The Story of the Atlantic Telegraph Part 7

The Mayor of Liverpool gave them a dinner, the Chamber of Commerce another, while the Americans in Liverpool entertained them on the fourth of July--the first public celebration of our national anniversary ever had in that city.

But while these festivities were kept up on sh.o.r.e, hard work was done on board the ship. To coil thirteen hundred miles of cable was an immense undertaking. Yet it was all done by the sailors themselves. No compulsion was used, and none was needed. No sooner was there a call for volunteers, than men stepped forward in greater numbers than could be employed. Out of these were chosen one hundred and twenty stalwart fellows, who were divided into two gangs of sixty men, and each gang into watches of thirty, which relieved each other, and all went to work with such enthusiasm, that in three weeks the herculean task was completed. The event was celebrated by a final dinner given by the shareholders of the Atlantic Telegraph Company in Liverpool to Captain Hudson and Captain Sands of the Susquehanna, whose arrival in the Mersey enabled them to extend their hospitalities to the officers of both ships.

While the Niagara was thus doing her part, the same scene was repeated on board the Agamemnon, which was still lying in the Thames. There the work was completed about the same day, and the occasion duly honored by a scene as unique as it was beautiful. Says the London Times of July twenty-fourth:

"All the details connected with the manufacture and stowage of the cable are now completed, and the conclusion of the arduous labor was celebrated yesterday with high festivity and rejoicing. All the artisans who have been engaged upon the great work, with their wives and families, a large party of the officers, with the sailors from the Agamemnon, and a number of distinguished scientific visitors, were entertained upon this occasion at a kind of _fete champetre_ at Belvidere House, the seat of Sir Culling Eardley, near Erith. The festival was held in the beautiful park which had been obligingly opened by Sir Culling Eardley for the purpose. Although in no way personally interested in the project, the honorable baronet has all along evinced the liveliest sympathy with the undertaking, and himself proposed to have the completion of the work celebrated in his picturesque grounds. The manufacturers, fired with generous emulation, erected s.p.a.cious tents on the lawn, and provided a magnificent banquet for the guests, and a substantial one for the sailors of the Agamemnon and the artificers who had been employed in the construction of the cable. By an admirable arrangement, the guests were accommodated at a vast semi-circular table, which ran round the whole pavilion, while the sailors and workmen sat at a number of long tables arranged at right angles with the chord, so that the general effect was that all dined together, while at the same time sufficient distinction was preserved to satisfy the most fastidious. The three centre tables were occupied by the crew of the Agamemnon, a fine, active body of young men, who paid the greatest attention to the speeches, and drank all the toasts with an admirable punctuality, at least so long as their three pints of beer per man lasted; but we regret to add that, what with the heat of the day and the enthusiasm of Jack in the cause of science, the mugs were all empty long before the chairman's list of toasts had been gone through. Next in interest to the sailors were the workmen and their wives and babies, all being permitted to a.s.sist at the great occasion.

The latter, it is true, sometimes squalled at an affecting peroration, but that rather improved the effect than otherwise, and the presence of these little ones only marked the genuine good feeling of the employers, who had thus invited not only their workmen, but their workmen's families to the feast. It was a momentary return to the old patriarchal times, and every one present seemed delighted with the experiment."

Speeches were made by Sir Culling Eardley, by Mr. Cardwell, of the House of Commons, Mr. Brooking, one of the Directors, by Professor Morse, and others. Mr. Field read a letter from President Buchanan, saying that he should feel honored if the first message should be one from Queen Victoria to himself, and that he "would endeavor to answer it in a spirit and manner becoming a great occasion."

Thus, labor and feasting being ended, the Niagara and the Susquehanna left Liverpool the latter part of July and steamed down St. George's Channel to Queenstown, which was to be the rendezvous of the telegraphic squadron, where they were joined by the Agamemnon and the Leopard, which was to be her consort. The former, as she entered the harbor, came to anchor about a third of a mile from the Niagara. The presence of the two ships which had the cable on board, gave an opportunity which the electricians had desired to test its integrity. Accordingly one end of each cable was carried to the opposite ship, and so joined as to form a continuous length of twenty-five hundred miles, both ends of which were on board the Agamemnon. One end was then connected with the apparatus for transmitting the electric current, and on a sensitive galvanometer being attached to the other end, the whole cable was tested from end to end, and found to be perfect. These experiments were continued for two days with the same result. This inspired fresh hopes for the success of the expedition, and in high spirits they bore away for the harbor of Valentia.

