however, which he has in conversation, that of using the
verb in the third person singular with the pronoun in the first person
singular and plural, as instead of 'I show' or 'we show,' he says 'I
shows,' 'we shows,' etc., upon which peculiarity the famous Mr. Sheridan
made the following lines in ridicule of him:--
"If patients call, both one and all
I bleeds 'em and I sweats 'em,
And if they die, why what care I--
"I. LETTSOM.
"This is a liberty I suppose great men take with each other....
"Perhaps you may have been struck at the lateness of the hour set by Mr.
Bromfield for dinner [5 o'clock!], but that is considered quite early in
London. I will tell you the fashionable hours. A person to be genteel
must rise at twelve o'clock, breakfast at two, dine at six, and sup at
the same time, and go to bed about three o'clock the next morning. This
may appear extravagant, but it is actually practised by the greatest of
the fashionables of London....
"I think you will not complain of the shortness of this letter. I only
wish you now had it to relieve your minds from anxiety, for, while I am
writing, I can imagine mama wishing that she could hear of my arrival,
and thinking of thousands of accidents that may have befallen me, and _I
wish that in an instant I could communicate the information;_ but three
thousand miles are not passed over in an instant and we must wait four
long weeks before we can hear from each other."
(The italics are mine, for on the outside of this letter written by Morse
in pencil are the words:--
"A longing for the telegraph even in this letter.")
"There has a ghost made its appearance a few streets only from me which
has alarmed the whole city. It appears every night in the form of
shriekings and groanings. There are crowds at the house every night, and,
although they all hear the noises, none can discover from whence they
come. The family have quitted the house. I suppose 'tis only a hoax by
some rogue which will be brought out in time."
CHAPTER III
AUGUST 24, 1811--DECEMBER 1. 1811
Benjamin West.--George III.--Morse begins his studies.--Introduced to
West.--Enthusiasms.--Smuggling and lotteries.--English appreciation of
art.--Copley.--Friendliness of West.--Elgin marbles.--Cries of London.--
Custom in knocking.--Witnesses balloon ascension.--Crowds.--Vauxhall
Gardens.--St. Bartholomew's Fair.--Efforts to be economical.--Signs of
war.--Mails delayed.--Admitted to Royal Academy.--Disturbances, riots,
and murders.
At this time Benjamin West the American was President of the Royal
Academy and at the zenith of his power and fame. Young Morse, admitted at
once into the great man's intimacy through his connection with Washington
Allston and by letters of introduction, was dazzled and filled with
enthusiasm for the works of the master. He considered him one of the
greatest of painters, if not the greatest, of all times. The verdict of
posterity does not grant him quite so exalted a niche in the temple of
Fame, but his paintings have many solid merits and his friendship and
favor were a source of great inspiration to the young artist.
Mr. Prime in his biography of Morse relates this interesting anecdote:--
"During the war of American Independence, West, remaining true to his
native country, enjoyed the continued confidence of the King, and was
actually engaged upon his portrait when the Declaration of Independence
was handed to him. Mr. Morse received the facts from the lips of West
himself, and communicated them to me in these words:--
"'I called upon Mr. West at his house in Newman Street one morning, and
in conformity with the order given to his servant, Robert, always to
admit Mr. Leslie and myself, even if he was engaged in his private
studies, I was shown into his studio.
"'As I entered, a half-length portrait of George III stood before me upon
an easel, and Mr. West was sitting with back toward me copying from it
upon canvas. My name having been mentioned to him, he did not turn, but,
pointing with the pencil he had in his hand to the portrait from which he
was copying, he said:--
"'"Do you see that picture, Mr. Morse?"
"'"Yes sir!" I said; "I perceive it is the portrait of the King."
"'"Well," said Mr. West, "the King was sitting to me for that portrait
when the box containing the American Declaration of Independence was
handed to him."
"'"Indeed," I answered; "what appeared to be the emotions of the King?
what did he say?"
