The Sun.
London, England, 1866-08-18 00:00:00

allow themselves to be carried away by the smoothness of
24 hours',events. The convoy kept their position accurately
during the day. The Terrible signalled to us at 1.45 p.m.
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.
At 10.45 p.m., Mr. Willoughby Smith sent in the latest
news from Europe, set up in this form :

" THE GREAT EASTERN TELEGRAPH,
SATURDAY EVENING, July 14, 1866. Vol. I. No. 1.
"General Cialdini is moving upon Rovigo, with an army
of more than 100,000 men and 200 guns. The Austrians
have evacuated the whole country between the Mincio and
the Adige— _

" Seems it not a feat sublime
Intellect hath conquered time ?"
The welcome arrival of this message (and by concert
with the shore we shall be kept advised of all the leading
European news) is a practical proof of the value of our
chief electrician's arrangements, for while the message was
being transmitted to us the insulation tests were continu-
ously going on.
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, &c., may be made simul-
taneously with the tests for insulation which is not inter-
rupted at all ; whereas last year, during half the time spent
in laying the cable, the insulation was wholly neglected, as
will presently be shown.
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 10 minutes each, tests were made to ascertain the resist-
ance 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
insidation 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 ob-
servations 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 con-
ductor of the cable. The effect of this is to increase the
rr, deflection on the ship's insulation galvanometer, thus serv-
ing as a continuity test. Communications from shore to
ship are also made by these means. Ship can send signals
to shore by simply reversing the currentfor certain lengths
of time, answering to some understood code or by increas-
ing-and diminishing the tension of the line, according to a
prearranged 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. And now a word or two about the paying out
and picking up machinery of 1866 ; and we shall see how
the experience gathered from 186 f, has been practically car-
ried into effect. Tho paying out apparatus is the same as
used last year, with the exception of a stronger drum,which
is necessary for the purpose of hauling in the cable at the
stern if required. Powerful gear has been placed by the
side of the machine, so that by means of clutches the drum
can be reversed, and the cable hauled back, in case a fault
is discovered. This gear is driven by a 40-horse power
engine, made by Messrs. Penn, and supplied with steam
from the main boilers of the ship, which insures a supply
at any moment. The hauling-in machine for grappling
placed at the fore part of the ship, is more powerful than
the one used last year, and consists of two drums of sft.
Bin. in diameter each, by 20in. broad, connected by
gear with a Penn engine of 40-horse power, similar
to that attached to the paying out machine. The rope or
cable passes over both drums, and an arrangement is made
for " fleeting" the grapnel rope or cable on the drums by
means of small rollers placed between the drums, and each
roller guiding.a turn of the rope or cable as it passes from
one drum to the other. This engine is also supplied with
steam power from the ship's main boilers. At ten minutes
past 10 p.m. the Albany was observed to drop astern, and
we learned through the medium of Colomb's admirable
flash signals, at a distance of about five miles, that she had
lost the bolt of her eccentric. At day light, the damage
having been repaired, she was again in position. The sys-
tem of signalling on board is very perfect, and the convoy,
like the Great Eastern, has been supplied by the Admiralty
with experienced signalman. We sent early this morning
the news of Cialdini's advance upon Rovigo to Captain
Commerell, of the Terrible, and to Captain Batt, RN., and
Captain Prowse, R.N., who are on board the Albany and
Medway. Messages are to be sent every morning to the
convoy, giving Greenwich time, by Rede's cone telegraph.
The umbrella cone being opened two minutes previously,
at 10.30 it will be collapsed, and the time will b 3 given ac-
curately. Divine service was performed in the dining
saloon by Capt. Anderson. At noon to-day we had payed
out 283.24 miles, slack 7.69 per cent. Lat. 52 deg. 1 min. 15
sec. ; long. 17 deg. 29 sec. ; course N. 89.40 W. Distance
from Valentia Telegraph Office 263, from office at Heart's
Content 1,406. Another message has arrived, and has been
duly published in the Great Eastern Telegraph :—" Italy
has declared to France not to accept separate armistice.
Impressions here very warlike, chances of peace having
declined. French fleet on its way to Venice, and French
commissioners ordered to Venetia. Notice sent head-
quarters of Prussian army to announce armed mediation
of the Emperor.-Paris, 10th July, evening."
MONDAY, July 16.
Still everything going on well—the sea like a mill-pond.
The paying out of the cable from the after-tank progressing
with uniform certainty and steadiness, and the electrical
tests perfect. We are now paying out some of the cable of
1865. This tank contains 839.685 miles, of which there
are 267 miles of the old cable. The fore-tank, from which
we shall pay out next, holds 670.83 miles, with about three
miles of shore-end, and the number of miles stowed in the
main is 865-439. Mr. Canning calculates that we shall have
payed out the remaining portion of the old cable by to-
morrow morning, and if nothing arises in the way of acci-
dent by Thursday night or early Friday morning the after-
tank will be emptied. We ought to be then pretty nearly
half-way to Heart's Content.
We had a second edition of the Great Eastern Telegraph
at dinner yesterday giving us tho following news, which
was speedily transmitted later in the evening by Colomb's
flash signals to Capt. Commerell, of the Terrible, who can
lay claim to being the first captain of her Majesty's navy
who enjoyed the luxury of getting news from Europe twice
a day on the Atlantic Ocean :
" China arrived, with news from America, via Halifax.
Money abundant ; gold 1531. Exchange on London 167.
Dreadful fire at Portland ; half city burnt ; 2,000 families
homeless ; damage 10 million dollars.
" Saturday's News—No alteration in bank rate. Prus-
sians have declined armistice. Consols 871. Cork steamer
Osprey in collision with H.M.S. Amazon, for Halifax off
Portland, July 6. Both foundered. Dozen drowned. Rest
reached Torquay in boats. Amazon put helm hard star-
board."
Our track is about 30 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. The depth of
water during yesterday was between 1,950 and 2,100
fathoms. Temperature 58 deg. Average strain indicated
by the dynamometer, 10.51. Our average speed has been
about five knots. We were obliged to stop the screw en-
gines in order to bring her down to that speed, and, more-
over, to reduce the paddle boiler power. Capt. Anderson's
ingenious mode of cleansing. the ship's bottom, which he
sedulously carried out during last winter at Sheerness, has
proved to have effected this vary desirable object ; for Mr.
Beckwith, the engineer, is now enabled to regulate and.
adjust her speed and get more out of the ship, if y
necessar ,
than he could last year, when her bottom was an encrusted
mass of mussels.
We exchange latitude and longitude daily with the ecn_
voy. Staff-Commander Moriarty takes his observations in-
dependently, and Captain Anderson and his officers take
theirs ; so whenever the sun gives them a chance many
sextants are at work.
More news from Valentia ; but, alas! how sad in some
respects :
" Cholera broken out in Liverpool—several deaths. Yel-
low fever raging in Vera Cruz. Birmingham Banking
Company stopped payment on Saturday—liabilities over
two millions-800 shareholders. Darmstadt, July 12, 2
a.m.—Princess Louis of Hesse gave birth to aprincess. S.S.
Hibernia left Greencastle for Quebec, 6 a.m., Friday.
Drammen, Norway.—Fire-300 houses burnt-6, 000 per-
sons homeless, July 13th. House of Lords, Friday.—En-
field rifles to be converted into breech-loaders."
Capt. Moriarty has just issued his bulletin. We learn
that at noon to-day we had payed out 420.12 miles of cable;
Per centage of slack, 11.08 ; distance from Valentia, 378.2;
from Heart's Content, 1,290 miles; lat. 52 deg. 6 min., lon
20 deg, 36 min.

