London, Day & Sons, Limited, Lith.
FORWARD DECK CLEARED FOR THE FINAL ATTEMPT AT GRAPPLING. AUGUST 11TH.]
Although the previous trials, with better gear, had proved unsuccessful;
although the tackle now used was a thing of shreds and patches; although
Mr. Canning and others said, “We are going to make this attempt because
it is our duty to exhaust every means in our power,” and thereby implied
they had little or no confidence of success; there was scarcely a man in
the ship who did not think “there is just a chance,” and who would not
have made the endeavour had the matter been left to his own decision. It
was some encouragement to ascertain that there were only 1,950 fathoms
of water below us. It was argued that, if the Cable could be broken at
the bight, another drift about a mile from the loose end would be
certain to succeed, as the loose end would twist round the eastward
portion of the Cable, and come up at a diminished strain to the surface.
A grapnel with a shorter shank was selected for the next trial. The
cablemen were set to work to coil down the new rope and hawsers between
a circular enclosure, formed by uprights on the deck behind the capstan.
Ropemakers and artificers examined the rope which had been already used.
They served the injured strands with yarn, renewed portions chafed to
death, tested bolts and shackles and swivels, and bent on new lengths of
rope and hawser, whilst the ship was proceeding to take up her position
for another demonstration against the Cable. The line now employed, the
last left in the ship, was a thing of shreds and patches. It consisted
of 1,600 fathoms of wire rope, 220 fathoms of hemp, and 510 fathoms of
Manilla hawser, of which 1,760 fathoms could be depended upon, the rest
being “suspicious.” The morning was not very fine; but the wind was
light, and on the whole favourable, and the only circumstance to cause
doubt or uneasiness was the current, the influence of which could not be
determined. The observations of the officers rendered it doubtful
whether the buoy No. 2 had drifted, and it was rather believed that in
the interval between the breaking of the grapnel and the letting-go of
the buoy, the Great Eastern herself had drifted from the place, and thus
caused the apparent discrepancy in position. At 7·45 a.m. the ship was
alongside buoy No. 2 once more, and thence proceeded to an
advantageous bearing for drifting down on the Cable with her grapnel.
The Terrible kept about two miles away, regarding our operations with a
melancholy interest. At 11·30 a.m., ship’s time, the Great Eastern
signalled “We are going to make a final effort,” and soon afterwards,
“We are sorry you have had such uncomfortable waiting.” At 1·56 p.m.,
Greenwich time, when buoy No. 2 was bearing E. by N. about two miles,
the ship’s head being W. and by S., the grapnel was let go, and soon
reached the bottom, as the improvements in the machinery and capstan
enabled the men to pay it out at the rate of fifty fathoms a minute. The
fore-and-aft canvas was set, to counteract the force of the current, and
the Great Eastern drifted to N.E, right across the Cable, before a light
breeze from S.W. At first there was only a strain of 42 cwt. shown, and
the ship went quite steadily and slowly towards the Cable. At 3·30 p.m.
the strain increased, and then the Great Eastern gave some little sign
of feeling a restraint on her actions from below, her head describing
unsteady lines from W.N.W. to W. by S. The screw engines were gently
brought into play to keep her head to the wind. The machinery and
capstan, which had been put in motion some time previously to haul in
the grapnel cable, now took it in easily and regularly, except when a
shackle or swivel jarred it for a moment. Every movement of the ship was
most keenly watched, till the increasing strain on the dynamometer
showed that the same grip on the bottom which had twice turned the head
of the Great Eastern, was again placed on the grapnel she was dragging
along the bottom of the Atlantic. The index of the dynamometer rose: it
marked 60 cwt., then it jerked up to 65 cwt., then it reached 70 cwt.,
then 75 cwt.: at last its iron finger pointed to 80 cwt. It was too much
to stand by and witness the terrible struggle between the crisping,
yielding hawser, which was coming in fast, the relentless iron-clad
capstan, and the fierce resolute power in the black sea, which seemed
endued with demoniacal energy as it tugged and swerved to and fro on the
iron hook. But it was beyond peradventure that the Atlantic Cable had
been hooked and struck, and was coming up from its oozy bed. What
alternations of hope and fear--what doubts, what sanguine dreams,
dispelled by a moment’s thought, only to revive again! What need to say
how men were agitated on board the ship? There was in their breasts,
those who felt at all, that intense quiet excitement with which we all
attend the utterance of a supreme decree, final and irrevocable. Some
remained below in the saloons--fastened their eyes on unread pages of
books, or gave expression to their feelings in fitful notes from piano
or violin. Others went aft to the great Sahara of deck where all was
lifeless now, and whence the iron oasis had vanished. Some walked to and
fro in the saloon; others paced the deck amidships. None liked to go
forward, where every jar of the machinery, every shackle that passed the
drum, every clank, made their hearts leap into their mouths. Captain
Anderson, Mr. Canning, Mr. Clifford, and the officers and men engaged in
working the ship and taking in the grapnel, were in the bows of course,
and shared in the common anxiety. At dinner-time 500 fathoms of grapnel
rope had been taken in, and the strain was mounting beyond 82 cwt.
