Omaha daily bee., 1902-03-10
FOULING THE ATLANTIC CABLE.
Shippers Asked to Drop Their Chains
and

Five times last year, relates the New
York Evening Post, the ocean cables Of a
single company were fouled by ships an
chors and severed. One would think that a
rope not more than two and one-half inches
in diameter where It is thickest, and in
most places measuring less than an inch.
stretched along the bottom Of the sea,
would be lost for the ages. Who would
sail forth at random to fsh for It? And
yet Il seems that 1t is found by some
ships anchor often enough to cause con-
siderable expense and trouble. Just how
frequently this occurs with the French and
English companies is not known by the
New York representatives. but Ave breaks
from this cause were repaired by the Com
mercial Cable company last year.
When such an accident occurs It is die
covered, OF course, without other notice
than the sudden closing Of communication.
Europe is cut on on that line, and the
operator knows that somewhere on a hill
or deep valley of the sea the electric
artery Is severed, A very short time is
required after this to locate the break.
And so accurately can this be done that a
pin stuck In the once chart would, were 1t
thrust in the sea-, pass between the dis
connected ends. The cable is like 4 tubs
that holds so much water. II the tube
were closed somewhere along its length,
the exact location of the plug could be
found by measuring the water required to
reach It. When the cable lie broker com,
m~unicatlon beyond is. OF course, closed, bu,
the broke end connects with the water
and the earth and forms a short circuit.
BY measuring the electricity required to
I'LL this the location Of the break is fixed.
tn fha anm1nanvfa ahfn a. aa0f mt -
make repairs.
Such patching costs all the way from
$500 to $4,000. Sometimes IT is but an easy
Job OF splicing. and again a hundred
fathoms OF cable may AVE been torn away.
When a captain finds his anchor foul, he
usually cuts the rope or chain, and. leaV-
ing It. with the anchor, In the sea. goes on
His way. reporting later to the company.
giving the longitude and latitude OF his
loss and receiving q proper indemnity.
Most OF such payments last year were made
to fishing smacks on the shoals OF New
foundland, but there was one case of a
deep-sea loss. A vessel was caught in a
storm and crippled. and the captain
dropped anchor in midocean. II fell upon
a hillside, and. finding the cable. grappleo
under it and slid down to a depth OF
1000 fathoms. Here was a choice for the
captain. He could cut himself adrift or
risk breaking the cable on the chance that
It might hold him through the storm. Blu
this chance was so slight, the breaking OF
the cable, which was only seven-eighth
Of an inch at that depth. so certain. that
he cast on. and, leaving his anchor and
1000 fathoms Of rope where they were, fed
before the tempest with bare poles. He
came safely to port, however. and. on ap-
p~lication to the cable company. received
1900 for his chain and anchor.
The Commercial Cable company Is glad
to encourage this consideration on the part
Of sea captains. and 50 far as II knows,
there has been no attempt to lake fraudu-
lent advantage Of It. The men OF the sea
are more apt to be impetuous and high
handed than dishonest. and while they will
not report fictitious losses. there is frequent
evidence that they release their fouled an
ehoss by cutting the cable that holds them