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281
Heroes of the Telegraph
·
John Munro
78
These
messages
were
the
signal
for
a
fresh
outburst
of
enthusiasm.
Next
morning
a
grand
salute
of
100
guns
resounded
in
New
York,
the
streets
were
decorated
with
flags,
the
bells
of
the
churches
rung,
and
at
night
the
city
was
illuminated.
The
Atlantic
cable
was
a
theme
of
inspiration
for
innumerable
sermons
and
a
prodigious
quantity
of
doggerel.
Among
the
happier
lines
were
these:--
''Tis
done!
the
angry
sea
consents,
The
nations
stand
no
more
apart;
With
clasped
hands
the
continents
Feel
throbbings
of
each
other's
heart.
Speed!
speed
the
cable!
let
it
run
A
loving
girdle
round
the
earth,
Till
all
the
nations
'neath
the
sun
Shall
be
as
brothers
of
one
hearth.
As
brothers
pledging,
hand
in
hand,
One
freedom
for
the
world
abroad,
One
commerce
over
every
land,
One
language,
and
one
God.'
The
rejoicing
reached
a
climax
in
September,
when
a
public
service
was
held
in
Trinity
Church,
and
Mr.
Field,
the
hero
of
the
hour,
as
head
and
mainspring
of
the
expedition,
received
an
ovation
in
the
Crystal
Palace
at
New
York.
The
mayor
presented
him
with
a
golden
casket
as
a
souvenir
of
'the
grandest
enterprise
of
our
day
and
generation.'
The
band
played
'God
save
the
Queen,'
and
the
whole
audience
rose
to
their
feet.
In
the
evening
there
was
a
magnificent
torchlight
procession
of
the
city
firemen.
That
very
day
the
cable
breathed
its
last.
Its
insulation
had
been
failing
for
some
days,
and
the
only
signals
which
could
be
read
were
those
given
by
the
mirror
galvanometer.[It
is
said
to
have
broken
down
while
Newfoundland
was
vainly
attempting
to
inform
Valentia
that
it
was
sending
with
THREE
HUNDRED
AND
TWELVE
CELLS!]
The
reaction
at
this
news
was
tremendous.
Some
writers
even
hinted
that
the
line
was
a
mere
hoax,
and
others
pronounced
it
a
stock
exchange
speculation.
Sensible
men
doubted
whether
the
cable
had
ever
'spoken;'
but
in
addition
to
the
royal
despatch,
items
of
daily
news
had
passed
through
the
wire;
for
instance,
the
announcement
of
a
collision
between
two
ships,
the
Arabia
and
the
Europa,
off
Cape
Race,
Newfoundland,
and
an
order
from
London,
countermanding
the
departure
of
a
regiment
in
Canada
for
the
seat
of
the
Indian
Mutiny,
which
had
come
to
an
end.
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