CROSSING NEWFOUNDLAND.
There is nothing in the world easier than to build a line of railroad,
or of telegraph, _on paper_. You have only to take the map, and mark the
points to be connected, and then with a single sweep of the pencil to
draw the line along which the iron track is to run. In this airy flight
of the imagination, distances are nothing. A thousand leagues vanish at
a stroke. All obstacles disappear. The valleys are exalted, and the
hills are made low, soaring arches span the mountain streams, and the
chasms are leaped in safety by the fire-drawn cars.
Very different is it to construct a line of railroad or of telegraph in
reality; to come with an army of laborers, with axes on their shoulders
to cut down the forests, and with spades in their hands to cast up the
highway. Then poetry sinks to prose, and instead of flying over the
space on wings, one must traverse it on foot, slowly and with painful
steps. Nature asserts her power; and, as if resentful of the disdain
with which man in his pride affected to leap over her, she piles up new
barriers in his way. The mountains with their rugged sides cannot be
moved out of their place, the rocks must be cleft in twain, to open a
passage for the conqueror, before he can begin his triumphal march. The
woods thicken into an impassable jungle; and the morass sinks deeper,
threatening to swallow up the horse and his rider; until the rash
projector is startled at his own audacity. Then it becomes a contest of
forces between man and nature, in which, if he would be victorious, he
must fight his way. The barriers of nature cannot be lightly pushed
aside, but must yield at last only to time and toil, and "man's
unconquerable will."
Seldom have all these obstacles been combined in a more formidable
manner to obstruct any public work, than against the attempt to build a
telegraph line across the island of Newfoundland. The distance, by the
route to be traversed, was over four hundred miles, and the country was
a wilderness, an utter desolation. Yet through such a country, over
mountain and moor, through tangled brake and rocky gorge, over rivers
and through morasses, they were to build a road--not merely a line of
telegraph stuck on poles, but "a good and traversable bridle-road, eight
feet wide, with bridges of the same width," from end to end of the
island.
But nothing daunted, the new Company undertook the great work with
spirit and resolution. Gisborne had made a beginning, and got some
thirty or forty miles out of St. John's. This was the easiest part of
the whole route, being in the most inhabited region of the island. But
here he broke down, just where it was necessary to leave civilization
behind, and to plunge into the wilderness.
Intending to resume the work on a much larger scale, Mr. White, the
Vice-President, was sent down to St. John's to be the General Agent of
the Company; while Mr. Matthew D. Field, as a practical engineer, was to
have charge of the construction of the line. The latter soon organized a
force of six hundred men, which he pushed forward in detachments to the
scene of operations.
And now began to appear still more the difficulties of the way. To
provide subsistence for man and beast, it was necessary to keep near the
coast, for all supplies had to be sent round by sea. Yet in following
the coast line, they had to wind around bays, or to climb over
headlands. If they struck into the interior, they had to cut their way
through the dense and tangled wood. There was not a path to guide them,
not even an Indian trail. When lost in the forest, they had to follow
the compass, as much as the mariner at sea.
To keep such a force in the field, that, like an army, produced nothing,
but consumed fearfully, required constant attention to the commissary
department. The little steamer Victoria, which belonged to the Company,
was kept plying along the coast, carrying barrels of pork and potatoes,
kegs of powder, pickaxes and spades and shovels, and all the implements
of labor. These were taken up to the heads of the bays, and thence
carried, chiefly on men's backs, over the hills to the line of the road.
In many respects, it had the features of a military expedition. It moved
forward in a great camp. The men were sheltered in tents, when sheltered
at all, or in small huts which they built along the road. But more often
they slept on the ground. It was a wild and picturesque sight to come
upon their camp in the woods, to see their fires blazing at night while
hundreds of stalwart sleepers lay stretched on the ground. Sometimes,
when encamped on the hills, they could be seen afar off at sea. It made
a pretty picture then. But the hardy pioneers thought little of the
figure they were making, when they were exposed to the fury of the
elements. Often the rain fell in torrents, and the men, crouching under
their slight shelter, listened sadly to the sighing of the wind among
the trees, answered by the desolate moaning of the sea.
Yet in spite of all obstacles, the work went on. All through the long
days of summer, and through the months of autumn, every cove and creek
along that southern coast heard the plashing of their oars, and the
steady stroke of their axes resounded through the forest.
But as the season advanced, all these difficulties increased. For
nearly half the year, the island is buried in snow. Blinding drifts
sweep over the moors, and choke up the paths of the forest. How at such
times the expedition lay floundering in the woods, still struggling to
force its way onward; what hardships and sufferings the men endured--all
this is a chapter in the History of the Telegraph which has not been
written, and which can never be fully told. The
Gentlemen of England,
Who dwell at home at ease,
and who are justly proud of the extent of their dominions, and the life
and power which pervade the whole, may here find another example of the
way in which great works are borne forward in distant parts of their
empire.
