The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-01-26
CABLE TO MANILA.
1t VIII Cost Nearly Seven Million
Dollars.

Washington Letter in st. Louis Globe
Democrat.
The photographic office of the navy is
waiting for the word to begin survey or
the route over which the contemplated
cable from San Francisco to Manila is to
pass. That portion of the path to be
travesed which lies between the coast of
California and the Hawaiian Islands was
carefully mapped some years ago, but the
remainder OF the track, from Honolulu to
Luzon, extends over a region of seafioor
that is as yet UNEMPLOYED. The character
of the bottom, which has to be considered
III the laying of submarine wires, is I'M
known, and there are not even any figures
as TO the depths, save for a few scattered
scundings at intervals of hundreds of
miles.
The cable will go by way of Hawaii or
course and thence to one of the islands of
the Caroline group. A telegraph station,
il nothing better will be obtained by I'M
Gle Sam in the latter archipelago. The dis
tance from Honolulu to Wake Island is
1000 nautical miles From Wake Island
the wire rope will extend 1900 miles 10
Guam, which becomes the property of the
United States by the new treaty with
Spain. 1t will cover its last stretch, SIP
miles, as a crow would fly from Guam 60
to the Gulf of Dingala, which is on the
coast of Luzon. To reach Manila, il
would have to go around the Island of
Luzon, and it will be a great saving of ca
bic and of trouble also to make the land
ing on the east side connecting with
telegraph crossing Luzon to Manila-on.y
thirty-eight miles.
If the distance from Honolulu to San
Francisco, 2.0S9 miles, be added it will be
seen that the total length of the cable will
be 6,761 miles. This, indeed, is practically
an exact estimate. Be it observed, incl
dentally, that the miles referred to are al
ways nautical miles, which are a little
over one-seventh longer than ordinary
land miles. 1t is estimated that the max
ing and laying of the wire rope will come
to about $1,000 mile so that the entire
expense involved will be only Sc, 761, 900.
This includes everything except the pre-
liminary survey, which, being performed
by naval vessel, will not appear as an
item in the account.
Owing TO the great distance to be COW
cred, the cable will be extra thick, the COP
per conductor being made unusually large
so as to secure rapidity of transmission
As is we'll known, the practicable speed
of sending message varies directly with
the size of the wire. The rope which is to
Wriggle its way beneath 1900 miles of
ocean, bringing two continents into close
touch and communication, will be one and
ofe-quarier inches in diameter. and will
weigh a ton and quarter to the mile. Its
central core will be a bundle of twisted
copper wires, surrounded with an envelope
of gutta percha. This will be wound with
hemp. and finally with an outer coat of
steel wire. The bin introduced in the House
by Mr.. Coris of Michigan. requires that
the ca bic shall transmit AT least fifteen
words a minute, at not more than 81 a
word, press matter to be al half rates
AT present a telegram sent from Manila
to New York must go by way of Hong
Kong, around Asia, across Europe and
under the Atlantic, 13, 800 miles under
water and 100 miles overland. The cables
being controlled by a monopoly, the price
is about SO a word. This monopoly will be
smashed by the new transpacifc line
which will be of great service to Chinese
merchants al seventeen ports. All of these
ports, OF course. will be connected with
the American wire, and British merchants
in England will doubtless use it largely,
messages being flashed from London TO
Hong Long by way of the United States
and beneath two great oceans. pictur-
esque notion this, by the way. 1t is alto
geiher likely that an American cable will
be laid before long from Manila to Hong
Kong, in order that it may not be neces-
sary to depend upon the present British
Tine between these two points Such de-
pendence would be awkward in case of
trouble with England. The distance is only
$50 miles. Also, there ought to be branch
line to Yokohama, Japan.
The survey of the route of the contem-
plated cable from Honolulu to Manila will
not require many months. The track to
be followed will be as straight as possible
from Hawaii to Guam, and finally from
Guam to the Gulf of Dingala. This will
be modified only where the bottom is found
unsuitable. Drowned mountains may be
discovered in the path and 1t would be
necessary to go around them; or there
might be submarine volcanic regions,
which are to be avoided not only because
of fear Of future commissions, but also for
the reason that the water in such SUBJ
AQUEOUS territory is apt 10 contain chemi-
cal ingredients that have destructive eff
feet upon the cable. Apart from these
matters. there is nothing complicated
about the surveying, which consists mere
w in taking soundings at regular inter-
walls and obtaining samples of the bottom
materials The sounding line is piano
wire. and has sixty-pound sinker on the
end of IT, The wire is wound on a reel,
each turn Of which registers one fathom,
while a dial keeps record Of the number
of turns. a scale showing the tension and
indicating the moment when the sinker
reaches the bottom. When this happens
a valve in the bottom of the snker Is
forced up and its interior is filled with
soil. Al the same time an automatic Their
ynonneter takes the temperature Of the wa
Ter undue heat of which would indicate
volcanic conditions.
Lord Salisbury says that when a lad
he used to commit to memory the oraions
Of cicero and that he can stih recite the