The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-07-18
CABLES IN TIME OF WAR
HOW THE USEFUL WIRES ARE con-
STRUGGLED. LAID AND REPAIRED.
Accidents 10 Witch 'Fhey Are Liable
Earthquakes and Suicidal Whales
-l1tfiiruit 10 Repair.
New York Commercial Advertiser.

The introduction of a. bill in the Senate
on Thursday of this week, appropriating
$1,0O00O0 to enable the Navy Department to
lay necessary telegraph lines during the
war with Spain, called attention anew to
the great Importance of submarine cables,
and the important part which they must
henceforth ply IN the handling of fleets and
the conduct of a modern How the
noneysIs to be expended has not yet APP
peared, but probably vessel will be pur
chased and stocked with appliances for re-
pairing and laying cables, and perhaps with
several cables. also.
The United States has been very back
ward in the making of cables and the bust
ness Is practically monopoiized by England.
1t is doubtful whether there is factory in
America that could turn out d submarine
Geographic cable more than one hundred
miles long, although telephone and electric
lighting cables are made in great quanti-
ties. France is but little better off, al
though when the telephone business was
assumed by the government the capital
invested in that industry was put into cable
manufactures. but only few short cables
have been made. Italy has small factory,
also. but the output is insignificant.
Submarine teIegraphie. cables consist of
core, formed usually of seven strands of
covered with insulating material and armed
or protected by steel wires. On short lines
of thirty or forty miles three. or more
cores may be included in one cable, but in
long lines there is but one by the use Of
seven wires a large conducting surface is
obtained without sacrificing the flexibility
which is essential to successful laying. The
seven strands together are about as thick
as lead pencil; they. are covered by a
layer of gutta percha or other insulating
material and over this with a layer of
hemp which forms a bed for the steel
wires forming the outer surface. The whole
cable is covered with tar to protect the
outer wires from rust and corrosion and IN
Inc deep sea sections is about three-Quar-
ters or an inch thick. The shore ends, for
twenty Or thirty miles, have additional
armor wires and are sometimes as much
as TWO inches in diameter but the core is
the same throughout. The additional pro-
lection OF the shore ends is necessary be-
cause that part of the cable is subjected
10 the action of the tides and currents and
may be rolled back and forth over the
e, g LAYING OF CABLES.
The laying of cables is a difficult and
delicate work" said Herbert Laws Webb,
OF the New York Telephone Company who
has had an experience of nine years in this
business, land success is not always as
Eured by the best appliances When we put
IN the cable between CaGiz and the Cape
Verde islands the preliminary surveys were
not very good, and we had to do most CT
the surveying over again Even then when
we actually put the cable down we found a
submarine mountain previously overlooked.
which rose from a depth of some 1000
fathoms to less than forty fathoms of the
surface, place where vessel could act
ually anchor In midocean. These submarine
mountains are one of the greatest obstacles
TO successful cable laying. The line is paid
out rapidly as it ascends the mountain and
1alls In festoons and loops when ii passes
the summit. remember in one case, which
occurred on the west coast of South Amer
lea after operating satisfactorily for a time
the cable failed After an extensive inves-
ugation II was discovered that a whale had
Iouled one of thesd festoons. and in the eff
Tort TO extrlcate itself had not only lost its
life but had succeeded in wrapping about
itself many hundred feet of the CABLE
al; an ORDINARY submarine Geographic cable,
~ pounds to the mile, costs about $50 to
the mile. but the laying will more than
double that figure. Such cable will weigh
from a ton and halfN to two tons to the
mile, and TO handle 1T a specially construct
ed vessel Is essential. This cable is fed out
by proper mechanism from q tank or series
OF tanks in the interior, and the usual rate
OF progress is not more than seven or eight
knots an hour. Throughout the whole OPP
GRAFTON telegra phic communication is main
tanned between the vessel and a cable hut
az the shore end. and signals are sent
tail 10 come something is wrong, and\ Steps
are al once taken to determine what it is
After cable is successfully put down IL
Is subjected to all kinds of trouble and IN
terruptions are frequent. 1t was for this
reason that an international clearing house
OF cable information was established at
Berne, in Switzerland. The manager there
Keeps track of information concerning all
the cables In the world, and also of a few
international land lines. He has nothinc 10
do with the keeping or settlement of Tac-
ccInts but all accidents 10 cables no mat
ter where they may be, are Immediately
reported to him, and he sends out a .tele-
graphic bulletin 10 all the other cable COM
panies. Thus. II the cables in Cuba were
TO Berne. and would be known a few min
utes later 10 all the principal cable offices
of the world.
TESTING THE LINES.
Accidents to cables are of many kinds.
but the perfection of modern testing APP
paratus is such that IL a cable isNcut the
place can be located within mile, i'm some
eases within few hundred feet The pres
ent war is being watched with much inter
est by cable men, for 1t is obvious that
submarine telegraphic cables are playing
an Important part In IL. and many new
questions. mechanical as we'll as legal are
expected TO arise. The cutting of cable
is very simple operation. Once IL is In
hand a man can saw through II in a few
minutes. but to put Il together again IS
bles. therefore. have been In cases where
the line rubbed or chafed by tide or
currents. or broke where II hung over q
CHI or crossed a. chasfn. In nearly ali
Eases 4 II necessary 10 insert new sec
tlssrscf line. and the large cofnpfsnies keen
gffsuuIv n cahfa hand NJ rihsse yHa~,x.r..