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Title: The Story of the Atlantic Telegraph
Author: Field, Henry M. (Henry Martyn), 1822-1907
Language: English
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THE STORY OF THE ATLANTIC TELEGRAPH
by
HENRY M. FIELD
* * * * *
DR. FIELD'S BOOKS OF TRAVEL.
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THE BARBARY COAST. Illustrated. Crown 8vo, $2.00.
GIBRALTAR. Illustrated. Small 4to, $2.00.
THE STORY OF THE ATLANTIC TELEGRAPH. Illustrated. 12mo, $1.50.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Cyrus W. Field.]
THE STORY OF THE ATLANTIC TELEGRAPH
by
HENRY M. FIELD
"Since the discovery of Columbus, nothing has been done in any degree
comparable to the vast enlargement which has thus been given to the
sphere of human activity."
--THE TIMES, August 6th, 1858.
New York
Charles Scribner's Sons
1898
Copyright, 1892, by
Henry M. Field.
Press of J. J. Little & Co.
Astor Place, New York
PREFACE
The recent death of Mr. Cyrus W. Field recalls attention to the great
enterprise with which his name will be forever associated. "The Atlantic
Telegraph," said the late Chief Justice Chase, "is the most wonderful
achievement of civilization, and entitles its author to a distinguished
rank among public benefactors. High upon that illustrious roll will his
name be placed, and there will it remain while oceans divide, and
telegraphs unite, mankind." The memory of such an achievement the world
should not let die. The story of its varied fortunes reads like a tale
of adventure. From the beginning it was a series of battles, fighting
against the elements and against the unbelief of men. This long struggle
the new generation may forget, profiting by the result, but thinking
little of the means by which it was attained. What toil of hand and
brain had gone before; what days and nights of watching and weariness;
how often hope deferred had made the heart sick: how year after year had
dragged on, and seen the end still afar off--all that is dimly
remembered, even by those who reap the fruits of victory. And yet in the
history of human achievements, it is necessary to trace these
beginnings step by step, if we would learn the lesson they teach, that
it is only out of heroic patience and perseverance that anything truly
great is born.
Twelve years of unceasing toil was the price the Atlantic Telegraph cost
its projector; and not years lighted up by the assurance of success, but
that were often darkened with despair: years in which he was restlessly
crossing and recrossing the ocean, only to find on either side, worse
than storms and tempests, an incredulity which sneered at every failure,
and derided the attempt as a delusion and a dream. Against such
discouragements nothing could prevail but that faith, or fanaticism,
which, believing the incredible, achieves the impossible. Such a tale,
apart from the results, is in itself a lesson and an inspiration.
In attempting to chronicle all this, the relation of the writer to the
prime mover has given him facilities for obtaining the materials of an
authentic history; but he trusts that it will not lead him to overstep
the limits of modesty. Standing by a new-made grave, he has no wish to
indulge in undue praise even of the beloved dead. Enough for him is it
to unroll the canvas on which the chief actor stands forth as the
conspicuous figure. But in a work of such magnitude there are many
actors, and there is glory enough for all; and it is a sacred duty to
the dead to recognize, as he did, what was due to the brave companions
in arms, who stood by him in disaster and defeat; who believed in him
even when his own countrymen doubted and despaired; and furnished anew
men and money and ships for the final conquest of the sea. If history
records that the enterprise of the Atlantic Telegraph owed its inception
to the faith and daring of an American, it will also record that all his
ardor and activity would have been of no avail but for the science and
seamanship, the capital and the undaunted courage, of England. But when
all these conditions were supplied, it is the testimony of Englishmen
themselves that his was the spirit within the wheels that made them
revolve; that it was his intense vitality that infused itself into a
great organization, and made the dream of science the reality of the
world. This is not to his honor alone: it is a matter of national pride;
and Americans may be pardoned if, in the year in which they celebrate
the discovery of the continent, they recall that it was one of their
countrymen whom the Great Commoner of England, John Bright, pronounced
"the Columbus of our time, who, after no less than forty voyages across
the Atlantic in pursuit of the great aim of his life, had at length by
his cable moored the New World close alongside the Old." How the miracle
was wrought, it is the design of these pages to tell.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I. Page 1
Discovery of the New World by Columbus. Relative Position
of the Two Hemispheres. Nearest Points--The Outlying
Islands, Ireland and Newfoundland. Shorter Route to Europe
suggested by Bishop Mullock. The Electric Telegraph Company
of Newfoundland. Project of Mr. F. N. Gisborne. Failure of
the Company
CHAPTER II. Page 15
Mr. Gisborne comes to New York. Is introduced to Cyrus W.
Field, who conceives the Idea of a Telegraph across the
Atlantic Ocean. Is it Practicable? Two Elements to be
mastered, the Sea and the Electric Current. Letters of
Lieutenant Maury and Professor Morse
CHAPTER III. Page 24
Mr. Field enlists Capitalists in the Enterprise. Commission
to Newfoundland to obtain a Charter. The New York,
Newfoundland, and London Telegraph Company
CHAPTER IV. Page 38
The Land-Line in Newfoundland. Four Hundred Miles of Road
to be built, a Work of Two Years. Attempt to lay a Cable
across the Gulf of St. Lawrence, in 1855, fails. A Second
Attempt, in 1856, is successful
CHAPTER V. Page 51
Deep-Sea Soundings by Lieutenant Berryman in the Dolphin in
1853, and the Arctic in 1856, and by Commander Dayman, of
the British Navy, in the Cyclops, in 1857. The Bed of the
Atlantic. The Telegraphic Plateau
CHAPTER VI. Page 69
Mr. Field in London. The English Engineers and
Electricians. Result of Experiments. The Atlantic Telegraph
Company organized. Applies to the Government for Aid.
Contract for a Cable
CHAPTER VII. Page 91
Mr. Field returns to America. Seeks Aid from the
Government. Opposition in Congress. Bill passed
CHAPTER VIII. Page 112
Return to England. The Niagara--Captain Hudson. The
Agamemnon. Expedition of 1857 sails from Ireland. Speech of
the Earl of Carlisle. The Cable broken
CHAPTER IX. Page 142
Preparations for an Expedition in 1858. Mr. Field is made
the General Manager of the Company. The Squadron assemble
at Plymouth, and put to Sea, June 10. New Method of laying
Cable, beginning in Mid-Ocean. The Agamemnon in Danger of
being Foundered. The Cable lost Three Times. The Ships
return to England. Meeting of the Directors. Shall they
abandon the Project? One Last Effort
CHAPTER X. Page 165
Second Expedition Successful. Cable landed in Ireland and
Newfoundland
CHAPTER XI. Page 188
Great Excitement in America. Celebration in New York and
other Cities
CHAPTER XII. Page 213
Sudden Stoppage of the Cable. Reaction of Public Feeling.
Suspicions of Bad Faith. Did the Cable ever work?
CHAPTER XIII. Page 229
Attempts to revive the Company. The Government asked for
Aid, but declines to give an Unconditional Guarantee.
Failure of the Red Sea Telegraph. Scientific Experiments.
Cables laid in the Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf.
Brief History of the next Five Years
CHAPTER XIV. Page 241
The Enterprise renewed. Improvement on the Old Cable. The
Great Eastern and Captain Anderson. Expedition of 1865.
Twelve Hundred Miles laid safely, when the Cable is broken
CHAPTER XV. Page 293
Formation of a New Company, the Anglo-American. New Cable
made and shipped on Board the Great Eastern
CHAPTER XVI. Page 306
The Expedition of 1866. Immense Preparations. Religious
Service at Valentia. Sailing of the Fleet. Diary of the
Voyage. Cable landed at Heart's Content
CHAPTER XVII. Page 347
Return to Mid-Ocean to search for the Cable lost the Year
before. Dragging in the Deep Sea. Repeated Failures. Cable
finally recovered and completed to Newfoundland
CHAPTER XVIII. Page 376
The Afterglow. Honors conferred in England and America.
Commercial Revolution wrought by the Cable. Mr. Field and
the Elevated Railroads in New York City. Tour round the
World. Last Years. Death in 1892
STORY OF THE ATLANTIC TELEGRAPH
CHAPTER I.
THE BARRIER OF THE SEA.
When Columbus sailed from the shores of Spain, it was not in search of a
New World, but only to find a nearer path to the East. He sought a
western passage to India. He had adopted a traditionary belief that the
earth was round; but he did not once dream of another continent than the
three which had been the ancient abodes of the human race--Europe, Asia,
and Africa. All the rest was the great deep. The Florentine sage
Toscanelli, from his knowledge of the world so far as then discovered,
had made a chart, on which the eastern coast of Asia was represented as
lying opposite to the western coast of both Europe and Africa. Accepting
this theory, Columbus reasoned that he could sail direct from Spain to
India. No intervening continent existed even in his imagination. Even
after he had crossed the Atlantic, and descried the green woods of San
Salvador rising out of the western seas, he thought he saw before him
one of the islands of the Asiatic coast. Cuba he believed was a part of
the mainland of India; Hayti was the Ophir of King Solomon; and when,
on a later voyage, he came to the broad mouth of the Orinoco, and saw it
pouring its mighty flood into the Atlantic, he rejoiced that he had
found the great river Gihon, which had its rise in the garden of Eden!
Even to the hour of his death, he remained ignorant of the real extent
of his magnificent discovery. It was reserved to later times to lift the
curtain fully from the world of waters; to reveal the true magnitude of
the globe; and to unite the distant hemispheres by ties such as the
great discoverer never knew.
It is hard to imagine the darkness and the terror which then hung over
the face of the deep. The ocean to the west was a Mare Tenebrosum--a Sea
of Darkness, into which only the boldest voyagers dared to venture.
Columbus was the most successful navigator of his time. He had made
voyages to the Western Islands, to Madeira and the Canaries, to Iceland
on the north, and to the Portuguese settlements in Africa. But when he
came to cross the sea, he had to grope his way almost blindly. But a few
rays of knowledge glimmered, like stars, on the pathless waters. When he
sailed on his voyage of discovery, he directed his course, first to the
Canaries, which was a sort of outstation for the navigators of those
times, as the last place at which they could take in supplies; and
beyond which they were venturing into unknown seas. Here he turned to
the west, though inclining southward toward the tropics (for even the
great discoverers of that day, in their search for new realms to
conquer, were not above the consideration of riches as well as honor,
and somehow associated gems and gold with torrid climes), and bore away
for India!
From this route taken by the great navigator, he crossed the ocean in
its widest part. Had he, instead, followed the track of the Northmen,
who crept around from Iceland to Greenland and Labrador; or had he
sailed straight to the Azores, and then borne away to the north-west, he
would much sooner have descried land from the mast-head. But steering in
darkness, he crossed the Atlantic where it is broadest _and deepest_;
where, as submarine explorers have since shown, it rolls over mountains,
lofty as the Alps and the Himalayas, which lie buried beneath the
surface of the deep. But farther north the two continents, so widely
sundered, incline toward each other, as if inviting that closer relation
and freer intercourse which the fulness of time was to bring.
As the island of Newfoundland is to stand in the foreground of our
story, we observe on the map its salient geographical position. It holds
the same relation to America that Ireland does to Europe. Stretching far
out into the Atlantic, it is the vanguard of the western continent, or
rather the signal-tower from which the New World may speak to the Old.
And yet, though large as England, and so near our coast, few Americans
ever see it, as it lies out of the track of European commerce. Our
ships, though they skirt the Banks of Newfoundland, pass to the south,
and get but occasional glimpses of the headlands. Even what is seen
gives the country rather an ill reputation. It has a rockbound coast,
around which hang perpetual fogs and mists, through which great icebergs
drift slowly down, like huge phantoms of the deep, gliding away to be
dissolved by the warm breath of the Gulf Stream: dangers that warn the
voyager away from such a sea and shore.
Sailing west from Cape Race, and making the circuit of the island as far
as the Straits of Belle Isle, one is often reminded of the most northern
peninsula of Europe. The rocky shores are indented with numerous bays,
reaching far up into the land, like the fiords along the coast of
Norway; while the large herds of Caribou deer, that are seen feeding on
the hills, might easily be mistaken for the flocks of reindeer that
browse on the pastures and drink of the mountain torrents of ancient
Scandinavia.
The interior of the island is little known. Not only is it uninhabited,
it is almost unexplored, a boundless waste of rock and moor, where vast
forests stretch out their unbroken solitudes, and the wild bird utters
its lonely cry. Bears and wolves roam on the mountains. Especially
common is the large and fierce black wolf; while of the smaller animals,
whose skins furnish material for the fur-trade, such as martins and
foxes, there is the greatest abundance. But from all pests of the
serpent tribe, Newfoundland is as free as Ireland, which was delivered
by the prayers of St. Patrick. There is not a snake or a frog or a toad
in the island!
Yet, even in this ruggedness of nature, there is a wild beauty, which
only needs to be "clothed upon" by the hand of man. Newfoundland, in
many of its features, is not unlike Scotland, even in its most desolate
portions, where the rocky surface of the country, covered with thick
moss, reminds the emigrant Scot of the heather on his native moors. In
the interior are lakes as long as Loch Lomond, and mountains as lofty as
Ben Lomond and Ben Nevis. There are passes as wild as the Vale of
Glencoe, where one might feel that he is in the heart of the Highlands,
while the roar of the torrents yet more vividly recalls the
Land of the brown heath and shaggy wood,
Land of the mountain and the flood.
Yet in all this there is nothing to repel human habitation. By the hand
of industry, these wild moors might be transformed into fruitful fields.
We think it a very cold country, where winter reigns over half the year,
as in Greenland; yet it is not so far north as Scotland, nor is its
climate more inhospitable. It only needs the same population, the same
hardy toil: and the same verdure would creep up its hill-sides, which
now makes green and beautiful the loneliest of Scottish glens.
But at present the country is a _terra incognita_. In the interior there
are no towns and no roads. As yet almost the whole wealth of the island
is drawn from the sea. Its chief trade is its fisheries, and the only
places of importance are a few small towns, chiefly on the eastern side,
which have grown up around the trading posts. Besides these, the only
settlements are the fishermen's huts scattered along the coast. Hence
the bishop of the island, when he would make his annual visit to his
scattered flock, is obliged to sail around his diocese in his yacht,
since even on horseback it would not be possible to make his way through
the dense forests to the remote parts of the island. This first
suggested the idea of cutting across the island a nearer way, not only
for internal intercourse, but for those who were passing to and fro on
the sea.
It was in one of these excursions around the coast that the good Bishop
Mullock, the head of the Roman Catholic Church in Newfoundland, when
visiting the western portion of his diocese, lying one day becalmed in
his yacht, in sight of Cape North, the extreme point of the province of
Cape Breton, bethought himself how his poor neglected island might be
benefited by being taken into the track of communication between Europe
and America. He saw how nature had provided an easy approach to the
mainland on the west. About sixty miles from Cape Ray stretched the long
island of Cape Breton, while, as a stepping-stone, the little island of
St. Paul's lay between. So much did it weigh upon his mind that, as soon
as he got back to St. John's, he wrote a letter to one of the papers on
the subject. As this was the first suggestion of a telegraph across
Newfoundland, his letter is here given in full:
_To the Editor of the Courier_:
Sir: I regret to find that, in every plan for transatlantic
communication, Halifax is always mentioned, and the natural
capabilities of Newfoundland entirely overlooked. This has been
deeply impressed on my mind by the communication I read in your
paper of Saturday last, regarding telegraphic communication
between England and Ireland, in which it is said that the
nearest telegraphic station on the American side is Halifax,
twenty-one hundred and fifty-five miles from the west of
Ireland. Now would it not be well to call the attention of
England and America to the extraordinary capabilities of St.
John's, as the nearest telegraphic point? It is an Atlantic
port, lying, I may say, in the track of the ocean steamers, and
by establishing it as the American telegraphic station, news
could be communicated to the whole American continent
forty-eight hours, _at least_, sooner than by any other route.
But how will this be accomplished? Just look at the map of
Newfoundland and Cape Breton. From St. John's to Cape Ray there
is no difficulty in establishing a line passing near Holy-Rood
along the neck of land connecting Trinity and Placentia Bays,
and thence in a direction due west to the Cape. You have then
about forty-one to forty-five miles of sea to St. Paul's
Island, with deep soundings of one hundred fathoms, so that the
electric cable will be perfectly safe from icebergs. Thence to
Cape North, in Cape Breton, is little more than twelve miles.
Thus it is not only practicable to bring America two days
nearer to Europe by this route, but should the telegraphic
communication between England and Ireland, sixty-two miles, be
realized, it presents not the least difficulty. Of course, we
in Newfoundland will have nothing to do with the erection,
working, and maintenance of the telegraph; but I suppose our
Government will give every facility to the company, either
English or American, who will undertake it, as it will be an
incalculable advantage to this country. I hope the day is not
far distant when St. John's will be the first link in the
electric chain which will unite the Old World and the New.
J. T. M.
St. John's, November 8, 1850.
This suggestion came at the right moment, since it quickened, if it did
not originate, the first attempt to link the island of Newfoundland with
the mainland of America. For about the same time, the attention of Mr.
Frederick N. Gisborne, a telegraph operator, was attracted to a similar
project. Being a man of great quickness of mind, he instantly saw the
importance of such a work, and took hold of it with enthusiasm. It might
easily occur to him without suggestion from any source. He had had much
experience in telegraphs, and was then engaged in constructing a
telegraph line in Nova Scotia. Whether, therefore, the idea was first
with him or with the bishop, is of little consequence. It might occur
at the same time to two intelligent minds, and show the sagacity of
both.
But having taken hold of this idea, Mr. Gisborne pursued it with
indomitable resolution. As the labors of this gentleman were most
important in the beginning of this work, it is a pleasure to recognize
his untiring zeal and energy. In assurance of this we could have no
higher authority than the following from the late Mr. E. M. Archibald,
who was at the time Attorney-General of Newfoundland, and afterwards for
many years British Consul at New York:
"It was during the winter of 1849-50, that Mr. Gisborne, who
had been, as an engineer, engaged in extending the electric
telegraph through Lower Canada and New Brunswick to Halifax,
Nova Scotia, conceived the project of a telegraph to connect
St. John's, the most easterly port of America, with the main
continent. The importance of the geographical position of
Newfoundland, in the event of a telegraph ever being carried
across the Atlantic, was about the same time promulgated by Dr.
Mullock, the Roman Catholic Bishop of Newfoundland, in a St.
John's newspaper.
"In the spring of the following year (1851), Mr. Gisborne
visited Newfoundland, appeared before the Legislature, then in
session, and explained the details of his plan, which was an
overland line from St. John's to Cape Ray, nearly four hundred
miles in length, and (the submarine cable between Dover and
Calais not having then been laid) a communication between Cape
Ray and Cape Breton by steamer and carrier-pigeons,
eventually, it was hoped, by a submarine cable across the Gulf
of St. Lawrence. The Legislature encouraged the project,
granted £500 sterling to enable Mr. Gisborne to make an
exploratory survey of the proposed line to Cape Ray, and passed
an act authorizing its construction, with certain privileges,
and the appointment of commissioners for the purpose of
carrying it out. Upon this, Mr. Gisborne, who was then the
chief officer of the Nova Scotia Telegraph Company, returned to
that province, resigned his situation, and devoted himself to
the project of the Newfoundland telegraph. Having organized a
local company for the purpose of constructing the first
telegraph line in the island, from St. John's to Carbonear, a
distance of sixty miles, he, on the fourth of September, set
out upon the arduous expedition of a survey of the proposed
line to Cape Ray, which occupied upward of three months, during
which time himself and his party suffered severe privations,
and narrowly escaped starvation, having to traverse the most
rugged and hitherto unexplored part of the island.[A] On his
return, having reported to the Legislature favorably of the
project, and furnished estimates of the cost, he determined to
proceed to New York, to obtain assistance to carry it out....
Mr. Gisborne returned to St. John's in the spring of 1852,
when, at his instance, an act, incorporating himself (his being
the only name mentioned in it) and such others as might become
shareholders in a company, to be called the Newfoundland
Electric Telegraph Company, was passed, granting an exclusive
right to erect telegraphs in Newfoundland for thirty years,
with certain concessions of land, by way of encouragement, to
be granted upon the completion of the telegraph from St. John's
to Cape Ray. Mr. Gisborne then returned to New York, where he
organized, under this charter, a company, of which Mr. Tebbets
and Mr. Holbrook[B] were prominent members, made his financial
arrangements with them, and proceeded to England to contract
for the cable from Cape Ray to Prince Edward Island, and from
thence to the mainland. Returning in the autumn, he proceeded
in a small steamer, in November of that year, 1852, to stretch
the first submarine cable, of any length, in America, across
the Northumberland Strait from Prince Edward Island to New
Brunswick, which cable, however, was shortly afterward broken,
and a new one was subsequently laid down by the New York,
Newfoundland, and London Telegraph Company. In the spring of
the following year, 1853, Mr. Gisborne set vigorously to work
to complete his favorite project of the line (which he intended
should be chiefly underground) from St. John's to Cape Ray. He
had constructed some thirty or forty miles of road, and was
proceeding with every prospect of success, when, most
unexpectedly, those of the company who were to furnish the
needful funds dishonored his bills, and brought his operations
to a sudden termination. He and the creditors of the company
were for several months buoyed up with promises of forthcoming
means from his New York allies, which promises were finally
entirely unfulfilled; and Gisborne, being the only ostensible
party, was sued and prosecuted on all sides, stripped of his
whole property, and himself arrested to answer the claims of
the creditors of the company. He cheerfully and honorably gave
up every thing he possessed, and did his utmost to relieve the
severe distress in which the poor laborers on the line had been
involved."
This is a testimony most honorable to the engineer who first led the way
through a pathless wilderness. But this Newfoundland scheme is not to be
confounded with that of the Atlantic Telegraph, which did not come into
existence until a year or two later. The latter was not at all included
in the former. Indeed, Mr. Gisborne himself says, in a letter referring
to his original project: "My plans were to run a subterranean line from
Cape Race to Cape Ray, fly carrier-pigeons and run boats across the
Straits of Northumberland to Cape Breton, and thence by overland lines
convey the news to New York." He adds however: "Meanwhile Mr. Brett's
experimental cable between Dover and Calais having proved successful, I
set forth in my report, [which appeared a year after his first
proposal], that 'carrier-pigeons and boats would be required only until
such time as the experiments then making in England with submarine
cables should warrant a similar attempt between Cape Ray and Cape
Breton.'" But nowhere in his report does he allude to the possibility of
ever spanning the mighty gulf of the Atlantic.
But several years after, when the temporary success of the Atlantic
Telegraph gave a name to everybody connected with it, he or his friends
seemed not unwilling to have it supposed that this was embraced in the
original scheme. When asked why he did not publish his large design to
the world, he answered: "Because I was looked upon as a wild visionary
by my friends, and pronounced a fool by my relatives for resigning a
lucrative government appointment in favor of such a laborious
speculation as the Newfoundland connection. Now had I coupled it at that
time with an Atlantic line, all confidence in the prior undertaking
would have been destroyed, and my object defeated." This may have been a
reason for not announcing such a project to the public, but not for
withholding it from his friends. A man can hardly lay claim to that
which he holds in such absolute reserve.
However, whether he ever entertained the _idea_ of such a project, is
not a matter of the slightest consequence to the public, nor even to his
own reputation. Ten years before Professor Morse had expressed, not a
dreamer's fancy, but a deliberate conviction, founded on scientific
experiments, that "a telegraphic communication might with certainty be
established across the Atlantic Ocean;" so that the idea was not
original with Mr. Gisborne, any more than with others who were eager to
appropriate it.
It is a part of the history of great enterprises, that the moment one
succeeds, a host spring up to claim the honor. Thus when, in 1858, the
Atlantic Telegraph seemed to be a success, the public, knowing well who
had borne the brunt and burden of the undertaking, awarded him the
praise which he so well deserved; but instantly there were other
Richmonds in the field. Those who had had no part in the labor, at least
claimed to have originated the idea! Of course, these many claims
destroy each other. But after all, to raise such a point at all is the
merest trifling. The question is not who first had the "idea," but who
took hold of the enterprise as a practical thing; who grappled with the
gigantic difficulties of the undertaking, and fought the battle through
to victory.
As to Mr. Gisborne, his activity in the beginning of the Newfoundland
telegraph is a matter of history. In that preliminary work, he bore an
honorable part, and acquired a title to respect, of which he cannot be
deprived. All honor to him for his enterprise, his courage, and his
perseverance!
But for the company of which he was the father, which he had got up with
so much toil, it lived but a few months, when it became involved in debt
some fifty thousand dollars, chiefly to laborers on the line, and ended
its existence by an ignominious failure. The concern was bankrupt, and
it was plain that, if the work was not to be finally abandoned, it must
be taken up by stronger hands.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] "On the fourth day of December, I accomplished the survey through
three hundred and fifty miles of wood and wilderness. It was an arduous
undertaking. My original party, consisting of six white men, were
exchanged for four Indians; of the latter party, two deserted, one died
a few days after my return, and the other, 'Joe Paul,' has ever since
proclaimed himself an ailing man."--_Letter of Mr. Gisborne._
[B] Horace B. Tebbets and Darius B. Holbrook.
CHAPTER II.
CAN THE OCEAN BE SPANNED?
Mr. Gisborne left Halifax and came to New York in January, 1854. Here he
took counsel with his friend Tebbets and others; but they could give him
no relief. It was while in this state of suspense that he met, at the
Astor House, Mr. Matthew D. Field, an engineer who had been engaged in
building railroads and suspension bridges at the South and West. Mr.
Field listened to his story with interest, and engaged to speak of it to
his brother, Cyrus W. Field,[A] a merchant of New York, who had retired
from business the year before, and had spent six months in travelling
over the mountains of South America, from which he had lately returned.
Accordingly, he introduced the subject, but found his brother
disinclined to embark in any new undertaking. Though still a young man,
his life had been for many years one of incessant devotion to business.
He had accumulated an ample fortune, and was not disposed to renew the
cares, the anxieties, and the fatigues of his former life. But listening
to the details of a scheme which had in it much to excite interest, and
which by its very difficulty stimulated the spirit of enterprise, he at
length consented to see Mr. Gisborne, and invited him to his house.
Accordingly he came, and spent an evening describing the route of his
proposed telegraph, and the points it was to connect. After he left, Mr.
Field took the globe which was standing in the library, and began to
turn it over. _It was while thus studying the globe that the idea first
occurred to him, that the telegraph might be carried further still, and
be made to span the Atlantic Ocean._ The idea was not original with him,
though he was to carry it out. It was indeed new _to him_; but it had
long been a matter of speculation with scientific minds, though their
theories had never attracted his attention. But once he had grasped the
idea, it took strong hold of his imagination. Had the Newfoundland
scheme stood alone, he would never have undertaken it. He cared little
about shortening communication with Europe by a day or two, by relays of
boats and carrier-pigeons. But it was the hope of further and grander
results that inspired him to enter on a work of which no man could
foresee the end.
An enterprise of such proportions, that would task to the utmost the
science and the engineering skill of the world, was not to be rashly
undertaken; and before giving a definite reply to Gisborne, Mr. Field
determined to apply to the highest authorities in his own country.
The project of an Atlantic telegraph involved two problems: Could a
cable be stretched across the ocean? and if it were, would it be good
for anything to convey messages? The first was a question of mechanical
difficulties, requiring a careful survey of the ocean itself, fathoming
its depth, finding out the character of its bottom, whether level, or
rough and volcanic; and all the obstacles that might be found in the
winds that agitate the surface above, or the mighty currents that sweep
through the waters below. The second problem was purely scientific,
involving questions as to the laws of electricity, not then fully
understood, and on which the boldest might feel that he was venturing on
uncertain ground.
Such were the two elements or forces of nature to be encountered--the
ocean and the electric current. Could they be controlled by any power of
man? The very proposal was enough to stagger the faith even of an
enthusiast. Who could lay a bridle on the neck of the sea? The attempt
seemed as idle as that of Xerxes to bind it with chains. Was it possible
to combat the fierceness of the winds and waves, and to stretch one long
line from continent to continent? And then, after the work was achieved,
would the lightning run along the ocean-bed from shore to shore? Such
were the questions which had puzzled many an anxious brain, and which
now troubled the one who was to undertake the work.
To get some light in his perplexity, Mr. Field, the very next morning
after his interview with Gisborne, wrote two letters, one to Lieutenant
Maury, then at the head of the National Observatory at Washington, on
the nautical difficulties of the undertaking, asking if the sea were
itself a barrier too great to be overcome; and the other to Professor
Morse, inquiring if it would be possible to telegraph over a distance so
great as that from Europe to America?
The mail soon brought an answer from Lieutenant Maury, which began:
"Singularly enough, just as I received your letter, I was closing one to
the Secretary of the Navy on the same subject." A copy of this he
inclosed to Mr. Field, and it is given here. It shows the conclusions at
which, even at that early day, scientific men were beginning to arrive:
"National Observatory,
Washington, February 22, 1854.
"Sir: The United States brig Dolphin, Lieutenant Commanding O.
H. Berryman, was employed last summer upon especial service
connected with the researches that are carried on at this
office concerning the winds and currents of the sea. Her
observations were confined principally to that part of the
ocean which the merchantmen, as they pass to and fro upon the
business of trade between Europe and the United States, use as
their great thoroughfare. Lieutenant Berryman availed himself
of this opportunity to carry along also a line of deep-sea
soundings, from the shores of Newfoundland to those of Ireland.
The result is highly interesting, in so far as the bottom of
the sea is concerned, upon the question of a submarine
telegraph across the Atlantic; and I therefore beg leave to
make it the subject of a special report.
"This line of deep-sea soundings seems to be decisive of the
question of the practicability of a submarine telegraph between
the two continents, _in so far as the bottom of the deep sea is
concerned_. From Newfoundland to Ireland, the distance between
the nearest points is about sixteen hundred miles;[B] and the
bottom of the sea between the two places is a plateau, which
seems to have been placed there especially for the purpose of
holding the wires of a submarine telegraph, and of keeping them
out of harm's way. It is neither too deep nor too shallow; yet
it is so deep that the wires but once landed, will remain for
ever beyond the reach of vessels' anchors, icebergs, and drifts
of any kind, and so shallow, that the wires may be readily
lodged upon the bottom. The depth of this plateau is quite
regular, gradually increasing from the shores of Newfoundland
to the depth of from fifteen hundred to two thousand fathoms,
as you approach the other side. The distance between Ireland
and Cape St. Charles, or Cape St. Lewis, in Labrador, is
somewhat less than the distance from any point of Ireland to
the nearest point of Newfoundland. But whether it would be
better to lead the wires from Newfoundland or Labrador is not
now the question; nor do I pretend to consider the question as
to the possibility of finding _a time calm enough, the sea
smooth enough, a wire long enough, a ship big enough_, to lay a
coil of wire sixteen hundred miles in length: though I have no
fear but that the enterprise and ingenuity of the age, whenever
called on with these problems, will be ready with a
satisfactory and practical solution of them.
"I simply address myself at this time to the question in so far
as _the bottom of the sea_ is concerned, and as far as that,
the greatest practical difficulties will, I apprehend, be found
after reaching soundings at either end of the line, and not in
the deep sea....
"A wire laid across from either of the above-named places on
this side will pass to the north of the Grand Banks, and rest
on that beautiful plateau to which I have alluded, where the
waters of the sea appear to be as quiet and as completely at
rest as at the bottom of a mill-pond. It is proper that the
reasons should be stated for the inference that there are no
perceptible currents, and no abrading agents at work at the
bottom of the sea upon this telegraphic plateau. I derive this
inference from a study of a physical fact, which I little
deemed, when I sought it, had any such bearings.
"Lieutenant Berryman brought up with Brooke's deep-sea sounding
apparatus specimens of the bottom from this plateau. I sent
them to Professor Bailey, of West Point, for examination under
his microscope. This he kindly gave, and that eminent
microscopist was quite as much surprised to find, as I was to
learn, that all those specimens of deep-sea soundings are
filled with microscopic shells; to use his own words, _not a
particle of sand or gravel exists in them_. These little
shells, therefore, suggest the fact that there are no currents
at the bottom of the sea whence they came; that Brooke's lead
found them where they were deposited in their burial-place
after having lived and died on the surface, and by gradually
sinking were lodged on the bottom. Had there been currents at
the bottom, these would have swept and abraded and mingled up
with these microscopic remains the _débris_ of the bottom of
the sea, such as ooze, sand, gravel, and other matter; but not
a particle of sand or gravel was found among them. Hence the
inference that these depths of the sea are not disturbed either
by waves or currents. Consequently, a telegraphic wire once
laid there, there it would remain, as completely beyond the
reach of accident as it would be if buried in air-tight cases.
Therefore, so far as the bottom of the deep sea between
Newfoundland, or the North Cape, at the mouth of the St.
Lawrence, and Ireland, is concerned, the practicability of a
submarine telegraph across the Atlantic is proved....
"In this view of the subject, and for the purpose of hastening
the completion of such a line, I take the liberty of suggesting
for your consideration the propriety of an offer from the
proper source, of a prize to the company through whose
telegraphic wire the first message shall be passed across the
Atlantic.
"I have the honor to be respectfully yours.
"M. F. Maury,
"Lieutenant United States Navy.
"Hon. J. C. Dobbin, Secretary of the Navy."
The reply of Professor Morse showed equal interest in the subject, in
proof of which he wrote that he would come down to New York to see Mr.
Field about it. A few days after he came, and saw Mr. Field at his
house. This was the beginning of an acquaintance which soon ripened into
friendship, and which henceforth united these gentlemen together in this
great achievement. Professor Morse, in conversation, entered at length
into the laws of electricity as applied to the business of telegraphing,
and concluded by declaring his entire faith in the undertaking as
practical; as one that might, could, and would, be achieved. Indeed,
this faith he had avowed years before. In a letter written as early as
August tenth, 1843, to John C. Spencer, then Secretary of the Treasury,
Professor Morse had detailed the results of certain experiments made in
the harbor of New York to show the power of electricity to communicate
at great distances, at the close of which he says--in words that now
seem prophetic:
"The practical inference from this law is, that a telegraphic
communication on the electro-magnetic plan may with certainty
be established across the Atlantic Ocean! Startling as this may
now seem, I am confident the time will come when this project
will be realized."
It was the good fortune of Mr. Field--at that time and ever since--to
have at hand an adviser in whose judgment he had implicit confidence.
This was his eldest brother, David Dudley Field. They lived side by side
on Gramercy Park, and were in daily communication. To the prudent
counsels, wise judgment and unfaltering courage of the elder brother,
the Atlantic Telegraph is more indebted than the world will ever know,
for its first impulse and for the spirit which sustained it through long
years of discouragement and disaster, when its friends were few. To
this, his nearest and best counsellor, Mr. Field opened the project
which had taken possession of his mind; and being strengthened by that
maturer judgment, he finally resolved that, if he could get a sufficient
number of capitalists to join him, he would embark in an enterprise
which, beginning with the line to Newfoundland, involved in the end
nothing less than an attempt to link this New World which Columbus had
discovered, to that Old World which had been for ages the home of empire
and of civilization. How the scheme advanced through the next twelve
years, it will be our province to relate.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] Born November 30, 1819, in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, the son of a
Congregational minister, of whom three sons are still living: Mr. David
Dudley Field, of New York; Mr. Justice Stephen J. Field, of the Supreme
Court of the United States; and the writer of the present volume.
[B] From Cape Freels, Newfoundland, to Erris Head, Ireland, the distance
is sixteen hundred and eleven miles; from Cape Charles, or Cape St.
Lewis, Labrador, to the same point, the distance is sixteen hundred and
one miles.
CHAPTER III.
THE COMPANY ORGANIZED.
And so the young New York merchant set out to carry a telegraph across
the Atlantic Ocean! The design had in it at least the merit of audacity.
But whether the end was to be sublime or ridiculous time alone could
tell. Certain it is that when his sanguine temper and youthful blood
stirred him up to take hold of such an enterprise, he little dreamed of
what it would involve. He thought lightly of a few thousands risked in
an uncertain venture; but never imagined that he might yet be drawn on
to stake upon its success the whole fortune he had accumulated; that he
was to sacrifice all the peace and quiet he had hoped to enjoy; and that
for twelve years he was to be almost without a home, crossing and
re-crossing the sea, urging his enterprise in Europe and America. But so
it is, that the Being who designs great things for human welfare, and
would accomplish them by human instruments, does not lift at once the
curtain from the stern realities they are to meet, nor reveal the
rugged ascents they are to climb; so that it is only when at last the
heights are attained, and they look backward, that they realize through
what they have passed.
But could he find anybody to join him in his bold undertaking? Starving
adventurers there always are, ready to embark in any Quixotic attempt,
since they have nothing to lose. But would men of sense and of
character; men who had fortunes to keep, and the habit which business
gives of looking calmly and suspiciously at probabilities; be found to
put capital in an enterprise where, if it failed, they would find their
money literally at the bottom of the sea? It seemed doubtful, but he
would try. His plan was, if possible, to enlist ten capitalists, all
gentlemen of wealth, who together could lift a pretty heavy load; who,
if need were, could easily raise a million of dollars, to carry out any
undertaking.
The first man whom he addressed was his next-door neighbor, Mr. Peter
Cooper, in whom he found the indisposition which a man of large
fortune--now well advanced in life--would naturally feel to embark in
new enterprises. The reluctance in this case was not so much to the
risking of capital, as to having his mind occupied with the care which
it would impose. These objections slowly yielded to other
considerations. As they talked it over, the large heart of Mr. Cooper
began to see that, if it were possible to accomplish such a work, it
would be a great public benefit. This consideration prevailed, and what
would not have been undertaken as a private speculation, was yielded to
public interest. The conference ended by a conditional agreement to
engage in it, if several others did, and, as we shall see, when the
Company was organized, he became its President.
The early accession of this gentleman gave strength to the new
enterprise. In all the million inhabitants of the city of New York there
was not a name which was better known, or more justly held in honor,
than that of Peter Cooper. A native of the city, where he had passed his
whole life, he had seen its growth, from the small town it was after the
War of the Revolution, and had himself grown with it. Beginning with
very small means and limited opportunities, he had become one of its
great capitalists. Many who thus rise to wealth, in the process of
accumulation, form penurious habits which cling to them, and to the end
of their days it is the chief object of life to hoard and to keep. But
Mr. Cooper, while acquiring the fortune, had also the heart of a prince;
and used his wealth with a noble generosity. In the centre of New York
stands to-day a massive building, erected at a cost of nearly a million
of dollars, and consecrated "To Science and Art." This was Mr. Cooper's
gift to his native city. Remembering his own limited advantages of
education, he desired that the young men of New York, the apprentices
and mechanics, should have better opportunities than he had enjoyed. For
this he endowed courses of lectures on the natural sciences; he opened
the largest reading-room in America, which furnishes a pleasant resort
to thousands of readers daily; while to help the other sex, he added a
School of Design for Women, which trains hundreds to be teachers, and
some of them artists; who go forth into the world to earn an honest
living, and to bless the memory of their generous benefactor. This noble
institution, standing in the heart of the city, is his enduring
monument.
Yet while doing so much for the public, those who saw Peter Cooper in
his family knew how he retained the simple habits of early life--how,
while giving hundreds of thousands to others, he cared to spend little
on himself; how he remained the same modest, kindly old man; the pure,
the generous, and the good. His was
"The good gray head that all men knew,"
and that was sadly missed when, nearly thirty years after, in 1883, at
the age of ninety-two, he was borne to his grave. It is a pleasant
remembrance that the beginning of this enterprise was connected with
that honored name.
Mr. Field next addressed himself to Mr. Moses Taylor, a well-known
capitalist of New York, engaged in extensive business reaching to
different parts of the world, and whose daily observation of all sorts
of enterprises, both sound and visionary, made him perhaps a severer
judge of any new scheme. With this gentleman he had then no personal
acquaintance, but sent a note of introduction from his brother, David
Dudley Field, with a line requesting an interview, to which Mr. Taylor
replied by an invitation to his house on an evening when he should be
disengaged. As these two gentlemen afterwards became very intimately
associated, they often recurred to their first interview. Said Mr.
Field: "I shall never forget how Mr. Taylor received me. He fixed on me
his keen eye, as if he would look through me: and then, sitting down, he
listened to me for nearly an hour without saying a word." This was
rather an ominous beginning. However, his quick mind soon saw the
possibilities of the enterprise, and the evening ended by an
agreement--conditional, like Mr. Cooper's--to enter into it.
Mr. Taylor, being thus enlisted, brought in his friend, Mr. Marshall O.
Roberts--a man whose career has been too remarkable to be passed without
notice. A native of the City of New York, (though his father was a
physician from Wales, who came to this country early in this century,)
he found himself, when a boy of eight years, an orphan, without a friend
in the world. From that time he made his way purely by his own industry
and indomitable will. At the age of twenty he was embarked in business
for himself, and his history soon became a succession of great
enterprises. If we were to relate some of the incidents connected with
his rise of fortune, they would sound more like romance than reality. He
was the first to project those floating palaces which now ply the waters
of the Hudson and the great lakes. He was one of the early promoters of
the Erie Railroad. When the discovery of gold in California turned the
tide of emigration to that coast, he started the line of steamers to the
Isthmus of Panama, and controlled largely the commerce with the Pacific.
Thus his hand was felt, giving impulse to many different enterprises on
land and sea. His whole course was marked by a spirit of commercial
daring, which men called rashness, until they saw its success, and then
applauded as marvellous sagacity.
Mr. Field next wrote to Mr. Chandler White, a personal friend of many
years' standing, who had retired from business, and was living a few
miles below the city, near Fort Hamilton, at one of those beautiful
points of view which command the whole harbor of New York. He too was
very slow to yield to argument or persuasion. Why should he--when he had
cast anchor in this peaceful spot--again embark in the cares of
business, and, worst of all, in an enterprise the scene of which was far
distant, and the results very uncertain? But enthusiasm is always
magnetic, and the glowing descriptions of his persuader at length
prevailed.[A]
There were now five gentlemen enlisted; and Mr. Field was about to apply
to others, to make up his proposed number, when Mr. Cooper came to ask
why _five_ would not do as well as _ten_? The question was no sooner
asked than answered. To this all agreed, and at once fixed an evening
when they should meet at Mr. Field's house to hear his statements and to
examine the charter of the old company, find out what it had done, and
what it proposed to do, what property it had and what debts it owed; and
decide whether the enterprise offered sufficient inducements to embark
in it. Accordingly they met, and for four nights in succession discussed
the subject. It was in the dining-room of Mr. Field's house, and the
large table was spread with maps of the route to be traversed by the
line of telegraph, and with plans and estimates of the work to be done,
the cost of doing it, and the return which they might hope in the end to
realize for their labor and their capital. The result was an agreement
on the part of all to enter on the undertaking, if the Government of
Newfoundland would grant a new charter conceding more favorable terms.
To secure this it was important to send at once a commission to
Newfoundland. Neither Mr. Cooper, Mr. Taylor, nor Mr. Roberts could go;
and it devolved on Mr. Field to make the first voyage on this business,
as it did to make many voyages afterwards to Newfoundland, and still
more across the Atlantic. But not wishing to take the whole
responsibility, he was accompanied at his earnest request by Mr. White,
and by Mr. D. D. Field, whose counsel, as he was to be the legal adviser
of the Company, was all-important in the framing of the new charter that
was to secure its rights. The latter thus describes this first
expedition:
"The agreement with the Electric Telegraph Company, and the
formal surrender of its charter, were signed on the tenth of
March, [1854,] and on the fourteenth we left New York,
accompanied by Mr. Gisborne. The next morning we took the
steamer at Boston for Halifax, and thence, on the night of the
eighteenth, departed in the little steamer Merlin for St.
John's, Newfoundland. Three more disagreeable days, voyagers
scarcely ever passed, than we spent in that smallest of
steamers. It seemed as if all the storms of winter had been
reserved for the first month of spring. A frost-bound coast, an
icy sea, rain, hail, snow and tempest, were the greetings of
the telegraph adventurers in their first movement toward
Europe. In the darkest night, through which no man could see
the ship's length, with snow filling the air and flying into
the eyes of the sailors, with ice in the water, and a heavy sea
rolling and moaning about us, the captain felt his way around
Cape Race with his lead, as the blind man feels his way with
his staff, but as confidently and as safely as if the sky had
been clear and the sea calm; and the light of morning dawned
upon deck and mast and spar, coated with glittering ice, but
floating securely between the mountains which form the gates of
the harbor of St. John's. In that busy and hospitable town, the
first person to whom we were introduced was Mr. Edward M.
Archibald, then Attorney-General of the Colony, and now British
Consul in New York. He entered warmly into our views, and from
that day to this, has been an efficient and consistent
supporter of the undertaking. By him we were introduced to the
Governor, (Kerr Bailey Hamilton,) who also took an earnest
interest in our plans. He convoked the Council to receive us,
and hear an explanation of our views and wishes. In a few hours
after the conference, the answer of the Governor and Council
was received, consenting to recommend to the Assembly a
guarantee of the interest of £50,000 of bonds, an immediate
grant of fifty square miles of land, a further grant to the
same extent on the completion of the telegraph across the
ocean, and a payment of £5,000 toward the construction of a
bridle-path across the island, along the line of the land
telegraph."
This was a hopeful beginning; and, though the charter was not yet
obtained, feeling assured by this official encouragement, and the public
interest in the project, that it would be granted by the colony, Mr.
Field remained in St. John's but three days, when he took the Merlin
back to Halifax on his way to New York, there to purchase and send down
a steamer for the service of the Company, leaving his associates to
secure the charter and to carry out the arrangements with the former
company. To settle all these details was necessarily a work of time.
First, the charter of the old Electric Telegraph Company had to be
repealed, to clear the way for a new charter to the Company, which was
to bear the more comprehensive title of "New York, Newfoundland, _and
London_." This charter--which had been drawn with the greatest care by
the counsel of the Company, while on the voyage to Newfoundland--bore on
its very front the declaration that the plans of the new Company were
much broader than those of the old. In the former charter, the design
was thus set forth:
"The telegraph line of this company is designed to be strictly
an 'Inter-Continental Telegraph.' Its termini will be New York,
in the United States, and London, in the kingdom of Great
Britain; these points are to be connected by a line of electric
telegraph from New York to St. John's, Newfoundland, partly on
poles, partly laid in the ground, and partly through the water,
_and a line of the swiftest steamships ever built from that
point to Ireland_. The trips of these steamships, it is
expected, will not exceed five days, and as very little time
will be occupied in transmitting messages between St. John's
and New York, the communication between the latter city and
London or Liverpool, will be effected _in six days_, or less.
The company will have likewise stationed at St. John's a steam
yacht, for the purpose of intercepting the European and
American steamships, so that no opportunity may be lost in
forwarding intelligence in advance of the ordinary channels of
communication."
But the charter of the New York, Newfoundland, and London Telegraph
Company, which was now to be obtained, began by declaring, in its very
first sentence: "Whereas it is deemed advisable to establish a line of
telegraphic communication between America and Europe by way of
Newfoundland." Not a word is said of fast ships, of communications in
less than six days, but every thing points to a line across the ocean.
Thus one section gives authority to establish a submarine telegraph
across the ocean, from Newfoundland to Ireland; another section
prohibits any other company or person from touching the coast of
Newfoundland or its dependencies [which includes Labrador] with a
telegraphic cable or wire, from any point whatever, for fifty years; and
a third section grants the Company fifty square miles of land upon the
completion of the submarine line across the Atlantic.
In other respects the charter was equally liberal. It incorporated the
associates for fifty years, established perfect equality, in respect to
corporators and officers, between citizens of the United States and
British subjects, and allowed the meetings of the stockholders and
directors to be held in New York, in Newfoundland, or in London.
To obtain such concessions was a work of some difficulty and delay. The
Legislature of the province were naturally anxious to scan carefully
conditions that were to bind them and their children for half a century.
I have now before me the papers of St. John's of that day, containing
the discussions in the Legislature; and while all testify to the deep
public interest in the project, they show a due care for the interests
of their own colony, which they were bound to protect. At length all
difficulties were removed, and the charter was passed unanimously by the
Assembly, and confirmed by the Council.
This happy result was duly celebrated, in the manner which all
Englishmen approve, by a grand dinner given by the commissioners of the
new Company, to the members of the Assembly and other dignitaries of the
colony, at which there were eloquent prophecies of the good time coming,
showing how heartily the enterprise was welcomed by all classes; and how
fond were the anticipations of the increased intercourse it would bring,
and the manifold benefits it would confer on their long-neglected
island.
No sooner were the papers signed, than the wheels, so long blocked, were
unloosed, and the machinery began to move. Mr. White at once drew on New
York for fifty thousand dollars, and paid off all the debts of the old
company. A St. John's newspaper of April 8th, 1854, amid a great deal on
the subject, contains this paragraph, which is very significant of the
dead state of the old company, and of the life of the new:
"The office of the new Electric Telegraph Company has been
surrounded the last two or three days by the men who had been
engaged the last year on the line, and who are being paid all
debts, dues, and demands against the old association. We look
upon the readiness with which these claims are liquidated as a
substantial indication on the part of the new Company that they
will complete to the letter all that they have declared to
accomplish in this important undertaking."
In the early part of May, the two gentlemen who had remained behind in
Newfoundland rejoined their associates in New York, and there the
charter was formally accepted and the Company organized. As all the
associates had not arrived till Saturday evening, the 6th of May, and as
one of them was to leave town on Monday morning, it was agreed that they
should meet for organization at six o'clock of that day. At that hour
they came to the house of Mr. Field's brother Dudley, and as the first
rays of the morning sun streamed into the windows, the formal
organization took place. The charter was accepted, the stock subscribed,
and the officers chosen. Mr. Cooper, Mr. Taylor, Mr. Field, Mr. Roberts,
and Mr. White were the first directors. Mr. Cooper was chosen President,
Mr. White, Vice-President, and Mr. Taylor, Treasurer.
This is a short story, and soon told. It seemed a light affair, for
half a dozen men to meet in the early morning and toss off such a
business before breakfast. But what a work was that to which they thus
put their hands! A capital of a million and a half of dollars was
subscribed in those few minutes, and a company put in operation that was
to carry a line of telegraph to St. John's, more than a thousand miles
from New York, and then to span the wild sea. Well was it that they who
undertook the work did not then fully realize its magnitude, or they
would have shrunk from the attempt. Well was it for them that the veil
was not lifted, which shut from their eyes the long delay, the immense
toil, and the heavy burdens of many wearisome years. Such a prospect
might have chilled the most sanguine spirit. But a kind Providence gives
men strength for their day, imposes burdens as they are able to bear
them, and thus leads them on to greater achievements than they knew.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] Although it is anticipating a year in time, I cannot resist the
pleasure of adding here the name of another eminent merchant, who
afterward joined this little Company, Mr. Wilson G. Hunt. Mr. Hunt is
one of the old merchants of New York who, through his whole career, has
maintained the highest reputation for commercial integrity, and whose
fortune is the reward of a long life of honorable industry. He joined
the Company in 1855, and was a strong and steady friend through all its
troubles till the final success.
CHAPTER IV.
CROSSING NEWFOUNDLAND.
There is nothing in the world easier than to build a line of railroad,
or of telegraph, _on paper_. You have only to take the map, and mark the
points to be connected, and then with a single sweep of the pencil to
draw the line along which the iron track is to run. In this airy flight
of the imagination, distances are nothing. A thousand leagues vanish at
a stroke. All obstacles disappear. The valleys are exalted, and the
hills are made low, soaring arches span the mountain streams, and the
chasms are leaped in safety by the fire-drawn cars.
Very different is it to construct a line of railroad or of telegraph in
reality; to come with an army of laborers, with axes on their shoulders
to cut down the forests, and with spades in their hands to cast up the
highway. Then poetry sinks to prose, and instead of flying over the
space on wings, one must traverse it on foot, slowly and with painful
steps. Nature asserts her power; and, as if resentful of the disdain
with which man in his pride affected to leap over her, she piles up new
barriers in his way. The mountains with their rugged sides cannot be
moved out of their place, the rocks must be cleft in twain, to open a
passage for the conqueror, before he can begin his triumphal march. The
woods thicken into an impassable jungle; and the morass sinks deeper,
threatening to swallow up the horse and his rider; until the rash
projector is startled at his own audacity. Then it becomes a contest of
forces between man and nature, in which, if he would be victorious, he
must fight his way. The barriers of nature cannot be lightly pushed
aside, but must yield at last only to time and toil, and "man's
unconquerable will."
Seldom have all these obstacles been combined in a more formidable
manner to obstruct any public work, than against the attempt to build a
telegraph line across the island of Newfoundland. The distance, by the
route to be traversed, was over four hundred miles, and the country was
a wilderness, an utter desolation. Yet through such a country, over
mountain and moor, through tangled brake and rocky gorge, over rivers
and through morasses, they were to build a road--not merely a line of
telegraph stuck on poles, but "a good and traversable bridle-road, eight
feet wide, with bridges of the same width," from end to end of the
island.
But nothing daunted, the new Company undertook the great work with
spirit and resolution. Gisborne had made a beginning, and got some
thirty or forty miles out of St. John's. This was the easiest part of
the whole route, being in the most inhabited region of the island. But
here he broke down, just where it was necessary to leave civilization
behind, and to plunge into the wilderness.
Intending to resume the work on a much larger scale, Mr. White, the
Vice-President, was sent down to St. John's to be the General Agent of
the Company; while Mr. Matthew D. Field, as a practical engineer, was to
have charge of the construction of the line. The latter soon organized a
force of six hundred men, which he pushed forward in detachments to the
scene of operations.
And now began to appear still more the difficulties of the way. To
provide subsistence for man and beast, it was necessary to keep near the
coast, for all supplies had to be sent round by sea. Yet in following
the coast line, they had to wind around bays, or to climb over
headlands. If they struck into the interior, they had to cut their way
through the dense and tangled wood. There was not a path to guide them,
not even an Indian trail. When lost in the forest, they had to follow
the compass, as much as the mariner at sea.
To keep such a force in the field, that, like an army, produced nothing,
but consumed fearfully, required constant attention to the commissary
department. The little steamer Victoria, which belonged to the Company,
was kept plying along the coast, carrying barrels of pork and potatoes,
kegs of powder, pickaxes and spades and shovels, and all the implements
of labor. These were taken up to the heads of the bays, and thence
carried, chiefly on men's backs, over the hills to the line of the road.
In many respects, it had the features of a military expedition. It moved
forward in a great camp. The men were sheltered in tents, when sheltered
at all, or in small huts which they built along the road. But more often
they slept on the ground. It was a wild and picturesque sight to come
upon their camp in the woods, to see their fires blazing at night while
hundreds of stalwart sleepers lay stretched on the ground. Sometimes,
when encamped on the hills, they could be seen afar off at sea. It made
a pretty picture then. But the hardy pioneers thought little of the
figure they were making, when they were exposed to the fury of the
elements. Often the rain fell in torrents, and the men, crouching under
their slight shelter, listened sadly to the sighing of the wind among
the trees, answered by the desolate moaning of the sea.
Yet in spite of all obstacles, the work went on. All through the long
days of summer, and through the months of autumn, every cove and creek
along that southern coast heard the plashing of their oars, and the
steady stroke of their axes resounded through the forest.
But as the season advanced, all these difficulties increased. For
nearly half the year, the island is buried in snow. Blinding drifts
sweep over the moors, and choke up the paths of the forest. How at such
times the expedition lay floundering in the woods, still struggling to
force its way onward; what hardships and sufferings the men endured--all
this is a chapter in the History of the Telegraph which has not been
written, and which can never be fully told. The
Gentlemen of England,
Who dwell at home at ease,
and who are justly proud of the extent of their dominions, and the life
and power which pervade the whole, may here find another example of the
way in which great works are borne forward in distant parts of their
empire.
But to carry out such an enterprise, requires head-work as well as
hand-work. Engineering in the field must be supported by financiering at
home. It was here the former enterprise broke down, and now it needed
constant watching to keep the wheels in steady motion. The directors in
New York found the demand increasing day by day. The minds which had
grasped the large design must now descend to an infinity of detail. They
had to keep an army of men at work, at a point a thousand miles away,
far beyond their immediate oversight. Drafts for money came thick and
fast. To provide for all these required constant attention. How
faithfully they gave to this enterprise, not only their money, but their
time and thought, few will know; but those who have seen can testify. In
the autumn of that year, 1854, the writer removed to the city of New
York, and was almost daily at the house of Mr. Field. Yet for months it
was hardly possible to go there of an evening without finding the
library occupied by the Company. Indeed, so uniformly was this the case,
that "The Telegraph" began to be regarded by the family as an unwelcome
intruder, since it put an interdict on the former social evenings and
quiet domestic enjoyment. The circumstance shows the ceaseless care on
the part of the directors which the enterprise involved. As a witness of
their incessant labor, it is due to them to bear this testimony to their
patience and their fidelity.
When they began the work, they hoped to carry the line across
Newfoundland in one year, completing it in the summer of 1855. In
anticipation of this, Mr. Field was sent by the Company to England at
the close of 1854, to order a cable to span the Gulf of St. Lawrence, to
connect Cape Ray with the island of Cape Breton. This was his first
voyage across the ocean on the business of the Telegraph--to be followed
by more than forty others. In London he met for the first time Mr. John
W. Brett, with whom he was to be afterward connected in the larger
enterprise of the Atlantic Telegraph. Mr. Brett was the father of
submarine telegraphy in Europe, though in carrying out his first
projects he was largely indebted to Mr. Crampton, a well-known engineer
of London, who aided him both with advice and capital. With this
invaluable assistance, he had stretched two lines across the British
channel. From his success in passing these waters, he believed a line
might yet be stretched from continent to continent. The scientific men
of England were not generally educated up to that point. The bare
suggestion was received with a smile of incredulity.[A] But Mr. Brett
had faith, even at that early day, and entered heartily into the schemes
of Mr. Field. To show his interest, he afterward took a few shares in
the Newfoundland line--the only Englishman who had any part in this
preliminary work.
The summer came, and the work in Newfoundland, though not complete, was
advancing; and the cable in England was finished and shipped on board
the bark Sarah L. Bryant to cross the sea. Anticipating its arrival, the
Company chartered a steamer to go down to Newfoundland to assist in its
submersion across the Gulf of St. Lawrence. As yet they had no
experience in the business of laying a submarine telegraph, and did not
doubt that the work could be accomplished with the greatest ease. It was
therefore to be an excursion of pleasure as well as of business, and
accordingly they invited a large party to go with them to witness the
unaccustomed spectacle.
As we chanced to be among the guests, we have the best reason to
remember it. Seldom has a more pleasant party been gathered for any
expedition. Representing the Company were Mr. Field, Mr. Peter Cooper,
Mr. Robert W. Lowber, and Professor Morse; while among the invited
guests were gentlemen of all professions--clergymen, doctors and
lawyers, artists and editors. In the groups on the deck were the
venerable Dr. Gardiner Spring and Rev. J. M. Sherwood; Dr. Lewis A.
Sayre, Bayard Taylor, the well-known traveller, Mr. Fitz-James O'Brien,
and Mr. John Mullaly--the three latter gentlemen representing leading
papers of New York.[B] Besides these, the party included a large number
of ladies, who gave life and animation to the company.
Well does the writer recall the morning of departure--the seventh day of
August, 1855. Never did a voyage begin with fairer omens. It was a
bright summer day. The sky was clear, and the water smooth. We were on
the deck of the good ship James Adger, long known as one of the fine
steamers belonging to the Charleston line. She was a swift ship, and cut
the water like an arrow. Thus we sped down the bay, and turning into the
ocean, skimmed along the shores of Long Island. The sea was tranquil as
a lake. The whole party were on deck, scattered in groups here and
there, watching the sails and the shore. A rude telegraph instrument
furnished entertainment and instruction, especially as we had Professor
Morse to explain his marvellous invention, which some who listened then
for the first time understood.
At Halifax, several of us left the ship, and came across Nova Scotia,
passing through that lovely region of Acadia which Longfellow has
invested with such tender interest in his poem of Evangeline. Thence we
crossed the Bay of Fundy to St. John in New Brunswick, and returned by
way of Portland.
The James Adger went on to Newfoundland, steering first for Port au
Basque, near Cape Ray, where they hoped to meet the bark which was to
come from England with the cable on board. To their disappointment, it
had not arrived. Mr. Canning, the engineer who was to lay the cable, had
come out by steamer, and was on hand, but the bark was not to be seen.
Having to wait several days, and wishing to make the most of their time,
they sailed for St. John's, where they were received by the Provincial
Government and the people with unbounded hospitality, after which they
returned to Port au Basque, and were now rejoiced to discover the little
bark hidden behind the rocks. It was decided to land the cable in Cape
Ray Cove. After a day or two's delay in getting the end to the shore,
they started to cross the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the Adger towing the
bark. The sea was calm, and though they were obliged to move slowly, yet
all promised well, till they were about half-way across, when a gale
arose, which pitched the bark so violently, that with its unwieldy bulk
it was in great danger of sinking. After holding on for hours in the
vain hope that it would abate, the captain cut the cable to save the
bark; and thus, after they had paid out forty miles, it was hopelessly
lost, and the Adger returned to New York.
This loss was owing partly to the severity of the gale, and partly to
the fact that the bark which had the cable on board was wholly unfitted
for the purpose. It was a sailing-vessel, and had to be towed by another
ship. In this way it was impossible to regulate its motion. It was too
fast or too slow. It was liable to be swayed by the sea, now giving a
lurch ahead, and now dragging behind. Experience showed that a cable
should always be laid from a steam vessel which could regulate its own
motion, running out freely when all went smoothly, and checking its
speed instantly when it was necessary to ease up the strain, or to pay
out more slack to fill up the hollows of the sea.