But to carry out such an enterprise, requires head-work as well as
hand-work. Engineering in the field must be supported by financiering at
home. It was here the former enterprise broke down, and now it needed
constant watching to keep the wheels in steady motion. The directors in
New York found the demand increasing day by day. The minds which had
grasped the large design must now descend to an infinity of detail. They
had to keep an army of men at work, at a point a thousand miles away,
far beyond their immediate oversight. Drafts for money came thick and
fast. To provide for all these required constant attention. How
faithfully they gave to this enterprise, not only their money, but their
time and thought, few will know; but those who have seen can testify. In
the autumn of that year, 1854, the writer removed to the city of New
York, and was almost daily at the house of Mr. Field. Yet for months it
was hardly possible to go there of an evening without finding the
library occupied by the Company. Indeed, so uniformly was this the case,
that "The Telegraph" began to be regarded by the family as an unwelcome
intruder, since it put an interdict on the former social evenings and
quiet domestic enjoyment. The circumstance shows the ceaseless care on
the part of the directors which the enterprise involved. As a witness of
their incessant labor, it is due to them to bear this testimony to their
patience and their fidelity.
When they began the work, they hoped to carry the line across
Newfoundland in one year, completing it in the summer of 1855. In
anticipation of this, Mr. Field was sent by the Company to England at
the close of 1854, to order a cable to span the Gulf of St. Lawrence, to
connect Cape Ray with the island of Cape Breton. This was his first
voyage across the ocean on the business of the Telegraph--to be followed
by more than forty others. In London he met for the first time Mr. John
W. Brett, with whom he was to be afterward connected in the larger
enterprise of the Atlantic Telegraph. Mr. Brett was the father of
submarine telegraphy in Europe, though in carrying out his first
projects he was largely indebted to Mr. Crampton, a well-known engineer
of London, who aided him both with advice and capital. With this
invaluable assistance, he had stretched two lines across the British
channel. From his success in passing these waters, he believed a line
might yet be stretched from continent to continent. The scientific men
of England were not generally educated up to that point. The bare
suggestion was received with a smile of incredulity.[A] But Mr. Brett
had faith, even at that early day, and entered heartily into the schemes
of Mr. Field. To show his interest, he afterward took a few shares in
the Newfoundland line--the only Englishman who had any part in this
preliminary work.
The summer came, and the work in Newfoundland, though not complete, was
advancing; and the cable in England was finished and shipped on board
the bark Sarah L. Bryant to cross the sea. Anticipating its arrival, the
Company chartered a steamer to go down to Newfoundland to assist in its
submersion across the Gulf of St. Lawrence. As yet they had no
experience in the business of laying a submarine telegraph, and did not
doubt that the work could be accomplished with the greatest ease. It was
therefore to be an excursion of pleasure as well as of business, and
accordingly they invited a large party to go with them to witness the
unaccustomed spectacle.
As we chanced to be among the guests, we have the best reason to
remember it. Seldom has a more pleasant party been gathered for any
expedition. Representing the Company were Mr. Field, Mr. Peter Cooper,
Mr. Robert W. Lowber, and Professor Morse; while among the invited
guests were gentlemen of all professions--clergymen, doctors and
lawyers, artists and editors. In the groups on the deck were the
venerable Dr. Gardiner Spring and Rev. J. M. Sherwood; Dr. Lewis A.
Sayre, Bayard Taylor, the well-known traveller, Mr. Fitz-James O'Brien,
and Mr. John Mullaly--the three latter gentlemen representing leading
papers of New York.[B] Besides these, the party included a large number
of ladies, who gave life and animation to the company.
Well does the writer recall the morning of departure--the seventh day of
August, 1855. Never did a voyage begin with fairer omens. It was a
bright summer day. The sky was clear, and the water smooth. We were on
the deck of the good ship James Adger, long known as one of the fine
steamers belonging to the Charleston line. She was a swift ship, and cut
the water like an arrow. Thus we sped down the bay, and turning into the
ocean, skimmed along the shores of Long Island. The sea was tranquil as
a lake. The whole party were on deck, scattered in groups here and
there, watching the sails and the shore. A rude telegraph instrument
furnished entertainment and instruction, especially as we had Professor
Morse to explain his marvellous invention, which some who listened then
for the first time understood.
At Halifax, several of us left the ship, and came across Nova Scotia,
passing through that lovely region of Acadia which Longfellow has
invested with such tender interest in his poem of Evangeline. Thence we
crossed the Bay of Fundy to St. John in New Brunswick, and returned by
way of Portland.
The James Adger went on to Newfoundland, steering first for Port au
Basque, near Cape Ray, where they hoped to meet the bark which was to
come from England with the cable on board. To their disappointment, it
had not arrived. Mr. Canning, the engineer who was to lay the cable, had
come out by steamer, and was on hand, but the bark was not to be seen.