T, July 17.
Another 24 hours sucs of uninterrupted U
cess.ESDAY
socalm All day yes-
terday it was 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
a
glorious sunset, later,
ofa crescent moon, which we hope
to see in the brightnessher full, lighting our way into
Trinity Bay, before the cla of this July shall have ended.
thet remaining At 7.55 a.m. Greenwich time,yspayec out of the tank, and we are
cable of 1865 had boon portion of the
cable.o At 9.10 tho screw
now rapidly getting rid of the n
and the paddles
engines were slowed to 18 revel
wena left has been
slowed' to four. Our average speed Zs'
breakfastometer since
about five. The strain indicated by the dynamometer
eastwara we
yosterday at 12 o'clock has been 11.
saw a barque to the northward, steering
Our progress up to to-day is thus indicated in the offi-
cial paper posted in the cabin : —Cable payed out, 557.82.
Slack on distance, 12.44. Lat. 52 dog. 15 min.; long. 23
deg. 48 min. Distance from Valentia, Office, 496.1. To
Heart's Content Office, 89 35 W., 1,173. Depth of water,
1,950. Wind south.
News from London just as we were at lunch :
" Prussians had successful engagement before Olmutz
yesterday. Captured six guns. Further fighting expected
to-day. Austrians withdrawing from Moravia towards
Vienna. London, Tuesday"

WEDNESDAY, July 18.

. _
A fresh breeze from the southward. A dull grey sky
with occasional rain and a moderate sea, prevailed from► noon