It had been for some time a matter of discussion, where they should begin to lay the cable, whether from the coast of Ireland, or in mid-ocean, the two ships making the junction there, and dropping it to the bottom of the sea, and then parting, one to the east and the other to the west, till they landed their ends on the opposite sh.o.r.es of the Atlantic. This was the plan adopted the following year, and which finally proved successful. It was the one preferred by the engineers now, but the electricians favored the other course, and their counsel prevailed. It was therefore decided to submerge the whole cable in a continuous line from Valentia Bay to Newfoundland. The Niagara was to lay the first half from Ireland to the middle of the Atlantic; the end would then be joined to the other half on board the Agamemnon, which would take it on to the coast of Newfoundland. During the whole process the four vessels were to remain together and give whatever a.s.sistance was required. While it was being laid down, messages were to be sent back to Valentia, reporting each day of progress.

As might be supposed, the mustering of such a fleet of ships, and the busy note of preparation which had been heard for weeks, produced a great sensation in this remote part of Ireland. The people from far and near, gathered on the hills and looked on in silent wonder.

To add to the dignity of the occasion, the Lord Lieutenant came down from Dublin to witness the departure of the expedition. No one could have been better fitted to represent his own country, and to command audience from ours. The Earl of Carlisle--better known among us as Lord Morpeth--had travelled in the United States a few years before, and shown himself one of the most intelligent and liberal foreigners that have visited America. No representative of England could on that day have stood upon the sh.o.r.es of Ireland, and stretched out his hand to his kindred beyond the sea with more a.s.surance that his greeting would be warmly responded to. And never did one speak more aptly words of wisdom and of peace. We read them still with admiration for their beauty and their eloquence, and with an interest more tender but more sad, that this great and good man--the true friend of his own country and of ours--has gone to his grave. To quote his own words is the best tribute to his memory, and will do more than any eulogy to keep it fresh and green in the hearts of Americans. On his arrival at Valentia, he was entertained by the Knight of Kerry at one of those public breakfasts so much in fashion in England, at which in response to a toast in his honor, after making his personal acknowledgments, he said:

"I believe, as your worthy chairman has already hinted, that I am probably the first Lieutenant of Ireland who ever appeared upon this lovely strand. At all events, no Lord Lieutenant could have come amongst you on an occasion like the present.

Amidst all the pride and the stirring hopes which cl.u.s.ter around the work of this week, we ought still to remember that we must speak with the modesty of those who begin and not of those who close an experiment, and it behooves us to remember that the pathway to great achievements has frequently to be hewn out amidst risks and difficulties, and that preliminary failure is even the law and condition of the ultimate success.

Therefore, whatever disappointments may possibly be in store, I must yet insinuate to you that in a cause like this it would be criminal to feel discouragement. In the very design and endeavor to establish the Atlantic Telegraph there is almost enough of glory. It is true if it be only an attempt there would not be quite enough of profit. I hope that will come, too; but there is enough of public spirit, of love for science, for our country, for the human race, almost to suffice in themselves. However, upon this rocky frontlet of Ireland, at all events, to-day we will presume upon success. We are about, either by this sundown or by to-morrow's dawn, to establish a new material link between the Old World and the New. Moral links there have been--links of race, links of commerce, links of friendship, links of literature, links of glory; but this, our new link, instead of superseding and supplanting the old ones, is to give a life and an intensity which they never had before. Highly as I value the reputations of those who have conceived, and those who have contributed to carry out this bright design--and I wish that so many of them had not been unavoidably prevented from being amongst us at this moment[A]--highly as I estimate their reputation, yet I do not compliment them with the idea that they are to efface or dim the glory of that Columbus, who, when the large vessels in the harbor of Cork yesterday weighed their anchors, did so on that very day three hundred and sixty-five years ago--it would have been called in Hebrew writ a year of years--and set sail upon his glorious enterprise of discovery. They, I say, will not dim or efface his glory, but they are now giving the last finish and consummation to his work. Hitherto the inhabitants of the two worlds have a.s.sociated perhaps in the chilling atmosphere of distance with each other--a sort of bowing distance; but now we can be hand to hand, grasp to grasp, pulse to pulse. The link, which is now to connect us, like the insect in the immortal couplet of our poet:

While exquisitely fine, Feels at each thread and lives along the line.

