Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1871-05-10

A correspondent of the New York Post writes
from Newfoundland April 29th
Since the attempts at repairing the Atlantic
cables were abandoned, a few months since, the
staff of operators at Hearts Content have been
allowed leave of absence. A few days ago they
were all notified to be at their posts by the LIST
of May. Soon after that date the steamship
Scanderia, the most powerful of the "Mainte-
nance COmpany's" Steamers will arrive on our
coast for the purpose of repairing the injured
cables. The enterprise is to be entrusted on
this occasion to Captain Halpn, of the Great
Eastern, and under his able management we
need not fear another failure
The wound inflicted on these costly nerves
which maintain communication between two
continents, is siXty-fve miles from Hearts
Content. About the same spot all the previous
injuries occurred. A rocky ledge of considera-
BILE extent, with comparatively shoal water is
found here; and it is now admitted by the best
Judges that the injuries have been caused by
the chatting of the cables on this ledge. In fact
the neglect of a precaution which the French
cable company were wise enough to adept, has
occaSioned our trouble.
tits well known that the shore ends of the great
ropes that stretch along the bed of the Atlantic
from Vaentia, in Ireland, to Hearts Content
IN Newfoundland, are very much heavier and
stronger than the portion which is sunk in deep
water, in order TO guard against chatting on
rocks. On each side of the Atlantic twenty
lie
heavy that it weighs nearly twenty tons to the
mile, and has q breaking strain of sixty tons
in fact it would moor the Great Eastern herself
The core of this shore end is, of course, con-
structed inlprecisely the same way as the rest
but the wire that protects it is as thick as no.
kers. Twenty miles of this tremendous bar
wire extend from Hearts Content towards the
deeper water and the same arrangement is adopt
ed at Valentia. But here is where most i'm
Portant Improvement has been adopted in the
oh all Il
deep-sea portion to the shore end, as is done
in our Atlantic lines, the constructors of the
French cable laid down a length of seven
~ miles each way, of what is called
intermediate cable" which unites the
shore end with that which rests in the deepest
water. This intermediate cable is covered with
twelve stout wires of plain galvanized iron, and
then coated to the thickness of some half an
inch all round with Latimer Clark'S silica COM
pound, which has been found to answer with
marked success in the Persian gulf cable, AT
the termination of these intermediate portions
the deep-sea cable is continued across the At
lantic. The danger arising from chatting against
rocks, where the water is but $50 or 200 fathoms
in depth, is thus guarded against, and the good
results are seen in the successful working of the
French cable hitherto without requiring any
repairs. Had a similar intermediate cable bepn
laid down in our lines this length would have
extended over the dangerous ledge on which
repeated injuries have occurred; and, in all
probability, these would have been avoided, and
an enormous expense saved to the company,
and unbroken communication would have been
maintained. The directors, however, are not
to be blamed for such an omission. Con-
tinual Improvements in the manufac-
ture and working of submarine cables are TAX
ing place; and when the 1865 and 1866 cables
were made they were supposed to have reached
perfection. Further experience has led to this
Improvement in the construction of the French
cable, which in other respects does not material
ly differ from ours, the deep-sea portion of each
being almost precisely similar in principle of
construction. The conductor of the Atlantic
cables is formed Of one strand of seven copper
wires, and weighs 300 pounds to the mile, The
French conductor is twisted in the same way,
but it weighs 400 pounds to the mile, which is
no doubt an advantage. Its weight is 10 cwt
mile in water and its breaking strain over
seven tons, so that it could support a
length of nearly ten miles in water
without much danger The total length of
the French Atlantic cable is no less than 3564
nautical miles, one length of 2,7SS knots being
required from Brest to st. Pierre, and T76 from
st. Pierre TO Massachusetts, The distance be-
tween Valencia and Hearts Content is, in
straight line, only 1,670 nautical miles; but al
lowance being made for slack, cable 800
miles in length was required. Up to the period
last year when our cables became dumb, they
were improving in regard to conductivity and
insulation, being in these respects twenty times
better than on the day on which they were SUBJ
merged. Their average earnings were E70O
per day. 1t is evident, therefore, that the in
Jurles they have sustained areIsimply the results
OF accidents that can be guarded against in the
future, and need awaken no apprehensions as to
the working of long lines of submarine cables.