Nothing else could be talked of. The boldest ventured to utter the words
“Heart’s Content” and “Newfoundland” once more. All through the unquiet
meal we could hear the shrill whistle through the acoustic tube from the
bow to the bridge, which warned the quartermasters to stop, reverse, or
turn ahead the screw engines to meet the exigencies of the strain on the
grapnel rope. The evening was darkling and raw. At 6·30 I left the
saloon, and walked up and down the deck, under the shelter of the
paddle-box, glancing forward now and then to the bow, to look at the
busy crowd of engineers, sailors, and cablemen gathered round the rope
coming in over the drum, which just rose clear of one of the foremasts,
and listening to the warning shouts as the shackles came inboard, and
hurtled through the machinery till they floundered on the hurricane
deck.
About 20 minutes had elapsed when I heard the whistle sound on the
bridge, and at the same time saw one of the men running aft anxiously.
“There’s a heavy strain on now, sir,” he said. I was going forward, when
the whistle blew again, and I heard cries of “Stop it!” or “Stop her!”
in the bows, shouts of “Look out!” and agitated exclamations. Then there
was silence. I knew at once all was over. The machinery stood still in
the bows, and for a moment every man was fixed, as if turned to stone.
There, standing blank and mute, were the hardy constant toilers, whose
toil was ended at last. Our last bolt was sped. Just at the moment the
fracture took place, Staff-Commander Moriarty had come up from his cabin
to announce that he was quite certain, from his calculations, that the
vessel had dragged over the Cable in a most favourable spot. It was 9·40
p.m., Greenwich time, and 765 fathoms had been got in, leaving little
more of the hempen tackle to be recovered, when a shackle came in and
passed through the machinery, and at the instant the hawser snapped as
it was drawn to the capstan, and, whistling through the air like a round
shot, would have carried death in its course through the crowded groups
on the bows, but for the determination with which the men at the
stoppers held on to them, and kept the murderous end straight in its
career, as it sped back to the Atlantic. It was scarcely to be hoped
that it had passed harmlessly away. Mr. Canning and others rushed
forward, exclaiming, “Is any one hurt?” ere the shout “It is gone!” had
subsided. The battle was over! Then the first thought was for the
wounded and the dead, and God be thanked for it, there were neither to
add to the grief of defeat. Nigh two miles more of iron coils, and wire,
and rope were added to the entanglement of the great labyrinth made by
the Great Eastern in the bed of the ocean. In a few seconds every man
knew the worst. The bow was deserted, and all came aft and set about
their duties. Mr. Clifford, with the end of a hempen hawser in his hand,
torn in twain as though it were a roll of brown paper--Mr. Canning
already recovered from the shock, and giving orders to stow away what
had come up from the sea--Captain Anderson directing the chief engineer
to get up steam, and prepare for an immediate start.
The result was signalled to the Terrible, which came down to us, and as
she was bound to St John’s to take in coals to enable her to return to
England, all who had business or friends in America prepared their
dispatches for her boat. The wind and sea were rising, as if anxious to
hurry us from the scene of the nine days’ struggle. The Great Eastern’s
head was already turned westwards. All were prompt to leave the spot
which soon would bear no mark of the night and day long labours--for the
buoys which whirled up and down and round in the seaway would probably
become waifs and strays on the ocean, and all that was left of the
expedition for a time were the entries in log books--“Lat. 51° 24´ Long.
38° 59´; end of Cable down N. 50 W. 1¾ mile”--and such memories as
animate men who, having witnessed brave fights with adverse fortune, are
encouraged thereby to persevere, in the sure conviction that the good
work will in the end be accomplished. It was wild and dark when
Lieutenant Prowse set off to regain his ship. The flash of a gun from
the Terrible to recall her cutter lighted up the gloom, and the glare of
an answering blue light, burned by the boat, revealed for an instant the
hull of the man-of-war on the heaving waters. There was a profound
silence on board the Big Ship. She struggled against the helm for a
moment as though she still yearned to pursue her course to the west,
then bowed her head to the angry sea in admission of defeat, and moved
slowly to meet the rising sun. The signal lanterns flashed from the
Terrible, “Farewell!” The lights from our paddle-box pierced the night,
“Good-by! Thank you,” in sad acknowledgment. Then each sped on her way
in solitude and darkness.
