Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-07-04
OLD EARTH !e|RcLED
Continued from First Page.)
Actual Work Begun.

or four days. or it may be for as many
weeks or months. no
Actual Work begun
| The cable steamer Silverton with the first
section of the cable on board. consisting
| of 2.413 nautical miles and weighing 4.SU
| tons, left the English coast on September
| %, 1902, arriving at San Francisco on De-
| cember 4. The shore end OF the cable hav-
| ing been laid with appropriate ceremonies,
| the Silverton left for Honolulu on Decem-
| Der 15 arriving of the islands on Christ
mas day, and on the morning of December
| 26 the cable was buoyed during heavy
| gale at point about thirty-five miles from
| Honolulu. During the trip from San Fran
| cisco to Honolulu 20 miles Of cable were
| laid per day.
On the 9th and 10th of April last the
| steamships Colonia and Anglia, belonging
| to the manufacturers, left London with
over GOO miles Of cable in their tanks.
Largest Cable Ship.
The Colonia, which laid the longest sec
ton of the cable, that between Guam and
Midway, 1905 nautical miles, is the largest
| cable ship afioat. She has dead weight
| capacity of nearly 1000 tons. and is cap
able of carrying close upon 1900 nautical
| miles of cable in the four large tanks built
up in her holds.
Not even the Great Eastern, whose dis
| placement was much larger, could find room
| for half the mileage of cable which the
Colonia can comfortably carry. The d.
| mansions of the steamship Anglia are some
what smaller than those of her sister ship,
| the colonia. She can carry $500 tons dead
weight, and during her recent operations
| in the Pacific did carry some $500 miles
| of cable. f....
| The Anglia arrived at Manila on May %,
| and having landed the shore end on May
"a she paid out the cable through ST. Ber-
| v,v1, ctra a~I
| She arrived at Guam on June and estab-
| lished cable communication between Ma
Mia and Guam on June 4. The Colonia
| had proceeded direct to Guam, where she
! arrived on May q. At that point the
| cheering and electrical STATS were trans
| fcrred from the Anglia to the COlonia, and
| the latter vessel began to perform her
| share of the work by laying the cable from
| Guam to Midway.
Speed Of the Work.
The work was performed with marvellous
| precision and success. and with but sim
gle interruption. at the rate of 200 miles
a day and an average speed of nine knots
an hour. The Colonia arrived at Midway
on June 10, and communication between
Midway and Guam was thus established.
connecting Midway with the Geographic
systems of the world, and leaving only
| the small section between Midway and
cling of the globe
The Anglia had proceeded from Guam
to Midway, and on the arrival Of the Col
onia at that point her engineering and
electrical STATS were transferred back to
| the Anglia and the latter began to pay
out the Midway and Hawaii section of the
cable. Waikiki. near Honolulu, Is the
landing place of the San Francisco-Hono-
lulu and the Honolulu-M Midway sections
of the cable and with the news of the
arrival of the Anglia at this point the an
nOuncement went out to. the world that
the great enterprise OF bridging the Ia
cific with a submarine cable had passed In
to history, and that an American Pacific
cable was at last a reality.
The Pacific cable Is work which cannot
fail to be of great benefit to the country
commercially, politically and strategically.
Prior to the incorporation of the cable COM
pany in September, 1901, the rate for mes
Islands ives $3.50 per word; in November,
1901 this rate was reduced by the Eu-
ropean cable companies to S1.66 per word
The simple announcement OF the intention
of the Commercial Company to lay a Pa
cific cable thus effected a saving of 60
cents per word.
Reduction in Tolls.
Before entering on the execution OF Its
contract. the Commercial Pacific Cable
Cable Company bound itself to charge but
81 per word from San Francisco to China;
81 a word from San Francisco to Manila,
and 80 cents a word from San Francisco
70 Honolulu, the last named rate to be
reduced within two years to 80 cents a
word.
For all the beneficent results which are
likely to attend the completion OF TINS
great enterprise the country has to thank
the late John w. Mackay, whose energy
and perseverance had done SO much Tor
commerce by the Introduction Of new en-
terprise into the business Of Atlantic teleg-
ranhy. and without whom 1t Is safe to say
that there would have been no American
Pacific cable for years to come
Lonesome Midway.
AS cable stations the Midway Islands and
Guam have a unique interest for the people
of the United States. Midway Islands are
two small islands situated about half way
between the California and China coasts
They are surrounded by coral reef or
about eighteen miles in circumference Inc
reef protects the islands from the high seas.
A rift in the reef admits vessels OF eighteen
feet draught into a deep and safe harbor
The Wandering Minstrel was wrecked
here in 1881 Captain Walker. his wife and
crew lived for fourteen months on the is
lands subssting on fish and eggs OF sea
birds until they were rescued me islanos
have been placed under the jurisdiction OF
the Navy Department. Lieutenant COM
mander Hugh Rodman. u s. N, has Deen
aDpOfnted governor. temporary uuilo1uSS
have been erected for the accommodation
of the little cable colony. Permanent build
ines will be erected before the end of the
year. For the present food will be supplied
by special steamer, but there is good reason
to believe that vegetables can be made to
grow with proper cultivation. Fresh water
is obtained easily. The Pacific Mail Steam
ship Company at one time maintained a
coaling station and staff of men on the
| islands. The coaling station did not prove
satisfactory, and was therefore abandoned.
With this exception. the establishment OF
the cable station is the first attempt to in
habit the islands permanently. The jap
anese have been going there to kill sea birds
for the sake of their feathers, but this traf-
fic will now be stopped.
One Famous Dispatch.
On May 49, 1896. at the national electrical
exposition, held in the Grand Central Pal
ace New York, in order to demonstrate the
promptness Of modern Geographic service,
message written by Mr.. Chauncey De-
pew was sent from New York, via Chicago.
Los Angeles, San Francisco. Vancouver,
Winnipeg and Canso. to London thence,
via Lisbon. through Gibraltar, Malta.
Alexandria, Suez. Alden. Bombay, Madras
Singapore, Hongkong, Shanghai, Nagasah