The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-07-10

LAYING Of cable. The bottom Is presuma-
ply or the same character as that found
ail along the lane 80 miles wide from Cali
tornia 10 the Hawaiian Islands. which was
recently surveyed under the direction of
the photographic office u the United
states navy. IL Is probable, therefore, a
me ooze composed chiefly OF mud and of
tne shells OF almost microscopic animals
called foraminifera. In depths not greatly
exceeding mile the characteristic shells
are apt 10 be those OF small mollusks
known TO the naturalist as pteropods. The
ptcropous and fOraminifera live near the
surface OF the ocean. and the oOzc is
formed by the continual rain Of their shells
which falls far above.
this ooze, grayish and sometimes green
ish IN color. which covers vast areas Of the
ocean floor. has more than one advantage
FOR the purposes of cable laysng. Ii is so
soft that the cable sinks into il and Is
buried beyond reach of influences which
might be deleterious. Bottom Of this sort
does not correspond TO any ordinary con-
ception OF the landsman. The material OF
Il on top is SO finely divided some Of 81 be-
ing actually held in suspension and more
or less dissolved. that Il is hard To say
where ends the water and solidity begins
The very existence of these conditions i'm
plies that there are no currents, such as
are found IN some places on the floor of the
sea. Under these circumstances the cables
suffer from no wear and tear; furthermore
In regions covered 10y the ooze there are
no chemical agents 10 make trouble
An ocean cable has enemies animal, veg
etable and mineral In shoal waters, and
sometimes in great depths, where the pres
cnce of volcanic nodules In the bottom ma
terial betrays recent subterrancan dis
turbances. sulphuric and other chemical
compounds attack the telegraphic rope.
The line between Havana and Key West
has been renewed by the Western Union
Company six times within the last twenty
years on account of such destructive agen-
cies. on the coast Of Cuba. in very deep
water, are wells of pitch. This substance
seems to Ooze out through the crust of the
earth from deposits beneath the sea bot
tom which correspond i'm character to the
lakes of pitch that are found on the Is
land of Trinidad and elsewhere. The veg
etable enemies of the. cable are scaweeds,
which contain iodine. The latter substance
which eats IRON is found in the shallow
coastal waters where these plants grow.
Sharks sometimes bite cables and sword
fishes have been known TO injure them.
There is a case on record OF whale that
became entangled in blight of cable which
hung like a festoon between elevations on
the sea bottom. The result was a break.
and experts sent out on ship to mend it
hauled the great animal to the surface,
quite dead, of course. Such accidents are
avoided when all parts OF the cable lie In
actual contact with the ocean floor. Fur
thermore, when the teleEraphic rope is
suspended across submarine chasm or
valley IT sways TO and fro, and is apt 10
saw itself in two on a sharp rock. Recently
1t has been ascertained that, by establish
ing due relation between the steaming
speed and the strain on the cable. a ves-
sci may lay down such a line so that II
VIII follow evenly every curve and con-
tour of the bottom.