SECOND AND THIRD ATTEMPTS TO LAY THE ATLANTIC CABLE—THE FAILURE IN THE MONTH OF JUNE—DESCRIPTION OF THE CABLE—THE VOYAGE OF THE NIAGARA—THE CONTINUITY—ALL RIGHT AGAIN—CHANGE FROM ONE COIL TO ANOTHER—THE KNIGHTS OF THE BLACK HAND—UNFAVORABLE SYMPTOMS—THE INSULATION BROKEN—THE THIRD OF AUGUST—AN ANXIOUS MOMENT—LAND DISCOVERED—TRINITY BAY—MR. FIELD VISITS THE TELEGRAPH STATION—THE OPERATORS TAKEN BY SURPRISE—LANDING OF THE CABLE—IMPRESSIVE CEREMONY—CAPTAIN HUDSON RETURNS THANKS TO HEAVEN—THE VOYAGE OF THE AGAMEMNON—THE QUEEN'S MESSAGE—THE SIXTEENTH OF AUGUST—DEEP-SEA TELEGRAPHING—THE EQUATOR AND THE CABLE.
The Atlantic Telegraph Company, undeterred by their failure to lay the cable in 1857, resolved to make another attempt in the summer of the following year, the American and English Governments again placing the Niagara and the Agamemnon at their disposal. It was decided, however, in order to lessen the chances of unfavorable weather, that the two vessels should proceed to mid-ocean, should there splice their respective ends of the wire, and that the Agamemnon should then steam to Valentia Harbor and the Niagara to Trinity Bay. They were each furnished with an ingenious contrivance for paying out the cable,—the invention of Mr. Everett, of the United States Navy. June was the month selected, and the ships departed upon their errand. They were absent much longer than was expected, in the event of a successful accomplishment of their purpose. When they returned to Queenstown, it was to tell of storm, disaster, and failure. Still undaunted, the Company again dispatched the ships. The Niagara and Agamemnon met in mid-ocean on the 28th of July: the splice was effected, and the task began. The Niagara had eight hundred and eighty-two miles to sail, and eleven hundred miles of cable; the Agamemnon, with the same quantity of cable, had but eight hundred and thirteen miles to sail. The Niagara had three hundred tons of coal, the Agamemnon five hundred. At one o'clock the wire began to reel over the stern of the Niagara, westward and homeward bound.
The following engraving will give a correct idea of the manner in which the cable is formed. The core, or conductor, is composed of seven copper wires wound tightly together.
1. Wire—eighteen strands, seven to an inch.
2. Six strands of yarn.
3. Gutta percha, three coats.
4. Conducting wires, seven in number.
5. Section of the cable, eleven-sixteenths of an inch in diameter.
The flexibility of this cable is so great that it may be tied in a knot round the arm without injury. Its weight is eighteen hundred and sixty pounds to the mile, and its strength such that six miles of it may be suspended vertically in water of that depth without breaking.
"The sea is smooth,"—we quote the extremely interesting journal of an eye-witness[3], writing upon the first day,—"the barometer well up; and, if we can only do for the next seven days as well as we have done since one o'clock, we shall be at Newfoundland by the 5th of August, and in New York some time between the 15th and 20th of the same month. But we have been somewhat too hasty in our calculations, for our ship has just slowed down, and the propeller has ceased working for the last ten minutes. There must be something wrong to cause this interruption. Let us take a look at the machine. The cable still goes out, which certainly would not be the case if it had parted. Ah! the continuity! That's it: there's where the difficulty lies; and, as the electricians are the only parties who can inform us on that point, we at once go in search of them. A visit to their office explains the whole matter. The continuity is not gone altogether, but is defective,—so defective that it is impossible to get a signal through the cable. Still, there is not 'dead earth' upon it, and all hope, therefore, is not lost. When dead earth, as it is termed, is on the conductor, then, indeed, the difficulty is beyond remedy; for it shows that the conductor must be broken and is thrown under the influence of terrestrial magnetism. But the continuity is not gone; and, although with darkening prospects, we are still safe while it remains, imperfect as it is. It would be absurd to say that the occurrence was not discouraging: it was painfully so; for the hopes of some of us had really begun to revive, and we were gaining confidence every hour. Now nothing could be done. We must wait until the continuity should return or take its final departure. And it did return, and with greater strength than ever. At ten minutes past nine p.m., the electrician on duty observed its failing, and at half-past eleven he had the gratifying intelligence for us that it was 'all right again.' The machinery was once more set in motion, the cable was soon going out at the rate of six miles an hour, and the electrical signals were passing between the ships as regularly as if nothing had occurred to interfere with or interrupt the continuity."
The change of the wire from the forward main-deck coil to that on the deck immediately below, on the third day, is thus described, the operation being a most delicate and perilous one:—"At least an hour before the change was made, the outer boundaries of the circle in which the cable lay was literally crowded with men; and never was greater interest manifested in any spectacle than that which they exhibited in the proceedings before them. There were serious doubts and misgivings as to the successful performance of this important part of the work; and these only served to increase the feeling of anxiety and suspense with which they silently and breathlessly await the critical moment. The last flake has been reached, and as turn after turn leaves the circle every eye is intently fixed on the cable. Now there are but thirty turns remaining; and, as the first of these is unwound, Mr. Everett, who has been in the circle during the last half-hour, gives the order to the engineer on duty to 'slow down.' In a few moments there is a perceptible diminution in the speed, which continues diminishing till it has reached the rate of about two miles an hour.
"'Look out now, men,' says Mr. Everett, in his usual quiet, self-possessed way. The men are as thoroughly wide-awake as they can be, and are waiting eagerly for the moment when they shall lift the bight, or bend, of the cable and deliver it out safely. One of the planks in the side of the cone has been loosened, and, just as they are about taking the cable in their hands, it is removed altogether; so that, as the last yard passes out of the now empty circle, the line commences paying out from the circle below, or the 'orlop' deck, as it is called. The men—who are no other than the coilers, or 'Knights of the Black Hand,' as they have not inappropriately been termed—have done their work well; and the applause with which they have been greeted by the crowd of admiring spectators is the most gratifying testimony they can receive of the fact. They have hardly passed the cable out of the circle before they are received with as enthusiastic a demonstration of approval as the rules of the navy will permit.