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378
The Story of the Atlantic Telegraph
·
Henry M. Field
161
"All
seemed
to
go
well
up
to
about
eight
o'clock;
the
cable
paid
out
from
the
hold
with
an
evenness
and
regularity
which
showed
how
carefully
and
perfectly
it
had
been
coiled
away;
and
to
guard
against
accidents
which
might
arise
in
consequence
of
the
cable
having
suffered
injury
during
the
storm,
the
indicated
strain
upon
the
dynamometer
was
never
allowed
to
go
beyond
seventeen
hundred
pounds,
or
less
than
one
quarter
what
the
cable
is
estimated
to
bear,
and
thus
far
every
thing
looked
promising
of
success.
But,
in
such
a
hazardous
work,
no
one
knows
what
a
few
minutes
may
bring
forth,
for
soon
after
eight,
an
injured
portion
of
the
cable
was
discovered
about
a
mile
or
two
from
the
portion
paying
out.
Not
a
moment
was
lost
by
Mr.
Canning,
the
engineer
on
duty,
in
setting
men
to
work
to
cobble
up
the
injury
as
well
as
time
would
permit,
for
the
cable
was
going
out
at
such
a
rate
that
the
damaged
portion
would
be
paid
overboard
in
less
than
twenty
minutes,
and
former
experience
had
shown
us
that
to
check
either
the
speed
of
the
ship,
or
the
cable,
would,
in
all
probability,
be
attended
by
the
most
fatal
results.
"Just
before
the
lapping
was
finished,
Professor
Thomson
reported
that
the
electrical
continuity
of
the
wire
had
ceased,
but
that
the
insulation
was
still
perfect;
attention
was
naturally
directed
to
the
injured
piece
as
the
probable
source
of
the
stoppage,
and
not
a
moment
was
lost
in
cutting
the
cable
at
that
point,
with
the
intention
of
making
a
perfect
splice.
To
the
consternation
of
all,
the
electrical
tests
applied
showed
the
fault
to
be
overboard,
and
in
all
probability
some
fifty
miles
from
the
ship.
Not
a
second
was
to
be
lost,
for
it
was
evident
that
the
cut
portion
must
be
paid
overboard
in
a
few
minutes,
and
in
the
mean
time,
the
tedious
and
difficult
operation
of
making
a
splice
had
to
be
performed.
The
ship
was
immediately
stopped,
and
no
more
cable
paid
out
than
was
absolutely
necessary
to
prevent
it
breaking.
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