The Sun.
London, England, 1858-08-09 00:00:00

ULSTER.

The report of the directors of this company shows that the
receipts for the half—year ending the 30th of June last
anaonated to £35,055; for the corresponding period of 1857,
to £36,844 ; of 1656, to £34,046; and of 1835, to £31,376 ;
showing a progressive increase, with the excepion of the
past half-year, which shows a falling off to the extent of
£1,789 as compared with the corresponding period of the
preceding year. The earnings during the half-year
amounted to £35,026; the working expenses to £12,691 ;
and interest on borrowed money to £3,362 ; leaving a
balance available fur dividend and reserve fund of £16,646.
Ont of this sum the directors recommend that a dividend
of 275. 6d. per share, less income tax (being at the rate of
51 per cent. per annum), to be paid to every pro-
prietor not in arrear of calls en the 16th lest. Since
the last meeting £1,330 has been expended on capital
account, principally for an additional platform at
the Lisburn station. The Newry and Enniskillen Company
have paid £4,194, due in respect of the alteration of the
gauge. The carriage and waggon stock has been kept in
good working order. Toe line from Armagh to Monaghan
was opened for passenger traffic 24 h May last, and partially
for goods traffic during the present month. The Portadown,
Dungannon, and Omagh Junction line was opened for traffic
as far as Dungannon on the sth of April last, and has been
worked by this company since that date. The capital ac-
count shows that £788,315 had been received, and £763,876
expended, leaving a balance of £24,439. The reserved fund
account shows a balance in favour of it of £12,376. The
capital account for the extension line to Monaghan shows
that £190,411 had been expended, leaving a balance against
the company of £21,348. Appended to the report is a list
of the shareholders, and precautions are taken with a view
to inform them every half-year how they stand on the books
of the company.

IRELAND.

FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.
DUBLIN, SATURDAY EVENING.
TER ATLANTIC TELEGRAPH.

