The Hawaiian gazette., 1875-04-07
The Pacific Ocenn Telegraph.


Among the bills before Congress, which
failed to pass at the late session, for want of
time, was that granting privileges to the COM
pany which proposes to build telegraph be-
tween San Francisco and Japan via Honolulu
There can be no doubt but it will pass at the
next session, when work on the telegraph will
at once commence, and its completion will be
only question of time.
In the American Ay4isn for january, we
find an interesting article on Ocean Cables, in
which list is given of all that have been laid,
their length and other details, showing that
over 10000 miles of cables have been laid
since 1850, from which year ocean telegraphy
dates. The article referred to contains much
of interest to us, and we transfer portion of it
to our columns:
" The honor of being the original protector
of ocean cables belongs to our country, in the
person of Cyrus W. Field, to whom Congress,
in December, 1866, voted their thanks, and
authorized gold medal to be struck and pre-
scented to him in the name of the people of the
United States. The Grand Prize of the Inter-
national Exposition at Paris in 1867 was also
awarded to him as " the promoter of the sys-
TEN of ocean telegraphy."
The history of the world produces but few
instances of greater energy, of more untiring
exertions, and of more mbounded faith in the
feasibility of the scheme for connecting tele-
graphically the Old and New World, than were
exhibited by Mr.. Field, through the long pc
riod of thirteen years, during which, in spite
of every obstacle and discouragement, he kept
on his course unfalteringly, each successive
disappointment only serving to infuse into him
fresh energy and determination to surmount |
every obstruction that lay in his path.
eve have not space in this article to recite
the successive steps that were taken by Mr..
Field to accomplish the object eventually at
tanned by the final laying and successful work
ing of the two Atlantic cables in 1866, and the
results that followed. Suffice it to say that
from the year 1858, when the first ocean cable
united for a short time the two hemispheres,
the attention of capitalists was directed to the
subject, and schemes were introduced with the
view of connecting the British Isles with their
outlying dependencies in Europe and Asia, al
though it was not until the year 1870 that the
different sections were completed, and direct
Geographic communication was established
between England, India, Singapore, and Bata-
via, and during 1871 extended to China, Japan,
and Australia. Other projects had in view the
laying of lines between England and her imme
diate Continental neighbors.
"To complete the 'girdle round the earth
a cable must be laid across the Pacific Ocean.
and when this is accomplished the dream of
Mr.. Fields life will be realized.
"The first step towards forming company
for this purpose was taken by that gentleman
in the presentation of memorial to Congress
on the 3lst of March, 1870, praying it to incor-
porate company, possessing capital of ten T
millions of dollars in gold, "with power to !
construct an oceanic cable between California /,
and Japan and China" and soliciting a grant +
of land in aid of the undertaking. A bill to '
that effect was introduced into the Senate on +
the 3lst of May OF that year, but failed of pas
sage before Congress adjourned Certain OBJ c
stacles afterwards intervening, it was thought
advisable to delay the scheme till the proper r
course of the cable could be finally deter k
mined; and, on the application of Mr.. Field, !,
an act was passed authorizing the Secretary of n
the Navy to employ the vessels of the United il
States to take soundings. This service has
lust been completed, and the project will now A
be pressed forward as soon as funds can be h
obtained =
When this line of telegraph is laid, its length G
between the terminal points, namely, San a,
francisco and Yokohama, will be 1913 nautical n,
niles. The cable will, however, be divided h
nto three sections-from San Francisco to :;
honolulu, 2,O93 miles; from Honolulu to Mid Ia
way Island, 1920; and from Midway Island Of
o Yokohama, 1920 miles. u
Several other cables are projected, but not n
et contracted for; amongst them the following: 4;
20 rs,,-.,