Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1903-01-15

casing OF hemp. tar and rubber which
protects this from the water. and the
heavy steel binding that acts as shield
agai sh;,s Iock KS wreckage. and the keeis
generally made of gutta percha, but oc-
casionally india rubber is used to pre-
vent the escape Of electricity. A layer
to }@5e yarn Re gus
casing, which in turn protects the whole
from accident though it has itself to be
encased IN jute yarn and a bituminous
compound to keep it dry.
i The wire sheathng varies in character
according to the depth at which it is to
lie. Deep sea sheathing is made of many
very small wires. Then, through several
intermediate, types the sheathing wires
the shore end the deep sea cable is
lsheathed with large strands, each made
up Of steel wires set triangularly.
However, the core remains the same
throughout. The copper wire, which is
the conductor, is twisted into strands.
These are passed through the covering
machine, which, squeezes the gutta
tinuous sheath. The coil is then COW
cred with a spiral casing of jute yarns,
which make soft elastic. bed for the
steel sheathing wires. These last, as
well as the outer jute and tarry com:
lpound, are put in one machine. And
i from that the great cable is coiled into
large circular tanks in which it is kept
under water. Up to this time the great
est care has been exercised to. keep ev-
terything perfectly dry, as the least sus-
i picion of moisture in the core would ruin
slthe. insulation. As water is used in ap-
plying the jute, the cable, after its
first jute casing has been adjusted
passes through vacuum. drying boxes.
Considering the great care necessary
Lat every stage of it's construction, IT Is
Wonderful how rapidly it is made. One
machine can manufacture more than
! five nautical miles (2029 yards to nau-
itical mile) in "a hours, and as the manu-.
fracture is carried on continuously, z
machines will turn out 100 to 125 miles a
day.
| The cable ship itself is a vessel q, o.
designed for the purpose. 1t is not only
a huge storage department, but a bit
there are three immense iron tanks
isimilar to the. land tanks at the manu-
factory, "a feet in diameter, for thu
cal core for guiding the cable when it i
being paid out. The space within These
cores is utilized to hold fresh water. TIT
! capacity of its tanks in the regular cable
ing the equivalent of about 100 mile!
of inshore cable, weighing IA tons to thu
mile, OF 700 miles of the deep sea type
weighing about two tons per mile.
| The cable tanks are all connected b!
ways or throughs, so that a transfer
may be made from one tank to anothe
; or from any tank to either of the hug
paying-out machines. Handling of tn
. cable made necessary by such transfer
is usually done by means of a small
engine connected to drum and al
mounted on a truck, by which it ma.
be moved about the deck.
AS the cable is brought from the tanl
it passes over the iron sheave, fastened
to the framework of the hatchwa,
thence around another larger, deepl.
grooved iron sheave, and the friction
of the cable at this point acts as
tension. 1t then passes several time
around the giant drums of the grea
dynamometer, over several pulleys OF
the deck and out over the sheave Q
the stern to it's resting place at the bot
tom of the sea.
, The dynamometer indicates tn
amount of strain to which the cable Ii
subjected at any moment, and also en-
: ables the man in charge of the brak
wheel to regulate the strain put on b.
the brake to suit the varying condi
!, tions of laying. After leaving the dy
t namometer it passes. under and over sew
eral large retarding wheels before wend
ing it's sinuous way into the sea-
Brooklyn Eagle.