This first loss of a submarine cable was a severe disappointment to the
Company. It postponed the enterprise for a whole year. To make a new
cable would require several months, and the season was so far advanced
that it could not be laid before another summer. Was it strange if some
of the little band began to ask if they had not lost enough, and to
reason that it was better to stop where they were, than to go on still
farther, casting their treasures into the sea?
But there was in that little company a spirit of hope and determination
that could not be subdued; that ever cried: "Once more unto the breach,
good friends!" After some deliberation, it was resolved to renew the
attempt. Mr. Field again sailed for England to order another cable,
which was duly made and sent out the following summer. This time, warned
by experience, the Company invited no party and made no display. The
cable was placed on board a steamer fitted for the purpose; from which
it was laid without accident, and remained in perfect working order for
nine years.
Meanwhile the work on land had been pushed forward without ceasing.
After incredible labor, the Company had built a road and a telegraph
from one end of Newfoundland to the other, four hundred miles; and, as
if that were not enough, had built also another line, one hundred and
forty miles in length, in the island of Cape Breton. The first part of
their work was now done. The telegraph had been carried beyond the
United States through the British Provinces to St. John's in
Newfoundland, a distance from New York of over one thousand miles.
The cost of the line, thus far, had been about a million of dollars, and
of this the whole burden, with but trifling exceptions, had fallen upon
the original projectors--Mr. Field having put in over two hundred
thousand dollars in money--and Mr. Cooper, Mr. Taylor, and Mr. Roberts
each a little less. No other contributors beyond the six original
subscribers had come, except Professor Morse, Mr. Robert W. Lowber, Mr.
Wilson G. Hunt, and Mr. John W. Brett. The list of directors and
officers remained as it was at first, except that this year, 1856, Mr.
White died, and his place as director was filled by Mr. Hunt, and that
Mr. Field was chosen Vice-President, and Mr. Lowber Secretary. In all
the operations of the Company thus far, the various negotiations, the
plan of the work, the oversight of its execution, and the correspondence
with the officers and others, mainly devolved upon Mr. Field.
And so at length, after two long and weary years, these bold projectors
had accomplished half their work. They had passed over the land, and
under the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and having reached the farthest point of
the American coast, they now stood upon the cliffs of Newfoundland,
looking off upon the wide sea.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] One or two exceptions there were, not to be forgotten. Professor
William Thomson, of the University of Glasgow, then a young man, but
full of the enthusiasm of science, was already prepared to welcome such
a project, with confidence of success. As early as October and November,
1854, he wrote to the Secretary of the Royal Society of London,
declaring his belief in its practicability. The letters are published in
the Proceedings of the Royal Society for 1855. Such faith was not
visionary, for it was based on clearer knowledge and more thorough
investigation, and gave promise of those eminent services which this
gentleman was afterwards to render to the cause of electrical science.
Mr. C. F. Varley, also, was one of the first to perceive the possibility
of an ocean telegraph, as he was to contribute greatly to its final
success.
[B] The letters of Mr. Taylor, which first appeared in The New York
Tribune have been since collected in one of his volumes of travel. Mr.
O'Brien, a very brilliant writer, who afterward fell in our civil war,
fighting bravely for his adopted country, furnished some spirited
letters to The Times. But Mr. Mullaly, who appeared for The Herald, was
the most persevering attendant on the Telegraph, and the most
indefatigable correspondent. He accompanied not only this expedition,
but several others. He was on board the Niagara in 1857, and again in
both the expeditions of 1858; and on the final success of the cable,
prepared a volume, which was published by the Appletons, giving a
history of the enterprise. This contains the fullest account of all
those expeditions which has been given to the public. I have had
frequent occasion to refer to his book, and can bear witness to the
interest of the narrative. It is written with spirit, and doubtless
would have had a longer life, if the cable itself had not come to an
untimely end.
CHAPTER V.
THE DEEP-SEA SOUNDINGS.
When a landsman, born far away among the mountains, comes down to the
coast, and stands for the first time on the shore of the sea, it excites
in him a feeling of awe and wonder, not unmingled with terror. There it
lies, a level surface, with nothing that lifts up its head like a peak
of his native hills. And yet it is so vast, stretching away to the
horizon, and all over the sides of the round world; with its tides and
currents that sweep from the equator to the pole; with its unknown
depths and its ceaseless motion; that it is to him the highest emblem of
majesty and of power--a not unworthy symbol of God himself.
In proportion to its mystery is the terror which hangs over it. A vague
dread always surrounds the unknown. And what so unknown as the deep,
unfathomable sea? For thousands of years the sails of ships, like winged
birds, have skimmed over it, yet it has remained the one thing in nature
beyond alike man's knowledge and his power:
Man marks the earth with ruin,
His control stops with the shore.
And the little that has been known of the ocean has been chiefly of its
surface, of the winds that blow over it, and the waves that are lifted
up on high. We knew somewhat of its tides and currents as observed in
different parts of the earth. We saw off our coast the great Gulf
Stream--that steady flow of waters, so mighty and mysterious, which,
issuing out of the tropical regions, poured its warm current, sixty
miles broad, right through the cold waters of the North Atlantic; and
sweeping round, sent the airs of a softer climate over all the countries
of Western Europe. Old voyagers told us of the trade-winds that blew
across the Pacific, and of terrible monsoons in China and Indian seas.
But all that did not reveal what was going on a hundred fathoms below
the surface. These old sailors had marvellous tales of Indian
pearl-divers, who, holding their breath, plunged to the depth of a few
hundred feet; but they came up half-dead, with but little to tell except
of the frightful monsters of the deep. The diving-bell was let down over
sunken wrecks, but the divers came up only with tales of riches and
ruin, of gold and gems and dead men's bones that lay mingled together on
the deep sea floor. Was the bottom of the sea all like this? Was it a
vast realm of death, the sepulchre of the world? No man could tell us.
Poets might sing of the caves of ocean, but no eye of science had yet
penetrated those awful depths, which the storms never reach.
It is indeed marvellous how little was known, up to a very recent date,
of the true character of the ocean. Navigators had often tried to find
out how deep it was. When lying becalmed on a tranquil sea, they had
amused themselves by letting down a long line, weighted with a
cannon-ball, to see if they could touch bottom. But the results were
very uncertain. Sometimes the line ran out for miles and miles, but
whether it was all the while descending, or was swayed hither and
thither by mighty under-currents, could not be known.
But this true character of the ocean it was necessary to determine,
before it could be possible to pass the gulf of the Atlantic. What was
there on the bottom of the sea, where the cable was to find its resting
place? Was that ocean-bed a wide level plain, or had it been heaved up
by volcanic forces into a hundred mountain-peaks, with many a gorge and
precipice between? Such was the character of a part of the basin of the
ocean. Here and there, all over the globe, are islands, like the Peak of
Teneriffe, thrown up in some fierce bursting of the crust of our planet,
that shoot up in tremendous cliffs from the sea. Who shall say that the
same cliffs do not shoot down below the waves a thousand fathoms deep?
And might there not be such islands, which did not show their heads
above the surface, lying in the track between Europe and America: or
perchance a succession of mountain ranges, over which the cable would
have to be stretched, and where hanging from the heights it would swing
with the tide, till at last it snapped and fell into the abyss below?
Such at least were possible dangers to be encountered; and it was not
safe to advance a step till the basin of the North Atlantic was
explored.
The progress of invention, so rapid on land, at length found a way of
penetrating the sea, and even of turning up its bottom to the gaze of
men. To measure the depth with something like mathematical accuracy, an
instrument was introduced known among nautical men as Massey's
Indicator, the method of which is very clearly explained in an article
which appeared in one of the New York papers, (The Times,) on the
deep-sea soundings made for the Atlantic Telegraph:
"The old system is with a small line, marked at distances of
one hundred fathoms, and with a weight of thirty or fifty
pounds, the depth being told by the length of line run out.
This is, of course, the most natural apparatus that suggests
itself, and has been in use from the earliest ages. Experience
has given directions for its use, avoiding some of the grosser
causes of error from driftage and other causes. Yet its success
in immense ocean depths is problematical, and a problem decided
in the negative by many of the first scientific authorities at
home and abroad. In the mechanical improvements of the last
half-century substitutes for this simple but rather uncertain
method began to be devised. It was proposed to ascertain the
depth by the amount of pressure, or by explosions under water,
with other equally impracticable plans. At last was noticed the
perfect regularity of the movements of a spirally-shaped wheel,
on being drawn through the water. Experiments proved that this
regularity, when unaffected by other causes, could be relied on
with perfect accuracy, and that an arrangement of cog-wheels
would register its revolutions with mathematical precision.
Very soon it came in use as a ship's log. So perfect was their
precision, that they were even introduced in scientific
surveys. Base lines, where the nicest accuracy is required,
were run with them, and we have the highest authority of the
Royal Navy for believing that they never failed. At this point
it was proposed to apply them in a perpendicular as well as in
a horizontal motion through the water. Massey's apparatus
promising to solve those problems of submarine geography left
unsolved by the old method of obtaining depth with a simple
line and sinker, and this more especially as some causes of
error, considerable on the surface, disappear in the still
water below."
To make our knowledge of the sea complete, one thing more was wanting--a
method not only of reaching the bottom, but of laying hold of it, and
bringing it up to the light of day. This was now to be supplied.
[Illustration: BROOKE'S DEEP SEA SOUNDING APPARATUS.
A shows the instrument ready for sounding. It is very simple, consisting
only of a cannon-ball, pierced with an iron rod, and held in its place
by slings. As the ball goes down swiftly, it drives the rod into the
bottom like the point of a spear, when an opening at the end catches the
ooze in its iron lips. The same instant (see B) the slings loosen, the
ball drops off, and the naked rod, C, with its "bite" is drawn up to the
surface.]
It is to the inventive genius of a lieutenant of the United States navy,
Mr. J. M. Brooke, that the world owes the means of finding out what is
at the bottom of the sea. This is by a very simple contrivance, by which
the heavy weight, used to sink the measuring line, _is detached as soon
as it strikes bottom_, leaving the line free so that it can be drawn up
lightly and quickly to the surface without danger of breaking. Below the
weight, and driven by it into the ooze, is a rod, in which is an open
valve, that now closes with a spring, by which it catches a cupful of
the soil, which is thus brought up to the surface, to be placed under
the microscope, and be subjected to the sharp eye of science. With this
simple instrument the skilful seaman explores the bottom of the ocean by
literally feeling over it. With a long line he dives to the very lowest
depths, while the clasp at the end of it is like the tip of the
elephant's trunk, serving as a delicate finger with which he picks up
sand and shells that lie strewn on the floor of the deep. What important
conclusions are derived from this inspection of the bottom of the sea,
is well stated by Lieutenant Maury in the letter already quoted.
In happy concurrence with this, as an additional preparation, a partial
survey of the Atlantic had been made the very year before this
enterprise was begun, in 1853. Lieutenant Berryman was the first who
applied this new method of taking deep-sea soundings to that part of the
Atlantic lying between Newfoundland and Ireland, with results most
surprising and satisfactory. But to remove all doubt it seemed desirable
to have a fresh survey. To obtain this, Mr. Field went to Washington and
applied to the Government in behalf of the Company for a second
expedition.
The request was granted, and the Arctic, under command of the same
gallant Lieutenant Berryman, was assigned to this service. He sailed
from New York on the eighteenth of July, 1856, and the very next day Mr.
Field left on the Baltic for England, to organize the Atlantic Telegraph
Company. The Arctic proceeded to St. John's, and thence with a clear eye
and a steady hand, this true sailor went "sounding on his dim and
perilous way" across the deep. In about three weeks he made the coast of
Ireland, having carried his survey along the great circle arc, which the
telegraph was to follow as the nearest path from the old world to the
new. The result fully confirmed his belief of the existence of a great
plateau underneath the ocean, extending all the way from one hemisphere
to the other.
I cannot take leave of the name of this gallant officer, who rendered
such services to science and to his country, without a word of tribute
to his memory. Lieutenant Berryman is in his grave. He died in the navy
of his country, worn out by his devotion to her service. When the great
civil war broke out, he was placed in a position most painful to a man
of large heart, who loved at once his country and the state in which he
was born. He was a Southerner, a native of Winchester, Va., and was
assigned to duty in the South. At the first attack on Southern forts and
arsenals, he was in command of the Wyandotte, in the harbor of
Pensacola, in Florida. His officers, who were nearly all Southerners,
were in secret sympathy with the rebellion. All the influences around
him, both on ship and on shore, were such as might have seduced a weaker
man from his loyalty. But, to his honor, he never hesitated for a
moment. He stood firm and loyal to his flag. Not knowing whom to trust,
he had to keep watch day and night against surprise and treachery. It
was the testimony of Lieutenant Slemmer, then in command of Fort
Pickens, that but for the ceaseless exertions of Lieutenant Berryman not
only the ship but the fort would have been lost. But this service to his
country cost him his life. His constant exertions brought on a brain
fever, of which he died. His wife, also a native of Winchester, when the
war came near her early home, removed to Baltimore, saying that "she
would not live under any other flag than that under which her husband
had lived and died."
It was to the honor of the American navy, to have led the way in these
deep-sea soundings. But after this second voyage of exploration, Mr.
Field applied to the British Admiralty, "to make what further soundings
might be necessary between Ireland and Newfoundland, and to verify those
made by Lieutenant Berryman." It was in response to this application
that the Government sent out the following year a vessel to make still
another survey of the same ocean-path. This was the steamer Cyclops,
which was placed under Lieutenant Commander Joseph Dayman, of the
British navy, an officer who had been with Captain Sir James Ross when
he made his deep-sea soundings in the South Atlantic in 1840, where he
attained a depth of twenty-six hundred and sixty-seven fathoms; and who
by his intelligence and zeal, was admirably fitted for the work. To
speak now of this _third_ survey, is anticipating in time. But it will
serve the purpose of unity and clearness in the narrative, to include
all these deep-sea soundings in one chapter. He was directed to proceed
to the harbor of Valentia in Ireland, and thence to follow, as nearly as
possible, along the arc of a great circle to Newfoundland. "The
soundings for the first few miles from the coast should be frequent,
decreasing as you draw off shore."
These orders were thoroughly executed. Every pains was taken to make the
information obtained precise and exact. Whenever a sounding was to be
taken, the ship was hove to, and the bow kept as nearly as possible in
the same spot, so that the line might descend perpendicularly. This was
repeated every few miles until they had got far out into the Atlantic,
where the general equality of the depths rendered it necessary to cast
the line only every twenty or thirty miles. Thus the survey was made
complete, and the results obtained were of the greatest value in
determining the physical geography of the sea.
The conclusions of Commander Dayman confirmed in general those of
Lieutenant Berryman, though in comparing the charts prepared by the two,
we observe some differences which ought to be noticed. Both agree as to
the general character of the bottom of the ocean along this
latitude--that it is a vast plain, like the steppes of Siberia. Yet on
the chart of Dayman the floor of the sea seems _not such a dead level_
as on that of Berryman. (This may be partly owing to a difference of
route, as Dayman passed a little to the north of the track of Berryman.)
There are more unequal depths, which in the small space of a chart,
appear like hills and valleys. Yet when we consider the wide distances
passed over, these inequalities seem not greater than the undulations on
our Western prairies. "This space," says Dayman, "has been named by
Maury the telegraphic plateau, and although by multiplying the soundings
upon it, we have depths ranging from fourteen hundred and fifty to
twenty-four hundred fathoms, these are comparatively small inequalities
in its surface, and present no new difficulty to the project of laying
the cable across the ocean. Their importance vanishes when the extent of
the space over which they are distributed (thirty degrees of longitude)
is considered."
[Illustration: BED OF THE ATLANTIC, NORTH AND SOUTH, THROUGH THE CAPE DE
VERDS, AZORES, AND TELEGRAPH PLATEAU.]
According to Berryman and Dayman both, the ocean in its deepest part on
this plateau, measured but two thousand and three or four hundred
fathoms, or about fourteen thousand feet--a depth of but little over
two and a half miles. This is not great, compared with the enormous
depths in other parts of the Atlantic;[A] yet that it is _something_ may
be realized from the fact that if the Peak of Teneriffe were here "cast
into the sea," it would sink out of sight, island, mountain and all,
while even the lofty head of Mont Blanc would be lifted but a few
hundred feet above the waves.
The only exception to this uniform depth, lies about two hundred miles
off the coast of Ireland, where within a space of about a dozen miles,
the depth sinks from five hundred and fifty to seventeen hundred and
fifty fathoms! "In 14° 48' west," says Dayman, "we have five hundred and
fifty fathoms rock, and in 15° 6' west we have seventeen hundred and
fifty fathoms ooze. This is the greatest dip in the whole ocean."
"In little more than ten miles of distance a change of depth occurs,
amounting to seventy-two hundred feet." This is indeed a tremendous
plunge from the hard rock into the slime of the sea.
The same sharp declivity was noticed by Berryman, and has been observed
in the several attempts to lay the cable. Thus in the second expedition
of 1858, as the Agamemnon was approaching the coast of Ireland, we read
in the report of her voyage: "About five o'clock in the evening, the
steep submarine mountain which divides the telegraphic plateau from the
Irish coast, was reached; and the sudden shallowing of the water had a
very marked effect on the cable, causing the strain on, and the speed of
it, to lessen every minute. A great deal of slack was paid out to allow
for inequalities which might exist, though undiscovered by the
sounding-line."
This submarine mountain was then regarded as the chief point of danger
in the whole bed of the Atlantic, and as the principal source of anxiety
in laying a cable across the ocean. Yet, after all, the ascent or
descent of less than a mile and a half in ten miles, is not an
impassable grade. More recent soundings reduce this still farther.
Captain Hoskins, of the Royal Navy, afterwards made a more careful
survey of this precipitous sea bottom, and with results much more
favorable. The side of the mountain, it is now said, is not very much
steeper than Holborn Hill in London, or Murray Hill in New York.[B] But
the best answer to fears on this point, is the fact that in 1857, 1858,
and 1865, the cable passed over it without difficulty. In 1857 the
Niagara was a hundred miles farther to sea, when the cable broke. In
1865 the strain was not increased more than a hundred pounds. In the
final expedition, that of 1866, this declivity was passed over without
difficulty or danger.
Next to the depth of the ocean, it was important to ascertain the nature
of its bottom. What was it--a vast bed of rock, the iron-bound crust of
the globe, hardened by internal fires, and which, bending as a vault
over the still glowing centre of the earth, bore up on its mighty arches
the weight of all the oceans? or was it mere sand like the sea-shore? or
ooze as soft as that of a mill-pond? The pressure of a column of water
two miles high would be equal to that of four hundred atmospheres. Would
not this weight alone be enough to crush any substance that could reach
that tremendous depth? These were questions which remained to be
answered, but on which depended the possibility of laying a cable at the
bottom of the Atlantic.
By the ingenious contrivance of Lieutenant Brooke, the problem was
solved, for we got hold of fragments of the under-coating of the sea;
and to our amazement, instead of finding the ocean bound round with
thick ribs of granite, its inner lining was found to be soft as a silken
vest. The soil brought up from the bottom was not even of the hardness
of sand or gravel. It was mere ooze, like that of our rivers, and was as
soft as the moss that clings to old, damp stones on the river's brink.
At first it was thought by Lieutenant Berryman to be common clay, but
being carefully preserved, and subjected to a powerful microscope, it
was found to be composed of shells, too small to be discovered by the
naked eye!
This was a revelation of the myriad forms of animated existence which
fill the sea: a plenitude of life that is more wonderful by contrast. As
Maury well puts it: "The ocean teems with life, we know. Of the four
elements of the old philosophers--fire, earth, air, and water--perhaps
the sea most of all abounds with living creatures. The space occupied on
the surface of our planet by the different families of animals and their
remains are inversely as the size of the individual. The smaller the
animal, the greater the space occupied by his remains. Take the elephant
and his remains, or a microscopic animal and his, and compare them. The
contrast, as to space occupied, is as striking as that of the coral reef
or island with the dimensions of the whale. The graveyard that would
hold the corallines is larger than the graveyard that would hold the
elephants."[C]
These little creatures, whose remains were thus found at the bottom of
the ocean, probably did not live there, for there all is dark, and
shells, like flowers, need the light and warmth of the all-reviving sun.
It was their sepulchre, but not their dwelling-place. Probably they
lived near the surface of the ocean, and after their short life, sunk to
the tranquil waters below. What a work of life and death had been going
on for ages in the depths of the sea! Myriads upon myriads, ever since
the morning of creation, had been falling like snow-flakes, till their
remains literally covered the bottom of the deep.
Equally significant was the fact that these shells were _unbroken_. Not
only were they there, but preserved in a perfect form. Organisms the
most minute and delicate, fragile as drooping flowers, had yet sunk and
slept uninjured. The same power which watches over the fall of a sparrow
had kept these frail and tender things, and after their brief existence,
had laid them gently on the bosom of the mighty mother for their eternal
rest.
The bearing of this discovery on the problem of a submarine telegraph
was obvious. For it too was to lie on the ocean-bed, beside and among
these relics that had so long been drifting down upon the watery plain.
And if these tiny shells slept there unharmed, surely an iron chord
might rest there in safety. There were no swift currents down there; no
rushing waves agitated that sunless sea. There the waters moved not; and
there might rest the great nerve that was to pass from continent to
continent. And so far as injury from the surrounding elements was
concerned, there it might remain, whispering the thoughts of successive
generations of men, till the sea should give up its dead.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] "The ocean bed of the North Atlantic is a curious study; in some
parts furrowed by currents, in others presenting banks, the
accumulations perhaps of the débris of these ocean rivers during
countless ages. To the west, the Gulf Stream pours along in a bed from
one mile to a mile and a half in depth. To the east of this, and south
of the Great Banks, is a basin, eight or ten degrees square, where the
bottom attains a greater depression than perhaps the highest peaks of
the Andes or Himalayas--six miles of line have failed to reach the
bottom! Taking a profile of the Atlantic basin in our own latitude, we
find a far greater depression than any mountain elevation on our own
continent. Four or five Alleghanies would have to be piled on each
other, and on them added Fremont's Peak, before their point would show
itself above the surface. Between the Azores and the mouth of the Tagus
this decreases to about three miles."
[B] The results obtained are thus summed up in the London Times:
"The dangerous part of this course has hitherto been supposed to be the
sudden dip or bank which occurs off the west coast of Ireland, where the
water was supposed to deepen in the course of a few miles from about
three hundred fathoms to nearly two thousand. Such a rapid descent has
naturally been regarded with alarm by telegraphic engineers, and this
alarm has led to a most careful sounding survey of the whole supposed
bank by Captain Dayman, acting under the instructions of the Admiralty.
The result of this shows that the supposed precipitous bank, or
submarine cliff, is a gradual slope of nearly sixty miles. Over this
long slope the difference between its greatest height and greatest depth
is only eighty-seven hundred and sixty feet; so that the average incline
is, in round numbers, about one hundred and forty-five feet per mile. A
good gradient on a railway is now generally considered to be one in one
hundred feet, or about fifty-three in a mile; so that the incline on
this supposed bank is only about three times that of an ordinary
railway. In fact, as far as soundings can demonstrate any thing, there
are few slopes in the bed of the Atlantic as steep as that of Holborn
Hill. In no part is the bottom rocky, and with the exception of a few
miles, which are shingly, only ooze, mud, or sand is to be found."
[C] Physical Geography of the Sea.
CHAPTER VI.
THE WORK BEGUN IN ENGLAND.
Up to this time the Telegraph, which was destined to pass the sea, had
been purely an American enterprise. It had been begun, and for over two
years had been carried on, wholly by American capital. "Our little
company," said Mr. Field ten years after, "raised and expended over a
million and a quarter of dollars before an Englishman paid a single
pound sterling." Mr. Brett was the first one to take a few shares. But
this was not to the discredit of England, for the American public had
done no better. Not a dollar had been raised this side the Atlantic,
outside of the little circle in which the scheme had its origin. No
stock or bonds were put upon the market; no man was asked for a
subscription. If they wanted money, they drew their checks for it. At
one time, indeed, two hundred and fifty thousand dollars of bonds were
issued, but they were at once taken wholly by themselves. But, as the
time was now come when the long-meditated attempt was to be made to
carry the Telegraph across the ocean, it was fitting that Great Britain,
whose shores it was to touch, should join in the work. Accordingly, in
the summer of 1856, after finishing all that he could do in America, Mr.
Field sailed with his family for England. The very day before he
embarked, he had the pleasure to see his friend, Lieutenant Berryman,
off on his second voyage to make soundings across the Atlantic.
In London he sought at once Mr. Brett, with whom in his two former
visits to England he had already discussed his project, and found in him
a hearty coöperator. As we go on with our story, it is a melancholy
satisfaction to refer to one and another worker in this enterprise, who
lived not to see its last and greatest triumph. Mr. Brett, like
Berryman, is dead. But he did not go to his grave till after a life of
usefulness and honor. He was one of the men of the new era--of the
school of Stephenson and Brunel--who believed in the marvellous
achievements yet to be wrought by human invention, turning to the
service of man the wonders of scientific discovery. He was one of the
first to see the boundless possibilities of the telegraph, and to
believe that what had passed over the land might pass under the sea. He
was the first to lay a cable across the British Channel, and thus to
bring into instantaneous communication the two great capitals of
Europe--an achievement which, though small compared with what has since
been done, was then so marvellous, that the intelligence of its success
was received with surprise and incredulity. Many could not and would
not believe it. Even after messages were received in London from Paris,
there were those who declared that it was an imposition on the public,
with as much proud scorn as some a few years later scouted the very idea
that a message had ever passed over the Atlantic Telegraph!
This friendship of Mr. Brett--both to the enterprise and to Mr. Field
personally--remained to the last. In every voyage to England the latter
found--however others doubted or despaired--that Mr. Brett was always
the same--full of hope and confidence. In 1864, when they met in London,
he was unshaken in faith, and urgent to have the great enterprise
renewed. The triumph was not far off, but he was not to live to see it.
But, though he passed away before the final victory, he did his part
toward bringing it on, and no history of this great enterprise can
overlook his eminent services.
To Mr. Brett, therefore, Mr. Field went first to consult in regard to
his project of a telegraph across the ocean. This was a part of the
design embraced in the original organization of the New York,
Newfoundland, and London Telegraph Company; and when Mr. Field went to
England, he was empowered to receive subscriptions to that Company, so
as to enlarge its capital, and thus include in one corporation the whole
line from New York to London; or to organize a new company, which
should lay a cable across the Atlantic, and there join the Newfoundland
line.
But before an enterprise so vast and so new could be commended to the
commercial public of Great Britain, there were many details to be
settled. The mechanical and scientific problems already referred to,
whether a cable could be laid across the ocean; and if so, whether it
could be worked, were to be considered anew. The opinions of Lieutenant
Maury and of Professor Morse were published in England, and arrested the
attention of scientific men. But John Bull is slow of belief, and asked
for more evidence. The thing was too vast to be undertaken rashly. As
yet there was no experience to decide the possibility of a telegraph
across the ocean. The longest line which had been laid was three hundred
miles. This caution, which is a national trait of Englishmen, will not
be regarded as a fault by those who consider that in proportion as they
are slow to embark in any new enterprise, are they resolute and
determined in carrying it out.
To resolve these difficult problems, Mr. Field sought counsel of the
highest engineering authorities of Great Britain, and of her most
eminent scientific men. To their honor, all showed the deepest interest
in the project, and gave it freely the benefit of their knowledge.
First, as to the possibility of laying a cable in the deep sea, Mr.
Field had witnessed one attempt of the kind--that in the Gulf of St.
Lawrence the year before--an attempt which had failed. His experience,
therefore, was not encouraging. If they found so much difficulty in
laying a cable seventy miles long, how could they hope to lay one of two
thousand miles across the stormy Atlantic?
This was a question for the engineers. To solve the problem, required
experiments almost without number. It was now that the most important
services were rendered by Glass, Elliot & Co., of London, a firm which
had begun within a few years the manufacture of sea-cables, and was to
write its name in all the waters of the world. Aided by the skill of
their admirable engineer, Mr. Canning, they now manufactured cables
almost without end, applying to them every possible test. At the same
time, Mr. Field took counsel of Robert Stephenson and George Parker
Bidder, both of whom manifested a deep interest in the success of the
enterprise.
Not less cordial was Mr. Brunel, who made many suggestions in regard to
the form of the cable, and the manner in which it should be laid. He was
then building the Great Eastern; and one day he took Mr. Field down to
Blackwall to see it, and, pointing to the monstrous hull which was
rising on the banks of the Thames, said: "There is the ship to lay the
Atlantic cable!" Little did he think that ten years after, that ship
would be employed in this service; and in this final victory over the
sea, would redeem all the misfortunes of her earlier career.
Among the difficulties to be encountered, was that of finding a perfect
insulator. Without insulation, telegraphic communication by electricity
is impossible. On land, where wires are carried on the tops of poles,
the air itself is a sufficient insulator. A few glass rings at the
points where the wire passes through the iron staples by which it is
supported, and the insulation is complete. But in the sea the
electricity would be instantly dissipated, unless some material could be
found which should insulate a conductor sunk in water, as completely as
if it were raised in air. But what could thus inclose the lightning, and
keep it fast while flying from one continent to the other?
Here again it seemed as if Divine wisdom had anticipated the coming of
this great enterprise, and provided in the realm of nature every
material needed for its success. It was at least a happy coincidence
that only a few years before there had been found, in the forests of the
Malayan archipelago, a substance till then unknown to the world, but
which answered completely this new demand. This was gutta-percha, which
is impenetrable by water, and at the same time a bad conductor of
electricity; so that it forms at once a perfect protection and
insulation to a telegraph passing through the sea. In the experiments
that were made to test the value of this material in the grander use to
which it was to be applied, no man rendered greater service than Mr.
Samuel Statham, of the London Gutta-Percha Works--a name to be
gratefully remembered in the early history of the Atlantic Telegraph.
The mechanical difficulties removed, and the insulation provided, there
remained yet the great scientific problem: Could a message be sent two
thousand miles under the Atlantic? The ingenuity of man might devise
some method of laying a cable across the sea, but of what use were it,
if the electric current should shrink from the dark abyss?
It was in prosecuting inquiries to resolve this problem, that Mr. Field
became acquainted with two gentlemen who were to be soon after
associated with him in the organization of the Atlantic Telegraph
Company. These were Mr. Charles T. Bright, afterward knighted for his
part in laying the Atlantic cable in 1858, and Dr. Edward O. Whitehouse,
both well known in England, the former as an engineer, and the latter
for his experiments in electro-magnetism, as applied to the business of
telegraphing. He had invented an instrument by which to ascertain and
register the velocity of electric currents through submarine cables.
Both these gentlemen were full of the ardor of science, and entered on
this new project with the zeal which the prospect of so great a triumph
might inspire. With them was now to be associated our distinguished
countryman, Professor Morse. Fortunately he was at this time in London,
and gave his invaluable aid to the experiments which were made to
determine the possibility of telegraphic communication at great
distances under the sea. The result of his experiments he communicates
in a letter to Mr. Field:
"London, Five o'clock A.M.,
"October 3, 1856.
"My dear Sir: As the electrician of the New York, Newfoundland,
and London Telegraph Company, it is with the highest
gratification that I have to apprise you of the result of our
experiments of this morning upon a single continuous conductor
of more than two thousand miles in extent, a distance you will
perceive sufficient to cross the Atlantic Ocean, from
Newfoundland to Ireland.
"The admirable arrangements made at the Magnetic Telegraph
Office in Old Broad street, for connecting ten subterranean
gutta-percha insulated conductors, of over two hundred miles
each, so as to give one continuous length of more than two
thousand miles during the hours of the night, when the
telegraph is not commercially employed, furnished us the means
of conclusively settling, by actual experiment, the question of
the practicability as well as the practicality[A] of
telegraphing through our proposed Atlantic cable.
"This result had been thrown into some doubt by the discovery,
more than two years since, of certain phenomena upon
subterranean and submarine conductors, and had attracted the
attention of electricians, particularly of that most eminent
philosopher, Professor Faraday, and that clear-sighted
investigator of electrical phenomena, Dr. Whitehouse; and one
of these phenomena, to wit, the perceptible retardation of the
electric current, threatened to perplex our operations, and
required careful investigation before we could pronounce with
certainty the commercial practicability of the Ocean Telegraph.
"I am most happy to inform you that, as a crowning result of a
long series of experimental investigation and inductive
reasoning upon this subject, the experiments under the
direction of Dr. Whitehouse and Mr. Bright, which I witnessed
this morning--in which the induction coils and receiving
magnets, as modified by these gentlemen, were made to actuate
one of my recording instruments--have most satisfactorily
resolved all doubts of the practicability as well as
practicality of operating the telegraph from Newfoundland to
Ireland.
"Although we telegraphed signals at the rate of two hundred and
ten, two hundred and forty-one, and, according to the count at
one time, even of two hundred and seventy per minute upon my
telegraphic register, (which speed, you will perceive, is at a
rate commercially advantageous,) these results were
accomplished notwithstanding many disadvantages in our
arrangements of a temporary and local character--disadvantages
which will not occur in the use of our submarine cable.
"Having passed the whole night with my active and agreeable
collaborators, Dr. Whitehouse and Mr. Bright, without sleep,
you will excuse the hurried and brief character of this note,
which I could not refrain from sending you, since our
experiments this morning settle the scientific and commercial
points of our enterprise satisfactorily.
"With respect and esteem, your obedient servant,
"Samuel F. B. Morse."
A week later, he wrote again, confirming his former impressions, thus:
"London, October 10, 1856.
"My dear Sir: After having given the deepest consideration to
the subject of our successful experiments the other night, when
we signalled clearly and rapidly through an unbroken circuit of
subterranean conducting wire, over two thousand miles in
length, I sit down to give you the result of my reflections and
calculations.
"There can be no question but that, with a cable containing a
single conducting wire, of a size not exceeding that through
which we worked, and with equal insulation, it would be easy to
telegraph from Ireland to Newfoundland at a speed of at least
from eight to ten words per minute; nay, more: the varying
rates of speed at which we worked, depending as they did upon
differences in the arrangement of the apparatus employed, do of
themselves prove that even a higher rate than this is
attainable. Take it, however, at ten words in the minute, and
allowing ten words for name and address, we can safely
calculate upon the transmission of a twenty-word message in
three minutes;
"Twenty such messages in the hour;
"Four hundred and eighty in the twenty-four hours, or fourteen
thousand four hundred words per day.
"Such are the capabilities of a single wire cable fairly and
moderately computed.
"It is, however, evident to me, that by improvements in the
arrangement of the signals themselves, aided by the adoption of
a code or system constructed upon the principles of the best
nautical code, as suggested by Dr. Whitehouse, we may at least
double the speed in the transmission of our messages.
"As to the structure of the cable itself, the last specimen
which I examined with you seemed to combine so admirably the
necessary qualities of strength, flexibility, and lightness,
with perfect insulation, that I can no longer have any
misgivings about the ease and safety with which it will be
submerged.
"In one word, the doubts are resolved, the difficulties
overcome, success is within our reach, and the great feat of
the century must shortly be accomplished.
"I would urge you, if the manufacture can be completed within
the time, (and all things are possible now,) to press forward
the good work, and not to lose the chance of laying it during
the ensuing summer.
"Before the close of the present month, I hope to be again
landed safely on the other side of the water, and I full well
know, that on all hands the inquiries of most interest with
which I shall be met, will be about the Ocean Telegraph.
"Much as I have enjoyed my European trip this year, it would
have enhanced the gratification which I have derived from it
more than I can describe to you, if on my return to America, I
could be the first bearer to my friends of the welcome
intelligence that the great work had been begun, by the
commencement of the manufacture of the cable to connect Ireland
with the line of the New York, Newfoundland, and London
Telegraph Company, now so successfully completed to St. John's.
"Respectfully, your obedient servant,
"Samuel F. B. Morse."
These experiments and others removed the doubts of scientific men.
Professor Faraday, in spite of the law of the retardation of electricity
on long circuits, which it was said he had discovered, and which would
render it impossible to work a line of such length as from Ireland to
Newfoundland, now declared his full conviction that it was within the
bounds of possibility. The passage of electricity might not be
absolutely instantaneous, or have the swiftness of the solar beam, yet
it would be rapid enough for all practical purposes. When Mr. Field
asked him how long it would take for the electricity to pass from London
to New York, he answered: "Possibly one second!"
Thus fortified by the highest scientific and engineering authorities,
the projectors of an ocean telegraph were now ready to bring it before
the British public, and to see what support could be found from the
English Government and the English people.
Mr. Field first addressed himself to the Government. Without waiting for
the Company to be fully organized, with true American eagerness and
impatience, he wrote a letter to the Admiralty asking for a fresh survey
of the route to be traversed, and for the aid of Government ships to lay
the cable. He also addressed a letter to Lord Clarendon, stating the
large design which they had conceived, and asking for it the aid which
was due to what concerned the honor and interest of England. The reply
was prompt and courteous, inviting him to an interview for the purpose
of a fuller explanation. Accordingly, Mr. Field, with Professor Morse,
called upon him at the Foreign Office, and spent an hour in conversation
on the proposed undertaking. Lord Clarendon showed great interest, and
made many inquiries. He was a little startled at the magnitude of the
scheme, and the confident tone of the projectors, and asked pleasantly:
"But, suppose you _don't_ succeed? Suppose you make the attempt and
fail--your cable is lost in the sea--then what will you do?" "Charge it
to profit and loss, and go to work to lay another," was the quick answer
of Mr. Field, which amused him as a truly American reply. In conclusion,
he desired him to put his request in writing, and, without committing
the Government, encouraged him to hope that Britain would do all that
might justly be expected in aid of this great international work. How
nobly this promise was kept, time will show.
While engaged in these negotiations, Mr. Field took his family to Paris,
and there met with a great loss in the sudden death of a favorite
sister, who had accompanied them abroad. Full of the sorrow of this
event, and unfitted for business of any kind, he returned to London to
find an invitation to go into the country and spend a few days with Mr.
James Wilson, then Secretary to the Treasury, a man of great influence
in the Government, at his residence near Bath; there to discuss quietly
and at length the proposed aid to the Atlantic Telegraph. Though he had
but little spirit to go among strangers, he felt it his duty not to miss
an opportunity to advance the cause he had so much at heart. The result
of this visit was the following letter, received a few days later:
"Treasury Chambers. Nov. 20, 1856.
"Sir: Having laid before the Lords Commissioners of her
Majesty's Treasury your letter of the 13th ultimo, addressed to
the Earl of Clarendon, requesting, on behalf of the New York,
Newfoundland, and London Telegraph Company, certain privileges
and protection in regard to the line of telegraph which it is
proposed to establish between Newfoundland and Ireland, I am
directed by their lordships to acquaint you that they are
prepared to enter into a contract with the said Telegraph
Company, based upon the following conditions, namely:
"1. It is understood that the capital required to lay down the
line will be three hundred and fifty thousand pounds.
"2. Her Majesty's Government engage to furnish the aid of ships
to take what soundings may still be considered needful, or to
verify those already taken, and favorably to consider any
request that may be made to furnish aid by their vessels in
laying down the cable.
"3. The British Government, from the time of the completion of
the line, and so long as it shall continue in working order,
undertakes to pay at the rate of fourteen thousand pounds a
year, being at the rate of four per cent. on the assumed
capital, as a fixed remuneration for the work done on behalf of
the Government, in the conveyance outward and homeward of their
messages. This payment to continue until the net profits of the
Company are equal to a dividend of six per cent., when the
payment shall be reduced to ten thousand pounds a year, for a
period of twenty-five years.
"It is, however, understood that if the Government messages in
any year shall, at the usual tariff-rate charged to the public,
amount to a larger sum, such additional payment shall be made
as is equivalent thereto.
"4. That the British Government shall have a priority in the
conveyance of their messages over all others, subject to the
exception only of the Government of the United States, in the
event of their entering into an arrangement with the Telegraph
Company similar in principle to that of the British Government,
in which case the messages of the two Governments shall have
priority in the order in which they arrive at the stations.
"5. That the tariff of charges shall be fixed with the consent
of the Treasury, and shall not be increased, without such
consent being obtained, as long as this contract lasts.
"I am, sir, your obedient servant,
"James Wilson.
"Cyrus W. Field, Esq., 37 Jermyn street."
With this encouragement and promise of aid, the projectors of a
telegraph across the ocean now went forward to organize a company to
carry out their design. Mr. Field, on arriving in England, had entered
into an agreement with Mr. Brett to join their efforts for this
purpose. With them were afterward united two others--Sir Charles Bright,
as engineer, and Dr. Whitehouse, as electrician. These four gentlemen
agreed to form a new company, to be called The Atlantic Telegraph
Company, the object of which should be "to continue the existing line of
the New York, Newfoundland, and London Telegraph Company to Ireland, by
making or causing to be made a submarine telegraph cable for the
Atlantic."
As they were now ready to introduce the enterprise to the British
public, Mr. Field issued a circular in the name of the Newfoundland
Company, and as its Vice-President, setting forth the great importance
of telegraphic communication between the two hemispheres.
The next step was to raise the capital. After the most careful
estimates, it was thought that a cable could be made and laid across the
Atlantic for £350,000. This was a large sum to ask from a public slow to
move, and that lends a dull ear to all new schemes. But armed with facts
and figures, with maps and estimates, with the opinions of engineers and
scientific men, they went to work, not only in London, but in other
parts of the kingdom. Mr. Field, in company with Mr. Brett, made a visit
to Liverpool and Manchester, to address their Chambers of Commerce. I
have now before me the papers of those cities, with reports of the
meetings held and the speeches made, which show the vigor with which
they pushed their enterprise. This energy was rewarded with success. The
result justified their confidence. In a few weeks the whole capital was
subscribed. It had been divided into three hundred and fifty shares of a
thousand pounds each. Of these, a hundred and one were taken in London,
eighty-six in Liverpool, thirty-seven in Glasgow, twenty-eight in
Manchester, and a few in other parts of England. The grandeur of the
design attracted public attention, and some subscribed solely from a
noble wish to take part in such a work. Among these were Mr. Thackeray
and Lady Byron. Mr. Field subscribed £100,000, and Mr. Brett £25,000.
But when the books were closed, it was found that they had more money
subscribed than they required, so that in the final division of shares,
there were allotted to Mr. Field eighty-eight, and to Mr. Brett twelve.
Mr. Field's interest was thus one-fourth of the whole capital of the
Company.
In taking so large a share, it was not his intention to carry this heavy
load alone. It was too large a proportion for one man. But he took it
for his countrymen. He thought one fourth of the stock should be held in
this country, and did not doubt, from the eagerness with which three
fourths had been taken in England, that the remainder would be at once
subscribed in America. Had he been able, on his return, to attend to his
own interests in the matter, this expectation might have been realized;
but, as we shall see, hardly did he set foot in New York, before he was
obliged to hurry off to Newfoundland on the business of the Company, and
when he returned the interest had subsided, so that it required very
great exertions, continued through many months, to dispose of
twenty-seven shares. Thus he was by far the largest stockholder in
England or America--his interest being over seven times that of Mr.
Brett, who was the largest next to himself--and being more than double
the amount held by all the other American shareholders put together.
This was at least giving substantial proof of his own faith in the
undertaking.
But some may imagine that after all this burden was not so great as it
seemed. In many stock companies the custom obtains of assigning to the
projectors a certain portion of the stock as a bonus for getting up the
company, which amount appears among the subscriptions to swell the
capital. It is indeed subscribed, _but not paid_. So some have asked
whether this large subscription of Mr. Field was not in part at least
merely nominal? To this we answer, that a consideration _was_ granted to
Mr. Field and his associates for their services in getting up the
Company, and for their exclusive rights, but this was a contingent
interest in the profits of the enterprise, _to be allowed only after the
cable was laid_. So that the whole amount here subscribed was a
_bona-fide_ subscription, and paid in solid English gold. We have now
before us the receipts of the bankers of the Company for the whole
amount, eighty-eight thousand pounds sterling.
The capital being thus raised, it only remained to complete the
organization of the Company by the choice of a Board of Directors, and
to make a contract for the cable. The Company was organized in December,
1856, by the choice of Directors chiefly from the leading bankers and
merchants of London and Liverpool. The list included such honored names
as Samuel Gurney, T. H. Brooking, John W. Brett, and T. A. Hankey, of
London; Sir William Brown, Henry Harrison, Edward Johnston, Robert
Crosbie, George Maxwell, and C. W. H. Pickering, of Liverpool; John
Pender and James Dugdale, of Manchester; and Professor William Thomson,
LL.D., of Glasgow. With these English Directors were two of our
countrymen, Mr. George Peabody and Mr. C. M. Lampson, who, residing
abroad for more than a third of a century, did much in the commercial
capital of the world to support the honor of the American name. Mr.
Peabody's firm subscribed £10,000, and Mr. Lampson £2,000. The latter
gave more time than any other Director in London, except Mr. Brooking,
the second Vice-Chairman, who, however, retired from the Company after
the first failure in 1858, when Mr. Lampson was chosen to fill his
place. The whole Board was full of zeal and energy. All gave their
services without compensation.
It was the good fortune of the Company to have, from the beginning, in
the important position of Secretary, a gentleman admirably qualified for
the post. This was Mr. George Saward--a name familiar to all who have
followed the fortunes of the telegraph, in England or America, since he
has been the organ of communication with the press and the public; and
with whom none ever had occasion to transact business without
recognizing his intelligence and courtesy.
The Company being thus in working order, proceeded to make a contract
for the manufacture of a cable to be laid across the Atlantic. For many
months the proper form and size of the cable had been the subject of
constant experiments. The conditions were: to combine the greatest
degree of strength with lightness and flexibility. It must be strong, or
it would snap in the process of laying. Yet it would not do to have it
too large, for it would be unmanageable. Mr. Brett had already lost a
cable in the Mediterranean chiefly from its bulk. Its size and stiffness
made it hard to unwind it, while its enormous weight, when once it broke
loose, caused it to run out with fearful velocity, till it was soon lost
in the sea. It was only the year before, in September, 1855, that this
accident had occurred in laying the cable from Sardinia to Algeria. All
was going on well, until suddenly, "about two miles, weighing sixteen
tons, flew out with the greatest violence in four or five minutes,
flying round even when the drums were brought to a dead stop, creating
the greatest alarm for the safety of the men in the hold and for the
vessel." This was partly owing to the character of the submarine surface
over which they were passing. The bottom of the Mediterranean is
volcanic, and is broken up into mountains and valleys. The cable,
doubtless, had just passed over some Alpine height, and was descending
into some fearful depth below; but chiefly it was owing to the great
size and bulk of the cable. This was a warning to the Atlantic Company.
The point to be aimed at was to combine the flexibility of a common
ship's rope with the tenacity of iron. These conditions were thought to
be united in the form that was adopted.[B] A contract was at once made
for the manufacture of the cable, one half being given to Messrs. Glass,
Elliot & Co., of London, and the other to Messrs. R. S. Newall & Co., of
Liverpool. The whole was to be completed by the first of June, ready to
be submerged in the sea. The company was organized on the ninth of
December, and the very next day Mr. Field sailed for America, reaching
New York on the twenty-fifth of December, after an absence of more than
five months.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] Professor Morse was fond of the distinction between the words
practical and practicable. A thing might be practicable, that is,
possible of accomplishment, when it was not a practical enterprise, that
is, one which could be worked to advantage. He here argues that the
Atlantic Telegraph is both practicable, (or possible,) and at the same
time a wise, practical undertaking.
[B] On his return to America, many inquiries were addressed to Mr. Field
in regard to the form and structure of the cable, in answer to which he
wrote a letter of explanation in which he said:
"No particular connected with this great project has been the subject of
so much comment through the press as the form and structure of the
telegraph cable. It may be well believed that the Directors have not
decided upon a matter so all-important to success, without availing
themselves of the most eminent talent and experience which could be
commanded. The practical history of submarine telegraphs dates from the
successful submersion of the cable between Dover and Calais in 1851, and
advantage has been taken of whatever instruction this history could
furnish or suggest. Of the submarine cables heretofore laid down,
without enumerating others, the one between Dover and Calais weighs six
tons to the mile; that between Spezzia and Corsica, eight tons to the
mile; that laid from Varna to Balaklava, and used during the war in the
Crimea, less than three hundred pounds to the mile; while the weight of
the cable for the Atlantic Telegraph is between nineteen hundred pounds
and one ton to the mile. This cable, to use the words of Dr. Whitehouse,
'is the result of many months thought, experiment, and trial. Hundreds
of specimens have been made, comprising every variety of form, size, and
structure, and most severely tested as to their powers and capabilities;
and the result has been the adoption of this, which we know to possess
all the properties required, and in a far higher degree than any cable
that has yet been laid. Its flexibility is such as to make it as
manageable as a small line, and its strength such that it will bear, in
water, over six miles of its own weight suspended vertically.' The
conducting medium consists not of one single straight copper-wire, but
of seven wires of copper of the best quality, twisted round each other
spirally, and capable of undergoing great tension without injury. This
conductor is then enveloped in three separate coverings of gutta-percha,
of the best quality, forming the core of the cable, round which tarred
hemp is wrapped, and over this, the outside covering, consisting of
eighteen strands of the best quality of iron-wire; each strand composed
of seven distinct wires, twisted spirally, in the most approved manner,
by machinery specially adapted to the purpose. The attempt to insulate
more than one conducting-wire or medium would not only have increased
the chances of failure of all of them, but would have necessitated the
adoption of a proportionably heavier and more cumbrous cable. The
tensile power of the outer or wire covering of the cable, being very
much less than that of the conductor within it, the latter is protected
from any such strain as can possibly rupture it or endanger its
insulation without an entire fracture of the cable."
CHAPTER VII.
SEEKING AID FROM CONGRESS.
When Mr. Field reached home from abroad, he hoped for a brief respite.
He had had a pretty hard campaign during the summer and autumn in
England, and needed at least a few weeks of rest; but that was denied
him. He landed in New York on Christmas Day, and was not allowed even to
spend the New Year with his family. There were interests of the Company
in Newfoundland which required immediate attention, and it was important
that one of the Directors should go there without delay. As usual, it
devolved upon him. He left at once for Boston, where he took the steamer
to Halifax, and thence to St. John's. Such a voyage may be very
agreeable in summer, but in mid-winter it is not a pleasant thing to
face the storms of those northern latitudes. The passage was unusually
tempestuous. At St. John's he broke down, and was put under the care of
a physician. But he did not stop to think of himself. The work for which
he came was done; and though the physician warned him that it was a
great risk to leave his bed, he took the steamer on her return, and was
again in New York after a month's absence--a month of hardship, of
exposure, and of suffering, such as he had long occasion to remember.
The mention of this voyage came up a year afterward at a meeting of the
Atlantic Telegraph Company in London, when a resolution was offered,
tendering Mr. Field a vote of thanks for "the great services he had
rendered to the Company by his untiring zeal, energy, and devotion." Mr.
Brooking, the Vice-Chairman, had spent a large part of his life in
Newfoundland, and knew the dangers of that inhospitable coast, and in
seconding the resolution he said:
"It is now about a year and a half ago since I had the pleasure
of making the acquaintance of my friend Mr. Field. It was he
who initiated me into this Company, and induced me to take an
interest in it from its earliest stage. From that period to the
present I have observed in Mr. Field the most determined
perseverance, and the exercise of great talent, extraordinary
assiduity and diligence, coupled with an amount of fortitude
which has seldom been equalled. I have known him cross the
Atlantic in the depth of winter, and, within twenty-four hours
after his arrival in New York, having ascertained that his
presence was necessary in a distant British colony, he has not
hesitated at once to direct his course thitherward. That colony
is one with which I am intimately acquainted, having resided in
it for upward of twenty years, and am enabled to speak of the
hazards and danger which attend a voyage to it in winter. Mr.
Field no sooner arrived at New York, in the latter part of
December, than he got aboard a steamer for Halifax, and
proceeded to St. John's, Newfoundland. In three weeks he
accomplished there a very great object for this Company. He
procured the passage of an Act of the Legislature which has
given to our Company the right of establishing a footing on
those shores. [The rights before conferred, it would seem,
applied only to the Newfoundland Company.] That is only one of
the acts which he has performed with a desire to promote the
interests of this great enterprise."
The very next day after his return from Newfoundland, Mr. Field was
called to Washington, to seek the aid of his own Government to the
Atlantic Telegraph. The English Government had proffered the most
generous aid, both in ships to lay the cable, and in an annual subsidy
of £14,000. It was on every account desirable that this should be met by
corresponding liberality on the part of the American Government. Before
he left England, he had sent home the letter received from the Lords
Commissioners of the Treasury; and thereupon the Directors of the New
York, Newfoundland, and London Telegraph Company had inclosed a copy to
the President, with a letter asking for the same aid in ships, and in an
annual sum of $70,000, [equivalent to £14,000,] to be paid for the
government messages, the latter to be conditioned on the success of the
telegraph, and to be continued only so long as it was in full operation.
They urged with reason that the English Government had acted with great
liberality--not only toward the enterprise, but toward our own
Government. Although both ends of the line were in the British
possessions, it had claimed no exclusive privileges, but had stipulated
for perfect equality between the United States and Great Britain. The
agreement expressly provided "that the British Government shall have a
priority in the conveyance of their messages over all others, _subject
to the exception only of the Government of the United States_, in the
event of their entering into an arrangement with the Telegraph Company
similar in principle to that of the British Government, in which case
the messages of the two governments shall have priority in the order in
which they arrive at the stations."
The letter to the President called attention to this generous offer--an
offer which it was manifestly to the advantage of our Government to
accept--and added: "The Company will enter into a contract with the
Government of the United States on the same terms and conditions as it
has made with the British Government." They asked only for the same
recognition and aid which they had received in England. This surely was
not a very bold request. It was natural that American citizens should
think that in a work begun by Americans, and of which, if successful,
their country would reap largely the honor and the advantage, they might
expect the aid from their own Government which they had already received
from a foreign power. It was, therefore, not without a mixture of
surprise and mortification that they learned that the proposal in
Congress had provoked a violent opposition, and that the bill was likely
to be defeated. Such was the attitude of affairs when Mr. Field returned
from Newfoundland, and which led him to hasten to Washington.
He now found that it was much easier to deal with the English than with
the American Government. Whatever may be said of the respective methods
of administration, it must be confessed that the forms of English
procedure furnish greater facility in the despatch of business. A
contract can be made by the Lords of the Treasury without waiting the
action of Parliament. The proposal is referred to two or three
intelligent officers of the Government--perhaps even to a single
individual--on whose report it takes action without further delay. Thus
it is probable that the action of the British Government was decided
wholly by the recommendation of Mr. Wilson, formed after the visit of
Mr. Field.
But in our country we do things differently. Here it would be considered
a stretch of power for any administration to enter into a contract with
a private company--a contract binding the Government for a period of
twenty-five years, and involving an annual appropriation of
money--without the action of Congress. This is a safeguard against
reckless and extravagant expenditure, but, as one of the penalties we
pay for our more popular form of government, in which every thing has
to be referred to the people, it involves delay, and sometimes the
defeat of wise and important public measures.
Besides--shall we confess it to our shame--another secret influence
often appears in American legislation, which has defeated many an act
demanded by the public good--the influence of the Lobby! This now began
to show itself in opposition. It had been whispered in Washington that
the gentlemen in New York who were at the head of this enterprise were
very rich; and a measure coming from such a source surely ought to be
made to pay tribute before it was allowed to pass. This was a new
experience. Those few weeks in Washington were worse than being among
the icebergs off the coast of Newfoundland. The Atlantic Cable has had
many a kink since, but never did it seem to be entangled in such a
hopeless twist as when it got among the politicians.
But it would be very unjust to suppose that there were no better
influences in our Halls of Congress. There were then--as there have
always been in our history--some men of large wisdom and of a noble
patriotic pride, who in such a measure thought only of the good of their
country and of the triumph of science and of civilization.
Two years after--in August, 1858--when the Atlantic Telegraph proved at
last a reality, and the New World was full of its fame, Mr. Seward, in
a speech at Auburn, thus referred to the ordeal it had to pass through
in Congress:
"The two great countries of which I have spoken, [England and
America,] are now ringing with the praises of Cyrus W. Field,
who chiefly has brought this great enterprise to its glorious
and beneficent consummation. You have never heard his story;
let me give you a few points in it, as a lesson that there is
no condition of life in which a man, endowed with native
genius, a benevolent spirit, and a courageous patience, may not
become a benefactor of nations and of mankind."
After speaking of the efforts by which this New York merchant "brought
into being an association of Americans and Englishmen, which contributed
from surplus wealth the capital necessary as a basis for the
enterprise"; he adds:
"It remained to engage the consent and the activity of the
Governments of Great Britain and the United States. That was
all that remained. Such consent and activity on the part of
some one great nation of Europe was all that remained needful
for Columbus when he stood ready to bring a new continent
forward as a theatre of the world's civilization. But in each
case that effort was the most difficult of all. Cyrus W. Field,
by assiduity and patience, first secured consent and
conditional engagement on the part of Great Britain, and then,
less than two years ago, he repaired to Washington. The
President and Secretary of State individually favored his
proposition; but the jealousies of parties and sections in
Congress forbade them to lend it their official sanction and
patronage. He appealed to me. I drew the necessary bill. With
the generous aid of others, Northern Representatives, and the
indispensable aid of the late Thomas J. Rusk, a Senator from
Texas, that bill, after a severe contest and long delay, was
carried through the Senate of the United States by the
majority, if I remember rightly, of one vote, and escaped
defeat in the House of Representatives with equal difficulty. I
have said the aid of Mr. Rusk was indispensable. If any one has
wondered why I, an extreme Northern man, loved and lamented
Thomas J. Rusk, an equally extreme Southern man, he has here an
explanation. There was no good thing which, as it seemed to me,
I could not do in Congress with his aid. When he died, it
seemed to me that no good thing could be done by any one. Such
was the position of Cyrus W. Field at that stage of the great
enterprise. But, thus at last fortified with capital derived
from New York and London, and with the navies of Great Britain
and the United States at his command, he has, after trials that
would have discouraged any other than a true discoverer,
brought the great work to a felicitous consummation. And now
the Queen of Great Britain and the President of the United
States stand waiting his permission to speak, and ready to
speak at his bidding; and the people of these two great
countries await only the signal from him to rush into a
fraternal embrace which will prove the oblivion of ages of
suspicion, of jealousies and of anger."
Mr. Seward might well refer with pride to the part he took in sustaining
this enterprise. He was from the beginning its firmest supporter. The
bill was introduced into the Senate by him, and was carried through
mainly by his influence, seconded by Mr. Rusk, Mr. Douglas, and one or
two others. It was introduced on the ninth of January, and came up for
consideration on the twenty-first. Its friends had hoped that it might
pass with entire unanimity. But such was the opposition, that the
discussion lasted two days. The report shows that it was a subject of
animated and almost angry debate, which brought out the secret of the
opposition to aid being given by the Government.
Probably no measure was ever introduced in Congress for the help of any
commercial enterprise, that some member, imagining that it was to
benefit a particular section, did not object that it was
"unconstitutional"! This objection was well answered in this case by Mr.
Benjamin, of Louisiana, who asked:
"If we have a right to hire a warehouse at Port Mahon, in the
Mediterranean, for storing naval stores, have we not a right to
hire a company to carry our messages? I should as soon think of
questioning the constitutional power of the Government to pay
freight to a vessel for carrying its mail-bags across the
ocean, as to pay a telegraph company a certain sum per annum
for conveying its messages by the use of the electric
telegraph."
This touched the precise ground on which the appropriation was asked. In
their memorial to the President, the Company had said: "Such a contract
will, we suppose, fall within the provisions of the Constitution in
regard to postal arrangements, of which this is only a new and improved
form."
Mr. Bayard, of Delaware, explained in the same terms the nature of the
proposed agreement:
"It is a mail operation. It is a Post-Office arrangement. It is
for the transmission of intelligence, and that is what I
understood to be the function of the Post-Office Department. I
hold it, therefore, to be as legitimately within the proper
powers of the Government, as the employing of a stage-coach, or
a steam-car, or a ship, to transport the mails, either to
foreign countries, or to different portions of our own
country."
Of course, as in all appropriations of money, the question of expense
had to be considered, and here there were not wanting some to cry out
against the extravagance of paying seventy thousand dollars a year! We
had not then got used to the colossal expenditures of war, when we grew
familiar with paying three millions a day! Seventy thousand dollars
seemed a great sum; but Mr. Bayard in reply reminded them that England
then paid nine hundred thousand dollars a year for the transportation of
the mails between the United States and England; and argued that it was
a very small amount for the great service rendered. He said:
"We have sent out ships to make explorations and observations
in the Red Sea and in South America; we sent one or two
expensive expeditions to Japan, and published at great cost
some elegant books narrating their exploits. The expense even
in ships alone, in that instance, was at the rate of twenty to
one here, but no cry of economy was then raised." "I look upon
this proposition solely as a business measure; in that point of
view I believe the Government will obtain more service for the
amount of money, than by any other contract that we have ever
made, or now can make, for the transmission of intelligence."
As to the expense of furnishing a ship of war to assist in laying the
cable, Mr. Douglas asked:
"Will it cost anything to furnish the use of one of our
steamships? They are idle. We have no practical use for them at
present. They are in commission. They have their coal on board,
and their full armament. They will be rendering no service to
us if they are not engaged in this work. If there was nothing
more than a question of national pride involved, I would gladly
furnish the use of an American ship for that purpose. England
tenders one of her national vessels, and why should we not
tender one also? It costs England nothing, and it costs us
nothing."
Mr. Rusk made the same point, in arguing that ships might be sent to
assist in laying the cable, giving this homely but sufficient reason: "I
think that is better than to keep them rotting at the navy-yards, with
the officers frollicking on shore."
