Field and his business associates were extremely anxious that the cable be laid with all possible speed, and little time was allowed the engineers and electricians for experimentation. The work of building the cable was begun early in 1857 by two English firms. It consisted of seven copper wires covered with gutta-percha and wound with tarred hemp. Over this were wound heavy iron wires to give protection and added strength. The whole weighed about a ton to the mile, and was both strong and flexible. The distance from the west coast of Ireland to Newfoundland being 1,640 nautical miles, it was decided to supply 2,500 miles of cable, an extra length being, of course, necessary to allow for the inequalities at the bottom of the sea, and the possibility of accident.

The British and American governments had already provided subsidies, and they now supplied war-ships for use in the work of laying the cable. The Agamemnon, one of the largest of England's war-ships, and the Niagara, giant of the United States Navy, were to do the actual work of cable-laying, the cable being divided between them. They were accompanied by the United States frigate Susquehanna and the British war-ships Leopard and Cyclops. In August of 1857 the fleet assembled on the Irish coast for the start, and the American sailors landed the end of the cable amid great ceremony.

The work of cable-laying was begun by the Niagara, which steamed slowly away, accompanied by the fleet. The great cable payed out smoothly as the Irish coast was left behind and the frigate increased her speed. The submarine hill with its dangerous slopes was safely passed, and it was felt that the greatest danger was past. The paying-out machinery seemed to be working perfectly. Telegraphic communication was constantly maintained with the shore end. For six days all went well and nearly four hundred miles of cable had been laid.

With the cable dropping to the bottom two miles down it was found that it was flowing out at the rate of six miles an hour while the Niagara was steaming but four. It was evident that the cable was being wasted, and to prevent its running out too fast at this great depth the brake controlling the flow of the cable was tightened. The stern of the vessel rising suddenly on a wave, the strain proved too great and the cable parted and was lost. Instant grief swept over the ship and squadron, for the heart of every one was in the great enterprise. It was felt that it would be useless to attempt to grapple the cable at this great depth, and there seemed nothing to do but abandon it and return.

The loss of the cable and of a year's time-since another attempt could not be made until the next season-resulted in a total loss to the company of half a million dollars. Public realization of the magnitude of the task had been awakened by the failure of the first expedition and Field found it far from easy to raise additional capital. It was finally accomplished, however, and a new supply of cable was constructed.

Professor Thomson had been studying the problems of submarine telegraphy with growing enthusiasm, and had now arrived at the conclusion that the conductivity of the cable depended very largely upon the purity of the copper employed. He accordingly saw to it that in the construction of the new section all the wires were carefully tested and such as did not prove perfect were discarded. In the mean time the engineers were busy improving the paying-out machinery. They designed an automatic brake which would release the cable instantly upon the strain becoming too great. It was thus hoped to avoid a recurrence of the former accident. Chief-Engineer Bright also arranged a trial trip for the purpose of drilling the staff in their various duties.

The same vessels were provided to lay the cable on the second attempt and the fleet sailed in June of 1858, this time without celebration or public ceremony. On this occasion the recommendation of Chief-Engineer Bright was followed, and it was arranged that the Niagara and Agamemnon should meet in mid-ocean, there splice the cable together and proceed in opposite directions, laying the cable simultaneously. On this expedition Professor Thomson was to assume the real scientific leadership, Professor Morse, though he retained his position with the company, taking no active part.

The ships had not proceeded any great distance before they ran into a terrible gale. The Agamemnon had an especially difficult time of it, her great load of cable overbalancing the ship and threatening to break loose again and again and carry the great vessel and her precious cargo to the bottom. The storm continued for over a week, and when at last it had blown itself out the Agamemnon resembled a wreck and many of her crew had been seriously injured. But the cable had been saved and the expedition was enabled to proceed to the rendezvous. The Niagara, a larger ship, had weathered the storm without mishap.

The splice was effected on Saturday, the 26th, but before three miles had been laid the cable caught in the paying-out machinery on the Niagara and was broken off. Another splice was made that evening and the ships started again. The two vessels kept in communication with each other by telegraph as they proceeded, and anxious inquiries and many tests marked the progress of the work. When fifty miles were out, the cable parted again at some point between the vessels and they again sought the rendezvous in mid-Atlantic. Sufficient cable still remained and a third start was made. For a few days all went well and some four hundred miles of cable had been laid with success as the messages passing from ship to ship clearly demonstrated. Field, Thomson, and Bright began to believe that their great enterprise was to be crowned with success when the cable broke again, this time about twenty feet astern of the Agamemnon. This time there was no apparent reason for the mishap, the cable having parted without warning when under no unusual strain.