"'"Well, sir," said Mr. West, "he made a reply characteristic of the
goodness of his heart," or words to that effect. "'Well, if they can be
happier under the government they have chosen than under mine, I shall be
happy.'"'"
On August 24, 1811, Morse writes to his parents:--
"I have begun my studies, the first part of which is drawing. I am
drawing from the head of Demosthenes at present, to get accustomed to
handling black and white chalk. I shall then commence a drawing for the
purpose of trying to enter the Royal Academy. It is a much harder task to
enter now than when Mr. Allston was here, as they now require a pretty
accurate knowledge of anatomy before they suffer them to enter, and I
shall find the advantage of my anatomical lectures. I feel rather
encouraged from this circumstance, since the harder it is to gain
admittance, the greater honor it will be should I enter. I have likewise
begun a large landscape which, at a bold push, I intend for the
Exhibition, though I run the risk of being refused....
"I was introduced to Mr. West by Mr. Allston and likewise gave him your
letter. He was very glad to see me, and said he would render me every
assistance in his power."
"At the British Institution I saw his famous piece of Christ healing the
sick. He said to me: 'This is the piece I intended for America, but the
British would have it themselves; but I shall give America the better
one.' He has begun a copy, which I likewise saw, and there are several
alterations for the better, if it is possible to be better. A sight of
that piece is worth a voyage to England of itself. When it goes to
America, if you don't go to see it, I shall think you have not the least
taste for paintings."
"The encomiums which Mr. West has received on account of that piece have
given him new life, and some say he is at least ten years younger. He is
now likewise about another piece which will probably be superior to the
other. He favored me with a sight of the sketch, which he said he granted
to me because I was an American. He had not shown it to anybody else. Mr.
Allston was with me and told me afterwards that, however superior his
last piece was, this would far exceed it. The subject is Christ before
Pilate. It will contain about fifty or sixty figures the size of life."
"Mr. West is in his seventy-sixth year (I think), but, to see him, you
would suppose him only about five-and-forty. He is very active; a flight
of steps at the British Gallery he ran up as nimbly as I could.... I
walked through his gallery of paintings of his own productions; there
were upward of two hundred, consisting principally of the original
sketches of his large pieces. He has painted in all upwards of six
hundred pictures, which is more than any artist ever did with the
exception of Rubens the celebrated Dutch painter....
"I was surprised on entering the gallery of paintings in the British
Institution, at seeing eight or ten _ladies_ as well as gentlemen, with
their easels and palettes and oil colors, employed in copying some of the
pictures. You can see from this circumstance in what estimation the art
is held here, since ladies of distinction, without hesitation or reserve,
are willing to draw in public....
"By the way, I digress a little to inform you how I got my segars on
shore. When we first went ashore I filled my pockets and hat as full as I
could and left the rest in the top of my trunk intending to come and get
them immediately. I came back and took another pocket load and left about
eight or nine dozen on the top of my clothes. I went up into the city
again and forgot the remainder until it was too late either to take them
out or hide them under the clothes. So I waited trembling (for contraband
goods subject the whole trunk to seizure), but the custom-house officer,
being very good-natured and clever, saw them and took them up. I told him
they were only for my own smoking and there were so few that they were
not worth seizing. 'Oh,' says he, 'I shan't touch them; I won't know they
are here,' and then shut down the trunk again. As he smoked, I gave him a
couple of dozen for his kindness."
What a curious commentary on human nature it is that even the most pious,
up to our own time, can see no harm in smuggling and bribery. And, as
another instance of how the standards of right and wrong change with the
changing years, further on in this same letter to his strict and pious
parents young Morse says:--
"I have just received letters and papers from you by the Galen which has
arrived. I was glad to see American papers again. I see by them that the
lottery is done drawing. How has my ticket turned out? If the weight will
not be too great for one shipload, I wish you would send the money by the
next vessel."
The lottery was for the benefit of Harvard College.