Mr. Douglas urged still further:
"American citizens have commenced this enterprise. The honor
and the glory of the achievement, if successful, will be due
to American genius and American daring. Why should the American
Government be so penurious--I do not know that that is the
proper word, for it costs nothing--why should we be actuated by
so illiberal a spirit as to refuse the use of one of our
steamships to convey the wire when it does not cost one
farthing to the Treasury of the United States?"
But behind all these objections of expense and of want of constitutional
power, was one greater than all, and that was England! The real animus
of the opposition was a fear of giving some advantage to Great Britain.
This has always been sufficient to excite the hostility of a certain
class of politicians. No matter what the subject of the proposed
coöperation, if it were purely a scientific expedition, they were sure
England was going to profit by it to our injury. So now there were those
who felt that in this submarine cable England was literally crawling
under the sea to get some advantage of the United States!
This jealousy and hostility spoke loudest from the mouths of
Southerners. It is noteworthy that men who, in less than five years
after, were figuring abroad, courting foreign influence against their
own country, were then fiercest in denunciation of England. Mason and
Slidell voted together against the bill. Butler, of South Carolina, was
very bitter in his opposition--saying, with a sneer, that "this was
simply a mail service under the surveillance of Great Britain"--and so
was Hunter, of Virginia; while Jones, of Tennessee, bursting with
patriotism, found a sufficient reason for his opposition, in that "he
did not want anything to do with England or Englishmen!"
But it should be said in justice, that to this general hostility of the
South there were some exceptions. Benjamin, of Louisiana, gave the bill
an earnest support; so did Mallory, of Florida, Chairman of the Naval
Committee; and especially that noble Southerner, Rusk, of Texas, "with
whose aid," as Mr. Seward said, "it seemed that there was no good thing
which he could not do in Congress." Mr. Rusk declared that he regarded
it as "the great enterprise of the age," and expressed his surprise at
the very moderate subsidy asked for, only seventy thousand dollars a
year, saying that, "with a reasonable prospect of success in an
enterprise, calculated to produce such beneficial results, he should be
willing to vote two hundred thousand dollars."
But with the majority of Southern Senators, there was a repugnance to
acting in concert with England, which could not be overcome. They argued
that this was not truly a line between England and the United States,
but between England and her own colonies--a line of which she alone was
to reap the benefit. _Both its termini were in the British possessions._
In the event of war this would give a tremendous advantage to the power
holding both ends of the line. All the speakers harped on this string;
and it may be worth a page or two to see how this was met and answered.
When Mr. Hunter, of Virginia, asked, "What security are we to have that
in time of war we shall have the use of the telegraph as well as the
British Government?" Mr. Seward answered:
"It appears not to have been contemplated by the British
Government that there would ever be any interruption of the
amicable relations between the two countries. Therefore nothing
was proposed in their contract for the contingency of war.
"That the two termini are both in the British dominions is
true; but it is equally true that there is no other terminus on
this continent where it is practicable to make that
communication except in the British dominions. We have no
dominions on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. There is no
other route known on which the telegraphic wire could be drawn
through the ocean so as to find a proper resting-place or
anchorage except this. The distance on this route is seventeen
hundred miles. It is not even known that the telegraphic wire
will carry the fluid with sufficient strength to communicate
across those seventeen hundred miles. That is yet a scientific
experiment, and the Company are prepared to make it.
"In regard to war, all the danger is this: There is a hazard of
war at some future time, and whatever arrangements we might
make, war would break them up. No treaty would save us. My own
hope is, that after the telegraphic wire is once laid, there
will be no more war between the United States and Great
Britain. I believe that whenever such a connection as this
shall be made, we diminish the chances of war, and diminish
them in such a degree, that it is not necessary to take them
into consideration at the present moment.
"Let us see where we are. What shall we gain by refusing to
enter into this agreement? If we do not make it, the British
Government has only to add ten thousand pounds sterling more
annually, and they have the whole monopoly of this wire,
without any stipulation whatever--not only in war but in peace.
If we make this contract with the Company, we at least secure
the benefit of it in time of peace, and we postpone and delay
the dangers of war. If there shall ever be war, it would
abrogate all treaties that can be made in regard to this
subject, unless it be true, as the honorable Senator from
Virginia thinks, that treaties can be made which will be
regarded as obligatory by nations in time of war. If so, we
have all the advantages in time of peace, for the purpose of
making such treaties hereafter, without the least reason to
infer that there would be any reluctance on the part of the
British Government to enter into that negotiation with us, if
we should desire to do so. The British Government, if it had
such a disposition as the honorable Senator supposes, would
certainly have proposed to monopolize all this telegraphic
line, instead of proposing to divide it."[A]
Mr. Hale spoke in the same strain:
"It seems to me that the war spirit and the contingencies of
war are brought in a little too often upon matters of
legislation which have no necessary connection with them. If we
are to be governed by considerations of that sort, they would
paralyze all improvements; they would stop the great
appropriations for commerce; they would at once neutralize that
policy which sets our ocean steamers afloat. Nobody pretends
that the intercourse which is kept up between Great Britain and
this country by our ocean steamers would be continued in time
of war; nor the communication with France or other nations.
"If we are deterred for that reason, we shall be pursuing a
policy that will paralyze improvements on those parts of the
coast which lie contiguous to the lakes. The city of Detroit
will have to be abandoned, beautiful and progressive as it is,
because in time of war the mansions of her citizens there lie
within the range of British guns.
"What will the suspension bridge at Niagara be good for in a
time of war? If the British cut off their end of it, our end
will not be worth much. I believe that among the things which
will bind us together in peace, this telegraphic wire will be
one of the most potent. It will bind the two countries together
literally with cords of iron that will hold us in the bonds of
peace. I repudiate entirely the policy which refuses to adopt
it, because in time of war it may be interrupted. Such a policy
as that would drive us back to a state of barbarism. It would
destroy the spirit of progress; it would retard improvement; it
would paralyze all the advances which are making us a more
civilized, and a more informed and a better people than the one
which preceded us."
Mr. Douglas cut the matter short by saying:
"I am willing to vote for this bill as a peace measure, as a
commercial measure--but not as a war measure; and when war
comes, let us rely on our power and ability to take this end of
the wire, and keep it."
Mr. Benjamin said:
"The sum of money that this Government proposes to give for the
use of this telegraph will amount, in the twenty-five years, to
something between £300,000 and £400,000. Now, if this be a
matter of such immense importance to Great Britain--if this be
the golden opportunity--and if, indeed, her control of this
line be such a powerful engine, whether in war or in peace, is
it not most extraordinary that she proposes to us a full share
in its benefits and in its control, and allows to our
Government equal rights with herself in the transmission of
communications for the sum of about £300,000, to be paid in
annual instalments through twenty-five years? If this be,
indeed, a very important instrumentality in behalf of Great
Britain for the conduct of her commerce, the government of her
possessions, or the efficient action of her troops in time of
war, the £300,000 expended upon it are but as a drop in the
bucket when compared with the immense resources of that empire.
I think, therefore, we may as well discard from our
consideration of this subject all these visions about the
immense importance of the governmental aid in this matter, to
be rendered under the provisions of this bill.
"Mr. President, let us not always be thinking of war; let us be
using means to preserve peace. The amount that would be
expended by this Government in six months' war with Great
Britain, would far exceed every thing that we shall have to pay
for the use of this telegraphic line for the entire twenty-five
years of the contract; and do you not believe that this
instrumentality will be sufficiently efficient to bind together
the peace, the commerce, and the interests of the two
countries, so as even to defer a war for six months or twelve
months, if one should ever become inevitable, beyond the period
at which it would otherwise occur? If it does that, it will in
six or eight or nine months repay the expenditures of
twenty-five years.
"Again, Sir, I say, if Great Britain wants it for war, she will
put it there at her own expense. It is not three hundred
thousand pounds, or four hundred thousand pounds, that will
arrest her. If, on the contrary, this be useful to
commerce--useful in an eminent degree--useful for the
preservation of peace, then I confess I feel some pride that my
country should aid in establishing it. I confess I feel a glow
of something like pride that I belong to the great human family
when I see these triumphs of science, by which mind is brought
into instant communication with mind across the intervening
oceans, which, to our unenlightened forefathers, seemed placed
there by Providence as an eternal barrier to communication
between man and man. Now, Sir, we speak from minute to minute.
Scarcely can a gun be fired in war on the European shore ere
its echoes will reverberate among our own mountains, and be
heard by every citizen in the land. All this is a triumph of
science--of American genius, and I for one feel proud of it,
and feel desirous of sustaining and promoting it."
Mr. Douglas said:
"Our policy is essentially a policy of peace. We want peace
with the whole world, above all other considerations. There
never has been a time in the history of this Republic, when
peace was more essential to our prosperity, to our advancement,
and to our progress, than it is now. We have made great
progress in time of peace--an almost inconceivable progress
since the last war with Great Britain. Twenty-five years more
of peace will put us far in advance of any other nation on
earth."
It was fit that Mr. Seward, who introduced the bill, and opened the
debate, should close in words that now seem prophetic, and show the
large wisdom, looking before and after, of this eminent statesman:
"There was an American citizen who, in the year 1770, or
thereabout, indicated to this country, to Great Britain, and to
the world, the use of the lightning for the purposes of
communication of intelligence, and that was Dr. Franklin. I am
sure that there is not only no member of the Senate, but no
American citizen, however humble, who would be willing to have
struck out from the achievements of American invention this
great discovery of the lightning as an agent for the uses of
human society.
"The suggestion made by that distinguished and illustrious
American was followed up some fifty years afterward by another
suggestion and another indication from another American, and
that was Mr. Samuel F. B. Morse, who indicated to the American
Government the means by which the lightning could be made to
write, and by which the telegraphic wires could be made to
supply the place of wind and steam for carrying intelligence.
"We have followed out the suggestions of these eminent
Americans hitherto, and I am sure at a very small cost. The
Government of the United States appropriated $40,000 to test
the practicability of Morse's suggestion; the $40,000 thus
expended established its practicability and its use. Now, there
is no person on the face of the globe who can measure the price
at which, if a reasonable man, he would be willing to strike
from the world the use of the magnetic telegraph as a means of
communication between different portions of the same country.
This great invention is now to be brought into its further,
wider, and broader use--the use by the general society of
nations, international use, the use of the society of mankind.
Its benefits are large--just in proportion to the extent and
scope of its operation. They are not merely benefits to the
Government, but they are benefits to the citizens and subjects
of all nations and of all States.
"I might enlarge further on this subject, but I forbear to do
so, because I know that at some future time I shall come across
the record of what I have said to-day. I know that then what I
have said to-day, by way of anticipation, will fall so far
short of the reality of benefits which individuals, States, and
nations will have derived from this great enterprise, that I
shall not reflect upon it without disappointment and
mortification."
After such arguments, it should seem that there could be but one
opinion, and yet the bill passed the Senate by only _one_ majority! It
also had to run the gauntlet of the House of Representatives, where it
encountered the same hostility. But at length it got through, and was
signed by President Pierce on the third of March, the day before he went
out of office. Thus it became a law.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] It is worthy of notice, that when the Bill granting a charter to the
Atlantic Telegraph Company was offered in the British Parliament, at
least one nobleman found fault with it on this very ground, that it gave
away important advantages which properly belonged to England, and which
she ought to reserve to herself:
"In the House of Lords, on the twentieth of July, 1857, on the motion
for the third reading of the Telegraph Company's bill,
"Lord Redesdale called attention to the fact that, although the termini
of the proposed telegraph were both in her Majesty's dominions, namely,
in Ireland and Newfoundland, the American Government were to enjoy the
same priority as the British Government with regard to the transmission
of messages. It was said that this equal right was owing to the fact
that a joint guarantee had been given by the two Governments. _He
thought, however, it would have been far better policy on the part of
her Majesty's Government if they had either undertaken the whole
guarantee themselves, and thus had obtained free and sole control over
the connecting line of telegraph, or had invited our own colonies to
participate in that guarantee, rather than have allowed a foreign
government to join in making it._ At the same time, if the clause in
question had the sanction of her Majesty's ministry, it was not his
intention to object to it.
"Earl Granville said this telegraph was intended to connect two great
countries, and, as the two Governments had gone hand in hand with regard
to the guarantee, it seemed only reasonable that both should have the
same rights as to transmitting messages.
"The bill was then read a third time and passed."
CHAPTER VIII.
THE EXPEDITION OF 1857.
Scarcely was the business with the American Government completed, before
Mr. Field was recalled to England. Once more upon the waves, he forgot
the long delay and the vexatious opposition which he left behind--the
fogs of Newfoundland, and the denser fogs of Washington. He was bound
for England, and there at least the work did not stand still. All winter
long the wheels of the machinery had kept in motion. The cable was
uncoiling its mighty folds to a length sufficient to span the Atlantic,
and at last there was hope of victory.
Although the United States Government had seemed a little ungracious in
its delay, it yet rendered, this year and the next, most important
service. Already it had prepared the way, by the deep-sea soundings,
which it was the first to take across the Atlantic. It now rendered
additional and substantial aid in lending to this enterprise the two
finest ships in the American navy--the Niagara and the Susquehanna. The
former was built some dozen years before by George Steers--a name
celebrated among our marine architects as the constructor of the famous
yacht America, that "racehorse of the sea," which had crossed the
Atlantic, and carried off the prize in the British Channel from the
yachts of England--and was designed to be a model of naval architecture.
She was the largest steam-frigate in the world, exceeding in tonnage the
heaviest line-of-battle ship in the English navy, and yet so finely
modelled that, propelled only by a screw, she could make ten or twelve
miles an hour. Notwithstanding her bulk, she was intended to carry but
twelve guns--being one of the first ships in our navy to substitute a
few heavy Dahlgrens for half a dozen times as many fifty-six-pounders.
This was the beginning of that revolution in naval warfare, which was
carried to such extent in the Monitors and other ironclads introduced in
our civil war. Each gun weighed fourteen tons--requiring a crew of
twenty-five men to wield it--and threw a shell of one hundred and thirty
pounds a distance of three miles. One or two broadsides from such a deck
would sink an old-fashioned seventy-four, or even a ninety or
hundred-gun ship.
But as the Niagara was now to go on an errand of peace, this formidable
armament was not taken on board. She was built with what is known as a
flush deck, clear from stem to stern, and being without her guns, was
left free for the more peaceful burden that she was to bear. When the
orders were received from Washington, she was lying at the Brooklyn
Navy-Yard, but began immediately to prepare for her expedition.
Bulkheads were knocked down, above and below, to make room for the huge
monster of the deep that was to be coiled within her sides. These
preparations occupied four or five weeks. On the twenty-second of April,
she made a trial trip down the bay, and two days after sailed for
England, in command of Captain William L. Hudson, one of the oldest and
best officers in our navy, who, to his past services to his country, was
now to add another in the expeditions of this and the following year. He
had with him as Chief Engineer Mr. William E. Everett, whose mechanical
genius proved so important in constructing the paying-out machinery.
Besides the regular ship's crew, no one was received on board except Mr.
Field and Professor Morse, who went as the electrician of the
Newfoundland Company; and two officers of the Russian navy--Captain
Schwartz and Lieutenant Kolobnin--who were permitted by our Government,
as an act of national courtesy, to go out to witness the great
experiment. The regulations of the navy did not admit correspondents of
the press; but Professor Morse was permitted to take a secretary, and
chose Mr. Mullaly, who reported for the New York Herald, and who had
thus an opportunity to witness all the preparations on land and sea, and
to furnish those minute and detailed accounts of the several
expeditions, which contribute some important chapters in the history of
this enterprise.
The Niagara arrived out on the fourteenth of May, and cast anchor off
Gravesend, about twenty-five miles below London. As it was the first
time--at least for many years--that an American ship of war had appeared
in the Thames, this fact, with her fine proportions and the object for
which she came, attracted a crowd of visitors. Every day, from morning
to night, a fleet of boats was around her, and men and women thronged
over her sides. Everybody was welcome. All were received with the utmost
courtesy, and allowed access to all parts of the ship. Among these were
many visitors of distinction. Here came Lady Franklin to thank the
generous nation that had sent two expeditions to recover her husband
lost amid Polar seas. She was, of course, the object of general
attention and respectful sympathy.
While lying in the Thames, the Agamemnon, that was to take the other
half of the cable, passed up the river. This was a historical ship,
having borne the flag of the British admiral at the bombardment of
Sebastopol, and distinguished herself by steaming up within a few
hundred yards of the guns of the fortress. After passing through the
fires of that terrible day, she was justly an object of pride to
Britons, whose hearts swelled as they saw this oak-ribbed leviathan,
that had come "out of the gates of death, out of the jaws of hell," now
preparing to take part in achievements of peace, not less glorious than
those of war. She was under command of Captain Noddal, of the Royal
Navy.
As the Agamemnon came up the river in grand style, she recognized the
Niagara lying off Gravesend, and manning her yards, gave her a
succession of those English hurras so stirring to the blood, when heard
on land or sea, to which our tars replied with lusty American cheers. It
was pleasant to observe, from this time, the hearty good-will that
existed between the officers and crews of the two ships, who in their
exertions for the common object, were animated only by a generous
rivalry.
A few days after, the Niagara was joined by the Susquehanna, Captain
Sands, which had been ordered from the Mediterranean to take part also
in the expedition. She was a fit companion ship, being the largest
side-wheel steamer in our navy, as the other was the largest propeller.
Both together, they were worthy representatives of the American navy.
When the Niagara arrived in the Thames, it was supposed she would take
on board her half of the cable from the manufactory of Glass, Elliot &
Co., at Greenwich; but on account of her great length, it was difficult
to bring her up alongside the wharf in front of the works. This was
therefore left to the Agamemnon, while the Niagara was ordered around
to Liverpool, to take the other half from the works of Newall & Co., at
Birkenhead, opposite that city. Accordingly she left Gravesend on the
fifth of June, and reached Portsmouth the next day, where she remained a
fortnight, to have some further alterations to fit her to receive the
cable. Although she had been already pretty well "scooped out," fore and
aft, the cry was still for room. Officers had to shift for themselves,
as their quarters were swept away to make a wider berth for their iron
guest. But all submitted with excellent grace. Like true sailors, they
took it gayly as if they were only clearing the decks for battle. Among
other alterations for safety, was a framework or cage of iron, which was
put over the stern of the ship, to keep the cable from getting entangled
in the screw. As soon as these were completed, the Niagara left for
Liverpool, and on the twenty-second of June cast anchor in the Mersey.
Here she attracted as much attention as in the Thames, being crowded
with visitors during the week; and on Sundays, when none were received
on board, the river-boats sought to gratify public curiosity by sailing
round her. The officers of the ship were objects of constant
hospitality, both from private citizens and from the public authorities.
The Mayor of Liverpool gave them a dinner, the Chamber of Commerce
another, while the Americans in Liverpool entertained them on the fourth
of July--the first public celebration of our national anniversary ever
had in that city.
But while these festivities were kept up on shore, hard work was done on
board the ship. To coil thirteen hundred miles of cable was an immense
undertaking. Yet it was all done by the sailors themselves. No
compulsion was used, and none was needed. No sooner was there a call for
volunteers, than men stepped forward in greater numbers than could be
employed. Out of these were chosen one hundred and twenty stalwart
fellows, who were divided into two gangs of sixty men, and each gang
into watches of thirty, which relieved each other, and all went to work
with such enthusiasm, that in three weeks the herculean task was
completed. The event was celebrated by a final dinner given by the
shareholders of the Atlantic Telegraph Company in Liverpool to Captain
Hudson and Captain Sands of the Susquehanna, whose arrival in the Mersey
enabled them to extend their hospitalities to the officers of both
ships.
While the Niagara was thus doing her part, the same scene was repeated
on board the Agamemnon, which was still lying in the Thames. There the
work was completed about the same day, and the occasion duly honored by
a scene as unique as it was beautiful. Says the London Times of July
twenty-fourth:
"All the details connected with the manufacture and stowage of
the cable are now completed, and the conclusion of the arduous
labor was celebrated yesterday with high festivity and
rejoicing. All the artisans who have been engaged upon the
great work, with their wives and families, a large party of the
officers, with the sailors from the Agamemnon, and a number of
distinguished scientific visitors, were entertained upon this
occasion at a kind of _fête champêtre_ at Belvidere House, the
seat of Sir Culling Eardley, near Erith. The festival was held
in the beautiful park which had been obligingly opened by Sir
Culling Eardley for the purpose. Although in no way personally
interested in the project, the honorable baronet has all along
evinced the liveliest sympathy with the undertaking, and
himself proposed to have the completion of the work celebrated
in his picturesque grounds. The manufacturers, fired with
generous emulation, erected spacious tents on the lawn, and
provided a magnificent banquet for the guests, and a
substantial one for the sailors of the Agamemnon and the
artificers who had been employed in the construction of the
cable. By an admirable arrangement, the guests were
accommodated at a vast semi-circular table, which ran round the
whole pavilion, while the sailors and workmen sat at a number
of long tables arranged at right angles with the chord, so that
the general effect was that all dined together, while at the
same time sufficient distinction was preserved to satisfy the
most fastidious. The three centre tables were occupied by the
crew of the Agamemnon, a fine, active body of young men, who
paid the greatest attention to the speeches, and drank all the
toasts with an admirable punctuality, at least so long as their
three pints of beer per man lasted; but we regret to add that,
what with the heat of the day and the enthusiasm of Jack in the
cause of science, the mugs were all empty long before the
chairman's list of toasts had been gone through. Next in
interest to the sailors were the workmen and their wives and
babies, all being permitted to assist at the great occasion.
The latter, it is true, sometimes squalled at an affecting
peroration, but that rather improved the effect than otherwise,
and the presence of these little ones only marked the genuine
good feeling of the employers, who had thus invited not only
their workmen, but their workmen's families to the feast. It
was a momentary return to the old patriarchal times, and every
one present seemed delighted with the experiment."
Speeches were made by Sir Culling Eardley, by Mr. Cardwell, of the House
of Commons, Mr. Brooking, one of the Directors, by Professor Morse, and
others. Mr. Field read a letter from President Buchanan, saying that he
should feel honored if the first message should be one from Queen
Victoria to himself, and that he "would endeavor to answer it in a
spirit and manner becoming a great occasion."
Thus, labor and feasting being ended, the Niagara and the Susquehanna
left Liverpool the latter part of July and steamed down St. George's
Channel to Queenstown, which was to be the rendezvous of the telegraphic
squadron, where they were joined by the Agamemnon and the Leopard, which
was to be her consort. The former, as she entered the harbor, came to
anchor about a third of a mile from the Niagara. The presence of the two
ships which had the cable on board, gave an opportunity which the
electricians had desired to test its integrity. Accordingly one end of
each cable was carried to the opposite ship, and so joined as to form a
continuous length of twenty-five hundred miles, both ends of which were
on board the Agamemnon. One end was then connected with the apparatus
for transmitting the electric current, and on a sensitive galvanometer
being attached to the other end, the whole cable was tested from end to
end, and found to be perfect. These experiments were continued for two
days with the same result. This inspired fresh hopes for the success of
the expedition, and in high spirits they bore away for the harbor of
Valentia.
It had been for some time a matter of discussion, where they should
begin to lay the cable, whether from the coast of Ireland, or in
mid-ocean, the two ships making the junction there, and dropping it to
the bottom of the sea, and then parting, one to the east and the other
to the west, till they landed their ends on the opposite shores of the
Atlantic. This was the plan adopted the following year, and which
finally proved successful. It was the one preferred by the engineers
now, but the electricians favored the other course, and their counsel
prevailed. It was therefore decided to submerge the whole cable in a
continuous line from Valentia Bay to Newfoundland. The Niagara was to
lay the first half from Ireland to the middle of the Atlantic; the end
would then be joined to the other half on board the Agamemnon, which
would take it on to the coast of Newfoundland. During the whole process
the four vessels were to remain together and give whatever assistance
was required. While it was being laid down, messages were to be sent
back to Valentia, reporting each day of progress.
As might be supposed, the mustering of such a fleet of ships, and the
busy note of preparation which had been heard for weeks, produced a
great sensation in this remote part of Ireland. The people from far and
near, gathered on the hills and looked on in silent wonder.
To add to the dignity of the occasion, the Lord Lieutenant came down
from Dublin to witness the departure of the expedition. No one could
have been better fitted to represent his own country, and to command
audience from ours. The Earl of Carlisle--better known among us as Lord
Morpeth--had travelled in the United States a few years before, and
shown himself one of the most intelligent and liberal foreigners that
have visited America. No representative of England could on that day
have stood upon the shores of Ireland, and stretched out his hand to his
kindred beyond the sea with more assurance that his greeting would be
warmly responded to. And never did one speak more aptly words of wisdom
and of peace. We read them still with admiration for their beauty and
their eloquence, and with an interest more tender but more sad, that
this great and good man--the true friend of his own country and of
ours--has gone to his grave. To quote his own words is the best tribute
to his memory, and will do more than any eulogy to keep it fresh and
green in the hearts of Americans. On his arrival at Valentia, he was
entertained by the Knight of Kerry at one of those public breakfasts so
much in fashion in England, at which in response to a toast in his
honor, after making his personal acknowledgments, he said:
"I believe, as your worthy chairman has already hinted, that I
am probably the first Lieutenant of Ireland who ever appeared
upon this lovely strand. At all events, no Lord Lieutenant
could have come amongst you on an occasion like the present.
Amidst all the pride and the stirring hopes which cluster
around the work of this week, we ought still to remember that
we must speak with the modesty of those who begin and not of
those who close an experiment, and it behooves us to remember
that the pathway to great achievements has frequently to be
hewn out amidst risks and difficulties, and that preliminary
failure is even the law and condition of the ultimate success.
Therefore, whatever disappointments may possibly be in store, I
must yet insinuate to you that in a cause like this it would be
criminal to feel discouragement. In the very design and
endeavor to establish the Atlantic Telegraph there is almost
enough of glory. It is true if it be only an attempt there
would not be quite enough of profit. I hope that will come,
too; but there is enough of public spirit, of love for science,
for our country, for the human race, almost to suffice in
themselves. However, upon this rocky frontlet of Ireland, at
all events, to-day we will presume upon success. We are about,
either by this sundown or by to-morrow's dawn, to establish a
new material link between the Old World and the New. Moral
links there have been--links of race, links of commerce, links
of friendship, links of literature, links of glory; but this,
our new link, instead of superseding and supplanting the old
ones, is to give a life and an intensity which they never had
before. Highly as I value the reputations of those who have
conceived, and those who have contributed to carry out this
bright design--and I wish that so many of them had not been
unavoidably prevented from being amongst us at this
moment[A]--highly as I estimate their reputation, yet I do not
compliment them with the idea that they are to efface or dim
the glory of that Columbus, who, when the large vessels in the
harbor of Cork yesterday weighed their anchors, did so on that
very day three hundred and sixty-five years ago--it would have
been called in Hebrew writ a year of years--and set sail upon
his glorious enterprise of discovery. They, I say, will not dim
or efface his glory, but they are now giving the last finish
and consummation to his work. Hitherto the inhabitants of the
two worlds have associated perhaps in the chilling atmosphere
of distance with each other--a sort of bowing distance; but now
we can be hand to hand, grasp to grasp, pulse to pulse. The
link, which is now to connect us, like the insect in the
immortal couplet of our poet:
While exquisitely fine,
Feels at each thread and lives along the line.
And we may feel, gentlemen of Ireland, of England, and of
America, that we may take our stand here upon the extreme
rocky edge of our beloved Ireland; we may, as it were, leave
in our rear behind us the wars, the strifes, and the bloodshed
of the elder Europe, and of the elder Asia; and we may pledge
ourselves, weak as our agency may be, imperfect as our powers
may be, inadequate in strict diplomatic form as our credentials
may be, yet, in the face of the unparalleled circumstances, of
the place and the hour, in the immediate neighborhood of the
mighty vessels whose appearance may be beautiful upon the
waters, even as are the feet upon the mountains of those who
preach the Gospel of peace--as an homage due to that serene
science which often affords higher and holier lessons of
harmony and good will than the wayward passions of man are
always apt to learn--in the face and in the strength of such
circumstances, let us pledge ourselves to eternal peace between
the Old World and the New."
While these greetings were exchanged on shore, only the smaller vessels
of the squadron had arrived. But in a few hours the great hulls of the
Niagara and the Agamemnon, followed by the Leopard and the Susquehanna,
were seen in the horizon, and soon they all cast anchor in the bay. As
the sun went down in the west, shining still on the other hemisphere
which they were going to seek, its last rays fell on an expedition more
suggestive and hopeful than any since that of Columbus from the shores
of Spain, and upon navigators not unworthy to be his followers.
The whole squadron was now assembled, and made gallant array. There were
present in the little harbor of Valentia seven ships--the stately
Niagara, which was to lay the half of the cable from Ireland, and her
consort, the Susquehanna, riding by her side; while floating the flag of
England, were the Agamemnon, which was appointed to lay the cable on the
American side, and her consort, the Leopard. Beside these high-decked
ships of war, the steamer Advice had come round to give, not merely
advice but lusty help in landing the cable at Valentia; and the little
steamer Willing Mind, with a zeal worthy of her name, was flying back
and forth between ship and shore, lending a hand wherever there was work
to be done; and the Cyclops, under the experienced command of Captain
Dayman, who had made the deep-sea soundings across the Atlantic only the
month before, here joined the squadron to lead the way across the deep.
This made five English ships, with but two American; but to keep up our
part, there were two more steamers on the other side of the sea, the
Arctic, under Lieutenant Berryman, and the Company's steamer Victoria,
to watch for the coming of the fleet off the coast of Newfoundland, and
help in landing the cable on the shores of the New World.
It was now Tuesday evening, the fourth of August, too late to undertake
the landing that night, but preparations were at once begun for it the
next morning. Said the correspondent of the Liverpool Post:
"The ships were visited in the course of the evening by the
Directors and others interested in the great undertaking, and
arrangements were immediately commenced on board the Niagara
for paying out the shore rope for conveyance to the mainland.
These arrangements were fully perfected by Wednesday morning;
but for some hours the state of the weather rendered it
doubtful whether operations could be safely proceeded with.
Toward the afternoon the breeze calmed down, and at two o'clock
it was decided that an effort should be made to land the cable
at once. The process of uncoiling into the small boats
commenced at half-past two, and the scene at this period was
grand and exciting in the highest degree.
"Valentia Bay was studded with innumerable small craft, decked
with the gayest bunting--small boats flitted hither and
thither, their occupants cheering enthusiastically as the work
successfully progressed. The cable-boats were managed by the
sailors of the Niagara and Susquehanna, and it was a
well-designed compliment, and indicative of the future
fraternization of the nations, that the shore rope was arranged
to be presented at this side the Atlantic to the representative
of the Queen, by the officers and men of the United States
navy, and that at the other side the British officers and
sailors should make a similar presentation to the President of
the Great Republic.
"From the main land the operations were watched with intense
interest. For several hours the Lord Lieutenant stood on the
beach, surrounded by his staff and the directors of the railway
and telegraph companies, waiting the arrival of the cable, and
when at length the American sailors jumped through the surge
with the hawser to which it was attached, his Excellency was
among the first to lay hold of it and pull it lustily to the
shore. Indeed every one present seemed desirous of having a
hand in the great work; and never before perhaps were there so
many willing assistants, at 'the long pull, the strong pull,
and the pull all together.'
"At half-past seven o'clock the cable was hauled on shore, and
formal presentation was made of it to the Lord Lieutenant by
Captain Pennock, of the Niagara; his Excellency expressing a
hope that the work so well begun would be carried to a
satisfactory completion."
The wire having been secured to a house on the beach, the Reverend Mr.
Day, of Kenmore, advanced and offered the following prayer:
"O Eternal Lord God, who alone spreadest out the heavens, and
rulest the raging of the sea; who hast compassed the water with
bounds, till day and night come to an end; and whom the winds
and the sea obey; look down in mercy, we beseech thee, upon us
thy servants, who now approach the throne of grace; and let our
prayer ascend before thee with acceptance. Thou hast commanded
and encouraged us, in all our ways, to acknowledge thee, and to
commit our works to thee; and thou hast graciously promised to
direct our paths, and to prosper our handiwork. We desire now
to look up to thee; and believing that without thy help and
blessing, nothing can prosper or succeed, we humbly commit this
work, and all who are engaged in it, to thy care and guidance.
Let it please thee to grant to us thy servants wisdom and
power, to complete what we have been led by thy Providence to
undertake; that being begun and carried on in the spirit of
prayer, and in dependence upon thee, it may tend to thy glory:
and to the good of all nations, by promoting the increase of
unity, peace, and concord.
"Overrule, we pray thee, every obstacle, and remove every
difficulty which would prevent us from succeeding in this
important undertaking. Control the winds and the sea by thy
Almighty power, and grant us such favorable weather that we may
be enabled to lay the Cable safely and effectually. And may thy
hand of power and mercy be so acknowledged by all, that the
language of every heart may be, 'Not unto us, O Lord, not unto
us, but unto thy name give glory,' that so thy name may be
hallowed and magnified in us and by us.
"Finally, we beseech thee to implant within us a spirit of
humility and childlike dependence upon thee; and teach us to
feel as well as to say, 'If the Lord will, we shall do this or
that.'
"Hear us, O Lord, and answer us in these our petitions,
according to thy precious promise, for Jesus Christ's sake.
Amen."
The Lord Lieutenant then spoke once more--words that amid such a scene
and at such an hour, sank into all hearts:
"My American, English, and Irish friends, I feel at such a
moment as this that no language of mine can be becoming except
that of prayer and praise. However, it is allowable to any
human lips, though they have not been specially qualified for
the office, to raise the ascription of 'Glory to God in the
highest; on earth peace, good-will to men.' That, I believe, is
the spirit in which this great work has been undertaken; and it
is this reflection that encourages me to feel confident hopes
in its final success. I believe that the great work now so
happily begun will accomplish many great and noble purposes of
trade, of national policy, and of empire. But there is only
one view in which I will present it to those whom I have the
pleasure to address. You are aware--you must know, some of you,
from your own experience--that many of your dear friends and
near relatives have left their native land to receive
hospitable shelter in America. Well, then, I do not expect that
all of you can understand the wondrous mechanism by which this
great undertaking is to be carried on. But this, I think, you
all of you understand. If you wished to communicate some piece
of intelligence straightway to your relatives across the wide
world of waters--if you wished to tell those whom you know it
would interest in their heart of hearts, of a birth, or a
marriage, or, alas, a death, among you, the little cord, which
we have now hauled up to the shore, will impart that tidings
quicker than the flash of the lightning. Let us indeed hope,
let us pray that the hopes of those who have set on foot this
great design, may be rewarded by its entire success; and let us
hope, further, that this Atlantic Cable will, in all future
time, serve as an emblem of that strong cord of love which I
trust will always unite the British islands to the great
continent of America. And you will join me in my fervent wish
that the Giver of all good, who has enabled some of his
servants to discern so much of the working of the mighty laws
by which he fills the universe, will further so bless this
wonderful work, as to make it even more to serve the high
purpose of the good of man, and tend to his great glory. And
now, all my friends, as there can be no project or undertaking
which ought not to receive the approbation and applause of the
people, will you join with me in giving three hearty cheers for
it? [Loud cheering.] Three cheers are not enough for me--they
are what we give on common occasions--and as it is for the
success of the Atlantic Telegraph Cable, I must have at least
one dozen cheers. [Loud and protracted cheering.]"
Mr. Brooking, the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Atlantic
Telegraph Company, then expressed the thanks which all felt to the Lord
Lieutenant for his presence on that occasion.
Then there were loud calls for Mr. Field. He could only answer:
"I have no words to express the feelings which fill my heart
to-night--it beats with love and affection for every man, woman
and child who hears me. I may say, however, that, if ever at
the other side of the waters now before us, any one of you
shall present himself at my door and say that he took hand or
part, even by an approving smile, in our work here to-day, he
shall have a true American welcome. I cannot bind myself to
more, and shall merely say: 'What God has joined together, let
not man put asunder.'"
Thus closed this most interesting scene. The Lord Lieutenant was obliged
to return at once to the capital. He therefore left, and posted that
night to Killarney, and the next day returned by special train to
Dublin, leaving the ships to complete the work so happily begun.
The landing of the cable took place on Wednesday, the fifth of August,
near the hour of sunset. As it was too late to proceed that evening, the
ships remained at anchor till the morning. They got under weigh at an
early hour, but were soon checked by an accident which detained them
another day. Before they had gone five miles, the heavy shore end of the
cable caught in the machinery and parted. The Niagara put back, and the
cable was "underrun" the whole distance. At length the end was lifted
out of the water and spliced to the gigantic coil, and as it dropped
safely to the bottom of the sea, the mighty ship began to stir. At first
she moved very slowly, not more than two miles an hour, to avoid the
danger of accident; but the feeling that they were at last away was
itself a relief. The ships were all in sight, and so near that they
could hear each other's bells. The Niagara, as if knowing that she was
bound for the land out of whose forests she came, bowed her head to the
waves, as her prow was turned toward her native shores.
Slowly passed the hours of that day. But all went well, and the ships
were moving out into the broad Atlantic. At length the sun went down in
the west, and stars came out on the face of the deep. But no man slept.
A thousand eyes were watching a great experiment as those who have a
personal interest in the issue. All through that night, and through the
anxious days and nights that followed, there was a feeling in every soul
on board, as if some dear friend were at the turning-point of life or
death, and they were watching beside him. There was a strange, unnatural
silence in the ship. Men paced the deck with soft and muffled tread,
speaking only in whispers, as if a loud voice or a heavy footfall might
snap the vital cord. So much had they grown to feel for the enterprise,
that the cable seemed to them like a human creature, on whose fate they
hung, as if it were to decide their own destiny.
There are some who will never forget that first night at sea. Perhaps
the reaction from the excitement on shore made the impression the
deeper. There are moments in life when every thing comes back upon us.
What memories came up in those long night hours! How many on board that
ship, as they stood on the deck and watched that mysterious cord
disappearing in the darkness, thought of homes beyond the sea, of absent
ones, of the distant and the dead!
But no musings turn them from the work in hand. There are vigilant eyes
on deck. Mr. Bright, the engineer of the Company, is there, and Mr.
Everett, Mr. De Sauty, the electrician, and Professor Morse. The
paying-out machinery does its work, and though it makes a constant
rumble in the ship, that dull, heavy sound is music to their ears, as it
tells them that all is well. If one should drop to sleep, and wake up at
night, he has only to hear the sound of "the old coffee-mill," and his
fears are relieved, and he goes to sleep again.
Saturday was a day of beautiful weather. The ships were getting farther
away from land, and began to steam ahead at the rate of four and five
miles an hour. The cable was paid out at a speed a little faster than
that of the ship, to allow for any inequalities of surface on the bottom
of the sea. While it was thus going overboard, communication was kept up
constantly with the land. Every moment the current was passing between
ship and shore. The communication was as perfect as between Liverpool
and London, or Boston and New York. Not only did the electricians
telegraph back to Valentia the progress they were making, but the
officers on board sent messages to their friends in America, to go out
by the steamers from Liverpool. The heavens seemed to smile on them that
day. The coils came up from below the deck without a kink, and unwinding
themselves easily, passed over the stern into the sea. Once or twice an
alarm was created by the cable being thrown off the wheels. This was
owing to the sheaves not being wide enough and deep enough, and being
filled with tar, which hardened in the air. This was a great defect of
the machinery which was remedied in the later expeditions. Still it
worked well, and so long as those terrible brakes kept off their iron
gripe, it might work through to the end.
All day Sunday the same favoring fortune continued; and when the
officers, who could be spared from the deck, met in the cabin, and
Captain Hudson read the service, it was with subdued voices and grateful
hearts they responded to the prayers to Him who spreadeth out the
heavens, and ruleth the raging of the sea.
On Monday they were over two hundred miles at sea. They had got far
beyond the shallow waters off the coast. They had passed over the
submarine mountain which figures on the charts of Dayman and Berryman,
and where Mr. Bright's log gives a descent from five hundred and fifty
to seventeen hundred and fifty fathoms within eight miles! Then they
came to the deeper waters of the Atlantic, where the cable sank to the
awful depth of two thousand fathoms. Still the iron cord buried itself
in the waves, and every instant the flash of light in the darkened
telegraph room told of the passage of the electric current.
But Monday evening, about nine o'clock, occurred a mysterious
interruption, which staggered all on board. Suddenly the electrical
continuity was lost. The cable was not broken, but it ceased to work.
Here was a mystery. De Sauty tried it, and Professor Morse tried it. But
neither could make it work. It seemed that all was over. The
electricians gave it up, and the engineers were preparing to cut the
cable, and to endeavor to wind it in, when suddenly _the electricity
came back again_. This made the mystery greater than ever. It had been
interrupted for two hours and a half. This was a phenomenon which has
never been explained. Professor Morse was of opinion that the cable, in
getting off the wheels, had been strained so as to open the
gutta-percha, and thus destroy the insulation. If this be the true
explanation, it would seem that on reaching the bottom the seam had
closed, and thus the continuity had been restored. But it was certainly
an untoward incident, which "cast ominous conjecture on the whole
success," as it seemed to indicate that there were at the bottom of the
sea causes which were wholly unknown and against which it was impossible
to provide.
The return of the current was like life from the dead. Says Mullaly:
"The glad news was soon circulated throughout the ship, and all
felt as if they had a new life. A rough, weather-beaten old
sailor, who had assisted in coiling many a long mile of it on
board the Niagara, and who was among the first to run to the
telegraph office to have the news confirmed, said he would have
given fifty dollars out of his pay to have saved that cable. 'I
have watched nearly every mile of it,' he added, 'as it came
over the side, and I would have given fifty dollars, poor as I
am, to have saved it, although I don't expect to make any thing
by it when it is laid down.' In his own simple way he expressed
the feelings of every one on board, for all are as much
interested in the success of the enterprise as the largest
shareholder in the Company. They talked of the cable as they
would of a pet child, and never was child treated with deeper
solicitude than that with which the cable is watched by them.
You could see the tears standing in the eyes of some as they
almost cried for joy, and told their messmates that it was all
right."
It was indeed a great relief; and though still anxious, after watching
till past midnight, a few crept to their couches, to snatch an hour or
two of broken sleep. But before the morning broke, the hopes thus
revived were again and finally destroyed.
The cable was running out freely at the rate of six miles an hour, while
the ship was advancing but about four. This was supposed to be owing to
a powerful under-current. To check this waste, the engineer applied the
brakes firmly, which at once stopped the machine. The effect was to
bring a heavy strain on the cable that was in the water. The stern of
the ship was down in the trough of the sea, and as it rose upward on the
swell, the tension was too great, and the cable parted.
Instantly ran through the ship a cry of grief and dismay. She was
stopped in her onward path, and in a few minutes all gathered on deck
with feelings which may be imagined. One who was present wrote: "The
unbidden tear started to many a manly eye. The interest taken in the
enterprise by all, every one, officers and men, exceeded any thing I
ever saw, and there is no wonder that there should have been so much
emotion at our failure." Captain Hudson says: "It made all hands of us
through the day like a household or family which had lost their dearest
friend, for officers and men had been deeply interested in the success
of the enterprise."
There was nothing left but to return to England. The position is very
clearly stated by Mr. Field in a letter to one of his family, which
shows how his own courage survived the great disaster:--
"H. M. Steamer Leopard,
Thursday, August 13, 1857.
"The successful laying down of the Atlantic Telegraph Cable is
put off for a short time, but its final triumph has been fully
proved, by the experience that we have had since we left
Valentia. My confidence was never so strong as at the present
time, and I feel sure, that with God's blessing, we shall
connect Europe and America with the electric cord.
"After having successfully laid--and part of the time while a
heavy sea was running--three hundred and thirty-five miles of
the cable, and over one hundred miles of it in water more than
two miles in depth, the brakes were applied more firmly, by
order of Mr. Bright, the engineer, to prevent the cable from
going out so fast, and it parted.
"I retired to my state-room at a little after midnight Monday,
all going on well, and at a quarter before four o'clock on
Tuesday morning, the eleventh instant, I was awoke from my
sleep by the cry of 'Stop her, back her!' and in a moment Mr.
Bright was in my room, with the sad intelligence that the cable
was broken. In as short a time as possible I was dressed, and
on deck; and Captain Hudson at once signaled the other steamers
that the cable had parted, and in a few moments Captain
Wainwright, of the Leopard, and Captain Sands, of the
Susquehanna, were on board of the Niagara.
"I requested Captain Wainwright, the commander of the English
Telegraph Fleet, to order the Agamemnon to remain with the
Niagara and Susquehanna, in this deep part of the Atlantic for
a few days, to try certain experiments which will be of great
value to us, and then sail with them back to England, and all
wait at Plymouth until further orders. I further requested
Captain Wainwright to order the Cyclops to sound here where the
cable parted, and then steam back to Valentia, with letters
from me to Dr. Whitehouse, and Mr. Saward, the secretary of the
Atlantic Telegraph Company; and that he should take me in the
Leopard as soon as possible to Portsmouth.
"All of my requests were cheerfully complied with, and in a few
hours the Cyclops had sounded, and found the bottom at two
thousand fathoms, and was on her way back to Valentia with
letters from me; the Niagara and the Agamemnon were connected
together by the cable, and engaged in trying experiments; the
Susquehanna in attendance, and the Leopard, with your
affectionate ---- on board, on her way back to England.
"In my letter to Dr. Whitehouse I requested him to telegraph to
London, and have a special meeting of the Directors called for
twelve o'clock on Saturday, to decide whether we should have
more cable made at once, and try again this season, or wait
until next year.
"I shall close this letter on board, so as to have it ready to
mail the moment we arrive at Portsmouth, as I wish to leave by
the very next train for London, so as to be there in time to
meet the Directors Saturday noon, and read them my report,
which I am busy making up.
"Do not think that I feel discouraged, or am in low spirits,
for I am not; and I think I can see how this accident will be
of great advantage to the Atlantic Telegraph Company.
"All the officers and men on board of the Telegraph Fleet, seem
to take the greatest interest in our enterprise, and are very
desirous to go out in the ships the next time.
"Since my arrival, I have received the greatest kindness and
attention from all whom I have met, from the Lord Lieutenant of
Ireland, down to the cabin-boys and sailors. The inclosed
letter from the Knight of Kerry, I received with a basket of
hothouse fruit, just as we were getting ready to leave Valentia
harbor.
Your ----
"Cyrus W. Field."
The day that this was written, Mr. Field landed at Portsmouth, and at
once hastened to London to meet the Directors. At first it was a
question if they should renew the expedition this year. But their brief
experience had shown the need of more ample preparations for their next
attempt. They required six hundred miles more of cable to make up for
over three hundred lost in the sea, and to provide a surplus so as to
run no risk of falling short from other accidents; and most of all they
needed better machinery to pay out the cable into the ocean. These
preparations required time, and before they could be made, it would be
late in the autumn. Hence they reluctantly decided to defer the
expedition till another year. The Niagara and the Agamemnon therefore
discharged their cable at Plymouth, whence the Niagara returned home;
and Mr. Field, after remaining a few weeks in London to complete the
preparations for the next year, sailed for America.
He returned to find that a commercial hurricane had swept over the
country, in which a thousand stately fortunes had gone down, and in
which the wealth he had accumulated by years of toil had nearly suffered
shipwreck. Such were the tidings that met him on landing. It had been a
year of disappointments in England and America--of disasters on land and
sea--and all his high hopes were
In the deep bosom of the ocean buried.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] Mr. Field was detained by illness at Valentia, and several of the
ships had not arrived.
CHAPTER IX.
THE FIRST EXPEDITION OF 1858.
The expedition of 1857 was little more than an experiment on a grand
scale. As such it had its use; but its abrupt ending within three
hundred miles of the Irish coast was a severe shock to public
confidence. Up to that time the enterprise had been accepted by the
people of England and of America, almost without considering its
magnitude and difficulty. They had taken it for granted as a thing which
must some day be accomplished by human skill and perseverance. But now
it had been tried and failed. This first expedition opened their eyes to
the vastness of the undertaking, and led many to doubt who did not doubt
before. Some even began to look upon it as a romantic adventure of the
sea, rather than a serious undertaking. This decline of popular faith
was felt as soon as there was a call for more money. Men reasoned that
if the former attempt was but an experiment, it was rather a costly one.
The loss of three hundred and thirty-five miles of cable, with the
postponement of the expedition to another year, was equivalent to a loss
of a hundred thousand pounds. To make this good, the Directors had to
enlarge the capital of the Company. This new capital was not so readily
obtained. Those who had subscribed before, thought they had lost enough;
and the public stood aloof till they could see the result of the next
experiment. The projectors found that it was easy to go with the current
of popular enthusiasm, but very hard to stem a growing popular distrust.
They found how great an element of success in all public enterprises is
public confidence.
But against this very revulsion of feeling they had been already warned.
The Earl of Carlisle the year before had cautioned them against being
too sanguine of immediate results, and reminded them that "preliminary
failure was even the law and condition of ultimate success." There were
many who now remembered his words, and on whom the lesson was not lost.
But whatever the depression at the failure of the first attempt to lay a
telegraph across the ocean, and at the thick-coming disasters on land
and sea, it did not interfere with renewed and vigorous efforts to
prepare for a second expedition. The Directors gave orders for the
manufacture of seven hundred miles of new cable, to make up for the loss
of the previous year, and to provide a surplus against all
contingencies. And the Government promised again its powerful aid.
In America, Mr. Field went to Washington to ask a second time the use of
the ships, which had already represented the country so well. He made
also a special request for the services of Mr. William E. Everett. This
gentleman had been the chief-engineer of the Niagara the year before. He
had watched closely the paying-out machine, as it was put together on
the deck, and as it worked on the voyage, and with the eye of a
practised mechanic, he saw that it required great alterations. It was
too cumbrous, had too many wheels, and especially its brakes shut down
with a gripe that would snap the strongest chain cable.[A] Mr. Field saw
that this was the man to remedy the defects of the old machine, and to
make one that would work more smoothly. He therefore applied especially
for his services. To the credit of the administration, it granted both
requests in the most handsome manner. "There," said the Secretary of the
Navy, handing Mr. Field the official letter, "I have given you all you
asked."
After such an answer he did not wait long. The letter is dated the
thirtieth of December, and in just one week, on the sixth of January, he
sailed in the Persia for England with Mr. Everett. Scarcely had he
arrived in London before he was made the General Manager of the Company,
with control of the entire staff, including electricians and engineers.
The following extract from the minutes of the Board of Directors, dated
January 27, 1858, explains the new position to which he was invited:
"The Directors having for several months felt that it would
greatly advance the interests of this enterprise, if Mr. Cyrus
W. Field, of New York, could be induced to come over to
England, for the purpose of undertaking the general management
and supervision of all the various arrangements that would be
required to be carried out before the sailing of the next
expedition; application was made to Mr. Field, with the view of
securing his consent to the proposal, and he arrived in this
country on the sixteenth instant, when it was ascertained that
he would be willing, if unanimously desired by the Directors,
to act in behalf of the Company as proposed; and Mr. Field
having retired, it was unanimously resolved to tender him, in
respect to such services, the sum of £1000 over and above his
travelling and other expenses, as remuneration."
This resolution was at once communicated to Mr. Field, who replied that
he would undertake the duties of General Manager, but declined the offer
of £1000, preferring to give his services to the Company without
compensation. Whereupon the Directors immediately passed another
resolution:
"That Mr. Field's kind and generous offer be accepted by this
Board; and that their best thanks are hereby tendered to him
for his devotion to the interests of the undertaking."
The following, passed a few weeks later, March 26, was designed to
emphasize the authority given over all the employés of the Company:
"_Resolved_, That Mr. Cyrus W. Field, General Manager of the
Company, is hereby authorized and empowered to give such
directions and orders to the officers composing the staff of
the Company, as he may from time to time deem necessary and
expedient with regard to all matters connected with the
business proceedings of the Company, subject to the control of
the Directors.
"_Resolved_, That the staff of the Company be notified hereof,
and required to observe and follow such directions as may be
issued by the General Manager."
As Mr. Field was thus invested with the entire charge of the
preparations for the next expedition, he was made responsible for it,
and felt it due alike to himself and to the Company to omit no means to
insure success. It was therefore his duty to examine into every detail.
The manufacture of the new cable was already under way, and there was no
opportunity to make any change in its construction, even if any had been
desired. But there was another matter which was quite as important to
success--the construction of the paying-out machines. This had been the
great defect of the previous year, and, while it continued, would render
success almost impossible. No matter how many hundreds or thousands of
miles of cable might be made, if the machinery was not fitted to pay it
out into the sea, it would be constantly broken. To remedy these defects
was an object of anxious solicitude, and to this the new manager gave
his first attention. Hardly was he in London before Mr. Everett was
installed at the large machine works of Easton and Amos, in Southwark,
where, surrounded by plans and models, he devoted himself for three
months to studying out a better invention for this most important work.
At the end of that time he had a model complete, and invited a number of
the most eminent engineers of London to witness its operation. Among
these were Mr. Brunel, and Messrs. Lloyd, Penn, and Field, who had given
the enterprise the benefit of their counsel for months, refusing all
compensation; Mr. Charles T. Bright, the engineer of the Company, and
his two assistants, Mr. Canning and Mr. Clifford, and Mr. Follansbee,
the chief-engineer of the Niagara, in the place Mr. Everett had occupied
the year before. The machine was set in motion, and all saw its
operation, while Mr. Everett explained its parts, and the difficulties
which he had tried to overcome. It was obvious at a glance that it was a
great improvement on that of the former year. It was much smaller and
lighter. It would take up only about one-third of the room on the deck,
and had only one-fourth the weight of the old machine. Its construction
was much more simple. Instead of four heavy wheels, it had but two, and
these were made to revolve with ease, and without danger of sudden
check, by the application of what were known as self-releasing brakes.
These were the invention of Mr. Appold, of London, a gentleman of
fortune, but with a strong taste for mechanics, which led him to spend
his time and wealth in exercising his mechanical ingenuity. These brakes
were so adjusted as to bear only a certain strain, when they released
themselves. This ingenious contrivance was applied by Mr. Everett to the
paying-out machinery. The strength of the cable was such that it would
not break except under a tension of a little over three tons. The
machinery was so adjusted that not more than half that strain could
possibly come upon the cable, when the brakes would relax their grasp,
the wheels revolve easily, and the cable run out into the sea without a
jar. The paying-out machine, therefore, we are far from claiming as
wholly an American invention. This part of the mechanism was English.
The merit of Mr. Everett lay in the skill with which he adapted it to
the laying of the Atlantic cable, and in his improvements of other parts
of the machinery. The whole construction, as it afterwards stood upon
the decks of the Niagara and the Agamemnon, was the product of English
and American invention combined. The engineers, who now saw it for the
first time, were delighted. It seemed to have the intelligence of a
human being, to know when to hold on, and when to let go. All felt that
the great difficulty in laying the cable was removed, and that under
this gentle manipulation it would glide easily and smoothly from the
ship into the sea.
While these preparations were going on in London, the Niagara, which did
not leave New York till the ninth of March, arrived at Plymouth, under
command of Captain Hudson, to take on board her share of the cable. Both
ships had discharged their burden at Keyham Docks, where the precious
freight was passed through a composition of tar and pitch and
linseed-oil and beeswax, to preserve it from injury, and had been coiled
under cover to be kept safely through the winter. The Agamemnon was
already at Plymouth, having been designated by the Admiralty again to
take part in the work, though under a new commander, Captain George W.
Preedy, an excellent officer. The place of the Leopard was taken by the
Gorgon, under command of Captain Dayman, who had made the deep-sea
soundings in the Cyclops the year before.
While the English Government was thus prompt in furnishing its ships,
news arrived from America that the Company could not have again the
assistance of the Susquehanna, which had accompanied the Niagara on the
preceding expedition. She was in the West-Indies, and the yellow fever
had broken out on board. What should be done? It was late to apply again
to the American Government, and it was doubtful what would be the
result of the application. This threatened some embarrassment. Mr. Field
resolved the difficulty in a way which showed his confidence in the
great and generous Government on the other side of the water, with which
he had occasion so often to deal. Without waiting for the action of the
Company, he called a cab, and drove straight to the Admiralty, and sent
in his card to Sir John Pakington, then First Lord of the Admiralty.
This gentleman, like his predecessor, Sir Charles Wood, had shown the
most friendly interest in the Atlantic Telegraph, and given it his
warmest support. Mr. Field was received at once, and began with true
American eagerness: "I am ashamed to come to you, after what the English
Government has done for us. But here is our case. We are disappointed in
the Susquehanna. She is in the West-Indies, with the yellow fever on
board. She cannot come to England to take part in the expedition. Can
you do anything for us?" Sir John replied that the Government had not
ships enough for its own use; that it was at that very moment chartering
vessels to take troops to Malta--"but he would see what he could do." In
an hour or two he sent word to the office of the Company, that Her
Majesty's ship Valorous--commanded by Captain W. C. Aldham, an officer
of great experience--had been ordered to take the place of the
Susquehanna in the next expedition. We mention this little incident,
not so much to illustrate Mr. Field's prompt and quick manner of
deciding and acting, as to show the noble and generous spirit in which
the English Government responded to every appeal.
The reshipping of the cable at Plymouth occupied the whole month of
April and part of May. Some changes were made in the mode adopted, it
being coiled around large cones. The work was done as before, by a
hundred and sixty men detailed for the purpose, of whom one fourth were
the workmen of the Company, and the rest sailors who had volunteered for
the duty. These were divided into gangs of forty, that relieved each
other, by which the work went on day and night. In this way they coiled
about thirty miles in the twenty-four hours. Owing to the increased
length of cable, and the greater care in coiling, it took a longer time
than the year before. The whole was completed about the middle of May.
There was then in all, on board the two ships, a little over three
thousand statute miles. This included, besides seven hundred miles of
new cable, thirty-nine miles of that lost the year before, which had
been recovered by the Company, and a few miles of condemned cable from
Greenwich, which was put on board for experiments. The shipment being
thus complete, and the paying-out machines in position, the ships were
ready to make a trial trip, preparatory to their final departure.
For this purpose the telegraphic squadron sailed from Plymouth on
Saturday, the twenty-ninth of May, and bore southward two or three
hundred miles, till the green color of the sea changing to a deep blue,
showed that they had reached the great depths of the ocean. They were
now in the waters of the Bay of Biscay, where the soundings were over
twenty-five hundred fathoms. Here the Niagara and the Agamemnon were
connected by a hawser, being about a quarter of a mile apart. The cable
was then passed from one to the other, and a series of experiments
begun, designed to test both the strength of the cable and the working
of the machinery. Two miles of the cable were paid out, when it parted.
This would have seemed a bad sign, had it been any other part of the
cable than that which was known to be imperfect and had long since been
condemned. The next day three miles were paid out. This, too, was
broken, but only when they tried to haul it in, and under a pressure of
several tons.
Other experiments were tried, such as splicing the cable, and lowering
it to the bottom of the sea--an operation which it was thought might be
critical in mid-ocean, but which was performed without difficulty--and
running out the cable at a rapid rate, when the speed of the ship was
increased to seven knots, without causing the cable to break, or even to
kink. On the whole, the result of the trip was satisfactory. The
paying-out machine of Mr. Everett worked well, and the electric
continuity through the whole cable was perfect. It was on this
expedition that was used for the first time the marine mirror
galvanometer of Professor Thomson, by whom it had been invented for
marine testing within the previous four weeks, and which afterwards
proved an instrument so important to the success of ocean telegraphy.
After these experiments the squadron returned to Plymouth.
As it happened, the present writer had just arrived in England, and
landing at Falmouth, hastened to Plymouth, where the ships were lying in
the Sound. It was Saturday, the fifth of June, and the next day, by
invitation of Captain Hudson, he conducted Divine service on the
Niagara, where an awning was spread over the quarter-deck, round which
were grouped the officers of the ship, behind whom were crowded four or
five hundred seamen. If it was a pleasure in such circumstances to speak
to one's countrymen, it was not less to be received with equal kindness
on board the Agamemnon. To see these two mighty ships of war, with their
consorts, lying side by side, not with guns run out, but engaged in a
mission of peace, seemed indeed an omen of the good time coming, when
nations shall learn war no more.
Among the matters of personal solicitude and anxiety at this time--next
to the success of the expedition--was Mr. Field himself. He was working
with an activity which was unnatural--which could only be kept up by
great excitement, and which involved the most serious danger. The strain
on the man was more than the strain on the cable, and we were in fear
that both would break together. Often he had no sleep, except such as he
caught flying on the railway. Indeed, when we remonstrated, he said he
could rest better there than anywhere else, for then he was not
tormented with the thought of any thing undone. For the time being he
could do no more; and putting his head in the cushioned corner of the
carriage, he got an hour or two of broken sleep.
Of this activity we had an instance while in Plymouth. The ships were
then lying in the Sound, only waiting orders from the Admiralty to go to
sea; but some business required one of the Directors to go to Paris, and
as usual, it fell upon Mr. Field. He left on Sunday night and went to
Bristol, and thence, by the first morning train, to London. Monday he
was busy all day, and that night went to Paris. Tuesday, another busy
day, and that night back to London. Wednesday, occupied every minute
till the departure of the Great Western train. That night back to
Plymouth. Thursday morning on board the Niagara, and immediately the
squadron sailed.
It was the tenth day of June that the expedition left England, with fair
skies and bright prospects. In truth, it was a gallant sight, as these
four ships stood out to sea together--those old companions, the Niagara
and the Agamemnon, leading the way, followed by their new attendants,
the Valorous and the Gorgon. Never did a voyage begin with better omens.
The day was one of the mildest of June, and the sea so still, that one
could scarcely perceive, by the motion of the ship, when they passed
beyond the breakwater off Plymouth harbor into the Channel, or into the
open sea. At night, it was almost a dead calm. The second day was like
the first. There was scarcely wind enough to swell the sails. The ships
were all in sight, and as they kept under easy steam, they seemed bound
on a voyage of pleasure, gliding over a summer sea to certain success.
