Professor Morse gave preference to Mr.
Vail's plan, and started for New York to get the fixtures, directing me to get the wire ready for use and arrange for setting the poles.
"At the end of a week Professor Morse returned from New York and came to the shop where I was at work, and said he wanted to provide the insulators for putting the wires on the poles upon the plan I had suggested; to which I responded: 'How is that, Professor; I thought you had decided to use Mr.Vail's plan ?' Professor Morse replied: 'Yes, I did so decide, and on my way to New York, where I went to order the fixtures, I stopped at Princeton and called on my old friend, Professor Henry, who inquired how I was getting along with my Telegraph.
"'I explained to him the failure of the insulation in the pipes, and stated that I had decided to place the wires on poles in the air.

He then inquired how I proposed to insulate the wires when they were attached to the poles.

I showed him the model I had of Mr.Vail's plan, and he said, "It will not do; you will meet the same difficulty you had in the pipes." I then explained to him your plan which he said would answer.'" However, before the enterprise had reached this point in March, 1844, many dark and discouraging days and weeks had to be passed, which we can partially follow by the following extracts from letters to his brother Sidney and others.

To his brother he writes on January 9, 1844:-- "I thank you for your kind and sympathizing letter, which, I assure you, helped to mitigate the acuteness of my mental sufferings from the then disastrous aspect of my whole enterprise.

God works by instrumentalities, and he has wonderfully thus far interposed in keeping evils that I feared in abeyance.