The Sun.
London, England, 1867-08-27 00:00:00

err‘ , d fora townsman who is perilr 1,
pular, and has won his place on th tiai - ,
by the highest professional merit. -4 1
4::--;'!..k:-4....::;40.k ..
If
The privileges obtained by th -r4igsl;j of -'-fr-,-3
le
Offices and Oaths Bill will not
~snfiered to fall -: :ice
into abeyance by the Corporation f „I?ublin. On
~
Saturday the Finance Committee a rw ;- ort ,:if
recommending that application be mM toprve ,
seats setapart in Marlborough-street Roman Catho-4
lic Cathedral for the accommodation of the Lord
Mayor and the membors of the municipal body, who
will appear on the first opportunity in their robes of
office.

New Underground Te!eeTraph.c System.

A large number of scientific and other gentle
elis,tienlyegrliispthyattlirtobueglimesuitigs,Enicieropoef
amsesenincb°lnendecot:l ‘l.v'iut
Mr. Donald Nicoll, Oaklands-hall, filb ‘. urn, for
the purpose of witnessing a seriesof
experimentA,
with an entirely nevel Qptci .* e, of u .dereround
electric telegr tpli, which, whether in point of
cheapness of construction as well as efficiency of ser-
vice, claims to be superior to any system of electric
telegraph c nnin unication yet invented. The
principle
upon which this telegraph system is constructed
consists of its being made in sections,of , any
length, and at any angle, and laid down in
shallow or deep trenches at option, just as a line
of a railway may be laid, but without the slightest
necessity for " chairs," bolts, rivets, &c. The
system is of exceedingly simple construction, and
consists of a zinc or o her metallic semi-tube, or
species of gutter, in which any number of electric
wires can be laid in accordance with size. ,In the
process of manufacturing the conductors the wires
receive first a substantial coating of inorganised or
insulatory substance, then a coating of fibre, which
is almost completely carbonisel by the heat of the
compound, and each wire having been thus sepa-
rately treated is then embedded in the trough or
semi-tube referre I to, of either 8, 11, or 22 feet in
length, and embedded in more of the insulating
compound. This insulating material does not de-
compose like gutta percha, which is known to perish
quickly. It consists mainly of cpure Trinidad bitu-
men, and withl6-gauge copper wires in zinc troughs
the system can be laid and completed for 20 ner
cent. less than the present cost of the unsightly
overhead wires, either on poles or housetops ; and
if 22 feet sections be used, two men, one for pour-
ing in the molten bitumen at points of junction,
and one for fixing the wires, can easily lay over one
mile of sections per day, at about 25 per cent. less
than the cost of overhead wires either on poles or
housetops. As regards underground gutta percha
and india rubber-covered wires sll that is effected. by
them is realised by this system at a cost of about 50
per cent. less. It is also a feature that, inasmuch as
the bitumen containing the wires, if placed 15 or 20
inches below the surface, the conductors incur no
liability of fracture, and therefore the cost for main-
tenance is of the most trivial character—a jet of
flame at any of the junctions enabling the operator
to repair or remove any damaged sections.
The experiments conducted upon this occasion
were of a very comprehensive character. The tele-
graph had been laid over the extensive grounds,
with points of communication between the hall of
the house, the lodge, and also the bailiff's cottage at
the other end of the property, and close to the
Edgware-road station of the North Loudon Rail-
way, and various messages and despatches were
answered with the most surprising rapidity and
accuracy, the insulation being frequently tested by
the galvanometer. A large portion of the trench in
which the wires were laid was left open to show
the junction of the sections, and the ease with
which any inequality of surface or angle eau be
dealt with. The process of joining the wires at the
junctions of the section was then exhibited, and is
exceedingly simple, being a hand machine, by
which at one blow almost any number of wires can
be joined. The size or power of the pressing
Imachine (either lever or screw) and number of in-
dentations in the plate or matrix forcad upon the
wires can be increased as required; indeed so eadly
worked and understood is this process that it was
stated that boys were chiefly employed in making
the specimens laid down. In the coarse of various
remarks and explanations offered by Mr. Nicoll and
his flien Is other advantages were point al out.
Amongst these were, that a larger num'ier of wires
can be laid upon any other system at much less
cost, and the wires may be turned at any angle and
over any height or inoroaiity of nuifacc. antollll
containing any number of wires insulated by
this method can be packed and sent to any part
of the world, and fixed by unskilled labour at the
needful depth beneath the surface of sand or soil, or
they may be embodied in the silt or mud of sea or
river shore, For crossing open country or running
by the sides of common roads thy trenches may be
formed by an ordinary sub-soil plough, and after
the trenches are laid and the sections filled in (ex-
cept to those possessing a key thereto), all traces of
the line of route will be speedily effaced. The sec-
tions, when beneath the surface, will bear great
weight, support extreme degrees of heat and cold,
and any number of wires may be laid with ease be-
tween a double line of rails or down an ordinary
sewer. In crowded streets traffic need not be de-
layed or interrupted, as each boss or point of junc-
tion is in fact a testing chamber of continuity of elec-
tricity, and wires can thus be easily tested and re-
paired. Sections can be made in any length conve-
nient for transport in ordinary conveyances, and it
had been calculated that 20 miles of sections, con-
taining 50 or more wires, may be laid in a day by
30 labourers. Thus it was argued that the Eng-
lish Government could quickly lay wires from
Calais overland direct to India, and possibly suffi-
ciently compensate those nations granting conces-
sions for passage through their territories by
allotting a proportionate and free use of some of
the wires. The system can form part of and
gradually be introduced into any other system
now in use, and it is obvious that the number of
wires may be almost indefinitely increased,
economy being naturally promoted by a large num-
ber of wires being laid in one operation, but it is
important to know that the cost of each wire will
ordinarily average not more than £5 per mile ; and
as the insulating material is indestructible, and has
been tested as resisting even the attacks of the
white ant of India, the usual heavy costs for main-
tenance and repair will be avoided. It was stated
that the directors of the Isle of Wight and some
other railways had given orders for laying this
system of telegraph along their lines, and a general
opinion was expressed that from its vast reduction of
cost, facility for laying, and indestructible character
of the material of insulation, it will speedily receive
extensive if not general adoption.—Observer.