It had been supposed that the expedition of this year would have a great
advantage over the last, from sailing two months earlier, at what was
considered a more favorable season. So said all the wise men of the sea.
They had given their opinion that June was the best month for crossing
the Atlantic. Then they were almost sure of fair weather. The first
three days of the voyage confirmed these predictions, and they who had
made them, being found true prophets, shook their heads with great
satisfaction.
But alas! for the vanity of human expectations, or for those who put
trust in the treacherous sea. On Sunday it began to blow. The barometer
fell, and all signs indicated to the eye of a seaman rough weather. From
this time they had a succession of gales for more than a week. From day
to day it blew fiercer than before, till Sunday, the twentieth, when the
gale was at its height, and the spirit of the storm was out on the
Atlantic. Up to this time the Niagara and the Agamemnon (though they had
long since parted from the Valorous and the Gorgon) had managed to keep
in sight of each other; and now from the deck of the former the latter
was seen a mile and a half distant, rolling heavily in the sea. The
signals which she made showed that she was struggling with the fury of
the gale. She was really in great danger of foundering. But this was
owing, not merely to the severity of the gale, but to the enormous
weight she carried, and to the way this huge bulk was stowed in the
ship. Only a few days before we had been on board of her, and Captain
Preedy showed us, in one coil, thirteen hundred miles of cable! This
made a dead weight of as many hundred tons, which rendered her in rough
weather almost unmanageable. To make the matter worse, she had another
coil of about two hundred and fifty tons on the forward deck, where it
made the head of the ship heavy. In her tremendous rolls, this coil
broke loose, and threatened at a time to dash like an avalanche through
the side of the ship. But at the most fearful moments the gallant seaman
in command never lost his presence of mind. He was always on deck,
watching with a vigilant eye the raging of the tempest, and issuing his
orders with coolness and prompt decision. To this admirable skill was
due the safety of the ship, and of all on board.[B]
But all things have an end; and this long gale at last blew itself out,
and the weary ocean rocked itself to rest. Toward the last of the week
the squadron got together at the appointed rendezvous in mid-ocean. As
the ships came in sight, the angry sea went down; and on Friday, June
twenty-fifth, just fifteen days from Plymouth, they were all together,
as tranquil in the middle of the Atlantic as if in Plymouth Sound. "This
evening the four vessels lay together, side by side, and there was such
a stillness in the sea and air, as would have seemed remarkable in an
inland lake; on the Atlantic, and after what we had all so lately
witnessed, it seemed almost unnatural." The boats were out, and the
officers were passing from ship to ship, telling their experiences of
the voyage, and forming their plans for the morrow. Captains Aldham and
Dayman said it was the worst weather they had ever experienced in the
North-Atlantic. But it was the Agamemnon that suffered most. The rough
sea had shaken not only the ship, but the cable in her. The upper part
of the main coil had shifted, and become so twisted and tangled, that a
hundred miles had to be got out and coiled in another part of the ship,
so that it was not till the afternoon of Saturday, the twenty-sixth,
that the splice was finally made, and the cable lowered to the bottom of
the sea. The ships were then got under way, but had not gone three
miles, before the cable broke, being caught in the machinery on board
the Niagara. It was fortunate they had gone no farther. Both ships at
once turned about and spliced again the same afternoon, and made a fresh
start. Now all went well. The paying-out machines worked smoothly, and
the cable ran off easily into the sea. Thus each ship had paid out about
forty miles when suddenly the current ceased!
Says the writer on the Agamemnon: "At half-past three o'clock [Sunday
morning] forty miles had gone, and nothing could be more perfect and
regular than the working of every thing, when suddenly Professor Thomson
came on deck, and reported a total break of continuity; that the cable
in fact had parted, and, as was believed at the time, from the Niagara.
In another instant a gun and a blue-light warned the Valorous of what
had happened, and roused all on board the Agamemnon to a knowledge that
the machinery was silent, and that the first part of the Atlantic Cable
had been laid and lost effectually."
This was disheartening, but not so much from the fact of a fresh
breaking of the cable, as from the mystery as to its cause. The fact, of
course, was known instantly on both ships, but the cause was unknown.
Those on each ship supposed it had occurred on the other. With this
impression they turned about to beat up again toward the rendezvous. It
was noon of Monday, the twenty-eighth, before the Agamemnon rejoined the
Niagara; and then, says the writer:
"While all were waiting with impatience for her explanation of
how they broke the cable, she electrified every one by running
up the interrogatory: 'How did the cable part?' This was
astounding. As soon as the boats could be lowered, Mr. Cyrus
Field, with the electricians from the Niagara, came on board,
and a comparison of logs showed the painful and mysterious fact
that, _at the same second of time_, each vessel discovered that
a total fracture had taken place at a distance of certainly not
less than ten miles from each ship; in fact, as well as can be
judged, at the bottom of the ocean. That of all the many
mishaps connected with the Atlantic Telegraph, this is the
worst and most disheartening is certain, since it proves that,
after all that human skill and science can effect to lay the
wire down with safety has been accomplished, there may be some
fatal obstacles to success at the bottom of the ocean, which
can never be guarded against; for even the nature of the peril
must always remain as secret and unknown as the depths in which
it is to be encountered."
But it was no time for useless regrets. Once more the cable was joined
in mid-ocean, and dropped to its silent bed, and the Niagara and the
Agamemnon began to steam away toward opposite shores of the Atlantic.
This time the experiment succeeded better than before. The progress of
the English ship is thus reported:
"At first, the ship's speed was only two knots, the cable going
three and three and a half, with a strain of fifteen hundred
pounds. By and by, however, the speed was increased to four
knots, the cable going five, at a strain of two thousand
pounds. At this rate it was kept, with trifling variations,
throughout almost the whole of Monday night, and neither Mr.
Bright, Mr. Canning, nor Mr. Clifford ever quitted the machines
for an instant. Toward the middle of the night, while the rate
of the ship continued the same, the speed at which the cable
paid out slackened nearly a knot an hour, while the dynamometer
indicated as low as thirteen hundred pounds. This change could
only be accounted for on the supposition that the water had
shallowed to a considerable extent, and that the vessel was, in
fact, passing over some submarine Ben Nevis or Skiddaw. After
an interval of about an hour, the strain and rate of progress
of the cable again increased, while the increase of the
vertical angle seemed to indicate that the wire was sinking
down the side of a declivity. Beyond this, there was no
variation throughout Monday night, or, indeed, through
Tuesday."
On board the Niagara was the same scene of anxious watching every hour
of the day and night. Engineers and electricians were constantly on
duty:
"The scene at night was beautiful. Scarcely a word was spoken;
silence was commanded, and no conversation allowed. Nothing
was heard but the strange rattling of the machine as the cable
was running out. The lights about deck and in the quarter-deck
circle added to the singularity of the spectacle; and those who
were on board the ship describe the state of anxious suspense
in which all were held as exceedingly impressive."
Warned by repeated failures, they hardly dared to hope for success in
this last experiment. And yet the spirits of all rose, as the distance
widened between the ships. A hundred miles were laid safely--a hundred
and fifty--two hundred! Why might they not lay two thousand? So reasoned
the sanguine and hopeful when, Tuesday night, came the fatal
announcement that the electric current had ceased to flow. It afterward
appeared that the cable had broken about twenty feet from the stern of
the Agamemnon.
As the cable was now useless, it only remained to cut it from the stern
of the Niagara. Before doing this, it was thought a good opportunity to
test its strength. For this purpose the brakes were shut down, so that
the paying-out machine could not move. But still the cable did not
break, although the whole weight of the Niagara hung upon that slender
cord, and though several men got upon the brakes. Says Captain Hudson:
"Although the wind was quite fresh, the cable held the ship for one hour
and forty minutes before breaking, and notwithstanding a strain of four
tons."
Though not unexpected, this last breaking of the cable was a sad blow
to all on board. It was the end of their hopes, at least for the present
expedition. Before separating, it had been agreed, that if the cable
should part again before either ship had run a hundred miles, they
should return and renew the attempt. If they had passed that limit, they
were all to sail for Ireland. But the Niagara had run out a hundred and
eleven miles, and knowing that the Agamemnon had done about the same,
she expected the latter would keep on her course eastward, not stopping
till she reached Queenstown. The Niagara, therefore, reluctantly bore
away for the same port.
Of course, the return voyage was "any thing but gay." When soldiers come
home from the war, they march with a proud step, if they have had a
victorious campaign. But it is otherwise when they come with a sad tale
of disaster and defeat. Seldom had an expedition begun with higher
hopes, or ended in more complete failure. Who could help feeling keenly
this fresh disappointment? Even with all the courage "that may become a
man," heightened by a natural buoyancy of spirits, how was it possible
to resist the impression of the facts they had just witnessed? If--as
Lord Carlisle had told them the year before--"there was almost enough of
glory in the very design of an Atlantic telegraph," that glory might
still be theirs. But apparently they could hope for nothing more. They
had done all that men could do. But fate seemed against them; and who
can fight against destiny? No one can blame them if they sometimes had
sore misgivings, and looked out sadly upon the sea that had baffled
their utmost skill, and now laughed their efforts to scorn.
In this mood they entered once more the harbor of Queenstown. The
Niagara was the first to arrive and to bring tidings of the great
disaster. The Agamemnon came in a few days after. Knowing the fatal
impression their report was likely to produce, Mr. Field hastened to
London to meet the Directors. It was high time. The news had reached
there before him, and had already produced its effect. Under its
impression the Board was called together. It met in the same room where,
six weeks before, it had discussed the prospects of the expedition with
full confidence of success. Now it met, as a council of war is summoned
after a terrible defeat, to decide whether to surrender or to try once
more the chances of battle. When the Directors came together, the
feeling--to call it by the mildest name--was one of extreme
discouragement. They looked blankly in each other's faces. With some,
the feeling was one almost of despair. Sir William Brown, of Liverpool,
the first Chairman, wrote, advising them to sell the cable. Mr.
Brooking, the Vice-Chairman, who had given more time to it than any
other Director, when he saw that his colleagues were disposed to make
still another trial, left the room, and the next day sent in his
resignation, determined to take no further part in an undertaking which
had been proved hopeless, and to persist in which seemed mere rashness
and folly.
But others thought there was still a chance. Like Robert Bruce, who,
after twelve battles and twelve defeats, yet believed that a thirteenth
_might_ bring victory, they clung to this bare possibility. Mr. Field
and Professor Thomson gave the results of their experience, from which
it appeared that there was no obstacle in the nature of the case which
might not be overcome. Mr. Bright and Mr. Woodhouse joined with them in
advising strongly that they should renew the attempt. To be sure, it was
a forlorn hope. But the ships were there. Though they had lost three
hundred miles of cable, they had still enough on board to cross the sea.
These arguments prevailed, and it was voted to make one more trial
before the project was finally abandoned. Even though the chances were a
hundred to one against them, that one might bring them success. And so
it proved. But was it their own wisdom or courage that got them the
victory, or were they led by that Being whose way is in the sea, and
whose path is in the great waters?
FOOTNOTES:
[A] It should be said, however, in justice to Mr. Bright, that most of
these defects he had himself perceived on seeing it in operation. On his
return from the expedition of 1857, he sent in a report, pointing out
the defects of the machinery, and how to remedy them. These suggestions
were approved by the Scientific Committee, and carried out by Mr.
Everett. The recognition of this fact, while it takes nothing from the
practical skill shown by the American engineer, is but just to his
predecessor, who, as the pioneer in this work, might easily fall into
mistakes, which it needed only time and experience to correct.
[B] As there is no trouble without a compensation, it is something that
this voyage, fearful as it was, furnished a subject for a description of
marvellous power. The letter to the London Times, written by Mr. Woods,
its correspondent on board the Agamemnon, is one of the finest
descriptions of a storm at sea we know of in the language. It is a
wonderful specimen of "word-painting," and brings the scene before us
with a vividness like that of the marine paintings of Stanfield or
Turner.
CHAPTER X.
THE SECOND EXPEDITION SUCCESSFUL.
A bold decision needs to be followed by prompt action, lest the spirit
that inspired it be weakened by delay. When once it had been fixed that
there was to be another attempt to lay the Atlantic cable, no time was
lost in carrying the resolve into execution. The telegraphic fleet was
lying at Queenstown. The Niagara had arrived on the fifth of July, but
the Agamemnon, which, through some misunderstanding, had returned to the
rendezvous in mid-ocean, thus crossing the Niagara on her track, did not
get in till a week later. However, all were now there, safe and sound,
and Mr. Field and Mr. Samuel Gurney went to the Admiralty, and got an
order which they telegraphed to the ships to get ready immediately to go
to sea. Not an hour was lost. They had barely time to take in coal and
other supplies for the voyage. Mr. Field hastened from England, and
Prof. Thomson from his home in Scotland, and in five days the squadron
was under way, bound once more for the middle of the Atlantic.
It was Saturday, the seventeenth of July, that the ships left on their
second expedition. As they sailed out of the Cove of Cork, it was with
none of the enthusiasm which attended their departure from Valentia the
year before, or even from Plymouth on the tenth of June. Nobody cheered;
nobody bade them God-speed. "As the ships left the harbor, there was
apparently no notice taken of their departure by those on shore, or in
the vessels anchored around them; every one seemed impressed with the
conviction that they were engaged in a hopeless enterprise, and the
squadron seemed rather to have slunk away on some discreditable mission,
than to have sailed for the accomplishment of a grand national scheme."
Many even of those on board felt that they were going on a fool's
errand; that the Company was possessed by a kind of insanity, of which
they would soon be cured by another bitter experience.
On leaving this second time, it was agreed that the squadron should not
try to keep together, but each ship make its way to the given latitude
and longitude which was the appointed rendezvous in mid-ocean. The
Niagara, being the largest, and able to carry the most coal, kept under
steam the whole way, and arrived first, and waited several days for the
other ships to appear. The Valorous came next, and then the Gorgon, and,
last of all, the Agamemnon, which had been saving her coal for the
return voyage, and had been delayed for want of a little of that wind
which, in the former expedition, she had had in too great abundance.
Says the English correspondent on board:
"For several days in succession there was an uninterrupted
calm. The moon was just at the full, and for several nights it
shone with a brilliancy which turned the sea into one silvery
sheet, which brought out the dark hull and white sails of the
ship in strong contrast to the sea and sky, as the vessel lay
all but motionless on the water, the very impersonation of
solitude and repose. Indeed, until the rendezvous was gained,
we had such a succession of beautiful sunrises, gorgeous
sunsets, and tranquil moonlight nights, as would have excited
the most enthusiastic admiration of any one but persons
situated as we were. But by us such scenes were regarded only
as the annoying indications of the calm, which delayed our
progress and wasted our coal. By dint, however, of a judicious
expenditure of fuel, and a liberal use of the cheaper motive
power of sail, the rendezvous was reached on Wednesday, the
twenty-eighth of July, just eleven days after our departure
from Queenstown. The rest of the squadron came in sight at
nightfall, but at such a distance that it was past ten o'clock
on the morning of Thursday, the twenty-ninth, before the
Agamemnon joined them.
"The day was beautifully calm, so no time was to be lost before
making the splice; boats were soon lowered from the attendant
ships, the two vessels made fast by a hawser, and the Niagara's
end of the cable conveyed on board the Agamemnon. About
half-past twelve o'clock the splice was effectually made. In
hoisting it out from the side of the ship the leaden sinker
broke short off and fell overboard; and there being no more
convenient weight at hand, a thirty-two pound shot was
fastened to the splice instead, and the whole apparatus was
quickly dropped into the sea without any formality, and indeed
almost without a spectator, for those on board the ship had
witnessed so many beginnings to the telegraphic line, that it
was evident they despaired of there ever being an end to it.
The stipulated two hundred and ten fathoms having been paid
out, the signal to start was hoisted, the hawser cast loose,
and the Niagara and Agamemnon started for the last time for
their opposite destinations."
At this moment the ships were nearly in mid-ocean, but not exactly. Mr.
Field, who never indulged in poetical descriptions, but always gave the
figures, stating the precise latitude and longitude, and from what
quarter the wind blew, and how many fathoms deep the ocean was, and how
many miles of cable were on board, made the following entry in his
journal:
"Thursday, July twenty-ninth, latitude fifty-two degrees nine
minutes north, longitude thirty-two degrees twenty-seven
minutes west. Telegraph Fleet all in sight; sea smooth; light
wind from S.E. to S.S.E.; cloudy. Splice made at one P.M.
Signals through the whole length of the cable on board both
ships perfect. Depth of water fifteen hundred fathoms; distance
to the entrance of Valentia harbor eight hundred and thirteen
nautical miles, and from there to the telegraph-house the shore
end of the cable is laid. Distance to the entrance of Trinity
Bay, Newfoundland, eight hundred and twenty-two nautical miles,
and from there to the telegraph-house at the head of the bay of
Bull's Arm, sixty miles, making in all eight hundred and
eighty-two nautical miles. The Niagara has sixty-nine miles
further to run than the Agamemnon. The Niagara and Agamemnon
have each eleven hundred nautical miles of cable on board,
about the same quantity as last year."
And now, as the ships are fairly apart, and will soon lose sight of each
other, we will leave the Agamemnon for the present to pursue her course
toward Ireland, while we follow our own Niagara to the shores of the New
World. At first of course, while all hoped for success, no one dared to
expect it. They said afterwards that "Mr. Field was the only man on
board who kept up his courage through it all." But the chances seemed
many to one against them; and the warnings were frequent to excite their
fears. That very evening, about sunset, all again seemed lost. We quote
from Mr. Field's journal: "At forty-five minutes past seven P.M., ship's
time, signals from the Agamemnon ceased, and the tests applied by the
electricians showed that there was a want of continuity in the cable,
but the insulation was perfect. Kept on paying out from the Niagara very
slowly, and constantly applying all kinds of electrical tests until ten
minutes past nine, ship's time, when again commenced receiving perfect
signals from the Agamemnon." At the same moment the English ship had the
same relief from anxiety.
The next day there was a fresh cause of alarm. It was found that the
Niagara had run some miles out of her course. Comparing the distance run
by observation and by patent log, there was a difference of sixteen
miles and a third. With such a percentage of loss, the cable would not
hold out to reach Newfoundland. This was alarming, but it was soon
explained. The mass of iron in the ship had affected the compass, so
that it no longer pointed to the right quarter of the heavens. Had the
Niagara been alone on the ocean, this might have caused serious trouble.
But now appeared the great advantage of an attendant ship. It was at
once arranged that the Gorgon should go ahead and lead the way. As she
had no cable on board, her compasses were subject to no deviation.
Accordingly she took her position in the advance, keeping the line along
the great circle arc, which was the prescribed route. From that moment
there was no variation, or but a very slight one. The two methods of
computing the distance--by log and by observation--nearly coincided, and
the ship varied scarcely a mile from her course till she entered Trinity
Bay.
It is not necessary to follow the whole voyage, for the record is the
same from day to day. It is the same sleepless watching of the cable as
it runs out day and night, and the same anxious estimate of the distance
that still separates them from land. Communication is kept up constantly
between the ships. Mr. Field's journal contains entries like these:
"Saturday, July thirty-first. By eleven o'clock had paid out
from the Niagara three hundred miles of cable; at forty-five
minutes past two received signals from the Agamemnon that they
had paid out from her three hundred miles of cable; at
thirty-seven minutes past five finished coil on the berth-deck,
and commenced paying out from the lower deck."
"Monday, August second. The Niagara getting light, and rolling
very much; it was not considered safe to carry sail to steady
ship, for in case of accident it might be necessary to stop the
vessel as soon as possible. Passed and signalled the Cunard
steamer from Boston to Liverpool." Same day about noon,
"imperfect insulation of cable detected in sending and
receiving signals from the Agamemnon, which continued until
forty minutes past five, when all was right again. The fault
was found to be in the ward-room, about sixty miles from the
lower end, which was immediately cut out, and taken out of the
circuit."
"Tuesday, August third. At a quarter-past eleven, ship's time,
received signals from on board the Agamemnon, that they had
paid out from her seven hundred and eighty miles of cable. In
the afternoon and evening passed several icebergs. At ten
minutes past nine P.M., ship's time, received signal from the
Agamemnon that she was in water of two hundred fathoms. At
twenty minutes past ten P.M., ship's time, Niagara in water of
two hundred fathoms, and informed the Agamemnon of the same.
"Wednesday, August fourth. Depth of water less than two hundred
fathoms. Weather beautiful, perfectly calm. Gorgon in sight.
Sixty-four miles from the telegraph-house. Received signal from
Agamemnon at noon that they had paid out from her nine hundred
and forty miles of cable. Passed this morning several
icebergs. Made the land off entrance to Trinity Bay at eight
A.M. Entered Trinity Bay at half-past twelve. At half-past two,
we stopped sending signals to Agamemnon for fourteen minutes,
for the purpose of making splice. At five P.M. saw Her
Majesty's steamer Porcupine [which had been sent by the British
Government to Newfoundland, to watch for the telegraph ships]
coming to us. At half-past seven, Captain Otter, of the
Porcupine, came on board of the Niagara to pilot us to the
anchorage, near the telegraph-house.[A]
"Thursday, August fifth. At forty-five minutes past one A.M.,
Niagara anchored. Total amount of cable paid out since splice
was made, ten hundred and sixteen miles, six hundred fathoms.
Total amount of distance, eight hundred and eighty-two miles.
Amount of cable paid out over distance run, one hundred and
thirty-four miles, six hundred fathoms, being a surplus of
about fifteen per cent. At two A.M., I went ashore in a small
boat, and awoke persons in charge of the telegraph-house, half
a mile from landing, and informed them that the Telegraph Fleet
had arrived, and were ready to land the end of the cable. At
forty-five minutes past two, received signal from the Agamemnon
that she had paid out ten hundred and ten miles of cable. At
four A.M., delivered telegraphic despatch for the Associated
Press, to be forwarded to New York as early in the morning as
the offices of the line were open.
"At a quarter-past five A.M., telegraph cable landed. At six,
end of cable carried into telegraph-house, and received very
strong currents of electricity through the whole cable from the
other side of the Atlantic. Captain Hudson, of the Niagara,
then read prayers, and made some remarks.
"At one P.M., Her Majesty's steamer Gorgon fired a royal salute
of twenty-one guns."
Thus simply was the story told, that in a few hours was to send a thrill
throughout the continent.
To complete the narrative of the expedition, it is necessary to include
the voyage of the Agamemnon, the best account of which is given in the
letter of the correspondent of the London Times. We quote from the time
of junction in mid-ocean, just as the ships went sailing eastward and
westward:
"For the first three hours the ships proceeded very slowly,
paying out a great quantity of slack, but after the expiration
of this time, the speed of the Agamemnon was increased to about
five knots per hour, the cable going at about six, without
indicating more than a few hundred pounds of strain upon the
dynamometer. Shortly after six o'clock a very large whale was
seen approaching the starboard bow at a great speed, rolling
and tossing the sea into foam all around and for the first time
we felt the possibility of the supposition that our second
mysterious breakage of the cable might have been caused after
all by one of these animals getting foul of it under water. It
appeared as if it were making direct for the cable, and great
was the relief of all when the ponderous living mass was seen
slowly to pass astern, just grazing the cable where it entered
the water, but fortunately without doing any mischief.
"All seemed to go well up to about eight o'clock; the cable
paid out from the hold with an evenness and regularity which
showed how carefully and perfectly it had been coiled away; and
to guard against accidents which might arise in consequence of
the cable having suffered injury during the storm, the
indicated strain upon the dynamometer was never allowed to go
beyond seventeen hundred pounds, or less than one quarter what
the cable is estimated to bear, and thus far every thing looked
promising of success. But, in such a hazardous work, no one
knows what a few minutes may bring forth, for soon after eight,
an injured portion of the cable was discovered about a mile or
two from the portion paying out. Not a moment was lost by Mr.
Canning, the engineer on duty, in setting men to work to cobble
up the injury as well as time would permit, for the cable was
going out at such a rate that the damaged portion would be paid
overboard in less than twenty minutes, and former experience
had shown us that to check either the speed of the ship, or the
cable, would, in all probability, be attended by the most fatal
results.
"Just before the lapping was finished, Professor Thomson
reported that the electrical continuity of the wire had ceased,
but that the insulation was still perfect; attention was
naturally directed to the injured piece as the probable source
of the stoppage, and not a moment was lost in cutting the cable
at that point, with the intention of making a perfect splice.
To the consternation of all, the electrical tests applied
showed the fault to be overboard, and in all probability some
fifty miles from the ship. Not a second was to be lost, for it
was evident that the cut portion must be paid overboard in a
few minutes, and in the mean time, the tedious and difficult
operation of making a splice had to be performed. The ship was
immediately stopped, and no more cable paid out than was
absolutely necessary to prevent it breaking.
"As the stern of the ship was lifted by the waves, a scene of
the most intense excitement followed. It seemed impossible,
even by using the greatest possible speed, and paying out the
least possible amount of cable, that the junction could be
finished before the part was taken out of the hands of the
workmen. The main hold presented an extraordinary scene; nearly
all the officers of the ship and of those connected with the
expedition, stood in groups about the coil, watching with
intense anxiety the cable, as it slowly unwound itself nearer
and nearer the joint, while the workmen, directed by Mr.
Canning, under whose superintendence the cable was originally
manufactured, worked at the splice as only men could work who
felt that the life and death of the expedition depended upon
their rapidity. But all their speed was to no purpose, as the
cable was unwinding within a hundred fathoms, and, as a last
and desperate resource, the cable was stopped altogether, and,
for a few minutes, the ship hung on by the end. Fortunately,
however, it was only for a few minutes, as the strain was
continually rising above two tons, and it would not hold on
much longer; when the splice was finished, the signal was made
to loose the stopper, and it passed overboard safely enough.
"When the excitement consequent upon having so narrowly saved
the cable had passed away, we awoke to the consciousness that
the case was still as hopeless as ever, for the electrical
continuity was still entirely wanting. Preparations were
consequently made to pay out as little rope as possible, and to
hold on for six hours, in the hopes that the fault, whatever it
might be, might mend itself before cutting the cable and
returning to the rendezvous to make another splice. The
magnetic needles on the receiving instruments were watched
closely for the returning signals; when, in a few minutes, the
last hope was extinguished by their suddenly indicating dead
earth, which tended to show that the cable had broken from the
Niagara, or that the insulation had been completely destroyed.
"In three minutes, however, every one was agreeably surprised
by the intelligence that the stoppage had disappeared, and that
the signals had again appeared at their regular intervals from
the Niagara. It is needless to say what a load of anxiety this
news removed from the minds of every one; but the general
confidence in the ultimate success of the operations was much
shaken by the occurrence, for all felt that every minute a
similar accident might occur. For some time the paying-out
continued as usual, but toward the morning another damaged
place was discovered in the cable; there was fortunately,
however, time to repair it in the hold without in any way
interfering with the operations beyond for a time slightly
reducing the speed of the ship.
"During the morning of Friday, the thirtieth, every thing went
well; the ship had been kept at the speed of about five knots,
the cable paid out at about six, the average angle with the
horizon at which it left the ship being about fifteen degrees,
while the indicated strain upon the dynamometer seldom showed
more than sixteen hundred pounds to seventeen hundred pounds.
Observations made at noon showed that we had made good ninety
miles from the starting-point since the previous day, with an
expenditure, including the loss in lowering the splice and
during the subsequent stoppages, of one hundred and thirty-five
miles of the cable. During the latter portion of the day the
barometer fell considerably, and toward the evening it blew
almost a gale of wind from the eastward, dead ahead of course.
As the breeze freshened, the speed of the engines was gradually
increased, but the wind more than increased in proportion, so
that, before the sun went down, the Agamemnon was going full
steam against the wind, only making a speed of about four knots
an hour. During the evening topmasts were lowered, and spars,
yards, sails, and indeed every thing aloft that could offer
resistance to the wind, was sent down on deck; but still the
ship made but little way, chiefly in consequence of the heavy
sea, though the enormous quantity of fuel consumed showed us
that, if the wind lasted, we should be reduced to burning the
masts, spars, and even the decks, to bring the ship into
Valentia.
"It seemed to be our particular ill-fortune to meet with
head-winds whichever way the ship's head was turned. On our
journey out we had been delayed, and obliged to consume an
undue proportion of coal, for want of an easterly wind, and now
all our fuel was wanted because of one. However, during the
next day the wind gradually went around to the south-west,
which, though it raised a very heavy sea, allowed us to husband
our small remaining store of fuel.
"At noon on Saturday, the thirty-first of July, observations
showed us to have made good one hundred and twenty miles of
distance since noon of the previous day, with a loss of about
twenty-seven per cent of cable. The Niagara, as far as could
be judged from the amount of cable she paid out, which, by a
previous arrangement, was signalled at every ten miles, kept
pace with us, within one or two miles, the whole distance
across. During the afternoon of Saturday, the wind again
freshened up, and before nightfall it again blew nearly a gale
of wind, and a tremendous sea ran before it from the
south-west, which made the Agamemnon pitch to such an extent
that it was thought impossible the cable could hold on through
the night; indeed, had it not been for the constant care and
watchfulness exercised by Mr. Bright, and the two energetic
engineers, Mr. Canning and Mr. Clifford, who acted with him, it
could not have been done at all. Men were kept at the wheels of
the machine to prevent their stopping as the stern of the ship
rose and fell with the sea, for, had they done so, the cable
must undoubtedly have parted.
"During Sunday the sea and wind increased, and before the
evening it blew a smart gale. Now, indeed, were the energy and
activity of all engaged in the operation tasked to the utmost.
Mr. Hoar and Mr. Moore, the two engineers who had the charge of
the relieving-wheels of the dynamometer, had to keep watch and
watch alternately every four hours, and while on duty durst not
let their attention be removed from their occupation for one
moment, for on their releasing the brakes every time the stern
of the ship fell into the trough of the sea entirely depended
the safety of the cable, and the result shows how ably they
discharged their duty. Throughout the night, there were few who
had the least expectation of the cable holding on till morning,
and many remained awake listening for the sound that all most
dreaded to hear--namely, the gun which should announce the
failure of all our hopes. But still the cable, which, in
comparison with the ship from which it was paid out, and the
gigantic waves among which it was delivered, was but a mere
thread, continued to hold on, only leaving a silvery
phosphorous line upon the stupendous seas as they rolled on
toward the ship.
"With Sunday morning came no improvement in the weather; still
the sky remained black and stormy to windward, and the constant
violent squalls of wind and rain which prevailed during the
whole day served to keep up, if not to augment, the height of
the waves. But the cable had gone through so much during the
night, that our confidence in its continuing to hold was much
restored.
"At noon, observations showed us to have made good one hundred
and thirty miles from noon of the previous day, and about three
hundred and sixty from our starting-point in mid-ocean. We had
passed by the deepest sounding of twenty-four hundred fathoms,
and over more than half of the deep water generally, while the
amount of cable still remaining in the ship was more than
sufficient to carry us to the Irish coast, even supposing the
continuance of the bad weather should oblige us to pay out the
same amount of slack cable we had been hitherto wasting. Thus
far things looked very promising for our ultimate success. But
former experience showed us only too plainly that we could
never suppose that some accident might not arise until the ends
had been fairly landed on the opposite shores.
"During Sunday night and Monday morning the weather continued
as boisterous as ever, and it was only by the most
indefatigable exertions of the engineer upon duty that the
wheels could be prevented from stopping altogether, as the
vessel rose and fell with the sea, and once or twice they did
come completely to a standstill, in spite of all that could be
done to keep them moving; but fortunately they were again set
in motion before the stern of the ship was thrown up by the
succeeding wave. No strain could be placed upon the cable, of
course; and though the dynamometer occasionally registered
seventeen hundred pounds as the ship lifted, it was oftener
below one thousand, and was frequently nothing, the cable
running out as fast as its own weight and the speed of the ship
could draw it. But even with all these forces acting
unresistedly upon it, the cable never paid itself out at a
greater speed than eight knots an hour at the time the ship was
going at the rate of six knots and a half. Subsequently,
however, when the speed of the ship even exceeded six knots and
a half, the cable never ran out so quick. The average speed
maintained by the ship up to this time, and, indeed, for the
whole voyage, was about five knots and a half, the cable, with
occasional exceptions, running about thirty per cent faster.
"At noon on Monday, August second, had made good one hundred
and twenty-seven and a half miles since noon of the previous
day, and completed more than the half way to our ultimate
destination.
"During the afternoon an American three-masted schooner, which
afterward proved to be the Chieftain, was seen standing from
the eastward toward us. No notice was taken of her at first,
but when she was within about half a mile of the Agamemnon she
altered her course, and bore right down across our bows. A
collision, which might prove fatal to the cable, now seemed
inevitable, or could only be avoided by the equally hazardous
expedient of altering the Agamemnon's course. The Valorous
steamed ahead, and fired a gun for her to heave to, which, as
she did not appear to take much notice of, was quickly followed
by another from the bows of the Agamemnon, and a second and
third from the Valorous, but still the vessel held on her
course; and as the only resource left to avoid a collision, the
course of the Agamemnon was altered just in time to pass within
a few yards of her. It was evident that our proceedings were a
source of the greatest possible astonishment to them, for all
her crew crowded upon her deck and rigging. At length they
evidently discovered who we were, and what we were doing, for
the crew manned the rigging, and dipping the ensign several
times they gave us three hearty cheers. Though the Agamemnon
was obliged to acknowledge these congratulations in due form,
the feelings of annoyance with which we regarded the vessel
which, either by the stupidity or carelessness of those on
board, was so near adding a fatal and unexpected mishap to the
long chapter of accidents which had already been encountered,
may easily be imagined. To those below, who of course did not
see the ship approaching, the sound of the first gun came like
a thunderbolt, for all took it as the signal of the breaking of
the cable. The dinner-tables were deserted in a moment, and a
general rush made up the hatches to the deck; but before
reaching it, their fears were quickly banished by the report of
the succeeding gun, which all knew well could only be caused by
a ship in our way or a man overboard.
"Throughout the greater portion of Monday morning the
electrical signals from the Niagara had been getting gradually
weaker, until they ceased altogether for nearly three-quarters
of an hour. Our uneasiness, however, was in some degree
lessened by the fact that the stoppage appeared to be a want of
continuity,[B] and not any defect in insulation, and there was
consequently every reason to suppose that it might arise from
faulty connection on board the Niagara. Accordingly Professor
Thomson sent a message to the effect that the signals were too
weak to be read, and, as if they had been awaiting such a
signal to increase their battery power, the deflections
immediately returned even stronger than they had ever been
before. Toward the evening, however, they again declined in
force for a short time. With the exception of these little
stoppages, the electrical condition of the submerged wire
seemed to be much improved. It was evident that the low
temperature of the water at the immense depth improved
considerably the insulating properties of the gutta-percha,
while the enormous pressure to which it must have been
subjected probably tended to consolidate its texture, and to
fill up any air-bubbles or slight faults in manufacture which
may have existed.
"The weather during Monday night moderated a little, but still
there was a very heavy sea on, which endangered the wire every
second minute.
"About three o'clock on Tuesday morning, all on board were
startled from their beds by the loud booming of a gun. Every
one, without waiting for the performance of the most particular
toilet, rushed on deck to ascertain the cause of the
disturbance. Contrary to all expectation, the cable was safe,
but just in the gray light could be seen the Valorous rounded
to in the most warlike attitude, firing gun after gun in quick
succession toward a large American bark, which, quite
unconscious of our proceeding, was standing right across our
stern. Such loud and repeated remonstrances from a large steam
frigate were not to be despised, and, evidently without knowing
the why or the wherefore, she quickly threw her sails aback and
remained hove to. Whether those on board her considered that we
were engaged in some filibustering expedition, or regarded our
proceedings as another British outrage upon the American flag,
it is impossible to say; but certain it is that, apparently in
great trepidation, she remained hove to until we had lost sight
of her in the distance.
"Tuesday was a much finer day than any we had experienced for
nearly a week, but still there was a considerable sea running,
and our dangers were far from passed; yet the hopes of our
ultimate success ran high. We had accomplished nearly the whole
of the deep-sea portion of the route in safety, and that, too,
under the most unfavorable circumstances possible; therefore
there was every reason to believe that unless some unforeseen
accident should occur, we should accomplish the remainder.
"About five o'clock in the evening, the steep submarine
mountain which divides the telegraphic plateau from the Irish
coast was reached, and the sudden shallowing of the water had a
very marked effect upon the cable, causing the strain on and
the speed of it to lessen every minute. A great deal of slack
was paid out to allow for any great inequalities which might
exist, though undiscovered by the sounding-line. About ten
o'clock the shoal water of two hundred and fifty fathoms was
reached; the only remaining anxiety now was the changing from
the lower main coil to that upon the upper deck, and this most
difficult and dangerous operation was successfully performed
between three and four o'clock on Wednesday morning.
"Wednesday was a beautiful, calm day; indeed, it was the first
on which any one would have thought of making a splice since
the day we started from the rendezvous. We therefore
congratulated ourselves on having saved a week by commencing
operations on the Thursday previous. At noon, we were
eighty-nine miles distant from the telegraph station at
Valentia. The water was shallow, so that there was no
difficulty in paying out the wire almost without any loss of
slack, and all looked upon the undertaking as virtually
accomplished.
"At about one o'clock in the evening, the second change from
the upper-deck coil to that upon the orlop-deck was safely
effected, and shortly after the vessels exchanged signals that
they were in two hundred fathoms water. As the night advanced
the speed of the ship was reduced, as it was known that we were
only a short distance from the land, and there would be no
advantage in making it before daylight in the morning. About
twelve o'clock, however, the Skelligs Light was seen in the
distance, and the Valorous steamed on ahead to lead us in to
the coast, firing rockets at intervals to direct us, which were
answered by us from the Agamemnon, though, according to Mr.
Moriarty, the master's wish, the ship, disregarding the
Valorous, kept her own course, which proved to be the right one
in the end.
"By daylight on the morning of Thursday, the bold and rocky
mountains which entirely surround the wild and picturesque
neighborhood of Valentia, rose right before us at a few miles'
distance. Never, probably, was the sight of land more welcome,
as it brought to a successful termination one of the greatest,
but, at the same time, most difficult schemes which was ever
undertaken. Had it been the dullest and most melancholy swamp
on the face of the earth that lay before us, we should have
found it a pleasant prospect; but, as the sun rose from the
estuary of Dingle Bay, tinging with a deep, soft purple the
lofty summits of the steep mountains which surround its shores,
and illuminating the masses of morning vapor which hung upon
them, it was a scene which might vie in beauty with any thing
that could be produced by the most florid imagination of an
artist.
"No one on shore was apparently conscious of our approach, so
the Valorous steamed ahead to the mouth of the harbor and fired
a gun. Both ships made straight for Doulus Bay, and about six
o'clock came to anchor at the side of Beginish Island, opposite
to Valentia. As soon as the inhabitants became aware of our
approach, there was a general desertion of the place, and
hundreds of boats crowded around us, their passengers in the
greatest state of excitement to hear all about our voyage. The
Knight of Kerry was absent in Dingle, but a messenger was
immediately dispatched for him, and he soon arrived in Her
Majesty's gunboat Shamrock. Soon after our arrival, a signal
was received from the Niagara that they were preparing to land,
having paid out one thousand and thirty nautical miles of
cable, while the Agamemnon had accomplished her portion of the
distance with an expenditure of one thousand and twenty
miles,[C] making the total length of the wire submerged two
thousand and fifty geographical miles. Immediately after the
ships cast anchor, the paddle-box boats of the Valorous were
got ready, and two miles of cable coiled away in them, for the
purpose of landing the end; but it was late in the afternoon
before the procession of boats left the ship, under a salute of
three rounds of small-arms from the detachment of marines on
board the Agamemnon, under the command of Lieutenant Morris.
"The progress of the end to the shore was very slow, in
consequence of the very stiff wind which blew at the time, but
at about three o'clock the end was safely brought on shore at
Knightstown, Valentia, by Mr. Bright and Mr. Canning, the chief
and second engineers, to whose exertions the success of the
undertaking is attributable, and the Knight of Kerry.[D] The
end was immediately laid in the trench which had been dug to
receive it, while a royal salute, making the neighboring rocks
and mountains reverberate, announced that the communication
between the Old and the New World had been completed."
FOOTNOTES:
[A] The spot chosen as the terminus of the Atlantic cable, with the
views around it--both on the water and on land--is thus described by a
correspondent:
"All who have visited Trinity Bay, Newfoundland, with one consent allow
it to be one of the most beautiful sheets of water they ever set eyes
upon. Its color is very peculiar--an inexpressible mingling of the pure
blue ocean with the deep evergreen woodlands and the serene blue sky.
Its extreme length is about eighty miles, its breadth about thirty
miles, opening boldly into the Atlantic on the northern side of the
island. At its south-western shore it branches into the Bay of Bull's
Arm, which is a quiet, safe, and beautiful harbor, about two miles in
breadth, and nine or ten in length, running in a direction north-west.
"The depth of water is sufficient for the largest vessels. The tide
rises seven or eight feet, and the bay terminates in a beautiful
sand-beach. The shore is clothed with dark green fir-trees, which, mixed
with birch and mountain-ash, present a pleasing contrast. The land rises
gradually from the water all around, so as to afford one of the most
agreeable town sites in the island. You ascend only about a quarter of a
mile from the water, and there are no longer trees, but wild grass like
an open prairie. Here are found at this season myriads of the upland
cranberries, upon which unnumbered ptarmigan, or the northern partridge,
feed.
"The raspberry, bake-apple berry, and the whortleberry are also common.
Numerous little lakes may be seen in the open, elevated ground, from
which flow rivulets, affording abundance of fine trout. After ascending
for about a mile and a half, you are then probably three hundred or four
hundred feet above the tide, and nothing can exceed the beauty of the
scene when, at one view, you behold the placid waters of both Trinity
and Placentia Bays--the latter sprinkled with clusters of verdant
islands.
"You can now descend westward as gradually as you came up from the
Telegraph landing, to the shores of Placentia Bay, where there is an
excellent harbor and admirable fisheries, skirting the shore, and the
accompanying road of the land Telegraph line leading from St. John's
westward through the island, to Cape Ray. At this season of the year
game is very abundant. Reindeer in great numbers, bears, wolves--others
very numerous, the large northern hare, foxes, wild geese, ducks, etc.
"About four miles southward of the entrance of the bay of Bull's Arm, on
the shore of Placentia Bay, is situated the extraordinary La Manche lead
mine, the property of the Telegraph Company, already yielding a rich
supply of remarkably pure galena. The place where the cable is landed is
memorable in the history of the island as the naval battle-ground
between the French and English in their early struggle for the exclusive
occupancy of the valuable fisheries along the coast."
[B] This is an error, as we learn on the high authority of Professor
Thomson himself. It was defective insulation, not any "want of
continuity," that caused the weak signals. Want of continuity would
have stopped the signals altogether, and given quite different
indications on the testing instruments from those he observed.
[C] The Niagara had sixty miles farther to run than the Agamemnon, to
land the cable at the head of Trinity Bay.
[D] A name that occurs several times in this history, and one never to
be mentioned but with honor. The Knight of Kerry was Lord of the Isles
on that part of the Irish coast; and from the beginning showed the
deepest interest in this enterprise; and by his generous hospitality to
all connected with it made many friends by whom he was gratefully
remembered on both sides of the Atlantic.
CHAPTER XI.
EXCITEMENT IN AMERICA.
Whoever shall write the history of popular enthusiasms, must give a
large space to the Atlantic Telegraph. Never did the tidings of any
great achievement--whether in peace or war--more truly electrify a
nation. No doubt, the impression was the greater because it took the
country by surprise. Had the attempt succeeded in June, it would have
found a people prepared for it. But the failure of the first expedition,
added to that of the previous year, settled the fate of the enterprise
in the minds of the public. It was a hopeless undertaking; and its
projectors shared the usual lot of those who conceive vast designs, and
venture on great enterprises, which are not successful, to be regarded
with a mixture of derision and pity.
Such was the temper of the public mind, when at noon of Thursday, the
fifth of August, the following despatch was received:
"United States Frigate Niagara,
Trinity Bay, Newfoundland,
August 5, 1858.
"_To the Associated Press, New York_:
"The Atlantic Telegraph fleet sailed from Queenstown, Ireland,
Saturday, July seventeenth, and met in mid-ocean Wednesday,
July twenty-eighth. Made the splice at one P.M., Thursday, the
twenty-ninth, and separated--the Agamemnon and Valorous, bound
to Valentia, Ireland; the Niagara and Gorgon, for this place,
where they arrived yesterday, and this morning the end of the
cable will be landed.
"It is one thousand six hundred and ninety-six nautical, or one
thousand nine hundred and fifty statute, miles from the
Telegraph House at the head of Valentia harbor to the Telegraph
House at the Bay of Bulls, Trinity Bay, and for more than two
thirds of this distance the water is over two miles in depth.
The cable has been paid out from the Agamemnon at about the
same speed as from the Niagara. The electric signals sent and
received through the whole cable are perfect.
"The machinery for paying out the cable worked in the most
satisfactory manner, and was not stopped for a single moment
from the time the splice was made until we arrived here.
"Captain Hudson, Messrs. Everett and Woodhouse, the engineers,
the electricians, the officers of the ship, and in fact, every
man on board the telegraph fleet, has exerted himself to the
utmost to make the expedition successful, and by the blessing
of Divine Providence it has succeeded.
"After the end of the cable is landed and connected with the
land line of telegraph, and the Niagara has discharged some
cargo belonging to the Telegraph Company, she will go to St.
John's for coal, and then proceed at once to New York.
"Cyrus W. Field."
The impression of this simple announcement it is impossible to conceive.
It was immediately telegraphed to all parts of the United States, and
everywhere produced the greatest excitement. In some places all business
was suspended; men rushed into the streets, and flocked to the offices
where the news was received. At Andover, Massachusetts, the news arrived
while the Alumni of the Theological Seminary were celebrating their
semi-centennial anniversary by a dinner. One thousand persons were
present, all of whom rose to their feet, and gave vent to their excited
feelings by continued and enthusiastic cheers. When quiet was restored,
Rev. Dr. Adams, of New York, said his heart was too full for a speech,
and suggested, as the more fitting utterance of what all felt, that they
should join in thanksgiving to Almighty God, and the venerable Dr.
Hawes, of Hartford, led them in fervent prayer, acknowledging the great
event as from the hand of God, and as calculated to hasten the triumphs
of civilization and Christianity. Then all standing up together, sang,
to the tune of Old Hundred, the majestic doxology:
"Praise God, from whom all blessings flow,
Praise Him all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host,
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!"
Thus--said Dr. Hawes--"we have now consecrated this new power, so far as
our agency is concerned, to the building up of the truth."
In New York the news was received at first with some incredulity. But
as it was confirmed by subsequent despatches, the city broke out into
tumultuous rejoicing. Never was there such an outburst of popular
feeling. In Boston a hundred guns were fired on the Common, and the
bells of the city were rung for an hour to give utterance to the general
joy. Similar scenes were witnessed in all parts of the United States. I
have now before me the New York papers of August, 1858, and from the
memorable fifth, when the landing took place, to the end of the month,
they contain hardly any thing else than popular demonstrations in honor
of the Atlantic Telegraph. It was indeed a national jubilee.
It was natural that this overflow of public feeling should express
itself towards one who was recognized as the author of the great work,
which inspired such universal joy. Mr. Field, much to his own surprise,
"awoke and found himself famous." In twenty-four hours his name was on
millions of tongues. Congratulations poured in from all quarters, from
mayors of cities and governors of States; from all parts of the Union
and the British Provinces; from the President of the United States and
the Governor-General of Canada. Mr. Buchanan telegraphed to Mr. Field,
at Trinity Bay:
"My Dear Sir: I congratulate you with all my heart on the
success of the great enterprise with which your name is so
honorably connected. Under the blessing of Divine Providence I
trust it may prove instrumental in promoting perpetual peace
and friendship between the kindred nations."
The popular estimate of the achievement and its author went still
farther. With the natural exaggeration common to masses of men, when
carried away by a sudden enthusiasm, the Atlantic Telegraph was hailed
as an immense stride in the onward progress of the race, an event in the
history of the world hardly inferior to the discovery of America, or to
the invention of the art of printing; and the name of its projector was
coupled with those of Franklin and Columbus. He who but yesterday was
regarded as a visionary, to-day was exalted as a benefactor of his
country and of mankind.
This avalanche of praise was quite overwhelming. It is always
embarrassing to be forced into sudden conspicuity, and to find one's
self the object of general attention and applause. While feeling this
embarrassment, Mr. Field could not but be gratified to witness the
public joy at the success of the enterprise, and he was deeply touched
and grateful for the appreciation of his own services. But probably all
these public demonstrations did not go to his heart so much as private
letters received from the other side of the Atlantic, from those who had
shared the labors of the enterprise--old companions in arms who had
borne with him the heavy burden, and now were fully entitled to a share
in the honor which was the reward of their common toil.
As a specimen of the congratulations which came from beyond the sea, we
quote a single passage from a letter of Mr. George Saward, the Secretary
of the Company in London, written immediately on receiving the news of
the success of the enterprise. Under the impression of that event, he
writes to Mr. Field:
"At last the great work is successful. I rejoice at it for the
sake of humanity at large. I rejoice at it for the sake of our
common nationalities, and last but not least, for your personal
sake. I most heartily and sincerely rejoice with you, and
congratulate you, upon this happy termination to the trouble
and anxiety, the continuous and persevering labor, and
never-ceasing and sleepless energy, which the successful
accomplishment of this vast and noble enterprise has cost you.
Never was man more devoted--never did man's energy better
deserve success than yours has done. May you in the bosom of
your family reap those rewards of repose and affection, which
will be doubly sweet from the reflection, that you return to
them after having been under Providence the main and leading
principal in conferring a vast and enduring benefit on mankind.
If the contemplation of fame has a charm for you, you may well
indulge in the reflection; for the name of Cyrus W. Field will
now go onward to immortality, as long as that of the Atlantic
Telegraph shall be known to mankind."
The Directors, whose faith and courage had been so severely tried, now
felt double joy, for their friend and for themselves, at this glorious
result of their united labors. Mr. Peabody wrote to Mr. Field that "his
reflections must be like those of Columbus, after the discovery of
America." Sir Charles Wood and Sir John Pakington, who, as successive
First Lords of the Admiralty, had supported the enterprise with the
constant aid of the British Government, wrote letters of congratulation
on the great work which had been carried through mainly by his energy
and unconquerable will. They were above any petty national jealousy, and
never imagined that it would detract aught from the just honor of
England, to award full praise to the courage and enterprise of an
American.
On his part, Mr. Field was equally anxious to acknowledge the invaluable
aid given by others--aid, without which the efforts of no single
individual could command success. On his arrival at St. John's, he was
welcomed with enthusiasm by the whole population. An address was
presented to him by the Executive Council of Newfoundland, in which they
offered their hearty congratulations on the success of the undertaking,
which they recognized as chiefly due to him. "Intimately acquainted as
we have been"--these are their words--"with the energy and enterprise
which have distinguished you from the commencement of the great work of
telegraph connection between the Old and the New Worlds; and feeling
that under Providence this triumph of science is mainly due to your
well-directed and indomitable exertions, we desire to express to you our
high appreciation of your success in the cause of the world's progress,"
etc.; to which Mr. Field replied, recognizing in turn the cordial
support which he had always received from the Government of
Newfoundland. The Chamber of Commerce of St. John's also presented an
address in similar terms, to which he replied--after acknowledging their
kind mention of his own labors and sacrifices:
"But it would not only be ungenerous, but unjust, that I should
for a moment forget the services of those who were my
co-workers in this enterprise, and without whom any labors of
mine would have been unavailing. It would be difficult to
enumerate the many gentlemen whose scientific acquirements and
skill and energy have been devoted to the advancement of this
work, and who have so mainly produced the issue which has
called forth this expression of your good wishes on my behalf.
But I could not do justice to my own feelings did I fail to
acknowledge how much is owing to Captain Hudson and the
officers of the Niagara, whose hearts were in the work, and
whose toil was unceasing; to Captain Dayman of her Majesty's
ship Gorgon, for the soundings so accurately made by him last
year, and for the perfect manner in which he led the Niagara
over the great-circle arc while laying the cable; to Captain
Otter, of the Porcupine, for the careful survey made by him in
Trinity Bay, and for the admirable manner in which he piloted
the Niagara at night to her anchorage; to Mr. Everett, who has
for months devoted his whole time to designing and perfecting
the beautiful machinery that has so successfully paid out the
cable from the ships--machinery so perfect in every respect,
that it was not for one moment stopped on board the Niagara
until she reached her destination in Trinity Bay; to Mr.
Woodhouse, who superintended the coiling of the cable, and
zealously and ably coöperated with his brother engineer during
the progress of paying-out; to the electricians for their
constant watchfulness; to the men for their almost ceaseless
labor (and I feel confident that you will have a good report
from the commanders, engineers, electricians, on board the
Agamemnon and Valorous, the Irish portion of the fleet); to the
Directors of the Atlantic Telegraph Company for the time they
have devoted to the undertaking without receiving any
compensation for their services (and it must be a pleasure to
many of you to know that the director, who has devoted more
time than any other, was for many years a resident of this
place, and well known to all of you--I allude to Mr. Brooking,
of London); to Mr. C. M. Lampson, a native of New England, but
who has for the last twenty-seven years resided in London, who
appreciated the great importance of this enterprise to both
countries, and gave it most valuable aid, bringing his sound
judgment and great business talent to the service of the
Company; to that distinguished American, Mr. George Peabody,
and his worthy partner, Mr. Morgan, who not only assisted it
most liberally with their means, but to whom I could always go
with confidence for advice."
Such acknowledgments, constantly repeated, showed a mind incapable of
envy or jealousy; that was chiefly anxious to recognize the services of
others, and that they should receive from the public, both of England
and America, the honors which they had so nobly earned.
After two or three days' delay at St. John's, which the Niagara was
obliged to make for coal, but which the people spent in festivity and
rejoicing, she left for New York, where she arrived on the
eighteenth--two weeks from the landing of the cable in Trinity Bay.
These had been weeks of great excitement, yet not unmingled with
suspense and anxiety. The public, eager for news, devoured every thing
that concerned the telegraph with impatience, but all was not
satisfactory. Despatches from Trinity Bay said that signals were
continually passing over the cable, yet no news reached the public from
the other side of the Atlantic. This was partially explained by a
message from Mr. Field, sent from Trinity Bay to the Associated Press as
early as the seventh:
"We landed here in the woods, and until the telegraph
instruments are perfectly adjusted, no communications can pass
between the two continents; but the electric currents are
received freely.
"You shall have the earliest intimation when all is ready, but
it may be some days before every thing is perfected. The first
through message between Europe and America will be from the
Queen of Great Britain to the President of the United States,
and the second his reply."
But as the public grew impatient, and friends sent anxious inquiring
messages, he telegraphed again from St. John's on the eleventh:
"Before I left London, the Directors of the Atlantic Telegraph
Company decided unanimously that, after the cable was laid, and
the Queen's and President's messages transmitted, the line
should be kept for several weeks for the sole use of Dr.
Whitehouse, Professor Thomson, and other electricians, to
enable them to test thoroughly their several modes of
telegraphing, so that the Directors might decide which was the
best and most rapid method for future use: for it was
considered that after the line should be once thrown open for
business, it would be very difficult to obtain it for
experimental purposes, even for a short time.
"Due notice will be given when the line will be ready for
business, and the tariff of prices."
Still the public were not satisfied, and many were beginning to doubt,
when, on the sixteenth, it was suddenly announced that the Queen's
message was received. It was as follows:--
"_To the President of the United States, Washington_:
"The Queen desires to congratulate the President upon the
successful completion of this great international work, in
which the Queen has taken the deepest interest.
"The Queen is convinced that the President will join with her
in fervently hoping that the electric cable which now connects
Great Britain with the United States will prove an additional
link between the nations, whose friendship is founded upon
their common interest and reciprocal esteem.
"The Queen has much pleasure in thus communicating with the
President, and renewing to him her wishes for the prosperity of
the United States."
To this the President replied:
"Washington City, August 16, 1858.
"_To Her Majesty Victoria, the Queen of Great Britain_:
"The President cordially reciprocates the congratulations of
her Majesty the Queen, on the success of the great
international enterprise accomplished by the science, skill,
and indomitable energy of the two countries.
"It is a triumph more glorious, because far more useful to
mankind, than was ever won by conqueror on the field of battle.
"May the Atlantic Telegraph, under the blessing of Heaven,
prove to be a bond of perpetual peace and friendship between
the kindred nations, and an instrument destined by Divine
Providence to diffuse religion, civilization, liberty, and law
throughout the world.
"In this view, will not all nations of Christendom
spontaneously unite in the declaration that it shall be for
ever neutral, and that its communications shall be held sacred
in passing to their places of destination, even in the midst of
hostilities?
"James Buchanan."
The arrival of the Queen's message was the signal for a fresh outbreak
of popular enthusiasm. The next morning, August seventeenth, the city of
New York was awakened by the thunder of artillery. A hundred guns were
fired in the City Hall Park at daybreak, and the salute was repeated at
noon. At this hour, flags were flying from all the public buildings, and
the bells of the principal churches began to ring, as Christmas bells
signal the birth of one who came to bring peace and good-will to
men--chimes that, it was fondly hoped, might usher in a new era, as
they should
Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring out the false, ring in the true.
That night the city was illuminated. Never had it seen so brilliant a
spectacle. Such was the blaze of light around the City Hall, that the
cupola caught fire, and was consumed, and the Hall itself narrowly
escaped destruction. Similar demonstrations took place in other parts of
the United States. From the Atlantic to the Valley of the Mississippi,
and to the Gulf of Mexico, in every city was heard the firing of guns
and the ringing of bells. Nothing seemed too extravagant to give
expression to the popular rejoicing.
The next morning after this illumination, the Niagara entered the harbor
of New York, and Mr. Field hastened to his home. The night before
leaving the ship, he had written to the Directors in London, giving a
full report of the laying of the cable, which he closed by resigning the
position which he had held for the last seven months. He wrote:
"At your unanimous request, but at a very great personal
sacrifice to myself, I accepted the office of General Manager
of the Atlantic Telegraph Company, for the sole purpose of
doing all in my power to aid you to make the enterprise
successful; and as that object has been attained, you will
please accept my resignation. It will always afford me pleasure
to do any thing in my power, consistent with my duties to my
family and my own private affairs, to promote the interests of
the Atlantic Telegraph Company."
Once more with his family, Mr. Field hoped for a brief interval of rest
and quiet. But this was impossible. The great event with which his name
was connected was too fresh in the public mind. He could not escape
public observation. He was at once thronged with visitors, offering
their congratulations, and his house surrounded with crowds eager to see
and hear him. While making all allowance for popular excitement, yet
none could deny that a service so great demanded some public
recognition. Even in England, where the enthusiasm did not approach that
in this country, still the wondrous character of the achievement was
fully acknowledged. Said the London Times on the morning of the sixth of
August: "Since the discovery of Columbus, nothing has been done in any
degree comparable to the vast enlargement which has thus been given to
the sphere of human activity." "More was done yesterday for the
consolidation of our empire, than the wisdom of our statesmen, the
liberality of our Legislature, or the loyalty of our colonists, could
ever have effected." To mark the public benefit which had been
conferred, the Chief Engineer of the Expedition, Mr. Charles T. Bright,
was knighted, and Captains Preedy and Aldham were both made Companions
of the Bath, and other officers were promoted. Thus England showed her
appreciation of their services.
But in this country titles and honors come not from the Government, but
from the people. Popular enthusiasm exhausted itself in eulogies of the
man who had linked the Old World to the New. It seems strange now to sit
down in cold blood and read what was published in the papers of that
day. A collection of American journals issued during that eventful
month, August, 1858, would be a literary curiosity.[A]
Nor was it merely in such outward demonstrations that the public
enthusiasm showed itself. The feeling struck deeper, and reached all
minds. While the people shouted and cannon roared, sober and thoughtful
men pondered on the change that was being wrought in the earth. Business
men reasoned how it would affect the commerce of the world, while the
philanthropic regarded it as the forerunner of an age of universal
peace. The first message flashed across the sea--even before that of the
Queen--had been one of religious exultation. It was from the Directors
in Great Britain to those on this side the Atlantic, and, simply
reciting the fact that Europe and America were united by telegraph, at
once broke into a strain of religious rapture, echoing the song of the
angels over a Saviour's birth: "Glory to God in the highest; on earth,
peace, good-will toward men." Poetry at once caught up the strain. The
event became the theme of innumerable odes and hymns, of which it must
be said that, whatever their merit as poetry, their spirit at least was
noble, celebrating the event chiefly as promoting the brotherhood of the
human family. The key-note was struck in such lines as these:
'Tis done! the angry sea consents,
The nations stand no more apart,
With claspèd hands the continents
Feel throbbings of each other's heart.
Speed, speed the cable; let it run
A loving girdle round the earth,
Till all the nations 'neath the sun
Shall be as brothers of one hearth;
As brothers pledging, hand in hand,
One freedom for the world abroad,
One commerce over every land,
One language and one God.
The sermons preached on this occasion were literally without number.
Enough found their way into print to make a large volume. Never had an
event touched more deeply the spirit of religious enthusiasm. Devout men
held it as an advance toward that millennial era which was at once the
object of their faith and hope. Was not this the predicted time when,
"many should run to and fro, and knowledge should be increased?" So said
the preachers, taking for their favorite text the vision of the
Psalmist, "Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words
to the end of the world;" or the question of Job: "Canst thou send forth
the lightnings, that they may go and say unto thee, Here we are?" Was
not this the dawn of that happy age, when all men should be bound
together in peaceful intercourse, and nations should learn war no more?
