The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1867-06-08
4 ncin AuhmnrIne TcIcarnph.

e.e-. rhe utteranoe of which fifty year az, wolIl
have rendered q man. in public opinion. fitting
-tui-.ate ior an insane asylum. II j. I- rian
hrty v1r aEp thar = learned American sayaut. il
q laiuTct article. proved mot o,uelusiscIy q III
oEu aG-Gction AMI that Il MANY other. that il
Wa quite impossible f1r steamers ~ cru>s the
Atlantic. The project # q railway. with steam
ear. when first laid before Tie British Far-ia-
m=nt, was received with ieers Of Incredibly.
Nor vas wears he-ie.iu- the dpoz Il Congress
tefl-e hl- supposed JtoVian scheme Of az electric
telegraph received sufficient consideration 10 allow
u a line Being constructed between Baltimore
AMI Washington. NOBODY az irsc believed Ihat
Eri=~-1n's Monitors wouIi ever i've in Q -eawav.
or could be made hahirabie for human beings.
Thus. une after another, cd preooneei,eG ny.ious
- 70 what ! pa7sible for the creature man u
accomplish and what j. impossible. are G~isreIei.
and we 'acitly wait the announcement If some
new woIder. fully prepared not To be surprised.
For instance, if we should prophecy that in Z
few years hence Honolulu would be in tclcgrauhic
communication with San Francisco. and eonSe-
4uently with al the ret Of the civilized world.
the probabilities are that a plenty Of people could
De- found who would laugh az the idea a. utterly
visionary. Seriously, however. il l. quite within
NN -@=t Va EEE-'A-ANAt- AAAlL- GAElLE LHE fANl Ten
years, the cost Of making aud having a submarine
telegraph cable viii bc greatly rcduoed-So much
- a. o. bring tie accomplishment Of the enter
prise within the reach Of even orr modest means.
And Whenever that time arrives, a. II surely will
sooner OF later-we are fortunate in having
already a survey of the route between these
Islands and Sn Francisco. with ~ounding-. and a
reliable description Of the nature Of the bottom Of
the ocean.
On the 9th OF November. ISIS. the United
States surveying schooner FcgHiHa9re Cooper.
Lieut.. J. NJ. Broke commanding "a former pilot
bat Of % tons burthen). arrived NJ Honolulu.
after a passage of 10 days from san Francisco.
Lieut.. Brooke was the inventor of q sounding
apparatus. which was the one used in surveying
the bed Of the Atlantic. preparatory To- laying the
cable which now connects the old world with the
new. The regularity about this apparatus l.
that . thirty-two pound shot At the end Of the
line takes it 10 the bottom. Immediately ON strik-
ing which it i di-ensaged 10y a sprin. and falls
of. while Z glass tube Immediately above the
shot becomes filed with the soft sslimcntary de-
Josit Of the ocean bottom. Lieut.. Brooke had
specimens Of AL the products Of his sounding- in
the Pacific. mostly consisting of dead molluSca
and infGsoria.
About three hundred miles west Of the Golden
Gate lie found a submarine range of mountains.
running parallel with the Sierra Nevada range.
the depth Of water on which was about two miles
on an average, while the lowest depth reached
did not exceed three miles. The project ofan ocean
telegraph, between Europe and America. had
then been talkei of. and Lieut.. Brooke Lad
sounded the route. He said, while here in ISIS.
that there would lie vastly les difficulty in having
down q cable between these islands and the Cali
fornia Coast than between Ireland and New
fOuDdand.
The FsnRimore Cooper helm. on special GOV
ernment service. as a matter of course her COM
luander was Not at liberty 10 make known 10 the
public the results of his observations in full. but
transmitted them 10 the head of hi department,
whence they can doubtless be obtainel ON appli-
cation. The photographic officer of the schooner
was Lieut.. Kern, an adventurous as we'll a. a
scientific man. lie was the discoverer OF the
celebrated Kern river. the finding of gold in the
neighborhoOd of which created such a furore and
stampede among the miners OF California some
years ago
Between the Farralones and within fifty miles
Of these islands. Lieut.. Brooke made sixteen
soundings, the result of three only Of which
have transpired. 30 far az We have been able to
ascertain. These are as follows
Latitude 81 : y, Long 100 W, 240o fsthoms.
Latitude 250 y, Long. 1872 W, 200 fithoms.
Latitude Il ", Long. IA : % W. 300 fathoms.
With the exception Of the ridge before men
toned, there are no elevations or depressions in
the bed of the Pacific, but the bottom appears
TO be a vast level plain, to within fifty miles of
these islands, when the depth begins rapidly to
decrease IL. reach h.rr,Yt AZ Tho Iap-b Of rbraa
miles, required one and a half hours. and it
took two men four hours 10 reel up the line after
the bottom had been reached. With such
scientific men as Lieuts. Brooke and Kern. pos
ses=ed Of all the appliances of nautical science,
the utmost exaetitude must have been obtained
in their observations. The schooner was pro-
yided with no les than seventeen chronometers.
and to secure a perfect immunity from the least
jar, these were placed in sur,a fercha cases.
Our readers viii remember the japanese hoy.
Joseph Heeo. and hi> history He came to
Honolulu on the Fenalmore G Pc. and remained
here for a time. returning o. .wn country by
another vessel He l. now rc-n.ln. at Yokohama.
A. we said above. the full report IF tie cruise
Of the FeEHim0re Cooper. J. without doubt on
file in the Navy Department at Washington.
and ~ the present time it. publication would
lie particularly appropriate. The application
would very properly come from the California
delegation in Congress. and would unquestion-
ably meet with prompt attention.
The great and growing State Of California
needs and VIII eventually have direct telegrphic
communication with China and JaTan, and We
look forward confidently To the time when these
Islands shall become the connecting link of the
magic wire between the ancient and opulent
= Ind and the young and vigorous West. The
tide of human progress sets in this direction.
end We mus swim With lie cr--.n- IL I'M -