IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND MANUFACTURE OF ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH CABLES OR ROPES
Year: 1873

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by William Rowett at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 11th June
1873.
I, WILLIAM ROWETT, of Netherfield Road, Liverpool, in the County
of Lancaster, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND MANUFACTURE OF ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH
CABLES OR ROPES," to be as follows:
:-
This Invention consists in a method of making electric telegraph
cables or ropes, so that they shall possess the greatest amount of tensile
strength with the least possible weight when submerged in water, and
that they shall be preserved from decay during transit to any part of
the world, and when and after being submerged, which I propose to
effect by constructing such cables or ropes in the following manner: —
The electric telegraph wire conductor or conductors is to be placed in
any desired position in the cable. It may be inserted either in one or
more strands or as worming on the outside of the cable, or it may be
placed in the centre of the cable, which latter mode I prefer.
The conductor or conductors may be covered with any known and
approved insulating substance, or with Rowett's clastic non-masticated

page_text: india-rubber, but I do no confine myself to the use of any particular form
of conductor or insulating cover.
My envelope being available for any form of conductor or core the
core may be formed with one single conductor, or by two, or by any
other desired number of them, cach of them being a separate insulated
electric conductor either twisted together or in straight lines secured by
a tape or a sufficient twine fastening, the latter form of core I prefer for
economising the strength of the conductor, and in the exterior interstices
of such combination of core I propose to place the strongest manilla or
hemp lines, so as to form a perfect combination of spherical core of
which every fibre will take its share of tensile strain that may come
upon the cable; this line is to be made of the best material, & will be
preserved from decay by Rowett's well known preserving compound or
any other improved preserving compound that will preserve fibrous
substances from decay. In this way waste space in the cable, which has
been heretofore filled up with jute and other material that has com-
paratively no tensile strength, is utilized, and made to contribute
additional strength to the cable.
The several components of the core above described may be further
improved by being put together in combination with Rowett's preserving
elastic marine glue. The insulated conductors & the hempen lines
thus become solid as well as clastic, not only adding strength to the
cable, but to the improvement of the insulation of the conductors also.
The core thus formed of one conductor in the usual way for ocean cables,
I propose to improve for clear electrical purposes, as well as for speed of
transmission of messages by placing in the same core two, three, or more
separately insulated conductors, fitted as above described.
And further to meet the contemplated improvements in the trans-
mission of messages I propose to place the electric conductor simply in
the hemp envelope prepared with Rowett's preserving marine glue, and
without any other insulating material, which may be termed a non-
insulated conductor or conductors, all or either of which must be
covered with four or more strands, as the intended size of the cable and
other circumstances may require of yarn made from manilla, hemp, coir,
or other suitable Asiatic, New Zealand, or African fibre, American or
European hemp, flax, or fibre, properly preserved from decay by
Rowett's or other improved preserving compounds, such as will not add
to the specific might of the cable.

page_text: The fibrous articles named above may be mixed one with another as
circumstances require it, but in deep seas I prefer to use the lighter
descriptions, such as manilla coir and New Zealand hemp, which render
the cable comparatively much stronger for laying safely, and for being
lifted again in deep water, if it should be necessary.
And further I propose to add strength and solidity to the cable, by
forming the strands thereof from what is technically called wrong way
yarn, and also to use conical spindles or bobbins of that shape on which
the yarn is wound instead of the ordinary bobbins. The yarn coming
end on off the conical spindle or bobbin keeps the turn in the yarn
instead of untwisting it as is the case when ordinary bobbins are used in
the usual way.
The conic
anindle hobhin is equally annlicable to the strands and