Such was the burden of the discourses that were preached in a thousand
pulpits from one end of the country to the other. Even the Roman
Catholic Church, so lofty and inflexible in its claims, soaring into
the past centuries, and almost disdaining the material progress of the
present day as compared with the spiritual glories of the Ages of Faith,
did not ignore the great event; and in laying the foundation of the new
Cathedral of St. Patrick, the largest temple of religion on the
continent, Archbishop Hughes placed under the corner-stone an
inscription, wherein, along with the enduring record of the Christian
faith and the names of martyrs and confessors, he did not disdain to
include a brief memorial of this last achievement of science, and the
name of him who had conferred so great a benefit on mankind.
These public demonstrations culminated on the first of September, when
the city authorities gave a public ovation to Mr. Field and the officers
of the expedition. In accepting these honors, Mr. Field had taken good
care that the British officers should be included with the American. At
St. John's he had been notified of the intended celebration, and at once
telegraphed to the British Admiral at Halifax:
"I should consider it a very great personal favor if you would permit
the Gorgon, Captain Dayman, to accompany the Niagara, Captain Hudson, to
New York. English officers and English sailors have labored with
American officers and American sailors to lay the Atlantic cable. They
were with us in our days of trial, and pray let them, if you can, share
with us our triumph."
The request was granted so far as this, that the officers were allowed
leave of absence, and came on to New York to take part in the
celebration, and in all the honors which followed, the officers of the
Gorgon were associated with those of the Niagara.
The day arrived, and the celebration surpassed any thing which the city
had ever witnessed before. It was a mild autumn day--warm, yet with a
sky softly veiled with clouds, that seemed to invite a whole population
into the streets. The day commenced with a solemn service at Trinity
Church, which was attended by the city authorities, the representatives
of foreign powers, and an immense concourse of people. The vast edifice
was decorated with evergreens; in the centre hung a cross, with the
inscription: "Glory to God on high; and on earth, peace, good-will
towards men." When the audience were assembled, there entered a
procession of two hundred clergy, headed by Bishop Doane of New Jersey,
who was to deliver the address. Prayers were offered and Scriptures were
read, and at intervals the choir gave voice to the general joy in the
anthems in which for ages the Church has been wont to pour forth its
exultation: "O come, let us sing unto the Lord," the Gloria in Excelsis,
and the Te Deum Laudamus.
At noon, Mr. Field and the officers of the ships landed at Castle Garden
and were received with a national salute. A procession was formed which
extended for miles from the Battery to the Crystal Palace, which stood
on the plot of ground now known as Bryant Park, between Fortieth and
Forty-second streets. In the procession were Lord Napier, the British
Minister, and officers of the army and navy. For the whole distance the
streets were crowded. The windows and even the tops of the houses were
filled with people. Everywhere flags and banners, with every device,
floated in the air. So dense was the crowd that it was five or six hours
before the procession could reach the Crystal Palace.
Here its coming was awaited by an assembly that filled all the aisles
and galleries. An address was delivered, giving the history of the
Atlantic Telegraph. The Mayor then rose, and presenting Mr. Field to the
audience, spoke as follows:
"Sir: History records but few enterprises of such 'pith and
moment' as to command the attention and at the same time enlist
the sympathies of all mankind. In all ages warlike expeditions
have been undertaken on a scale of grandeur sufficient to
astonish the world; but the evils which are inseparable from
their prosecution have always sent a thrill of horror through
the anxious nations. The discovery of the Western continent
even, the grandest event of modern times, was made by an
insignificant fleet which left the shores of Spain without
attracting the notice of the civilized world. Far different has
been the history of the daring and difficult enterprise of
uniting the Old World and the New by means of the electric
telegraph. From the very outset the good, the great and the
wise of all lands beneath the sun, have watched with intense
anxiety, and even when doubt existed, with warm interest, every
step taken toward the accomplishment of what was universally
acknowledged to be the most momentous undertaking of an age
made marvellous by wonderful scientific and mechanical
achievements. The two greatest and freest nations of the globe,
by independent constitutional legislation, and by the aid of
their finest ships and their ablest officers and engineers,
combined together to insure success. Capital was liberally
subscribed by private citizens in a spirit which put greed to
the blush. The press on both sides of the Atlantic recorded the
details of the progress of the undertaking with cordial
interest, and secured the generous sympathies of men of all
kindreds and tongues and nations in its behalf. You were thus
fortunate, sir, in being identified with a project of such
magnificent proportions and universal concern. But the
enterprise itself was no less fortunate in being projected and
carried into execution by a man whom no obstacles could daunt,
no disasters discourage, no doubts paralyze, no opposition
dishearten. If you, to whom the conduct of this great
enterprise was assigned by the will of Providence and the
judgment of your fellow-men, had been found wanting in courage,
in energy, in determination, and in a faith that was truly
sublime, the very grandeur of the undertaking would only have
rendered its failure the more conspicuous. But, sir, the
incidents of the expedition, and the final result--too familiar
to all the world to need repetition here--have demonstrated
that you possessed all the qualities essential to achieve a
successful issue. It is for this reason that you now stand out
from among your fellow-men a mark for their cordial admiration
and grateful applause. The city of your home delights to honor
you; your fellow-citizens, conscious that the glory of your
success is reflected back upon them, are proud that your lot
has been cast among them. They have already testified their
appreciation of your great services and heroic perseverance by
illuminations, processions, serenades, and addresses. And now,
sir, the municipal government of this, the first city on the
Western continent, instruct me, who have never felt the honor
of being its chief magistrate so sensibly as in the presence of
this vast assemblage of its fair women and substantial
citizens, to present to you a gold box, with the arms of the
city engraved thereon, in testimony of the fact that to you
mainly, under Divine Providence, the world is indebted for the
successful execution of the grandest enterprise of our day and
generation; and in behalf of the Mayor, Aldermen, and
Commonalty of the City of New York, I now request your
acceptance of this token of their approbation. In conclusion,
sir, of this, the most agreeable duty of my public life, I
sincerely trust that your days may be long in the land, and as
prosperous and honorable as your achievement in uniting the two
hemispheres by a cord of electric communication has been
successful and glorious."
To this flattering address, Mr. Field replied:
"Sir: This will be a memorable day in my life; not only because
it celebrates the success of an achievement with which my name
is connected, but because the honor comes from the city of my
home--the metropolitan city of the new world. I see here not
only the civic authorities and citizens at large, but my own
personal friends--men with whom I have been connected in
business and friendly intercourse for the greater part of my
life. Five weeks ago, this day and hour, I was standing on the
deck of the Niagara in mid-ocean, with the Gorgon and Valorous
in sight, waiting for the Agamemnon. The day was cold and
cheerless, the air was misty, and the wind roughened the sea;
and when I thought of all that we had passed through--of the
hopes thus far disappointed, of the friends saddened by our
reverses, of the few that remained to sustain us--I felt a load
at my heart almost too heavy to bear, though my confidence was
firm, and my determination fixed. How different is the scene
now before me--this vast crowd testifying their sympathy and
approval, praises without stint, and friends without number!
This occasion, sir, gives me the opportunity to express my
thanks for the enthusiastic reception which I have received,
and I here make my acknowledgments before this vast concourse
of my fellow-citizens. To the ladies I may, perhaps, add, that
they have had their appropriate place, for when the cable was
laid, the first public message that passed over it came from
one of their own sex. This box, sir, which I have the honor to
receive from your hand, shall testify to me and to my children
what my own city thinks of my acts. For your kindness, sir,
expressed in such flattering, too flattering terms, and for the
kindness of my fellow-citizens, I repeat my most heartfelt
thanks."
The enthusiasm with which this address was received reached its height,
when at the close, Mr. Field advanced to the edge of the platform, and
unrolling a despatch, held it up, saying: "Gentlemen, I have just
received a telegraphic message from a little village, now a suburb of
New York, which I will read to you:
"London, September 1, 1858.
"To Cyrus W. Field, New York:
"The directors are on their way to Valentia, to make
arrangements for opening the line to the public. They convey,
through the cable, to you and your fellow-citizens, their
hearty congratulations and good wishes, and cordially
sympathize in your joyous celebration of the great
international work."[B]
A gold medal was presented to Captain Hudson, with an address, to which
he made a fitting reply. Similar testimonials were presented to all the
English captains through Mr. Archibald, the British Consul, who replied
for his absent countrymen, after which the whole audience rose to their
feet, as the band played "God save the Queen."
It was long after dark when the exercises closed, and the vast multitude
dispersed.
The night witnessed one of those displays for which New York surpasses
all the cities of the world--a firemen's torchlight procession--a
display such as was afterward given to the Prince of Wales, but which we
shall probably witness no more, since the Volunteer Fire Department is
disbanded.
But one day did not exhaust the public enthusiasm. The next evening, a
grand banquet was given by the city authorities, at which were present a
great number of distinguished guests. Lord Napier spoke, in language as
happy as it was eloquent, of the new tie that was formed between kindred
dwelling on opposite sides of the sea, and awarded the highest praise to
the one whom he recognized as the author of this great achievement.
While these demonstrations continued, every opposing voice was hushed in
the chorus of national rejoicing; yet some there were, no doubt, who
looked on with silent envy or whispered detraction. But who could grudge
these honors to the hero of the hour--honors so hardly won, and which,
as it proved, were soon to give place to harsh censures and unjust
imputations?
Alas for all human glory! Its paths lead but to the grave. Death is the
end of human ambition. The very day that a whole city rose up to do
honor to the Atlantic Telegraph and its author, it gave its last throb,
and that first cable was thenceforth to sleep for ever silent in its
ocean grave.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] Such a curiosity exists, prepared by the industry of a gentleman who
was one of the most careful collectors of the events of his time--by
which he gathered up the materials of future history--Mr. John R.
Bartlett, formerly Secretary of State of Rhode Island. This gentleman
kept files of all the papers referring to the Atlantic Telegraph, from
which he compiled a very unique volume. It is in the form of a
scrap-book, but on a gigantic scale, being of a size equal to Webster's
large Dictionary. It is made up entirely of newspaper cuttings,
classified under different heads, and neatly arranged in double columns
on nearly four hundred folio pages. The matter thus compressed would
make between three and four octavo volumes of the size of Prescott's
Histories, if printed in the style of those works. Every thing is
included that could be gathered from European as well as American
papers, touching the claims of the inventors and projectors of the
electric telegraph in general, and of the Atlantic Telegraph in
particular. The historical sketches are set off by illustrations taken
from the pictorial papers. Altogether it embraces more of the materials
of a history of this subject than any other volume with which we are
acquainted, and well deserves the title prefixed to it by the laborious
compiler:
"THE ATLANTIC TELEGRAPH.--Its Origin and History, with an Account of the
Voyages of the Steamers Niagara and Agamemnon, in Laying the Cable, and
of the Celebration of the Great Event in New York, Philadelphia,
Brooklyn, Montreal, Dublin, Paris, etc.; together with the Discussions,
Sermons, Poetry, and Anecdotes relating thereto; also, a History of the
Invention of the Electric Telegraph. Illustrated with Maps, Plans,
Views, and Portraits, collected from the Newspapers of the Day, and
arranged by John Russell Bartlett. 1858."
[B] The history of this despatch is curious. Though dated at London, it
was sent from a small town in Ireland. The directors were on their way
from Dublin to Valentia, on the morning of the first of September, when
Mr. Saward remarked: "This is the day of the celebration in New York--we
ought to send a despatch to Mr. Field." Accordingly, at the first
stopping-place (Mallow Station) the message was written, and forwarded
to Valentia, and thence sent across the Atlantic. It was put into Mr.
Field's hand as he was getting into his carriage on the Battery.
CHAPTER XII.
DID THE FIRST CABLE EVER WORK?
The Atlantic cable was dead! That word fell heavy as a stone on the
hearts of those who had staked so much upon it. What a bitter
disappointment to their hopes! In all the experience of life there are
no sadder moments than those in which, after years of anxious toil,
striving for a great object, and after one glorious hour of triumph, the
achievement that seemed complete becomes a total wreck. Vain is all
human toil and endeavor. The years thus spent are fled away; the labor
that was to have brought such a reward of "riches and honor," is lost;
and the prolonged tension of the mind by the excitement of hope and
ambition, and the temporary success, reacts to plunge it into a deeper
depression. So was it here. Years of labor and millions of capital were
swept away in an hour into the bosom of the pitiless sea.
Of course the reaction of the public mind was very great. As its elation
had been so extravagant before, it was now silent and almost sullen.
People were ashamed of their late enthusiasm, and disposed to revenge
themselves on those who had been the objects of their idolatry. It is
instructive to read the papers of the day. As soon as it was evident
that the Atlantic cable was a dead lion, many hastened to give it a
parting kick. There was no longer any dispute as to who was the author
of the great achievement. Rival claimants quietly withdrew from the
field, content to leave him alone in his glory.
Many explanations were offered of this sudden suspension of life. One
writer argued that the Telegraphic Plateau was only a myth; that the
bottom of the ocean was jagged and precipitous; that the cable passed
over lofty mountain chains, and hung suspended from the peaks of
submarine Alps, till it broke and fell into the tremendous depths below.
But others found a readier explanation. With the natural tendency of a
popular excitement to rush from one extreme to the other, many now
believed that the whole thing was an imposition on public credulity, a
sort of "Moon hoax." An elaborate article appeared in a Boston paper,
headed with the alarming question, "Was the Atlantic cable a humbug?"
wherein the writer argued through several columns that it was a huge
deception. A writer in an English paper also made merry of the
celebration in Dublin, where a banquet was given to Sir Charles Bright,
in an article bearing the ominous title: "Very like a whale!" This
writer proved not only that the Atlantic cable was never laid, but that
such a thing was mathematically impossible. But since he turned out to
be a crazy fellow, whom the police had to take into custody, his
"demonstrations" did not make much impression on the public. The
difficulty of finding a motive for the perpetration of such a stupendous
fraud, did not at all embarrass these ingenious writers. Was it not
enough to make the world stare? to furnish something to the gaping
crowd, even though it were but a nine days' wonder? Those who thus
reasoned seemed not to reflect that such deceptions are always sure to
be found out; that one who goes up like a rocket comes down like a
stick; and that if by false means he has made himself an object of
popular idolatry, he is likely to become the object of popular
indignation.
But others there were--sharp, shrewd men--who thought they could see
through a mill-stone farther than their neighbors, who shook their heads
with a knowing air, and said: "It was all a stock speculation." One
writer stepped before the public with this solemn inquiry: "Now that the
great cable glorification is over, we should like to ask one question:
How many shares of his stock did Mr. Field sell during the month of
August?" This he evidently thought was a question which could not be
answered, except by acknowledging a great imposition on the public. If
this brilliant inquirer after truth really desired to be informed, we
could have referred him to Messrs. George Peabody & Co., of London, with
whom was deposited all of Mr. Field's stock at the time, and who,
during that memorable month of August, sold _just one share_, and that
at a price below the par value, which had been paid by Mr. Field
himself. Whether this was an object sufficiently great to set two
hemispheres in a blaze, we leave him to judge.
To those who have followed this narrative, all these conjectures and
suspicions will appear very absurd. The personal reflections of course
deserved and received only the contempt with which a man of character
always scorns an imputation on his personal honor. But while these
anonymous scribblers might be despised, many honest people not disposed
to think evil were sorely perplexed. That the cable should continue to
work for three or four weeks, _and then stop the very day of the
celebration_, was certainly a singular, if not a suspicious
circumstance; and it was not to be wondered at that it should excite a
painful feeling of doubt. The distrust is quite natural, and ought not
to be matter either of offence or surprise. On the contrary, those who
are fully satisfied of the facts, ought rather to be glad of the
opportunity which such questions afford, to present the amplest
vindication.
To relieve all doubts, it is only necessary to give a very brief history
of the working of the Atlantic cable. It was landed on both sides of the
ocean on the fifth of August. The last recorded message passed over it
on the first of September, one day short of four weeks. Within that
time there were sent exactly four hundred messages, of which two hundred
and seventy-one were from Newfoundland to Ireland, and one hundred and
twenty-nine from Ireland to Newfoundland. Of these, the greater part
were merely between the operators themselves, respecting the adjustment
of instruments, and working the telegraph, which, while they furnished
decisive evidence _to them_, were of no force to the public. Of course
an operator, working with a battery on the shore at Valentia, or at
Trinity Bay, watching his instrument, and seeing the little tongue of
light reflected from the moving mirror of the galvanometer, needed no
other evidence of an electric current that had passed through the cable.
He _saw_ it, and knew, as if he saw the flash of a gun on the coast of
Ireland, that it was a light which had come from beyond the sea. But
these private assurances were nothing to the outside world. What they
needed was _public_ messages, conveying news from one hemisphere to the
other. Of these, there were not a great number, for obvious reasons. The
cable, during the four weeks of its existence, never worked
_perfectly_--that is, as a land line works, transmitting messages freely
and rapidly, and with perfect accuracy. It was subject to frequent
interruptions for reasons which may satisfy any one that the wonder is,
not that it did so little, but that it did so much.
1st. To begin with, the cable was not constructed in the most perfect
manner. Its makers, though the best then in the world, had had but
little experience in making deep-sea cables. No line over three hundred
miles long had ever been laid. 2d. It had been made more than a year
before. After it was finished, part of it had been coiled out of doors,
where it was exposed to a burning sun, by which, as was afterward found,
the gutta-percha had been melted in many places till the insulation was
nearly destroyed. 3d. It had been put on board the ships in 1857, and
after the first failure, had been taken out and coiled on the dock at
Plymouth, and then re-shipped in 1858. Thus it had been twisted and
untwisted, some portions of it as many as ten times. Then the Agamemnon
was so shaken in the terrible gale of June, that the cable on board of
her was seriously injured, and some portions were cut out and condemned.
Taking all these things together, the wonder is, not that the cable
failed after a month, but that it ever worked at all!
Owing to this impaired state of the cable, it did _not_ work perfectly.
Probably it would not have worked at all with ordinary instruments. But
the galvanometer of Professor Thomson, that instrument of marvellous
delicacy, drew faint whispers from its muttering lips. Signals came and
went, which showed that the electric current passed from shore to shore,
and gave promise that with delicate handling it could be taught to speak
plainly. But for the present it spoke slowly and with difficulty. It
often took hours to get through a single despatch of any length. Witness
the delay in transmitting the Queen's message! These frequent
interruptions were ascribed to various causes. Sometimes it was
earth-currents; at others, a thunderstorm was raging. Thus, on the
morning of Thursday, the twenty-sixth of August, there was a violent
storm in Newfoundland, heavy rain, accompanied by thunder and lightning.
At three o'clock, the lightning was so intense that for an hour and a
half the end of the cable had to be put to the earth for protection.
After that the storm cleared away, and at seven o'clock the weather was
reported as very fine. But aside from these local and temporary causes,
the real difficulty was in the cable itself, whose insulation had been
fatally impaired, and which was now wearing out its life on the rocks of
the sea. These causes made its speech difficult and broken. Yet
sometimes it flashed up with sudden power. In one case, a message was
sent from the office at Trinity Bay to Ireland and an answer received
back in two minutes! Such incidents excited the liveliest hopes that all
difficulties would be speedily overcome, and justified the messages
which were sent to the New York papers from day to day, that the
instruments were being adjusted, by which it was expected that the line
would soon be put in perfect working order, and be thrown open to the
public. But these flashes of light proved to be only the flickering of
the flame, that was soon to be extinguished in the eternal darkness of
the waters.
But the question which perplexed not only skeptics, but the truest
friends, was not whether the cable worked fast or slow, _but whether it
ever worked at all_. Happily, this is a question which can easily be
settled, since it is one simply of facts and dates, which can be
ascertained by referring to the files of the English and American
papers. Of course the only proof must be in messages containing _news_.
Mere congratulations between the Queen and the President, or the Mayor
of New York and the Mayor of London, prove nothing, for these might have
been prepared beforehand, if we suppose a design to impose on the
credulity of the public. But the decisive test is this: Was there at any
time within that month published in the English or American journals
_news_ which could not be matter of guess or conjecture, and within a
time too short for its possible transmission in any other way? If this
can be proved beyond all doubt, even in a few instances, the question is
decided, for the argument is just as strong with a dozen cases as with a
thousand. We give, therefore, a few dates, the accuracy of which can be
tested by any one who will take the trouble to examine the English and
American papers:
On Saturday, the fourteenth of August, the steamships Arabia and
Europa, the former bound for New York and the latter for Liverpool, came
into collision off Cape Race. The accident was not known in New York
until Tuesday, the seventeenth, since it could not be telegraphed till
the Arabia reached Halifax or the Europa St. John's, into which port she
put for repairs. As soon as the news reached New York, the agent of the
Company, Mr. Nimmo (Mr. Cunard himself being then in England), at once
prepared a despatch to be sent to relieve immediate anxiety. This was
not forwarded to Newfoundland, as peremptory orders had been given not
to transmit any private business messages to go through the cable until
the line was fully open to the public. But the next day Mr. Field
arrived in New York, and Mr. Nimmo applied to him. Seeing the urgency of
the case, he ordered it to be forwarded. It was accordingly sent, and
arrived in London on the twentieth, giving the first news that was
received of the accident. This was repeatedly stated by the late Sir
Samuel Cunard, of London, and confirmed by his son Mr. Edward Cunard, of
New York. The message was published in the London papers of the
twenty-first, as follows:
"Arabia in collision with Europa, Cape Race, Saturday. Arabia
on her way. Head slightly injured. Europa lost bowsprit,
cutwater stem sprung. Will remain in St. John's ten days from
sixteenth. Persia calls at St. John's for mails and passengers.
No loss of life or limb."
This first news message was not only a very decisive one as to the fact
of telegraphic communication, but one which showed the relief given by
speedy knowledge in dispelling doubt and fear. Mr. William E. Dodge, of
New York, says: "I was in Liverpool at the time, and expecting friends
by the Europa. Any delay in the arrival of the ship would have caused
great anxiety. But one morning, on going down to the Exchange, we saw
posted up this despatch received the night before by the Atlantic
Telegraph. All then said, if the cable never did any thing more, it had
fully repaid its cost." Well may he add with devout feeling: "It seemed
as if Divine Providence had permitted the event, to furnish a testimony
which could not be denied, to the reality and the benefit of this new
means of communication between the two continents."
Passing over all the messages exchanged between the operators at the
stations, the congratulations of Queen and President, and of the Mayors
of New York and London, we come to another news despatch. August
twenty-fifth, Newfoundland reports to Valentia:
"Persia takes Europa's passengers and mails. Great rejoicing
everywhere at success of cable. Bonfires, fireworks, _feux de
joie_, speeches, balls, etc. _Mr. Eddy, the first and best
telegrapher in the States, died to-day._ Pray give some news
for New York; they are mad for news."
This despatch the writer, who was then in Europe, read first in the
London Times. The item which arrested his attention was the death of
Mr. Eddy, as he had some acquaintance with that gentleman.
That the news must have come by cable, is clearly shown by an
examination of dates. He died suddenly, at Burlington, Vermont, Monday,
August twenty-third, 1858, at ten o'clock fifteen minutes A.M. The exact
day and hour we learned from his widow, who after his death lived in
Brooklyn. The news was telegraphed to New York, and from there sent to
Trinity Bay, which it reached the following day, and from which it was
forwarded to Valentia, and appeared in the London Times Wednesday
morning. Thus not forty-eight hours elapsed after he breathed his last,
before it was published in England. If any one wishes to see the
despatch, he will find a file of The Times in the Astor Library.
But here appears a slight discrepancy, that, however, when examined,
furnishes double proof. The despatch is dated August twenty-fifth, and
says Mr. Eddy died _to-day_, and yet it is published in the London Times
of the same date! How is this? It was sent between nine and ten o'clock
at night of the twenty-fourth, when the operator at Heart's Content
would say _this day_ of a piece of news just received, but in affixing
the date, he was governed _by Greenwich time_, which made it more than
three hours later. Accordingly it was published in The Times, dated
August twenty-fifth, fifty-three minutes past twelve A.M.!
Those who argued for the theory of collusion and deception, must have
been embarrassed by this unexpected intelligence appearing in London,
which could only be explained as a false report, unless (more wonderful
still!) Mr. Eddy had entered into the plot, and sent the message
beforehand, and then offered himself as a sacrifice, to prove it
correct!
To the demand for news in the above despatch, a reply was at once
returned: "Sent to London for news." And later the same day came the
following:
"North American with Canadian, and the Asia with direct Boston
mails, leave Liverpool, and Fulton, Southampton, Saturday next.
To-day's morning papers have long, interesting reports by
Bright. Indian news. Virago arrived at Liverpool to-day; Bombay
dates nineteenth July. Mutiny being rapidly quelled."
A despatch of the same date, August twenty-fifth, also announces peace
with China. The whole was received at Trinity Bay about nine o'clock
P.M., and would have been sent on at once to New York, but that the land
lines in Nova Scotia were closed at that hour. It was sent the next
morning, and appeared in the evening papers of the twenty-sixth.
By referring again to the London Times, the reader will see that the
news from China was published in London on the twenty-third of August.
It was there given as _unexpected news_, so that it could not have been
a shrewd guess on the part of anybody either in England or America. It
took the public by surprise, both for the news itself and _for the way
in which it came_--which was not by India and the Red Sea, but by St.
Petersburg, where it arrived on the twenty-first, having been brought
overland by a courier to Prince Gortchakoff. From there it was
telegraphed to the Government at Paris, and thence to London. The Times
comments on this roundabout way in which intelligence so important
reached England. Yet this news, so unlooked for, announced in London
only on the morning of the twenty-third of August, was published in New
York on the twenty-sixth.
August twenty-seventh, comes a still longer despatch, which we give in
full:
"George Saward, Secretary Atlantic Telegraph Company, to
Associated Press, New York. News for America by Atlantic cable.
Emperor of France returned to Paris, Saturday. King of Prussia
too ill to visit Queen Victoria. Her Majesty returns to England
thirtieth of August.--St. Petersburg, twenty-first of August.
Settlement of Chinese question. Chinese empire opened to trade;
Christian religion allowed; foreign diplomatic agents admitted;
indemnity to England and France.--Alexandria, August ninth. The
Madras arrived at Suez seventh inst. Dates Bombay to the
nineteenth; Aden, thirty-first. Gwalior insurgent army broken
up. All India becoming tranquil."
This despatch embodies about a dozen distinct items of news, not one of
which could be known without a telegraphic communication. The whole was
received in New York, and published in the evening papers _the same
day_.
Not to be outdone in giving news, the next day, Saturday, August
twenty-eighth, Newfoundland thus replies to Valentia:
"To the Directors: Take news first, Saward. Sir William
Williams, of Kars, arrived Halifax Tuesday. Enthusiastically
received. Immense procession--welcome address--feeling reply.
Held levee--large number presented. Niagara sailed for
Liverpool at one this morning. The Gorgon arrived at Halifax
last night. Yellow fever in New Orleans, sixty to seventy
deaths per day. Also declared epidemic, Charleston. Great
preparations in New York and other places for celebration, to
be held the first and second of September. New Yorkers will
make it the greatest gala-day ever known in this country.
Hermann sailed for Fraser's River; six hundred passengers.
Prince Albert sailed yesterday for Galway. Arabia and Ariel
arrived New York; Anglo Saxon, Quebec; Canada, Boston. Europa
left St. John's this morning. Splendid aurora Bay of Bulls
to-night, extending over eighty-five degrees of the horizon."
Let any one read this despatch, sentence by sentence, noting the
minuteness of the details--which could not be known or conjectured--such
as the appearance of yellow fever at New Orleans, with the number of
deaths a day; the sailing or arrival of seven steamers; the number of
passengers for Fraser's River, etc.--and then examine the London Times,
in which all these items appeared Monday morning, August thirtieth, and
if he does not admit that collusion or deception is out of the question,
no amount of evidence could convince him.
We will give but one proof more. On the last day of August, the day
before the cable ceased to work, Valentia sent to Newfoundland two
messages for the British Government, both signed by "the Military
Secretary to the Commander-in-Chief, Horse Guards, London," and
addressed--the first to General Trollope, Halifax, which said, "The
Sixty-second regiment is not to return to England;" and the other to the
General Officer commanding at Montreal, saying: "The Thirty-ninth
regiment is not to return to England." The year before (1857) had
witnessed the Sepoy Mutiny, which threatened the overthrow of the
British Empire in India. The fighting was over, but the country was
still agitated, and the Home Government in fear that the rebellion might
be renewed, so that it continued to send forward fresh troops. It had
sent out orders by mail for these two regiments to embark immediately
for home, to be sent to India. But the mutiny being nearly suppressed,
this was found not to be necessary, and the prompt countermanding of the
order by telegraph saved the British Government, in the cost of
transportation of troops, not less than fifty thousand pounds. The
despatch to Halifax was received the same day that it was sent from
London. The sending of this despatch, and its almost immediate
reception, is attested by an official letter from the War Office in
London.
This array of proofs of what took place a quarter of a century ago, may
seem superfluous now that experience has made despatches from the other
side of the ocean one of the familiar things of our daily life. And yet
at that date the achievement was so stupendous, and, as some thought, in
its very nature so incredible, that men of the greatest intelligence
could not be convinced. The late Mr. Charles O'Conor continued for years
to quote the fact that some men believed that a message had actually
passed across the Atlantic as the most amazing illustration of human
credulity! Happily he lived to see and to appreciate to its full value
this latest miracle of scientific discovery, applied by human genius and
skill.
CHAPTER XIII.
CAST DOWN, BUT NOT IN DESPAIR.
It takes a long time to recover from a great disaster. When at last the
friends of the Atlantic Telegraph were obliged to confess that the cable
had ceased to work; when all the efforts of the electricians failed to
draw more than a few faint whispers, a dying gasp, from the depths of
the sea, there ensued in the public mind a feeling of profound
discouragement. For a time this paralyzed all effort to revive the
Company and to renew the enterprise. And yet the feeling, though
natural, was extreme. If they had not done all they attempted, they had
accomplished much. They had at least demonstrated the possibility of
laying a cable across the Atlantic Ocean, and of sending messages
through it. This alone was no small triumph. So men reasoned when sober
reflection returned, and at length the tide of public confidence, which
had ebbed so strongly, began to reflow, and once more to creep up the
shores of England.
But when a great enterprise has been overthrown, and lies prostrate on
the earth, the first impulse of its friends is to call on Cæsar for
help. So the first appeal of the Atlantic Telegraph Company was to the
British Government. It was claimed, and with reason, that the work was
too great to be undertaken by private capital alone. It was a matter,
not of private speculation, but of public and national concern. It was,
therefore, an object which might justly be undertaken by a powerful
government, in the interest of science and of civilization.
To raise capital for a new cable, it was necessary to have some better
security than the hazards of a vast and doubtful undertaking. Hence the
Company asked the Government to guarantee the interest on a certain
amount of stock, even if the second attempt should not prove a success.
With such a guarantee, the capital could be raised in London in a day.
In this application they might have been successful, but for an untoward
event, which dampened the confidence of the public in all submarine
enterprises--the failure of the Red Sea Telegraph. The British
Government, anxious to forward communication with India, had given that
Company an unconditional guarantee, on the strength of which the capital
was raised, and the cable manufactured and laid. But in a short time it
ceased to work, a loss which the treasury of Great Britain had to make
good. To the public, which did not understand the cause of the failure
to be the imperfect construction of the cable, the effect was to impair
confidence in all long submarine telegraphs. Of course, after such an
experience, the Government was not disposed to bind itself by such
pledges again. It was, however, ready to aid the enterprise by any safe
means. It therefore increased its subsidy from fourteen thousand pounds
to twenty thousand pounds; and guaranteed eight per cent on six hundred
thousand pounds of new capital for twenty-five years, with only one
condition--_that the cable should work_. This was a liberal grant, and
under the circumstances, was all that could be expected.
Still further to encourage the undertaking, it ordered new soundings to
be taken off the coast of Ireland. These were made by Captain Hoskins,
of the Royal Navy, and dispelled the fears which had been entertained of
a submarine mountain, which would prove an impassable barrier in the
path of an ocean telegraph.
But the greatest service which the British Government rendered, was in
the long course of experiments which it now ordered, to determine all
the difficult problems of submarine telegraphy. In 1859, the year after
the failure of the first Atlantic cable, the Board of Trade appointed a
committee of the most eminent scientific and engineering authorities in
Great Britain to investigate the whole subject. This was composed of
Captain Douglas Galton, of the Royal Engineers, then of the War Office,
who represented the Government; Professor Wheatstone, the celebrated
electrician; William Fairbairn, President of the British Association
for the Advancement of Science; George Parker Bidder, whose name ranks
with those of Stephenson and Brunel; C. F. Varley, who, in the practical
working of telegraphs, had no superior in England; Latimer Clark and
Edwin Clark, both engineers, who had had great experience in the
business of telegraphing; and George Saward, the Secretary of the
Atlantic Telegraph Company.
This Committee sat for nearly two years, at the end of which it made a
report to the Government, which fills a very large volume, in which are
detailed an immense number of experiments, touching the form and size of
cables, their relative strength and flexibility, the power of
telegraphing at long distances, the speed at which messages could be
sent; and in fine, every possible question, either as to the electrical
or engineering difficulties to be overcome. The result of these manifold
and laborious experiments is summed up in the following certificate,
signed by all who had taken part in this memorable investigation:
"London, 13th July, 1863.
"We, the undersigned, members of the Committee, who were
appointed by the Board of Trade, in 1859, to investigate the
question of submarine telegraphy, and whose investigation
continued from that time to April, 1861, do hereby state, as
the result of our deliberations, that a well-insulated cable,
properly protected, of suitable specific gravity, made with
care, and tested under water throughout its progress with the
best known apparatus, and paid into the ocean with the most
improved machinery, possesses every prospect of not only being
successfully laid in the first instance, but may reasonably be
relied upon to continue for many years in an efficient state
for the transmission of signals.
Douglas Galton,
C. Wheatstone,
Wm. Fairbairn,
Geo. P. Bidder,
Cromwell F. Varley,
Latimer Clark,
Edwin Clark,
Geo. Saward."
Thus the years which followed the failure of 1858--though they saw no
attempt to lay another ocean cable--were not years of idleness. They
were rather years of experiment and of preparation, clearing the way for
new efforts and final victory. The Atlantic Telegraph itself had been a
grand experiment. It had taught many important truths which could be
learned in no other way. Not only had it demonstrated the possibility of
telegraphing from continent to continent, but it had been useful even in
exposing its own defects, as it taught how to avoid them in the future.
For example, in working the first cable, the electricians had thought it
necessary to use a very strong battery. They did not suppose they could
reach across the whole breadth of the Atlantic, and touch the Western
hemisphere, unless they sent an electric current that was almost like a
stroke of lightning; and that, in fact, endangered the safety of the
conducting wire. But they soon found that this was unnecessary. God was
not in the whirlwind, but in the still, small voice. A soft touch could
send a thrill along that iron nerve. It seemed as if the deep were a
vast whispering gallery, and that a gentle voice murmured in the ocean
caves, like a whisper in a sea-shell, might be caught, so wonderful are
the harmonies of nature, by listening ears on remote continents; a
miracle of science, that could give a literal meaning to Milton's
"Airy tongues, that syllable men's names
On sands, and shores, and desert wildernesses."
These were also years of great progress, not only in the science of
submarine telegraphy, but in the construction of deep-sea cables. In
spite of the failure of that in the Red Sea, one was laid down in the
Mediterranean, 1,535 miles long, from Malta to Alexandria, and another
in the Persian Gulf, 1,400 miles long, by which telegraphic
communication was finally opened from England to India. Others were laid
in different seas and oceans in distant parts of the world. These great
triumphs, following the scientific experiments which had been made,
revived public confidence, and prepared the way for a fresh attempt to
pass the Atlantic.
Yet not much was done to renew the enterprise until 1862. Mr. Field had
been indefatigable in his efforts to reanimate the Company. He was
continually going back and forth to the British Provinces and to
England, urging it wherever his voice could be heard. Yet times were
adverse. The United States had been suddenly involved in a tremendous
war, which called into the field hundreds of thousands of men, and
entailed a burden of many hundreds of millions. While engaged in this
life-and-death struggle, and rolling up a mountain of debt, our people
had little thought to bestow on great enterprises by land or sea.
And yet one incident of the war forcibly recalled public attention to
the necessity of some speedier communication with Europe than by steam.
The unhappy Trent affair aroused an angry feeling in Great Britain which
nearly resulted in hostilities, all of which might have been prevented
by a single word of explanation. As The Times said truly: "We nearly
went to war with America because we had not a telegraph across the
Atlantic." After such a warning, it was natural that both countries
should begin to think seriously of the means of preventing future
misunderstanding. Mr. Field went to Washington, and found great
readiness on the part of the President and his Cabinet to encourage the
enterprise. Mr. Seward wrote to our Minister in London that the American
Government would be happy to join with that of Great Britain in
promoting this international work. With this encouragement, Mr. Field
went to England to urge the Company to renew the undertaking. While in
London, he endeavored to obtain from some responsible parties an offer
to construct and lay down a cable. Messrs. Glass, Elliot & Co., replied,
declaring their willingness to undertake the work, without at first
naming the precise terms. They wrote to him under date of February
seventeenth:
"Sir: In reply to your inquiries, we beg to state that we
should not be willing to manufacture and lay a Submarine
Telegraph Cable across the Atlantic, from Ireland to
Newfoundland, assuming the entire risk, as we consider that
would be too great a responsibility for any single firm to
undertake; but we are so confident that these points can be
connected by a good and durable cable, that we are willing to
contract to do the work, and stake a large sum upon its
successful laying and working.
"We shall be prepared in a few days, as soon as we can get the
necessary information in regard to what price we can charter
suitable ships for the service, to make you a definite offer."
Although it is anticipating a few months in time, we may give here the
"definite offer," which was obtained by Mr. Field, on his return to
England in the autumn:
"London, October 20, 1862.
"_Cyrus W. Field, Esq., Atlantic Telegraph Company_:
"Dear Sir: In reply to your inquiries, we beg to state, that we
are perfectly confident that a good and durable Submarine Cable
can be laid from Ireland to Newfoundland, and are willing to
undertake the contract upon the following conditions:
"First. That we shall be paid each week our actual
disbursements for labor and material.
"Second. That when the cable is laid and in working order, we
shall receive for our time, services, and profit twenty per
cent on the actual cost of the line, in shares of the Company,
deliverable to us, in twelve equal monthly instalments, at the
end of each successive month whereat the cable shall be found
in working order.
"We are so confident that this enterprise can be successfully
carried out, that we will make a cash subscription for a sum of
twenty-five thousand pounds sterling in the ordinary capital of
the Company, and pay the calls on the same when made by the
Company.
"Annexed we beg to hand you, for your guidance, a list of all
the submarine telegraph cables manufactured and laid by our
firm since we commenced this branch of our business, the whole
mileage of which, with the exception of the short one between
Liverpool and Holyhead, which has been taken up, is at this
time in perfect and successful working order. The cable that we
had the honor to contract for and lay down for the French
Government, connecting France with Algeria, is submerged in
water of nearly equal depths to any we should have to encounter
between Ireland and Newfoundland.
"You will permit us to suggest that the shore ends of the
Atlantic Cable should be composed of very heavy wires, as from
our experience the only accidents that have arisen to any of
the cables that we have laid have been caused by ships'
anchors, and none of those laid out of anchorage ground have
ever cost one shilling for repairs.
"The cable that we would suggest for the Atlantic will be an
improvement on all those yet manufactured, and we firmly
believe will be imperishable when once laid.
"We remain, sir, yours faithfully,
"Glass, Elliot & Co."
The summer of this year Mr. Field spent in America, where he applied
himself vigorously to raise capital for the new enterprise. To this end
he visited Boston, Providence, Philadelphia, Albany, and Buffalo--to
address meetings of merchants and others. He used to amuse us with the
account of his visit to the first city, where he was honored with the
attendance of a large array of "the solid men of Boston," who listened
with an attention that was most flattering to the pride of the speaker,
addressing such an assemblage in the capital of his native State. There
was no mistaking the interest they felt in the subject. They went still
farther, they passed a series of resolutions, in which they applauded
the projected telegraph across the ocean as one of the grandest
enterprises ever undertaken by man, which they proudly commended to the
confidence and support of the American public, after which they went
home, feeling that they had done the generous thing in bestowing upon it
such a mark of their approbation. _But not a man subscribed a dollar!_
Yet it is not necessary to charge them with meanness or hypocrisy. No
doubt they felt just what they said. They could not but admire the
courage of their countryman. It was inspiring to hear him talk. Yet
these solid men were never lifted off their feet so far as to forget the
main chance. What were to be the returns for this magnificent adventure?
Peering into the future, the prospect of dividends was very remote. In
fact they looked upon the Atlantic Telegraph as a sort of South Sea
Bubble, an airy fancy, which would go up like a balloon, never to return
to earth again. So, like the high priest and the Levite, they passed by
on the other side.
Other cities were equally gracious, equally complimentary, but equally
prudent. In New York he succeeded better, but only by indefatigable
exertions. He addressed the Chamber of Commerce, the Board of Brokers,
and the Corn Exchange, and then he went almost literally from door to
door, calling on merchants and bankers to enlist their aid. The result
was, subscriptions amounting to about seventy thousand pounds, the whole
of which was due to persevering personal solicitation. Even of those who
subscribed, a large part did so more from sympathy and admiration of his
indomitable spirit than from confidence in the success of the
enterprise.
In England, however, the subject was better understood. For obvious
reasons, the science of submarine telegraphy had made greater advances
in that country than in ours. As England is an island, she is obliged to
hold all her telegraphic communication with the continent by cables
under the sea. She has colonial possessions in all parts of the world. A
power that rules so large a part of the earth cannot be shut up in her
island home. No one has depicted the extent of her dominion in nobler
phrase than our own Webster when he speaks of the imperial sway which
"has dotted the face of the whole globe with its possessions and
military posts, whose morning drumbeat, following the sun and keeping
company with the hours, encircles the whole earth with one continuous
and unbroken strain of the martial airs of England." Was it strange that
this mother of nations should reach out her long arms to embrace her
distant children?
Hence it was that the subject of submarine telegraphs was so much better
understood in England than in America, not only by scientific men, but
by capitalists. The appeal could be made to them with more assurance of
intelligent sympathy. And yet so vast was the undertaking, that it
required ceaseless effort to roll the stone to the top of the mountain,
and the result was not completely achieved till the beginning of the
year 1864.
CHAPTER XIV.
THE EXPEDITION OF 1865.
It is a long night which has no morning. At last the day is breaking.
While weary eyes are watching the East, daylight comes over the sea.
Five years have passed away, and though the time seemed long as an
Arctic winter, that only made more bright the rising of the sun. Those
years of patient experiment, when scientific men were applying tests
without number, and submarine lines were feeling their way along the
deep-sea floor in all the waters of the world, at last brought forth
their fruit in that renewed confidence which is the forerunner of
victory.
So strong was this feeling, that as early as August, 1863, although the
capital was not raised, the Board advertised for proposals for a cable
suitable to be laid across the Atlantic Ocean; and in order to leave
invention entirely unfettered, abstained from any dictation as to the
form or materials to be adopted, merely stipulating for a working speed
of eight words a minute.
To this request they received, in the course of a few weeks, seventeen
different proposals from as many companies, many of them firms of large
wealth and experience. These different tenders, with the numerous
specimens of cable and materials, were at once submitted to a Consulting
Committee composed in part of members of the Committee which had already
rendered such service by its advice. It consisted of Captain Douglas
Galton, William Fairbairn, Professor C. Wheatstone, William Whitworth
and Professor William Thomson. There were no more distinguished
engineers and electricians in the world. They examined all the
proposals, and then, taking up one by one the different samples of
cable, caused them in turn to be subjected to the severest tests. This
took a long time, as it required a great number of experiments; but the
result was highly satisfactory. The Committee were all of one mind, and
recommended unanimously that the Board should accept the tender of
Messrs. Glass, Elliot & Co., and the general principle of their proposed
cable; but advised that before settling the final specification, every
portion of the material to be employed should be tested with the
greatest care, both separately and in combination, so as to ascertain
what further improvements could be made. To this the manufacturers
readily consented, feeling a noble ambition to justify the confidence of
the Committee and the public. They provided abundant materials for fresh
experiments. New cables were made and tested in different lengths; and
experiments were also tried upon different qualities of wire and hemp,
that were to compose its external protection. The result of all these
investigations was the selection of a model which seemed to combine
every excellence, and to approach absolute perfection.
Such was the cable which this eminent firm offered to manufacture, and
to lay across the Atlantic, and that on terms so favorable, that it
seemed as if it could not be difficult to raise the capital and proceed
with the work. Indeed, a contract was partially made to that effect. So
confident was Mr. Field, who was then in London, that an expedition
would sail the following summer, that he insured his stock, part of it
only against ordinary sea-risks, but part also to be laid and to work!
But hardly had he left England before there was some unforeseen hitch in
the arrangements, the money was not forthcoming, or some of the
conditions were not complied with, and he had the mortification to
receive letters, saying that the whole enterprise was postponed for
another year!
This was indeed discouraging. Yet this sudden dropping of the scheme did
not imply a loss of interest or of faith on the part of those embarked
in it. They believed in it as much as ever. But the general public did
not respond to the call for more capital. Alas that the noblest
enterprises should so often be delayed or defeated by the want of money!
Capital is always cautious and timid, and follows slowly in the path of
great discoveries. If Columbus, instead of the patronage of a Queen full
of womanly enthusiasm, had depended on a stock company for the means for
his expedition, he might never have sailed from the shores of Spain.
Happy was it for mankind that his faith and patience did not wear out,
while going from court to court, and kingdom to kingdom, and almost
begging his way from door to door!
But it is not in human nature--least of all in American nature--to
despond long. Though ten years of constant defeat would seem to have
wrought a lasting discouragement, yet again and again did the baffled
spirit of enterprise return to the attempt. In January, 1864, Mr. Field
was once more on his way to England. He found the Directors, as before,
deeply interested in the enterprise, and wishing it success. With a
grateful heart he bore witness to their unfaltering courage. But mere
courage and good wishes would not lay the Atlantic Telegraph. Yet what
could they do? They could not be expected to advance all the capital
themselves. They had already subscribed liberally, and he could not ask
them to do more. But with all the efforts that had been made in England
and America, not half the capital was yet raised. The machinery was in a
dead lock, with little prospect of being able to move. It was the
misfortune of the enterprise that there was no one man who made it his
sole and exclusive charge. The Board of Directors contained some of the
best men in London. But they were, almost without exception, engaged in
very large affairs of their own, with no leisure to make a public
enterprise their special care. To insure success, it needed a trial of
the one-man power--one brain, planning night and day; one agency
incessantly at work, stirring up directors, contractors, and engineers;
and one will pushing it forward by main strength. This was the force now
to be applied.
The first element needed to put life into the old system was an infusion
of new blood--new capital and new men. While the enterprise was in this
state of collapse, Mr. Field addressed himself to a gentleman with whom,
until then, he had no personal acquaintance, but who was well known in
London as one of the largest capitalists of Great Britain--Mr. Thomas
Brassey. Their first interview was somewhat remarkable. Referring to it
a few months after, Mr. Field said:
"When I arrived in this country, in January last, the Atlantic
Telegraph Company trembled in the balance. We were in want of
funds, and were in negotiations with the government, and making
great exertions to raise the money. At this juncture I was
introduced to a gentleman of great integrity and enterprise,
who is well known, not only for his wealth, but for his
foresight, and in attempting to enlist him in our cause he put
me through such a cross-examination as I had never before
experienced. I thought I was in the witness-box. He inquired
of me the practicability of the scheme--what it would pay, and
every thing else connected with it; but before I left him, I
had the pleasure of hearing him say that it was a great
national enterprise that ought to be carried out, and, he
added, I will be one of ten to find the money required for it.
From that day to this he has never hesitated about it, and when
I mention his name, you will know him as a man whose word is as
good as his bond, and as for his bond, there is no better in
England."
Having thus secured one powerful ally, Mr. Field took courage in the
hope to find another. He says:
"The words spoken by Mr. Brassey in the latter part of January,
'Let the Electric Telegraph be laid between England and
America,' encouraged us all, and made us believe we should
succeed in raising the necessary capital, and I then went to
work to find nine other Thomas Brasseys (I did not know whether
he was an Englishman, a Scotchman, or an Irishman; but I made
up my mind that he combined all the good qualities of every one
of them), and after considerable search I met with a rich
friend from Manchester, Mr. [now Sir] John Pender, and I asked
him if he would second Mr. Brassey, and walked with him from 28
Pall Mall to the House of Commons, of which he is a member.
Before we reached the House, he expressed his willingness to do
so to an equal amount."
This was putting strong arms to the wheel. A few days after, a
combination was formed to carry on the whole business of making
Submarine Telegraphs, by a union of the Gutta-Percha Company with the
firm of Glass, Elliot & Co., the principal manufacturers of sea cables,
making one grand concern, to be called The Telegraph Construction and
Maintenance Company. These two great capitalists entered into the new
organization, of which Mr. Pender was made Chairman. The Gutta-Percha
Company brought in still further strength to the joint enterprise, in
the person of Mr. Willoughby Smith, their electrician, and of Mr. John
Chatterton, the inventor of the insulating material known as
Chatterton's Compound. The union of all these men made a combination of
practical skill and financial ability, such as could be found in few
companies in England or in the world. Mr. R. A. Glass was chosen
Managing Director--a gentleman who seemed born to be a manager, such
power had he of gathering about him talent in every department and
combining all into one organization. Reënforced by such powerful aid,
the new Company now came forward, and offered at one stroke to take all
the remaining stock of the Company. This was more than half the whole
capital. As yet, of the £600,000 required, but £285,000 had been
subscribed. Now this princely Company offered to take the balance
themselves--£315,000. They did more, they took £100,000 of bonds; and so
by one dead lift these stalwart Englishmen took the whole enterprise on
their broad shoulders. From that hour the problem was solved. Thus after
a dead lock of six months the wheels were unloosed, and the gigantic
machinery began to revolve.
This was a triumph worthy to be honored in the way that Englishmen love,
by a little festivity; and as it chanced to be now ten years since Mr.
Field had embarked in the enterprise, the pleasant thought occurred to
him of getting his friends together to celebrate the anniversary.
Accordingly, on the fifteenth of March, he invited them to dine together
at the Buckingham Palace Hotel. It was a joyous occasion, and called
forth the usual amount of toasts and speeches. Of the latter, those of
Mr. Adams, the American Minister, and of John Bright, were widely copied
in the United States. The next day was the annual meeting of the
Atlantic Telegraph Company, when the Chairman, the Right Hon. James
Stuart Wortley, thus referred to the gathering of the night before:
"Without saying any thing to detract from my deep gratitude to
the other Directors, I cannot help especially alluding to Mr.
Cyrus Field, who is present to-day, and who has crossed the
Atlantic thirty-one times in the service of this Company,
having celebrated at his table yesterday the anniversary of the
tenth year of the day when he first left Boston in the service
of the Company. Collected round his table last night was a
company of distinguished men--members of Parliament, great
capitalists, distinguished merchants and manufacturers,
engineers and men of science, such as is rarely found together
even in the highest house in this great metropolis. It was very
agreeable to see an American citizen so surrounded. It was
still more gratifying, inasmuch as we were there to celebrate
the approaching accomplishment of the Atlantic Telegraph."
This was a congratulation on an escape from death, for their cherished
scheme had just passed through a critical period of its history. The
enterprise had been in great danger of abandonment--at least for years,
a peril from which it had been rescued only by the most prompt and
vigorous effort.
Thus after infinite toil, the wreck of old disasters was cleared away,
and the mighty task begun anew. The works of the Telegraph Construction
and Maintenance Company were the largest in the world, and all their
resources were now put in requisition. Never did greater care preside
over a public enterprise. It was a case in which the motive of interest
was seconded or overborne by pride and ambition. A cable was to be made
to span the Atlantic Ocean, and to join the hemispheres; and they were
determined to produce a work that should be as nearly perfect as human
skill could make it. The Scientific Committee, that had so long
investigated the subject, had approved a particular form of cable, as
"the one most calculated to insure success in the present state of our
experimental knowledge respecting deep-sea cables," but at the same time
recommended the utmost vigilance at every stage of the manufacture.
These precautions deserve to be noted, as showing with what jealous care
science watches over the birth of a great enterprise, and prescribes
the conditions of success. They recommended:
That the conductivity of the wire should be fixed at a high
standard, certainly not less than eighty-five per cent; that
the cable should be at least equal to the best ever made; that
the core should be electrically perfect; that it should be
tested under hydraulic pressure, and at the highest pressure
attainable in the tanks at the Company's works; that after this
pressure, the core should be examined again, and before
receiving its outer covering, be required to pass the full
electrical test under water; that careful and frequent
mechanical tests be made upon the iron wire and hemp as to
their strength; that special care be given to the joints, where
different lengths of cable were spliced together; and that when
completed, the whole be tested under water for some length of
time, at a temperature of seventy-five degrees.
This was higher by forty degrees than the temperature of the Atlantic.
The insulation is improved by cold; so that, if it remained perfect in
this warm water, it could not fail in the icy depths of the ocean.
[Illustration: OLD ATLANTIC CABLE, 1858.]
[Illustration: NEW ATLANTIC CABLE, 1865.]
After passing through such elaborate tests, all will be glad to see the
final product of so much care and skill. As the long line begins to reel
off from the great wheels and drums, we may examine it in its completed
and more perfect form. It is only necessary to compare it with the cable
laid in 1858, to show its immense superiority. A glance at the two as
they appear on the preceding page will show that the cable had _grown_
since first it was planted in the ocean, as if it were a living product
of the sea. This growth had been in every part, from core to
circumference.
First, the central copper wire, which was the spinal cord, the nerve
along which the centre current was to run, was nearly three times as
large as before. Prof. Thomson had long seen that this was a condition
of success. While joining heartily in the attempts of 1857-58, he felt
that an error was committed in the smallness of the cable; that the
copper conductors and the gutta-percha covering should both be much
larger. The old conductor was a strand consisting of seven fine wires,
six laid round one, and weighed only one hundred and seven pounds to the
mile. The new was composed of the same number of wires, but weighed
three hundred pounds to the mile. As it was made of the finest copper
that could be obtained in the world, it was a perfect conductor. Next,
to secure insulation, it was first imbedded for solidity in Chatterton's
compound, a preparation impervious to water, and then covered with four
layers of gutta-percha, which were laid on alternately with four thin
layers of Chatterton's compound. The old cable had but three coatings of
gutta-percha, with nothing between. Its entire insulation weighed but
two hundred and sixty-one pounds to the mile, while that of the new
weighed four hundred pounds.
But a conductor ever so perfect, with insulation complete, was useless
without proper external protection, to guard it against the dangers
which must attend the long and difficult process of laying it across the
ocean. The old cable had broken a number of times. The new must be made
stronger. To this end it was incased with ten solid wires of the best
iron, or rather, of a soft steel, like that used in the making of
Whitworth's cannon. This made the cable much heavier than before. The
old cable weighed but twenty cwt. to the mile, while the new one reached
thirty-five cwt. and three quarters. But mere size and weight were
nothing, except as they indicated increased strength. This was secured,
not only by the larger iron wires, but by a further coating of rope.
Each wire was surrounded separately with five strands of Manilla yarn,
saturated with a preservative compound, and the whole laid spirally
round the core, which latter was padded with ordinary hemp, saturated
with the same preservative mixture. This rope covering was important in
several respects. It kept the wires from coming in contact with the salt
water, by which they might be corroded; and while it added greatly to
the strength of the cable, it gave it also its own flexibility--so that
while it had the strength of an iron chain, it had also the lightness
and flexibility of a common ship's rope. This union of two qualities was
all-important. The great problem had been to combine strength with
flexibility. Mere dead weight was an objection. The new cable, though
nearly twice as heavy as the old in air, when immersed in water, weighed
but a trifle more; so that it was really much lighter in proportion to
its size. This increased lightness was a very important matter in laying
the cable, as it caused it to sink slowly. The old cable, though
smaller, was heavy almost as a rod of iron, so that, as it ran out, it
dropped at an angle which exposed it to great danger in case of a sudden
lurch of the ship. Thus in 1857 it was broken by the stern of the
Niagara being thrown up on a wave just as the brakes were shut down. Now
the cable, being partially buoyed by the rope, would float out to a
great distance from the ship, and sink down slowly in the deep waters.
By this combination of rope and iron, a cable was secured two and a
half times as strong as the old--the breaking strain of the former
having been three tons five cwt., and of the latter seven tons and
fifteen cwt. Or, to put it in another form, the contract strain of the
former was less than five times its own weight per mile in water; so
that if the cable had been laid in some parts of the Atlantic, where the
ocean is more than five miles deep, it would have broken under the
enormous strain. But the contract strain of the new cable was equal to
_eleven_ times its weight per mile in water, which, as the greatest
depth of water to be passed was but two and a half miles, rendered the
cable more than four times as strong as was required.
This great chain which was to bind the sea was to be 2,300 nautical
miles long, or nearly 2,700 statute miles! But where could this enormous
bulk be stowed? Its weight would sink the Spanish Armada. In 1858, the
cable loaded down two of the largest ships of war in the world, the
Niagara and the Agamemnon. Yet now one much larger and bulkier was to be
taken on board. This might have proved a serious embarrassment, but that
a few years before there had been built in England a ship of enormous
proportions. The Great Eastern, whose iron walls had been reared by the
genius of Brunel, had been for ten years waiting for "a mission." As a
specimen of marine architecture she was perfect. She walked the waters
in towering pride, scarce bending her imperial head to the waves that
broke against her sides, as against the rocks of the shore. But with all
her noble qualities, she was too great for the ordinary demands of
commerce. Her very size was against her; and while smaller ships, on
which she looked down with contempt, were continually flying to and fro
across the sea, this leviathan,
Hugest of all God's works
That swim the ocean stream,
could find nothing worthy of her greatness. Here then was the vessel to
receive the Atlantic cable.
Seeing her fitness for the purpose, a few of the gentlemen who were
active in reviving the Atlantic Telegraph combined to purchase her, as
she was about to be sold. One of them went down with all speed to
Liverpool, and the next day telegraphed that the big ship was theirs.
The new owners at once put her at the service of the Atlantic Company,
with the express agreement that any compensation for her use should
depend on the success of the expedition.
Next to the good fortune of finding such a ship ready to their hands,
was that of finding an officer worthy to command her. Captain James
Anderson, of the China, one of the Cunard steamers, had long been known
to the travelling public, both of England and America, and no one ever
crossed the sea with him without the strongest feeling of respect for
his manly and seamanly qualities. A thorough master of his profession,
having followed the sea for a quarter of a century, he was also a man of
much general intelligence, and of no small scientific attainments. But
it was something more than this which inspired such confidence. It was
his ceaseless watchfulness. He always carried with him a feeling of
religious responsibility for the lives of all on board, and for every
interest committed to him. A man of few words, modest in manner, he was
yet clear in judgment and prompt in action. This vigilance was
especially marked in moments of danger. When a storm was gathering, all
who saw that tall figure on the wheel-house, watching with a keen eye
every spar in the ship and every cloud in the horizon, felt a new
security from being under his care. Such was the man to be put in charge
of a great expedition. He was recommended by Mr. Field in the strongest
terms, and was chosen unanimously by the Board. The Cunard Company, with
great generosity, consented to give up his services, valuable as they
were, to forward an enterprise of such public interest. Being thus free,
he accepted the trust, and entered upon it with enthusiasm. How well he
fulfilled the expectations of all, the sequel will show.[A]
The work now went on with speed. The wheels began to hum, and the great
drums to reel off that line which, considering the distance it was to
span, was hardly to be measured by miles, but rather by degrees of the
earth's surface. Mere figures give but a vague impression of vast
spaces. But it is a curious fact, ascertained by an exact computation,
that if all the wires of copper and of iron, with the layers that made
up the core and the outer covering, and the strands of yarn that were
twisted into this one knotted sea-cable, were placed end to end, the
whole length would reach from the earth to the moon!
As it came from the works in its completed state, it was plunged in
water, to make it familiar with the element which was to be its future
home. In the yards of the Company stood eight large tanks, which could
hold each a hundred and forty miles. Here the cable was coiled to
"hibernate," till it should be wanted for use the coming spring.
Seeing the work thus well under way, with no chance of another
disastrous check, Mr. Field left England with heart at rest, and
returned to America for the winter. But the first days of spring saw him
again on the Atlantic. He reached England on the eighteenth of March.
His visit was more satisfactory than a year before. The work was now
well advanced. It was a goodly sight to go down to Morden Wharf at
Greenwich, and see the huge machinery in motion, spinning off the
leagues of deep-sea line. The triumph apparently was near at hand. It
seemed indeed a predestined thing that the cable should finally be laid
in the year of grace 1865--the end for which he had so faithfully toiled
since 1858--seven weary years--as long as Jacob served for Rachel! But,
less fortunate than Jacob, he was doomed to one more disappointment. At
present, however, all looked well, and he could not but regard the
prospect with satisfaction.
Having no more drudgery of raising money, he had now a few weeks'
leisure to take a voyage up the Mediterranean. The canal across the
Isthmus of Suez, which had been so long in progress, under the
supervision of French engineers, was at length so far advanced that the
waters of the Mediterranean were about to mingle with those of the Red
Sea, and delegates were invited to be present from all parts of the
world. An invitation had been sent to the Chamber of Commerce in New
York, and Mr. Field, then starting for Europe, was appointed as its
representative. The visit was one of extraordinary interest. The
occasion brought together a number of eminent engineers from every
country of Europe, in company with whom this stranger from the New World
visited the most ancient of kingdoms to see the spirit of modern
enterprise invading the land of the Pyramids.