And we may feel, gentlemen of Ireland, of England, and of America, that we may take our stand here upon the extreme rocky edge of our beloved Ireland; we may, as it were, leave in our rear behind us the wars, the strifes, and the bloodshed of the elder Europe, and of the elder Asia; and we may pledge ourselves, weak as our agency may be, imperfect as our powers may be, inadequate in strict diplomatic form as our credentials may be, yet, in the face of the unparalleled circ.u.mstances, of the place and the hour, in the immediate neighborhood of the mighty vessels whose appearance may be beautiful upon the waters, even as are the feet upon the mountains of those who preach the Gospel of peace--as an homage due to that serene science which often affords higher and holier lessons of harmony and good will than the wayward pa.s.sions of man are always apt to learn--in the face and in the strength of such circ.u.mstances, let us pledge ourselves to eternal peace between the Old World and the New."

While these greetings were exchanged on sh.o.r.e, only the smaller vessels of the squadron had arrived. But in a few hours the great hulls of the Niagara and the Agamemnon, followed by the Leopard and the Susquehanna, were seen in the horizon, and soon they all cast anchor in the bay. As the sun went down in the west, shining still on the other hemisphere which they were going to seek, its last rays fell on an expedition more suggestive and hopeful than any since that of Columbus from the sh.o.r.es of Spain, and upon navigators not unworthy to be his followers.

The whole squadron was now a.s.sembled, and made gallant array. There were present in the little harbor of Valentia seven ships--the stately Niagara, which was to lay the half of the cable from Ireland, and her consort, the Susquehanna, riding by her side; while floating the flag of England, were the Agamemnon, which was appointed to lay the cable on the American side, and her consort, the Leopard. Beside these high-decked ships of war, the steamer Advice had come round to give, not merely advice but l.u.s.ty help in landing the cable at Valentia; and the little steamer Willing Mind, with a zeal worthy of her name, was flying back and forth between ship and sh.o.r.e, lending a hand wherever there was work to be done; and the Cyclops, under the experienced command of Captain Dayman, who had made the deep-sea soundings across the Atlantic only the month before, here joined the squadron to lead the way across the deep.

This made five English ships, with but two American; but to keep up our part, there were two more steamers on the other side of the sea, the Arctic, under Lieutenant Berryman, and the Company's steamer Victoria, to watch for the coming of the fleet off the coast of Newfoundland, and help in landing the cable on the sh.o.r.es of the New World.

It was now Tuesday evening, the fourth of August, too late to undertake the landing that night, but preparations were at once begun for it the next morning. Said the correspondent of the Liverpool Post:

"The ships were visited in the course of the evening by the Directors and others interested in the great undertaking, and arrangements were immediately commenced on board the Niagara for paying out the sh.o.r.e rope for conveyance to the mainland.

These arrangements were fully perfected by Wednesday morning; but for some hours the state of the weather rendered it doubtful whether operations could be safely proceeded with.

Toward the afternoon the breeze calmed down, and at two o'clock it was decided that an effort should be made to land the cable at once. The process of uncoiling into the small boats commenced at half-past two, and the scene at this period was grand and exciting in the highest degree.

"Valentia Bay was studded with innumerable small craft, decked with the gayest bunting--small boats flitted hither and thither, their occupants cheering enthusiastically as the work successfully progressed. The cable-boats were managed by the sailors of the Niagara and Susquehanna, and it was a well-designed compliment, and indicative of the future fraternization of the nations, that the sh.o.r.e rope was arranged to be presented at this side the Atlantic to the representative of the Queen, by the officers and men of the United States navy, and that at the other side the British officers and sailors should make a similar presentation to the President of the Great Republic.

