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It was Dr. Leonard D. Gale, Professor of chemistry, living in the same building as Morse, who had instructed him how to make the coils for an electro-magnet; he also procured him the necessary wire, and lent him a proper galvanic battery. Morse made him afterwards his partner, and he, from 1846, held, until lately, a situation in the Patent Office.

When, at the end of August, 1887, amongst other news from Europe, there came in a German newspaper, the "Neue Würzburger Zeitung,"an account of the 80th June, about Steinheil's doings at Munich, which was translated into a New York paper on the 1st of September, there was, through Morse's influence, on the following day, an article printed, saying that the editors of newspapers in America, who copy such articles from European papers, do not seem to be aware, that the electric telegraph which now, as the wonder of the age, seems to have excited in Europe the attention of the scientific public, was an American discovery, and that Professor Morse had conceived it five years ago (1882) on his return from France to America. It was added: " that Morse had on board the ship made no secret of the general idea, but communicated it freely to his fellow passengers of all nations, who were on the ship."