He returned to England about the first of May to find the work nearly
completed. The cable was almost done, and a large part of it was already
coiled on board the ship. This was an operation of much interest, which
deserves to be described. The manufacture had begun on the first of
September, and had gone on for eight months without ceasing, the works
turning out fourteen miles a day even during the short days of winter.
As the spring advanced, and the days grew longer, the amount was of
course much increased. But by the last of January they had already
accumulated about nine hundred miles of completed cable, when began the
long and tedious work of transferring it to the Great Eastern. It was
thus slow, because it could not be made directly from the yard to the
ship. The depth of water at Greenwich was not such as to allow the Great
Eastern to be brought up alongside the wharf. She was lying at
Sheerness, thirty miles below, and the cable had to be put on board of
lighters and taken down to where she lay in the stream. For this purpose
the Admiralty had furnished to the Company two old hulks, the Iris and
the Amethyst, which took their loads in turn. When the former had taken
on board some two hundred and fifty tons of cable, she was towed down to
the side of the Great Eastern, and the other took her place.
This was an operation which could not be done with speed. With all the
men who could be employed, they coiled on board only about two miles an
hour, or twenty miles a day--at which rate it would take some five
months. The work began on the nineteenth of January, early in the
morning, and continued till June, before all was safely stowed on board.
The Great Eastern herself had been fitted up to receive her enormous
burden. It was an object to stow the cable in as few coils as possible.
Yet it could not be all piled in one mass. Such a dead weight in the
centre of the ship would cause her to roll fearfully. If coiled in one
circle, it was computed that it would nearly fill Astley's theatre from
the floor of the circus to the roof--making a pile fifty-eight feet wide
and sixty feet high. To distribute this enormous bulk and weight, it
was disposed in three tanks--one aft, one amidships, and one forward.
The latter, from the shape of the ship, was a little smaller than the
others, and held only six hundred and thirty-three miles of cable, while
the two former held a little over eight hundred each. All were made of
thick wrought-iron plates, and water-tight, so that the cable could be
kept under water till it was immersed in the sea.
Thus with her spacious chambers prepared for the reception of her guest,
the Great Eastern opened her doors to take in the Atlantic cable; and
long as it was, and wide and high the space it filled, it found ample
verge and room within her capacious sides. Indeed, it was the wonder of
all who beheld it, how, like a monster of the sea, she devoured all that
other ships could bring. The Iris and the Amethyst came up time after
time and disgorged their iron contents. Yet this leviathan swallowed
ship-load after ship-load, as if she could never be satisfied. A writer
who visited her when the cable was nearly all on board, was at a loss to
find it. He looked along the deck, from stem to stern, but not a sign of
it appeared. How he searched, and how the wonder grew, he tells in a
published letter. After describing his approach to the ship, and
climbing up her sides and his survey of her deck, he proceeds:
"But it is time that we should look after what we have mainly
come to see, the telegraph cable. To our intense astonishment,
we behold it nowhere, although informed that there are nearly
two thousand miles of it already on board, and the remaining
piece--a piece long enough to stretch from Land's End to John
O'Groat's--is in course of shipment. We walk up and down on the
deck of the Great Eastern without seeing this gigantic chain
which is to bind together the Old and the New World; and it is
only on having the place pointed out to us that we find where
the cable lies and by what process it is taken on board. On the
side opposite to where we landed, deep below the deck of our
giant, there is moored a vessel surmounted by a timber
structure resembling a house, and from this vessel the
wonderful telegraph cable is drawn silently into the immense
womb of the Great Eastern. The work is done so quietly and
noiselessly, by means of a small steam-engine, that we scarcely
notice it. Indeed, were it not pointed out to us, we would
never think that that little iron cord, about an inch in
diameter, which is sliding over a few rollers and through a
wooden table, is a thing of world-wide fame--a thing which may
influence the life of whole nations; nay, which may affect the
march of civilization. Following the direction in which the
iron rope goes, we now come to the most marvellous sight yet
seen on board the Great Eastern. We find ourselves in a little
wooden cabin, and look down, over a railing at the side, into
an immense cavern below. This cavern is one of the three
'tanks' in which the two-thousand-mile cable is finding a
temporary home. The passive agent of electricity comes creeping
in here in a beautiful, silent manner, and is deposited in
spiral coils, layer upon layer. It is almost dark at the
immense depth below, and we can only dimly discern the human
figures through whose hands the coil passes to its bed.
Suddenly, however, the men begin singing. They intone a low,
plaintive song of the sea; something like Kingsley's
'Three fishers went sailing away to the West,
Away to the West as the sun went down--'
the sounds of which rise up from the dark, deep cavern with
startling effect, and produce an indescribable impression.
"We proceed on; but the song of the sailors who are taking
charge of the Atlantic Telegraph cable is haunting us like a
dream. In vain our guide conducts us all over the big ship,
through miles of galleries, passages, staircases, and
promenades; through gorgeous saloons, full of mirrors, marbles,
paintings, and upholstery, made 'regardless of expense;' and
through buildings crowded with glittering steam apparatus of
gigantic dimensions, where the latent power of coal and water
creates the force which propels this monster vessel over the
seas. In vain our attention is directed to all these sights; we
do not admire them; our imagination is used up. The echo of the
sailors' song in the womb of the Great Eastern will not be
banished from our mind. It raises visions of the future of the
mystic iron coil under our feet--how it will roll forth again
from its narrow berth; how it will sink to the bottom of the
Atlantic, or hang from mountain to mountain far below the
stormy waves; and how two great nations, offsprings of one race
and pioneers of civilization, will speak through this wonderful
coil, annihilating distance and time. Who can help dreaming
here, on the spot where we stand? For it is truly a marvellous
romance of civilization, this Great Eastern and this Atlantic
Telegraph cable. Even should our age produce nothing else, it
alone would be the triumph of our age."
As the work approached completion, public interest revived in the
stupendous undertaking, and crowds of wonder-seekers came down from
London to see the preparations for the expedition. Even if not admitted
on board, they found a satisfaction in sailing round the great ship, in
whose mighty bosom was coiled this huge sea-serpent. It had also many
distinguished visitors. Among others, the Prince of Wales came to see
the ocean girdle which was to link the British islands with his future
dominions beyond the sea.
At length, on the twenty-ninth of May, almost the last day of Spring,
the manufacture of the cable was finished. The machines which for eight
months had been in a constant whirl, made their last round. The tinkling
of a bell announced that the machinery was empty, and the mighty work
stood completed. It only remained that it should be got on board, and
the ship prepared for her voyage. Hundreds of busy hands were at work
without ceasing, and yet it was six weeks before she was ready to put to
sea.
It may well be believed that it was no small affair to equip such an
expedition. Beside the enormous burden of the cable itself, the Great
Eastern had to take on board seven or eight thousand tons of coal,
enough for a fleet, to feed her fires. Then she carried about five
hundred men, for whom she had to make provision during the weeks they
might be at sea. The stores laid in were enough for a small army.
Standing on the wheel-house, and looking down, one might fancy himself
in some large farm-yard of England. There stood the motherly cow that
was to give them milk; and a dozen oxen, and twenty pigs, and a hundred
and twenty sheep, while whole flocks of ducks and geese, and fowls of
every kind, cackled as in a poultry-yard. Beside all this live stock,
hundreds of barrels of provisions, of meats and fruits, were stored in
the well-stocked larder below. Thus laden for her voyage, the Great
Eastern had in her a weight, including her own machinery, of twenty-one
thousand tons--a burden almost as great as could have been carried by
the whole fleet with which Nelson fought the battle of Trafalgar.
As the time of departure drew near, public curiosity was excited, and
there was an extraordinary desire to witness the approaching attempt.
The Company was besieged by applications from all quarters for
permission to accompany the expedition. Had these requests been granted,
on the scale asked, even the large dimensions of the Great Eastern could
hardly have been sufficient for the crowds on board. The demand was most
pressing for places for newspaper correspondents. These came not only
from England, but from France and America. Almost every journal in
London claimed the privilege of being represented. The result was what
might have been expected. As it was impossible to satisfy all, and to
discriminate in favor of some, and exclude others, would seem partial
and unjust, they were finally obliged to exclude all. Of course this
gave great offence. There was an outcry in England and in the United
States at what was denounced as a selfish and suicidal policy. But it is
doubtful whether any other possible course would have given better
satisfaction.
Whether the Managers erred in this or not, it should be said that they
applied the same inexorable rule to themselves--even Directors of the
Company being excluded, unless they had some special business on board.
It should be borne in mind that the expedition was not under the control
of the Atlantic Telegraph Company at all, but of the Telegraph
Construction and Maintenance Company, which had undertaken the work in
fulfilment of a contract with the former Company to manufacture and lay
down a cable across the Atlantic, in which it assumed the whole
responsibility, not only making the cable, but chartering the ship and
appointing the officers, and sending its own engineers to lay it down.
Of course it had an enormous stake in the result. Hence it felt, not
only authorized, but bound, to organize the expedition solely with
reference to success. It was not a voyage of pleasure, but for business;
for the accomplishment of a great and most difficult undertaking. Hence
it was right that the most strict rules should be adopted. Accordingly
there was not a man on board who had not some business there. As the
voyage promised to be one of the utmost practical interest to
electricians and engineers, several young men were received as
assistants in the testing-room or in the engineers' department; but
there was no person who was not in some way engaged on the business of
one or the other company, or connected with the management of the ship.
Except Mr. Field, not an Atlantic Telegraph Director accompanied the
expedition; and he represented also the Newfoundland Company. Mr. Gooch,
M.P., was at once a Director of the Telegraph Construction and
Maintenance Company, and Chairman of the Board that owned the Great
Eastern, and so represented both those companies which had so great a
stake in the result.
Thus the whole business was in the hands of the Telegraph Construction
and Maintenance Company. It had its own officers to man the
expedition--the captain and crew to sail the ship--its engineers to lay
the cable--and its electricians to test it. Even the eminent
electricians, Professor Thomson and Mr. Varley, who were on board in the
service of the Atlantic Telegraph Company, were not allowed to
interfere, _nor even to give advice_ unless it were asked for in
writing, and then it was to be given in writing. Their office was only
to test the cable when laid, to pass messages through it from
Newfoundland to Ireland, and to report it complete.
So rigorous were the rules which governed this memorable voyage. The
whole enterprise was organized as completely as a naval expedition.
Every man had his place. As when a ship is going into battle, everybody
is sent below that has not some business on deck, so it is not strange
that in such a critical enterprise they did not want a host of
supernumeraries on board.
Yet the Company was not unmindful of the anxiety of the public for news,
and since it could not give a place to many correspondents, it engaged
one, and that the best--W. H. Russell, LL.D., the well-known
correspondent of the London Times in the Crimea and in India. This
brilliant writer was engaged to accompany the expedition--not to praise
without discrimination, but to report events faithfully from day to day.
He was accompanied by two artists, Mr. O'Neill and Mr. Dudley, to
illustrate the scenes of the voyage. Thus the Company made every
provision to furnish information and even entertainment to the public.
Several of these gentlemen afterward wrote accounts for different
magazines--Blackwood, Cornhill, and Macmillan's. Their different
reports, and especially the volume of Dr. Russell, which combines the
accuracy and minuteness of a diary kept from day to day, with brilliant
descriptions, set off by illustrations from drawings of Mr. Dudley,
furnish the public as full and complete an account as if there had been
a special correspondent for every journal of England and America.
But if the public at large were very properly excluded, the organization
on board was perfect and complete. At the head was Captain Anderson, of
whom we have already spoken. As his duties would be manifold and
increasing, he had requested the aid of an assistant commander, and
Captain Moriarty, R. N., who had been in the Agamemnon in 1858, was
permitted by the Admiralty to accompany the ship, and to give the
invaluable aid of his experience and skill. The government also
generously granted two ships of war, the Sphinx and the Terrible, to
attend the Great Eastern. Thus the whole equipment of the expedition was
English. Of the five hundred men on board the Great Eastern, there was
but one American, and that was Mr. Field.
The engineering department was under charge of Mr. (now Sir) Samuel
Canning, who, as the representative of the Telegraph Construction and
Maintenance Company, was chief in command of all matters relating to
laying the cable. For this responsible position no better man could have
been chosen. Before the voyage was ended, he had ample opportunity to
show his resources. He was ably seconded by Mr. Henry Clifford. Both
these gentlemen had been on board the Agamemnon in the two expeditions
of 1858. They had since had large experience in laying submarine cables
in the Mediterranean and other seas. It was chiefly by their united
skill that the paying-out machinery had been brought to such perfection,
that throughout the voyage it worked without a single hitch or jar. They
had an invaluable helper in Mr. John Temple.
The electrical department was under charge of Mr. De Sauty, who had had
long experience in submarine telegraphs, and who was aided by an
efficient corps of assistants. Professor Thomson and Mr. Varley, as we
have said, were there to examine and report for the Atlantic Company.
All these gentlemen had been unceasing in their tests of the cable in
every form, both while in the process of manufacture and after it was
coiled in the Great Eastern. The result of their repeated tests was to
demonstrate that the cable was _many times more perfect than the
contract required_. With such marvellous delicacy did they test the
current of electricity sent through it, that it was determined that of
one thousand parts, over nine hundred and ninety-nine came out at the
other end!
To complete this organization and equipment caused such delays as
excited the impatience of all on board. But at length, when midsummer
had fully come--at noon of Saturday, July fifteenth--the song of the
sailors sounded the _chant du départ_. The Great Eastern was then lying
at the Nore, and she seemed to cling to the English soil which she had
griped with a huge Trotman weighing seven tons, held fast by a chain
whereof every link weighed seventy pounds! To wrench this ponderous
anchor from its bed required the united strength of near two hundred
men. At last the bottom lets go its hold, the anchor swings to the bow,
the gun is fired, and the voyage is begun. A fleet of yachts and boats
raise their cheers as the mighty hull begins to move. But mark how
carefully she feels her way, following the lead of yonder little
steamer, the Porcupine, the same faithful guide that seven years before
led the Niagara up Trinity Bay one night when the faint light of stars
twinkled on all the surrounding hills. Slowly they near the sea. Now the
cliffs of Dover are in sight, and bidding her escort adieu, the Great
Eastern glides along by the beautiful Isle of Wight, and then quickening
her speed, with a royal sweep, she moves down the Channel. Off Falmouth
she picked up the Caroline, a small steamer, which had left several days
before with the shore end on board. She was laboring heavily with her
burden, and made little headway in the rough waves. But the Great
Eastern took her in tow, and she followed like a ship's boat in the wake
of the monarch of the seas.
Thus they passed round to the coast of Ireland, to that Valentia Bay
where, eight years before, the Earl of Carlisle gave his benediction on
the departure of the Niagara and the Agamemnon, and where, a year
later, the gallant English ship brought her end of the cable safely to
the shore.
The point of landing had been changed from Valentia harbor five or six
miles to Foilhommerum Bay, a wild spot where huge cliffs hang over the
waves that here come rolling in from the Atlantic. On the top, an old
tower of the time of Cromwell tells of the bloody days of England's
great civil war. It is now but a mossy ruin. Here the peasants who
flocked in from the country pitched their booths on the green sward, and
looked down from the dizzy heights on the boats dancing in the bay
below. At the foot of the cliff, a soft, sandy beach forms a bed for the
cable, and here, as it issues from the sea, it is led up a channel which
had been cut for it in the rocks.
As the shore end was very massive and unwieldy, it could not be laid
except in good weather; and as the sea was now rough, the Great Eastern
withdrew to Bantry Bay, to be out of the way of the storms which
sometimes break with fury on this rock-bound coast.
On Saturday this preliminary work was completed, the heavy shore end was
carried from the deck of the Caroline across a bridge of boats to the
beach, and hauled up the cliffs amid the shouts of the people. When once
it was made fast to the rocks, the little steamer began to move, and the
huge coil slowly unwound, and like a giant awakened, stretched out its
long iron arms. By half-past ten o'clock at night the hold was empty,
the whole twenty-seven miles having been safely laid, and the end buoyed
in seventy-five fathoms water. A despatch was at once sent across the
country to Bantry Bay to the Great Eastern to come around with all
speed, and early the next morning her smoke was seen in the offing.
Passing the harbor of Valentia, she proceeded to join the Caroline,
which she reached about noon, and at once commenced splicing the massive
shore end to her own deep-sea line. This was a work of several hours, so
that it was toward evening before all was completed.
Thus, so many had been the delays of the past week, that it had come on
to Sunday before the Great Eastern was ready to begin her voyage.
This--which some might count a desecration of the holy day--the sailors
rather accepted as a good omen. Had the shore end been laid forty-eight
hours sooner, the voyage might have begun on Friday, which sailors, who
are proverbially superstitious, would have thought an unlucky beginning.
But Sunday, in their esteem, is a good day. They like, when a ship is
moving out of sight of land, that the last sound from the shore should
be the blessed Sabbath bells. If that sacred chime were not heard
to-day, at least a Sabbath peace rested on sea and sky. It was a calm
summer's evening. The sun was just sinking in the waves, as the Great
Eastern, with the two ships of war which waited on either hand, to
attend her royal progress, turned their faces to the West, and caught
the sudden glory. Says Russell: "As the sun set, a broad stream of
golden light was thrown across the smooth billows toward their bows, as
if to indicate and illumine the path marked out by the hand of Heaven."
What a sacred omen! Had it been the fleet of Columbus sailing westward,
every ship's company would have fallen upon their knees on those decks,
and burst forth in an Ave Maria to the gentle Mistress of the Seas. But
in that manly crew there was many an eye that took in the full beauty of
the scene, and many a reverent heart that invoked a benediction.
In other respects the day was well chosen. It was the twenty-third of
July. From the beginning, Captain Anderson had wished to sail on the
twenty-third of June, or the twenty-second of July, so as to have the
full moon on the American coast. He desired also to take advantage of
the westerly winds which prevail at that season, for in going against
the wind the Great Eastern was steady as a rock. Every expectation was
realized. To the big ship the ocean was as an inland lake. The
paying-out machinery--the product of so much study and skill--worked
beautifully, and as the ship increased her speed, the cable glided into
the water with such ease that it seemed but a holiday affair to carry it
across to yonder continent. Such were the reflections of all that
evening as the long summer twilight lingered on the sea. At midnight
they went to sleep, to dream of an easy triumph.
Yet be not too confident. But a few hours had passed before the booming
of a gun awoke all on board with the heavy tidings of disaster. The
morning breaks early in those high latitudes, and by four o'clock all
were on deck, with anxious looks inquiring for the cause of alarm. The
ship was lying still, as if her voyage had already come to an end, and
electricians, with troubled countenances, were passing in and out of the
testing-room, which, as it was always kept darkened, looked like a
sick-chamber where some royal patient lay trembling between life and
death.
The method used by the electricians to discover a fault is one of such
delicacy and beauty as shows the marvellous perfection of the
instruments which science employs to learn the secrets of nature. The
galvanometer is an invention of Professor Thomson, by which "a ray of
light reflected from a tiny mirror suspended to a magnet travels along a
scale, and indicates the resistance to the passage of the current
through the cable by the deflection of the magnet, which is marked by
the course of this speck of light. If the light of the mirror travels
beyond the index, or out of bounds, an escape of the current is taking
place, and what is technically called a fault has occurred." Such was
the discovery on Monday morning. At a quarter past three o'clock the
electrician on duty saw the light suddenly glide to the end of the scale
and vanish.
Fortunately it was not a fatal injury. It did not prevent signalling
through the cable, and a message was at once sent back to the shore,
giving notice of the check that had been received. But the electric
current did not flow freely. There was a leak at some point of the line
which it would not be prudent to pass over. They were now seventy-three
miles from shore, having run out eighty-four miles of cable. The tests
of the electricians indicated the fault to be ten or a dozen miles from
the stern of the ship. The only safe course was to go back and get this
on board, and cut out the defective portion. It was a most ungrateful
operation thus to be undoing their own work, but there was no help for
it.
Such accidents had been anticipated, and before the Great Eastern left
England, she had been provided with machinery to be used in case of
necessity for picking up the cable. But this proved rather an unwieldy
affair. It was at the bow, and as the paying-out machine was at the
stern, the ship had to be got round, and the cable, which must first be
cut, had to be transferred from one end to the other. This was not an
easy matter. The Great Eastern was an eighth of a mile long, and to
carry the cable along her sides for this distance, and over her high
wheel-houses, was an operation at once tedious and difficult.
But at length the ship's head was brought round, and the end of the
cable lifted over the bow, and grasped by the pulling-in machine, and
the engine began to puff with the labor of raising the cable from the
depths of the ocean. Fortunately they were only in four or five hundred
fathoms water, so that the strain was not great. But the engine worked
poorly, and the operation was very slow. With the best they could do, it
was impossible to raise more than a mile an hour! But patience and
courage, though it should take all day and all night![B] The Great
Eastern did her duty well, steaming slowly back toward Ireland, while
the engine pulled, and the cable came up, though reluctantly, from the
sea, till on Tuesday morning at seven o'clock, when they had hauled in a
little over ten miles, the cause of offence was brought on board. It was
found to be a small piece of wire, not longer than a needle, that by
some accident (for they did not then suspect a design) had been driven
through the outer cover of the cable till it touched the core. There was
the source of all the mischief. It was this pin's point which pricked
the vital cord, opening a minute passage through which the electricity,
like a jet of blood from a pierced artery, went streaming into the sea.
It was with an almost angry feeling, as if to punish it for its
intrusion, that this insignificant and contemptible source of trouble
was snatched from its place, the wounded piece of cable was cut off, and
a splice made and the work of paying out renewed. But it was four
o'clock in the afternoon of Tuesday before they were ready to resume the
voyage. A full day and a half had been lost by this miserable piece of
wire.
But the vexatious delay was over at last, and the stately ship, once
more turning to the West, moved ahead with a steady composure, as if no
petty trouble could vex her tranquil mind. Throughout the voyage the
behavior of the ship was the admiration of all on board. While her
consorts on either side were pitched about at the mercy of the waves,
she moved forward with a grave demeanor, as if conscious of her mission,
or as if eager to unburden her mighty heart, to throw overboard the
great mystery that was coiled up within her, and to cast her burden on
the sea.
The electricians, too, were elated, and with reason, at the perfection
of the cable as demonstrated by every hour's experience. At intervals of
thirty minutes, day and night, tests were passed from ship to shore,
and to the delight of all, instead of finding the insulation weakened,
it steadily improved as the cable was brought into contact with the cold
depths of the Atlantic.
All now went well till Saturday, the twenty-ninth, when a little after
noon there was again a cry from the ship, as if once more the cable were
wounded and in pain. This time the fault was more serious than before.
The electricians looked very grave, for they had struck "dead earth,"
that is, the insulation was completely destroyed, and the electric
current was escaping into the sea.
As the fault had gone overboard, it was necessary to reverse their
course, and haul in till the defective part was brought up from the
bottom. This time it was more difficult, for they were in water two
miles deep. Still the cable yielded slowly to the iron hands that drew
it upward; and after working all the afternoon, about ten o'clock at
night they got the fault on board. The wounded limb was at once
amputated, and joining the parts that were whole, the cable was made new
and strong again. Thus ended a day of anxiety. The next morning, which
was the second Sabbath at sea, was welcomed with a grateful feeling
after the suspense of the last twenty-four hours.
On Monday, the miles of cable that had been hauled up, and which were
lying in huge piles upon the deck, were subjected to a rigid
examination, to find out where the fault lay. This was soon apparent.
Near the end was found a piece of wire thrust through its very heart, as
if it had been driven into it. All looked black when this was
discovered, for at once it excited suspicions of design. It was remarked
that the same gang of workmen were in the tank as at the time of the
first fault. Mr. Canning sent for the men, and showing them the cable
pierced through with the wire, asked them how it occurred. Every man
replied that _it must have been done by design_, even though they
accused themselves, as this implied that there was a traitor among them.
It seemed hard to believe that any one could be guilty of such devilish
malignity. Yet such a thing had been done before in a cable laid in the
North Sea, where the insulation was destroyed by a nail driven into it.
The man was afterward arrested, and confessed that he had been hired to
do it by a rival company. The matter was the subject of a long
investigation in the English courts. In the present case there were many
motives which might prompt to such an act. The fall in the stock on the
London Exchange, caused by a loss of the cable, could hardly be less
than half a million sterling. Here was a temptation such as betrays
bold, bad men into crime. However, as it was impossible to fix the deed
on any one, nothing was proved, and there only remained a painful
suspicion of treachery. Against this it was their duty to guard.
Therefore it was agreed that the gentlemen on board should take turns
in keeping watch in the tank. It was very unpleasant to Mr. Canning thus
to set a watch on men, many of whom had been with him in his former
cable-laying expeditions, but the best of them admitted the necessity of
it, and were as eager as himself to find out the Judas among them.
But accident or villainy, it was defeated this time, and the Great
Eastern proudly continued her voyage. Not the slightest check
interrupted their progress for the next three days, during which they
passed over five hundred miles of ocean. It was now they enjoyed their
greatest triumph. They were in the middle of the Atlantic, and thus far
the voyage had been a complete success. The ship seemed as if made by
Heaven to accomplish this great work of civilization. The paying-out
apparatus was a piece of mechanism to excite the enthusiasm of an
engineer, so smoothly did its well-oiled wheels run. The strain never
exceeded fourteen hundred-weight, even in the greatest depths of the
Atlantic. And as for the cable itself, it seemed to come as near
perfection as it was possible to attain. As before, the insulation was
greatly improved by submergence in the ocean. With every lengthening
league it grew better and better. It seems almost beyond belief, yet the
fact is fully attested that, when in the middle of the ocean, the
communication was so perfect that they could tell at Valentia every time
the Great Eastern rolled.[C] With such omens of success, who could but
feel confident? And when on Monday they passed over a deep valley, where
lay "the bones of three Atlantic cables," it was with a proud assurance
that they should not add another to the number.
But Wednesday brought a sudden termination of their hopes. They had run
out about twelve hundred miles of cable, and were now within six hundred
miles of Newfoundland. Two days more would have made them safe, as it
would have brought them into the shallow waters of the coast. Thus it
was when least expected that disaster came. The record of that fatal day
may be given in few words. In the morning, while Mr. Field was keeping
watch in the tank, with the same gang of men who had been there when the
trouble occurred before, a grating sound was heard, as if a piece of
wire had caught in the machinery, and word was passed up to the deck to
look out for it; but the caution seems not to have been heard, and it
passed over the stern of the ship. Soon after a report came from the
testing-room of "another fault." It was not a bad one, since it did not
prevent communication with land; and much anxiety might have been saved
had a message been sent to Ireland that they were about to cut the
cable, in order to haul it on board. But small as the fault was, it
could not be left behind. Down on the deep sea-floor was some minute
defect, a pin's point in a length measured by thousands of miles. Yet
that was enough. Of this marvellous product of human skill, it might in
truth be said, that it was like the law of God in demanding absolute
perfection. To offend in one point was to be guilty of all.
This new fault, though it was annoying, did not create alarm, for they
had been accustomed to such things, and regarded them only as the
natural incidents of the voyage. Had the apparatus for pulling in been
complete, it could not have delayed them more than a few hours. But this
had been the weak point of the arrangements from the beginning--the
_bête noire_ of the expedition. The only motive power was a little
donkey engine, (rightly named,) which puffed and wheezed as if it had
the asthma. This was now put in requisition, but soon gave out for want
of more steam. While waiting for this a breeze sprang up, which caused
the Great Eastern to drift over the cable, by which it was badly chafed,
so that when it was hauled in, as the injured part was coming over the
bows and was almost within grasp, suddenly it broke and plunged into the
sea!
It came without a moment's warning. So unexpected was such a
catastrophe, that the gentlemen had gone down to lunch, as it was a
little past the hour of noon. But Mr. Canning and Mr. Field stood
watching the cable as it was straining upward from the sea, and saw the
snapping of that cord, which broke so many hopes. The impression may be
better imagined than described. Says a writer on board: "Suddenly Mr.
Canning appeared in the saloon, and in a manner which caused every one
to start in his seat, said, 'It is all over! It is gone!' then hastened
onward to his cabin. Ere the thrill of surprise and pain occasioned by
these words had passed away, Mr. Field came from the companion into the
saloon, and said, with composure admirable under the circumstances,
though his lip quivered and his cheek was blanched, 'The cable has
parted and has gone overboard.' All were on deck in a moment, and there,
indeed, a glance revealed the truth."
At last it had come--the calamity which all had feared, yet that seemed
so far away only a few hours before. Yet there it was--the ragged end on
board, torn and bleeding, the other lying far down in its ocean grave.
In America, of course, nothing could be known of the fate of the
expedition till its arrival on our shores. But in England its progress
was reported from day to day, and as the success up to this point had
raised the hopes of all to the highest pitch, the sudden loss of
communication with the ship was a heavy blow to public expectation, and
gave rise to all sorts of conjectures. At first a favorite theory was,
that communication had been interrupted by a magnetic storm. These are
among the most mysterious phenomena of nature--so subtle and fleeting as
to be almost beyond the reach of science. No visible sign do they give
of their presence. No clouds darken the heavens; no thunder peals along
the sky. Yet strange influences trouble the air. At this very hour,
Professor Airy, the Astronomer Royal at the Observatory at Greenwich,
reported a magnetic storm of unusual violence. Said a London paper:
"Just when the signals from the Great Eastern ceased, a
magnetic storm of singular violence had set in. Unperceived by
us, not to be seen in the heavens, nor felt in the atmosphere,
the earth's electricity underwent a mysterious disturbance. The
recording instruments scattered about the kingdom, everywhere
testified to the fury of this voiceless tempest, and there is
every reason to suppose that the confusion of signals at midday
on Wednesday was due to the strange and unusual earth-currents
of magnetism, sweeping wildly across the cable as it lay in
apparently untroubled waters at the bottom of the Atlantic."
Said the Times:
"At Valentia, on Wednesday last, the signals, up to nine A.M.,
were coming with wonderful distinctness and regularity, but
about that time a violent magnetic storm set in. No insulation
of a submarine cable is ever so perfect as to withstand the
influence of these electrical phenomena, which correspond in
some particulars to storms in the ordinary atmosphere, their
direction generally being from east to west. Their action is
immediately communicated to all conductors of electricity, and
a struggle set up between the natural current and that used
artificially in sending messages. This magnetic storm affected
every telegraphic station in the kingdom. At some the wires
were utterly useless; and between Valentia and Killarney the
natural current toward the west was so strong along the land
lines that it required an addition of five times the ordinary
battery power to overcome it. This magnetic storm, which ceased
at two A.M. on Friday, was instantly perceptible in the
Atlantic cable."
But these explanations, so consoling to anxious friends on land, did not
comfort those on board the Great Eastern. They knew, alas! that the
cable was at the bottom of the ocean, and the only question was, if any
thing could be done to recover it.
Now began a work of which there had been no example in the annals of the
sea. The intrepid Canning declared his purpose to grapple for the cable!
The proposal seemed wild, dictated by the frenzy of despair. Yet he had
fished in deep waters before. He had laid his hand on the bottom of the
Mediterranean, but that was a shallow lake compared with the depths into
which the Atlantic cable had descended. The ocean is here two and a half
miles deep. It was as if an Alpine hunter stood on the summit of Mont
Blanc and cast a line into the vale of Chamouni. Yet who shall put
bounds to human courage? The expedition was not to be abandoned without
a trial of this forlorn hope. There were on board some five miles of
wire rope, intended to hold the cable in case it became necessary to cut
it and lash it to the buoys, to save it from being lost in a storm. This
was brought on deck for another purpose. "And now came forth the
grapnels, two five-armed anchors, with flukes sharply curved and tapered
to a tooth-like end--the hooks with which the Giant Despair was going to
fish from the Great Eastern for a take worth, with all its belongings,
more than a million." These huge grappling-irons were firmly shackled to
the end of the rope, and brought to the bows and thrown overboard. One
splash, and the whole has disappeared in the bosom of the ocean. Down it
goes--deeper, deeper, deeper still! For two full hours it continued
sinking before it struck the earth, and like a pearl-diver, began
searching for its lost treasure on the bottom of the sea. What did it
find there? The wrecks of ships that had gone down a hundred years ago,
with dead men's bones whitening in the deep sea caves? It sought for
something more precious to the interest of civilization than gems and
gold.
The ship was now a dozen miles or so from the place of accident. The
cable had broken a little after noon, when the sun was shining clear, so
that Captains Anderson and Moriarty had just obtained a perfect
observation, from which they could tell, within half a mile, the very
spot where it had gone down. To reach it now, with any chance of
bringing it up, it would be necessary to hook it a few miles from the
end. It had been paid out in a line from east to west. To strike it
broadside, the ship stood off in the afternoon a few miles to the south.
Here the grapnel was thrown over about three o'clock, and struck bottom
about five, when the ship began slowly drifting back on her course. All
night long those iron fingers were raking the bottom of the deep but
grasping nothing, till toward morning the long rope quivered like a
fisherman's line when something has seized the end, and the head of the
Great Eastern began to sway from her course, as if it felt some unseen
attraction. As they began to haul in, the rapidly increasing strain soon
rendered it certain that they had got hold of _something_. But what
could it be? How did they know it was their lost cable? This question
has often been asked. They did not see it. How did they know that it was
not the skeleton of a whale, or a mast or spar, the fragment of a
wrecked ship? The question is easily answered. If it had been any loose
object which was being drawn up from the sea, its weight would have
diminished as it came nearer the surface. But on the contrary, the
strain, as shown by the dynamometer, steadily _increased_. This could
only be from some object lying prone on the bottom. To an engineer the
proof was like a mathematical demonstration. Another fact observed by
Captain Anderson was equally decisive:
"The grapnel had caught something at the exact hour when by
calculation the ship was known to be crossing the line of the
cable; nor had the grapnel upon this or any other occasion even
for an instant caught any impediment from the time of its being
lowered to the bottom, until the hour indicated by calculation,
when the cable ought to be hooked."
Having thus caught the cable, they had good hopes of getting it again,
their confidence increasing with every hundred fathoms brought on board.
For hours the work went on. They had raised it seven hundred fathoms--or
three quarters of a mile--from the bottom, when an iron swivel gave way,
and the cable once more fell back into the sea, carrying with it nearly
two miles of rope.
The first attempt had failed, but the fact that they had unmistakably
caught the prize gave them courage for a second. Preparations were at
once begun, but fogs came on and delayed the attempt till Monday, when
it was repeated. The grapnel caught again. It was late in the afternoon
when it got its hold, and the work of pulling in was kept up all night.
But as the sea was calm and the moon shining brightly, all joined in it
with spirit, feeling elated with the hope of triumph on the morrow.
That was not to be; but each attempt seemed to come nearer and nearer to
victory. This time the cable was drawn up a full mile from the bottom,
and hung suspended a mile and a half below the ship. Had the rope been
strong enough, it might have been brought on board. But again a swivel
gave way, and the cable, whose sleep had been a second time disturbed,
sought its ocean bed.
These experiments were fast using up the wire rope, and every expedient
had to be resorted to, to piece it out and to give it strength. Each
shackle and swivel was replaced by new bolts, and the capstan was
increased four feet in diameter, by being belted with enormous plates of
iron, to wind the rope around it, if the picking-up machinery should
fail. This gave full work to all the mechanics on board. The ship was
turned into a very cave of Vulcan, presenting at night a scene which
might well take the eye of an artist, and which Russell thus describes:
"The forge fires glared on her decks, and there, out in the
midst of the Atlantic, anvils rang and sparks flew; and the
spectator thought of some village far away, where the
blacksmith worked, unvexed by cable anxieties and greed of
speedy news. As the blaze shot up, ruddy, mellow and strong,
and flung arms of light aloft and along the glistening decks,
and then died into a red centre, masts, spars, and ropes were
for the instant touched with a golden gleaming, and strange
figures and faces were called out from the darkness--vanished,
glinted out again--rushed suddenly into foreground of bright
pictures, which faded soon away--flickered--went out--as they
were called to life by its warm breath, or were buried in the
outer darkness! Outside all was obscurity, but now and then
vast shadows, which moved across the arc of the lighted
fog-bank, were projected far away by the flare; and one might
well pardon the passing mariner, whose bark drifted him in the
night across the track of the great ship, if, crossing himself,
and praying with shuddering lips, he fancied he beheld a
phantom ship freighted with an evil crew, and ever after told
how he had seen the workshops of the Inferno floating on the
bosom of the ocean."
While preparing for a third attempt, the ship had been drifting about,
sometimes to a distance of thirty or forty miles, but it had marked the
course where the cable lay by two buoys, thrown over about ten miles
apart, each bearing a flag which might be seen at a distance, and so
easily came back to the spot. On Thursday morning all was ready, and the
line was cast as before, but after some hours of drifting, it was
evident that the ship had passed over the cable without grappling. The
line was hauled in, and the reason at once appeared. One of the flukes
had caught in the chain, so that it could not strike its teeth into the
bottom. This was cleared away, and the rope prepared for a fourth and
final attempt.
It was at noon of Friday that the grapnel went overboard for the last
time. By four o'clock it had caught, and the work of hauling-in
recommenced. Again the cable was brought up nearly eight hundred
fathoms, when the rope broke, carrying down two miles of its own
length, and with it the hopes of the Atlantic Telegraph for the present
year.
Their resources were exhausted. For nine days and nights, for the work
never stopped for light or darkness, had the great ship kept moving
round and round like some mighty bird of the sea, with her eye fixed on
the place where her treasure had gone down, and striving to wrest it
from the hand of the spoiler. Three times had they grasped the prize,
and each time failed to recover it, only for want of ropes strong enough
to bring it on board. _The cable itself never broke._ This proof of its
strength was a good omen for future success.
But for the present all was over. The attempt must be abandoned for the
year 1865, but not for ever; and with this purpose in her constant mind,
the Great Eastern swung sullenly around, and turned her imperial head
toward England, like a warrior retiring from the field--not victorious,
nor yet defeated and despairing, but with her battle-flag still flying,
and resolved once more to attempt the conquest of the sea.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] Nearly a year and a half after this, when the cable was safely
landed in Newfoundland, Captain Anderson, still on board the Great
Eastern, in a letter to a friend, thus referred to his first connection
with the Atlantic Telegraph:--
"I cannot tell you how I have felt since our success. It is only
seventeen months since I first walked up to the top of the paddle-box of
this ship at Sheerness, upon a dark, rainy night--reviewed my past
career in my mind, and tried to look into the future, to see what I had
undertaken, and realize if possible what this new step would develop. I
cannot say I believed much in cables; I rather think I did not; but I
did believe Mr. Field was an earnest man, of great force of character,
and working under a strong conviction that what he was attempting was
thoroughly practicable; and I knew enough of the names with which he had
associated himself in the enterprise to feel that it was a real, true,
honest effort, worthy of all the energy and application of one's
manhood; and come what might in the future, I resolved to do my very
utmost, and to do nothing else until it was over. More completely
however than my resolve foreshadowed, I dropped inch by inch, or step by
step, into the work, until I had no mind, no soul, no sleep, that was
not tinged with cable. In a word I accuse Mr. Field of having dragged me
into a vortex, that I could not get out of, and did not wish to try--and
the sum total of all this is, to lay a thread across an ocean! Dr.
Russell compared it to an elephant stretching a cobweb, and there lay
its very danger: the more you multiply the mechanism, the more you
increase the risk."
[B] "All during the night the process of picking up was carefully
carried on, the Big Ship behaving beautifully, and hanging lightly over
the cable, as if fearful of breaking the slender cord which swayed up
and down in the ocean. Indeed, so delicately did she answer her
helm, and coil in the film of thread-like cable over her bows, that
she put one in mind of an elephant taking up a straw in its
proboscis."--Russell.
[C] So exquisitely sensitive was the copper strand, that as the Great
Eastern rolled, and so made the cable pass across the magnetic meridian,
the induced current of electricity, incomprehensibly faint as it must
have been, produced nevertheless a perceptible deviation of the ray of
light on the mirror galvanometer at Foilhommerum.--_London Times._
CHAPTER XV.
PREPARING TO RENEW THE BATTLE.
The expedition of 1865, though not an immediate success, had the moral
effect of a victory, as it confirmed the most sanguine expectations of
all who embarked in it. The great experiment made during those four
weeks at sea, had demonstrated many points which were most important
elements in the problem of Ocean Telegraphy. These are summed up in the
following paper, which was signed by persons officially engaged on board
the Great Eastern:
1. It was proved by the expedition of 1858, that a Submarine
Telegraph Cable could be laid between Ireland and Newfoundland,
and messages transmitted through the same.
By the expedition of 1865 it has been fully demonstrated:
2. That the insulation of a cable improves very much after its
submersion in the cold deep water of the Atlantic, and that its
conducting power is considerably increased thereby.
3. That the steamship Great Eastern, from her size and constant
steadiness, and from the control over her afforded by the joint
use of paddles and screw, renders it safe to lay an Atlantic
Cable in any weather.
4. That in a depth of over two miles four attempts were made
to grapple the cable. In three of them the cable was caught by
the grapnel, and in the other the grapnel was fouled by the
chain attached to it.
5. That the paying-out machinery used on board the Great
Eastern worked perfectly, and can be confidently relied on for
laying cables across the Atlantic.
6. That with the improved telegraphic instruments for long
submarine lines, a speed of more than eight words per minute
can be obtained through such a cable as the present Atlantic
between Ireland and Newfoundland, as the amount of slack
actually paid out did not exceed fourteen per cent, which would
have made the total cable laid between Valentia and Heart's
Content nineteen hundred miles.
7. That the present Atlantic Cable, though capable of bearing a
strain of seven tons, did not experience more than fourteen
hundred-weight in being paid out into the deepest water of the
Atlantic between Ireland and Newfoundland.
8. That there is no difficulty in mooring buoys in the deep
water of the Atlantic between Ireland and Newfoundland, and
that two buoys even when moored by a piece of the Atlantic
Cable itself, which had been previously lifted from the bottom,
have ridden out a gale.
9. That more than four nautical miles of the Atlantic Cable
have been recovered from a depth of over two miles, and that
the insulation of the gutta-percha-covered wire was in no way
whatever impaired by the depth of water or the strains to which
it had been subjected by lifting and passing through the
hauling-in apparatus.
10. That the cable of 1865, owing to the improvements
introduced into the manufacture of the gutta-percha core, was
more than one hundred times better insulated than cables made
in 1858, then considered perfect and still working.
11. That the electrical testing can be conducted with such
unerring accuracy as to enable the electricians to discover the
existence of a fault immediately after its production or
development, and very quickly to ascertain its position in the
cable.
12. That with a steam-engine attached to the paying-out
machinery, should a fault be discovered on board whilst laying
the cable, it is possible that it might be recovered before it
had reached the bottom of the Atlantic, and repaired at once.
S. Canning, Engineer-in-Chief,
Telegraph Construction and Maintenance
Company.
James Anderson, Commander of the Great
Eastern.
Henry A. Moriarty, Staff Commander, R.
N.
Daniel Gooch, M.P., Chairman of "Great
Ship Co."
Henry Clifford, Engineer.
William Thomson, LL.D., F.R.S., Prof.
of Natural Philosophy in the
University of Glasgow.
Cromwell F. Varley, Consulting
Electrician Electric and International
Telegraph Co.
Willoughby Smith.
Jules Despecher.
This was a grand result to be attained in one short month; and if not
quite so gratifying as to have the cable laid at once, and the wire in
full operation, yet as it settled the chief elements of success, the
moral effect was next to that of an immediate triumph. All who were on
that voyage felt a confidence such as they had never felt before. They
came back, not desponding and discouraged, but buoyant with hope, and
ready at once to renew the attempt.
This confidence appeared at the first meeting of directors. The feeling
was very different from that after the return of the first expedition of
1858. So animated were they with hope, and so sure of success the next
time, that all felt that one cable was not enough, they must have two,
and so it was decided to take measures not only to raise the broken end
of the cable and to complete it to Newfoundland, but also to construct
and lay an entirely new one, so as to have a double line in operation
the following summer.
The contractors, partaking the general confidence, came forward promptly
with a new offer even more liberal than that made before. They proposed
to construct a new line, and to lay it across the Atlantic for half a
million sterling, which was estimated to be the actual cost to them,
reserving all compensation to themselves to depend on success. If
successful, they were to receive twenty per cent. on the cost, or one
hundred thousand pounds, to be paid in shares of the Company. They would
engage, also, to go to sea fully prepared to raise the broken end of the
cable now in mid-ocean, and with a sufficient length, including that on
board the Great Eastern, to complete the line to Newfoundland. Thus the
company would have two cables instead of one.
In this offer the contractors assumed a very large risk. They now went a
step further, and in the contingency of the capital not being raised
otherwise, they offered _to take it all themselves_--to lay the line at
their own risk, and to be paid only in the stock of the Company, which,
of course, must depend for its value on the success of the next
expedition. It was finally resolved to raise six hundred thousand pounds
of new capital by the issue of a hundred and twenty thousand shares of
five pounds each, which should be preferential shares, entitled to a
dividend of twelve per cent. before the eight per cent. dividend to be
paid on the former preference shares, and the four per cent. on the
ordinary stock. This was offering a substantial inducement to the public
to take part in the enterprise, and it was thought with reason that this
fresh issue of stock, though it increased the capital of the Company,
yet as it was all to be employed in forwarding the great work, would not
only create new property, but give value to the old. The proposal of the
manufacturers was therefore at once accepted by the Directors, and the
work was instantly begun. Thus hopeful was the state of affairs when Mr.
Field returned to America in September.
But he was never easy to be long out of sight of his beloved cable, and
so three months after he went back to England, reaching London on the
twenty-fourth of December. He came at just the right moment, for the
Atlantic Telegraph was once more in extremity. Only two days before the
Attorney-General of England had given a written opinion that the Company
_had no legal right_ to issue new twelve per cent. preference shares,
and that such issue could only be authorized by an express act of
Parliament. This was a fatal decree to the Company. It was the more
unexpected, as, before offering the twelve per cent. capital, they had
been fortified by the opinions of several eminent lawyers and solicitors
in favor of the legality of their proceedings. It invalidated not only
what they were going to do, but what they had done already. Hence, as
the effect of this decision, all the works were stopped, and the money
which had been paid in was returned to the subscribers.
This was a new dilemma, out of which it was not easy to find a way of
relief. Parliament was not in session, Lords and Commons being away in
the country keeping the Christmas holidays. Even if it had been, the
time for applying to it had passed, as a notice of any private bill to
be introduced must be given before the thirtieth of November, which was
gone a month ago. To wait for an act of Parliament, therefore, would
inevitably postpone the laying of the cable for another year. So
disheartening was the prospect at the close of 1865.
But they had seen dark days before, and were not to give it up without
a new effort. Happily, the cause had strong friends to stand by it even
in this crisis of suspended animation.
One of these to whom Mr. Field now went for counsel, was Mr. (afterward
Sir) Daniel Gooch, M.P., a gentleman well known in London, as one of the
class of engineers formed in the school of Stephenson and Brunel, who
had risen to the position of great capitalists, and who, by their
enterprise and wealth, had done so much to develop the resources of
England. He was Chairman of the Great Western Railway, and had more
faith in enterprises on the land than on the sea. It was a long time
before he could believe in the possibility of an Atlantic Telegraph.
Though a man of large fortune, and a personal friend of Mr. Field, the
latter had never prevailed on him to subscribe a single pound. But he
went out on the expedition of '65, as chairman of the company that owned
the Great Eastern; and what he then saw convinced him. He came back
fully satisfied; he knew it could be done, and was ready to prove his
faith by his works. Consulting on the present difficulty, he suggested
that the only relief was to organize a new Company, which should assume
the work, and which could issue its own shares and raise its own
capital. This opinion was confirmed by the eminent legal authority of
Mr. John Horatio Lloyd. To such a Company Mr. Gooch said he would
subscribe £20,000; Mr. Field put down £10,000.
Next, he betook himself to that prince of English capitalists, Mr.
Thomas Brassey, who heard from his lips for the first time, that the
affairs of the Atlantic Telegraph Company had suddenly come to a
standstill. At this he was much surprised, but instantly cheered his
informer by saying: "Don't be discouraged; go down to the Company, and
tell them to go ahead, and whatever the cost, I will bear one tenth of
the whole." Who _could_ be discouraged with such a Richard the
Lion-hearted to cheer him on?
Meetings were called of the Directors of both the Atlantic Company and
the Telegraph Construction and Maintenance Company; and frequent
conferences were held between them. The result was the formation of a
new company called the Anglo-American Telegraph Company, with a capital
of £600,000, which contracted with the Atlantic Company to manufacture
and lay down a cable in the summer of 1866, for doing which it was to be
entitled to what virtually amounted to a preference dividend of
twenty-five per cent: as a first claim was secured to them by the latter
company upon the revenue of the cable or cables (after the working
expenses had been provided for) to the extent of £125,000 per annum; and
the New-York, Newfoundland, and London Telegraph Company undertook to
contribute from its revenue a further annual sum of £25,000, on
condition that a cable should be at work during 1866; an agreement to
this effect having been signed by Mr. Field, subject to ratification by
the Company in New York, which was obtained as soon as the steamer could
cross the ocean and bring back the reply.
The terms being settled, it remained only to raise the capital. The
Telegraph Construction and Maintenance Company led off with a
subscription of £100,000. This was followed by the names of ten
gentlemen, who put down £10,000 apiece. Of these Mr. Gooch declared his
willingness to increase his subscription of £10,000 to £20,000, while
Mr. Brassey would put down £60,000, if it were needed. Mr. Henry Bewley,
of Dublin also, who was already a large owner of the Atlantic stock,
declared his readiness to add £20,000 more. But this was not necessary:
and so they all stood at £10,000. The names of these ten subscribers
deserve to be given, as showing who stood forward to save the cause in
this crisis of its fate. They were: Henry Ford Barclay, Henry Bewley,
Thomas Brassey, A. H. Campbell, M.P., George Elliot, Cyrus W. Field,
Richard Atwood Glass, Daniel Gooch, M.P., John Pender, M.P., and John
Smith. There were four subscriptions of £5,000: by Thomas Bolton and
Sons, James Horsfall, A Friend of Mr. Daniel Gooch, M.P., and John and
Edwin Wright; one of £2,500 by John Wilkes and Sons; three of £2,000 by
C. M. Lampson, J. Morison, and Ebenezer Pike; and two of £1,000 by
Edward Cropper, and Joseph Robinson,--making in all £230,500.
These were all private subscriptions made before even the prospectus was
issued, or the books opened to the public. After such a manifestation of
confidence, the whole capital was secured within fourteen days. This was
a great triumph, especially at a time of general depression in
commercial affairs in England.
And now once more the work began. No time was to be lost. It was already
the first of March, and but four months remained to manufacture sixteen
hundred and sixty nautical miles of cable, and to prepare for sea. But
the obstacles once cleared away, all sprang to their work with new hope
and vigor.
In the cable to be made for the new line, there was but little change
from that of the last year, which had proved nearly perfect. Experience,
however, was constantly suggesting some improvement; and while the
general form and size were retained, a slight change in the outer
covering was found to make the cable both lighter and stronger. The iron
wires were _galvanized_, which secured them perfectly from rust or
corrosion by salt water. Thus protected, they could dispense with the
preservative mixture of the former year. This left the cable much
cleaner and whiter. Instead of its black coat, it had the fresh, bright
appearance of new rope. It had another advantage. As the tarry coating
was sticky, slight fragments of wire might adhere to it, and do injury,
a danger to which the new cable was not exposed. At the same time,
galvanizing the wires gave them greater ductility, so that in the case
of a heavy strain the cable would stretch longer without breaking. By
this alteration it was rendered more than four hundred-weight lighter
per mile, and would bear a strain of nearly half a ton more than the one
laid the year before.
The machinery also was perfected in every part, to withstand the great
strain which might be brought upon it in grappling and lifting the cable
from the great depths of the Atlantic. This necessitated almost a
reconstruction of the machinery, together with engines of greater power,
applied both to the gear for hauling in forward and that for paying out
aft. Thus, in case of a fault, the motion of the ship could be easily
reversed, and the cable hauled back by the paying-out machinery, without
waiting for the long and tedious process of bringing the cable round
from the stern to the bow of the ship.
But the most marvellous improvement had been in the method of testing
the cable for the discovery of faults. In the last expedition, a grave
omission had been in the long intervals during which the cable was left
without a test of its insulation. Thus, from thirty to thirty-five
minutes in each hour it was occupied with tests of minor importance,
which would not indicate the existence of a fault, so that, if a fault
occurred on ship-board, it might pass over the stern, and be miles away
before it was discovered. But now a new and ingenious method was devised
by Mr. Willoughby Smith, by which the cable will be tested _every
instant_. The current will not cease to flow any more than the blood
ceases to flow in human veins. The cord is vital in every part, and if
touched at any point it reveals the wound as instinctively as the nerves
of a living man flash to the brain a wound in any part of the human
frame.
The process of detecting faults is too scientific to be detailed in
these pages. We can only stand in silent wonder at the result, when we
hear it stated by Mr. Varley, that the system of testing is brought to
such a degree of perfection, that skilful electricians can point out
minute faults with an unerring accuracy "even when they are so small
that they would not weaken the signals through the Atlantic cable one
millionth part!"
Another marvellous result of science was the exact report obtained of
the state of that portion of the cable now lying in the sea. The
electricians at Valentia were daily experimenting on the line which lay
stretched twelve hundred and thirteen miles on the bottom of the deep,
and pronounced it intact. Not a fault could be found from one end to the
other. As when a master of the organ runs his hands over the keys, and
tells in an instant if it be in perfect tune, so did these skilful
manipulators, fingering at the end of this mightier instrument, declare
it to be in perfect tone, ready to whisper its harmonies through the
seas. At the same time, the ten hundred and seventy miles of cable left
on board the Great Eastern were pronounced as faultless as the day they
had been shipped on board.
With such conclusions of science to animate and inspire them, the great
task of manufacturing nearly seventeen hundred miles of cable once more
began. And while this work went on, the Great Eastern, that had done her
part so well before, again opened her sides, and the mysterious cord was
drawn into her vast, dark, silent womb, from which it was to issue only
into the darker and more silent bosom of the deep.
CHAPTER XVI.
VICTORY AT LAST.
In these pages we have led our readers through twelve long years, and
have had to tell many a tale of disaster and defeat. It is now our
privilege to tell of triumphant success. Victory has come at last, but
not by the chance of fortune, but by the utmost efforts of man, by the
union of science and skill with indomitable perseverance. The failure of
the last year was a sad disappointment; but so far from damping the
courage of those embarked in the enterprise, it only roused them to a
more gigantic effort. They were now to prepare for a fifth expedition.
In this they set themselves to anticipate every possible emergency, and
to combine the elements of success so as to render failure impossible.
The Great Eastern herself, which they had come to regard with a kind of
fondness, a feeling of affection and pride, as the ark that was to bear
their fortunes across the deep, was made ready for her crowning
achievement. For months Captain Anderson and Mr. Halpin, his chief
officer, worked day and night to get her into perfect trim. She had
become sadly fouled in her many voyages. As she swam the seas, a
thousand things clung to her as to a floating island, till her hull was
encrusted with mussels and barnacles two feet thick, and long seaweed
flaunted from her sides. Like a brave old war-horse, long neglected, she
needed a thorough grooming, to have her hair combed and her limbs well
rubbed down, to fit her to take the field. But it was not an easy matter
to get under the huge creature, to give her such a dressing. Yet Captain
Anderson was equal to the emergency. He contrived a simple instrument by
which every part of her bottom was raked and scrubbed. Getting rid of
this rough, shapeless mass would make her feel easy and comfortable at
sea, and add at least a knot an hour to her speed.
The boilers too were thoroughly cleansed and repaired in every part, and
the paddle-engines were so arranged that in five minutes they could be
disconnected, so that by going ahead with one and backing with the
other, the ship could be held perfectly at rest or be turned around in
her own length, a very important matter when they should come to fish in
deep waters for the broken end of the cable. To prepare for this, she
was armed with chains and ropes and irons of the most formidable kind.
For grappling the cable, she took on board twenty miles of rope, which
would bear a strain of thirty tons, probably the largest fishing-line
used since the days of Noah!
The cable was manufactured at the rate of twenty miles a day, and as
fast as delivered and found perfect, was coiled on board. And now the
electricians tried their skill to outdo all that they had done before.
As Captain Anderson observed, it seemed as if never had so much brain
power been concentrated on the problem of success. The cable itself
furnished the grandest subject of experiment. As every week added more
than a hundred miles to its length, there was constant opportunity to
try the electric current on longer distances and with new conditions.
The results obtained showed the rapid and marvellous progress of
electrical science. Said The Times:
"The science of making, testing, and laying cables has so much
improved that an undetected fault in an insulated wire has now
become literally impossible, while so much are the instruments
for signalling improved, that not only can a slight fault be
disregarded if necessary, but it is even easy _to work through
a submarine wire with a foot of its copper conductor stripped
and bare to the water_. This latter result, astonishing as it
may appear, has actually been achieved for some days past with
the whole Atlantic cable on board the Great Eastern. Out of a
length of more than one thousand seven hundred miles, a coil
has been taken from the centre, the copper conductor stripped
clean of its insulation for a foot in length, and in this
condition lowered over the vessel's side till it rested on the
ground. Yet through this the clearest signals have been
sent--so clear, indeed, as at one time to raise the question
whether it would not be worth while to grapple for the first
old Atlantic cable ever laid, and with these new instruments
working gently through it for a year or so, at least make it
pay cost."
As other things were on the same gigantic scale, by the time the big
ship had her cargo and stores on board, she was well laden. Of the cable
alone there were two thousand four hundred miles, coiled in three
immense tanks as the year before. Of this seven hundred and forty-eight
miles were a part of the cable of the last expedition. The tanks alone,
with the water in them, weighed over a thousand tons; and the cable
which they held, four thousand tons more; besides which she had to carry
eight thousand five hundred tons of coal and five hundred tons of
telegraph stores, making fourteen thousand tons, besides engines,
rigging, etc., which made nearly as much more. So enormous was the
burden, that it was thought prudent not to take on board all her coal
before she left the Medway, especially as the channel was winding and
shallow. It was therefore arranged that about a third of her coal should
be taken in at Berehaven, on the south-west coast of Ireland. With this
exception, her lading was complete.
The time for departure had been fixed for the last day of June, and so
admirable had been the arrangements, and such the diligence of all
concerned, that exactly at the hour of noon, she loosened from her
moorings, and began to move. It was well that she had not on board her
whole cargo; for as it was, she drew nearly thirty-two feet. Never had
any keel pressed so deep in those waters. It required skilful handling
to get her safely to the sea. Gently and softly she floated down, over
bars where she almost grazed the sand, where but a few inches lifted her
enormous hull above the river's bed. But at length the rising tide bears
her safely over, and she is afloat in the deeper waters of the Channel.
At first the sea did not give her a very gracious welcome. The wind was
dead ahead, and the waves dashed furiously against her; but she kept
steadily on, tossing their spray on high, as if they had struck against
the rocks of Eddystone lighthouse. In four or five days she had passed
down the Irish coast, and was quietly anchored in the harbor at
Berehaven, where she was soon joined by the other vessels of the
squadron.
The Telegraph fleet was not the same as that of the last year. The
Government could spare but a single ship; but the Terrible, which had
accompanied the Great Eastern on the former expedition, was still there
to represent the majesty of England. The William Corry, a vessel of two
thousand tons, bore the ponderous shore end, which was to be laid out
thirty miles from the Irish coast, while the Albany and the Medway were
ships chartered by the Company. The latter carried several hundred miles
of the last year's cable, besides one of heavier proportions, ninety
miles long, to be stretched across the mouth of the Gulf of St.
Lawrence.
[Illustration: SHORE END--EXACT SIZE.]
While the Great Eastern remained at Berehaven, to take in her final
stores of coal, the William Corry proceeded around the coast to Valentia
to lay the shore end. She arrived off the harbor on the morning of
Saturday, the seventh of July, and immediately began to prepare for her
heavy task. This shore end was of tremendous size, weighing twenty tons
to the mile. It was by far the strongest wire cable ever made, and in
short lengths was stiff as an iron bar. As the year before, the cable
was to be brought off on a bridge of boats reaching from the ship to the
foot of the cliff. All the fishermen's boats were gathered from along
the shore, while H. M. S. Raccoon, which was guarding that part of the
coast, sent up her boats to help, so that, as they all mustered in line,
there were forty of them, making a long pontoon-bridge; and Irish
boatmen with eager looks and strong hands were standing along the line,
to grasp the ponderous chain. All went well, and by one o'clock the
cable was landed, and its end brought up the cliff to the station. The
signals were found to be perfect, and the William Corry then slowly drew
off to sea, unlimbering her stiff shore end, till she had cast over the
whole thirty miles. At three o'clock next morning she telegraphed
through the cable that her work was done, and she had buoyed the end in
water a hundred fathoms deep. Describing the scene, the correspondent of
the London News says:
"In its leading features it presented a striking difference to
the ceremony of last year. Earnest gravity and a deep-seated
determination to repress all show of the enthusiasm of which
everybody was full, was very manifest. The excitement was
below, instead of above, the surface. Speech-making, hurrahing,
public congratulations, and vaunts of confidence were, as it
seemed, avoided as if on purpose. There was something far more
touching in the quiet and reverent solemnity of the spectators
yesterday than in the slightly boisterous joviality of the
peasantry last year. Nothing could prevent the scene being
intensely dramatic, but the prevailing tone of the drama was
serious instead of comic and triumphant. The old crones in
tattered garments who cowered together, dudheen in mouth,
their gaudy colored shawls tightly drawn over head and under
the chin--the barefooted boys and girls, who by long practice
walked over sharp and jagged rocks, which cut up boots and
shoes, with perfect impunity--the men at work uncovering the
trench, and winding in single file up and down the hazardous
path cut by the cablemen in the otherwise inaccessible
rock--the patches of bright color furnished by the red
petticoats and cloaks--the ragged garments, only kept from
falling to pieces by bits of string and tape--the good old
parish priest, who exercises mild and gentle spiritual sway
over the loving subjects of whom the ever-popular Knight of
Kerry is the temporal head, looking on benignly from his
car--the bright eyes, supple figures, and innocent faces of the
peasant lasses, and the earnestly hopeful expression of
all--made up a picture impossible to describe with justice. Add
to this, the startling abruptness with which the tremendous
cliffs stand flush out of the water, the alternations of bright
wild flowers and patches of verdure with the most desolate
barrenness, the mountain sheep indifferently cropping the
short, sweet grass, and the undercurrent of consciousness of
the mighty interests at stake, and few scenes will seem more
important and interesting than that of yesterday."