The progress of the undertaking excited the utmost interest, not only in
Great Britain, but over all the civilised world. Twice a day the
telegraph at Foilhummerum spread to all parts of the earth a brief
account of the doings of the Great Ship. Almost as soon as one of the
unexpected impediments which marred the successful issue of the
enterprise arose, the public were informed of it, and could mark on the
map the spot where sailor, engineer, and electrician were engaged in
their work on the bosom of the wide Atlantic ere their labours were
over. The Great Eastern’s position could be traced on the chart, and the
course of the Cable, in its unseen resting-place, could be followed from
day to day. The “faults” caused more surprise perhaps on shore than on
board, because those engaged in paying-out the Cable were re-assured by
the certainty with which the faults were detected, and the comparative
facility with which the Cable was taken up from the sea. Although the
various delays which occurred produced some discouragement and
uneasiness among those who had worked so hard and embarked so much in
the grand project, the ease with which communication was restored as
often as it was injured or interrupted by faults and dead earth,
inspired confidence in the eventual success of the attempt. But only
those actually witnesses of the wonderful facility with which the Cable
was paid out felt the conviction that the Cable could be laid. The
public only knew the general results, and did not appreciate properly
the nature of the difficulties to which the frustration of their hopes
was due. When the last fault occurred, the electricians at Valentia were
left without any precise indications of the nature of the obstruction,
or of the proceedings of those on board; but they actually calculated
within a few fathoms the exact locality of the injury; and when the end
of the Cable sank into the depths of the ocean, the practical wizards of
Foilhummerum could tell where it was to be found, though they could not
see and could not hear. When all communication ceased with the Great
Eastern no uneasiness was excited, because a similar event had occurred
before for many hours, and the ship spoke after all. But hour after hour
passed away on leaden wings, and day followed day, and the needle was
still, and the light moved not in the darkened chamber at Foilhummerum.
It may be conceived with what solicitude the men, in whose watchfulness
all the sleeping and waking world were interested, looked out for some
sign of the revival of the current in the dull veins of the subtle
mechanism.
The directors and shareholders of the two companies represented
something more than the enormous stake they had put in the undertaking.
Their feelings were shared by the mass of the people, and Her Majesty
was animated by the same solicitude as her subjects. For there had been
prophets of evil before the expedition sailed, and now their voices were
raised again, and found credence among those who distrusted the
magnificent ship which was then calmly breasting the billows of the
Atlantic--the envy of her guardians--as well as among the class whose
normal condition is despair of every scheme, good, useful, novel, or
great. The newspapers began to admit speculations and argumentative
letters into their columns, and although the original articles did not
indicate any apprehension of a catastrophe, it was evident the public
mind was becoming uneasy. The feeling increased. The correspondence
augmented in volume, and, let it be said, in wildness of conjecture and
unsoundness of premises and conclusions. Those who were inclined to
believe that the Great Eastern had gone to the bottom were comforted by
the reflection that the two men-of-war would save those who were on
board. Had they known that the Sphinx had disappeared, and that the
Great Eastern was much better able to help the Terrible, in a time of
watery trouble, than the Terrible would be to aid her, they would have
despaired indeed.
All the while those on board engaged in their work--grappling and
lifting, drifting and sailing--were enjoying themselves as far as the
uncertainty attendant on their work would allow them, and were in a
state of repose barely disturbed, as the time wore on, by surmises that
people at home might begin to entertain doubts as to what had become of
the expedition. Even these speculations would have had no agitating
influence had the electricians on board communicated with the shore
before they cut the end of the Cable on the last occasion. It would have
surprised and amused officers and crew if they could have known that the
vessel, which they were never tired of praising and admiring, was
pronounced by eminent engineers to need strengthening; that she had sunk
in the middle, or had fagged; or if they could have read confident
assertions that the grand fabric in which they were so comfortably
lodged and entertained and borne was unsafe and radically faulty; that
good authorities had declared she was hogged. Undoubtedly there were
grounds of anxiety, but none for anticipations and predictions of the
worst. It would not be fair to omit to mention that in some instances
the most correct and close conjectures were made concerning the position
of the ship and the work in which she was engaged, as well as the causes
of the long-continued silence. Several letters appeared, in which the
writers tried, with singular justice of reasoning, to stem the current
of alarm. The press generally abstained from any adverse speculations;
but it was rather behind the public feeling in that respect. It cannot
be denied that the news-agent who hailed the Great Eastern at Crookhaven
with the words, “We did not know what to make of you. Many think you
went down,” expressed the conviction of a great number of persons all
over the kingdom, on the 17th August.