"From the main land the operations were watched with intense interest. For several hours the Lord Lieutenant stood on the beach, surrounded by his staff and the directors of the railway and telegraph companies, waiting the arrival of the cable, and when at length the American sailors jumped through the surge with the hawser to which it was attached, his Excellency was among the first to lay hold of it and pull it l.u.s.tily to the sh.o.r.e. Indeed every one present seemed desirous of having a hand in the great work; and never before perhaps were there so many willing a.s.sistants, at 'the long pull, the strong pull, and the pull all together.'

"At half-past seven o'clock the cable was hauled on sh.o.r.e, and formal presentation was made of it to the Lord Lieutenant by Captain Pennock, of the Niagara; his Excellency expressing a hope that the work so well begun would be carried to a satisfactory completion."

The wire having been secured to a house on the beach, the Reverend Mr.

Day, of Kenmore, advanced and offered the following prayer:

"O Eternal Lord G.o.d, who alone spreadest out the heavens, and rulest the raging of the sea; who hast compa.s.sed the water with bounds, till day and night come to an end; and whom the winds and the sea obey; look down in mercy, we beseech thee, upon us thy servants, who now approach the throne of grace; and let our prayer ascend before thee with acceptance. Thou hast commanded and encouraged us, in all our ways, to acknowledge thee, and to commit our works to thee; and thou hast graciously promised to direct our paths, and to prosper our handiwork. We desire now to look up to thee; and believing that without thy help and blessing, nothing can prosper or succeed, we humbly commit this work, and all who are engaged in it, to thy care and guidance.

Let it please thee to grant to us thy servants wisdom and power, to complete what we have been led by thy Providence to undertake; that being begun and carried on in the spirit of prayer, and in dependence upon thee, it may tend to thy glory: and to the good of all nations, by promoting the increase of unity, peace, and concord.

"Overrule, we pray thee, every obstacle, and remove every difficulty which would prevent us from succeeding in this important undertaking. Control the winds and the sea by thy Almighty power, and grant us such favorable weather that we may be enabled to lay the Cable safely and effectually. And may thy hand of power and mercy be so acknowledged by all, that the language of every heart may be, 'Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory,' that so thy name may be hallowed and magnified in us and by us.

"Finally, we beseech thee to implant within us a spirit of humility and childlike dependence upon thee; and teach us to feel as well as to say, 'If the Lord will, we shall do this or that.'

"Hear us, O Lord, and answer us in these our pet.i.tions, according to thy precious promise, for Jesus Christ's sake.

Amen."

The Lord Lieutenant then spoke once more--words that amid such a scene and at such an hour, sank into all hearts:

"My American, English, and Irish friends, I feel at such a moment as this that no language of mine can be becoming except that of prayer and praise. However, it is allowable to any human lips, though they have not been specially qualified for the office, to raise the ascription of 'Glory to G.o.d in the highest; on earth peace, good-will to men.' That, I believe, is the spirit in which this great work has been undertaken; and it is this reflection that encourages me to feel confident hopes in its final success. I believe that the great work now so happily begun will accomplish many great and n.o.ble purposes of trade, of national policy, and of empire. But there is only one view in which I will present it to those whom I have the pleasure to address. You are aware--you must know, some of you, from your own experience--that many of your dear friends and near relatives have left their native land to receive hospitable shelter in America. Well, then, I do not expect that all of you can understand the wondrous mechanism by which this great undertaking is to be carried on. But this, I think, you all of you understand. If you wished to communicate some piece of intelligence straightway to your relatives across the wide world of waters--if you wished to tell those whom you know it would interest in their heart of hearts, of a birth, or a marriage, or, alas, a death, among you, the little cord, which we have now hauled up to the sh.o.r.e, will impart that tidings quicker than the flash of the lightning. Let us indeed hope, let us pray that the hopes of those who have set on foot this great design, may be rewarded by its entire success; and let us hope, further, that this Atlantic Cable will, in all future time, serve as an emblem of that strong cord of love which I trust will always unite the British islands to the great continent of America. And you will join me in my fervent wish that the Giver of all good, who has enabled some of his servants to discern so much of the working of the mighty laws by which he fills the universe, will further so bless this wonderful work, as to make it even more to serve the high purpose of the good of man, and tend to his great glory. And now, all my friends, as there can be no project or undertaking which ought not to receive the approbation and applause of the people, will you join with me in giving three hearty cheers for it? [Loud cheering.] Three cheers are not enough for me--they are what we give on common occasions--and as it is for the success of the Atlantic Telegraph Cable, I must have at least one dozen cheers. [Loud and protracted cheering.]"

