New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1858-07-16
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Two weeks have passed since the day when the
Niaeara. with the western end Of the Geographic
onbe. became due. and stfll she does not appear,
While W are entirely without reliable news from any
mart BIZ The expedition. True two vessels have re-
ported at Quebec and at St. johns within the present
week that they saw the teiegraphic fleet the goth
and 2&th nlt Id midocean and that then or immedi-
atey thereafter, very hoisterous weather expe.
ranced. But it seems to rs shat the friends of the
enterprise can derive very little comfort from this
statement. The vessels should have reached the
spot where the cable was to be united about that
time. aud granting that they were seen then, and
were about TO- or had already spliced the British and
American sections of the wire, the question arises
what have they been about during the three weeks
that have elapsed since thas timer Surely no single
storm, nor any amount Of rough weather, at this
season Of the year. has detained them so long for the
calculation was confidently made that after the ends
Of the cable should he joined, the work Of laying
both sections would not occupy at the outside more
than six days.
| We do not know what arrangements were made,
but we have seen it stated that in case Of failure
the eet, including the Niagara had orders to return
10 England. This, coupled with the statements in
English papers, that during the preparatory expert
ments the cable broke repeatedly, causing general
distrust in the minds Of those who were previously
hopeful Of success gives decidedly ugly look to the
aiair--places it in very fog bank Of uncertainty.
The public have generally supposed that the main if
not The only real obstacle to be saFmounted the
difdculty Of paying out and sinking the cable with
cut breaking or rupturBg it in such manner as to
interrupt the electric current She repeated CAREFUL
and long continued experiments of numerous learned
and accomplished electricians showed however, that
they did not share ID this delusion. Whether their
investigations proved completely to them
selves and the directors Of the enterprise we are not
Informed, but far is yet known, the question is
still open whether current Of electricity can be
transmitted through the twenty-five hundred or three
thousand miles 81 cable as readily when it lies upon
the bottom Of the ocean as when carefully cooled
above water. We find at least one electrician in
Washington altogether ncreduous of success in this
respect It will be seen By the date that his letter
upon The subject was written about one month ago,
iust after the Geographic feet sailed from England
WAsHNGTaS, June Is, 1858.
10 the Editor Of the Union
It is useless to enter into q discussion upon this
subject at present. There ID no probability that the
contract will he made, for two reasons First
the cable can never be worked if laid second there
are reasons OF which have been made known
| to the Government will prevent the execu-
/ ti0n IF auy contract with that Company.
i have some pretensinns to O knowledge of the sci
enee and art of telegraphing. Four years ago pub
ished 10 the world In America and in EnFope that my
studies and experiments both continents satisfied
me thata current Of electricity OF any known form OF
mode Of generation could not be transmitted for tele
graphic service from ireland TO Newfoundland. Since
that time there have been new discoveries in gall
vanic Or other electric developing powers changing
the state OF science, then calculated upan in the de-
monstIation oil the impraoteabiity Of the proposed
telegraph
1t has been stated that current of electricity has
been transmitted through the whole 5000 miles dthe
Atlantic cable in the ships and therefore there can
be no doubt but that the climax has been obtained.
This imposition has been fully exposed in my memo
rial to Congress- When the cable Is laid Id the water
the element Of retardaton then commences it's func-
tons. The further they lay out the cable the eeb-
ler will be the current untit cease totraYerse the
wire.
/ predict-not ais a.matter Of prophecy, but as
certain result sprnging from the fixed laws in cleo
trio science the cable viii be laid perhaps 1000
i or more miles, andit will be found unavailable for
/ telegraphing. n this dilemma the Company will
have the cable broken again. and the accident will be
| charged TO Providence! 4
tai. P. sHAFFNER.
We do not agree With Mr.. shaifner in the opinion
that any artice Of the sort will be resoted to for the
purpose Of concealing the discovery Of scientific
fact. Nothing would be gained by it. The persons
engaged in the work would doubtless greatly prefer
being defeated by the impossibility Of working
through the submerged wire to having the cable
broken and the fault laid to their own careessness,
eamsiness OF to the imperections Of the machinery
they have prepared atsueh great pains and expense
it Is therefore peposterous to suppose that the teIe
graphic cable would be purposeIy broken and lost by
the persons who have it in charge who are many of
them, doubtless, pecunafily involved in the expert
ment.
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