As the ships are now ready for sea, and all who are to embark have come
on board, we may look about us at the personnel of the expedition. Who
are here? We recognize many old familiar faces, that we have seen in
former campaigns--gallant men who have had many a sea-fight in this
peaceful war. First, the eye seeks the tall form of Captain Anderson.
There he is, modest and grave, of few words, but seeing every thing,
watching every thing, and ruling every thing with a quiet power. And
there is his second officer, Mr. Halpin, who keeps a sharp lookout after
the crew, to see that every man does his duty. While he thus keeps watch
of all on board, Staff Commander Moriarty, R. N., comes on deck, with
instruments in hand, to look after the heavenly bodies, and reckon the
ship's latitude and longitude. This is an old veteran in the service,
who has been in all the expeditions, and it would be quite "improper,"
even if it were possible, for a cable to be laid across the Atlantic
without his presence and aid. And here comes Mr. Canning, the engineer,
whose deep-sea soundings, the last year, were on a scale of such
magnitude, and who, if he cannot well dive deeper, means to pull
stronger the next time. That slight form yonder is Professor Thomson, of
Glasgow, a man who in his knowledge of the subtle element to be brought
into play, and the enthusiasm he brings to its study, is the very genius
of electrical science; and this is Mr. Varley, who seems to have the
lightning in his fingers, and to whom the world owes some marvellous
discoveries of the laws of electricity. Mr. Willoughby Smith, a worthy
associate in these studies and discoveries, goes out on the ship as
electrician.
And here is Mr. Glass, the managing director of the Telegraph
Construction and Maintenance Company, which has undertaken by contract
to manufacture this cable and lay it safely across the ocean; and Mr.
Gooch, chairman of the company that owns the Great Eastern--two
gentlemen to whom the Atlantic Telegraph is under the greatest
obligation, since it was they who, six months before, when the project
seemed in danger of being given up or postponed for years, took Mr.
Field by the hand, and cheered him on to a last effort. Blessings on
their hearts of oak! Mr. Gooch accompanies the ship, while Mr. Glass,
keeping Mr. Varley at his side as electrician, remains on shore, to
receive reports of the daily progress of the expedition, and to issue
his orders. What a post of observation was that telegraph house on the
cliffs of Valentia! It commanded a far broader horizon than the top of
Fiesolé, from which Galileo looked down on the valley of the Arno, and
up at the stars. Was there ever a naval commander favored with a power
of vision that could sweep the boundless sea? What would Nelson have
said, if he had had a spy-glass with which he could watch ships in
action two thousand miles away, and issue his orders to a fleet on the
other side of the ocean? With such a long range, he might almost have
fought the Battle of the Nile from his home in England.
Standing on such a spot, and surrounded by such men, representing the
capital, the science, and the skill of England, with all those gallant
ships in sight, one's heart might well beat high. But there were other
reflections that saddened the hour, and caused some at least to look
once more on the rocks of Valentia with deep emotion. Some of their old
companions-in-arms had fallen out of the ranks, while the battle was not
yet won. Brett, Mr. Field's first friend in England, was in his grave.
Beyond the Atlantic, Captains Hudson and Berryman slept the sleep that
knows no waking. They were not forgotten by their survivors, who mourned
that those who had toiled with them in former days, were not here to
share their triumph.
The feeling, therefore, of many on this occasion, was not one elate with
pride and hope, but subdued by serious thoughts and tender memories. In
harmony with this feeling, and with the great work which they were about
to undertake, it was proposed that before the expedition sailed they
should hold a solemn religious service.
Was there ever a fitter place or a fitter hour for prayer than here, in
the presence of the great sea to which they were about to commit their
lives and their precious trust? The first expedition ever sent forth had
been consecrated by prayer. On that very spot, nine years before, all
heads were uncovered and all forms bent low, at the solemn words of
supplication; and there had the Earl of Carlisle--since gone to his
honored grave--cheered them on with high religious hopes, describing
the ships which were sent forth on such a mission, as "beautiful upon
the waters as were the feet upon the mountains of them that publish the
gospel of peace."
In such a spirit two of the directors--Mr. Bevan, of London, and Mr.
Bewley, of Dublin--sent invitations to a number of persons to meet at
Valentia, as the expedition was about to sail, and commend it to the
favor of Almighty God. Captain Anderson had greatly desired to be with
them at this parting service, but the ships were at Berehaven, and they
were just embarking for sea. But though the officers could not be
present, a large company came together. Said an Irish paper: "Men of
different religious denomination, and of various professions in
life--Irishmen, Englishmen, and Scotchmen--joined in such a service as
has never been held in this island." It was a scene long to be
remembered, as they bowed together before the God and Father of all.
Their brethren, who were about to go down to the sea in ships, felt
their dependence on a Higher Power. Their preparations were complete.
All that man could do was done. They had exhausted every resource of
science and skill. The issue now remained with Him who controls the
winds and waves. Therefore was it most fit that, at the very moment of
embarking, those who remained behind should, as it were, kneel upon the
cliff, and, with outstretched hands, commit them to Him who alone
spreadeth out the heavens and ruleth the raging of the sea.
In all this there is something of antique stamp, something which makes
us think of the sublime men of an earlier and better time; of the
Pilgrim Fathers kneeling on the deck of their little ship at Leyden, as
they were about to seek a refuge and a home in the forests of the New
World; and of Columbus and his companions celebrating a solemn service
before their departure from Spain. And so with labor and with prayer did
this great expedition go forth once more from the shores of Ireland,
bearing the hopes of science and of civilization--with courage and skill
looking out from the bow across the stormy waters, and a religious
faith, like that of Columbus, standing at the helm.
On Friday morning, the thirteenth of July, the fleet finally bade adieu
to the land. Was Friday an unlucky day? Some of the sailors thought so,
and would have been glad to leave a day before or after. But Columbus
sailed on Friday, and discovered the New World on Friday; and so this
expedition put to sea on Friday, and, as a good Providence would have
it, reached land on the other side of the Atlantic on the same day of
the week! As the ships disappeared below the horizon, Mr. Glass and Mr.
Varley went up on their watch-tower--not to look, but to listen for the
first voice from the sea. The ships bore away for the buoy where lay the
end of the shore line; but the weather was thick and foggy, with
frequent bursts of rain, and they could not see far on the water. For an
hour or two they went sailing round and round, like sea-gulls in search
of prey. At length the Albany caught sight of the buoy tossing on the
waves, and, firing a signal gun, bore down straight upon it. The cable
was soon hauled up from its bed, a hundred fathoms deep, and brought
over the stern of the Great Eastern; and the watchers on shore, who had
been waiting with some impatience, saw the first flash, and Varley read,
"Got the shore end--all right--going to make the splice." Then all was
still, and they knew that that delicate operation was going on. Quick,
nimble hands tore off the covering from some yards of the shore end of
the main cable, till they came to the core; then, swiftly unwinding the
copper wires, they laid them together, twining them as closely and
carefully as a silken braid. Thus stripped and bare this new-born child
of the sea was wrapped in swaddling-clothes, covered up with many
coatings of gutta-percha, and hempen rope, and strong iron wires, the
whole bound round and round with heavy bands, and the splicing was
complete. Signals were now sent through the whole cable on board the
Great Eastern and back to the telegraph-house at Valentia, and the whole
length, two thousand four hundred and forty nautical miles, was reported
perfect. And so with light hearts they bore away. It was a little after
three o'clock. As they turned to the west, the following was the "order
of battle": the Terrible went ahead, standing off on the starboard bow,
to keep other vessels out of the course; the Medway was on the port, and
the Albany on the starboard quarter, ready to pick up or let go a buoy,
or to do other work that might be required. All these ships were to keep
their allotted positions, within signalling distance of the Great
Eastern, and at any time that she was heard firing guns, they were to
close in with her to render assistance. Their course lay thirty miles to
the south of that of the last year, so that there could be no danger, in
fishing for the old cable, of disturbing the new.
Dr. Russell, the brilliant historian of the Expedition of 1865, was not
on board the Great Eastern this year. He had left England a few weeks
before for the scene of the war in Germany. His place was supplied by
Mr. John C. Deane, the Secretary of the Anglo-American Company, whose
"Diary of the Expedition" furnishes a faithful record of the incidents
of this memorable voyage. If the story be not quite so thrilling as that
of the year before, it is because it has not to tell of such fatal
accidents. It has the monotony of success. A few pages from this diary,
giving its most important portions, will render this narrative complete.
The voyage began with good weather and every omen of success. Friday,
indeed, was a day of fog and rain. At the very time they were making
the splice with the shore end, the rain was pouring on the deck. But in
a few hours it cleared off, and Saturday and Sunday, Mr. Field writes in
his journal, "Weather fine;" and Monday, "Calm, beautiful day. Signals
perfect." Owing to the improved system adopted by the chief electrician,
communication with the shore was kept up even while the tests for
insulation were going on.[A]
Every possible precaution was taken to guard against such accidents as
had marred the success of the year before. Remembering how small a thing
had sufficed to puncture the cable, the men in the tank were not allowed
to wear boots or shoes with nails in their heels, but were cased from
head to foot in canvas dresses, drawn over their ordinary sailor
costume, and, with slippers on their feet, they glided about softly as
ghosts. But we turn to Mr. Deane's diary for a record of the progress
from day to day:
"Sunday, July 15.--All through yesterday the paying-out
machinery worked so smoothly--the electrical tests were so
perfect--the weather was so fine, that fresh confidence in the
ultimate result has been naturally inspired. The recollection,
however, of the reverses of the expedition of 1865 is always
before those who have the greatest reliance on success; and
there is a quiet repose about the manner of the chief practical
men on board, which is an earnest that they will not allow
themselves to be carried away by the smoothness of twenty-four
hours' events. The convoy kept their position accurately during
the day. The Terrible signalled that a man had fallen
overboard. Her cutter was speedily lowered. The sailor had,
however, laid hold of a rope thrown to him from the frigate,
before the boat reached him.
"Monday.--Still everything going on well. The sea like a
mill-pond. The paying out of the cable from the after tank
progressing with uniformity and steadiness, and the electrical
tests perfect.
"Our track is about thirty miles to the south of that of last
year, and at that distance we passed parallel to where the
telegraph cable parted in August, 1857. Our average speed has
been about five knots. We were obliged to stop the screw
engines in order to bring down to that speed, and, moreover, to
reduce the paddle boiler power. Captain Anderson's ingenious
mode of cleaning the ship's bottom, which he carried out last
winter at Sheerness, has proved to have effected this very
desirable object. Mr. Beckwith, the engineer, is now enabled to
regulate and adjust her speed, and get more out of the ship
than he could last year, when her bottom was one incrusted mass
of mussels.
"Tuesday.--Another twenty-four hours of uninterrupted success.
All day yesterday it was so calm that the masts of our convoy
were reflected in the ocean, an unusual thing to see. A large
shoal of porpoises gambolled about us for half an hour. A
glorious sunset, and later, a crescent moon, which we hope to
see in the brightness of her full, lighting our way into
Trinity Bay before the days of this July shall have ended."
But the whole night did not pass away so tranquilly. By midnight the
rain fell fast, and the wind blew fiercely, and then occurred the only
real alarm of the voyage. The scene is thus described by Mr. Deane:
"All went on well until twenty minutes past twelve A.M.,
Greenwich time, when the first real shock was given to the
success which has hitherto attended us, and this time we had
real cause to be alarmed. A foul flake took place in the after
tank. The engines were immediately turned astern, and the
paying out of the cable stopped. We were all soon on deck, and
learned that the running or paying-out part of the coil had
caught three turns of the flake immediately under it, carried
them into the eye of the coil, fouling the lay out, and hauling
up one and a half turns from the outside, and five turns in the
eye of the under flake. This was stopped, fortunately, before
entering the paying out machinery. Stoppers of hemp also were
put on near the V-wheel astern, and Mr. Canning gave orders to
stand by to let go the buoy. This was not very cheering to
hear, but his calm and collected manner gave us all confidence
that his skill and experience would extricate the cable from
the obvious danger in which it was placed. No fishing line was
ever entangled worse than the rope was when thrust up in
apparently hopeless knots from the eye of the coil to the deck.
There at least five hundred feet of rope lay in this state, in
the midst of thick rain and increasing wind. The cable crew set
to work under their chief engineer's instructions to
disentangle it. Mr. Halpin was there too, patiently following
the bights as they showed themselves; the crew now passing them
forward, now aft, until at last the character of the tangle was
seen, and soon it became apparent that ere long the cable would
be cleared. All this time Captain Anderson was at the taffrail
anxiously watching the strain on the rope, which he could
scarcely make out, the night was so dark, and endeavoring to
keep it up and down, going on and reversing with paddle and
screw. When one reflects for a moment upon the size of the
ship, and the enormous mass she presents to the wind, the
difficulty of keeping her stern, under the circumstances, over
the cable, can be appreciated. The port paddle-wheel was
disconnected; but shortly afterward there was a shift of wind,
and the vessel canted the wrong way. Welcome voices were now
heard passing the word aft from the tank that the bights were
cleared, and to pay out. Then the huge stoppers were gently
loosened, and at five minutes past two A.M., to the joy of all,
we were once more discharging the cable. They veered it away in
the tank to clear away the foul flake until three A.M., when
the screw and paddle engines were slowed so as to reduce the
speed of the ship to four and a half knots. During all this
critical time there was an entire absence of noise and
confusion. Every order was silently obeyed, and the cable men
and crew worked with hearty good-will. Mr. Canning has had
experience of foul flakes before, and showed that he knew what
to do in the emergency. But what of the electrical condition of
the cable during this period? Simply, that through its entire
length it was perfect."
Thus, after three anxious hours, the danger was past, and the next
morning the report of the ship is, "A fresh breeze from the southward, a
dull gray sky, with occasional rain, and a moderate sea."
"Thursday.--There was a fresh breeze in the afternoon
yesterday, increasing toward evening. It brought a heavy swell
on the port quarter, which caused the ship to roll. The paying
out from the after tank went on steadily. Two of the large
buoys were lifted by derrick from the deck near the bows of the
ship, and placed in position on the port and starboard side of
the forward pick-up machinery, ready for letting go if
necessary. The sun went down with an angry look, and the scud
came rapidly from the eastward, the sea rising. A wind dead aft
is not the best for cable laying, particularly if any accident
should take place. By half-past eleven to-night we shall have
exhausted the contents of the after tank, and the cable will
then be paid out from the fore tank along the trough to the
stern, the distance from the centre of the tank to the
paying-out machinery being four hundred and ninety-four feet.
Last night the swell was very heavy, to which the Great Eastern
proved herself not insensible. Her rolling, like everything
else appertaining to her, is done on a grand scale. We see the
liveliness with which that operation is performed on board the
Albany and Medway, and we are not at all disposed to be too
critical in our observations on our own movements. The speed of
the ship was kept at four and a half during the night--the
slower the better, is the opinion of all on board--_festina
lente_. We are consuming about one hundred tons a day of the
seven thousand tons of coal which we had on board when we left
Berehaven, and Mr. Beckwith, who has been engineer of the Great
Eastern from her first voyage to the present moment, says her
engines were never in better order; and their appearance and
working do him and his able staff of assistant engineers the
greatest credit.
"Friday.--Yesterday was a day of complete success, the paying
out in every respect satisfactory. The wind still from the
eastward, but inclined to draw to the northward, the sea
entirely gone down. As Mr. Canning told us we should see the
after tank emptied at eleven o'clock, ship's time, we were all
collected there about ten o'clock, by which time the cable was
down to the last flake. Next to having daylight for changing
from the after to the fore tank, we could not have had a more
favorable time--clear starlight, no wind, and a smooth sea.
Looking down into the tank, the scene was highly picturesque.
The cable-watch, whose figures were lighted up by the lamps
suspended from above, slowly and cautiously lifted the turns of
the coil to ease their path to the eye. As each found its way
to the drum, the wooden floor of the tank showed itself, and
then we saw more floor, and as its area increased the cable
swept along its surface with a low, subdued noise, until, with
a graceful curve, it mounted to the outlet, where it was soon
to join a fresh supply; and now we hear the word passed that
they have arrived at the last turn, and the men who stood on
the stages of the platform of the eye with the bight, watch the
arrival of the cable and pass it up with tender caution, until
it reaches the summit; then it rushes down a wooden incline to
meet the spliced rope, which had by this time come down along
the trough leading from the forward tank. This operation was
conducted with great skill by Mr. Canning and his experienced
assistants, Messrs. Clifford and Temple. At eleven minutes past
one A.M. (Greenwich time), the fresh rope was going over the
stern, and the screw engines going ahead at thirteen minutes
past one. A watch of four men is now stationed, fore and aft,
all along the trough, which is illuminated by many lamps at
short distances from each other. A lamp with a green light
indicates the mile-mark as it comes up from the tank, and this
signal is repeated until it reaches the stern, where it is
recorded by the clerk who keeps the cable-log, in an office
adjoining the paying-out machinery. A red lamp indicates
danger. During the daytime red and blue flags are used. All
through the night the sea was smooth as glass, and by this
morning we saw that a sensible impression had been made on the
contents of the fore tank. The ship begins to lighten at the
bows, and by this time to-morrow will come up more as the
cable passes out of the tank.
"Saturday.--Yesterday was our seventh day of paying out cable,
and so far we have been more fortunate than the expedition of
last year. During the same period of 1865, two faults had
occurred--one on the twenty-fourth July, the other on the
twenty-ninth--causing a detention of fifty-six hours. At three
P.M. we were half-way, and passed where the Atlantic Cable of
1858 parted twice, on the twenty-sixth and twenty-eighth of
June--sad memories to many! We feel, however, that every hour
is increasing our chance of effecting this great work. 'I
believe we shall do it this time, Jack,' I heard one of our
crew say to another last night. 'I believe so too, Bill,' was
the reply; 'and if we don't, we deserve to do it, and that's
all.' It blew very hard from two o'clock yesterday, up to 10
P.M., by which time the wind gradually found its way from
south-west to north-west, which is right ahead, just what we
want for cable-laying. The Terrible and the two other ships
plunged into the very heavy sea which the southwester raised,
and we made up our minds, from what we saw, that the Great
Eastern is the right ship to be in, in a gale of wind. During
the night heavy showers of rain. This morning the sea was
comparatively smooth, and the sky showed welcome patches of
bright blue. If all goes well, we shall be up to-morrow evening
at the place where last year's cable parted. A couple of days
would bring us to shallower water, and then we may fairly look
out for our 'Heart's Content.' Messages come from England, with
the news, regularly and speedily--excellent practice for the
clerks on shore and on board ship--great comfort to us, and the
best evidence to those who will read this journal, of the great
fact that, up to this time, the cable is doing its electric
work efficiently."
The interest of the voyage was greatly increased by the news daily
received from Europe. Though in the middle of the Atlantic, they were
still joined with the Old World, and messages came to the "Great Eastern
Telegraph" as regularly as to the Times in London; reporting the
quotations of the Stock Exchange, the debates in Parliament, and all the
news of home. But what was far more exciting, was the tidings of the
great events transpiring on the Continent. While the expedition had been
preparing in England, a war had broken out of tremendous magnitude.
Austria, Prussia, and Italy had rushed into the field. Armies, such as
had not met since the fatal day of Leipsic, stood in battle array, and
the thunder of war was echoing and reëchoing among the mountains of
Bohemia. Amid these convulsions the fleet set sail; but it was still
linked with the nations which it left behind, and received tidings from
day to day. What great events were thus heralded to them in mid-ocean
may be seen by a few items gleaned from the numerous despatches:
"Saturday evening, July 14th.--General Cialdini is moving upon
Rovigo with an army of one hundred thousand men and two hundred
guns. The Austrians have evacuated the whole country between
the Mincio and Adige."
A day or two later:
"Cialdini has occupied Padua, twenty-three miles from Venice,
on the railway connecting that city with the Quadrilateral, and
the Austrians are shut up in Venice."
"Tuesday, 17th.--Prussians had successful engagement before
Olmütz yesterday; captured six guns. Further fighting expected
to-day. Austrians withdrawing from Moldavia toward
Vienna."----"Conflict between Prussians and Federals. Prussians
completely victorious. Federals evacuating Frankfort, and
Prussians marching there."
"Thursday, 19th.--Prussians repeating victories, and gaining
adhesions from small States. The main army within fifty miles
of Vienna--have cut the railway to Vienna. Austrian army
between Prussians and Vienna, under Archduke, one hundred and
sixty thousand men. Money and archives removed from Vienna to
Comorn."
"20th.--Frankfort occupied by the Prussians, who are marching
on Vienna. Yesterday, Italian fleet, consisting of iron-clad
vessels and several steamers, opened attack on Island of Lissa
on the coast of Dalmatia--result not known."
The next day it is reported thus:
"Severe naval engagement off Lissa. Austrians claim the
victory. Sunk one Italian iron-clad, run down another, blew up
a third."
"July 21st.--Prussians crossed river; march near Holitzon,
Hungary. Austria accepted proposal of armistice. Prussia will
abstain from hostilities for five days, during which Austria
will have to notify acceptance of preliminaries. A long letter
published from the King of Prussia to the Queen, giving account
of battle of Königgrätz."
The interest excited by such news may be imagined, coming while the
events were yet fresh. Twice a day was the bulletin set up on the deck,
and was surrounded by an eager crowd reading what had transpired on the
Continent but a few hours before. Nor was the intelligence confined to
the Great Eastern. By an arrangement of signals, more complete than ever
was used in a squadron before, the news was telegraphed to the convoy.
All the ships had been furnished with experienced signal-men by the
Admiralty. The system adopted was that known as Colomb's Flash Signals,
by which, even in the darkest night, messages could easily be flashed to
a distance of several miles. Thus all the ships were supplied with news
twice a day, and the great military events in Europe were discussed in
every cabin as eagerly as in the clubs of London. Again Deane's Diary
reports:
"Sunday, July 22d.--Still success to record. A bright clear
day, with a fresh and invigorating breeze from the north-west.
Cable going out with unerring smoothness, at the rate of six
miles an hour. There has been great improvement in the
insulation. This remarkable improvement is attributable to the
greatly decreased temperature of, and pressure on, the cable in
the sea. This is a very satisfactory result to Mr. Willoughby
Smith. Signals, too, come every hour more distinctly. This
morning the breeze freshened. We are now about thirty miles to
the southward of the place where the cable parted on the second
of August, 1865, having then paid out one thousand two hundred
and thirteen miles. Captain Anderson read divine service in the
dining saloon.
"Monday.--Between six and seven P.M. yesterday, we passed over
the deepest part of our course. There was no additional strain
on the dynamometer, which indicated from ten to fourteen
hundred, the cable going out with its accustomed regularity.
The wind still fresh from the north-west. During the night it
went round to the southwest, and this morning there is a long
roll from the southward.
"At forty-six minutes past eleven A.M., Mr. Cyrus Field sent a
message to Valentia, requesting Mr. Glass to obtain the latest
news from Egypt, India, and China, and other distant countries,
so that on our arrival at Heart's Content we shall be able to
transmit it to the principal cities of the United States. In
just eight minutes he had a reply in these words: 'Your message
received, and is in London by this.' Outside the telegraph room
there is a placard put up, on which is posted the news shortly
after its arrival, and groups of the crew may be seen reading
it, just as we see a crowd at a newspaper office in London. Mr.
Dudley, the artist, has made a very spirited sketch of 'Jack'
reading the morning news, for he is supplied with the latest
intelligence from the seat of war twice a day![B] How he will
grumble when he gets ashore! He is not going to pay a pound a
word for news, but his newspapers will supply it to him, and he
does not know or care what it costs. But what a sum has been
spent in Atlantic telegraphs! It cannot now fall short of two
millions and a half of pounds, or over twelve millions of
dollars. More millions will be found if it shall be practically
proved that America can permanently talk to England, and
through her to the eastern hemisphere, and England to America
by this ocean wire. At a quarter to twelve to-day but two
hundred and fifteen miles of cable remained to be paid out of
the fore tank. To-morrow night we hope to see it empty--then,
for a small supply from the main tank, and then----but, hopeful
though we are, let us not anticipate.
"Tuesday.--Breakfast at eight. Lunch at one. Dinner at six. Tea
at eight. Five hundred and two souls who live on board this
huge ship following their prescribed occupations. Cable going
out merrily. Electrical tests and signals perfect, and this is
the history of what has taken place from noon yesterday to noon
to-day. May we have three days more of such delightful
monotony! It rained very hard during yesterday evening, and as
we approach the Banks of Newfoundland we get thick and hazy
weather."
The latter part of the voyage did not fulfil in all respects the promise
of the first. The bright skies were gone; and instead perpetual fog hung
over the water, while often the clouds poured down their floods. Thus
the diary continues:
"Wednesday.--Fog and thick rain--just the weather to expect on
approaching the Banks of Newfoundland. The convoy keep their
position, and though sometimes the fog hides the ships from our
view, yet we know where they are by their signal-whistles--two
from the Terrible, three from the Medway, and four from the
Albany, which are replied to by the prolonged single shriek
from our whistle. At fifty-two minutes past one, Greenwich time
(ship's time, forty-five minutes past ten P.M., last night),
the fore tank being nearly empty, preparations were made for
passing the bight of the cable into the main tank. At fifteen
minutes past two all the jockey-wheels of the paying-out
machinery were up, and the brakes released. Twenty-three
minutes past two the bight was passed steadily and cautiously
by the cable hands outside of the trough to the main tank, and
at thirty-five minutes past two the splice went over the stern
in 1542.8 fathoms. By arrangement with Sir James Hope, the
admiral of the North-American station, who has received
instructions from the Admiralty to give the present expedition
every assistance in his power, a frigate or sloop will be
placed in longitude 48°, 25', 52", which is just thirty miles
from the entrance of Trinity Bay, and sixty from Heart's
Content. She will probably hang on by a kedge in that position,
which shows the 'fair way' right up the bay; and if it be
clear, we ought to see her about daybreak on Friday morning.
The fog was very thick this morning, but occasionally lifts; as
long as the wind is from south-west we cannot expect clear
weather."
As the week drew on, it was evident that they were approaching the end
of their voyage. By Thursday they had passed the great depths of the
Atlantic, and were off soundings. Besides their daily observations,
there were many signs, well known to mariners, that they were near the
coast. There were the sea-birds, and they could almost snuff the smell
of the land, such as once greeted the sharp senses of Columbus, and made
him sure that he was floating to some undiscovered shore. Captain
Anderson had timed his departure so that he should approach the American
coast at the full moon; but for the last two or three nights, as the
round orb rose behind them, banks of cloud hung so heavily upon the
water, that the moonlight only gleamed faintly through the vaporous air,
and the fleet seemed like the phantom ships of the Ancient Mariner,
drifting on through fog and mist.
"Thursday.--All day yesterday it was as 'thick as mustard.' We
have had now forty-eight hours of fog. Though it lifted a
little this morning, at five A.M., it still looks like more of
it. Captain Anderson signalled to the Albany, at fifteen
minutes past ten last night, to start at daybreak, and proceed
to discover the station ship, and report us at hand. Should she
fail to find her, then to try and make the land and guide us up
Trinity Bay. Another signal was sent at half-past twelve to the
effect that the Terrible and Medway would be sent ahead to meet
the Albany and establish a line to lead us in even with a fog.
The Albany started at half-past three. At forty-five minutes
past four, Greenwich time, the cable engineer in charge took
one weight off each brake of the paying-out machinery. At forty
minutes past seven all weights taken off, the assumed depth
being three hundred fathoms. The indicated strain on the
dynamometer gradually decreasing. Speed of ship five knots. We
are going to try and pick up the cable of 1865 in two thousand
five hundred fathoms (and we mean to succeed too); therefore
should the cable we are now paying out part, it can be
understood how easy it would be to raise it from a depth of
three hundred fathoms. At fifty-five minutes past eight we
signalled to the Terrible to sound, and received a reply, one
hundred and sixty fathoms. At half-past eleven we informed her
that when at the buoy off Heart's Content she should have her
paddle-box boat and two cutters ready to be alongside
immediately, for holding the bight of the cable during the
splice and laying the shore end. The Medway was told at the
same time to prepare two five-inch ropes, and two large
mushroom anchors, with fifty fathoms of chain, for anchoring
during the splice in one hundred and seventy fathoms of water,
and we intimated to her that when inside of Trinity Bay we
should signal for two boats to take hands on board her for
shore end. News of to-day, telegram from Mr. Glass in reply to
one from Mr. Canning: I congratulate you all most sincerely on
your arrival in one hundred and thirty fathoms. I hope nothing
will interfere to mar the hitherto brilliant success, and that
the cable will be landed to-morrow.'"
As the voyage is about to end, we give the distances run from day to
day, which show a remarkable uniformity of progress:
Distance Run. Cable Paid Out.
Saturday, fourteenth, 108 115
Sunday, fifteenth, 128 139
Monday, sixteenth, 115 137
Tuesday, seventeenth, 117 138
Wednesday, eighteenth, 104 125
Thursday, nineteenth, 112 129
Friday, twentieth, 117 127
Saturday, twenty-first, 121 136
Sunday, twenty-second, 123 133
Monday, twenty-third, 121 138
Tuesday, twenty-fourth, 120 135
Wednesday, twenty-fifth, 119 130
Thursday, twenty-sixth, 128 134
Friday, twenty-seventh. 100 104
From this it appears that the speed of the ship was exactly according
to the running time fixed before she left England. On the last voyage it
was thought that she had once or twice run too fast, and thus exposed
the cable to danger. It was, therefore, decided to go slowly but surely.
Holding her back to this moderate pace, her average speed, from the time
the splice was made till they saw land, was a little less than five
nautical miles an hour, while the cable was paid out at an average of
not quite five and a half miles. Thus the total slack was about eleven
per cent, showing that the cable was laid almost in a straight line,
allowing for the swells and hollows in the bottom of the sea.
"Friday, July 27th.--Shortly after two P.M., yesterday, two
ships, which were soon made out to be steamers, were seen to
the westward; and the Terrible, steaming on ahead, in about an
hour signalled to us that H.M.S. Niger was one of them,
accompanied by the Albany. The Niger, Captain Bruce, sent a
boat to the Terrible as soon as he came up with her. The Albany
shortly afterward took up her position on our starboard
quarter, and signalled that she spoke the Niger at noon,
bearing E. by N., and that the Lily was anchored at the station
in the entrance of Trinity Bay, as arranged with the Admiral.
The Albany also reported that she had passed an iceberg about
sixty feet high. At twenty minutes after four P.M., the Niger
came on our port side, quite close, and Captain Bruce, sending
the crew to the rigging and manning the yards, gave us three
cheers, which were heartily returned by the Great Eastern. She
then steamed ahead toward Trinity Bay. The Albany was signalled
to go on immediately to Heart's Content, clear the northeast
side of the harbor of shipping, and place a boat with a red
flag for Captain Anderson to steer to, for anchorage. Just
before dinner we saw on the southern horizon, distant about ten
miles, an iceberg, probably the one which the Albany met with.
It was apparently about fifty or sixty feet in height. The fog
came on very thick about eight P.M., and between that and ten
we were constantly exchanging guns and burning blue lights with
the Terrible, which, with the Niger, went in search of the
Lily, station ship. The Terrible being signalled to come up and
take her position, informed us they had made the Lily out, and
that she bore then about E.N.E. distant four miles. Later in
the night Captain Commerill said that if Captain Anderson would
stop the Great Eastern, he would send the surveyor Mr.
Robinson, R. N., who came out in the Niger, on board of us, and
about three the engines were slowed, and the Terrible shortly
afterwards came alongside with that officer. Catalina light, at
the entrance of Trinity Bay, had been made out three hours
before this, and the loom of the coast had also been seen. Fog
still prevailing! According to Mr. Robinson's account, if they
got one clear day in seven at the entrance of Trinity Bay, they
considered themselves fortunate. Here we are now (six A.M.),
within ten miles of Heart's Content, and we can scarcely see
more than a ship's length. The Niger, however, is ahead, and
her repeated guns tell us where we are with accuracy. Good
fortune follows us, and scarcely has eight o'clock arrived when
the massive curtain of fog raises itself gradually from both
shores of Trinity Bay, disclosing to us the entrance of Heart's
Content, the Albany making for the harbor, the Margaretta
Stevenson, surveying vessel, steaming out to meet us, the
preärranged pathway all marked with buoys by Mr. J. H. Kerr, R.
N., and a whole fleet of fishing boats fishing at the entrance.
"We could now plainly see that Heart's Content, so far as its
capabilities permitted, was prepared to welcome us. The British
and American flags floated from the church and telegraph
station and other buildings. We had dressed ship, fired a
salute, and given three cheers, and Captain Commerill of H.M.S.
Terrible was soon on board to congratulate us on our success.
At nine o'clock, ship's time, just as we had cut the cable and
made arrangements for the Medway to lay the shore end, a
message arrived giving us the concluding words of a leader in
this morning's Times: 'It is a great work, a glory to our age
and nation, and the men who have achieved it deserve to be
honored among the benefactors of their race.'--'Treaty of peace
signed between Prussia and Austria!' It was now time for the
chief engineer, Mr. Canning, to make the necessary preparations
for splicing on board the Medway. Accompanied by Mr. Gooch,
M.P., Mr. Clifford, Mr. Willoughby Smith, and Messrs. Temple
and Deane, he went on board, the Terrible and Niger having sent
their paddle-box boats and cutters to assist. Shortly afterward
the Great Eastern steamed into the harbor and anchored on the
north-east side, and was quickly surrounded by boats laden with
visitors. Mr. Cyrus Field had come on shore before the Great
Eastern had left the offing, with a view of telegraphing to St.
John's to hire a vessel to repair the cable unhappily broken
between Cape Ray, in Newfoundland, and Cape North, in Breton
Island. Before a couple of hours the shore end will be landed,
and it is impossible to conceive a finer day for effecting this
our final operation. Even here, people can scarcely realize
the fact that the Atlantic Telegraph Cable has been laid.
To-morrow, however, Heart's Content[C] will awaken to the fact
that it is a highly favored place in the world's esteem, the
western landing-place of that marvel of electric communication
with the Eastern hemisphere, which is now happily, and we hope
finally, established."
This simple record, so modestly termed the Diary of the Expedition,
tells the story of this memorable voyage in a way that needs no
embellishment. But if from the ship's deck we transfer ourselves to the
shore, we may get a new impression of the closing scene. We can well
believe the sensation of wonder and almost of awe, on the morning when
the ships entered that little harbor of Newfoundland. In England the
progress of the expedition was known from day to day, but on this side
of the ocean all was uncertainty. Some had gone to Heart's Content,
hoping to witness the arrival of the fleet, but not so many as the year
before, for the memory of the last failure was too fresh, and they
feared another disappointment. But still a faithful few were there, who
kept their daily watch. The correspondents of the American papers report
only a long and anxious suspense, till the morning when the first ship
was seen in the offing. As they looked toward her, she came nearer--and
see, there is another and another! And now the hull of the Great Eastern
loomed up all glorious in the morning sky. They were coming! Instantly
all was wild excitement on shore. Boats put off to row toward the fleet.
The Albany was the first to round the point and enter the bay. The
Terrible was close behind. The Medway stopped an hour or two to join on
the heavy shore end, while the Great Eastern, gliding calmly in as if
she had done nothing remarkable, dropped her anchor in front of the
telegraph house, having trailed behind her a chain of two thousand
miles, to bind the Old World to the New.
That same afternoon, as soon as the shore end was landed, Captain
Anderson and the officers of the fleet went in a body to the little
church in Heart's Content, to render thanks for the success of the
expedition. A sermon was preached on the text, "There shall be no more
sea," and all joined in the sublime prayers and thanksgivings of the
Church of England. Thus the voyage ended as it began. It left the shores
of Ireland with prayers wafted after it as a benediction. And now,
safely landed on the shores of the New World, this gallant company, like
Columbus and his companions, made it their first thought to render
homage to the Being who had borne them safely across the deep.
But though their voyage was ended, there was still a work to be done.
Having crossed the Atlantic, the first thing was to open communication
with the cities of the United States. And now Mr. Field was extremely
mortified to find that there was a large gap in the line this side of
the ocean. His first question to the Superintendent, who came out in a
boat to meet him, was in regard to the cable across the Gulf of St.
Lawrence, which had been interrupted the year before; and it was a
bitter pang to hear that it lay still broken, so that a message which
came from Ireland in a moment of time, was delayed twenty-four hours in
its way to New York. Of course the public grew impatient, and there were
many sneers at the want of foresight which had failed to provide against
such a contingency; and, as he was the one chiefly known in connection
with the enterprise, these reproaches fell upon him. He did not tell the
public, what was the truth, that he had anticipated this very trouble
long ago, and entreated his associates to be prepared for it. Months
before he left for England, he urged upon the Company in New York the
necessity of rebuilding their lines in Newfoundland, which had been
standing over ten years, and of repairing the old cable, and also laying
a new one across the Gulf of St. Lawrence. But this would cost a large
sum of money, and as their faith and purses had been sorely tried by
repeated disasters, they were not willing to spend more in the
uncertainty of the future. They wished to see the result of this new
expedition, before advancing further capital. We do not blame them, but
only mention the fact to show that Mr. Field had foreseen this very
thing, and endeavored to guard against it.
But regrets were idle. What could he do to repair the injury? "Is there
a steamer," he asked, "to be had in these waters?" "The Bloodhound is at
St. John's." "Telegraph instantly to charter her to go around to the
Gulf of St. Lawrence, and fish up the old cable and repair it. But that
may take several weeks. Is there nothing else that can serve in the mean
time to carry despatches across the Gulf?" "There is a little steamer,
called the Dauntless." "Well, telegraph for her too. Secure her at all
hazards; only see that the work is done." All this was the work of a few
minutes. The answers came back quickly, and in a day or two came the
steamers themselves. The arrangement was immediately carried out. The
Dauntless took her place in the Gulf, where she made her regular trips
from Port au Basque, in Newfoundland, to Aspee Bay, in Cape Breton,
keeping up daily communication with the States. The Bloodhound, which
had a more difficult task, first took on board eleven miles of cable
from the Great Eastern, to repair that which was broken. The expedition
was put in charge of Mr. A. M. Mackay, the indefatigable Superintendent
of the Company in Newfoundland, who had had the care of their lines for
ten years. He sailed for Aspee Bay, and made short work of the business,
dragging the Gulf and raising the cable, which he found had been broken
by an anchor, in water seventy fathoms deep, a few miles from shore.
This was spliced out with a portion of the new cable, and the whole was
as perfect as ever, giving a fresh proof that cables well made are
likely to be permanent, if not indestructible.
Meanwhile, owing to this interruption of the cable across the Gulf of
St. Lawrence, the news of the success of the expedition, which reached
Newfoundland on Friday, the twenty-seventh, did not reach New York till
the twenty-ninth. It was early Sunday morning, before the Sabbath bells
had rung their call to prayer, that the tidings came. The first
announcement was brief: "Heart's Content, July 27.--We arrived here at
nine o'clock this morning. All well. Thank God, the cable is laid, and
is in perfect working order.
Cyrus W. Field."
Soon followed the despatch to the Associated Press, giving the details
of the voyage, and ending with a just tribute to the skill and devotion
of all who had contributed to its success. Said Mr. Field: "I cannot
find words suitable to convey my admiration for the men who have so ably
conducted the nautical, engineering, and electrical departments of this
enterprise, amidst difficulties which must be seen to be appreciated. In
fact, all on board of the telegraph fleet, and all connected with the
enterprise, have done their best to have the cable made and laid in a
perfect condition; and He who rules the winds and the waves has crowned
their united efforts with perfect success."
Other despatches followed in quick succession, giving the latest events
of the war in Europe, which startled the public just reading news a
fortnight old. All this confirmed the great triumph, and filled every
heart with wonder and gratitude on the Sunday morning, as they went
again to the little church and rendered thanks to Him who is Lord of the
earth and sea.
While the Great Eastern was lying in the harbor of Heart's Content, she
was overrun with visitors. The news of her arrival had spread over the
island, and from far and near the people flocked to see her. Over the
hills they came on foot and on horseback, and in wagons and carts of
every description; and from along the shore in boats and fishing-smacks,
and sloops and schooners. They came from the most remote parts of the
island--a distance of three hundred miles--and even from the province of
New Brunswick. Several parties made the excursion in steamers from St.
John's. The wondering country folk climbed up the sides of the ship, and
wandered for hours through its spacious rooms and long passages. All
were welcomed with hearty sailor courtesy.
As soon as communication was opened with New York, and other cities,
congratulations poured in from every quarter. Friendly messages were
exchanged--as eight years before--between the sovereign of England and
the head of the Great Republic. The President also, and Mr. Seward,
Secretary of State, sent their congratulations to Mr. Field--greetings
that were repeated from the most distant States. Among others was a
message from San Francisco, which was put into his hand almost at the
same moment with one from M. de Lesseps, dated at Alexandria in Egypt!
What a meeting and mingling of voices was this, when a winged salutation
flying over the tops of the Rocky Mountains, reached the same ear with a
message which had been whispered along the Mediterranean and under the
Atlantic: when the farthest East touched the farthest West--the most
ancient of kingdoms answering to the new-born empire of the Pacific.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] The new method is thus explained by Mr. Deane:
"The fundamental difference between last year's system of testing and
that of the present expedition is, that now all the ordinary tests for
continuity may be made simultaneously with the test for insulation,
which is not interrupted at all; whereas, last year, during half the
time spent in laying the cable, the insulation test was wholly
neglected.
"Last year, each hour was divided into four parts. The first half of the
hour was spent in testing for insulation. During the second half, which
was divided into three periods of ten minutes each, tests were made to
ascertain the resistance of the conductor and to prove the continuity of
the same. All these tests were of such a nature as to afford no
criterion whatever of the state of the insulation during their
continuance, so that during the half of each hour, or, in other words,
during half the time spent in laying the cable, the insulation test was
neglected. Also, while the insulation test was being made, there was no
means of communicating with the shore, as the observations were taken on
board only. This year, a test for insulation is constantly kept on, and,
by Mr. Willoughby Smith's arrangement, corresponding observations are
made both on ship and shore. At stated times during the hour, the
continuity test is made at the shore station by means of a condenser
applied to the conductor of the cable. The effect of this is to increase
the deflection on the ship's insulation galvanometer, thus serving as a
continuity test. Communications from shore to ship are also made by
these means. The ship can send signals to the shore by simply reversing
the current for certain lengths of time, answering to some understood
code, or by increasing and diminishing the tension of the line,
according to a preärranged plan. All these operations may be performed
without interrupting the insulation test, except for a few seconds while
the current is being reversed. So far for the new system in the
electrical room as compared with last year."
[B] Mr. Dudley made a number of sketches for Mr. Field, with several
large paintings, which have furnished the illustrations for this volume.
[C] The little harbor that bears this gentle name, is a sheltered nook
where ships may ride at anchor, safe from the storms of the ocean. It is
but an inlet from the great arm of the sea known as Trinity Bay, which
is sixty or seventy miles long, and twenty miles broad. On the beach is
a small village of some sixty houses, most of which are the humble
dwellings of those hardy men who vex the northern seas with their
fisheries. The place was never heard of outside of Newfoundland till
1864, when Mr. Field, sailing up Trinity Bay in the surveying steamer
Margaretta Stevenson, Captain Orlebar, R. N., in search of a place for
the landing of the ocean cable, fixed upon this secluded spot. The old
landing of 1858 was at the Bay of Bull's Arm, at the head of Trinity
Bay, twenty miles above. Heart's Content was chosen now because its
waters are still and deep, so that a cable skirting the north side of
the Banks of Newfoundland can be brought in deep water almost till it
touches the shore. All around the land rises to pine-crested heights;
and here the telegraphic fleet, after its memorable voyage, lay in
quiet, under the shadow of the encircling hills.
CHAPTER XVII.
RECOVERY OF THE LOST CABLE.
Though the Great Eastern was still lying in the little harbor of Heart's
Content, casting her mighty shadow on its tranquil waters, she was not
"content" with her amazing victory, but sighed for another greater
still. Though she had done enough to be laid up for a year, still she
had one more test of her prowess--to recover the cable of 1865, which
had been lost in the middle of the Atlantic. So eager were all for this
second trial of their strength, that in less than five days two of the
ships--the Albany and the Terrible--the vanguard of the telegraphic
fleet, were on their way back to mid-ocean. Though it was only Friday,
the 27th of July, that they reached land, they left early Wednesday
morning, the first day of August. The Great Eastern was detained a week
longer. She had to lay in immense supplies of coal. Anticipating this
want, six ships had been despatched from Cardiff, in Wales, weeks
before, to await the arrival of the fleet. One of these foundered at
sea; the others arrived out safely, and hardly had the Great Eastern
cast anchor before they were alongside, ready to fill her bunkers. So
ample was the provision, that, when she went to sea a few days after,
she had nearly eight thousand tons of coal on board.
At the same time she had to receive some six hundred miles of the cable
of 1865, which had been shipped from England in the Medway. The latter
was now brought alongside, and the whole was transferred into the main
tank of the Great Eastern, from which it was to be paid out in case the
lost end were recovered.
At length all these preparations were completed, and on Thursday, the
9th of August, the Great Eastern and the Medway put to sea. The Governor
of Newfoundland, who had come around from St. John's and been received
with the honors due his rank, accompanied them in the Lily down the
broad expanse of Trinity Bay, and then bore away for St. John's while
the Great Eastern and Medway kept on their course to join their
companions in the middle of the Atlantic. They had a little over six
hundred miles to run to the "fishing ground," and made it in three days.
On Sunday noon they came in sight of the appointed rendezvous, and soon
with glasses made out the Albany and the Terrible, which had arrived a
week before and placed buoys to mark the line of the cable, and then,
like giant sea-birds with folded wings, sat watching their prey. The sea
was running high, so that boats could not come off, but the Albany
signalled that she had not toiled for nothing; that she had once hooked
the cable, but lost it in rough weather. The history of this first
attempt, though brief, was cheering.
When the Albany left Heart's Content, Captain Moriarty went in her. He
had been in the Great Eastern the year before, and saw where the cable
went down, and had had his eye on the spot ever since. He claimed, with
Captain Anderson, that he could go straight to it and place the ship
within half a mile of where it disappeared. At this old sailors shook
their heads, and said, "They'd like to see him do it;" "No man could
come within two or three miles of any given place in the ocean." Yet the
result proved the exactness of his observations. With unerring eye he
went straight to the spot, and set his buoys as exactly as a fisherman
sets his nets.
In the Albany, also, had gone Mr. Temple, of Mr. Canning's staff. The
ship had been fitted up with a complete set of buoys and apparatus for
grappling; and he was full of ambition to recover the cable before the
Great Eastern should come up. In this he had nearly proved successful.
They had caught it once, and raised it a few hundred fathoms from the
bottom, and buoyed it, but rough weather came on and tore away the buoy,
so that the cable went down again, carrying two miles of rope.
This was a disappointment, but still, as their first attempt was only a
"feeler," the result was encouraging. It showed that they had found the
right place; that the cable was there; that it had not run away nor been
floated off by those under-currents that exist in the imagination of
some wise men of the sea; nor that it was so imbedded in the ooze of the
deep as to be beyond reach or recovery. All this was cheering, but as it
promised to be a more difficult job than they had supposed, they were
glad when the Great Eastern hove in sight that Sunday noon.
The next morning Captain Moriarty and Mr. Temple came on board, and
after reporting their experience, the chief officers of the Expedition
held a council of war before opening the campaign. The fleet was all
together, the weather was favorable, and it was determined at once to
proceed to business.
As the attempt is now to be renewed on a grand scale, the reader may
wish some further details of the means employed to insure success. As
nothing in this whole enterprise has excited such astonishment, nothing
merits a more careful history. When it was first proposed to drag the
bottom of the Atlantic for a cable lost in waters two and a half miles
deep, the project was so daring that it seemed to be almost a war of the
Titans upon the gods. Yet never was anything undertaken less in the
spirit of reckless desperation. The cable was recovered, as a city is
taken by siege--by slow approaches, and the sure and inevitable result
of mathematical calculation. Every point was studied beforehand--the
position of the broken end, the depth of the ocean, the length of rope
needed to reach the bottom, and the strength required to lift the
enormous weight. To find the place was a simple question of nautical
astronomy--a calculation of latitude and longitude. It seemed
providential that, when the cable broke on the second of August, 1865,
it was a few minutes after noon; the sun was shining brightly, and they
had just taken a perfect observation. This made it much easier to go
back to the place again. The waters were very deep, but that they could
touch bottom, and even grapple the cable, was proved by the experiments
of the year before. But could any power be applied which should lift it
without breaking, and bring it safely on board? This was a simple
question of mechanics. Prof. Thomson had made a calculation that in
raising the cable from a depth of two and a half miles, there would be
about ten miles of its length suspended in the water. Of course, it was
a very nice matter to graduate the strain so as not to break the cable.
For this it had been suggested that two or three ships should grapple it
at once, and lifting it together, ease the strain on any one point--a
method of meeting the danger that was finally adopted with success.
With such preparations, let us see how all this science and seamanship
and engineering are applied. The ships are now all together in the
middle of the Atlantic. The first point is achieved. They have found
the place where the broken cable lies--they have laid their hands on the
bottom of the ocean and "felt of it," and know that it is there. The
next thing is to draw a line over it, to mark its course, for in fogs
and dark nights it cannot be traced by observations. The watery line is
therefore marked by a series of buoys a few miles apart, which are held
in position by heavy mushroom-anchors, let down to the bottom by a huge
buoy-rope, which is fastened at the top by a heavy chain. Each buoy is
numbered, and has on the top a long staff with a flag, and a black ball
over it, which can be seen at a distance. Thus the ships, ranging around
in a circuit of many miles, can keep in sight this chain of sentinels.
The buoy which marks the spot where they wish to grapple has also a
lantern placed upon it at night, which gleams afar upon the ocean.
Having thus fixed their bearings, the Great Eastern stands off, north or
south according to the wind or current, three or four miles from where
the cable lies, and then, casting over the grapnel, drifts slowly down
upon the line, as ships going into action reef their sails, and drift
under the enemy's guns.
The "fishing-tackle" is on a gigantic scale. The "hooks," or grapnels,
are huge weapons armed with teeth, like Titanic harpoons to be plunged
into this submarine monster. The "fishing-line" is a rope six and a
half inches round, and made of twisted hemp and iron, consisting of
forty-nine galvanized wires, each bound with manilla, the whole capable
of bearing a strain of thirty tons. Of this heavy rope there are twenty
miles on board the ships, the Albany carrying five, and the Great
Eastern and the Medway seven and a half miles each. Of course it is not
the easiest thing in the world to handle such a rope. But it is paid out
by machinery, passing over a drum; and the engine works so smoothly,
that it runs out as easily as ever a fisherman's line was reeled off
into the sea. As it goes out freely, the strain increases every moment.
The rope is so ponderous, that the weight mounts up very fast, so that
by the time it is two thousand fathoms down, the strain is equal to six
or seven tons. The tension of course is very great, and not unattended
with danger. What if the rope should break? If it should snap on board,
it would go into the sea like a cannon-shot. Such was the tension on the
long line, that once when the splice between the grapnel-rope and the
buoy-rope "drew," the end passed along the wheels with terrific
velocity, and flying in the air over the bow, plunged into the sea. But
the rope is well made, and holds firmly an enormous weight. It takes
about two hours for the grapnel to reach the bottom, but they can tell
when it strikes. The strain eases up, and then, as the ship drifts, it
is easy to see that it is not dragging through the water, but over the
ground. "I often went to the bow," says Mr. Field, "and sat on the
rope, and could tell by the quiver that the grapnel was dragging on the
bottom two miles under us."
And thus, with its fishing line set, the great ship moves slowly down
over where the cable lies. As the grapnel drags on the bottom, one of
the engineer's staff stands at the dynamometer to watch for the moment
of increasing strain. A few hours pass, and the index rises to eight,
ten, or twelve tons, sure token that there is something at the end of
the line--it may be the lost cable, or a sunken mast or spar, the
fragment of a wreck that went down in a storm that swept the Atlantic a
hundred years ago. And now the engine is set in motion to haul in. As
the rope comes up, it passes over a five-foot drum, every revolution
bringing up three fathoms. Thus it takes some hours to haul in over two
miles' length, perhaps at last to find nothing at the end!
Success in hooking the cable depends on the accuracy of their
observations. These were sometimes verified in a remarkable manner. When
the nights were very dark and thick with fog, so that they could not see
the stars above nor their lights on the ocean, they had to go almost by
the sense of feeling. Yet so exactly had they taken their bearings, that
they could almost grope over the ground with their hands. A singular
proof of this was given one night, when, just as the line began to
quiver, showing that the cable had been hooked, one of the buoys--which
had not been seen in the darkness--thumped against the side of the ship.
So exactly had it been placed over the prescribed line, that the ship
struck the buoy just as the grapnel struck the cable! The accident,
which startled them at first, when it occurred in the gloom of night,
furnished the strongest proof of the accuracy of their observations; and
the officers were very proud of it, as they well might be, as a victory
in nautical astronomy!
These different experiments revealed some secrets of the ocean. Its
bottom proved to be generally ooze, a soft slime. When the rope went
down, one or two hundred fathoms at the end would trail on the sea
floor; and when it came up, this was found coated with mud, "very fine
and soft like putty, and full of minute shells." But it was not _all_
ooze at the bottom of the sea, even on this telegraphic plateau. There
were hidden rocks--perhaps not cliffs and ledges, but at least scattered
boulders, lying on that mighty plain. Sometimes the strain on the
dynamometer would suddenly go up three or four tons, and then back
again, as if the grapnel had been caught and broken away. Once it came
up with two of its hooks bent, as if it had come in contact with a huge
rock. At one time it brought up in the mud a small stone half the size
of an almond; and at another a fragment as large as a brick. This was a
piece of granite.
Friday, August 17th, was a memorable day in the expedition, for the
cable was not only caught, but brought to the surface, where it was in
full sight of the whole ship, and yet finally escaped. The day before
the line had been cast over, at about two o'clock, and struck the ground
a little before five. After dragging a couple of hours, the increasing
strain showed that they had grappled the prize, and they began to haul
in, but soon ceased, and held on till morning. Then the engine was set
in motion again, and slowly but steadily the ponderous rope came up from
the deep. By half-past ten o'clock, Friday morning, twenty-three hundred
fathoms had come on board, and but fifteen or twenty remained. Then was
the critical moment, and they paused before giving a last pull. Such was
the eagerness of all, that the diver of the ship, Clark, begged to be
allowed to plunge down twenty fathoms, to lay his hand on the prize, and
be sure that it was there. But patience yet a few minutes! A few more
strokes of the engine, and the sea-serpent shows himself--a long black
snake with a white belly. "On the appearance of the cable," says Deane,
in his Diary of the Expedition, "we were all struck with the fact that
one half of it was covered with ooze, staining it a muddy white, while
the other half was in just the state in which it left the tank, with its
tarred surface and strands unchanged, which showed that it lay in the
sand only half embedded. The strain on the cable gave it a twist, and
it looked as if it had been painted spirally black and white. This
disposes of the oft-repeated assertion, that we should not be able to
pull it up from the bottom, because it would be embedded in the ooze."
The appearance of the cable woke a tremendous hurrah from all on board.
They cheered as English sailors are apt to cheer when the flag of an
enemy is struck in battle. But their exultation came too soon. The
strain on the cable was already mounting up to a dangerous point. Capt.
Anderson and Mr. Canning were standing on the bow, and saw that the
strands were going. They hastened men to its relief, but it was too
late. Before they could put stoppers on it to hold it, it broke close to
the grapnel, and sunk to the bottom. It had been in sight but just five
minutes, and was gone. Instantly the feeling of exultation was turned to
one of disappointment, and almost of rage, at the treacherous monster,
that lifted up its snaky head from the sea, as if to mock its captors,
and instantly dived to the silence and darkness below.
It was a cruel disappointment. Yet when they came to think soberly,
there was no cause for despair, but rather for new confidence and hope.
They had proved what they could do. But this detained them in the middle
of the Atlantic for two weeks more.
It were idle to relate all the attempts of those two weeks. Every day
brought its excitement. Whenever the grapnel caught, there was a
suspense of many hours till it was brought on board. Several times they
seemed on the point of success. Two days after that fatal Friday, on
Sunday, August 19th, they caught the cable again, and brought it up
within a thousand fathoms of the ship, and buoyed it. But Monday and
Tuesday were too rough for work, and all their labor was in vain. Thus
it was a constant battle with the elements. Sometimes the wind blew
fiercely and drove them off their course. Sometimes the buoys broke
adrift and had to be pursued and taken. Once or twice the boatswain's
mate--a brave fellow, by the name of Thornton--was lowered in ropes over
the bow of the ship and let down astride of a buoy; and though it spun
round with him like a top, and his life was in danger, he held on and
fastened a chain to it, by which it was swung on board.
The continued bad weather was the chief obstacle to success. Engineers
had often grappled for cables in the North Sea and the Mediterranean;
but there they could look for at least a few days when the sea would be
at rest; but in the Atlantic it was impossible to calculate on good
weather for twenty-four hours. For nearly four weeks that they were at
sea, they had hardly four days of clear sunshine, without wind. Often
the ocean was covered with a driving mist, and the ships, groping about
like blind giants, kept blowing their shrill fog-trumpets, or firing
guns, as signals to their companions that they were still there.
Occasionally the sun shone out from the clouds, and gave them hope of
better success. Once or twice we find in the private journal kept by Mr.
Field, that it was "too calm;" there was not wind enough to drift the
ship over the cable, so that the rope hung up and down from the bow,
without dragging. One Sunday night he remembered, when the deep was
hushed to a Sabbath stillness, the moon was shining brightly, and the
ships floating over a "sea of glass," that suggested thoughts of a
better world than this. Such times gave them fresh hopes, that might be
disappointed on the morrow.
Once, however, the Albany, which had been off a few miles fishing on its
own hook, suddenly appeared in the night, reporting a victory. All on
board the Great Eastern were startled by the firing of guns. It was a
little after midnight, and Mr. Field had gone below, worn out with the
long suspense and anxiety, when Captain Anderson came rushing to his
stateroom with tidings that the cable was recovered! Both hurried on
deck, and sure enough there was the Albany bearing down upon them, with
her crew cheering in the wildest manner. The gallant Temple had
conquered at last. But the next morning brought a fresh disappointment.
They had indeed got hold of the cable, and brought its end on board, and
afterward buoyed it, but when the Great Eastern went for it, it proved
to be only a fragment some two miles long, which had been broken off in
one of the previous grapplings. However, they hauled it in, and kept it
with pride, as their first trophy from the sea.
And so the days and weeks wore on; it was near the end of August, and
still the prize was not taken. The courage of the men did not fail, but
they were becoming worn out. The tension on their nerves of this long
suspense was terrible. On Tuesday, August 28th, Mr. Temple was brought
on board from the Albany, very ill. He was worn out with constant
watching. Their resources, too, must in time be exhausted. On the
evening of the 29th, Captain Commerill, of the Terrible, came on board,
and reported the condition of his ship. He was one of the very best
officers in the fleet, full of zeal, courage, and activity (having a
good right hand in his first officer, Mr. Curtis), and always kept up a
brave heart, even in the darkest days.[A] But his supplies were nearly
exhausted. He had been out four weeks, and his coal was almost gone,
and his men were on half rations. So he must leave the fishing ground
for fresh supplies. It was a painful necessity. He mourned his fate,
like a brave officer who is ordered away in the midst of a battle. But
he submitted only with a determination to take in ammunition, and to
come back in a few days to renew the struggle. Accordingly the Terrible
left the same evening for St. John's.
At the same time it was decided that the three other ships should leave
their present cruising ground, and try a new spot. As an old fisherman,
who has cast his line in one place so often as to scare the fish away,
sometimes has better luck in other waters, so they proposed to go east
a hundred miles, to a place where the ocean was not quite so deep.
