Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1879-04-17
The Atlantic Cable.

The New York Evening Post says, In
an article referring to the grand recep-
tion given at the house OF Cyrus w.
anniversary OF the formation OF the first
company to lay a telegraphic cable
across the Atlantic ocean:
As early as 1850 a copper wire, cover
cd with gutta- -percha, was laid across
the English channel between Dover and
Calais, but communication was kept up
by it for short time only. It was re-
placed next year by n cable Of four
wires, which is still working. Still
earlier wire had been laid across the
Rhine, n distance of only half mile,
and within O few years several other
submarine cables were laid, but they
were all short and in shallow water.
The longest was the Holland cable,
which was stretched for but one hun.
dred and thirty miles and in water
but few fathoms in depth. No at
tempt was made 10 establish telegTaphic
communication across the Atlantic until
1854, when the "New York, Newfound-
land and London Telegraph company 4"
was formed in Mr.. Fields house-the
same whith he now inhabits in Gramer-
cy park. The agreement TO organize
this company was signed in Mr.. Fields
dining-room on the 10th Of March, 1864,
by Mr.. Field, Peer Cooper, Moses Tay-
lor, Marshall o. Roberts and Chandler
White. David Dudley Field was pres
eut on the occasion as counsel, and went
with his brother Cyrus to st. Johns TO
obtain the charter, which declared The
object OF the company 10 be "to estab-
lish a line OF telegraphic communica.
tion between America and Europe by
way OF Newfoundland"
MIR. White died soon after, and was
succeeded by Wilson q. Hunt. When
the line 10 Newfoundland was COM
pletcd Cyrus w. Field went to London,
where he organized the Atlantic Tele-
graph company in 1866. In the follow
ing year an attempt was made to lay
the FIRST transatlantic cable, but il broke
when tho ships were about three hun
dred miles from the coast Of Ireland,
and the enterprise was suspended. In
1853 n second attempt was made. The
American man-of war Niagara and the
English mAn-of- war Agamemnon sailed
for the middle OF the Atlantic, where il
was intended that they should join
cables and then sail back, east and est,
to carry the two ends to their respect
i've countries. A violent storm arose
before the vessels met, in which the
Agamemnon narrowly escaped founder
ing, and after the cable was Joined il
parted several times, 80 chat the eIpe
dition wss abandoned. In the simmer
Of the same year another effort was
made with success, and the result was
hailed with public rcioicipgs but al
though messages we're exchanged be-
tween England and the United States.
and the practicability Of the project was
demonstrated, communication was main
tanned for only three weeks. IL was re-
established in 1896, after two new cables
had been manufactured. One of the
latter was partly laid in 1885. but broke
/ IN mid.ocean. II was Z! she'd MP IN tie
I following yegr ana carried 10 The coast
| OF Newfoundland.
The cable of 1853 was tho pioneer of
deep.sea telegrapby throughout the
I world. In consequence Of it's success,
/ temporary as il was, cables were laid IN
| the Mediterranean, tho Red soa, the
/ Persian gulf, the Arabian Fcn and the
| bay Of Bengal, down the Malsyan pc
ninsulA 10 Penang aud Singapore, along
the coast Of Asia TO China, and across
| to Japan. Lines were also carried 20
/ Java and across to Australia and New
/ Zealand, while in the western world
/ cables were laid to Cuba, the West
India islands, and along the coast oi
Sonth America.
OF the persons who composed The
original Atlantic cable company. all e1.
cept Mr.. White are nov living.