Daily Davenport Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1864-1874, 1865-02-15

WEDNESDAY w. -:
- ASlaat1c Te1eGfsph.
,rrsm ths London Times, Jan. col
v.stnrday the somewhat tedious process
- soIGsuosd u shipping = portion Of
-, ssSnaeins eab)srwhieh has been ,naoe
~ this ereet undertaking from the works at
Grrsnvieh on board the hulk Iris, for trans
fsresos 70 The l6odwag, md 6nal seowage IN
~ SanIn Of ~ 0sbiG Eastern. Inc snip.
ment ~ began early in the morning. sna
q ,SiN nsn13aue without intsrmission now un-
III nssriv ~ eud Of is1s ~ which t!4e Il
!. hcs.3 Iii vifi BE- coilcd away snugly on
$500 - crsst steamship. The total guam
~. - -onc reouircd to connect Valentis
LA psITs Bay. Newfoundland, allowing
=" ~ -. ..s,eckw which must run out to pre-
-. - $500 strain On the cable, Is about
TO thousand three hundred nautical, or
nearly two thousand scve hundred statute
miles. With this length liberal margin is
Rivcn Of nearly six hundred statute miles Of
rope for slack caused by currents, possible
rough weather, and the avoidance Of any
thing like unusual strain on the cable in the
deepest water. Over one part of the route
the depth ID - great A. FROM two thousand
70 two thousand 1--WE hundred fathoms. or
nearly three statute miles; = depth, howsv-
CT, which Il only considered of moment in
case Of rough weather in paying out, the
mere strength Of the cable being sufficient
to bear its own weight in eleven miles Of
still water. In this respect, q, indeed, in
Ill others, the. new cable has IN enormous
superiority over the old and ill-used rope
which was FIRST laid, aud which, to the
a0asemsnt Of al those who knew its real
oooaition, nevertheless remained in fair
working order for few days. If such un-
expectod results were obtained from the old
0bls, which the advancement Of electrical
science since then shows to have been thor
Oughly IN adapted for its purpose, it is not
over sanguine to expect a far more favora-
bic conclusion to the present enterprise,
every step in the conduct ofwhich has been
marked with the most jealous care, not only
to guard against the dangers known to ex
list, but against other emergencies which ex-
periencs shows may arise, but which five
years ago were unknown. In size, in
strength, in better condition, better jnsula-
ton, and better outer covering, the new
rope is never less than three tunes as good
as the old one, while in many eases, and
these the most important, its superiority is
four or five times greater. Though much
larger cable, its weight in water per mile is
less than half that OF its unfortunate prede-
cessor, it, breaking strain is seven and
three quarter tons, against three and
quarter tons, the maximum strength of the
old rope. The method Of joining up the
two mile lengths in which it is constructed
is also great improvement upon the sold
cred joints in the wires Of the first cable,
while the standards for insulation and ''con-
ductivity" are as high as those devised for
the Persian Gulf cable, and the tests are
continuous in every portion Of the manutac
turc. Nearly nine hundred miles of the ca
BILE have already been made, and arc beau
tifully coiled away in the large tanks in the
Telegraph Construction Company's works,
lately those of Messrs. Glass and Elliott
Fifteen hundred nautical miles have vet to
DC manufactured to complete the cable, ex-
elusive Of the shore ends, which will be
most massive, and in length some thirty
miles. The factory now turns out fourteen
miles day Of completed rope, which in four
months time will give one thousand three
hundred and ifty miles, at the present rate
OF working, though, Of course. IS the days
grow longer SO in proportion will the hours
Of labor. 1t is considered. therefore, that
the work would be well advanced if tw,
thousand miles had to be completed instead
Of one thousand five hundred. Two hulks
have been placed At the disposal Of the COM
pany by the Admlralty-the Iris and the
Amethyst As soon as the Iris, now off the
works, is filed with her quantum of two
hundred and fifty miles, she will be lowed
down to the Great Eastern, and the Ame-
thyst will take her place, and in this man
ner. for the next four months, the shipment
Of cable will be continuous The cable is
wound on board these hulks at the rate of a
little over two miles an hour, and, as the
days are short and there is little night work,
the rate Of shipment is not much ahead Of
the rate OF manufacture. During this wind
ing on board the hulks, as during every 9TH
er process, the test for insulation and "con-
ductivity" are continued with the same
scrupulous care.
The interior Of the Great Eastern is I'M
dergoing important alterations to fit her for
her new duties as q cable ship. The great
object with su"h ships is to get Is few coils
Of cable - possible-in fact, if possible, to
have it all in one. Large, however, as the
Great Eastern is, she should never hold the
Atlantic cable in one coil for, apart from
its weight, which is five thousand tons, its
bulk in one mass would be gigantic coil
tiity-e'ght feet in diameter and nearly sixty
feet high-enough to fill Astley's theatre
from the ground Of the circus almost to the
roof. 1t is disposed, therefore. in three cir
cular tanks--one aft, one amidships and one
forward. Each Of these tanks il of solid
wrought iron, water tight, built on what is
called the thirty foot deck, and with some
minute differences which are not worth men,
tioning, all are as nearly as possible, alike
III sixe--namely, fifty-eight diameter. and
twenty feet high. The forward tank is. from
the shape Of the ship, smaller in diam ster
than those amidships and aft; but tho
heights Of al are alike. This tank is entire
~ finished, and will nc filled with water to-
day, in readiness for the reception of til,
first portion Of the cable. The after tank il
about three parts complete, but no com
plcncement has yet been made with that
which will occupy the midship portion Of
the vessel further than the removal of the
cabins, decks, and indeed, the entire inter
Tor portion At the ship. In order to sustain
the enormous additional weight which will
be placed on the decks when the whole o.
the cable is on board, the deck on which
the tanks are erected il being strengthened
by system of knee, and deck beams, while
tho lateral pressure Of the cable against the
sides Of the tanks will be overcome bv an
arrangement Of beam and supports. with
object Of confining the dead weight Of the
cable to the center Of the ship, and prevent
ing, Or rather overcoming the outward pres
sure Of the enormous mass when the vessel
Is rolling-ss the Great Eastern does roll
ct sea. This, not the least important portion
o. the work, is being executed by Mr.. Can