Early on the morning of that day the Great Eastern came in sight of
land, and soon after 7 o’clock a.m. steamed into Crookhaven, to land a
few passengers and to communicate with the telegraph station at that
solitary and romantic spot. Ere noon the news of the safety of the ship
relieved many an anxious thought, silenced many a tongue and pen, and
dissipated many a gloomy apprehension. It may be said that the return
of the Great Eastern was a subject of national rejoicing. Every
newspaper in the kingdom contained articles on the topic. The narrative
of the voyage, which was written on board, and sent to all the principal
journals before the Great Eastern arrived at the Nore, so that the
public were at once placed in possession of every fact connected with
the proceedings, almost simultaneously, was read with the utmost
avidity, and when the facts were known, all men concurred in the justice
of the leading articles which, without exception of note, drew fresh
hopes of success from the record of the causes which led to the
interruption of the enterprise. The energy, skill, and resolution
displayed in the attempt to recover the Cable were admitted and praised
on all hands. But what most excited attention was the fact that the
Cable had actually been hooked three times at a depth of two nautical
miles, and carried up halfway to the top. The most sceptical were
convinced when they became aware of the hard material evidence on that
point. Next in point of interest perhaps was the conduct of the Great
Eastern herself. A great revulsion of sentiment took place in favour of
the vessel which had hitherto been unfortunate in her management, or in
the conditions under which she had been tried.
Whilst the most profound ignorance respecting the fate of the Great
Eastern prevailed, an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Atlantic
Telegraph Company was held on 8th August, in pursuance of a notice
issued on 24th July previous, to consider the expediency of converting
into Consolidated Eight per Cent. Preferential Stock the Eight per Cent.
Preferential Capital of the Atlantic Telegraph Company, consisting of
120,000 shares of 5_l._ each, and of converting into Ordinary
Consolidated Stock the whole of the Ordinary Share Capital, consisting
of 350 shares of the par value of 1000_l._, and 5,463 shares of the par
value of 20_l._, and to issue either in ordinary stock or in shares the
sum of 137,140_l._ of ordinary capital, authorised at the Extraordinary
General Meeting of March 31st, 1864, and agreed to be issued in
instalments fully paid up, to the contractors from time to time after
the successful completion of their contract.
The directors also gave notice that they intended to seek authority from
the shareholders to issue such amounts of new capital as may be required
for the construction and laying of a second Atlantic Telegraph Cable
under powers of their Act of Parliament, and to attach to such capital
such privileges and such advantages and conditions as might be
determined. The Right Hon. J. S. Wortley, chairman, who has exhibited
unshaken confidence and untiring energy in the post he occupies, had a
difficult task before him, but even then he could exhort his hearers to
courage and perseverance. As he well said, “But there are two things
from which we may derive considerable consolation. This great enterprise
has been the subject of discussion in every civilised nation in the
world. The eyes of science have been fixed upon it; and the acuteness of
criticism has been brought to bear on it. We have had our detractors,
and there have been sceptics; and what are the two main points on which
they have founded their scepticism? One is, that the great depth of
nearly three miles must bring extraordinary pressure on the Cable, must
injure it by perforating the covering, and must in fact destroy the
insulation. The other point was the impossibility, as they contended, of
communicating intelligible signals through so great a length, or ‘leap’
as they term it, as 1,600 miles. But we had a scientific committee, who
made experiments, and who assured themselves that there was nothing in
either of those objections; and now we have in addition the much more
practical and valuable proof of experience. What are the facts? Some
days before the interruption of the messages the Great Eastern passed
over the deepest portion of the ocean (with one slight exception) which
we have to traverse between Europe and America. She passed safely over a
depth of 2,400 fathoms, telegraphing perfect signals. This entirely
disproves and refutes the first objection and doubt which existed in the
minds of those sceptical gentlemen, because the Cable was laid in great
depths, varying from 1,500 to 2000, fathoms, and even in 2,400 fathoms;
and so far from the great pressure at that depth injuring the Cable, the
Company’s signals appear from their telegrams to have improved every
yard they went; and the signals through 2,400 fathoms of water were as
perfect as, if not more perfect than, those at a less depth. That is in
confirmation of the old Cable having worked at those depths. Then I say
that our scientific committee, and those who said that the pressure
would not have an injurious effect, have been fully borne out; and that
the result has proved that, so far from injuring it, pressure improves
the Cable. In spite of these facts, I see here a communication from a
gentleman to one of the public journals only yesterday, in which he
says, that looking at the pressure of a column of water equal to so many
atmospheres, it must destroy the Cable; and he adds with confidence,
that the Cable must be at the present moment a perfect wreck! And then
he says that the Company never made experiments to satisfy themselves
what this number of atmospheres would do to the Cable. He writes in
perfect ignorance, that the scientific committee has the means afforded
them by this Company of applying a weight of 6000lb. to the square inch;
but after having proceeded to a certain extent with that experiment, and
tried a very large amount of pressure, and finding that the Cable, so
far from deteriorating, was improved by the compression of its elements,
they thought it unnecessary to carry the experiments further. And now we
have the result to corroborate their views.”