Deane, in his Diary, calls it "the sixteen hundred fathom patch," but
they found it nineteen hundred fathoms, or about two miles! So the next
morning the Great Eastern, the Medway, and the Albany "pulled up
stakes," that is, took in their buoys, and bore away to the east. In a
few hours they reached the appointed rendezvous, and had set their
buoys. The last day of August had come, and all seemed favorable for a
final attempt. It was a clear day, with no wind. The sea had gone down,
so that at noon it was a dead calm, as the three ships took their
position in line, about two miles apart, ready to open their broadsides
at once. The grapnel went over for _the thirtieth time_. Kind heaven
favored its search, and at ten minutes before midnight it had found the
cable, and fastened its teeth never to let go. Feeling something at the
end of the rope, they began to haul in, but slowly at first, as an
expert angler decoys a big fish by pulling gently on the line. Watching
the dynamometer, they saw with delight the strain increase with every
hundred fathoms. Up it went to eight, nine, ten tons! They had caught
it, and no mistake. In about five hours they had drawn it up to within a
thousand fathoms of the top of the water, where it hung suspended from
the ship. But now came the critical point, for as it approached the
surface the danger of breaking increased every moment. It required
delicate handling. To make sure this time, the Great Eastern buoyed the
cable, and moved off two or three miles to take a fresh gripe in a new
place; and having got a double hold, the Medway, which was two miles
further to the west, was ordered to grapple for it also; and having
caught it, to heave up with all force, till she should bring it on board
or break it. This was done, and the old cable brought up within three
hundred fathoms, and there broken. This at once lightened the strain and
gave them an end to pull upon, whereupon the Great Eastern, having a
lighter weight on the rope, drew up again, but still gently, watching
the strain, lest the cable should break. These operations were very
slow, and lasted many weary hours. It was a little before midnight on
Friday night that the cable was caught, and it was after midnight Sunday
morning that it was brought on board. How long that day seemed! Night
turned to morning, and morning to noon, and noon to night again, and
still the work was not done; still the great ship hung over the spot
where its treasure was suspended in the deep. The sun went down, and the
moon looked forth from driving clouds upon a scene such as the ocean
never saw before. At a distance could be discerned the black hulls of
the attendant ships, the Albany and the Medway. But why were they thus
silent and motionless in the midst of the sea? Some mysterious errand
brought them here, and as their boats approached with measured sweep,
at this midnight hour, it seemed as if they came with muffled oars to an
ocean burial. It was still calm, but the sea began to moan with unrest,
as if troubled in its sleep. As midnight drew on, the interest gathered
about the bows of the Great Eastern. The bulwarks were crowded with
anxious watchers, peering into the darkness below. Still not a word was
spoken. Not a voice was heard, save that of Captain Anderson, or Mr.
Halpin, or Mr. Canning, giving orders. As it approached the surface, two
men, who were tried hands, were lashed with ropes and lowered over the
bows, to make fast to the cable when it should appear. This was a
perilous service, and the boats were there to pick up the brave fellows,
if they should drop into the water. As soon as it showed itself, they
dived upon it, and seizing it with their hands, fastened it with large
hempen stoppers, which were quickly attached to five-inch ropes.
"It was then found, that the bight was so firmly caught in the
springs of the grapnel, that one of the brave hands who put on
the stoppers, was sent lower down to the grapnel, and with
hammer and marlinspike, the rope was ultimately freed from the
tenacious gripe of the flukes. The signal being given to haul
up, the western end of the bight was cut with a saw, and
grandly and majestically the cable rose up the frowning bows of
the Great Eastern, slowly passing round the sheave at the bow,
and then over the wheels on to the fore part of the deck. The
greatest possible care had to be taken by Mr. Canning and his
assistants, to secure the cable by putting on stoppers, and to
watch the progress of the grapnel, rope, and shackles, round
the drum, before it received the cable itself."
When once it was made fast, all took a long breath. The cable was
recovered. They had the sea-serpent at last. There the monster lay, its
neck firmly in their gripe, and its black head lying on the deck. But
even then there was no cheering, as when they caught it two weeks
before. Men are sometimes stunned by a sudden success, and hardly know
if it be not all a dream. So now they looked at the cable with eager
eyes, but without a word, and some crept toward it to take it in their
hands, to be sure that they were not deceived. Yes--it was the same that
they paid out into the sea thirteen months before!
But their anxiety was not over. Now that they had regained the lost
cable of 1865, was it good for any thing? It had been lying more than a
year at the bottom of the deep. What if it should prove to have been
broken somewhere in the eleven hundred miles between the ship and
Ireland? What if some sharp rock had worn it away, or some marine insect
had eaten into its heart? If there were but a pin's point, anywhere in
its covering of flesh, the vital current might escape through it into
the sea. Fears like these restrained their exultation. It was yet too
soon to proclaim their victory. So, as the cable was passed along the
deck to the testing room, where the chief electrician was to operate
upon it, to see whether it was alive or dead, it was followed by an
anxious group, who stood around him as he sat down at the instrument,
watching his countenance as friends watch the face of a physician, when
he feels the pulse of a patient to see if the heart is still beating.
The scene is thus described by Mr. Robert Dudley, the artist of the
expedition, whose spirited sketches in the London Illustrated News have
made known to the world many incidents of this memorable voyage:
"I made my way with others, in accordance with an invitation
from Willoughby Smith, to the electricians' room. Here, after
another hour's preparation, during which time the cable had
been carefully passed round the drums of the picking-up
machinery, and a sufficient length drawn in on board, the
severed end was received. And now, in their mysterious,
darkened haunt, the wizards are ready to work their spells upon
the tamed lightning. Not 'unholy spells' are these, or secret;
for, though the wizards' den is but of limited dimensions, they
have not been averse to the presence of a few visitors. Mr.
Gooch is looking on; Professor Thomson, be sure, is here, a
worthy 'Wizard of the North;' Cyrus Field could no more be
absent than the cable itself; I think, too, Canning, hard at
work as he is forward in the ship, _must_ have dropped in just
for a moment; Clifford, Laws, Captain Hamilton, Deane,
Dudley--all have, in their several ways, a great interest in
every movement of Willoughby Smith and his brother (and able
assistant) Oliver; and, when the core of the cable is stripped
and the heart itself--the conducting wire--fixed in the
instrument, and these two electricians bend over the
galvanometer in patient watching for some message from that
far-off land of home to which the great news has just been
signalled, then the accustomed stillness of the test-room is
deepened; the ticking of the chronometer becomes monotonous.
Nearly a quarter of an hour has passed, and still no sign!
Suddenly Willoughby Smith's hat is off, and the British hurrah
bursts from his lips, echoed by all on board with a volley of
cheers, evidently none the worse for having been 'bottled up'
during the last three hours. Along the deck outside, over the
ship, throughout the ship, the pent-up enthusiasm overflowed;
and even before the test-room was cleared, the roaring bravos
of our guns drowned the huzzas of the crew, and the whiz of
rockets was heard rushing high into the clear morning sky to
greet our consort-ships with the glad intelligence."
While this scene is going on on board ship, we may turn to the other end
of the line. It may be well supposed that the result of this attempt was
watched with deep interest at Valentia. How they looked for the first
signal from the deep, and how the tidings came, is thus told in the
London Spectator:
"Night and day, for a whole year, an electrician has always
been on duty, watching the tiny ray of light through which
signals are given, and twice every day the whole length of
wire--one thousand two hundred and forty miles--has been tested
for conductivity and insulation.... The object of observing the
ray of light was of course not any expectation of a message,
but simply to keep an accurate record of the condition of the
wire. Sometimes, indeed, wild, incoherent messages from the
deep did come, but these were merely the results of magnetic
storms and earth-currents, which deflected the galvanometer
rapidly, and _spelt the most extraordinary words, and sometimes
even sentences of nonsense_. Suddenly, last Sunday morning, at
a quarter to six o'clock, while the light was being watched by
Mr. May,[B] he observed a peculiar indication about it, which
showed at once to his experienced eye that a message was at
hand. In a few minutes afterward the unsteady flickering was
changed to coherency, if we may use such a term, and at once
the cable began to speak, to transmit, that is, at regular
intervals, the appointed signals which indicated human purpose
and method at the other end, instead of the hurried signs,
broken speech, and inarticulate cries of the illiterate
Atlantic. After the long interval in which it had brought us
nothing but the moody and often delirious mutterings of the
sea, stammering over its alphabet in vain, the words 'Canning
to Glass' must have seemed like the first rational word uttered
by a high-fevered patient, when the ravings have ceased and his
consciousness returns."
The telegraphic fleet remained together but a few hours after this
recovery of the lost cable. The battle was gained, and the three ships
were no longer needed. The Albany, therefore, parted company to pick up
the buoys, and at once sailed for England, while the Great Eastern,
attended by the faithful Medway, turned to the west. It was about nine
o'clock that the ship began to pay out the cable. Up to that time it
had continued calm, but the morning was raw and chill, and the sea began
to rise as if in anger at those who had torn from it its prey. Captain
Anderson looked anxiously at the signs of the coming storm. It seemed as
if Heaven had kept back the winds during the critical day and night when
they were lifting the cable! But now the tempest was upon them, and for
thirty-six hours it swept the ocean. All trembled lest they should not
be able to hold on. But little incidents sometimes turn the current of
one's thoughts, and give a feeling of peace even in the midst of
anxiety. Says Mr. Field:
"In the very height and fury of the gale, as I sat in the
electrician's room, a flash of light came up from the deep,
which having crossed to Ireland, came back to me in mid-ocean,
telling that those so dear to me, whom I had left on the banks
of the Hudson, were well, and following us with their wishes
and their prayers. This was like a whisper of God from the sea,
bidding me keep heart and hope. The Great Eastern bore herself
proudly through the storm, as if she knew that the vital cord
which was to join two hemispheres, hung at her stern; and so on
Saturday, the seventh of September, we brought our second cable
safely to the shore."
The scene at Heart's Content, when the fleet appeared the second time,
was one that beggars description. Its arrival was not unexpected, for
the success on Sunday morning, that had been telegraphed to Ireland,
was at once flashed across the Atlantic, and the people were watching
for its coming. As the ships came up the harbor it was covered with
boats, and all were wild with excitement; and when the big shore-end was
got out of the Medway, and dragged to land, the sailors hugged it and
almost kissed it in their extravagance of joy; and no sooner was it
safely landed than they seized Mr. Field, Mr. Canning, and Mr. Clifford
in their arms, and raised them over their heads, while the crowd cheered
with tumultuous enthusiasm.
The voyage of the Great Eastern was ended. Twice had she been victorious
over the sea; twice had she laid the spoils of victory on the shores of
the New World, and her mission was accomplished. All on board, who had
been detained weeks beyond the expected time, were impatient to return;
and accordingly she prepared to sail the very next day on her homeward
voyage. The Medway, which had on board the cable for the Gulf of St.
Lawrence, remained two or three weeks longer, and with the Terrible,
whose gallant officers had volunteered for the service, successfully
accomplished that work. But the Great Eastern was bound for England, and
Mr. Field had now to part from his friends on board. It was a trying
moment. Rejoiced as he was at the successful termination of the voyage,
yet when he came to leave the ship, where he had spent so many anxious
days and weeks, both this year and the year before; and to part from
men to whom he was bound by the strong ties that unite those embarked in
a common enterprise--brave companions in arms--he could not repress a
feeling of sadness. It was with deep emotion that Captain Anderson took
him by the hand, as he said, "The time is come that we must part." As he
went over the side of the ship, the commander cried, "Give him three
cheers!" "And now three more for his family!" The ringing hurrahs of
that gallant crew were the last sounds he heard as he sunk back in the
boat that took him to the Medway, while the wheels of the Great Eastern
began to move, and the noble ship, with her noble company, bore away for
England.
Our story is told. We have followed the history of the Atlantic
Telegraph from the beginning to the end; from the hour that the idea
first occurred to its projector, turning over the globe in his library,
till the cable was stretched from continent to continent. Between these
two points of time many years have passed, and many struggles
intervened. Never did an enterprise pass through more vicissitudes;
never was courage tried by more reverses and disappointments, the
constant repetition of which gives to this narrative an almost painful
interest. Yet that background of disaster only sets in brighter relief
the spirit that bore up under all, the faith that never despaired, and
the patience that was never weary. It was a pathetic as well as heroic
story which Mr. Field had to tell when it was all over. He said:
"It has been a long, hard struggle. Nearly thirteen years of
anxious watching and ceaseless toil. Often my heart has been
ready to sink. Many times, when wandering in the forests of
Newfoundland, in the pelting rain, or on the deck of ships, on
dark, stormy nights--alone, far from home--I have almost
accused myself of madness and folly to sacrifice the peace of
my family, and all the hopes of life, for what might prove
after all but a dream. I have seen my companions one and
another falling by my side, and feared that I too might not
live to see the end. And yet one hope has led me on, and I have
prayed that I might not taste of death till this work was
accomplished. That prayer is answered; and now, beyond all
acknowledgments to men, is the feeling of gratitude to Almighty
God."[C]
"Long and hard" indeed had been the way, but in the end what a triumph
was gained: an achievement that was one of the most marvellous in all
history, as a proof of man's dominion over the forces of nature. When it
was first proposed to span the Atlantic, it seemed but a beautiful
dream, fascinating indeed to the imagination, but beyond all human
power; and men listened to the picture of what might be with delighted
amazement and wondering incredulity. In an oration at the opening of the
Dudley Observatory at Albany, in 1857, Edward Everett spoke thus of the
projected Atlantic Telegraph:
"I hold in my hand a portion of the identical electrical cable,
given me by my friend Mr. Peabody, which is now in progress of
manufacture to connect America with Europe. Does it seem all
but incredible to you that intelligence should travel for two
thousand miles, along those slender copper wires, far down in
the all but fathomless Atlantic, never before penetrated by
aught pertaining to humanity, save when some foundering vessel
has plunged with her hapless company to the eternal silence and
darkness of the abyss? Does it seem, I say, all but a miracle
of art, that the thoughts of living men--the thoughts that we
think up here on the earth's surface, in the cheerful light of
day--about the markets and the exchanges, and the seasons, and
the elections, and the treaties, and the wars, and all the fond
nothings of daily life, should clothe themselves with elemental
sparks, and shoot with fiery speed, in a moment, in the
twinkling of an eye, from hemisphere to hemisphere, far down
among the uncouth monsters that wallow in the nether seas,
along the wreck-paved floor, through the oozy dungeons of the
rayless deep; that the latest intelligence of the crops, whose
dancing tassels will, in a few months, be coquetting with the
west wind on those boundless prairies, should go flashing along
the slimy decks of old sunken galleons, which have been rotting
for ages; that messages of friendship and love, from warm,
living bosoms, should burn over the cold, green bones of men
and women, whose hearts, once as warm as ours, burst as the
eternal gulfs closed and roared over them centuries ago!"
But a few years passed, and the vision became a reality. The heart of
the world beat under the sea.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] Captain Anderson, in a letter published after the return to England,
says: "Every officer and man of the expedition will have pleasant
recollection of the cheerful zeal of Captain Commerill, V.C., and the
officers of Her Majesty's ship Terrible. Captain Commerill frequently
visited us in his boats, both in high seas and in calms, and his cheery
way of saying, 'You'll do it yet,' 'What can I do?' and 'I'll do it,'
was truly characteristic of him. The officers of the Terrible would do
any thing for their captain, and entered heartily into the object of the
voyage."
Such a tribute from one brave commander to another, is most honorable to
both. In the same letter he recognizes, also, the services rendered by
the captains of the other ships: "I shall do but scant justice to
Commanders Prowse and Batt, R. N., and Captains Eddington and Harris,
Mercantile Marine, of the Medway and Albany, if I recall the three weeks
spent upon the 'grappling ground,' where we were often separated by fog,
gale, or darkness; yet whenever day dawned, or the fog cleared, there
the squadron were to be seen, converging from different points towards
the Mark Buoy, a small spot looking no bigger than a man's hat on the
surface of the ocean. Unless all had concentrated their minds, and
watched their ships and compasses night and day, no such beautiful
illustration of nautical science could have been possible. The vessels
of the squadron keeping always together, and commanded by men who knew
the importance of keeping close enough to begin work whenever it was
possible, and yet to avoid collision in fog, was of the greatest
importance; and we owe much to that invaluable system of signalling by
night and day, invented by Captain Colomb, R. N., which enabled us, even
in dark nights, when two or three miles apart, to communicate or
ascertain anything we desired."
[B] This is an error. Mr. Crocker, an operator in the Telegraph House at
Valentia, was the fortunate one on watch at that hour, on whose eye the
first ray fell, as a spark of life from the dead.
[C] Speech at the Chamber of Commerce Dinner, Nov. 15, 1866.
CHAPTER XVIII.
THE AFTERGLOW.
It is the clear shining after rain. The storms that swept the sea, have
blown themselves out, and all is tranquil on the face of the deep. The
cable is lying in its ocean bed uniting the two hemispheres, nevermore
to be separated. And now comes the public recognition on both sides the
Atlantic, though in different form. The event had produced a profound
impression throughout the civilized world. Yet it was a singular
illustration of the changes in public interest, that, whereas in 1858 a
temporary success had kindled the wildest enthusiasm in the United
States, while in England it was regarded almost with indifference, now
the state of feeling in the two countries was completely reversed. In
Great Britain it was the theme of boundless congratulation, while in
America the public mind--dulled perhaps by the excitements of four years
of war--received the news with composure. The reason was, in part, that
England had had a larger share in the later than in the earlier
expeditions. Certainly none could deny the inestimable services rendered
by her men of science, her seamen, her engineers, and her great
capitalists; and it was most fit that the country which they had honored
should do them honor in its turn. Scarcely had the Great Eastern
recrossed the sea before those to whom the empire owed so much, were
duly recognized in the following letter from the Earl of Derby, then
Prime Minister, addressed to Sir Stafford Northcote, who was to preside
at a dinner given in Liverpool, to celebrate the great achievement:
"Balmoral,
Saturday, Sept. 29, 1866.
"Dear Sir Stafford: As I understand you are to have the honor
of taking the chair at the entertainment which is to be given
on Monday next, in Liverpool, to celebrate the double success
which has attended the great undertaking of laying the cable of
1866, and recovering that of 1865, by which the two continents
of Europe and America are happily connected, I am commanded by
the Queen to make known to you, and through you to those over
whom you are to preside, the deep interest with which Her
Majesty has regarded the progress of this noble work; and to
tender Her Majesty's cordial congratulations to all of those
whose energy and perseverance, whose skill and science have
triumphed over all difficulties, and accomplished a success
alike honorable to themselves and to their country, and
beneficial to the world at large. Her Majesty, desirous of
testifying her sense of the various merits which have been
displayed in this great enterprise, has commanded me to submit
to her, for special marks of her royal favor, the names of
those who, having had assigned to them prominent positions, may
be considered as representing the different departments, whose
united labors have contributed to the final result; and Her
Majesty has accordingly been pleased to direct that the honor
of knighthood should be conferred upon Captain Anderson, the
able and zealous commander of the Great Eastern; Professor
Thomson, whose distinguished science has been brought to bear
with eminent success upon the improvement of submarine
telegraphy; and on Messrs. Glass and Canning, the manager and
engineer respectively of the Telegraph Maintenance Company,
whose skill and experience have mainly contributed to the
admirable construction and successful laying of the cable. Her
Majesty is further pleased to mark her approval of the public
spirit and energy of the two companies who have had
successively the conduct of the undertaking, by offering the
dignity of a baronetcy of the United Kingdom to Mr. Lampson,
the Deputy Chairman of the original company, to whose resolute
support of the project in spite of all discouragements it was
in a great measure owing that it was not at one time abandoned
in despair; and to Mr. Gooch, M.P., the Chairman of the company
which has finally completed the design. If among the names thus
submitted to and approved by Her Majesty, that of Mr. Cyrus
Field does not appear, the omission must not be attributed to
any disregard of the eminent services which, from the first, he
has rendered to the cause of transatlantic telegraphy, and the
zeal and resolution with which he has adhered to the
prosecution of his object, but to an apprehension lest it might
appear to encroach on the province of his own Government, if
Her Majesty were advised to offer a citizen of the United
States, for a service rendered alike to both countries, British
marks of honor, which, following the example of another highly
distinguished citizen, he might feel himself unable to accept."
The reason assigned by Lord Derby for the omission of Mr. Field's name
in the distribution of honors, was perfectly understood and entirely
satisfactory. The British Government had once before offered a baronetcy
to Mr. George Peabody in recognition of his princely benefactions to the
poor of London, but while he appreciated the honor, he felt that as a
citizen of the United States, he could not accept it, and the same
reason would apply in the present case. But while this alone prevented
official recognition, it could not prevent the hearty expression of
Englishmen who knew the history of the great enterprise from the
beginning. At this very dinner, the Chairman gave, as the first toast,
"The Original Projectors of the Atlantic Cable," which he proposed early
in order to give Mr. Cyrus Field (who was very near to them, although he
happened to be in America!) a chance of responding! The allusion is
explained by the remark of one present who had said:--
"You will be pleased to hear that Mr. Bright has kindly brought
the telegraph wire into the room in which we are sitting, and
no sooner will the toast involving the mention of Mr. Field's
name be given from the chair, than it will be flashed with
lightning speed to Valentia, thence to Newfoundland, and if Mr.
Field is at home, it is quite possible that he himself will
receive it, ere the echo of your ringing cheers has died away
in Liverpool."
A message was at once sent from the room to Newfoundland, and a reply
received back that Mr. Field had left for New York. In continuing his
speech, Sir Stafford Northcote said: "I think there can be no doubt in
the minds of those who have carefully examined the history of these
transactions, that it is to Mr. Cyrus Field that we owe the practical
carrying out of the idea which has borne such glorious fruit. I am sure
there is none to whom we owe more, or whose name stands in prouder
connection with this great undertaking, than the name of Mr. Cyrus
Field."
He called upon Sir Charles Bright to reply, who detailed somewhat the
history of the enterprise from the very beginning in 1856, when "Mr.
Cyrus Field, to whom the world was more indebted than to any other
person for the establishment of the line, came to England upon the
completion of the telegraph between Nova Scotia and Newfoundland."
To the same effect is the testimony of a distinguished writer, W. H.
Russell, LL.D., who was on board of the Great Eastern in 1865, as the
correspondent of The Times, and wrote a very graphic History of the
Expedition (p. 10):
"It has been said that the greatest boons conferred on mankind,
have been due to men of one idea. If the laying of the Atlantic
cable be among those benefits, its consummation may certainly
be attributed to the man who, having many ideas, devoted
himself to work out one idea, with a gentle force and patient
vigor which converted opposition and overcame indifference.
Mr. Field may be likened either to the core, or the external
protection, of the cable itself. At times he has been its
active life; again he has been its iron-bound guardian. Let who
will claim the merit of having first said the Atlantic cable
was possible; to Mr. Field is due the inalienable merit of
having made it possible, and of giving to an abortive
conception all the attributes of healthy existence."
Sir William Thomson, on the final triumph, wrote:
"My dear Field, I cannot refrain from putting down in black and
white my hearty congratulations on your great success. Few know
better than I do how well you deserve it."
Eight months after he wrote from Scotland:
"I am sorry I had not an opportunity of saying in public how
much I value your energy and perseverance in carrying through
the great enterprise, and how clearly you stand out in its
history as its originator and its mainspring from beginning to
end."
Next to Sir William Thomson was Mr. C. F. Varley, who was associated in
the work from an early day, and did much to solve the difficult problems
of ocean telegraphy, and who wrote to Mr. Field, speaking from his
personal knowledge: "You did more than any other to float the concern,
and single-handed saved the whole scheme from collapse more than once."
Captain Sir James Anderson repeated the same conviction in numberless
forms. He had seen how the presence of Mr. Field in London instantly
revived the languid enthusiasm of others, and infused his own energy
into the enterprise, and declared again and again that but for these
heroic and incessant efforts the whole scheme would have broken down,
and been delayed for many years.
Such expressions from English associates in the great work might be
multiplied to any extent. They are much stronger than any language used
by the author of this volume, who has purposely kept back such
testimonies, lest it should seem that he wished to exalt an individual,
when he sought to do justice to all, on both sides of the Atlantic.
Nor was such recognition confined to England. The King of Italy
conferred on Mr. Field the cross of the order of St. Mauritius, as an
acknowledgment from the country of Columbus to one who had done so much
to unite to the Old World that New World which Columbus discovered.
A still higher honor was paid by the Great Exposition in Paris, in 1867,
which, gathering the products of the genius and skill and industry of
all nations, recognized the labors of men of all countries, who, by
their discoveries or great enterprises, had rendered eminent services to
the cause of civilization. It awarded the GRAND PRIZE, the highest
distinction it had to bestow, to Mr. Field by name, jointly with the
Anglo-American and Atlantic Telegraph Companies, thus recognizing, as
was most due, the splendid exhibition of the science and the capital of
England, which were never more directly employed for the benefit of the
human race, than in the uniting of the two Hemispheres, while it gave
the first place in the grand design to its American leader.
But to an American no praise is so dear as that which comes from his own
countrymen. First of all to Mr. Field, was that which came from the
faithful few who had stood by him and witnessed his exertions for twelve
long years. At the first annual meeting of the stockholders of the New
York, Newfoundland, and London Telegraph Company, the following
resolution was, on motion of Mr. Moses Taylor, seconded by Mr. Wilson G.
Hunt, unanimously adopted:
Whereas, This Company was the first ever formed for the
establishment of an Atlantic Telegraph; an enterprise upon
which it started in the beginning of 1854, at the instance of
Mr. Cyrus W. Field, and which, through his wise and unwearied
energy, acting upon this Company, and others afterwards formed
in connection with it, has been successfully accomplished:
Therefore the stockholders of this Company, at this their first
meeting since the completion of the enterprise, desiring to
testify their sense of Mr. Field's services:
Resolve: First--That to him more than any other man, the world
is indebted for this magnificent instrument of good; and but
for him it would not, in all probability, be now in existence;
Second--That the thanks of the stockholders of this Company are
hereby given to Mr. Field for these services, which, though so
great in themselves, and so valuable to this Company, were
rendered without any remuneration; and
Third--That a copy of this resolution, certified by the
Chairman and Secretary of this meeting, be delivered to Mr.
Field as a recognition, by those who best know, of his just
right to be always regarded as the first projector, and most
persistent and efficient promoter, of the Atlantic Telegraph.
Peter Cooper, _Chairman_.
Wilson G. Hunt, _Secretary_.
To testify the public appreciation of this great achievement, and of his
part in it, the Chamber of Commerce of New York invited Mr. Field to a
public banquet, which was given on the fifteenth of November. It was
attended by about three hundred gentlemen--not only merchants and
bankers, but men of all professions--lawyers and judges, clergymen and
presidents of colleges, members of the Government and foreign ministers,
and officers of the army and navy. The President of the Chamber of
Commerce, Mr. A. A. Low, presided, and, at the close of his opening
speech, said:
"We may fairly claim that, from first to last, Cyrus W. Field
has been more closely identified with the Atlantic Telegraph
than any other living man; and his name and his fame, which the
Queen of Great Britain has justly left to the care of the
American government and people, will be proudly cherished and
gratefully honored. We are in daily use of the fruits of his
labors; and it is meet that the men of commerce, of literature
and of law, of science and art--of all the professions that
impart dignity and worth to our nature--should come together
and give a hearty, joyous, and generous welcome to this truly
chivalrous son of America."
He proposed the health of their guest:
"Cyrus W. Field, the projector and mainspring of the Atlantic
Telegraph: while the British government justly honors those who
have taken part with him in this great work of the age, _his_
fame belongs to us, and will be cherished and guarded by his
countrymen."
In his reply, Mr. Field told the story with the utmost simplicity,
passing rapidly over the nearly thirteen years, through which the
enterprise had struggled with such doubtful fortunes, and taking pains
to do full justice to all who shared in its labors, its disappointments
and its triumphs. Especially did he award the highest praise to the
government of England for its liberal and constant support; to her men
of science and her great capitalists, and to the officers of ships,
electricians and engineers, who had taken part in this undertaking. In
closing, he said:
"Of the results of this enterprise--commercially and
politically--it is for others to speak. To one effect only do I
refer as the wish of my heart--that, as it brings us into
closer relations with England, it may produce a better
understanding between the two countries. Let who will speak
against England--words of censure must come from other lips
than mine. I have received too much kindness from Englishmen to
join in this language. I have eaten of their bread and drunk
of their cup, and I have received from them, in the darkest
hours of this enterprise, words of cheer which I shall never
forget; and if any words of mine can tend to peace and good
will, they shall not be wanting. I beg my countrymen to
remember the ties of kindred. Blood is thicker than water.
America with all her greatness has come out of the loins of
England; and though there have been sometimes family
quarrels--bitter as family quarrels are apt to be--still in our
hearts there is a yearning for the old home, the land of our
fathers; and he is an enemy of his country and of the human
race, who would stir up strife between two nations that are one
in race, in language and in religion. I close with this
sentiment: ENGLAND AND AMERICA--CLASPING HANDS ACROSS THE SEA,
MAY THIS FIRM GRASP BE A PLEDGE OF FRIENDSHIP TO ALL
GENERATIONS!" (To which the whole assembly responded by rising,
and by prolonged and tumultuous cheers.)
In the brilliant array of guests was recognized the tall form of General
Meade, who was loudly called for as "the hero of Gettysburg," to which
he replied that there was but one hero on this occasion, and he had
travelled a hundred miles to be there that night to do him honor. He
said: "I have watched with eagerness the struggle through which he has
passed and the disasters which attended his early efforts; and I have
admired and applauded, from the bottom of my heart, the tenacity of
purpose with which that man has continued to hold on to his original
idea, with a firm faith to carry to completion one of the greatest works
the world has ever seen."
The heartiness of this soldierly reply was echoed by the bluff old
warrior, Admiral Farragut, who had been so often through the smoke and
flame of battle, that he knew how to appreciate not only common courage,
but the desperate tenacity which holds on in spite of disaster, that has
gained many a victory.
Letters were read from the President of the United States, from Chief
Justice Chase, from General Grant, from Sir Frederick Bruce, the British
Minister, from Senators Morgan and Sumner, from General Dix, Minister to
France, and others. The Chief Justice of the United States wrote:
"I am very sorry that I cannot leave Washington this week, and
so cannot avail myself of your kind invitation to join you in
congratulations to Mr. Field upon the success of his grand
undertaking. It is the most wonderful achievement of
civilization; and to his sagacity, patience, perseverance,
courage, and faith, is civilization indebted for it.
"Such works entitle their authors to distinguished rank among
public benefactors. You will write the name of your honored
guest high upon that illustrious roll, and there it will remain
in honor, while oceans divide and telegraphs unite mankind."
There was a telegraph instrument in the room, and despatches were
received during the evening from Mr. Seward, Secretary of State, and
other members of the Cabinet at Washington, from Lord Monck,
Governor-General of Canada, from the Governor of Newfoundland, and
others. One, from Captain Sir James Anderson, was dated at London the
same day. John Bright also wrote a despatch and sent it to London, but
by an oversight it was not forwarded. He afterward wrote a letter,
giving the message. It was as follows:
"It is fitting you should honor the man to whom the whole world
is debtor. He brought capital and science together to do his
bidding, and Europe and America are forever united. I cannot
sit at your table, but I can join in doing honor to Cyrus W.
Field. My hearty thanks to him may mingle with yours."
He adds that he regarded what had been done as the most marvellous thing
in human history; as more marvellous than the invention of the art of
printing, or, he was almost ready to say, than the voyages of the
Genoese; and of Mr. Field, he says, "The world does not yet know what it
owes to him, and this generation will never know it."
About the same time, in a speech at a great Reform Meeting in Leeds, he
bore this proud testimony:
"A friend of mine, Cyrus Field, of New York, is the Columbus of
our time, for after no less than forty voyages across the
Atlantic, in pursuit of the great aim of his life, he has at
length, by his cable, moored the New World close alongside the
Old."
Nor was this mere rhetoric, a burst of extravagance, to which an orator
might give way in the excitement of a public occasion; it was a
comparison which he repeated on many occasions, though slightly varied
in expression. Mr. G. W. Smalley, the well-known correspondent of the
New York Tribune, in writing from London, on the very day that Mr. Field
was carried to his grave, recalls how he heard it from Mr. Bright's own
lips. He says:
"The great orator spoke of the great American in terms which he
did not bestow lavishly, and never bestowed carelessly. His
respect for Mr. Field's public work was sufficiently shown in
the splendid eulogy which he passed upon him. To be called by
such a man as Mr. Bright the Columbus of the Nineteenth Century
is renown enough for any man. The epithet is imperishable. It
is, as Thackeray said of a similar tribute to Fielding in
Gibbon, like having your name written on the dome of St.
Peter's. The world knows it and the world remembers. I heard
Mr. Bright use the phrase, and he adorned and emphasized it in
his noblest tones."
America has no official honors to bestow, no knighthoods or baronetcies
to confer. But one honor it has, the thanks of Congress, which, like the
thanks of Parliament, is the more highly prized in that it is so rarely
bestowed, being reserved generally for distinguished officers in the
army or navy, like Generals Grant, Sherman or Sheridan, or Admiral
Farragut, who have won great victories. Yet such was the feeling on this
occasion, that when Senator Morgan, of New York, moved a vote of thanks
in the name of the country, it met with an immediate response. It was at
once referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations, which reported
unanimously in its favor; and when, some weeks after, giving time for
due deliberation, it was brought up for action, it passed with entire
unanimity. In the House of Representatives it was preceded by many
bills, so that there was danger that it might not be reached before the
end of the session, yet on the very last day Speaker Colfax requested
unanimous consent of the House to take it up out of its order, which was
granted, and the resolution was then read three times, and passed
unanimously. It is as follows:
"_Resolved, by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America, in Congress assembled_, That the
thanks of Congress be, and they hereby are, presented to Cyrus
W. Field of New York, for his foresight, courage, and
determination in establishing telegraphic communication by
means of the Atlantic cable, traversing mid-ocean and
connecting the Old World with the New; and that the President
of the United States be requested to cause a gold medal to be
struck, with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be
presented to Mr. Field.
"_And be it further resolved_, That when the medal shall have
been struck, the President shall cause a copy of this joint
resolution to be engrossed on parchment, and shall transmit the
same, together with the medal, to Mr. Field, to be presented to
him in the name of the people of the United States of America.
"Approved March 2, 1867.
"Andrew Johnson."
This action of Congress reached Mr. Field in England. As he was about
returning to America, Lord Derby, still at the head of the government,
addressed to him a letter in which he repeated what he had said before
"in the Queen's name," "how much of the success of the great undertaking
of laying the Atlantic Cable was due to the energy and perseverance with
which, from the very first, in spite of all discouragements, you adhered
to and supported the project;" and adding, "Your signal services in
carrying out this great undertaking have been already fully recognized
by Congress; and it would have been very satisfactory to the Queen to
have included your name among those on whom, in commemoration of this
great event, her Majesty was pleased to bestow British honors, if it had
not been felt that, as a citizen of the United States, it would hardly
have been competent to you to accept them. As long, however, as the
telegraphic communication between the two Continents lasts, your name
cannot fail to be honorably associated with it."
This surely was all that could be expected from the government, but some
there were in England who felt that there was still a debt of honor to
be paid, which required some public testimonial. Accordingly, on Mr.
Field's return to London, in 1868, they prepared for him an imposing
demonstration in the form of a banquet, given at Willis's Rooms, on the
first of July, at which was assembled one of the most distinguished
companies that ever met to do honor to a private citizen of any country.
It embraced over four hundred gentlemen of all ranks: ministers of
state, members of parliament, both Lords and Commons; officers of the
army and navy; great capitalists--merchants and bankers; men of science
and of letters; inventors, electricians, and engineers--men eminent in
every walk of life. The Duke of Argyll presided, and speeches were made
by three members of the government--Sir John Pakington, Secretary of
State for War; Sir Stafford Northcote, Secretary of State for India; and
Sir Alexander Milne, First Sea Lord of the Admiralty; by John Bright; by
the venerable Lord Stratford de Redcliffe, so long the British Minister
at Constantinople; and by M. de Lesseps, the projector of the Suez
Canal, who had come from Egypt expressly to be present. It was a tribute
such as is rarely paid to any man while living--such tributes being
reserved for the dead--and is still more honorable in this case, alike
to the givers and the receiver, in that it was paid by the people of one
country to a citizen of another, who was regarded in both as their
common benefactor.
But enough of praise that can fall only on the dull, cold ear of death.
A few words on the after years of this busy life, and I have done. These
years brought a rich reward for all the sacrifices of the past. The
first feeling was one of infinite relief that at last the victory was
won. The terrible strain was taken off, and to him who had borne it so
long, the change to the quiet of his own happy home was inexpressibly
grateful after his many and long separations. He was now in his own
country and under his own roof, but with a name that was known on both
sides of the sea. The complete success of the Atlantic Telegraph had
given him an immense reputation at home and abroad. It seemed as if the
struggles of life were all over, leaving only its honors to be enjoyed.
What more could he ask to make life worth living than the respect of his
countrymen for his courage, energy and perseverance, and a name honored
all over the civilized world as one of the world's benefactors?
The practical results of the cable were even greater than he had dared
to anticipate. In the space of a few months it wrought a commercial
revolution in America. It was a new sensation to have the Old World
brought so near, that it entered into one's daily life. Every morning,
as Mr. Field went to his office, he found laid on his desk at nine
o'clock the quotations on the Royal Exchange at twelve! Lombard Street
and Wall Street talked with each other as two neighbors across the way.
This soon made an end of the tribe of speculators who calculated on the
fact that nobody knew at a particular moment the state of the market on
the other side of the sea, an universal ignorance by which they
profited by getting the earliest advices. But now everybody got them as
soon as they, for the news came with the rising of each day's sun, and
the occupation of a class that did much to demoralize trade on both
sides of the ocean was gone.
The same restoration of order was seen in the business of importations,
which had been hitherto almost a matter of guess-work. A merchant who
wished to buy silks in Lyons, sent out his orders months in advance, and
of course somewhat at random, not knowing how the market might turn, so
that when the costly fabrics arrived, he might find that he had ordered
too many or too few. A China merchant sent his ship round the world for
a cargo of tea, which returned after a year's absence, bringing not
enough to supply the public demand, leaving him in vexation at the
thought of what he might have made, "if he had known," or, what was
still worse, bringing twice too much, in which case the unsold half
remained on his hands. This was a risk against which he had to be
insured, as much as against fire or shipwreck. And the only insurance he
could have was to take reprisals by an increased charge on his
unfortunate customers.
This double risk was now greatly reduced, if not entirely removed. The
merchant need no longer send out orders a year beforehand, nor order a
whole ship-load of tea when he needed only a hundred chests, since he
could telegraph to his agent for what he wanted and no more. With this
opportunity for getting the latest intelligence, the element of
uncertainty was eliminated, and the importer no longer did business at a
venture. Buying from time to time, so as to take advantage of low
markets, he was able to buy cheaper, and of course to sell cheaper. It
would be a curious study to trace the effect of the cable upon the
prices of all foreign goods. A New York merchant, who has been himself
an importer for forty years, tells me that the saving to the American
people cannot be less than many millions every year.
But the slender cord beneath the sea had finer uses than to be a
reporter of markets, giving quotations of prices to counting rooms and
banking houses; it was a link between hearts and homes on opposite sides
of the ocean, bearing messages of life and death, of joy and sorrow, of
hopes and fears. One of its happiest uses was the relief of anxiety. A
ship sailed for England with hundreds of passengers, but did not arrive
at her destination on the appointed day. Instantly a thousand hearts
were tortured with fear, lest their loved ones had gone to the bottom of
the sea, when the cable reported that the delay was due simply to an
accident to her machinery, that would keep her back for a day or two,
but that the good ship was safe with all on board. What arithmetic can
compute the value of a single message that relieves so much anguish?
Thus the submarine telegraph stretched out its long arms under the sea,
to lay a friendly hand on two peoples, and give assurance to both.
Such a triumph of commercial enterprise was enough to satisfy the pride
and ambition of any man; but it was not in Mr. Field's nature to rest
content with any success, however great, and he was always reaching out
for some new undertaking to give scope to his restless activity. Such an
opportunity he found in giving rapid transit to New York, a city which,
though it has one of the finest harbors in the world, with approaches
from the sea that afford every possible advantage for commerce, is not
so favorably situated landward, as it is built on a long and narrow
island, between two broad rivers, which confine it on either side, so
that it is stretched out to such distances that it is no easy matter to
pass from one end to the other. From the Battery to the Harlem river is
ten miles, so that working men, who lived so far away, were an hour or
more in getting from their homes to their place of work, and as long in
getting back again, a large inroad upon their hours of rest or domestic
comfort. The only means of transportation was by street cars, which
moved slowly, and in winter, whenever the streets were blocked with
snow, were crowded to suffocation, and dragged at a snail's pace to the
upper end of the island.
This was the great barrier to the city's growth, and must be removed if
it was not to be stunted and dwarfed by these limitations. To furnish
some relief, an elevated railroad, built on stilts, had been attempted
on a small scale, but soon broke down, when Mr. Field bought the control
of the whole concern, and took it in his own strong arms. It was no easy
matter to galvanize it into life, for though it had a charter, it was
still obstructed in the legislature, and in the courts, so that it was a
long time before he could get full possession. But once master of the
situation, he undertook the work on a grand scale, and pushed it with
such vigor that in less than two years the road was in operation. It has
since been extended with the public demand, until now (in 1892) there
are thirty-six miles of road, over which the trains sweep incessantly
from the bay to the river, and from the river to the bay.
The structures are not indeed the most graceful in the world, as they
bestride the long avenues of the city. But these tall iron pillars, that
line our streets for miles, are the long legs of civilization, and have
a somewhat imposing effect as they stretch away into the distance, with
the fire-drawn cars flying swiftly over them. Dean Stanley glorified
them by a historical parallel which could occur only to one full of the
wonders of ancient times, that started into life under the touch of his
imagination. Going with him one day on an excursion, he stepped briskly
(for his frame was so light as to offer little impediment to motion),
and as he mounted the long stairway, and stood on the platform above the
crowded street below, he exclaimed, "This is Babylonian! Four chariots
driving abreast on the walls of the city!"
But Babylonian or American, the success was enormous. As soon as the
public became familiar with these elevated roads, and felt that they
were safe as well as swift, the people swarmed upon them, in numbers
constantly increasing, till now they carry over seven hundred thousand
passengers a day! On the day of the Columbus celebration (October 12th)
it was a million and seventy-five thousand! Indeed, if we are not
staggered by numbers, we may sum up the whole in the amazing statement
demonstrated by figures, that since these roads were opened, they have
carried over eighteen hundred millions of passengers, more than the
whole population of the globe!
Nor should it be forgotten that, not only is the facility they afford
the greatest, but the fares the lowest, for, thanks to Mr. Field, they
were reduced years ago to five cents at all hours and for the longest
distance, the ten miles from the Battery to the Harlem river.
The effect was immediate in the appreciation of real estate in the city,
the assessed value of which has already advanced by the sum of five
hundred millions of dollars! The increased taxation is enough to pay for
all the cost, while as a relief to the congested parts of the city, and
as furnishing a means for that easy circulation, which is as necessary
to a great city as a free circulation of the blood is to the human body,
it is not too much to say that the construction of the elevated
railroads is the greatest material benefit that has ever been conferred
on the city of New York.
But busy as Mr. Field was through all these years, much of his life was
spent abroad. He had interests on both sides of the Atlantic, but
stronger than his interests were his friendships to attract him across
the sea. He had come to feel as much at home in England as in his own
country: and his visits were so frequent that his sudden appearances and
disappearances were a subject of amused comment to his English friends.
When Dean Stanley was in America, a reception was given to him at the
Century Club, where in a very happy address, he referred to the ties
between the two countries, among which was "the wonderful cable, on
which it is popularly believed in England, that my friend and host, Mr.
Cyrus Field, passes his mysterious existence, appearing and reappearing
at one and the same moment in London and in New York!"
As Mr. Field was thus brought near to his English friends, they in turn
were brought near to him, for as no man in America was better known
abroad, no house received more foreign guests, many of whom he had not
met before, but who brought letters to him, and there was no end to his
hospitality. John Bright he could not persuade to cross the sea; but he
had the pleasure to welcome his co-laborer in the repeal of the
Corn-laws, Richard Cobden. The house in Gramercy Park became famous for
its receptions. Many will recall that given to the Marquis of Ripon and
the other High Commissioners, who came a year or two after the war, as
representatives of the British government, and negotiated at Washington
the treaty which settled the Alabama claims; and those to Dean Stanley
and Archdeacon Farrar; and to many others. If the strangers happened to
arrive in the summer time, they were entertained at his beautiful
country seat on the Hudson, to which he had given the name of "Ardsley,"
from the seat of John Field the astronomer, who lived in the West Riding
of Yorkshire more than three centuries ago, and introduced the
Copernican astronomy into England, and from whom the family are
descended.
In some cases when he went abroad, England was but the starting point
for excursions on the Continent, in which he visited almost every
European country. In 1874, in company with two well-known Americans,
Bayard Taylor and Murat Halstead, he made a voyage to Iceland, as ten
years before he had been to Egypt, as a delegate from the New York
Chamber of Commerce, to witness the opening of the Suez Canal.
In 1880-81 he took a still longer flight around the world. Waiting till
after the Presidential election, that he might cast his vote for his
friend General Garfield, the very next day he left with his wife in a
special car for San Francisco, where after a few days, they took ship
for Japan, from which they passed through the Inland Sea to Shanghai,
and from China to Singapore, and up the Bay of Bengal to Calcutta, where
he found the same English nobleman whom he had entertained in New York,
the Marquis of Ripon, Governor-General of India. Going up the country,
the travellers visited Agra and Delhi, where the wonders of architecture
showed the magnificence of the old Mogul Empire. The whole journey was
one of infinite pleasure and instruction, and they were never weary of
talking of the strange manners and customs of the people of Asia.
When they returned to America, General Garfield was President of the
United States, who, though a Western man by birth, had been educated in
New England, at Williams College in Massachusetts, where he had been
graduated twenty-five years before, and which he had a desire to
revisit; and it was arranged that he should leave Washington in the
morning of July 2d, with as many of his cabinet as could be spared from
the seat of government, and come on to New York and all be entertained
at "Ardsley," and the next day proceed up the Hudson and across the
country to Williamstown; a programme which was interrupted by the
terrible news that on arriving at the station in Washington he had been
shot, an event that instantly recalled the assassination of Lincoln. At
once there rose a cry of horror from one end of the land to the other,
and for weeks the whole country was watching by the bedside of the
illustrious sufferer.
Of course, the sympathy for the wife and children was universal, but Mr.
Field was the first to give this sympathy a practical direction. With
his quick eye he saw the condition in which they would be left by the
death of the President, as for them the law makes no provision. His
salary stops at the very day and hour that he ceases to live, nor is
there a pension settled upon his family, nor can anything be paid from
the national treasury except by special act of Congress. In this
extremity it occurred to Mr. Field that what the Government failed to do
should be made up by private generosity; and even before General
Garfield's death he started a subscription, heading it with five
thousand dollars, and taking it in person to his rich friends. The self
imposed task occupied him several months, in which he raised a fund of
over three hundred and sixty thousand dollars, which was put into United
States four per cent. bonds, yielding an interest of over twelve
thousand dollars a year, to be paid quarterly during the life of Mrs.
Garfield, and then to go to her children. It was a great satisfaction to
have thus provided for those who bore the name of a President of the
United States, so that they should be able to live in the comfort and
dignity that befitted the family of one who had occupied the most
exalted station in the government.
Not content with this, Mr. Field went to Washington, and urged upon his
friends in Congress, and finally succeeded in getting passed, a bill
giving to the widows of all Presidents a pension of $5,000, which, it
added to his gratification to know, would apply to the venerable Mrs.
Polk: and that still goes, and will go during her lifetime, to the wife
of General Grant, as the slight expression of a nation's gratitude.
Next to the interest he felt in his own country, his heart was in
England. While he was an intense American, and perhaps, for that very
reason, because he was an American, he claimed kindred with the people
from whom we are not only descended, but have received such an
inheritance of glory. In his own words: "America, with all her
greatness, has come out of the loins of England." When he was in India
he was proud of the mighty English race that from its little island
governed an empire of two hundred and fifty millions on the other side
of the globe. Some might have said that he inherited no small portion of
its unconquerable spirit.
And not only did he admire Old England, but he loved Englishmen. He knew
all that was said of English reserve and English pride, but long
familiarity had taught him that underneath this cold exterior were many
of the noblest qualities--courage, heroism and fidelity--so that it had
become a part of his creed that an Englishman, when once you have won
his confidence, will go farther and fight harder for a friend or for a
cause than any other man on the face of the earth. Among such a people
Mr. Field was proud to number many of his dearest friends.
A touching proof of their regard for him was given but a few months
before his death. On the 2d of December, 1890, he and his wife
celebrated their golden wedding. For fifty years they had travelled on
the course of life together. Children and grandchildren had been born to
them, so that at the close of half a century a large and happy family
was gathered round those to whom they looked up with the tenderest
affection.
Among the congratulations of that day was a large scroll, signed by Mr.
Gladstone, the Duke of Argyll, Lord Monck, and some eighty others whose
names are widely known. It was a graceful tribute from England to a son
of America, who had done perhaps more than any other living man to bring
the two countries and the two peoples together.
That golden wedding was the fit coronation of a life of wonderful
activity, and all the kindred who met under that roof were grateful for
the past, and full of hopes for the future.
But God's ways are not as our ways. Before many months the clouds began
to gather. The next summer, when the family were all at their country
home, sickness cast its shadow over their dwelling, which grew more
grave till November 23d, when the leaves were falling from the trees
before their door, the mother of this large household breathed her last.
Two months later the eldest daughter, who was also the eldest child of
the family, followed. These repeated blows fell heavy on the
affectionate heart of the bereaved husband and father, and when to these
were added other sorrows still, it seemed as if the clouds were piled
one upon another till they darkened all the horizon. The winter was a
gloomy one, from its loneliness and its many causes of sadness. But with
the returning spring the grass grew green again, and the trees put forth
their leaves, and it seemed as if the new life of nature must put life
into the heart of man: and when he removed to the country, and began to
drive about as of old among the familiar haunts, the beautiful scenery
for a time delighted his eye, and the change of air brought a touch of
the old spirit, as if perchance his strength were about to return. But
it was only a momentary flush, and he soon took to his room, where, as
he looked from his windows, and saw the sun going down over the hills
beyond the Hudson, it could only remind him that for him the sun of life
was about to set forever. Fair was the world without but desolate was
the home within, since she who had made its brightness was gone; and
here on the 12th of July 1892, the end came.
It was a beautiful morning, and the windows were open, through which
the soft summer air floated into the chamber of death, where his three
brothers, all that were left of his father's family, with those of his
own household, were round his bed, watching the dear pale face. Thus
surrounded and beloved to the last, he ceased to breathe.
Two days later a large company from the country round and from the city
gathered at Ardsley, and stood on the lawn and the slopes that lead up
to the noble trees that shade the dwelling, as Bishop Potter read the
blessed words, "I am the Resurrection and the Life, saith the Lord: he
that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live."
The next day we bore him away from his home, and from the great city
where he had passed his busy life, back to the quiet valley where he was
born, and laid him down in the shadow of the encircling hills.[A] "Bury
me there," he had said, "by the side of my beloved wife and by my father
and mother." The earth closed over him, and all his struggles and his
sorrows were buried in the grave.
The man is gone, but the work remains, a work that multiplies itself,
for when once a leader and explorer had opened the way, others were
swift to follow, so that now there are no less than ten cables stretched
across the Atlantic, and every hour of day or night, "when men wake and
when they sleep" (for even in the hours of silence the heart is still
beating, only a little more slowly), the pulse of life is kept moving to
and fro. The morning news comes after a night's repose, and we are
wakened gently to the new day that has dawned upon the world. That which
serves to such an end; which is a connecting link between countries and
races of men; is not a mere material thing, an iron chain, lying cold
and dead in the icy depths of the Atlantic. It is a living, fleshly bond
between severed portions of the human family, thrilling with life, along
which every human impulse runs swift as the current in human veins, and
will run for ever. Free intercourse between nations, as between
individuals, leads to mutual kindly offices, that make those who at once
give and receive, feel that they are not only neighbors but friends.
Hence the "mission" of submarine telegraphy is to be the minister of
peace. The first message across the deep was "Glory to God in the
highest; peace on earth, good will to men," and the first news it
brought was that of peace in China. And when again the sea had found a
tongue, its first glad intelligence was that the great war between
Austria and Prussia was ended. Thus at its very birth was this new
messenger baptized in the name of Peace, and consecrated to a service
worthy of its name.
"Man marks the earth with ruin: his control
Stops with the shore: upon the watery plain
The wrecks are all thy deed."
Not all! The wrath of man adds to the fury of the elements. To strew
the sea with wrecks is the work of lightning and tempest: man's nobler
office is to restore what nature may destroy.
It was the chief desire of him who has gone to the grave, that the link
which unites England and America might bind the countries that he loved
the most in indissoluble union. Though the two nations dwell apart, on
opposite shores of the same great and wide sea, they are now brought
almost within the sound of each other's voice and the touch of each
other's hand: they can look into each other's eyes, and exchange their
morning and evening congratulations with the rising and setting of each
day's sun. May the instrument through which they look and speak never
startle them with rude alarms, but continue to whisper peace in tones as
gentle as the murmur of the sea, as long as the winds blow and the
waters roll.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] The Berkshire Hills, Stockbridge, Massachusetts.
APPENDIX.
INSTRUMENTS FOR SIGNALLING ACROSS THE ATLANTIC OCEAN.
If the project of an Atlantic Telegraph be justly ascribed to the daring
of an American, and its success to his courage and perseverance through
years of struggle and disappointment; the solution of the scientific
problem involved in it, is due to the genius of a Scotchman, whom the
writer of this volume first knew (and it is a pleasant memory to have
known such a man in the beginning of his splendid career) as Professor
Thomson of the University of Glasgow, where his father had been
professor before him, whom the son succeeded in the Department of
Physics, which included the then little known science of Electricity, to
which the young professor devoted himself with all the eagerness of
scientific genius. The project of a telegraph across the ocean suggested
new problems and new difficulties, to which he applied himself with
characteristic ardor, the result of which is here given. When the second
expedition of the Great Eastern (in 1866) was successful, the British
Government at once recognized his eminent services; and the name of Sir
William Thomson has since been recognized, among the leaders in
scientific discovery, not only in England but all over the scientific
world. The government has recently added a further dignity in making him
a peer of the realm, an honor hitherto reserved generally for the
leaders of armies, like Wellington. To confer it on a simple professor
shows an advance of civilization in the respect paid to intellectual
greatness. In conferring such a title, the government does not honor the
man more than it honors itself. It is to the glory of England that such
an honor should be paid to science in the person of Lord Kelvin, as was
paid to literature in the person of Lord Tennyson.
The following, taken in substance from an English scientific review,
will indicate briefly, but with sufficient clearness, the problem to be
solved in signalling to great distances under the sea, and the
instruments by which this is accomplished:--
The speed of signalling through a submarine cable depends upon its
electrostatic capacity, which, unless it be very small, gives rise to
"retardation."
In the Proceedings of the Royal Society for 1855, Sir William Thomson
showed how the effect at the distant end of a cable, caused by the
application of a battery at one end, could be calculated and represented
graphically in what is called the "curve of arrival." After contact is
first made at the sending end between the cable and one pole of the
battery (the other pole being to earth), a certain interval of time
elapses before any effect is felt at the distant end. This interval of
time is denoted by the letter _a_. After the interval of time _a_ has
passed, a current begins to issue from the cable at the receiving end,
and increases in strength very rapidly. After a further interval of 4_a_
or after a period of 5_a_ from the first application of the battery, it
attains about half its maximum strength, and there is very little
sensible increase in strength after a time equal to 10_a_ has elapsed.
The curve of arrival is drawn by taking distances along O X to represent
intervals of time, and distances along O Y to represent strengths of
current. Curve No. I. shows the gradual increase in strength of the
received current at one end of a cable when the battery is applied to
and kept in contact with the other end. For a distance corresponding to
the interval of time _a_, the curve does not sensibly deviate from the
straight line O X; in other words, no effect is observable at the
receiving end during this time.
[Illustration]
If now, instead of being continuously applied to the battery at the
sending end, the cable had been applied to it during a short interval of
time, and then disconnected from the battery and connected to earth, the
curve of arrival would be of the form shown by curve No. II. Curve No.
II. shows the effect of applying the battery during a length of time
equal to 4_a_, and then putting the cable to earth. It will be seen that
a current gradually diminishing in strength continues to flow out of the
cable at the distant end for a considerable time after the battery has
been disconnected. This continued discharge is what gives rise to the
difficulty experienced in reading the signals sent through long cables.
The instrument first used for receiving signals through a long submarine
cable (the short-lived 1858 Atlantic cable) was the Mirror Galvanometer,
which consisted of a small mirror with four light magnets attached to
its back (weighing, in all, less than half-a-grain), suspended by means
of a single silk fibre, in a proper position within the hollow of a
bobbin of fine wire: a suitable controlling magnet being placed adjacent
to the apparatus. The action of this instrument is as follows. On the
passage of a current of electricity through the fine wire coil, the
suspended magnets with the mirror attached, tend to take up a position
at right angles to the plane of the coil, and are deflected to one side
or the other according as the current is in one direction or the other.
Of various other forms of _receiving_ instruments devised by Sir William
Thomson, the next to be noticed is the Spark Recorder, both on account
of the principles involved in its construction, and because it in some
respects foreshadowed the more perfect instrument, the Siphon Recorder,
which he introduced some years later. The action of the Spark Recorder
was as follows. An indicator, suitably supported, was caused to take a
to-and-fro motion, by means of the electro-magnetic action due to the
electric currents constituting the signals. This indicator was connected
to a Ruhmkorff coil or other equivalent apparatus, designed to cause a
continual succession of sparks to pass between the indicator, and a
metal plate situated beneath it and having a plane surface parallel to
its line of motion. Over the surface of this plate and between it and
the indicator, there was passed, at a regularly uniform speed in a
direction perpendicular to the line of motion of the indicator, a
material capable of being acted on physically by the sparks, either
through their chemical action, their heat, or their perforating force.
The record of the signals given by this instrument was an undulating
line of fine perforations or spots, and the character and succession of
the undulations were used to interpret the signals desired to be sent.
The latest form of _receiving_ instrument for long submarine cables, is
that of the Siphon Recorder, for which Sir William Thomson obtained his
first patent in 1867. Within the three succeeding years he effected
great improvements on it, and the instrument has, since that date, been
exclusively employed in working most of the more important submarine
cables of the world--indeed all except those on which the
Mirror-Galvanometer method is still in use.
[Illustration: FIG. 1.]
In the Siphon Recorder (a view of which is shown in Fig. 1), the
indicator consists of a light rectangular signal-coil of fine wire,
suspended between the poles of a powerful electro-magnet, so as to be
free to move about its longer axis which is vertical, and so joined up
that the electric currents constituting the signals through the cable,
pass through it. A fine glass siphon-tube is suitably suspended, so as
to have only one degree of freedom to move, and is connected to the
signal-coil so as to move with it. The short leg of the siphon-tube dips
into an insulated ink-bottle, which permits of the ink contained by it
being electrified, while the long leg is situated so that its open end
is at a very small distance from a brass table, placed with its surface
parallel to the plane in which the mouth of this leg moves, and over
which a slip of paper may be passed at a uniform rate as in the Spark
Recorder. The effect of electrifying the ink is to cause it to be
projected in very minute drops from the open end of the siphon-tube,
towards the brass table or on the paper-slip passing over it. Thus when
the signal-coil moves in obedience to the electric signal currents
passed through it, the motion then communicated to the siphon, is
recorded on the moving slip of paper by a wavy line of ink marks very
close together. The interpretation of the signals is according to the
Morse code; the dot and dash being represented by deflections of the
line to one side or the other of the centre line of the paper.
[Illustration: FIG. 2.]
[Illustration: FIG. 3.]
Perfect as this instrument seemed, yet after further years of study and
experiment, Sir William Thomson was able, at the close of 1883, to
present to the world the Siphon Recorder, greatly improved, because in a
very much simpler form. In this form of the instrument, instead of the
electro-magnets, he used two bundles of long bar-magnets of square
section and made up of square bars of glass-hard steel. The two bundles
are supported vertically on a cast-iron socket, and on the upper end of
each is fitted a soft iron shoe, so shaped as to concentrate the lines
of force and thus produce a strong magnetic field in the space within
which the signal-coil is suspended. He made instruments of this kind to
work both with and without electrification of the ink. Without
electrification the instrument, as shown in Fig. 2, is exceedingly
simple and compact, and in this form is capable of doing good work on
cables of lengths up to 500 or 600 miles. When constructed for
electrification of the ink, as shown in Fig. 3, it is of course
available for much longer lengths of cable, but for cables such as the
Atlantic cables, the original form of the Siphon Recorder is that still
chiefly used. The strongest magnetic field hitherto obtained by
permanent magnets (of glass-hard steel) is about 3000 C. G. S. With the
electro-magnets of the original form of Siphon Recorder as in ordinary
use a magnetic field of about or over 5000 C. G. S. is easily attained.
In Fig. 4 is shown a _fac simile_ of part of a message received and
recorded by a Siphon Recorder, such as is shown in Fig. 1, from one of
the Eastern Telegraph Co.'s Cables of about 830 miles length.
[Illustration: FIG. 4.]
* * * * *
Transcriber's note:
Spelling variants where there was no obviously preferred choice were
left as is. Since there are numerous quotations in this work, this is
partly due to spelling choices of different authors. Variants include:
"dispatched" and "despatched;" "embedded" and "imbedded;" "encrusted"
and "incrusted;" "hurras" and "hurrahs;" "northeast" and "north-east,"
and similar hyphenation in directions; "per cent." and "per cent"
(inconsistent use of period); "recrossing" and "re-crossing;"
"rockbound" and "rock-bound;" "signaled" and "signalled;" "stateroom"
and "state-room;" "undercurrent" and "under-current."
Removed extra comma after "heart" on page 26: "the heart of a prince."
Changed "abunance" to "abundance" on page 167: "too great abundance."
Changed "Knigthstown" to "Knightstown" on page 187: "at Knightstown,
Valentia."
Changed "announcment" to "announcement" on page 189: "this simple
announcement."
Changed "develope" to "develop" on page 299: "develop the resources."
Changed "grip" to "gripe" on page 363, for consistency with spelling
throughout: "a fresh gripe."
Changed "Hemipheres" to "Hemispheres" on page 381: "the two
Hemispheres."
Changed "mitror" to "mirror" on page 410: "with the mirror attached."
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