The Story of the Atlantic Telegraph

Mr. Gisborne left Halifax and came to New York in January, 1854. Here he took counsel with his friend Tebbets and others; but they could give him no relief. It was while in this state of suspense that he met, at the Astor House, Mr. Matthew D. Field, an engineer who had been engaged in building railroads and suspension bridges at the South and West. Mr. Field listened to his story with interest, and engaged to speak of it to his brother, Cyrus W. Field,[A] a merchant of New York, who had retired from business the year before, and had spent six months in travelling over the mountains of South America, from which he had lately returned. Accordingly, he introduced the subject, but found his brother disinclined to embark in any new undertaking. Though still a young man, his life had been for many years one of incessant devotion to business. He had accumulated an ample fortune, and was not disposed to renew the cares, the anxieties, and the fatigues of his former life. But listening to the details of a scheme which had in it much to excite interest, and which by its very difficulty stimulated the spirit of enterprise, he at length consented to see Mr. Gisborne, and invited him to his house. Accordingly he came, and spent an evening describing the route of his proposed telegraph, and the points it was to connect. After he left, Mr. Field took the globe which was standing in the library, and began to turn it over. It was while thus studying the globe that the idea first occurred to him, that the telegraph might be carried further still, and be made to span the Atlantic Ocean. The idea was not original with him, though he was to carry it out. It was indeed new to him; but it had long been a matter of speculation with scientific minds, though their theories had never attracted his attention. But once he had grasped the idea, it took strong hold of his imagination. Had the Newfoundland scheme stood alone, he would never have undertaken it. He cared little about shortening communication with Europe by a day or two, by relays of boats and carrier-pigeons. But it was the hope of further and grander results that inspired him to enter on a work of which no man could foresee the end.