Daguerre, and his enchanting sun-pictures. My letter containing an account of this visit, and these pictures, was the first announcement in this country of this splendid discovery.
"I may here add the singular sequel to this visit. On the succeeding day M. Daguerre paid me a visit to see the Telegraph and witness its operations. He seemed much gratified and remained with me perhaps two hours; two melancholy hours to him, as they afterwards proved; or while he was with me, his buildings, including his diorama, his studio, his laboratory, with all the beautiful pictures I had seen the day before, were consumed by fire. Fortunately for mankind, matter only was consumed, the soul and mind of the genius, and the process were still in existence."
On his return home, Professor Morse waited with impatience for the revelation of M. Daguerre's process, and no sooner was it published than he obtained a copy of the work containing it, and at once commenced taking Daguerreotype pictures. At first his goal was solely to furnish his studio with studies from nature; however, his experiments led him to believe that creating portraits by the process would be practical, and he was undoubtedly the first whose attempts were met with success. Interestingly enough, though, he thought at that time that it was necessary to place the sitters in a very strong light, so they were all taken with their eyes closed.
Others were experimenting at the same time, among them Mr. Wolcott and Prof. Draper; Mr. Morse, with his modest demeanor, thought that it would be difficult to say to whom the credit of the first Daguerreotype portrait is due. Many believe, though, that Professor Morse deserves the laurel wreath, as from him originated the first of our innumerable class of Daguerreotypists; and many of his pupils have carried the manipulation to very great perfection. In connection with this matter the Professor stated (in a private letter):
"If mine were the first, other experimenters soon made better results, and if there are any who dispute that I was first, I shall have no argument with them; for I was not so anxious to be the first to produce the result, as to produce it in any way. I esteem it but the natural carrying out of the wonderful discovery, and that the credit was, after all, due to Daguerre. I lay no claim to any improvements."
An American gentleman, @James M. @Wattles Esq., as early as 1828 (about the same date of M. Niepce's discovery) became attracted by the subject of photography, or as he termed it "Solar picture drawing," while taking landscape views by means of the camera-obscura. When we take into account all the circumstances connected with his experiments, the great disadvantages under which he labored, and his extreme youthfulness, we cannot help but feel amazed. Here was a mere boy, surrounded by the deepest forests, hundred of miles from the populous portion of our country, without the necessary materials or resources for procuring them; yet by the force of his natural genius he not only made a discovery, but he put it into practical use, as well. In essence, he accomplished what the most learned philosophers of @Europe, with every experimental apparatus and a profound knowledge of chemistry, spent years of toil to accomplish. But all discoveries need encouragement. How much more latent talent may still be there, untapped, because of the same reason that kept Mr. Wattles from publicly revealing his discoveries in the first place -- ridicule!
At the time when the idea of taking pictures permanently on paper by means of the camera-obscura first occurred to him, he was only sixteen years old and under the instructions of Mr. @Charles Le @Seuer, (a talented artist from Paris) at the New @Harmony school in @Indiana.
Drawing and painting were natural talents, and he was frequently employed by the professors to make landscape sketches in the manner mentioned. The beauty of the image of these landscapes produced on the paper in the camera-obscura, made him stop and admire them with all the ardor of a young artist, and he wished that, by some means, he could fix them there in all their beauty.
