His health was good, his children and the families of his brothers were well and prosperous.

In the year 1846 his patent rights were extended for another period of years, and he was gradually accumulating a competence as the various lines in which he held stock began to declare dividends.

In addition to all this his fame had so increased that he was often alluded to in the papers as "the idol of the nation," and honorary degrees were conferred on him by various institutions both at home and abroad.

Of these the one that, perhaps, pleased him the most was the degree of LL.D.bestowed by his _alma mater_, Yale.

He alludes to it with pride in many of his letters to his brother Sidney, and once playfully suggests that it must mean "Lightning Line Doctor." One of the first letters which he received on his return to America was from Cambridge Livingston, dated December 20, 1845, and reads as follows:-- "The Trustees of the New York and Boston Magnetic Telegraph Association are getting up a certificate of stock, and are desirous of making it neat and appropriate.