The Cleveland leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1865-1865, 1865-08-07
THE ATLANTIC CABLE.
London Times Account
ure of the Great Eastern--.DlsnP'
pOIntmeut In Her Speed--IaEHns Use
Arrival at Valenlia.
Correspondence of the London Times.l
RvrpuAvEN HAhBoR, July 20, 1865.


BEERHlvEN HAABoR, July 20, 1855. /,
The voyage commenced at noon pre-.
iselv on Saturday, the 18th. At that
our the last link Of the apparently inter.
ninsble length of chain which held ner
anne crawling slowly up the side, covered
With mud, and in a minute after the single
9 h ton TrotmRn anchor, which had hela
Ter with such certainty during the most
Devere weather, was at the bows, and the
word was passed to go ahead at halt speed
The screw was first TO get to work. O
amid continued cheers from the crews OF
an the boats and yachts around, the treat
began to move slowly OF. AT nrsS
az against q strong tide and desd smooth
the moti-n was impercePtlDie 70
on board, but as with slow laoorlous
strokes the huge piston rods OF the PSoole
wheels began 10 rise and fall, The vessel
went aheld with greater CELEBRITY, tnougn
certainly not with the rspidity tnat was
expected even from shalt speed"
UsPLEAsANT DISCOVERY.
Once in the open wster the order was
given to go ahead with the engines full
sueed. With the first attempt to execute
this order an unpleasant discovery WAS
made. which has been, and still is, a source
of some anxiety and trouble to all inter-
asted in the success of the great undertsk
inc in which the Great Eastern is engaged.
s5e has not much more than half sufficient
stesm power, either for the weight she car
ries or the work she has got to de, suppos.
inc her to meet with hesd winds and
rough weather. The Great Eastern has
now on board rather over twenty-five
thousand tons, or 3 greater burden than
the combined weights of all the submarine
first was worked between Dover and Cape
Grispcz.. The great mass of this
weight-thst is to say, two out of
the three main tanks of cabIe-is of
necessity placed aft, thus bringing her down
too much by the stern-so much SO, In fsct,
as from this alone to reduce her speed at
least two knots or so per hour. This, how
ever, is by no means the worst. To make
room for these tanks it has been found
necessary to cut of two out of the six boil
ers which supply the screw engines, pre-.
venting the generation of more than Mt
teen pounds of steam in the boilers, and
thus at once reducing by at least twenty
five per cent. what was always q most de-
hcient motive power. Looking at this for
midsble d~iminution, the weight to be driven
and the deep immersion by the stern, 1t Is
not very surprising that no more than
twenty-six revolutions per minute could be
got al starting from the screw engines.
With the paddles It was almost worse. 80
deep we're they that, though reefed to the
inner ring, and one-third of the breadth OF
the floats entirely removed, they were still
half drowned, and st starting barely TOUR
revolutions could be got out of them
NO MORE THAN FIVE KNOTS AN HOUR
Under these circumstances it will not
much surprise anyone TO learn tnst Wnen
the omen water was gained, and the Great
Eastern tried to go full speed, she did little
more than turn five knots sn hour against
the tide.
WHAT WOULD HAPPBN IN A STORM.
There was no wind on Saturday evening
and the sea was a calm as q mill pond, &
condition in which every one wished /
mi bit remain, for the Great Esstern's fit
ness TO meet bad westher could be judged
bv any one on the old rule of giving two
quantities to find q third. Supposing {
ship can stem six knots, requiring three t.
keep steersge way on her, what is TO b'
done when She meets with q wind and hesc
sea that reduce her speed to two knois?-
The answer is u~nfsyorsbly obvious.
WILL IMPROVE AS SHE GOES ON.
1t must not, however, be supposed for
m0men vfuv hvr~-L-A.uatinns as to steam
power and towsge will apply to the yes
sell when she begins paying out the Allan
tic cable. For that important work sh'
IA high
and with every prospect of settled tAl
weather for some days. Every day, then
she will get rid of at least three hundret
tons of cable and two hundred and lift.
tons of Goals, or in round numbers, includ
ing expenditure of stores of all kinds, re
dnction of water in cable tanks, &c, shl
will tighten By five hundred and fifty ton
every twenty-four hours, and tighten, toe
exactly where she wants 1t most-asterl
and amidships. Three days, therefore, vii
when paying out the cable, take nesrl,
two thousand three hundred tons out Q
her-a reduction, which, by lettering be
trim, will very likely add 3 couple OF knot
to her speed, which is certain to increas
every hour she advances in her work.
BEGINNING To RoLL-
Calm as it was, however, the soft look
ing pulsstions OF the tide began to max
the Great Eastern move at last, and 8 reg
ulsr. even swing, rather than q roll, set II
1t was as soft and perfect as the movemen
Of q pendulum, but still deep enough, as
went some eight or ten feet each side, I
tell o the water in the cable tanks.
TROUBLE WITH THE TANKS.
The cable is slowed in three euormoU
water.tight, iron tanks, each placed lew
shout with the main deck, and therefor
some thirty feet above he ships bottom
To support the enormous weight of the;
tanks the most massive snoring has bee
used, though, aver with all the shorin
and the steadiness of the vessel, the lou
incessant cresking of the timOers unde
meath showed on Sunday the immen'
strain to which they we're subjected. a
times, indeed, the straining was IS lou
|, and violent IS Was made by the worl
ed timbers ofthe Agsmemnon during ht
great voyage with the last Atlantic cabl
, Each of these tanks Is filled to the surfst
with water, in order to keep the cable
a an equal temperature for testing its insult
ton TO the utmost, the total bulk of wat
, in the three being about twelve hundrt
tons. But IS water is at best the mo
T dangerous ballast a ship can carry, all Il
tanks are filed with double valves to q
a able the whole to be run of into the sea
the course of q couple of hours or SO.
IMPROVING IN sPEED X SPIRITS.
+ On the morning Of Monday, the l7t
1 every ones hopes we're revived on lear
: EzseSsSH an1iues were going sdll bette
! n that seven knots an nOur nAu hos
accomplished during the night.
! THE CAROLINE.
: OF Lands End the steamer Carolin
, with the shore end of the cable, was lyin
waiting for fair weather, and Was taken
tow. This totally unexpected addition
/, the lsbors of the Great Eastern's engin
made q difference of at least q mile an ho1
in her speed.
> GRAVE DISAPPOINTMENT AT THE DELAY
Seriously speaking, however, it was ms
ter of grave disappointment TO all int
ested in the success of the great undertsl
ing that q delay OF such vital momel
should occur at the last. It was certain
3 loss of time in lowering and laying Il
shore cad TO delsy them three days, and
might so far damage the plans IS even po
: sibly to delay the completion of the wor
till next ear.
7 I'M IN RAIN.
: The barometer had been going dow
: steadily; gray, ragged clouds began to 81
pear on the southwest, which q rising win
drove up from the horizon with ominoU
rapidifv Rv nina O'clock the saa WIS