The Portland daily press., 1896-08-15
THE LATE SIR JOHN PRNDER.
Cyrus w. Fields Wealthy Backer

Who Pledged Quarter of a Million
Story of a Notable and Valuable Life.
(From the London Times July s.
We regret to annouoe the death of Sir
john Ponder, which occurred yesterday
g his residence, Foot's Cray place, in
q suit Fer SONS time past ne had been
lying i'll, and stroke of paralysis on
Monday brought the end quickly.
Cir John Fender was bornsin the Vale of
Leren, Dumbartonshire. in 1916, being
the only survivor Of James Ponder and
his wife, Marion, daughter Of James
Mason. At one time the Vale of Leven
was romatio and picturesque district,
and as such was celebrated by .Smollett;
bus now bleaching grounds and factories
for the dyaing of turkey-red are promi-
nent objects in the landscape. Young
Ponder was sent to the parish school,
as was the custom, about the age of
seven, and his natural abilities soon be-
came SO apparent that his parents felt
justified in entering him at the high
school of Glasgow.
The practical business of life began
whsn he left school and entered a Glas-
Cow oounting-house He exhibited re
markable aptitude for figures, and ad.
vanoement came quickly. By the Iime
he was 81 he was promoted to the man
agement of the factory. Now came that
portion of his life in which he acquired
wealth as q Glasgow and Manchester
merchant, and which was TO be succeed
ded by his more famous enterprises In
submarine biography AS a Glasgow
merchant, MIR. Ponder rapidly extended
the business Of his firm, and quickly
built up large home and export trade
Ia textile fabrics. Indeed, the firm pros
persd to such a degEee that it soon
opened house in Manchester, and it &C.
quired eventually SO high reputation in
the northern and midland centers of
the market for pieoe-goods as to become
one of the largest establishments dealing
In Scotch and Lancashire fabrics.
Messrs. J. Pender & Co. occupied for
about 80 years leading position among
exporters to China, India and the East
generally, as well as to North and South
America and the British colonies. A long
oou9se of steady trading resulted In the
accumulation of large fortune. It was
In Manchester likewise that Sir John
Fender laid the foundation OF his still
more conspicuous career in telegraphy,
not only as regards acquiring ample per-
sona1 means for a work that was to task
the richest men, but in gaining thor
ough commercial knowledge of India,
China, America and tine colonies, which
was combined with an answering faith
In the possibilities of British enterprise.
The history of the Atlantic telegraph
was marked by many difficulties and dis
appointments but the prescience of its
projectors was rewarded at last by q
magnificent triumph. In 1855 Cyrus
W. Field arrived in England from the
United States, absorbed in his idea of
linking together the two great oen' of
Anglo Saxon enterprise and energy by
mona Of q submarine cable. He had
discussed the matter with Morse the in
v2.t-f. aGd others, and come TO the con-
lp,ar -ha5 tie scheme was feasible. A
to:=. y - vas formed to develop the un-
lertaat AR. with IL capital Of $3.50, 600 in
&i000 shares, but the sum was totally in
adequate 20 she needs of the projectors.
Brunei, who was at thai time building
his leviathan steamship, the Great East
ern. considered that e. 600, 900 was not
too large sum wherewith to embark
Oh SO gigantic an undertaking. Never
thaasas. the projectors proceeded upon
their original estimate, and Mr.. Ponder,
who was already con nectsd with telesra-
ply es chairman of the British and Irish
magnetic company. became subscri Der
to and a director of the new venture.
Many early disasters were experienced.
The frat cable. taken out in 1857, broke
in mid-ooean. A second was speedily
manufactured, but this met with an even
worse fate and was lost in the depths.
New capital was subscribed, the govern
uaents of Great Britain and the United
States gave liberal guarantees, and by
the Close of 1853 a cable was at length
successfully laid. This cable. $500 miles
long, and Weighing one ton per mills, was
composed Of seven fine copper wires,
coated in gutta percha, contained in
casting of hemp saturated with pitch,
beeswax and oil, the outer sheath being
composed of IS strands Of seven iron
wires each. 1t was taken in equal por-
thong on board Il. NJ. S. Agamemuon
ana the United States, frigate Niagara,
the one END by the Agamemnon at
Wall ncia island, the other by the Niagara
at Trinity bay, Newfoundland. Unfor.
tunately, the current obtained through
the wire was SO weak that congratulate
tory message from the queen to the presi-
dent. consisting Of 80 words, took 67
minutes to transmit. Finally, after a
few more messages the cable became
useless. Many persons now lost their
faith in the undertaking, but not Gaunt-
less spirits like Field, Fender and Prof.
William Thompson, now Lord Kelvin.
Science recognized the causes of the pre-
vious failures and did not Lose hope. BY