No detailed account of the voyage of the Agamemnon
having as yet appeared, the following letter, from a medical
officer on board of her during the operation of laying the
cable, will be read with interest. As the task proceeded,
the excitement of those engaged in it became in-
tense, and as the least negligence or error would
have caused another failure, the engineer-in-chief watched
the progress of things with a perseverance which
can scarcely be oppreciated by any one not -present.
If an accident had taken place it would have been irrepar-
ablwince there was not a sufficient supply of the cable to
'Mike' another attempt possible. Perhaps it was the know-
' itd.ae of this fact that rendered every hand employed in
paying out the line additionally caution'. It is obvious
from the communication of Mr. Mansfield, which is ex-
tracted from the Cork Examiner, that Mr. Bright and the
crew of the Agamemnon deserve the highest praise for the
zeal, amounting to enthusiasm, with which they performed
their arduous duties. In point of fact, the following letter
is a history, in brief, of the whole expedition, and It cannot
but be pet used with attention :
" H.M.S. Valorome Valentin, Aug. 5, 1858.
"Sir,—Being, I think, the t,nly officer connected with the
sbips on this expedition who may feel an interest in your
local paper, I hasten to send you a hurried skt tch of-this
our last and successful attempt to lay down the Atlantic Te-
legraph, in company with H.M.S. Agamemnon. Being the
first intimation of the trip you probably have received, it
may not be devoid of interest to some few if your readers,
though you will, doubtless, before many day s, have more
minute information on the subkct.
" H.M.S. Gergon and Valotout left Queenstown in the
early part of Saturday, 17 h July ult. ,
" ‘l'e (Valorous) reached the rendezvous, lat. 52 deg. 5
min. N., long 32 deg. 42 min. W., on the 2tlb.
" The Niagara, Gorgon, and Agamemnon arrived on
25th, 26th, and 28th respectively. The Niagara having
sailed from Cork harbour on the evening of the same day
that we left; the Agamemnon at 3 a.m. on the 18th.
" Onr boats having conveyed the end of the cable from
Niagara to Agamemnon early on 29th, it was spliced and
lowered into the ' depths of ocean' at 1.5 (observ. time),
the ships steaming apart at 1.25 p.m.
" It was rotund on hoard Agamemnon that it was neces-
sary to stop at 8 p.m., in order to diminish as much as
possible the tensten on a weak portion of the cable, which
was 'Towed to run easily out in safety.
"Au announcement bad been made to the effect that should
the cable part before 150 nautical miles had been run one
from both the Niagara and Agamemnon, we v ere all to
return to rendezvous, and an Ilitense anxiety was accord..
Ingly felt as the critical titne was approaching. That, how-
ever, was passed, to the comfort of all, when at 2.15 p.m.
on the 30tb, the Agamemnon signalled that her allotted por-
tion bad been paid out in safety—a similar result being ob-
tainer! at 2.30 p.m. in Niagara.
" Hit herto, nothing could have been more gratifying than
the calm state of the sea and weather, and all were san-
guine of eucctee to a high degree, a hen towards evening
on the 30th, the wit el cenittienced to freshen, and before
midnight it blew
an da
cau s gale fom
We tannery
ih!av tey
swell g tti g np, iolentmote t
the ship.
Gre fears were entertained for the safety of the cable
all night, hut in the morning it was still secure, !mina
bravely withstood a heavy strain. This strain continued
111.0 3rd Anus' when it commenced to dli, and to he
less felt, RS the wind shifted to S.W. on the day bt fere, and
was now fsvoorable.
"We passed trom tie deep into the shoe' water, i.e., from
1,175 fathoms of.oundings into 5:,0 fathoms at 7 p.m. on the
ele instant, lat. 52 dee. .7 min. N., long. 16 tlea. 7 min.
W., and at noon )estertlay (Wedne day, 4th) we were
in 415 fathoms, 861 mites distant from Valentin.
" Lest night at nine p.m., being less than 40 miles off, we
le ft the Agamemnon p'oeet ding so as to make the land be-
fore her In the morning ; we made it soon and anchored
after daylight, the Agamemnon coming up at 6 a.m. this
morning.
" We anchored in Doulus Bay, outside Valentia harbour,
BEd the cable was lamed by our boats, under the command
of Lieut. Richmond Moore (Senior Lieutenant of
Valorous), at White Strand Bay, off Doulus Bay, in the
forenoon, amidst the greetings and welcomes of all who
were essembled to receit c it. There were not, however,
very many present, as our arrival could not, of course, have
been anticipated.
• "Thus, the end of an unparalleled undertaking has at last
been attained, after ntany a combat with storm :wet sea, end
hard struggling agairt.t apparently insurmountable difficul-
ties. However, this satisfactory result well repays the
greatest expenditure of energy in its achievement.
"The cable has b-ett laid dawn at the season recom-
mended by Lieut. Maurey, LL.D., though the weather at
the end of June, when the last attempts were made, was
decidedly the most favourable, and it evidently would have
succeeded had there not been mechanical detects In the cable
itself.
" With regard to the per centage of cable laid out over the
distance gone—the greatest amount was 48.75, but this was
only on one occasion during the heavy swell on 31st July in
2,200 fathoms soundings, and with half a gale from S.S.E.
The general average has been about 30. Through the entire
distance the average speed of the Agamemnon has been 5
knots, never exceeding 61. Whilst the greatest rate at
which the cable paid itself out was B—the least, 6 knots per
o IT.
" The greatest angle that the cable has been ebserved to
make with the water, 268—the least 14 deg. 30 min.—and
the strain which was on the cable' never exceeded 2,3301 b.,
never was less than 1,0011 b., being inversely as the angle,
and not in direct ratio.
" These facts quickly put down from some hurried notes,
not yet arranged, I believe to be mainly correct ; but should
you find any slight difference betwen them and those welch
will be duly and officially peblieheft, art! consequeetly with
more ininuteneas, yuu am sure, kindly make allow-
ance.
here--by the simple act of man are hemispheres bound
together—the Old World now materially united to the New
—and this COMMUninII is effected through the extraordi-
nary medium of a slender thread laid
.be,neath the all but
great Atlantic . Hoping, then,
nn;athomable drpths of the
political ones
that tbst material riotous
with our social and
undnted also, may long centinne firm and
auunstraina td'
enterprisinend wishingg
every future serves e to an
perseverance and assiduity
sir,
11iy y ours,
company, by whose unmitigated p trul ,
it has been established—I beg to remain
"PIERCE MANSFIELD,
Assistant Surgem, rt.Y
VISIT OP LORD PALMERSTON TO IRELAND'
The anticipated visit of the noble lord to his Irish estates
Is treating the liveliest interest in all cirelt s. In comment-
log
upon the only announcement relative to the matter that
has appeared in the press, the Sligo Journal says
" We learn from the London papers Of this morning that
Viscount Palmerston intends visiting Sligo within a few
days. The noble ex-Pretnier's pretence in this locality
will
be hailed v ith delight 11 many
him in political matters, who, although differing with
gold his character as a kind land-
lord and amiable nobleman in the highest estimation."
DECLINE OF THE ROMISII PRESS IN IRELAND.
The shift.; to which the Tablet is resorting, in order to
interest the faithful in its behalf, are a new feature in
journalism. In its issue of to-dry it states the result of the
appeal it recently made to the Catholic public. It runs
bus :
" Since the circular forwarded to our subscribers, and the
lines which we addressed to them in the columns cf the
I'ablet of July 17, we have zeceived a great number of very