Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1859-02-09 00:00:00

THE ATLANTIC TELEGRAPH

Now that the Legislatures of the two nations
are both assembled, which the Atlantic Telegraph
is to unite in immediate intercommunication, with
all its mutual and inestimable advantages, let us
hope that something will be done by each of these
great national Councils, in still greater furtherance
than ever of an undertaking that is universally
acknowledged to be of such paramount importance
to the interests of the two countries. The practi-
cability of the principle has been proved. A first
attempt to give practical effect to it has tempora-.
rily and not unnaturally, failed,—it has been so,
more or less, with most of the applications of the
great discoveries of science. But this ought not to
discourage its enterprising projectors. It is a
strong reason, we consider, why they should be
backed up by the two countries, that they may go
to work again with renewed energy, profiting by.
the experience of the past. But it is no reason
whatever why there should be any distrust, let
alone any despair, in the matter. Much that was
fabulous and fanciful in ancient and superstitious
times, it has in our day been shown may be made.
real and actual—and, moreover, beneficial and
profitable,—even to the possibility of realising the
boast of Puck,

" I'll put a girdle round about the earth.?

The boasted power and prowess, too, of old
HOMER'S fabled king of gods and men, of an ima-
ginary wire 'twixt heaven and earth, has in the
case of the Telegraph been rivalled,—and that, not
mythologically, but actually and truly ; although
his ideal wire, it is true, aimed at bolder and
more awful objects than the real one that has
united and is to bring into instant reciprocal com-.
munication continents that are two thousand miles
apart. "Having suspended a golden chain from
heaven, do all ye gods and goddesses suspend
yourselves therefrom ; yet would ye not draw
down from, heaven to earth your supreme
counsellor JOVE, not even if ye labour
ever so much ; but whenever I, desiring,
should wish to pull it, I could draw it up together,
earth, and ocean, and all ; then, indeed, would I
bind the chain around the top of Olympus, and all
these should hang aloft." Such was the imagi-
nary chain of the Pagan bard of ancient Greece,
the father of poetry and 'prince of the poets, and
which has been regarded as one of the highest'
stretches of all that was fabulous and mytho-
logical for a period extending back to centuries
before the Christian era. But the reality of our
time soars far beyond the poetry of HOMER,--or
of all the poets that ever set the universe
a-wondering and admiring.' For we have seen as
facts, what with them were only imaginations :
'our wonders are realities, whilst theirs were only
fables.

And the most wonderful of all these realities,
the wonderful achievements of science, is certainly
this Atlantic Telegraph, conveying messages, as it
has been shown to be capable of doing, through
the tremendous depths of the sea, and along the
immense width of that mighty ocean, in a moment
of time. "If quick as thought,' " said Pro-
fessor THOMSON at Glasgow the other day, at the
dinner to him in acknowledgment of his arduous
and valuable services during the laying of the
Atlantic Telegraph Cable—" if ' quick as thought'
was an inadequate expression for common tele-

graphic operations, even lightning became slow
through the Atlantic Telegraph. The most sudden
electric shock at one end gave a • sluggish, long-
protracted current through the other, which, after
a quarter of a minute, was still working its way
feebly out of the wire. That such would be the
action through a telegraphic cable of ordinary

construction, connecting Britain with America
was pointed out by FARADAY long before the
existence of the Atlantic Telegraph Company. An
exact mathematical investigation of the cir-
cumstances showed that a sufficiently large
size of conductor and insulating coat would
entirely

remedy the anticipated embarrassment.
But a cable of such dimensions as the calculation
showed to be required for signaling through 2,000
miles, at the rapid rate of an ordinary telegraph,
would be too unwieldy and too costly to be
thought of in a first attempt. Therefore the
Atlantic Telegraph Company, in adopting the
improvement which he suggested, did not carry it
further than in making the quantities of copper
and of gutta percha in any part of their cable
nearly double of those in an equal length of any
previously. constructed telegraph line, so far at
least as their first cable was concerned, and
prudently, in his opinion, they left the further
mitigation of the anticipated slowness to be worked
out by improvements in the methods and instru-
ments to be used for the transmission and the

receipt of messages." Now, it is these improve-
ments we want to see worked out, without further
delay,—for further delay would probatly be fatal
to the whole • project. The Atlantic Telegraph
Company have done their utmost, it is believed,
according to their means, to accomplish the great

object in view. But their means are
.exhausted,
and must needs be replenished; and, in our humble
opinion, the national resources of both sides of the
Atlantic might fairly be drawn upon for that
purpose.