Having to wait several days, and wishing to make the most of their time,
they sailed for St. John's, where they were received by the Provincial
Government and the people with unbounded hospitality, after which they
returned to Port au Basque, and were now rejoiced to discover the little
bark hidden behind the rocks. It was decided to land the cable in Cape
Ray Cove. After a day or two's delay in getting the end to the shore,
they started to cross the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the Adger towing the
bark. The sea was calm, and though they were obliged to move slowly, yet
all promised well, till they were about half-way across, when a gale
arose, which pitched the bark so violently, that with its unwieldy bulk
it was in great danger of sinking. After holding on for hours in the
vain hope that it would abate, the captain cut the cable to save the
bark; and thus, after they had paid out forty miles, it was hopelessly
lost, and the Adger returned to New York.
This loss was owing partly to the severity of the gale, and partly to
the fact that the bark which had the cable on board was wholly unfitted
for the purpose. It was a sailing-vessel, and had to be towed by another
ship. In this way it was impossible to regulate its motion. It was too
fast or too slow. It was liable to be swayed by the sea, now giving a
lurch ahead, and now dragging behind. Experience showed that a cable
should always be laid from a steam vessel which could regulate its own
motion, running out freely when all went smoothly, and checking its
speed instantly when it was necessary to ease up the strain, or to pay
out more slack to fill up the hollows of the sea.
This first loss of a submarine cable was a severe disappointment to the
Company. It postponed the enterprise for a whole year. To make a new
cable would require several months, and the season was so far advanced
that it could not be laid before another summer. Was it strange if some
of the little band began to ask if they had not lost enough, and to
reason that it was better to stop where they were, than to go on still
farther, casting their treasures into the sea?
But there was in that little company a spirit of hope and determination
that could not be subdued; that ever cried: "Once more unto the breach,
good friends!" After some deliberation, it was resolved to renew the
attempt. Mr. Field again sailed for England to order another cable,
which was duly made and sent out the following summer. This time, warned
by experience, the Company invited no party and made no display. The
cable was placed on board a steamer fitted for the purpose; from which
it was laid without accident, and remained in perfect working order for
nine years.
Meanwhile the work on land had been pushed forward without ceasing.
After incredible labor, the Company had built a road and a telegraph
from one end of Newfoundland to the other, four hundred miles; and, as
if that were not enough, had built also another line, one hundred and
forty miles in length, in the island of Cape Breton. The first part of
their work was now done. The telegraph had been carried beyond the
United States through the British Provinces to St. John's in
Newfoundland, a distance from New York of over one thousand miles.
The cost of the line, thus far, had been about a million of dollars, and
of this the whole burden, with but trifling exceptions, had fallen upon
the original projectors--Mr. Field having put in over two hundred
thousand dollars in money--and Mr. Cooper, Mr. Taylor, and Mr. Roberts
each a little less. No other contributors beyond the six original
subscribers had come, except Professor Morse, Mr. Robert W. Lowber, Mr.
Wilson G. Hunt, and Mr. John W. Brett. The list of directors and
officers remained as it was at first, except that this year, 1856, Mr.
White died, and his place as director was filled by Mr. Hunt, and that
Mr. Field was chosen Vice-President, and Mr. Lowber Secretary. In all
the operations of the Company thus far, the various negotiations, the
plan of the work, the oversight of its execution, and the correspondence
with the officers and others, mainly devolved upon Mr. Field.
And so at length, after two long and weary years, these bold projectors
had accomplished half their work. They had passed over the land, and
under the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and having reached the farthest point of
the American coast, they now stood upon the cliffs of Newfoundland,
looking off upon the wide sea.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] One or two exceptions there were, not to be forgotten. Professor
William Thomson, of the University of Glasgow, then a young man, but
full of the enthusiasm of science, was already prepared to welcome such
a project, with confidence of success. As early as October and November,
1854, he wrote to the Secretary of the Royal Society of London,
declaring his belief in its practicability. The letters are published in
the Proceedings of the Royal Society for 1855. Such faith was not
visionary, for it was based on clearer knowledge and more thorough
investigation, and gave promise of those eminent services which this
gentleman was afterwards to render to the cause of electrical science.
Mr. C. F. Varley, also, was one of the first to perceive the possibility
of an ocean telegraph, as he was to contribute greatly to its final
success.
[B] The letters of Mr. Taylor, which first appeared in The New York
Tribune have been since collected in one of his volumes of travel. Mr.
O'Brien, a very brilliant writer, who afterward fell in our civil war,
fighting bravely for his adopted country, furnished some spirited
letters to The Times. But Mr. Mullaly, who appeared for The Herald, was
the most persevering attendant on the Telegraph, and the most
indefatigable correspondent. He accompanied not only this expedition,
but several others. He was on board the Niagara in 1857, and again in
both the expeditions of 1858; and on the final success of the cable,
prepared a volume, which was published by the Appletons, giving a
history of the enterprise. This contains the fullest account of all
those expeditions which has been given to the public. I have had
frequent occasion to refer to his book, and can bear witness to the
interest of the narrative. It is written with spirit, and doubtless
would have had a longer life, if the cable itself had not come to an
untimely end.