The vessels returned to Queenstown, and Field and Thomson went to London, where the directors of the company were assembled. Many were in favor of abandoning the enterprise, selling the remaining cable for what it would bring, and saving as much of their investment as possible. But Field and Thomson were not of the sort who are easily discouraged, and they managed to rouse fresh courage in their associates. Yet another attempt was decided upon, and with replenished stores the Agamemnon and Niagara once again proceeded to the rendezvous.

The fourth start was made on the 29th of July. On several occasions as the work progressed communication failed, and Professor Thomson on the Agamemnon and the other electricians on the Niagara spent many anxious moments fearing that the line had again been severed. On each occasion, however, the current resumed. It was afterward determined that the difficulties were because of faulty batteries rather than leaks in the cable. On both ships bad spots were found in the cable as it was uncoiled and some quick work was necessary to repair them before they dropped into the sea, since it was practically impossible to stop the flow of the cable without breaking it. The Niagara had some narrow escapes from icebergs, and the Agamemnon had difficulties with ships which passed too close and a whale which swam close to the ship and grazed the precious cable. But this time there was no break and the ships approached their respective destinations with the cable still carrying messages between them. The Niagara reached the Newfoundland coast on August 4th, and early the next morning landed the cable in the cable-house at Trinity Bay. The Agamemnon reached the Irish coast but a few hours later, and her end of the cable was landed on the afternoon of the same day.

The public, because of the repeated failures, had come to look upon the cable project as a sort of gigantic wild-goose chase. The news that a cable had at last been laid across the ocean was received with incredulity. Becoming convinced at last, there was great rejoicing in England and America. Queen Victoria sent to President Buchanan a congratulatory message in which she expressed the hope "that the electric cable which now connects Great Britain with the United States will prove an additional link between the two nations, whose friendship is founded upon their mutual interest and reciprocal esteem." The President responded in similar vein, and expressed the hope that the neutrality of the cable might be established.

Honors were showered upon the leaders in the enterprise. Charles Bright, the chief engineer, was knighted, though he was then but twenty-six years of age. Banquet after banquet was held in England at which Bright and Thomson were the guests of honor. New York celebrated in similar fashion. A grand salute of one hundred guns was fired, the streets were decorated, and the city was illuminated at night. The festivities rose to the highest pitch in September with Field receiving the plaudits of all New York. Special services were held in Trinity Church, and a great celebration was held in Crystal Palace. The mayor presented to Field a golden casket, and the ceremony was followed by a torchlight parade. That very day the last message went over the wire.

The shock to the public was tremendous. Many insisted that the cable had never been operated and that the entire affair was a hoax. This was quickly disproved. Aside from the messages between Queen and President many news messages had gone over the cable and it had proved of great value to the British Government. The Indian mutiny had been in progress and regiments in Canada had received orders by mail to sail for India. News reached England that the mutiny was at an end, and the cable enabled the Government to countermand the orders, thus saving a quarter of a million dollars that would have been expended in transporting the troops.

The engineers to whom the operations of the cable had been intrusted had decided that very high voltages were necessary to its successful operation. They had accordingly installed huge induction coils and sent currents of two thousand volts over the line. Even this voltage had failed to operate the Morse instruments, the drag by induction proving too great. The strain of this high voltage had a very serious effect upon the insulation. Abandoning the Morse instruments and the high voltage, recourse was then had to Professor Thomson's instruments, which proved entirely effective with ordinary battery current.

Because of the effect of induction the current is much delayed in traveling through a long submarine cable and arrives in waves. Professor Thomson devised his mirror galvanometer to meet this difficulty. This device consists of a large coil of very fine wire, in the center of which, in a small air-chamber, is a tiny mirror. Mounted on the back of the mirror are very small magnets. The mirror is suspended by a fiber of the finest silk. Thus the weakest of currents coming in over the wire serve to deflect the mirror, and a beam of light being directed upon the mirror and reflected by it upon a screen, the slightest movement of the mirror is made visible. If the mirror swings too far its action is deadened by compressing the air in the chamber. The instrument is one of the greatest delicacy. Such was the greatest contribution of Professor Thomson to submarine telegraphy. Without it the cable could not have been operated even for a short period. Had it been used from the first the line would not have been ruined and might have been used for a considerable period.

Professor Thomson together with Engineer Bright made a careful investigation of the causes of failure. The professor pointed out that had the mirror galvanometer been used with a moderate current the cable could have been continued in successful operation. Ha continued to improve this apparatus and at the same time busied himself with a recording instrument to be used for cable work. Both Thomson and Bright had recommended a larger and stronger cable, and other failures in cable-laying in the Red Sea and elsewhere in the next few years bore out their contentions. But with each failure new experience was gained and methods were perfected. Professor Thomson continued his work with the utmost diligence and continued to add to the fund of scientific knowledge on the subject. So it was that he was prepared to take his place as scientific leader of the next great effort.

Chapter 9 THE PIONEER ATLANTIC CABLE

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