Let us hope that, at any rate, the subject will
be brought under the consideration of Parliament.
The case, as we have said, is one full of confident
hope of ultimate success. " On no one point," has
the same learned Professor we have already
quoted declared, " could it be said that there was
any insurmountable difficulty, and least of all on
that which had proved the CallBo of ruin in the

present case. Increased- caution in the manufacture
and preservation, even without improvements in
the material,-of the insulating cover, with a more
searching system of detection for faults, might, he
believed; make very sure against any recurrence of
such a failure." But then, we repeat, there must
be the means at hand to do all this. And since
private enterprise, of itself, is unable to provide
them, the national aid of England, along with
that of America, may with great projariety be
extended.

MAIL NEWS.—The departure of the outward Austra-
lian Mal via Southampton, is postponed until Saturday,
the 19th inst., and the Marseilles portion will follow
four days afterwards. The Thames, with the homeward
Australian mail is expected at Southampton to-day. •

NEW PEERS.—In addition to the new peers who took
their seats in the Honse of Lords on Thursday last, the
following peers sat first in Parliament after the deaths of
their fathers : --The Lord Dumfermline, the Lord Lyons,
the Lord Poltimore, the Lord Skeemersdale, and the Earl
of Aylesford.

APPOINTMENTS.—Lieutenant and Captain Frederick
Charles Koppel', Grenadier Guards, is gazetted Equerry
to the Prince of Wales, vice Major ,Lloyd Lindsay,
resigned ; and Colonel Charles William Ridley, C. 8.,
Grenadier Guards, as Gentleman Usher to the Prince
'Consort, vice Dr. Lyon Playfair, C. 8., resigned.

THE LIVERPOOL CLIARITIES —A GaA.ND FANCY BALL.
—Our readers must rerneniher the grand fancy dre,.-;

ball that took place, some two years ago, in St. G3Ol
Hall, for the benefit of the Liverpool

Charities, and the
interest taken in it by the public generally. We regret
to state that the in my noble and benevolent institutions
of this town, which render such essential service to the
poor and needy, are, so far as funds is concerned,
by no means in a flyarishiug condition. Thi, is
to -be deeply deplored on all 'accounts, but still
we know there are hearts -to feel and 0p,211
hands to stretch forth towar'd3 the paw. Sync beievo-
lent gentlemen have called oar attention to this import-
ant subject, and it has been saggesiel that a grand fancy
ball, such as that
,alluded to, and which proved so suc-
cessful, should be organised this year, in order to recruit
the exhausted funds of the different charities. The
suggestion cannot"be too highly appreciated, and we are,.
convinced it will -be hailed with satisfaction. We
' have been informed that the floor in St. Geo.rge'-
hall, laid- down for the late occasion, „remains there
still, and need not be removed until after the intended
ball; and if that be a fact, of which we have not had
time to make ourselves cognisant, a saving would be

effected of over £53. We incline to think that as the
inhabitants have behaved so- liberally towards the memory
of a dead poet, they will act in a spirit of tenfold generosity
to help the living poor--we know they will. The occasion,
too, is an auspicious one, and we are willing to think that
the subject has only to be publicly broached to receive
a hearty response. If we may offer our humble opinion
deputations from the several charities ought to meet and
form a committee, and there can be no doubt of the
result. We throw out these • brief remarks to-day, in
order to arouse public attention, and "we would mistake
the kindly spirit, and philantrophic disposition of our
fellow townsmen, if the proposition meet with other than
a hearty and cordial reception—for whilst it will afford
pleasure to the participators, it will confer vast benefits
on thousands of our poor fellow creatures.