The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1879-12-04
The Landing of the French Cable.

At the outset the cables were each
wrapped with binding wire at point 90
feet from their ends, and it was back to
this binding wire the armor wires were
afterwards unwound. Now, on each
end, each alternate wire was nipped off
at the Selling. The armor wires were
then retwisted, those from one passing
their alternates from the other, much
the same as the fingers of one hand may
be laid between the others, with the tips
pointing in opposite directions. This pro-
cess was continued till the entire surface
was rearmored so well and closely that
! il would have been impossible to have
insinuated the point of a thin knife be-
1 tween the coils The loose ends were
next seized with yarn and secured with
! binding wire, after which the external
coating of specially prepared spun yarn
was served from one end to the other of
the exposed armor. What had formerly
been living on the deck as the ends of
two separate cables were now joined in
one complete length, extended from the
/ French coast at Brest to that of the
| United States at Nauset Beach. Electri-
cally it was known on the ship that the
! Joint was perfect, for, as soon as the
gutta-percha covering had hardened,
Mr.. Jacobs covered it with wet cloth,
and around this bound a wire which he
led to an exceedingly sensitive galvan
ometer, the needle of which would have
instantly detected had there been the
slightest fault in the insulation.
There now lay on the Faraday's deck a
great loop of cable, with one of its ends
in France and the other in America. 1t
was kept on board by single cable,
and was now ready for launching. The
two parts of the telegraph cable were
dashed at frequent intervals to the rope,
and the blight of the latter was around
the drum of the winding-engine. At
fairs having reached this stage, the Cap
tain and Mr.. Loeffler, accompanied by
numerous officers and guests, took their
station on the poop, to direct or watch
the final operations of laying the cable.
Near the Captain stood a powerfully
built, big-whiskered fellow, with an AK,
such as giant might swing, poised in
the air. At the extreme stern, and
standing on the rail, stood an anxious
| looking officer of the telegraphic staff,
who, with a whistle between his teeth,
carefully scrutinized both cables and all
their attachments and surroundings
Presently came three sharp blasts of his
whistle, which were repeated at differ
ent points along the deck. The engine
began to move, and the cable slowly
moved along the deck. Anxiously it
was watched till the blight had passed
clear of the stern shive down to, and
finally, into, the water. Still the line
attached to the cable continued to run
out, easing the latter's descent to the
Atlantic's bed. Suddenly the man with
the whistle yelled, "Cut," and the ak
fell on the rope, which was severed, lib
Grating the cable from further connec-
ton with the ship. In this manner the
new Franco-American cable was, at
u PC O'Clock in the afternoon, com
pteted enterprise. The Faraday imme-
diately steamed in shore, landing those
who belonged there, and learned that,
at the moment the joint was made,
communication had been established,
and that the cable was in all respects
perfect.-BoStOn Herald.