Mr. Brooking, the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Atlantic Telegraph Company, then expressed the thanks which all felt to the Lord Lieutenant for his presence on that occasion.

Then there were loud calls for Mr. Field. He could only answer:

"I have no words to express the feelings which fill my heart to-night--it beats with love and affection for every man, woman and child who hears me. I may say, however, that, if ever at the other side of the waters now before us, any one of you shall present himself at my door and say that he took hand or part, even by an approving smile, in our work here to-day, he shall have a true American welcome. I cannot bind myself to more, and shall merely say: 'What G.o.d has joined together, let not man put asunder.'"

Thus closed this most interesting scene. The Lord Lieutenant was obliged to return at once to the capital. He therefore left, and posted that night to Killarney, and the next day returned by special train to Dublin, leaving the ships to complete the work so happily begun.

The landing of the cable took place on Wednesday, the fifth of August, near the hour of sunset. As it was too late to proceed that evening, the ships remained at anchor till the morning. They got under weigh at an early hour, but were soon checked by an accident which detained them another day. Before they had gone five miles, the heavy sh.o.r.e end of the cable caught in the machinery and parted. The Niagara put back, and the cable was "underrun" the whole distance. At length the end was lifted out of the water and spliced to the gigantic coil, and as it dropped safely to the bottom of the sea, the mighty ship began to stir. At first she moved very slowly, not more than two miles an hour, to avoid the danger of accident; but the feeling that they were at last away was itself a relief. The ships were all in sight, and so near that they could hear each other's bells. The Niagara, as if knowing that she was bound for the land out of whose forests she came, bowed her head to the waves, as her prow was turned toward her native sh.o.r.es.

Slowly pa.s.sed the hours of that day. But all went well, and the ships were moving out into the broad Atlantic. At length the sun went down in the west, and stars came out on the face of the deep. But no man slept.

A thousand eyes were watching a great experiment as those who have a personal interest in the issue. All through that night, and through the anxious days and nights that followed, there was a feeling in every soul on board, as if some dear friend were at the turning-point of life or death, and they were watching beside him. There was a strange, unnatural silence in the ship. Men paced the deck with soft and m.u.f.fled tread, speaking only in whispers, as if a loud voice or a heavy footfall might snap the vital cord. So much had they grown to feel for the enterprise, that the cable seemed to them like a human creature, on whose fate they hung, as if it were to decide their own destiny.

There are some who will never forget that first night at sea. Perhaps the reaction from the excitement on sh.o.r.e made the impression the deeper. There are moments in life when every thing comes back upon us.

What memories came up in those long night hours! How many on board that ship, as they stood on the deck and watched that mysterious cord disappearing in the darkness, thought of homes beyond the sea, of absent ones, of the distant and the dead!

But no musings turn them from the work in hand. There are vigilant eyes on deck. Mr. Bright, the engineer of the Company, is there, and Mr.

Everett, Mr. De Sauty, the electrician, and Professor Morse. The paying-out machinery does its work, and though it makes a constant rumble in the ship, that dull, heavy sound is music to their ears, as it tells them that all is well. If one should drop to sleep, and wake up at night, he has only to hear the sound of "the old coffee-mill," and his fears are relieved, and he goes to sleep again.

Sat.u.r.day was a day of beautiful weather. The ships were getting farther away from land, and began to steam ahead at the rate of four and five miles an hour. The cable was paid out at a speed a little faster than that of the ship, to allow for any inequalities of surface on the bottom of the sea. While it was thus going overboard, communication was kept up constantly with the land. Every moment the current was pa.s.sing between ship and sh.o.r.e. The communication was as perfect as between Liverpool and London, or Boston and New York. Not only did the electricians telegraph back to Valentia the progress they were making, but the officers on board sent messages to their friends in America, to go out by the steamers from Liverpool. The heavens seemed to smile on them that day. The coils came up from below the deck without a kink, and unwinding themselves easily, pa.s.sed over the stern into the sea. Once or twice an alarm was created by the cable being thrown off the wheels. This was owing to the sheaves not being wide enough and deep enough, and being filled with tar, which hardened in the air. This was a great defect of the machinery which was remedied in the later expeditions. Still it worked well, and so long as those terrible brakes kept off their iron gripe, it might work through to the end.

