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281
Heroes of the Telegraph
·
John Munro
143
JUNE
18.--'The
short
length
(of
the
big-cable)
we
have
picked
up
was
covered
at
places
with
beautiful
sprays
of
coral,
twisted
and
twined
with
shells
of
those
small
fairy
animals
we
saw
in
the
aquarium
at
home.
Poor
little
things!
they
died
at
once,
with
their
little
bells
and
delicate
bright
tints.'
JUNE
19.--'Hour
after
hour
I
stand
on
the
fore-castle-head
picking
off
little
specimens
of
polypi
and
coral,
or
lie
on
the
saloon
deck
reading
back
numbers
of
the
TIMES,
till
something
hitches,
and
then
all
is
hurly-burly
once
more.
There
are
awnings
all
along
the
ship,
and
a
most
ancient
and
fish-like
smell
(from
the
decaying
polypi)
beneath.'
JUNE
22.--'Yesterday
the
cable
was
often
a
lovely
sight,
coming
out
of
the
water
one
large
incrustation
of
delicate
net-like
corals
and
long
white
curling
shells.
No
portion
of
the
dirty
black
wire
was
visible;
instead
we
had
a
garland
of
soft
pink,
with
little
scarlet
sprays
and
white
enamel
intermixed.
All
was
fragile,
however,
and
could
hardly
be
secured
in
safety;
and
inexorable
iron
crushed
the
tender
leaves
to
atoms.'
JUNE
24.--'The
whole
day
spent
in
dredging,
without
success.
This
operation
consists
in
allowing
the
ship
to
drift
slowly
across
the
line
where
you
expect
the
cable
to
be,
while
at
the
end
of
a
long
rope,
fast
either
to
the
bow
or
stern,
a
grapnel
drags
along
the
ground.
The
grapnel
is
a
small
anchor,
made
like
four
pot-hooks
tied
back
to
back.
When
the
rope
gets
taut
the
ship
is
stopped
and
the
grapnel
hauled
up
to
the
surface
in
the
hopes
of
finding
the
cable
on
its
prongs.
I
am
much
discontented
with
myself
for
idly
lounging
about
and
reading
WESTWARD
HO!
for
the
second
time
instead
of
taking
to
electricity
or
picking
up
nautical
information.'
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