Lab
Library
Journal
Shop
Sign in
to keep
Share image
1
378
The Story of the Atlantic Telegraph
·
Henry M. Field
127
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.
Saturday
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
passing
between
ship
and
shore.
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,
passed
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.
Marker
Marker
Fine marker
White-out
Fine white-out
Circle
Paint
Unmarker
Hand
Scalpel
Dice
Sieve
Purify
Undo
Redo
Start over