All day Sunday the same favoring fortune continued; and when the officers, who could be spared from the deck, met in the cabin, and Captain Hudson read the service, it was with subdued voices and grateful hearts they responded to the prayers to Him who spreadeth out the heavens, and ruleth the raging of the sea.

On Monday they were over two hundred miles at sea. They had got far beyond the shallow waters off the coast. They had pa.s.sed over the submarine mountain which figures on the charts of Dayman and Berryman, and where Mr. Bright's log gives a descent from five hundred and fifty to seventeen hundred and fifty fathoms within eight miles! Then they came to the deeper waters of the Atlantic, where the cable sank to the awful depth of two thousand fathoms. Still the iron cord buried itself in the waves, and every instant the flash of light in the darkened telegraph room told of the pa.s.sage of the electric current.

But Monday evening, about nine o'clock, occurred a mysterious interruption, which staggered all on board. Suddenly the electrical continuity was lost. The cable was not broken, but it ceased to work.

Here was a mystery. De Sauty tried it, and Professor Morse tried it. But neither could make it work. It seemed that all was over. The electricians gave it up, and the engineers were preparing to cut the cable, and to endeavor to wind it in, when suddenly _the electricity came back again_. This made the mystery greater than ever. It had been interrupted for two hours and a half. This was a phenomenon which has never been explained. Professor Morse was of opinion that the cable, in getting off the wheels, had been strained so as to open the gutta-percha, and thus destroy the insulation. If this be the true explanation, it would seem that on reaching the bottom the seam had closed, and thus the continuity had been restored. But it was certainly an untoward incident, which "cast ominous conjecture on the whole success," as it seemed to indicate that there were at the bottom of the sea causes which were wholly unknown and against which it was impossible to provide.

The return of the current was like life from the dead. Says Mullaly:

"The glad news was soon circulated throughout the ship, and all felt as if they had a new life. A rough, weather-beaten old sailor, who had a.s.sisted in coiling many a long mile of it on board the Niagara, and who was among the first to run to the telegraph office to have the news confirmed, said he would have given fifty dollars out of his pay to have saved that cable. 'I have watched nearly every mile of it,' he added, 'as it came over the side, and I would have given fifty dollars, poor as I am, to have saved it, although I don't expect to make any thing by it when it is laid down.' In his own simple way he expressed the feelings of every one on board, for all are as much interested in the success of the enterprise as the largest shareholder in the Company. They talked of the cable as they would of a pet child, and never was child treated with deeper solicitude than that with which the cable is watched by them.

You could see the tears standing in the eyes of some as they almost cried for joy, and told their messmates that it was all right."

It was indeed a great relief; and though still anxious, after watching till past midnight, a few crept to their couches, to s.n.a.t.c.h an hour or two of broken sleep. But before the morning broke, the hopes thus revived were again and finally destroyed.

The cable was running out freely at the rate of six miles an hour, while the ship was advancing but about four. This was supposed to be owing to a powerful under-current. To check this waste, the engineer applied the brakes firmly, which at once stopped the machine. The effect was to bring a heavy strain on the cable that was in the water. The stern of the ship was down in the trough of the sea, and as it rose upward on the swell, the tension was too great, and the cable parted.

Instantly ran through the ship a cry of grief and dismay. She was stopped in her onward path, and in a few minutes all gathered on deck with feelings which may be imagined. One who was present wrote: "The unbidden tear started to many a manly eye. The interest taken in the enterprise by all, every one, officers and men, exceeded any thing I ever saw, and there is no wonder that there should have been so much emotion at our failure." Captain Hudson says: "It made all hands of us through the day like a household or family which had lost their dearest friend, for officers and men had been deeply interested in the success of the enterprise."