"_September 3, 1811._ I have finished a drawing which I intended to offer
at the Academy for admission. Mr. Allston told me it would undoubtedly
admit me, as it was better than two thirds of those generally offered,
but advised me to draw another and remedy some defects in handling the
chalks (to which I am not at all accustomed), and he says I shall enter
with some eclat. I showed it to Mr. West and he told me it was an
extraordinary production, that I had talent, and only wanted knowledge of
the art to make a great painter."
In a letter to his friends, Mr. and Mrs. Jarvis, dated September 17,
1811, he says:--
"I was astonished to find such a difference in the encouragement of art
between this country and America. In America it seemed to lie neglected,
and only thought to be an employment suited to a lower class of people;
but here it is the constant subject of conversation, and the exhibitions
of the several painters are fashionable resorts. No person is esteemed
accomplished or well educated unless he possesses almost an enthusiastic
love for paintings. To possess a gallery of pictures is the pride of
every nobleman, and they seem to vie with each other in possessing the
most choice and most numerous collection.... I visited Mr. Copley a few
days since. He is very old and infirm. I think his age is upward of
seventy, nearly the age of Mr. West. His powers of mind have almost
entirely left him; his late paintings are miserable; it is really a
lamentable thing that a man should outlive his faculties. He has been a
first-rate painter, as you well know. I saw at his room some exquisite
pieces which he painted twenty or thirty years ago, but his paintings of
the last four or five years are very bad. He was very pleasant, however,
and agreeable in his manners.
"Mr. West I visit now and then. He is very liberal to me and gives me
every encouragement. He is a very friendly man; he talked with me like a
father and wished me to call and see him often and be intimate with him.
Age, instead of impairing his faculties, seems rather to have
strengthened them, as his last great piece testifies. He is soon coming
out with another which Mr. Allston thinks will far surpass even this
last. The subject is Christ before Pilate.
"I went last week to Burlington House in Piccadilly, about forty-five
minutes' walk, the residence of Lord Elgin, to see some of the ruins of
Athens. Lord Elgin has been at an immense expense in transporting the
great collection of splendid ruins, among them some of the original
statues of Phidias, the celebrated ancient sculptor. They are very much
mutilated, however, and impaired by time; still there was enough
remaining to show the inferiority of all subsequent sculpture. Even those
celebrated works, the Apollo Belvedere, Venus di Medicis, and the rest of
those noble statues, must yield to them....
"The cries of London, of which you have doubtless heard, are very
annoying to me, as indeed they are to all strangers. The noise of them is
constantly in one's ears from morning till midnight, and, with the
exception of one or two, they all appear to be the cries of distress. I
don't know how many times I have run to the window expecting to see some
poor creature in the agonies of death, but found, to my surprise, that it
was only an old woman crying 'Fardin' apples,' or something of the kind.
Hogarth's picture of the enraged musician will give you an excellent idea
of the noise I hear every day under my windows....
"There is a singular custom with respect to knocking at the doors of
houses here which is strictly adhered to. A servant belonging to the
house rings the bell only; a strange servant knocks once; a market man or
woman knocks once and rings; the penny post knocks twice; and a gentleman
or lady half a dozen quick knocks, or any number over two. A nobleman
generally knocks eight or ten tunes very loud.
"The accounts lately received from America look rather gloomy. They are
thought here to wear a more threatening aspect than they have heretofore
done. From my own observation and opportunity of hearing the opinion of
the people generally, they are extremely desirous of an amicable
adjustment of differences, and seem as much opposed to the idea of war as
the better part of the American people....
"In this letter you will perceive all the variety of feeling which
I have had for a fortnight past; sometimes in very low, sometimes in
very high spirits, and sometimes a balance of each; which latter, though
very desirable, I seldom have, but generally am at one extreme or the
other. I wrote this in the evenings of the last two weeks, and this
will account, and I hope apologize, for its great want of connection."
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