New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1858-12-09
"a IInproved su.bmg.rLne TeIaraph cabIa.


From the London Da ~ NevsJ
seems strange that though wire.coversd subma-
rne cables have been in for more than ten years
no Improvement should have hitherto been made on
tne rst rude method Of twisting the wires spiraliy
round the core. This method of protecting and
stieRt he1lhg cables Is open to many objections. In
the rst place, the full strain never comes upon the
external WTes while the rope is subjected to tension
until the interior core has been stretched to an inu
rions extent; secondly, from the constant tendency
Of the spiral wires to untwst In heing enilsd aa n
payed out, they very apt to kinK and form knots
which, as they pass over the pagingont machinery
either ininre the conducting wire or break the rome
altogether kInk is, therefore, one of the most en-
baTrAszIng and at the same time one of the most
commonly occurring accidents which can hammer tn
submarine cables during the operation Of laVinp: and
yet, while spiral wire coverings are used no anonnt
Of care and attention can always guard against them
a new method Of combining the wire covering has
recently been invented By Mes,rs. Stephenson and
Burke Of Millwall, By which not only increased
strength for given number Of wires is obtained in
cable, but the liability to stretch and form kinks
which, as above stated, among the chief disad.
Vantages OF the present method Of e0nstru tcn-is
entirely obTiated The cable consists interiorlV
q tour insulated conductors which are twisted to-
geLheF with rope.yaTn, so to form VERY light
though solid roe Of about three Of an inch
diameter; over this are plated braided twelve fat
STRANDS Of NO. ID gauge iron wire each strand con-
talhIog hYe wires; TINS operation is performed by
the ordinary Drad1ng in use for putting the wooden
coverings to the cords Of window blinds thOupb 0f
| course, constructed on a very much enlarged scale
me advantages Of this peculiarty in the construction
must Ne manifest to the most casual observer 90
PIE 50 constructed must he perfectly naszve and in
disposed TO untWst or kink while being paved out or
sboWeu away and almost without stratehiny rvorI5
. oSgGlne more solid and compact when subjected to
tension, Wniie, from the manner in which the wiraq
are combined and inteFlaced together The earnrate
rope WGuid near much greater strain than the snn1
OF the breaking strain Of each Individual wire. In
case OF wire breaking it MD be fpafgssibia FIR IL
to strip iDj1ring and weakening the rome "a tboss
disposed spraly Invariably do, while the 6egbiIitg
would be 10 no material degree reduced
As rope SO. constructed there is decided ecopo.
my Of materials for given strength, though the
manufacture is necessarily more expensive but alto
gether cables made on this plan would not be more
costly than those at present in use. The speciman
already constructed by the inventors is of cable
containing four conducting wires, It is about an
inch diameter and yet weighs about two tons 10 the
mile, so that its specific gravity being low it would
be capable OF sustaining many miles OF its strength
in water Its breaking strain is between seven and
eight tnns, and could be, Of course if necessary in.
creased to double that amount By altering the Gaupa
and number of the external plated wires One
marked popularity in the rope would be that to stow
it securely on board ship it would be necessary to
fake" it tore and aft the deck as it could not be
coiled away, having no twist in it. This however
would be rather an advantage than otherwise a.
there has always been difficulty in finding ships
with sufficient beam to allow electric cables Ii
be disposed board in circular coils sufficiently
large to avoid undue risk from kinkng. OF course
1t w0uld be impossible to fake any cable on board
ship tore and aft in rows that not from its con
strueon perfectly passive, and at the same time p.
able. The inventors have also taken advantage Of
suggestion which We threw out some short time ago
respecting the advantages which might result from
the employment Of ndiaTubber and gutta percha
alone Thus they propose on the usual gutta-percha
coating OF an insulated wire to pat moderateythick
coating Of indarubber to render it more elastic and
at the same time totally mpervous to water at any
pressure. This plan, before stated, appears to
be feasible one though whether it will fully succeed
when put to practical 5est remains to be seen The
mechanical construction of Mr. Stephensons cable d
unqnestionahy superior to anything which has hitler
to been introduced and must soon later be gener-
ally adOpted