The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-07-14
LAYING A GREAT CABLE.
Messages Sent From the Middle Of
the Atlantic Ocean.

Grapnel to Catch a Lost Cable.
Working Where the Water Is Three
Miles Deep-Deteils of an Interest
ing Voyage.
From the New York Herald.
On board the S. S. Faraday, off Cape
Canso, n. s., July 1.-The cable steamer
Faraday anchored off the port of Canso
at o'clock this afternoon, having com
pleted the third Atlantic cable for the
Commercial Gable Company. The new
cable is of the heaviest type, with the
largest copper conductor and the speed
lest ever laid for the length. The contrac-
tors, Measrs Slemens Brothers & Co.,
guarantee it to be SO per cent. faster than
any of the cables laid in 1884 for the Com
mercial Gable Company, and tests now
being made show that the speed is greater
than the guarantee.
THE RECORD IN CABLE LAYING BROKEN
The Faraday has broken the record in
Atlantic cable laying, the actual time en-
gagged in the operations being twenty
days. Laden with the balance CT the
shallow water and the whole of the deep
sea portion of the new cable, she sailed
from Woolwich, England, on Tuesday,
June u, at s O'Clock in the evening A
dense crowd of men, women and children
had assem- bled on the river bank con-
tigiuous to Messrs Siemens Bros i'm
mense electrical works to see her of,
aud as she slowly left her moorings
hundreds of handkerchiefs waved and
hundreds of lusty Threats Joined in
ringing cheers to bid her godspeed.
All down the river the ship seemed as
well known as at the Woolwich dock
yard, and from shore and vessel as she
passed along cheers and salutes greeted
her till distance and darkness left her
undistinguishable.. On reaching Graves
end she anchored for the night quite close
to the United States steamer Chicago.
ON BOARD THE CABLE STEAMER.
All told there were $50 souls aboard,
including two guests, Count Won Slippen-
bach, colonel of the German Guards,
and Mr.. Arnold Won Siemens, chief of
Siemens & Halske, Berlin and son of DR..
Werner Won Siemens. John. Colt, the
electrical engineer of the Commercial
Cable Company, and four assistants, were
also on board
The ships work was divided into three
distinct departments, with separate
chiefs and STATS of officers, who worked
in wonderful harmony, although their
duties oyerlapped at many points. The
cable laying, picking up, buoying, etc,
and all cognate engineering requirements
are under the charge of Mr.. John Brittle,
c. E.. cool. quiet man. of long expert
ence in navigation. Things pertaining to
seamanship in general are ably conducted
by Capt. lie Faner, the captain of the
ship The electrical and testing depart
1nent comes under the management of
Mr. Frank Jacob, one of the best electri-
clans of the day. and, finally, the whole is
personally commanded by Mr.. Alexander
Siemens, president of the Institution of
Loot, ,iaa1 T'DOipnprc and urino Iii
rector of the Siemens Bros.
OPENING OF THE MoMENToUs VOYAGE.
In the early morning of June ID, chilled
by northerly wind that savored more of
January than June, anchor was weighed
and the ship left Gravesend on her NOM
entous Journey, her immediate stopping
place being the buoyed end of the 143
Il knots of cable stretching west from the
cable station at WaterVille, Ireland. The
weather changed as the English Channel
was reached and became delightfully."-
warm, but when Lands End was well
4 astern it set rough and foggy.
Observations for position were impossi-
Bile, but on Saturday afternoon IT was cal
culated by dead reckoning that the vicin-
Il ity of the buoy was reached. A sounding
was taken with fifty-six pound sinker
on pianoforte wire and gave bottom at
300 fathoms, and a little later another
gave 263 tathoms. These depths satisfied
the officers of the proximity of the buoy,
but as the fog precluded a search it was
determined TO lay by till the morning
During the night stellar observation
was obtained and the ship found 10 be
fourteen miles too far north. The course
was at once made TO the southwark and
at daylight a buoy was sighted.
1t proved to be mark buoy that had
been anchored close to the baoyed cable
to dOubly mark the spot, but the cable
buoy itself had totally disappeared.
The only recourse now was TO rake the
oceans bottom with grapnel to recover
the sunken end, and preparations were at
once made to this purpose. The sea, how
ever, was so rough and the swell so heavy
that nothing could then be attempted.
and the ship lay by. heaving and rolling
like huge log, to await more suitable
conditions.
kAKING THE BOTTOM OF THE ATLANTIC.
The morning of July IS broke with the
same rolling, white-capped pillows, but
the weather was fine and looked like
moderating BY O'Clock the swell had
gone down considerably, and orders were
given to grapple. With rapid action the
gear was got into position. The captain
took his stand on the platform over the
picking up sheave at the bows to direct
the vessels movements, and Chief Gable
Engineer Brittle from the same point,
! LOOK charge of the graphing operations.
The heavy grapnel. attached to 600 faith
pms of chain and rope, was passed over
the bow sheave, and when it fetched
potion the ship moved slowly ahead.
THE CABLE RECOVERED.
Twice the grapnel was thus dragged
Fcross the cables path. The third time
was hooked. Eager faces hung over
he ships bows to watch the hauling in.
n "a due course, the grapnel, clutching the
taoIe, appeared and, Immediately after
Two men were lowered to it, seized a chain
stopper on each side of the blight, cut this
Board
ne end communicating with Waterville,
reIand. was conveyed TO the test room
hG that station at once spoken with
Al found in order.n A message was
senJ 10 MIR. Mackay, and the relatives of
pose on board were notified that all was
zen. Then, as the evening was advanced,
b..
ms done the second end was put TO the
can winch and the piece pulled aboard.
was about two knots long The buoy
ppe at the end looked as though it had
- wrenched from the buoy by the pro
Iler OF some passing steamship. The
se OF cable was at once spliced to that