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378
The Story of the Atlantic Telegraph
·
Henry M. Field
145
But
alas!
for
the
vanity
of
human
expectations,
or
for
those
who
put
trust
in
the
treacherous
sea.
On
Sunday
it
began
to
blow.
The
barometer
fell,
and
all
signs
indicated
to
the
eye
of
a
seaman
rough
weather.
From
this
time
they
had
a
succession
of
gales
for
more
than
a
week.
From
day
to
day
it
blew
fiercer
than
before,
till
Sunday,
the
twentieth,
when
the
gale
was
at
its
height,
and
the
spirit
of
the
storm
was
out
on
the
Atlantic.
Up
to
this
time
the
Niagara
and
the
Agamemnon
(though
they
had
long
since
parted
from
the
Valorous
and
the
Gorgon)
had
managed
to
keep
in
sight
of
each
other;
and
now
from
the
deck
of
the
former
the
latter
was
seen
a
mile
and
a
half
distant,
rolling
heavily
in
the
sea.
The
signals
which
she
made
showed
that
she
was
struggling
with
the
fury
of
the
gale.
She
was
really
in
great
danger
of
foundering.
But
this
was
owing,
not
merely
to
the
severity
of
the
gale,
but
to
the
enormous
weight
she
carried,
and
to
the
way
this
huge
bulk
was
stowed
in
the
ship.
Only
a
few
days
before
we
had
been
on
board
of
her,
and
Captain
Preedy
showed
us,
in
one
coil,
thirteen
hundred
miles
of
cable!
This
made
a
dead
weight
of
as
many
hundred
tons,
which
rendered
her
in
rough
weather
almost
unmanageable.
To
make
the
matter
worse,
she
had
another
coil
of
about
two
hundred
and
fifty
tons
on
the
forward
deck,
where
it
made
the
head
of
the
ship
heavy.
In
her
tremendous
rolls,
this
coil
broke
loose,
and
threatened
at
a
time
to
dash
like
an
avalanche
through
the
side
of
the
ship.
But
at
the
most
fearful
moments
the
gallant
seaman
in
command
never
lost
his
presence
of
mind.
He
was
always
on
deck,
watching
with
a
vigilant
eye
the
raging
of
the
tempest,
and
issuing
his
orders
with
coolness
and
prompt
decision.
To
this
admirable
skill
was
due
the
safety
of
the
ship,
and
of
all
on
board.[B]
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