Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1903-01-08
HONOLULU CABLE
IN WORKING ORDER
First Words Passed Under
the Ocean a Few Mo-
ments After Eleven.
SAN FRANCISCO PEOPLE HAPPY
The Wire Worked Perfectly--President
Roosevelt Was Not Awakened to Re-
ceiye the Message-H, noluiu Has Cause
to BE Jubiiant

Honolulu. Jan. 3.--(By Pacific
Cable)-The first section of the cable
that is to connect the United States
with its insular possessions in the Pa
| cific was completed at $40 Thursday
night, when the two ends were
brought together in Molokai channel
IS miles from Honolulu. where the
San Francisco end had been Duoyed
since December 26. Shortly after
communication was established, the
fact was announced to the crowd in
waiting and was greeted with APP
plause.
The point of landing was at the
beautiful private park of San Soucie
Beach, five miles east Of the city OF
Honolulu. With the shore end landed
there still remained span of almost
two score of miles to be laid between
the buoyed deep sea and in Molokai
channel and the heavy beach line laid
half mile out from shore. The clos
ing of this gap proved task that tax
ed the patience as well as the ingen-
uity of the Silvertowns staff. Five
days elapsed, the most of which was
spent in awaiting the favor of the
wind and sea before their labors were
completed and the first signal flashed
along the entire length of the two
thousand or more miles.
San Francisco Jan. 3.-San Francis.
co and Honolulu are now connected
by cable. The first words passed un-
der the ocean a few moments after IL
o'clock Thursday night. The wire
worked perfectly.
The Silvertown, just before splicing
the ends, some thirty miles off shore
from Honolulu, telegraphed both ways
for the land stations to wait until
11:10 o'clock, San Francisco time. be-
fore trying the cable. That time was
desired to insure the perfect harden.
ing Of the gutta percha in the splice
after the joint should be lowered
| overheard from the ship in about
$500 feet Of water.
Operators sat anxioHsly and eagerly
about the instruments in King street
at Honolulu and in the cable office on
Market street in San Francisco, wait
ing for the time limit to expire. San
Francisco was watching for Honolulu
to signal first.
| A few moments after II O'clock. be.
fore the time limit was up, a signal
went from this end to Honolulu.
The first little response from Homo
! lulu came into San Francisco at exact.
ly 11:03 o'clock. 1t was exactly Sal
o'clock in Honolulu, the time differ
ence being two hours and twenty-five
minutes and few seconds.
! The first message received was from
/ Governor Dole to President Roosevelt
It was merely a formal greeting and
congratulation from the people of Ha-
wall to the people of the United States
| from one chief executive to the other.
| The message was transmitted at the
! Market street Office to a wire leading
directly to the executive. mansion at
! Washington, and receipt was acknowl.
! edged at 11:25 o'clock.
| When the message reached the
I whitehouse President Roosevelt was
asleep and the operator refused to
awaken him.
Right after the Dole signature on
the first message came a second
j through from Honolulu. 1t was a
greeting f.om the people of Hawaii to
Clarence H. Mackay, president of the
! cable company, congratulating him on
/ the completion of the cable and ex-
pressing sorrow that John Mackay had
not survived to see the instantaneous
bond between the islands and the
American continent. This message
I was signed by Henry E. Cooper, Sec
/ rotary Of the Territory of Hawaii.
Then came a message from the AS
ISOLATED Press, correspondent on the
Silvertown, telling of the successful
! laying of tue cable and of the celebra-
/ nf "a iy, u0nn1,,1, 40
| paper ribbon containing the record of
! the first experimental words between
! San Francisco and Honolulu was cut
into little 'ections of few phrases
! each and divided among the score of
! spectators who were assembled about
/ the instruments when San Francisco
and Honolulu first spoke to each
other under the Pacific ocean.
Tho line ia now 0r,en for huSinaSS